Unity' could turn divisive for cardinals electing new Pope

Even before Pope Francis was entombed in a Rome basilica on Saturday, conservative cardinals who felt his pontificate was a divisive disaster that endangered the church's traditions had begun politicking to sway the conclave electing the next pope.

- JASON HOROWITZ

They have a simple slogan: unity. It is hard to imagine a less offensive rallying cry, but in the ears of Francis' most committed supporters, it rings as a code word for rolling back Francis' more inclusive vision of the Roman Catholic Church.

The concerns are a clear sign of the maneuvering by ideological camps that is already taking place among the cardinals as their shared mourning gives way to the looming task of voting for Francis' successor in the conclave, which is expected to begin the first week of May.