Cardinals At Vatican Ahead Of Pope Election

Cardinals from around the world have gathered inside the Vatican for their first round of meetings before the conclave to elect the next pope.

The Vatican said 103 of the 115 electors had arrived, while the other dozen are en route. The dean of the College of Cardinals has said a date for the conclave will not be set until all cardinals have arrived.

Among the first orders of business was the oath of secrecy each cardinal made, pledging to maintain "rigorous secrecy with regard to all matters in any way related to the election of the Roman Pontiff".

The college of cardinals also agreed to send Benedict XVI a message on behalf of the group - the text of which is still being worked on.

The core agenda item is to set the date for the conclave and set in place procedures to prepare for it, including closing the Sistine Chapel to visitors and getting the Vatican hotel cleared out and de-bugged, to avoid anyone trying to listen in on the secret conversations of the cardinals.

The first day of discussion was again hit by revelations of scandal, with Scottish Cardinal Keith O'Brien admitting that he had engaged in sexual misconduct not befitting a priest, archbishop or cardinal.

O'Brien last week resigned as archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh and said he would not participate in the conclave after four men came forward with allegations that he had acted inappropriately with them.

It is the first time a cardinal has stayed away from a conclave because of personal scandal.

Separately, the Vatican is still reeling from the fallout of the scandal over leaked papal documents, and the investigation by three cardinals into who was behind it.

Another topic facing the cardinals is the reason they are meeting in the first place.

Benedict's resignation goes against the accepted concept of the papacy, and cardinals haven't shied from weighing in about the implications for the next pope.