Benedict’s death should now make it easier to back out Francis and the church itself, which is already grappling with the fact that it has “two popes”, wrote Reuters news agency. And if Francis had stepped down before his predecessor’s death, there might even have been three popes in the Vatican – two emeritus and one office.

Benedict’s death could also prompt the current pope to reconsider the rule should candidates decide to vacate their office due to old age or ill health.

Francis is now 86 years old, a year older than Benedict when he left the papacy. Even though he needed a cane and a wheelchair, he did not slack off in his program. He has a trip planned to Africa this month and to Portugal in August. But he made it clear he would not hesitate to step down if his mental or physical health prevented him from leading the church of 1.3 billion people.

In a July interview with Reuters, František dismissed rumors of an imminent resignation. “It never crossed my mind,” he said at the time, denying speculation that he had cancer. The previous month, Catholic and some secular media outlets found themselves in a maelstrom of unsubstantiated reports and tweets that the Pope had been out of office for several months.

However, as the ten-year anniversary of his election approaches in March and František is about to enter the ninth decade of his life in four years, the chances of his resignation are increasing.

Which rule to choose?

According to church law, the pope can resign if he does so without outside pressure. This action was intended to prevent the influence of the papacy that had occurred in previous centuries.

With average life expectancy increasing, the possibility of a papal resignation is no longer a possibility, and there have been repeated calls from church leaders for the role of the emeritus pope to be defined.

Francis told a Spanish newspaper last month that he had no intention of determining the legal status of the resigning pope. However, he had previously personally suggested that such a rule could be written by Vatican officials.

George Pell, a conservative Australian cardinal and close associate of Benedict, wrote that the pope must retain the title of pope emeritus after resigning, but must also return to the title of cardinal. He would therefore be addressed as “Cardinal (surname), Pope Emeritus”.

Pell also said that former popes should not wear white, as Benedict did. In his opinion, it is important for Catholics to clearly understand that “there is only one pope”.

Academics and canon lawyers from Italy’s University of Bologna who have investigated the matter say the church cannot take risks even if it appears to have “two heads or two kings”. They therefore proposed a set of rules under which the resigning pope would not revert to the cardinal title, as Pell had proposed, and would be addressed as “Bishop Emeritus of Rome”.

In July, František told Reuters news agency that he wanted to be called that. In such a case, no new law is needed, as the existing rules for retired bishops will apply to him.

According to these rules, emeritus bishops must “avoid any attitude and relationship which could even suggest any parallel authority with that of the diocesan bishop, which would have dangerous consequences for pastoral life and the unity of the diocesan community”.

Francis wants to live in Rome

Despite Benedict’s resignation, he wrote, giving interviews and – knowingly or unknowingly – setting the benchmark for opponents of Pope Francis, either for doctrinal reasons or because they do not like to give up the clerical privileges that the current pope wants to abolish.

Francis told Reuters he would not stay in the Vatican or return to his native Argentina, but would live a simple life in a retired priest’s home in the Italian capital “because this is my diocese”. He also said that he wanted to live near a large church and spend his last days in confession.