More cardinals from more countries than ever will gather in the Sistine Chapel starting Wednesday to choose a new pope at a precarious time for the church.

Mr. Buffett won renown and made billions as one of the most successful stock pickers of all time. Mr. Abel’s strengths lie more in running businesses.

Beyond the politics is a brew of resentment and reverence that the president, an Ivy League graduate himself, has long harbored for a club that has never accepted him.