Underscoring the geographical diversity of his selections, Pope Francis named 15 cardinal electors “from 14 nations of every continent, showing the inseparable link between the church of Rome and the particular churches present in the world.” The pope announced the names on Jan. 4 and said he would formally induct the men into the College of Cardinals on Feb. 14. With these selections, the pope continues giving gradually more representation at the highest levels of the church to the poorer countries in the global south. The new cardinals will include the first in history from Cape Verde, Tonga and Myanmar. Three of the new cardinal electors hail from Asia, three from Latin America, two from Africa and two from Oceania. Of the five Europeans on the list, three lead dioceses in Italy and Spain that have not traditionally had cardinals as bishops—another sign of Pope Francis’ willingness to break precedent. None of the new cardinals hails from the United States or Canada.
Pope Names 15 Cardinals
Show Comments (
)
Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.
The latest from america
President Trump offered a vibrant demonstration of the kind of worst-case scenario Pope Leo may have had in mind about the collapse of critical thinking.
In his first appointment of a top-level official of the Roman Curia, Pope Leo XIV named Sister Tiziana Merletti, a canon lawyer, to be secretary of the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.
“We were once leaders in petroleum and gas research; now we’re becoming leaders in green hydrogen and carbon capture. This isn’t just a technological shift; it’s a spiritual one.”
A cardinal reflects on his experience of the conclave