"There are currently 118 cardinals currently eligible to take part in the Conclave - the election of the next Pope. But Cardinal Lubomyr Husar, Archbishop Emeritus of Kiev, will turn 80 before the Pope's resignation so will be excluded from voting. And, on 21 February Cardinal Julius Riyadi Darmaatmadja, the 78 year-old Archbishop Emeritus of Jakarta, ruled himself out of travelling to Rome due to the "progressive deterioration" of his vision. Sixty seven of the cardinal-electors were appointed by Benedict XVI and 61 are European - with 21 of those being Italian. " BBC
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"Lubomyr Husar" is ineligible? Now THAT is a shame. I was hoping that this representative of the fabled Ukrainian Catholic Church would have a "shot" as a dark horse, or Bactrian Camel, or something, but, alas it was not to be.
Seriously, sort of, the Catholic Church needs an evangelical pastor who would address issues of church governance that stand between those who wish to be "faithful" and regular appearance in the pews.
Theology is not a serious issue. Theology is simply a matter of preferred belief whether it is Catholic, Mormon. Islamic, etc., etc. "Lapsed" Catholics by and large do not question Catholic theology. The inherent truth or untruth of transubstantiation as dogma is not what drove them from church attendance.
What they don't like is the egomaniacal, corrupt, self-serving way in which the Catholic Church has been run by many in the clergy and hierarchy. "Smells and Bells," the Epicopalians used to say of the Catholic Church. They have little reason to criticize any other church these days but "in the day" they had a point.
Is there a chance that a reincarnated Francis of Assisi or a Father Duffy type could be elected? There is no chance at all.
The College of Cardinals will elect one their own, a vatican bureacratic politician, someone who will not rock the boat. Angelo Scola should be just the man for the Holy Spirit's nod.
The Cardinal Archbishop of Scotland has said that diocesan proests should be allowed to marry. Let's see how many votes he gets. pl
