Cardinal Angelo Scola turns 80 years old. Because of his age, he can no longer be a cardinal elector, which means that he cannot vote in conclaves to elect future popes.
The Cardinal has close ties to the Communion and Liberation movement. He was the Patriarch of Venice and Archbishop of Milan, where he was from 2011 to 2017.
He was one of the top candidates in the 2013 conclave, which saw Pope Francis elected as St. Peter's successor.
Cardinal Angelo Scola was a close advisor of Pope John Paul II. He was in charge of the anthropology department at the John Paul II Pontifical Institute. Its focus was marriage and the family.
CARD. ANGELO SCOLA
“Marriage is not in crisis today. What is in crisis is the profound understanding of who man is. We are in need of the patient work of witnessing. There are fantastic marriages. One of the most beautiful things that has happened to me since I became a bishop and started visiting parishes, is when an elderly couple told me, 'We have been married for 50, no, 70 years.' Always with a smile. People don't know what they're missing.”
Cardinal Scola is also very active on social media, where he shares reflections and memories. On his birthday, he posted this nostalgic picture from 1960, from his final course before starting college.
His birthday this year leaves the number of cardinal electors at 120, and Cardinal Angelo Scola becomes one of the 97 non-electors.
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