Pope Francis announces the names of 20 new cardinals

04 gennaio 2015

2 min di lettura

(AGI) Vatican City, Jan. 4 - Pope Francis announced the namesof 20 new cardinals on Sunday, whom he will raise to thedignity of the Cardinalate on February 14, 2015, during hissecond Consistory. Fifteen, of whom only two Italians, both ofwhom are archbishops with no cardinalatial see but bearcredible testimony to the Gospel: Edoardo Menichelli of Anconaand Francesco Montenegro of Agrigento. Five cardinals are over80 years old and will not be in the Conclave because of theirage but will equally be among the Pope's advisors. Among theseis the elderly Sardinian-born Luigi de Magistris, who served asPro-Major Penitentiary and who was not appointed cardinalbecause of his disagreement with Pope John Paul II'scanonisations. Even if Italy, with three new cardinals, remainsthe most represented country in the College of Cardinals, whichcomprises 51 cardinals and 26 cardinal electors, and the namesannounced on Sunday do little to change the percentages in aneventual Conclave, the nominations nonetheless confirm theadvance of Asia, Africa and Oceania in Pope Francis' Church.There are three more cardinal electors from Asia, two more fromAfrica and two more from Oceania, which means that the numberof cardinal electors from those regions are more than doubledbecause, up to now, there was only George Pell, the ArchbishopEmeritus of Sydney and newly appointed super-Minister ofFinance of the Vatican State. At present, the College ofCardinals represents 5 continents with 73 countries, 56 ofwhich have cardinal electors. To date, cardinal electors are125, 103 of whom are over 80. In their geographicaldistribution, Europe is first with 119 cardinals, 57 of whomare electors, followed by North America with 27 cardinalsincluding 18 electors, Central America with 8 cardinalsincluding 6 electors, South America with 26 cardinals including12 electors, Africa with 21 cardinals including 15 electors,Asia with 22 cardinals including 14 electors and Oceania with 5cardinals including 3 electors. During the Angelus prayer, PopeFrancis expressed his hope "that the exploitation of man by manwould be overcome". Recalling the message on World Peace Day on'Breaking the Invisible Chains of Slavery', Pope Francis wenton to say: "This exploitation is a social plague that mortifiesinterpersonal relations and impedes a life of communionimprinted with respect, justice and charity". (AGI) . .