I can fast for 72-hours, Joseph Zen Ze-Kiun

by Anura Guruge

On Friday, January 13, 2012, Chinese Cardinal Priest Joseph Zen Ze-Kiun, S.D.B. (Salesian), turned 80 and thus ceased to be a cardinal elector.

He was the Bishop of Hong Kong from September 2002 until April 2009, when, at 77, he retired per the nominal ’75-year’ retirement requirement in Canon 401 of the 1983 Code. He was created a cardinal priest in March 2006. In October 2011 he was in the news when he said he would go on a 72-hour hunger strike to protest the rigidness of the Chinese Education Ordinance that permits ‘outsiders’ [e.g., parents, teachers and past students] to participate in the management committees of Catholic schools.

Currently he is the only cardinal from China, though a new one will be created in February.

He becomes the second cardinal to age out in 2012. He is the last cardinal to age out prior to the February 18, 2012 cardinal creating consistory that will create 22 new cardinals.

The College continues 192, but the electors are now down to 107.

Hong Kong by night

As of January 13, 2012, there are 107 cardinal electors with 85 no longer able to participate in a conclave.
[The electors represent 56% of cardinals.]
**********
The College as of December 11, 2011 has been at 192.

Please CLICK on image to ENLARGE.

Summary of Major Changes in the Last 12 Months

January 13, 2012: 80-Year old Chinese Cardinal Priest Joseph Zen Ze-Kiun, S.D.B. ceased to be a cardinal elector.
** College continues at 192, electors down to 107 **

January 6, 2012: 80-Year old Portuguese Cardinal Bishop José Saraiva Martins, C.M.F. ceased to be a cardinal elector.
** College continues at 192, electors down to 108 **

January 5, 2012: 76-Year old Italian Cardinal Deacon Fortunato Baldelli retires as Major Penitentiary.
** College continues at 192, electors continue at 109 **

◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊ 2012 ◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊

Changes to the College in 2011. Click image for post.

◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊ 2011 ◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊

Refer to this post for changes in 2010 and 2009.

Cardinal Bishop Jose Saraiva Martins ceases to be an elector

by Anura Guruge

On Friday, January 6, 2012, Portuguese Cardinal Bishop José Saraiva Martins, C.M.F., turned 80 and thus ceased to be a cardinal elector.

He was the Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints from May 1998 until July 2008, when, at 76, he retired per the nominal ’75-year’ retirement requirement in Canon 354 of the 1983 Code. He was created a cardinal deacon in February 2001. In February 2009 he was promoted to a cardinal bishop.

He becomes the first cardinal to age out in 2012.

The College continues 192, but the electors are now down to 108.

As of January 6, 2012, there are 108 cardinal electors with 84 no longer able to participate in a conclave.
[The electors represent 56% of cardinals.]
**********
The College as of January 6, 2012 is at 192.

Please CLICK on image to ENLARGE.

Summary of Major Changes in the Last 12 Months

January 6, 2012: 80-Year old Portuguese Cardinal Bishop José Saraiva Martins, C.M.F. ceased to be a cardinal elector.
** College continues at 192, electors down to 108 **

January 5, 2012: 76-Year old Italian Cardinal Deacon Fortunato Baldelli retires as Major Penitentiary.
** College continues at 192, electors continue at 109 **

◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊ 2012 ◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊

Changes to the College in 2011. Click image for post.

◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊ 2011 ◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊

Refer to this post for changes in 2010 and 2009.

Cardinal Fortunato Baldelli, ex-Major Penitentiary

by Anura Guruge

On Thursday, January 5, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI (#266) accepted the resignation, from the post of Major Penitentiary, of 76-year old Italian Cardinal Deacon Fortunato Baldelli [dob: Aug. 6, 1935]. He, a career curialist and nuncio, had been the Major Penitentiary since June 2, 2009. He was created at the last cardinal creating consistory on November 20, 2010. His retirement would have been per the 75-year retirement age specified in Canon 354 of the 1983 Code, the Major Penitentiary being the head of the curial, Apostolic Penitentiary.

The new M. P. is Portuguese  Archbishop Manuel Monteiro de Castro who until today was the Secretary of the Congregation for Bishops and as such also the Secretary of the College of Cardinals.

Cardinal Baldelli’s retirement being accepted by the pope at 76 is not untoward. The prior M.P., the American Stafford also retired at 76. The American Wakefield Baum, who was the prior Cardinal M.P. (with an intervening non-cardinal M.P.) retired the day after his 75th birthday. The cardinal prior to that, Italian Dadaglio, also called it quits at 75. So I would not read anything into this ‘early’ retirement.

This retirement only changes the employment statistics of the College. Baldelli, at 76, continues as an elector.

The College continues 192, and the electors remain at 109.

As of January 5, 2012, there are 109 cardinal electors with 83 no longer able to participate in a conclave.
[The electors represent 57% of cardinals.]
**********
The College as of January 5, 2012 is at 192.

Please CLICK on image to ENLARGE.

Summary of Major Changes in the Last 12 Months

January 5, 2012: 76-Year old Italian Cardinal Deacon Fortunato Baldelli retires as Major Penitentiary.
** College continues at 192, electors continue at 109 **

◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊ 2012 ◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊

Changes to the College in 2011. Click image for post.

◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊ 2011 ◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊

Refer to this post for changes in 2010 and 2009.

U.S. Cardinal Deacon John Patrick Foley. R.I.P.

by Anura Guruge

That U.S. Cardinal Deacon John Patrick Foley [dob: Nov. 11, 1935] was very sick, with leukemia, and was returning from Rome to take up residence at the Villa St. Joseph, in Darby, PA, a convalescent home for Catholic Clerics was known as of February of this year. His resignation, as the Grand Master of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulcher, submitted to the pope on February 8, 2011 was accepted on August 29. Please read the August 29 post for details of his atypical career.

The College is now down to 192,  and the electors are now down to 109.

The last time we were at 111 electors was on March 20, 2010.

We have lost 12 electors since the start of the year, but the College is still plenty big enough to elect the next pope.

Cardinal Foley is the 9th cardinal to die this year and the 2nd cardinal elector (the other having been German Cardinal Georg Maximilian Sterzinsky, on June 30, who was 75). Both of these are above the norm. Check this post.

The recent average for the number of cardinals dying per year is 7.5. We didn’t have a single cardinal elector die in 2010 or 2009. We have to go back to 2007 to have two electors die in the same year. To compound matters the first death of 2011 did not occur until April 1. That is late. So these deaths have occurred in a more compressed time frame. Despite the two electors, the average age of the cardinals to die this year was 84 years. That is below the normal for the past decade.

The prior cardinal to die was John Paul II’s (#265) friend and compatriot, 87-year old Polish Cardinal Priest Andrzej Maria Deskur on September 3rd.

We have had 13 cardinals retire in 2011.

As of December 11, 2011, there are 109 cardinal electors with 83 no longer able to participate in a conclave.
[The electors represent 57% of cardinals.]
**********
The College as of December 11, 2011 is at 192.

Please CLICK on image to ENLARGE.

Summary of Major Changes in the Last 12 Months

December 11, 2011: U.S. Cardinal Deacon John Patrick Foley, 76, dies.
** College down to 192, electors down to 109 **

December 7, 2011: South Korean Cardinal Cheong Jin-suk Turns 80. Mexican Cardinal Priest Juan Sandoval Íñiguez, 78, retires.
** College continues at 193, electors down to 110 **

November 26, 2011: Dutch Cardinal Adrianus Johannes Simonis Turns 80.
** College continues at 193, electors down to 111 **

November 21, 2011: The Fugitive gets the boot. Now, finally retired.
** College continues at 193, electors down to 112 **

November 4, 2011: The Fugitive turns 80.
** College continues at 193, electors down to 112 **

October 13, 2011: 79-Year Old Filipino Cardinal Priest Gaudencio Borbon Rosales retires.
** College continues at 193, electors continue at 113 **

October 2, 2011: 76-Year Old Italian Cardinal Deacon Giovanni Lajolo Retires.
** College continues at 193, electors continue at 113 **

September 24, 2011: Zambian Cardinal Priest Medardo Joseph Mazombwe Turns 80.
** College continues at 193, electors down to 113 **

September 21, 2011: 76-year Old Italian Curial Cardinal Deacon Velasio De Paolis Retires from the Curia. ** College continues at 193, electors remain at 114 **

September 3, 2011: 87-year Old Polish Cardinal Priest Andrzej Maria Deskur Dies.
** College down to 193, electors 114 **

August 29, 2011: US Cardinal Deacon John Patrick Foley retires at 75.
** College continues at 194, electors 114 **

August 26, 2011: Canadian Cardinal Aloysius Matthew Ambrozic dies at the age of 81.
** College Down to 194, electors 114 **

July 25, 2011: Italian Cardinal Virgilio Noè Dies at the age of 89.
** College Down to 195, electors 114 **

July 21, 2011: Belarusian Cardinal Kazimierz Świątek Dies at the age of 96.
** College Down to 196, electors 114 **

July 19, 2011: US Cardinal Justin Francis Rigali Retires as Archbishop of Philadelphia.
** College continues at 197, electors 114 **

June 30, 2011: German Cardinal Georg Maximilian Sterzinsky dies, aged 75.
** College down to 197, electors = 114 **

June 28, 2011: Italian Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi retires as Archbishop of Milan at 77. ** College continues at 198, electors = 115 **

May 10, 2011: Indian Cardinal Priest Ivan Dias retires from the curia, at 75. ** College continues at 198, electors = 115 **

May 2, 2011: Spanish Cardinal Priest Agustín García-Gasco Vicente Dies on May 1, 2011. ** College at 198, electors = 115 **

April 19, 2011: Italian Cardinal Priest Giovanni Saldarini Dies on April 18, 2011 aged 86. ** College at 199, electors = 115 **

April 11, 2011: Italian Cardinal Priest Sergio Sebastiani Turns 80 and ceases to be an elector. ** College at 200, electors = 115 **

April 1, 2011: Indian Cardinal Priest Varkey Vithayathil Dies. FIRST death of 2011. ** College at 200, electors = 116 **

March 4, 2011: US Cardinal Priest William Henry Keeler turns 80 and ceases to be an elector. ** College continues at 201, electors = 116 **

February 27, 2011: [Resignation valid as of March 1, 2011] U.S. cardinal priest Roger Mahony retired from being Archbishop of L.A. on the very day he turned 75. ** College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 26, 2011: 90 Year Old, Cardinal Patriarch Nasrallah Pierre Sfeir, Patriarch of Antiochia of the Maronites retires. ** College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 24, 2011: German cardinal priest Georg Maximilian Sterzinsky retired from being Archbishop of Berlin on turning 75. ** College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 21, 2011: 6 cardinal deacons created in 2001 receive jus optionis promotion to cardinal priests. ** College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 19, 2011: Italian Cardinal Carmillo Runi ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 12, 2011: Spanish Cardinal Agustín García-Gasco Vicente ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 118 **

February 10, 2011: Ukrainian Cardinal, Lubomyr Husar retired. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 119 **

February 6, 2011: Filipino Cardinal Ricardo Jamin Vidal ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 119 **

January 26, 2011: French Cardinal Bernard Panafieu ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 120 **

January 12, 2011: Brazilian Cardinal Geraldo Majella Agnelo Retires. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 121 **

January 4, 2011: Curial, Slovenian Cardinal Franc Rodé Retires. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 121 **

◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊ 2011 ◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊

December 15, 2010: Chilean Cardinal Francisco Javier Errázuriz Ossa Retires. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 121 **

December 2, 2010: 80 year old Italian cardinal priest, Michele Giordano dies. ** The College now at 201, electors = 121 **

November 22, 2010: 90 year old Spanish Cardinal Urbano Navarrete Cortés, S.J., dies. ** The College now at 202, electors = 121 **

November 20, 2010: Cardinal creating consistory at which 24 cardinals, 20 electors were created. ** The College now at 203, electors = 121 **

November 14, 2010: Latvian Cardinal Priest Jānis Pujats turned 80 and ceased to be a cardinal elector. ** The College continues at 179, electors = 101 **

October 15, 2010: Philippines Cardinal Priest Ricardo Jamin Vidal retires. But still an elector. ** The College continues at 179, electors = 102 **

October 15, 2010: Cameroon Cardinal Priest Christian Wyghan Tumi of Cameroon Turned 80 and thus ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors = 102 **

October 11, 2010: Italian Cardinal Priest Severino Poletto retires. But still an elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 103 (no change) **

October 7, 2010: Brazilian Cardinal Priest Cláudio Hummes, O.F. M. and German Cardinal Deacon Paul Josef Cordes retire. But are still electors. ** The College continues at 179; electors = 103 (no change) **

October 2, 2010: Guatemalan Cardinal Priset Rodolfo Quezada Toruño retires but is still an elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 103 (no change) **

September 26, 2010: Italian Cardinal Priest Michele Giordano turned 80, thus ceasing to be a cardinal elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 103 **

September 18, 2010: Syrian, Oriental Rites Cardinal Bishop Ignace Moussa I Daoud turned 80, thus ceasing to be a cardinal elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 104 **

September 6, 2010: Italian Cardinal Priest Salvatore De Giorgi turned 80, thus ceasing to be a cardinal elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 105 **

August 30, 2010: French Cardinal Priest Paul Poupard turned 80 and ceased to be a cardinal elector. ** The College is still at 179; electors= 106 **

July 8, 2010: Colombian Cardinal Pedro Rubiano Sáenz retires as Archbishop of Bogotá. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 107 **

July 7, 2010: U.S. Cardinal Theodore Edgar McCarrick, on turning 80, ceased to be an elector. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 107 **

July 1, 2010: German Cardinal Walter Kasper, retires as the President, Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 108 **

June 30, 2010: Italian Cardinal Bishop Giovanni Battista Re, retires as the Prefect, Congregation for Bishops and is replaced by Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet, my #3 papabili from 2009. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 108 **

June 28, 2010: Indonesian Cardinal Jiulius Riyadi Darmaatmadja, retires as the Archbishop of Jakarta. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 108 **

June 19, 2010: Latvian Cardinal Janis Pujats, retires as the Archbishop of Riga. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 108 **

May 4, 2010: Italian Cardinal Luigi Poggi , at one time the archivist and librarian of the Holy Roman Church, died at the age of 92. ** The College now = 179; electors = 108 **

April 30, 2010: German Cardinal Paul Augustin Mayer, a Benedictine, died at the age of 98, twenty three days prior to turning 99. ** The College then = 180 **

April 16, 2010: Czechoslovakian Cardinal Tomáš Špidlík, a Jesuit, died at the age of 90. ** The College then = 181 **

March 31, 2010: Spanish Cardinal Julián Herranz Casado, Opus Dei, on turning 80 ceased to be an elector. We then had 108 electors. Julián Herranz Casado (b. March 31, 1930) of Spain, the retired President of the Pontifical Council for the Interpretation of the Legislative Texts and President of the Disciplinary Commission of the Roman Curia turned 80 and thus ceased to be an elector. Spain has 10 cardinals, but only half of them are now eligible to vote. That still gives them a slight edge in terms of real representation. With 5 out of the 108 electors, Spain would a 4.6% representation if there were to be a conclave anytime soon. However, in terms of the world population of Catholics, Spain only has about 3.9%. So they can’t really complain, even though they probably will. Brazil with 3 times more Catholics has one less elector. Mexico with nearly twice more also only has 4 electors. The electors within the College does not reflect the population distribution of the Catholics. The U.S. and Europe gets preferential representation. This needs to be fixed at some point. <<q.v. Pages 7 to 11 of ‘The Next Pope’ book (for free, of course) at Google Books.>> ** College then = 182 **

March 20, 2010: NZ Cardinal Thomas Stafford on turning 80 ceased to be an elector. We then had 109 electors. NZ no longer has a vote if there was to be a conclave. ‘Oceania,’ [i.e., the Pacific basin] now only has one elector, viz. Australian Cardinal George Pell (b. 1941) who was created a cardinal in 2005. It is just like the ‘old days.’ The October 1958 conclave that elected John XXIII (#262) was the first conclave attended by a cardinal from Oceania, Australia’s Norman Thomas Gilroy. <<q.v. Pages 116 & 261 of ‘The Next Pope’ (for free, of course) at Google Books.>> ** College then = 182 **

March 18, 2010: US Cardinal Adam Joseph Maida on turning 80 ceased to be an elector. We then had 110 electors. ** College then = 182 **

February 13, 2010: Cardinal Miloslav Vlk retired from being an Archbishop — but is still a bona fide elector. His resignation is per Code of Canon Law 401 § 1 requiring that diocesan bishops tender their resignation to the pope when they have completed their 75th year. ** College then = 182 **

January 27, 2010: Cardinal Aloysius Matthew Ambrozic on turning 80 became a non-elector. Canada has a total of 3 cardinals, two of whom are still electors; one of them, Cardinal Marc Ouellet a credible papabile. ** College then = 182 **

January 18, 2010: 76 year old Belgium Cardinal Godfried Danneels retired from being the Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels. This did not alter the elector/non-elector numbers or the size of the College. Just changes the statistics as to the ‘occupations’ of the cardinals. ** College then = 182 **

January 10, 2010: Cardinal Armand Gaétan Razafindratandra, of Madagascar, Archbishop Emeritus of Antananarivo, died unexpectedly having had a fall while taking a walk. He had turned 84 last August.
** College then = 182 **

December 31, 2009: Cardinal Cahal Brendan Daly, of Ireland, Archbishop Emeritus of Armagh, died late in the day on Decmeber 31, 2009. He had turned 92 in October. ** College then = 183 **

December 30, 2009: Japanese Cardinal Peter Seiichi Shirayanagi, who had turned 81 this past June, died unexpectedly, in Tokyo. ** College then = 184 **

December 18, 2009: Cardinal Józef Glemp of Poland, created a cardinal by his compatriot in 1983, turned 80. He thus ceased to be an elector. That reduced the number of electors. ** College then = 185 **

November 17, 2009: Cardinal Christian Wiyghan Tumi of Cameroon, at 79, retired as the Archbishop of Douala. ** College then = 185 **

The Rationale for these Demographics

Following my “Next Pope — Papabili List for 2009,” I had some questions as to the amount of sway the curial cardinals would have at the next conclave. So I did some analysis on the composition of the current College beyond just age and nationalities. This is an ongoing effort to keep the data that I found up to-date. I also used these stats when writing my ‘The Next Pope – After Pope Benedict XVI’ book.

Hope this helps. All the best.

South Korean Cardinal Cardinal Nicholas Cheong Jin-suk

by Anura Guruge

On December 7, 2011, [Pearl Harbor Day], South Korean Cardinal, Nicholas Cheong Jin-suk [dob: Dec. 7, 1931], turned 80 and thus ceased to be an elector. Despite his age, he continues as the Metropolitan Archbishop of Seoul, the bishopric he has held since April 1998. He was created a cardinal in March 2006.

With his ‘aging-out’, South Korea, where 46.5% of the 48.8 Million population profess not to have a religion, and at most only 10.9% of the population is Catholic, loses its only cardinal elector — Cheong Jin’suk being the only cardinal from this country. What is interesting is that just 11 days ago we saw the same thing happening to the Netherlands, another rather secular country; i.e., its one and only cardinal becoming a non-elector. Again, as with the Dutch, I doubt whether we will see much hand-wringing on part of the South Koreans begging the Vatican for a cardinal elector.

Seoul, the Cardinal's domain, in South Korea

This will be the one and only cardinal to turn 80 in December 2011. The prior ‘aging out’ was on November 26, 2011. This is the 10th and last cardinal to ‘age out’ this year. Hence, any other changes to the core demographics of the College during the remainder of this year will be due to deaths or ‘resignations’. [Yes, I live in eternal hope.]

The College continues at 193. But, the electors are now down to 110.

Juan Sandoval Íñiguez

Later this same day, the Vatican announced that the pope has accepted the resignation of 78-year old, controversial Mexican Cardinal Priest Juan Sandoval Íñiguez [dob: Mar. 28, 1933], as the Archbishop of Guadalajara — a post he had held since 1994. He was 3.5 years past the nominal 75-year retirement age prescribed in Canon 401§1 of the 1983 Code. Created in November 1994 he has been an outspoken conservative who has famously said: ‘To be a protestant, one cannot have any shame‘ and likes to refer to gay men by the term ‘maricón‘.

The last time we were at 111 electors was on March 18, 2010.

We have lost 11 electors since the start of the year, but the College is still plenty big enough to elect the next pope.

We have had 13 cardinals retire in 2011.

As of December 7, 2011, there are 110 cardinal electors with 83 no longer able to participate in a conclave.
[The electors represent 57% of cardinals.]
**********
The College as of September 3, 2011 is at 193.

Please CLICK on image to ENLARGE.

Summary of Major Changes in the Last 12 Months

December 7, 2011: South Korean Cardinal Cheong Jin-suk Turns 80. Mexican Cardinal Priest Juan Sandoval Íñiguez, 78, retires.
** College continues at 193, electors down to 110 **

November 26, 2011: Dutch Cardinal Adrianus Johannes Simonis Turns 80.
** College continues at 193, electors down to 111 **

November 21, 2011: The Fugitive gets the boot. Now, finally retired.
** College continues at 193, electors down to 112 **

November 4, 2011: The Fugitive turns 80.
** College continues at 193, electors down to 112 **

October 13, 2011: 79-Year Old Filipino Cardinal Priest Gaudencio Borbon Rosales retires.
** College continues at 193, electors continue at 113 **

October 2, 2011: 76-Year Old Italian Cardinal Deacon Giovanni Lajolo Retires.
** College continues at 193, electors continue at 113 **

September 24, 2011: Zambian Cardinal Priest Medardo Joseph Mazombwe Turns 80.
** College continues at 193, electors down to 113 **

September 21, 2011: 76-year Old Italian Curial Cardinal Deacon Velasio De Paolis Retires from the Curia. ** College continues at 193, electors remain at 114 **

September 3, 2011: 87-year Old Polish Cardinal Priest Andrzej Maria Deskur Dies.
** College down to 193, electors 114 **

August 29, 2011: US Cardinal Deacon John Patrick Foley retires at 75.
** College continues at 194, electors 114 **

August 26, 2011: Canadian Cardinal Aloysius Matthew Ambrozic dies at the age of 81.
** College Down to 194, electors 114 **

July 25, 2011: Italian Cardinal Virgilio Noè Dies at the age of 89.
** College Down to 195, electors 114 **

July 21, 2011: Belarusian Cardinal Kazimierz Świątek Dies at the age of 96.
** College Down to 196, electors 114 **

July 19, 2011: US Cardinal Justin Francis Rigali Retires as Archbishop of Philadelphia.
** College continues at 197, electors 114 **

June 30, 2011: German Cardinal Georg Maximilian Sterzinsky dies, aged 75.
** College down to 197, electors = 114 **

June 28, 2011: Italian Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi retires as Archbishop of Milan at 77. ** College continues at 198, electors = 115 **

May 10, 2011: Indian Cardinal Priest Ivan Dias retires from the curia, at 75. ** College continues at 198, electors = 115 **

May 2, 2011: Spanish Cardinal Priest Agustín García-Gasco Vicente Dies on May 1, 2011. ** College at 198, electors = 115 **

April 19, 2011: Italian Cardinal Priest Giovanni Saldarini Dies on April 18, 2011 aged 86. ** College at 199, electors = 115 **

April 11, 2011: Italian Cardinal Priest Sergio Sebastiani Turns 80 and ceases to be an elector. ** College at 200, electors = 115 **

April 1, 2011: Indian Cardinal Priest Varkey Vithayathil Dies. FIRST death of 2011. ** College at 200, electors = 116 **

March 4, 2011: US Cardinal Priest William Henry Keeler turns 80 and ceases to be an elector. ** College continues at 201, electors = 116 **

February 27, 2011: [Resignation valid as of March 1, 2011] U.S. cardinal priest Roger Mahony retired from being Archbishop of L.A. on the very day he turned 75. ** College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 26, 2011: 90 Year Old, Cardinal Patriarch Nasrallah Pierre Sfeir, Patriarch of Antiochia of the Maronites retires. ** College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 24, 2011: German cardinal priest Georg Maximilian Sterzinsky retired from being Archbishop of Berlin on turning 75. ** College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 21, 2011: 6 cardinal deacons created in 2001 receive jus optionis promotion to cardinal priests. ** College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 19, 2011: Italian Cardinal Carmillo Runi ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 12, 2011: Spanish Cardinal Agustín García-Gasco Vicente ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 118 **

February 10, 2011: Ukrainian Cardinal, Lubomyr Husar retired. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 119 **

February 6, 2011: Filipino Cardinal Ricardo Jamin Vidal ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 119 **

January 26, 2011: French Cardinal Bernard Panafieu ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 120 **

January 12, 2011: Brazilian Cardinal Geraldo Majella Agnelo Retires. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 121 **

January 4, 2011: Curial, Slovenian Cardinal Franc Rodé Retires. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 121 **

◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊ 2011 ◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊

December 15, 2010: Chilean Cardinal Francisco Javier Errázuriz Ossa Retires. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 121 **

December 2, 2010: 80 year old Italian cardinal priest, Michele Giordano dies. ** The College now at 201, electors = 121 **

November 22, 2010: 90 year old Spanish Cardinal Urbano Navarrete Cortés, S.J., dies. ** The College now at 202, electors = 121 **

November 20, 2010: Cardinal creating consistory at which 24 cardinals, 20 electors were created. ** The College now at 203, electors = 121 **

November 14, 2010: Latvian Cardinal Priest Jānis Pujats turned 80 and ceased to be a cardinal elector. ** The College continues at 179, electors = 101 **

October 15, 2010: Philippines Cardinal Priest Ricardo Jamin Vidal retires. But still an elector. ** The College continues at 179, electors = 102 **

October 15, 2010: Cameroon Cardinal Priest Christian Wyghan Tumi of Cameroon Turned 80 and thus ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors = 102 **

October 11, 2010: Italian Cardinal Priest Severino Poletto retires. But still an elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 103 (no change) **

October 7, 2010: Brazilian Cardinal Priest Cláudio Hummes, O.F. M. and German Cardinal Deacon Paul Josef Cordes retire. But are still electors. ** The College continues at 179; electors = 103 (no change) **

October 2, 2010: Guatemalan Cardinal Priset Rodolfo Quezada Toruño retires but is still an elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 103 (no change) **

September 26, 2010: Italian Cardinal Priest Michele Giordano turned 80, thus ceasing to be a cardinal elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 103 **

September 18, 2010: Syrian, Oriental Rites Cardinal Bishop Ignace Moussa I Daoud turned 80, thus ceasing to be a cardinal elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 104 **

September 6, 2010: Italian Cardinal Priest Salvatore De Giorgi turned 80, thus ceasing to be a cardinal elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 105 **

August 30, 2010: French Cardinal Priest Paul Poupard turned 80 and ceased to be a cardinal elector. ** The College is still at 179; electors= 106 **

July 8, 2010: Colombian Cardinal Pedro Rubiano Sáenz retires as Archbishop of Bogotá. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 107 **

July 7, 2010: U.S. Cardinal Theodore Edgar McCarrick, on turning 80, ceased to be an elector. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 107 **

July 1, 2010: German Cardinal Walter Kasper, retires as the President, Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 108 **

June 30, 2010: Italian Cardinal Bishop Giovanni Battista Re, retires as the Prefect, Congregation for Bishops and is replaced by Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet, my #3 papabili from 2009. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 108 **

June 28, 2010: Indonesian Cardinal Jiulius Riyadi Darmaatmadja, retires as the Archbishop of Jakarta. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 108 **

June 19, 2010: Latvian Cardinal Janis Pujats, retires as the Archbishop of Riga. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 108 **

May 4, 2010: Italian Cardinal Luigi Poggi , at one time the archivist and librarian of the Holy Roman Church, died at the age of 92. ** The College now = 179; electors = 108 **

April 30, 2010: German Cardinal Paul Augustin Mayer, a Benedictine, died at the age of 98, twenty three days prior to turning 99. ** The College then = 180 **

April 16, 2010: Czechoslovakian Cardinal Tomáš Špidlík, a Jesuit, died at the age of 90. ** The College then = 181 **

March 31, 2010: Spanish Cardinal Julián Herranz Casado, Opus Dei, on turning 80 ceased to be an elector. We then had 108 electors. Julián Herranz Casado (b. March 31, 1930) of Spain, the retired President of the Pontifical Council for the Interpretation of the Legislative Texts and President of the Disciplinary Commission of the Roman Curia turned 80 and thus ceased to be an elector. Spain has 10 cardinals, but only half of them are now eligible to vote. That still gives them a slight edge in terms of real representation. With 5 out of the 108 electors, Spain would a 4.6% representation if there were to be a conclave anytime soon. However, in terms of the world population of Catholics, Spain only has about 3.9%. So they can’t really complain, even though they probably will. Brazil with 3 times more Catholics has one less elector. Mexico with nearly twice more also only has 4 electors. The electors within the College does not reflect the population distribution of the Catholics. The U.S. and Europe gets preferential representation. This needs to be fixed at some point. <<q.v. Pages 7 to 11 of ‘The Next Pope’ book (for free, of course) at Google Books.>> ** College then = 182 **

March 20, 2010: NZ Cardinal Thomas Stafford on turning 80 ceased to be an elector. We then had 109 electors. NZ no longer has a vote if there was to be a conclave. ‘Oceania,’ [i.e., the Pacific basin] now only has one elector, viz. Australian Cardinal George Pell (b. 1941) who was created a cardinal in 2005. It is just like the ‘old days.’ The October 1958 conclave that elected John XXIII (#262) was the first conclave attended by a cardinal from Oceania, Australia’s Norman Thomas Gilroy. <<q.v. Pages 116 & 261 of ‘The Next Pope’ (for free, of course) at Google Books.>> ** College then = 182 **

March 18, 2010: US Cardinal Adam Joseph Maida on turning 80 ceased to be an elector. We then had 110 electors. ** College then = 182 **

February 13, 2010: Cardinal Miloslav Vlk retired from being an Archbishop — but is still a bona fide elector. His resignation is per Code of Canon Law 401 § 1 requiring that diocesan bishops tender their resignation to the pope when they have completed their 75th year. ** College then = 182 **

January 27, 2010: Cardinal Aloysius Matthew Ambrozic on turning 80 became a non-elector. Canada has a total of 3 cardinals, two of whom are still electors; one of them, Cardinal Marc Ouellet a credible papabile. ** College then = 182 **

January 18, 2010: 76 year old Belgium Cardinal Godfried Danneels retired from being the Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels. This did not alter the elector/non-elector numbers or the size of the College. Just changes the statistics as to the ‘occupations’ of the cardinals. ** College then = 182 **

January 10, 2010: Cardinal Armand Gaétan Razafindratandra, of Madagascar, Archbishop Emeritus of Antananarivo, died unexpectedly having had a fall while taking a walk. He had turned 84 last August.
** College then = 182 **

December 31, 2009: Cardinal Cahal Brendan Daly, of Ireland, Archbishop Emeritus of Armagh, died late in the day on Decmeber 31, 2009. He had turned 92 in October. ** College then = 183 **

December 30, 2009: Japanese Cardinal Peter Seiichi Shirayanagi, who had turned 81 this past June, died unexpectedly, in Tokyo. ** College then = 184 **

December 18, 2009: Cardinal Józef Glemp of Poland, created a cardinal by his compatriot in 1983, turned 80. He thus ceased to be an elector. That reduced the number of electors. ** College then = 185 **

November 17, 2009: Cardinal Christian Wiyghan Tumi of Cameroon, at 79, retired as the Archbishop of Douala. ** College then = 185 **

The Rationale for these Demographics

Following my “Next Pope — Papabili List for 2009,” I had some questions as to the amount of sway the curial cardinals would have at the next conclave. So I did some analysis on the composition of the current College beyond just age and nationalities. This is an ongoing effort to keep the data that I found up to-date. I also used these stats when writing my ‘The Next Pope – After Pope Benedict XVI’ book.

Hope this helps. All the best.

Cardinal Adrianus Johannes Simonis, now 80

Come 00:00, November 26, 2011, Rome time [+6 hours US Eastern time at present], Dutch Cardinal, Adrianus Johannes Simonis [dob: Nov. 26, 1931], turns 80 and thus ceases to be an elector. He was the Archbishop of Utrecht, the Netherlands, from December 1983 to April 2007 — when he retired six-months after hitting the nominal 75-year retirement age for diocesan archbishops. He was created a cardinal in May 1985.

With his ‘aging-out’, Netherlands one of the most secular, progressive and beguiling countries in the world, blessed with people golden both in heart and looks, ceases to have any electors. But, I doubt whether this will keep too many of the Dutch up at night agitating or petitioning the Vatican for representation.

The Kurhaus, Scheveningen, the Netherlands one of my favorite hotels in the world.

This was the second cardinal to turn 80 this month, the prior occurring on Nov. 4. This is the 9th cardinal to age out this year.

The College continues at 193. But, the electors are now down to 111.

The last time we were at 111 electors was on January 27, 2010.

We have lost 10 electors since the start of the year, but the College is still plenty big enough to elect the next pope.

We have had 12 cardinals retire in 2011.

As of November 26, 2011, there are 111 cardinal electors with 82 no longer able to participate in a conclave.
[The electors represent 58% of cardinals.]
**********
The College as of September 3, 2011 is at 193.

Please CLICK on image to ENLARGE.

Summary of Major Changes in the Last 12 Months

November 26, 2011: Dutch Cardinal Adrianus Johannes Simonis Turns 80.
** College continues at 193, electors down to 111 **

November 21, 2011: The Fugitive gets the boot. Now, finally retired.
** College continues at 193, electors down to 112 **

November 4, 2011: The Fugitive turns 80.
** College continues at 193, electors down to 112 **

October 13, 2011: 79-Year Old Filipino Cardinal Priest Gaudencio Borbon Rosales retires.
** College continues at 193, electors continue at 113 **

October 2, 2011: 76-Year Old Italian Cardinal Deacon Giovanni Lajolo Retires.
** College continues at 193, electors continue at 113 **

September 24, 2011: Zambian Cardinal Priest Medardo Joseph Mazombwe Turns 80.
** College continues at 193, electors down to 113 **

September 21, 2011: 76-year Old Italian Curial Cardinal Deacon Velasio De Paolis Retires from the Curia. ** College continues at 193, electors remain at 114 **

September 3, 2011: 87-year Old Polish Cardinal Priest Andrzej Maria Deskur Dies.
** College down to 193, electors 114 **

August 29, 2011: US Cardinal Deacon John Patrick Foley retires at 75.
** College continues at 194, electors 114 **

August 26, 2011: Canadian Cardinal Aloysius Matthew Ambrozic dies at the age of 81.
** College Down to 194, electors 114 **

July 25, 2011: Italian Cardinal Virgilio Noè Dies at the age of 89.
** College Down to 195, electors 114 **

July 21, 2011: Belarusian Cardinal Kazimierz Świątek Dies at the age of 96.
** College Down to 196, electors 114 **

July 19, 2011: US Cardinal Justin Francis Rigali Retires as Archbishop of Philadelphia.
** College continues at 197, electors 114 **

June 30, 2011: German Cardinal Georg Maximilian Sterzinsky dies, aged 75.
** College down to 197, electors = 114 **

June 28, 2011: Italian Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi retires as Archbishop of Milan at 77. ** College continues at 198, electors = 115 **

May 10, 2011: Indian Cardinal Priest Ivan Dias retires from the curia, at 75. ** College continues at 198, electors = 115 **

May 2, 2011: Spanish Cardinal Priest Agustín García-Gasco Vicente Dies on May 1, 2011. ** College at 198, electors = 115 **

April 19, 2011: Italian Cardinal Priest Giovanni Saldarini Dies on April 18, 2011 aged 86. ** College at 199, electors = 115 **

April 11, 2011: Italian Cardinal Priest Sergio Sebastiani Turns 80 and ceases to be an elector. ** College at 200, electors = 115 **

April 1, 2011: Indian Cardinal Priest Varkey Vithayathil Dies. FIRST death of 2011. ** College at 200, electors = 116 **

March 4, 2011: US Cardinal Priest William Henry Keeler turns 80 and ceases to be an elector. ** College continues at 201, electors = 116 **

February 27, 2011: [Resignation valid as of March 1, 2011] U.S. cardinal priest Roger Mahony retired from being Archbishop of L.A. on the very day he turned 75. ** College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 26, 2011: 90 Year Old, Cardinal Patriarch Nasrallah Pierre Sfeir, Patriarch of Antiochia of the Maronites retires. ** College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 24, 2011: German cardinal priest Georg Maximilian Sterzinsky retired from being Archbishop of Berlin on turning 75. ** College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 21, 2011: 6 cardinal deacons created in 2001 receive jus optionis promotion to cardinal priests. ** College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 19, 2011: Italian Cardinal Carmillo Runi ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 117 **

February 12, 2011: Spanish Cardinal Agustín García-Gasco Vicente ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 118 **

February 10, 2011: Ukrainian Cardinal, Lubomyr Husar retired. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 119 **

February 6, 2011: Filipino Cardinal Ricardo Jamin Vidal ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 119 **

January 26, 2011: French Cardinal Bernard Panafieu ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 120 **

January 12, 2011: Brazilian Cardinal Geraldo Majella Agnelo Retires. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 121 **

January 4, 2011: Curial, Slovenian Cardinal Franc Rodé Retires. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 121 **

◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊ 2011 ◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊

December 15, 2010: Chilean Cardinal Francisco Javier Errázuriz Ossa Retires. ** The College continues at 201, electors = 121 **

December 2, 2010: 80 year old Italian cardinal priest, Michele Giordano dies. ** The College now at 201, electors = 121 **

November 22, 2010: 90 year old Spanish Cardinal Urbano Navarrete Cortés, S.J., dies. ** The College now at 202, electors = 121 **

November 20, 2010: Cardinal creating consistory at which 24 cardinals, 20 electors were created. ** The College now at 203, electors = 121 **

November 14, 2010: Latvian Cardinal Priest Jānis Pujats turned 80 and ceased to be a cardinal elector. ** The College continues at 179, electors = 101 **

October 15, 2010: Philippines Cardinal Priest Ricardo Jamin Vidal retires. But still an elector. ** The College continues at 179, electors = 102 **

October 15, 2010: Cameroon Cardinal Priest Christian Wyghan Tumi of Cameroon Turned 80 and thus ceased to be an elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors = 102 **

October 11, 2010: Italian Cardinal Priest Severino Poletto retires. But still an elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 103 (no change) **

October 7, 2010: Brazilian Cardinal Priest Cláudio Hummes, O.F. M. and German Cardinal Deacon Paul Josef Cordes retire. But are still electors. ** The College continues at 179; electors = 103 (no change) **

October 2, 2010: Guatemalan Cardinal Priset Rodolfo Quezada Toruño retires but is still an elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 103 (no change) **

September 26, 2010: Italian Cardinal Priest Michele Giordano turned 80, thus ceasing to be a cardinal elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 103 **

September 18, 2010: Syrian, Oriental Rites Cardinal Bishop Ignace Moussa I Daoud turned 80, thus ceasing to be a cardinal elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 104 **

September 6, 2010: Italian Cardinal Priest Salvatore De Giorgi turned 80, thus ceasing to be a cardinal elector. ** The College continues at 179; electors= 105 **

August 30, 2010: French Cardinal Priest Paul Poupard turned 80 and ceased to be a cardinal elector. ** The College is still at 179; electors= 106 **

July 8, 2010: Colombian Cardinal Pedro Rubiano Sáenz retires as Archbishop of Bogotá. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 107 **

July 7, 2010: U.S. Cardinal Theodore Edgar McCarrick, on turning 80, ceased to be an elector. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 107 **

July 1, 2010: German Cardinal Walter Kasper, retires as the President, Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 108 **

June 30, 2010: Italian Cardinal Bishop Giovanni Battista Re, retires as the Prefect, Congregation for Bishops and is replaced by Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet, my #3 papabili from 2009. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 108 **

June 28, 2010: Indonesian Cardinal Jiulius Riyadi Darmaatmadja, retires as the Archbishop of Jakarta. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 108 **

June 19, 2010: Latvian Cardinal Janis Pujats, retires as the Archbishop of Riga. ** The College is still at = 179; electors = 108 **

May 4, 2010: Italian Cardinal Luigi Poggi , at one time the archivist and librarian of the Holy Roman Church, died at the age of 92. ** The College now = 179; electors = 108 **

April 30, 2010: German Cardinal Paul Augustin Mayer, a Benedictine, died at the age of 98, twenty three days prior to turning 99. ** The College then = 180 **

April 16, 2010: Czechoslovakian Cardinal Tomáš Špidlík, a Jesuit, died at the age of 90. ** The College then = 181 **

March 31, 2010: Spanish Cardinal Julián Herranz Casado, Opus Dei, on turning 80 ceased to be an elector. We then had 108 electors. Julián Herranz Casado (b. March 31, 1930) of Spain, the retired President of the Pontifical Council for the Interpretation of the Legislative Texts and President of the Disciplinary Commission of the Roman Curia turned 80 and thus ceased to be an elector. Spain has 10 cardinals, but only half of them are now eligible to vote. That still gives them a slight edge in terms of real representation. With 5 out of the 108 electors, Spain would a 4.6% representation if there were to be a conclave anytime soon. However, in terms of the world population of Catholics, Spain only has about 3.9%. So they can’t really complain, even though they probably will. Brazil with 3 times more Catholics has one less elector. Mexico with nearly twice more also only has 4 electors. The electors within the College does not reflect the population distribution of the Catholics. The U.S. and Europe gets preferential representation. This needs to be fixed at some point. <<q.v. Pages 7 to 11 of ‘The Next Pope’ book (for free, of course) at Google Books.>> ** College then = 182 **

March 20, 2010: NZ Cardinal Thomas Stafford on turning 80 ceased to be an elector. We then had 109 electors. NZ no longer has a vote if there was to be a conclave. ‘Oceania,’ [i.e., the Pacific basin] now only has one elector, viz. Australian Cardinal George Pell (b. 1941) who was created a cardinal in 2005. It is just like the ‘old days.’ The October 1958 conclave that elected John XXIII (#262) was the first conclave attended by a cardinal from Oceania, Australia’s Norman Thomas Gilroy. <<q.v. Pages 116 & 261 of ‘The Next Pope’ (for free, of course) at Google Books.>> ** College then = 182 **

March 18, 2010: US Cardinal Adam Joseph Maida on turning 80 ceased to be an elector. We then had 110 electors. ** College then = 182 **

February 13, 2010: Cardinal Miloslav Vlk retired from being an Archbishop — but is still a bona fide elector. His resignation is per Code of Canon Law 401 § 1 requiring that diocesan bishops tender their resignation to the pope when they have completed their 75th year. ** College then = 182 **

January 27, 2010: Cardinal Aloysius Matthew Ambrozic on turning 80 became a non-elector. Canada has a total of 3 cardinals, two of whom are still electors; one of them, Cardinal Marc Ouellet a credible papabile. ** College then = 182 **

January 18, 2010: 76 year old Belgium Cardinal Godfried Danneels retired from being the Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels. This did not alter the elector/non-elector numbers or the size of the College. Just changes the statistics as to the ‘occupations’ of the cardinals. ** College then = 182 **

January 10, 2010: Cardinal Armand Gaétan Razafindratandra, of Madagascar, Archbishop Emeritus of Antananarivo, died unexpectedly having had a fall while taking a walk. He had turned 84 last August.
** College then = 182 **

December 31, 2009: Cardinal Cahal Brendan Daly, of Ireland, Archbishop Emeritus of Armagh, died late in the day on Decmeber 31, 2009. He had turned 92 in October. ** College then = 183 **

December 30, 2009: Japanese Cardinal Peter Seiichi Shirayanagi, who had turned 81 this past June, died unexpectedly, in Tokyo. ** College then = 184 **

December 18, 2009: Cardinal Józef Glemp of Poland, created a cardinal by his compatriot in 1983, turned 80. He thus ceased to be an elector. That reduced the number of electors. ** College then = 185 **

November 17, 2009: Cardinal Christian Wiyghan Tumi of Cameroon, at 79, retired as the Archbishop of Douala. ** College then = 185 **

The Rationale for these Demographics

Following my “Next Pope — Papabili List for 2009,” I had some questions as to the amount of sway the curial cardinals would have at the next conclave. So I did some analysis on the composition of the current College beyond just age and nationalities. This is an ongoing effort to keep the data that I found up to-date. I also used these stats when writing my ‘The Next Pope – After Pope Benedict XVI’ book.

Hope this helps. All the best.

College continues at 193. 112 electors and 81 non-electors.

Now there is only one Cardinal Archpriest — Italian, newly created, 77-year old Francesco Monterisi.

Emeritus (i.e., retired) goes up to 113, with 35 of those electors and the other 78 non-electors.

Check here for the details. Thanks.

http://www.snapnetwork.org/cardinal_law_turns_80

[Horizontal lines added by Anura Guruge attempt to indicate POTENTIAL cardinal creating consistory dates.]

1. November 26,2011 Simonis turns 80
2. December 7,2011 Cheong turns 80
   ————————————————————-
3. January 6,2012 Saraiva Martins turns 80
4. January 13,2012 Zen turns 80
   ————————————————————-
   
5. March 8,2012 Quezada Torunos turns 80
6. April 2,2012 Egan turns 80
   ————————————————————-
7. May 17,2012 Vlk turns 80
8. June 14,2012 Schwery turns 80
   ————————————————————-
9. July 26,2012 Stafford turns 80
10. August 10,2012 Rosales turns 80
11. August 24,2012 Murphy-O’Connor turns 80
12. September 13,2012 Rubiano Saenz turns 80
13. November 1,2012 Arinze turns 80
    ————————————————————-
14. November 23,2012 Martino turns 80
15. December 8,2012 Scheid turns 80
16. January 26,2013 Lozano Barragon turns 80
17. February 26,2013 Husar turns 80
    ————————————————————-
    
18. March 5,2013 Kasper turns 80
19. March 18,2013 Poletto turns 80
20. March 28,2013 Sandoval Iniguez turns 80
21. June 4,2013 Danneels turns 80

This is an insult.

The US should follow Ireland’s lead and also close its embassy to the Holy See.

What happened yesterday was a resounding slap in the face for all US sex abuse victims and a blatant ‘up yours’ to all of the US by an unrepentant, arrogant, insensitive and heartless Vatican.

Thousands of innocent young kids in Boston were raped over decades.

The Vatican, by their actions yesterday, acts as if these kids, now adults, should consider that they were blessed to be raped by Catholic priests. To me, there is no other way to interpret this inane, provocative gesture.

To be honest, I was not aware of this gross behavior by the Vatican. As some of the more observant among you might have noticed, I refuse to type the Fugitives name. So, I had not done a Google on him. Then, late last night, I get an e-mail from Louis Epstein, one of my valued ‘collaborators’ that went:
“Seen this? I assume you are as ever against the Law:
http://bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?articleid=1378273“

I nearly blew a gasket. It gets even worse. The Vatican made sure that the Bearded Cardinal and other Bishops from Boston were in Rome. Yes. They claim that it was a coincidence. Yea. And pigs fly. This is beyond the pale.

The Fugitive church should be picketed 24×7 by groups from the US. He should not be allowed to leave his apartment. He is a Fugitive. He should, at a minimum, be kept confined to his palatial apartment in Rome so that he can do no more harm.

Here are some links re. the reaction from Boston, lawyers for the victims and the victims.

Boston Fox TV station.

Boston Globe.

Boston.com.