Conclave, the movie

The movie Conclave is a blatant and unashamed mockery of one of the most sacred assemblies in the Catholic Church—the gathering of Cardinals to elect a Pope. Though the producers claim that the film is fictional and not intended to antagonize any religious denomination, it is, in reality, a direct attack on the Church. The very use of Catholic imagery, prayers, and rituals demonstrates that this film deliberately targets Catholics, as no other religious group holds a conclave to elect a Pope.

The film portrays the papal election process in a highly distorted and offensive manner, depicting the Cardinals as engaged in bitter power struggles rather than a prayerful and solemn discernment of God’s will. The introduction of a fictional Afghan Cardinal, to whom they ascribe radical liberal views, serves as a vehicle for imposing modern ideological narratives onto the Church. The climax of the film—where, after failing to find a suitable candidate, the Cardinals elect the Afghan Cardinal, only to later discover that he is a transgender individual—reduces the sacred process to a crude satire. This is nothing short of a direct and malicious attack on the Church’s most revered traditions.

Would such a film ever be made about the election of a successor to a spiritual leader in Iran or another Islamic authority? It would neither gain funding nor find a theater willing to screen it. Yet, when the target is the Catholic Church, such an offensive portrayal is not only tolerated but even celebrated—evidenced by its nomination for an Oscar. This is a scurrilous and disgraceful attempt to tarnish the Church’s image under the guise of fiction.