Cardinals are senior members of the clergy of the Catholic Church. They are almost always bishops and generally hold important roles within the church, such as leading prominent archdioceses or heading dicasteries within the Roman Curia. Cardinals are created in consistories by the pope, and one of their foremost duties is the election of a new pope – invariably from among their number, although not strictly a requirement – when the Holy See is vacant (sede vacante), following the death or resignation of a pope. The body of all cardinals is collectively known as the College of Cardinals.[1][2]
Under current ecclesiastical law, as defined by the apostolic constitution Universi Dominici gregis, only cardinals who have not passed their 80th birthdays on the day on which the Holy See becomes vacant are eligible to take part in a papal conclave to elect a new pope.[3] The same apostolic constitution specifies that no more than 120 cardinal electors can take part in a conclave, but makes no provision for there being more than 120 eligible cardinals;[3] as of 2023[update] there had never been more at the time of a conclave, though it has happened frequently at other times. Cardinals may be created in pectore ('in the breast'), in which case their identities are not publicly revealed by the pope; they are not entitled to the privileges of a cardinal until their names are published. The creations of any such cardinals who have not been revealed at the pope's death or resignation automatically lapse.[1][4]
As of 19 April 2024,[update] there are 237 cardinals, 127 of whom are cardinal electors. The most recent consistory for the creation of cardinals was held on 30 September 2023, when Pope Francis created 21 cardinals, including 18 cardinal electors.[5] Luis Ladaria Ferrer was the most recent cardinal elector to turn 80, on 19 April 2024; and Marc Ouellet will be the next cardinal elector to turn 80, on 8 June 2024. The most recent death of a cardinal was that of Pedro Rubiano Sáenz, on 15 April 2024, at the age of 91.[6]
^ ab"The College of Cardinals General Documentazion". Holy See Press Office. 17 February 2014. The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church. Archived from the original on 20 July 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
^Sägmüller, Johannes Baptist (1913). "Cardinal" . In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
^ abPope John Paul II (22 February 1996). "Universi Dominici Gregis". The Holy See (Apostolic constitution). Vatican Publishing House. Archived from the original on 22 November 2019. Retrieved 28 February 2013.
^Boudinhon, Auguste (1913). "In Petto" . In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
^"Ordinary Public Consistory for the Creation of 21 New Cardinals, 30.09.2023". Holy See Press Office. 30 September 2023. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
^"Murió el cardenal Pedro Rubiano Sáenz". El Nuevo Siglo (in Spanish). Retrieved 15 April 2024.
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