Workers and clerics assisting the dozens of Catholic cardinals set to gather Wednesday to begin voting on the next pope had to swear to never reveal anything about the proceedings or else risk the Church’s gravest punishment: religious banishment. The employees took their oaths in the Papal Chapel.

Cleaners and cooks. Doctors and nurses. Even drivers and elevator operators. The support staff for the cardinals who will elect the successor to Pope Francis took an oath of secrecy Monday ahead of the conclave that’s starting on Wednesday.

Support staff for the cardinals who will elect Pope Francis' successor are taking an oath of secrecy on Monday before the conclave starts on Wednesday.

Gibson, of Fordham, said another factor that might throw off the traditional resistance to an American pope is the election of President Donald Trump. Some cardinals might want a pope from the United States to confront Trump on issues such as immigration and aid for the poor.

The Vatican on Monday said all of the 133 Catholic cardinals who will vote to choose a successor to Pope Francis are now in Rome ahead of the conclave starting this week. According to the Vatican, the cardinals will gather in secret in the Sistine Chapel starting at 4:30 pm (1430 GMT) on Wednesday.

The Catholic Church's cardinals on Tuesday are holding their last talks, both at their final general congregation and informally in the corridors of the Vatican, before the Conclave to elect Pope Francis's successor starts on Wednesday.

As cardinals prepare for the largest papal conclave in history, battle lines are being drawn over the direction of the church.

Pope Francis appointed women to key Vatican posts. Will his successor consider women as deacons and priests next?