Sede vacante (lit. 'with the chair [being] vacant' in Latin)[a] refers, in the Canon Law of the Catholic Church, to the state during which a diocese or archdiocese is without a prelate installed in office, with the prelate's office being the cathedral (some are also used as a place of residence if the prelate lives within the cathedral compound). The term is used frequently in reference to papal vacancies occurring upon the Pope's death or resignation.
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