Despite Pope Francis remaining hospitalized in Rome, the pontiff is still very much in charge of the Catholic Church. Still, Francis' hospital stay is raising obvious questions about what happens if he loses consciousness for a prolonged period or whether he might follow in Pope Benedict XVI's footsteps and resign if he becomes unable to lead.

THE Pope wrote his resignation letter 12 years ago in case he became too ill to fulfil the holy role as he remains in a ‘critical’ state in hospital. The Pontiff has spent 10 nights in

Canon law states that a pope can resign, but it stipulates that the papal resignation must be “made freely and properly manifested”—conditions that would be difficult to ascertain if a pope were already incapacitated.

Pope Francis has come down with a serious illness that could potentially force him to resign, but who would succeed him?

Time-honored rituals, drafted and refined over centuries, allow time for mourning and provide order at a dramatic moment of transition.