CARDINALS are preparing for the start of an historic conclave to elect a new pope after Benedict XVI's shock resignation, with the odds favouring a Western conservative to lead the Catholic world.
At a grandiose mass in St Peter's Basilica the cardinals prayed for unity in the Church - a stark reminder of the infighting that often overshadowed Benedict's eight-year pontificate.
The 115 scarlet-robed cardinals burst into thunderous applause when the dean of the College of Cardinals, Angelo Sodano, publicly thanked the "beloved and venerable" Benedict in his homily.
As the cardinals prepared for the conclave, rainstorms drenched thousands of pilgrims watching the momentous event on four giant screens in St Peter's Square.
One barefoot man in a sackcloth habit knelt on the cobblestones in the pouring rain and was joined by another pilgrim who bowed his head in prayer, as a hymn echoed across the square.
The Princes of the Church will be cut off from the outside world inside the Vatican walls until they have made their choice in a centuries-old ritual - much of it carried out in Latin.
They took to Twitter to say their goodbyes to their online flock before the conclave, where jamming devices will block any communications.
"Last tweet before conclave: May Our Father hear and answer with love and mercy all prayers and sacrifices offered for fruitful outcome. God bless!" South African cardinal Wilfrid Napier said.
The cardinals have to swear not to reveal anything about their talks on pain of excommunication.
They will enter the Sistine Chapel in a procession under Michelangelo's famous frescoes starting at 1530 GMT (0230 AEST), chanting to invoke divine guidance.
The cardinals are then set to hold a first round of voting after which the ballots will be burnt in a special stove in the chapel.
The smoke famously turns white if there is a new pope but the Vatican has already said it expects the smoke from the burning of Tuesday's ballots to be black, indicating no pope has been elected.
Among the candidates, three have emerged as favourites - Italy's Angelo Scola, Brazil's Odilo Scherer and Canada's Marc Ouellet - all of them conservatives like "Pope Emeritus" Benedict XVI.
But there are more names in the rumour mill including cardinals from Austria, Hungary, Mexico, the Philippines, South Africa and the United States.
Bookmakers said Scola was the favourite, followed by Ghana's Peter Turkson and Scherer.
Irish bookmaker Paddy Power and Britain's William Hill said Scola's chances had improved dramatically and both gave the Milan archbishop odds of 9/4 to be the next pope.
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