ROME. Pope Francis announced the appointment of 21 new cardinals on Sunday, significantly increasing the College of Cardinals and further shaping the group that will one day choose his successor. Among the newly appointed cardinals is Monsignor Angelo Acerbi, a 99-year-old retired Vatican diplomat who holds the distinction of being the oldest in the group, as well as the youngest, 44-year-old Bishop Mykola Bychok, head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in Melbourne, Australia.
The new cardinals will officially receive their red hats during a consistory on December 8, an important feast day in the Catholic calendar, marking the beginning of the Christmas season in Rome. This will be the 10th consistory under Pope Francis, who has made significant efforts to diversify the College of Cardinals throughout his 11-year papacy.
Monsignor Acerbi, who was once held hostage by leftist guerrillas in Colombia for six weeks, will not have a voting role due to his age. The remaining 20 cardinals, all under the age of 80, will be eligible to participate in the next papal conclave, bringing the number of voting-age cardinals to 142, well above the traditional cap of 120.
Among the appointees are leaders from Latin American countries, including Archbishop Vicente Bokalic Iglic of Santiago del Estero, Argentina; Archbishop Jaime Spengler of Porto Alegre, Brazil; Archbishop Fernando Natalio Chomali Garib of Santiago, Chile; Archbishop Luis Gerardo Cabrera Herrera of Guayaquil, Ecuador; and Archbishop Carlos Gustavo Castillo Mattasoglio of Lima, Peru.
In contrast, North America saw only one new cardinal named: Archbishop Francis Leo of Toronto. In another sign of the global nature of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis also selected Archbishop Dominique Joseph Mathieu of Tehran, Iran, and Bishop Paskalis Bruno Syukor of Bogor, Indonesia. Both are members of the Franciscan order, joining two other Franciscans in this year’s group of new cardinals.
Asia also received significant representation with three new cardinals: Archbishop Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi of Tokyo, Bishop Pablo Virgilio Sinogco David of Kalookan, Philippines, and Bishop Paskalis Bruno Syukor of Indonesia. Africa, a region where the Catholic Church continues to grow, gained two new cardinals: Archbishop Ignace Bessi Dogbo of Abidjan, Ivory Coast, and Bishop Jean-Paul Vesco of Algiers, Algeria.
Church historian Christopher Bellitto, from Kean University in New Jersey, remarked on Pope Francis’ global outreach in selecting the new cardinals: “Francis has again continued to extend the reach of the College of Cardinals. Like his predecessors, but even more so, he’s making sure that Catholic leaders from the church’s edges have a voice at the big table.”
Pope Francis has already made a lasting mark on the College of Cardinals, having appointed the majority of the current voting-age members. Before Sunday’s announcement, 92 of the 122 voting cardinals were appointed by Francis, compared to 24 by Pope Benedict XVI and six by Pope St. John Paul II.
Notably, two Vatican officials received the honor of becoming cardinals despite holding positions that don’t typically carry the rank. The Rev. Fabio Baggio, who oversees the Vatican’s migrants section, and the Rev. George Jacob Koovakad, responsible for organizing the pope’s foreign travels, were among those elevated. Additionally, the Rev. Timothy Radcliffe, a British theologian and spiritual adviser for the current synod debating the future of the Church, was also named.
In what appears to be a politically significant gesture, Bishop Mykola Bychok’s appointment gives Ukraine its only cardinal, with Ukrainian Ambassador to the Holy See Andrii Yurash welcoming the news. Despite the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Pope Francis chose Bychok, the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in Australia, over the Kyiv-based leader, His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk.
The new cardinals will officially take their place in the College during the consistory on December 8, as Pope Francis continues to shape the future leadership of the Church.
Gary P Hernal started college at UP Diliman and received his BA in Economics from San Sebastian College, Manila, and Masters in Information Systems Management from Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University in Oak Brook, IL. He has 25 years of copy editing and management experience at Thomson West, a subsidiary of Thomson Reuters.
