VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The 23 prelates elevated to the College of Cardinals by Pope Benedict on Saturday join the most exclusive group in the Roman Catholic Church, a kind of hand-picked Senate that elects the next pontiff.
Reflecting the global scope of the world's largest Church, 13 of the new cardinals come from Europe, four from Latin America, two from the United States and two each from Asia and Africa.
Following are some facts about cardinals:
WHO ARE THEY?
Cardinals, the "princes of the Church", are a pope's closest advisers and are personally named by him. They are usually archbishops of major dioceses or heads of influential departments at the Vatican.
They outrank all other clergy besides a pope. "Cardinal" comes from the Latin "cardo" (hinge) and symbolizes the link they assure between the Vatican and major dioceses.
Their trademark red hat stands for their readiness to shed their blood for the Church.
WHAT DO THEY DO?
The cardinals' most important job is electing a new pope from among their own ranks in a conclave after the death of a pontiff. Only those under the age of 80 can participate. As the pope's top advisers, they help him govern by serving on Vatican congregations and councils, the equivalent of government ministries. Those who are archbishops also run large dioceses such as capital cities.
HOW TO GET THE RED HAT
The pope occasionally names a group of new cardinals to replace those who have retired or died and to reward bishops for their achievements, such as running a prominent archdiocese or making other major contributions to the life of the Church.
The last consistory to install new cardinals was held in March 2006, when Pope Benedict named 15 of them.
THE NUMBERS
With the latest intake, the College of Cardinals now counts 201 cardinals from 70 different countries, 120 of whom are under 80 and thus eligible to vote in the next conclave. Church law sets a ceiling of electors at 120.
Sixty electors are from Europe, 21 from Latin America, 16 from North America, 12 from Asia, 9 from Africa and 2 from Oceania. Italy has the most electors with 21, followed by the United States with 13 and Germany, France and Spain with 6 each.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THIS CONSISTORY
Among the new cardinals, the spotlight has been most on Emmanuel III Delly, the Baghdad-based Patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans, an Eastern rite church linked to Rome. Pope Benedict singled him out for praise in his consistory sermon calling for peace in Iraq.
The choice of Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, archbishop of Galveston-Houston, drew attention to population shifts within the United States towards the southwest and the growing role of Hispanic Catholics in the U.S. church.
Reflecting the global scope of the world's largest Church, 13 of the new cardinals come from Europe, four from Latin America, two from the United States and two each from Asia and Africa.
Following are some facts about cardinals:
WHO ARE THEY?
Cardinals, the "princes of the Church", are a pope's closest advisers and are personally named by him. They are usually archbishops of major dioceses or heads of influential departments at the Vatican.
They outrank all other clergy besides a pope. "Cardinal" comes from the Latin "cardo" (hinge) and symbolizes the link they assure between the Vatican and major dioceses.
Their trademark red hat stands for their readiness to shed their blood for the Church.
WHAT DO THEY DO?
The cardinals' most important job is electing a new pope from among their own ranks in a conclave after the death of a pontiff. Only those under the age of 80 can participate. As the pope's top advisers, they help him govern by serving on Vatican congregations and councils, the equivalent of government ministries. Those who are archbishops also run large dioceses such as capital cities.
HOW TO GET THE RED HAT
The pope occasionally names a group of new cardinals to replace those who have retired or died and to reward bishops for their achievements, such as running a prominent archdiocese or making other major contributions to the life of the Church.
The last consistory to install new cardinals was held in March 2006, when Pope Benedict named 15 of them.
THE NUMBERS
With the latest intake, the College of Cardinals now counts 201 cardinals from 70 different countries, 120 of whom are under 80 and thus eligible to vote in the next conclave. Church law sets a ceiling of electors at 120.
Sixty electors are from Europe, 21 from Latin America, 16 from North America, 12 from Asia, 9 from Africa and 2 from Oceania. Italy has the most electors with 21, followed by the United States with 13 and Germany, France and Spain with 6 each.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THIS CONSISTORY
Among the new cardinals, the spotlight has been most on Emmanuel III Delly, the Baghdad-based Patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans, an Eastern rite church linked to Rome. Pope Benedict singled him out for praise in his consistory sermon calling for peace in Iraq.
The choice of Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, archbishop of Galveston-Houston, drew attention to population shifts within the United States towards the southwest and the growing role of Hispanic Catholics in the U.S. church.
The most prominent in the Church hierarchy is Argentinean Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, now head of the Congregation for Oriental Churches. In the late Pope John Paul's final years, he often stepped in to finish reading a sermon the ailing Pontiff could no longer deliver. (Editing by Peter Millership)
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