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Changes to the College of Cardinals
NLM has some interesting information about changes to the College of Cardinals.
A little background.
The College, as I am sure you know, is still divided into the three Orders of Deacons, Priests, and Bishops. These orders are the remnant of a practice in ancient times of the Roman tituli, which were rather like "parishes", staffed either by deacons or by priests.
Cardinals today are assigned churches in Rome, and, though there are many more cardinals today than in ancient times, the distinctions of diaconal titles and presbyteral titles remains. So, even though nearly all the cardinals are really bishops, they are still placed in these Orders in the College of Cardinals. Usually the Cardinals of the Curia, when first created cardinals, are cardinal deacons, while men who are bishops or archbishops of dioceses are made cardinal priests. For example, my old boss His Eminence Augustin Card. Mayer, now the oldest living cardinal, was at first Cardinal Prefect of the Congregation for divine Worship and, as such, started in the College as a cardinal deacon assigned to the title of Sant’Anselmo (he is a Benedictine). After 10 years, he was promoted to cardinal priest, though he stayed cardinal of Sant’Anselmo.
The Cardinal Bishops are a different matter. These were men assigned to one of the little dioceses encircling Rome, the "suburbicarian" dioceses. The cardinals bishops really were the ordinary bishops of those dioceses once, but in recent times the cardinals are just the titular bishops and there is an ordinary bishop assigned to the diocese. Today, only those cardinals who fill or filled important curial positions are cardinal bishops. For example, His Eminence Francis Card. Arinze is Cardinal Bishop of the Suburbicarian Diocese of Velletri-Segni and he is Prefect of the CDW. Usually the Prefects of Congregations like Doctrine of the Faith, Bishops, etc., are promoted cardinal bishops. Also, the Dean of the College is always a cardinal bishop, and he has two titular dioceses instead of one, for he always also has Ostia.
It has come to be the practice to "promote" a cardinal deacon who has been a cardinal deacon for some years, to the dignity of cardinal priest, although he does not thereby change his titutlar church in Rome from a diaconal title to a presbyteral title.
So now we turn to the news from NLM:
At this morning’s Ordinary Public Consistory for the Canonisation of four Beati (Gaetano Errico, Maria Bernarda Bütler, Alfonsa of the Immaculate Conception, and Narcisa of Jesus Martillo Morán), the Holy Father also elevated some Cardinals from the Order of Deacons to the Order of Priests, something which Cardinal Deacons may opt for after having belonged to the Order of Deacons for ten years, according to can. 350 § 5 of the Codex Juris Canonici. Having opted for this transition with the approval of the Holy Father, the new Cardinal Priests occupy then, within the order of Priests, the precedence they would have enjoyed had they immediately been created as Cardinal Priests (can. 350 § 6).
The cardinals who have passed from the order of Deacons to that of Priests are: – Jorge Arturo Medína Estevez – Darío Castrillón Hoyos – Lorenzo Antonetti – James Francis Stafford – Giovanni Cheli Liturgically, this means we will not see these cardinals function as Cardinal Deacons in papal Masses, with dalmatics and mitres, anymore. Since Cardinal Castrillón Hoyos was, until now, Cardinal Protodeacon (i.e. the first in the Order of Deacons), whose office it is to announce the name of the newly elected Supreme Pontiff (can. 355 § 2), this office had to be reassigned. The new Cardinal Protodeacon is His Eminence Agostino Cacciavillan, former Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to the United States and former President of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See.
I’m a bit puzzled. I used to think that the Cardinal Protodeacon was the ranking Cardinal-Deacon under the age of 80, because of his role in the conclave and such. But – Cardinal Medina Estévez was the previous Protodeacon, and he retired as such February 23, 2007, if I’m not mistaken. I assumed that that had to do with his reaching the age of 80, which, as a matter of fact, was December 23, 2006. But Cardinal Cacciavillan is older than Cardinal Medina Estévez by four months! What’s the deal? How does one retire as Cardinal Protodeacon, if age is of no concern, all other things remaining equal? Another option, I thought, was that the Cardinal’s retirement had to do with his having been a Cardinal-Deacon for ten years, which was February 21, 2007. But then, why has his promotion to the order of Cardinal-Priests been delayed until now? Puzzling.
Anyway, heartfelt congratulations to all Princes of the Church involved.
Comment by Stephen V. — 1 March 2008 @ 10:19 amInteresting to note that Cardinal Agostino Cacciavillan, now confirmed as
the new Cardinal Protodeacon, is no longer a Cardinal elector, and therefore,
under the current rules on papal elections, wouldn’t be avaliable to perform
the protodeacon’s main duty, that of announcing the name of a newly elected
Roman Pontiff.
So, if a Conclave – God forbid – were to take place under the current rules between today
and 2011, Cardinal Sergio Sebastiani, the senior Cardinal Deacon who is also
a Cardinal Elector, would be the person making the announcement. Sebastiani,
born in 1931, was named Cardinal in 2001, and will reach the 80 years old
age limit in 2011.
Interesting to note that in December 2006, when Cardinal Medina Estevez, then
Protodeacon, ceased as Cardinal Elector, Pope Benedict decided to release him
from the duties of protodeacon, naming Cardinal Castrillón Hoyos (then the
next senior Cardinal Deacon still an Elector) to that post,
although Medina Estevez remained (until today) Cardinal Deacon, and as such
was senior to Castrillón in the order of appointment.
That would seem to suggest that Pope Benedict would no longer keep
a non-elector as protodeacon, and that, when Castrillón opted for the
order of priests or reached the age limit, Sebastiani, the next elector
in seniority, would become protodeacon. However, the Pope did not follow the
same logic that presided over Medina’s release from the protodeaconship, and
insted appointed Cacciavilan to the role.
This appointment, however, does not
Comment by prof. basto — 1 March 2008 @ 10:25 amchange the fact that, under Universi Dominici Gregis, it will fall to the
senior Cardinal Deacon elector (currently Sebastiani), and not to Cacciavillan,
to make any announcement of a papal election.
The Cardinal Protodeacon is simply the most senior (by seniority, not age) Cardinal-Deacon. While the Protodeacon makes the public announcement of the new pope after the end of a conclave he might not (depending on his age) take part in the conclave itself.
Comment by David Cheney — 1 March 2008 @ 10:27 amYes Cheney, but in 2006 that logic was broken when Medina, without being
promoted to the order of priests, and therefore, while still the senior-
most Cardinal Deacon, was released from the protodeaconship just because
he was no longer a Cardinal Elector.
Thus it came to pass that Cardinal Castrillón, the second Cardinal Deacon
Comment by prof. basto — 1 March 2008 @ 10:32 amin seniority, was declared protodeacon with Medina still a Cardinal Deacon
his senior.
Prof. Basto makes a good point. Except that UDG 89 says only “senior Cardinal Deacon” and since the conclave is over at that point (UDG 91) I see no reason why the announcement could not be made by a non-elector.
The roles within the conclave obviously would be done by the most senior Cardinal Deacon attending.
Comment by David Cheney — 1 March 2008 @ 10:35 amDavid: Actually, I don’t think the conclave is over until the Holy Father says it is over. I believe that can take place at another time, for the new Pope might want to discuss some things with the College. Also, do you have handy the Latin text of UDG?
Comment by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf — 1 March 2008 @ 10:42 amCheney, just to clarify. I don’t think that, under Universi Dominici Gregis,
the Protodeacon is to make the announcement if the protodeacon is not a
Cardinal Elector.
The Apostolic Constitution speaks of the “senior Cardinal Deacon”, just after
having spoken of “Cardinal Electors”:
“Deinde, actis de more agendis, prout iubet Ordo rituum Conclavis, Cardinales electores, secundum statutas rationes, accedunt ut novo electo Summo Pontifici obsequium et oboedientiam exhibeant. Deinde gratiae Deo persolvuntur, ac demum populo exspectanti a primo Cardinalium Diaconorum, peracta electio novique Pontificis nomen nuntiantur, qui subinde ex podio Vaticanae Basilicae Apostolicam Benedictionem Urbi et Orbi impertit.”
First Cardinal Deacon, here, seems to mean first Cardinal Deacon among the
electors, given the context.
I believe seniority here means seniority among the electors (just as when
the document speaks of “junior Cardinal Deacon”, what is meant is the junior
Cardinal Deacon in Conclave, not the junior Cardinal Deacon in seniority
including non-electors). The junior cardinal deacon closes doors, etc.
Also, the presidency duties of the conclave fall to the Dean only if he is
present, otherwise the “chairmanship” of the conclave falls to the sub-dean,
or to the next Cardinal bishop in seniority.</