After Sunday’s Angelus, the pope gave some surprising news.
POPE FRANCIS
“This coming 28 November, on the eve of the first Sunday of Advent, I will hold a Consistory for the appointment of 13 new Cardinals.”
Of these, nine cardinals are under 80 years of age, therefore, are eligible voters in case of a possible conclave. The rest are over 80 years of age and not able to vote in the event of a papal election.
One of them is the Bishop of Washington, Wilton Gregory. He is the first African-American cardinal.
Another is the first cardinal of Brunei, Cornelius Sim. He is the Vicar Apostolic of this sultanate.
Also on the list is the Maltese Mario Grech, Secretary-General of the Synod of Bishops, and the Rwandan Antoine Kambanda, Archbishop of Kigali.
The country with the most appointed cardinals is Italy, with six. Three of them are electors:
These include Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints;
Augusto Lojudice, Archbishop of Siena
and Friar Mauro Gambetti, guardian of the Convent of Assisi. This is how they received the news in their convent.
The other three Italians on the list are over 80 years old.
They are Nuncio Silvano Tomasi, who represented the Vatican at the United Nations in Geneva and took care of important missions;
Rainiero Cantalamessa, who has been a preacher of the Papal House since 1980...
...and the priest Enrico Feroci, who was director of Caritas Rome.
The pope has also appointed José Advincula, Archbishop of Capiz in the Philippines.
Also appointed were: Celestino Aos, Archbishop of Santiago de Chile, born in Navarra, Spain, and Mexican Felipe Arizmendi Esquivel, Bishop of San Cristobal de las Casas, in Chiapas, who turned 80 years old in May.
Only time will tell if the consistory to hand over the biretta will be held in St. Peter’s Basilica or if the nuncios will hand over the purple garments on behalf of the pope in their own countries.
Javier Martínez-Brocal
Translation: Christian Campos
