Even Non-SDA's understand what the Catholic Church is (as seen in the post below) a Genuine Little Horn Power. (a horn in Prophecy represents a governing entity-a nation state). I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, .... in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things. Daniel 7:8
"The Catholic Church is the only religion headquartered in an autonomous country. The sovereignty of the Holy See – the name of the government of both the Vatican City State and the worldwide Church – provides criminal and civil immunity from any other authority to Vatican residents and government officials.
The Vatican has immense wealth. How it is earned, how it is spent, who profits remain hidden because it is shielded by self-rule. Vatican officials’ access to global financial markets is facilitated by its status as a sovereign city/state.
As officials of an independent nation, a pope and his appointees have access to, and some influence in, many international organizations.
So there is much at stake in choosing the next pontiff, the absolute
dictator of the Holy See. There will be another conclave some time after the cardinal/electors are able to safely convene when the pandemic has subsided. In a recent interview, Pope Francis indicated how long he expected his pontificate to last. Speaking about some routine medical tests, he said the doctors “were inclined to have me do a test every five years, but I told them: let’s do it annually. You never know,” he told a reporter for the Adnkronos news agency." OT