Certainty vs. Complexity in ‘Conclave’–And Our Church

James E. Porter

Bondings 2.0 is happy to present the following article from guest contributor James E. Porter.  Professor Porter (PhD, University of Detroit) is a professor at Miami University (Ohio), where he teaches courses in rhetoric, ethics, and technology. His interest in Catholic theology, arising from his Catholic education and background, focuses on the alignments between the Gospel message, Catholic doctrine, and contemporary culture.

SPOILER ALERT: The following article discusses critical plot twists of the movie Conclave.

As might be expected, the conservative Catholic media has panned the film Conclave as yet another instance of anti-Catholic propaganda produced by secular humanist Hollywood liberals: “a blasphemous film, which completely misaligns with our values and mocks the Church” (Missio Dei); “anti-Catholic propaganda posing as film” (The Catholic World Report). But actually, nothing in the film is “contrary to Church teaching,” as one hostile review insisted. The film stays within the realm of Church law and teaching, but explores an interesting gap in that law. And it’s a gap that is of relevance to LGBTQ+ persons hoping for recognition from the Church. More on that point momentarily.

The movie begins with the death of the current (fictional) pope, and then tracks the process by which the College of Cardinals elects his successor. Conclave shows the cardinals to be flawed men, yes, sinners, yes, but ultimately mostly with good intentions and a serious concern for the future of the Church. However, the movie is likely to offend the conservative cult of certainty: that is, the belief that there are clear and unambiguous answers to all questions of morality and faith, and, its corollary, that uncertainty is a weakness, a sign of moral decrepitude and of “wokeness,” a liberal flaw. When giving his homily on the opening day of the conclave, the main character in the movie, Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes), the dean of the College of Cardinals, says that the greatest threat to the Church is certainty—a clear slap at conservative ideology. The cardinal says:

“[In his Letter to the Ephesians] Paul reminds us that God’s gift to the Church is its variety … There is one sin which I have come to fear above all others—certainty. Certainty is the great enemy of unity, certainty is the deadly enemy of tolerance.”

Ralph Fiennes as Cardinal Thomas Lawrence in ‘Conclave.’

Here Lawrence comes out of the theological closet and establishes his stance firmly in what the movie calls “the liberal camp.” Uncertainty about moral questions, doubts about one’s faith, willingness to tolerate differences—these are virtues, not flaws; these are qualities to be valued, or at least accepted, certainly not feared. 

 Conclave is opposed to a certain form of thinking that prefers moral certainty over ambiguity, clear and unambiguous definitions and rules, and stringent and inflexible judgment about right and wrong, good and evil. Should homosexuality be a sin? Should gays and lesbians be allowed to receive the sacrament of marriage? Why can’t women be ordained as priests? The movie does not take up any of these issues in a serious way, but it does explore a different kind of complexity, and opens the door, if ever so slightly, to acknowledge the complexity of sexuality.

SPOILER ALERT: Do not read further if you have not viewed the movie.

Conclave has two surprise endings.

The first surprise is that a newly appointed cardinal from Kabul, Afghanistan, formerly an archbishop from Mexico, Cardinal Benitez (Carlos Diehz), wins the papal election—someone not even on the original list of electors.  

The second surprise is that Cardinal Lawrence finds out Cardinal Benitez had visited a sex change clinic in Switzerland. When Lawrence asks Benitez about this “situation,” the latter explains that he grew up as a male, has a penis, but discovered later in life, during an appendix operation after his ordination as a priest, that he also had a uterus and ovaries. In other words, he is an intersex person, someone born with chromosomal and/or biological traits that are traditionally understood to be male and female traits. Some of these traits might be evident at birth, but sometimes the traits, or the knowledge of them, do not emerge until much later,, as in Cardinal Benitez’ case. The cardinal contemplated having surgery to remove the uterus and ovaries, but decided against it when he realized that his “situation” was part of God’s plan.

Carlos Diehz as Cardinal Benitez in ‘Conclave.’

Some would argue, some conservatives have argued, that Cardinal Benitez should not even be a priest—because, according to Church law, priests must be male. True, but Cardinal Benitez is male—ergo, he is qualified to be a priest. The complexity is that he is not only male.  

Could an intersex person become pope? In an interview with America magazine, Dr. Kurt Martens, a canon law professor at Catholic University of America, said that “canon law says nothing about intersex people.” In a conversation about the movie published in The Hollywood Reporter, David Gibson, Director of the Center on Religion and Culture at Fordham University, said: “When I thought about, ‘Is this whole thing feasible?’ I thought, ‘Maybe, sort of.’ It’s very far-fetched and improbable.’” In another, later interview with GQ, Gibson clarified the point: “Yes, an intersex person could be elected pope, just as there have undoubtedly been gay men elected pope.”

Maybe we start by asking, How do we know it hasn’t happened already? The legend of Pope Joan suggests that such a thing is possible. Pope Joan was a woman who disguised herself as a priest, was then appointed a cardinal, eventually being elected pope sometime around 850, taking on the name John. Up until the 1600s there was a statue of her alongside other popes in the Siena Cathedral. She was eventually dismissed (or killed or jailed?) when she bore a child, which exposed her gender. Pope Joan was accepted as historical reality until the 15th century when Church historians began to question her existence. In 1601, Pope Clement VIII declared the legend of Pope Joan to be false. But the fact of the legend reveals that the thing is in the realm of possibility. How would we know?

The turtle at the ed of ‘Conclave’

Earlier in the movie we saw that Lawrence has the power and the will to influence the conclave’s decisions; he has no hesitation about speaking his mind. However, in the case of Cardinal Benitez, Lawrence does, and says, nothing. He lets the election stand and the consecration proceed. In the next-to-last scene Lawrence rescues a lost turtle from the floor of a Vatican plaza and gently puts the turtle back in the pond it came from—the turtle being an animal that is known to be able to choose its sex, or indeed to choose both sexes. 

The final words of the movie are spoken not by Lawrence but by the newly-elected Pope Innocent (Benitez): “I am what God made me. And perhaps it is my difference that will make me more useful. … I know what it is to exist between the world’s certainties.” These are the last words spoken in the movie: Between the world’s certainties.

There is a message of comfort here for those that live between the world’s certainties, in non-heteronormative, non-cisgendered spaces. There is uncertainty, diversity, ambiguity, and variation—in life, in ethics, in gender and sexuality, and, yes, even in Church procedures and regulations. The main message of the movie—the message sent to us through Cardinal Lawrence—is that a mature, capable Church should be strong enough and adaptable enough to embrace uncertainty, diversity, and variety, rather than fearing and rejecting it. Certainty is the sin we should fear most. 

Is that anti Catholic? Certainly not. Is this pro LGBTQ+? Well, implicitly, yes. Conclave affirms the mystery aspect of faith and acknowledges a space for diversity and sexual complexity even in the Church’s strictest and most traditional practices.

–James E. Porter, Oxford, Ohio, April 21, 2025

FURTHER READING:

Bondings 2.0:  James E. Porter: ‘Antiqua et nova’: Implications for the LGBTQ+ Community

Bondings 2.0:  Ariell Watson Simon: Can the ‘Conclave’ Plot Twist Happen in Real Life?

Bondings 2.0: Ariell Watson Simon: An Intersex Filmmaker’s Perspective on ‘Conclave’