Cardinal Odilo Scherer
Brazil
Born: Sept. 21, 1949
Age: 63
Born in the southern Brazilian town of Cerro Largo, Cardinal Scherer was ordained in 1976 and, like Pope Benedict XVI, spent much of his life as a professor.
In March 2007, Pope Benedict appointed him archbishop of São Paulo, and after visiting the country that year made him a cardinal. Cardinal Scherer is a considered a political moderate among cardinals. On Latin America’s grass-roots liberation theology movement, for example, he has criticized its Marxist roots but also shown support for broader goals of using the church to combat poverty.
Cardinal Scherer has become a vocal advocate for spreading Catholicism, complaining of an "evangelization deficit" in 2010. In Brazil, where the Catholic population has decreased in recent decades, he has criticized the courts for considering abortion legalization and the government for removing crucifixes from public places.
Age: 63
Born in the southern Brazilian town of Cerro Largo, Cardinal Scherer was ordained in 1976 and, like Pope Benedict XVI, spent much of his life as a professor.
In March 2007, Pope Benedict appointed him archbishop of São Paulo, and after visiting the country that year made him a cardinal. Cardinal Scherer is a considered a political moderate among cardinals. On Latin America’s grass-roots liberation theology movement, for example, he has criticized its Marxist roots but also shown support for broader goals of using the church to combat poverty.
Cardinal Scherer has become a vocal advocate for spreading Catholicism, complaining of an "evangelization deficit" in 2010. In Brazil, where the Catholic population has decreased in recent decades, he has criticized the courts for considering abortion legalization and the government for removing crucifixes from public places.
Cardinal Leonardo Sandri
Argentina
Born: Nov. 18, 1943
Age: 69
Born in Buenos Aires, Cardinal Sandri was ordained in his hometown in 1967 and joined the Holy See for diplomatic service in 1974.
He was ordained a cardinal in 2007, and earlier that same year he was appointed prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, the group that handles relationships with the Eastern Catholic Churches -- those in northern Africa such as in Egypt and the Sinai Peninsula, Eastern European countries such as Hungary and Bulgaria and those in the Middle East, such as Syria and Jordan.
Cardinal Sandri drew the global spotlight in 2005, when he was an archbishop and Pope John Paul II’s chief of staff, a job he took on in 2000. In the final weeks of Pope John Paul’s life, he became the dying pontiff’s public voice, and it was he who announced to the world the news of the pope’s death, in St. Peter’s Square on April 2, 2005. On the Sunday after Pope John Paul’s death, Archbishop Sandri read the traditional Sunday noontime prayer to the crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square.
Age: 69
Born in Buenos Aires, Cardinal Sandri was ordained in his hometown in 1967 and joined the Holy See for diplomatic service in 1974.
He was ordained a cardinal in 2007, and earlier that same year he was appointed prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, the group that handles relationships with the Eastern Catholic Churches -- those in northern Africa such as in Egypt and the Sinai Peninsula, Eastern European countries such as Hungary and Bulgaria and those in the Middle East, such as Syria and Jordan.
Cardinal Sandri drew the global spotlight in 2005, when he was an archbishop and Pope John Paul II’s chief of staff, a job he took on in 2000. In the final weeks of Pope John Paul’s life, he became the dying pontiff’s public voice, and it was he who announced to the world the news of the pope’s death, in St. Peter’s Square on April 2, 2005. On the Sunday after Pope John Paul’s death, Archbishop Sandri read the traditional Sunday noontime prayer to the crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square.
Cardinal Óscar Andrés Rodríguez Maradiaga
Honduras
Born: Dec. 29, 1942
Age: 70
Cardinal Rodríguez Maradiaga is a native of Tegucigalpa, Honduras. A member of the Salesian order since 1961, he was ordained a priest in 1970 in Guatemala. He was elevated to bishop in 1978, has been archbishop of Tegucigalpa since 1993 and was named a cardinal in 2001, becoming the first cardinal from Honduras.
He is president of Caritas Internationalis, a conference of Catholic organizations working around the world to respond to humanitarian emergencies and promote development. From 1995 to 1999, he was president of the Conference of Latin American Bishops. He is the founder of the Catholic University of Honduras.
Cardinal Rodríguez has been a critic of income inequality in Latin America and a strong advocate for forgiveness of third-world debt. But he has also criticized Venezuela’s populist President Hugo Chávez and waded into political controversies at home. In 2009, after then-President Manuel Zelaya, a populist, was forcibly removed from Honduras by soldiers, Cardinal Rodríguez supported the army’s move, arguing that Mr. Zelaya was trampling the constitution.
He is also an expert on sacred music and plays the clarinet.
Age: 70
Cardinal Rodríguez Maradiaga is a native of Tegucigalpa, Honduras. A member of the Salesian order since 1961, he was ordained a priest in 1970 in Guatemala. He was elevated to bishop in 1978, has been archbishop of Tegucigalpa since 1993 and was named a cardinal in 2001, becoming the first cardinal from Honduras.
He is president of Caritas Internationalis, a conference of Catholic organizations working around the world to respond to humanitarian emergencies and promote development. From 1995 to 1999, he was president of the Conference of Latin American Bishops. He is the founder of the Catholic University of Honduras.
Cardinal Rodríguez has been a critic of income inequality in Latin America and a strong advocate for forgiveness of third-world debt. But he has also criticized Venezuela’s populist President Hugo Chávez and waded into political controversies at home. In 2009, after then-President Manuel Zelaya, a populist, was forcibly removed from Honduras by soldiers, Cardinal Rodríguez supported the army’s move, arguing that Mr. Zelaya was trampling the constitution.
He is also an expert on sacred music and plays the clarinet.
Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco
Italy
Born: Jan. 14, 1943
Age: 70
Angelo Bagnasco is the archbishop of the Italian port of Genoa. Cardinal Bagnasco was born in a small town in northern Italy, and he has said his desire to become a priest emerged at elementary school. In 1966 he was ordained in Genoa at age 23. He was ordained bishop in 1998. In 2007, he was elevated to cardinal by Pope Benedict XVI and that same year he was appointed to head the Italian Bishops' Conference, which is very influential among the country's politicians.
Cardinal Bagnasco is considered to be a conservative, and his opposition to abortion has been particularly strong. "Once conceived, life has all the rights of human life and one cannot absolutely accustom oneself to the idea that it be cancelled," he told the Italian media.
He has encouraged doctors to exercise their right to conscientious objection in response to the decision by Italian health-care officials to allow the sale of an abortion drug. He expressed "sadness and bitterness" over the decision, calling it a "crack in our society."
Like most of his brethren, Cardinal Bagnasco has opposed giving legal rights to gay couples. In fact, for a period he was assigned a police escort after receiving a death threat over his position on the matter. He has called on Italian politicians to higher levels of morality, a move the Italian media viewed as a swipe at former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.
Age: 70
Angelo Bagnasco is the archbishop of the Italian port of Genoa. Cardinal Bagnasco was born in a small town in northern Italy, and he has said his desire to become a priest emerged at elementary school. In 1966 he was ordained in Genoa at age 23. He was ordained bishop in 1998. In 2007, he was elevated to cardinal by Pope Benedict XVI and that same year he was appointed to head the Italian Bishops' Conference, which is very influential among the country's politicians.
Cardinal Bagnasco is considered to be a conservative, and his opposition to abortion has been particularly strong. "Once conceived, life has all the rights of human life and one cannot absolutely accustom oneself to the idea that it be cancelled," he told the Italian media.
He has encouraged doctors to exercise their right to conscientious objection in response to the decision by Italian health-care officials to allow the sale of an abortion drug. He expressed "sadness and bitterness" over the decision, calling it a "crack in our society."
Like most of his brethren, Cardinal Bagnasco has opposed giving legal rights to gay couples. In fact, for a period he was assigned a police escort after receiving a death threat over his position on the matter. He has called on Italian politicians to higher levels of morality, a move the Italian media viewed as a swipe at former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.
Cardinal Timothy Dolan
United States
Born: Feb. 6, 1950
Age: 63
Cardinal Dolan, who is archbishop of New York and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, was installed as the head of the church in New York in 2009 by Pope Benedict, and appointed by him to the College of Cardinals in January 2012.
A native of Shrewsbury, Mo., he was ordained to the priesthood in 1976. Before coming to New York, he served as archbishop of Milwaukee for almost seven years.
In recent months, Cardinal Dolan has been closely tied to the Roman Catholic Church’s opposition to sections of the U.S. government’s health-care overhaul requiring mandatory insurance coverage of contraception, including the morning-after pill. Some Catholic-owned businesses and high-profile Catholic universities consider the morning-after pill to be a form of abortion and, therefore, counter to the church’s teachings.
Age: 63
Cardinal Dolan, who is archbishop of New York and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, was installed as the head of the church in New York in 2009 by Pope Benedict, and appointed by him to the College of Cardinals in January 2012.
A native of Shrewsbury, Mo., he was ordained to the priesthood in 1976. Before coming to New York, he served as archbishop of Milwaukee for almost seven years.
In recent months, Cardinal Dolan has been closely tied to the Roman Catholic Church’s opposition to sections of the U.S. government’s health-care overhaul requiring mandatory insurance coverage of contraception, including the morning-after pill. Some Catholic-owned businesses and high-profile Catholic universities consider the morning-after pill to be a form of abortion and, therefore, counter to the church’s teachings.
Cardinal Peter Erdo
Hungary
Born: June 25, 1952
Age: 60
Peter Erdo grew up a Catholic in Budapest at a time when Hungary’s communist government discouraged religious practice, and he has spoken of his deeply religious parents’ choice of faith over social advancement. One of six children in his family, the cardinal was ordained a priest in 1975.
If elected pope, he would be the second pontiff to come from a former socialist country in Europe, following in the footsteps of the late John Paul II, a Pole who played an important role in the collapse of communism in his home country.
As primate of Hungary, Cardinal Erdo has paid special attention to the socio-economic plight of the minority Roma population, also known as Gypsies, and the church’s role in their community. An expert in canon law, he is also president of the Council of European Bishops’ Conferences.
In an interview with Hungarian news agency MTI before he left for the conclave, Cardinal Erdo said the next pope’s most important job is spreading Christ’s message. "People have to be guided to Jesus Christ," he said. "This is the big problem, the great challenge, the central task."
Age: 60
Peter Erdo grew up a Catholic in Budapest at a time when Hungary’s communist government discouraged religious practice, and he has spoken of his deeply religious parents’ choice of faith over social advancement. One of six children in his family, the cardinal was ordained a priest in 1975.
If elected pope, he would be the second pontiff to come from a former socialist country in Europe, following in the footsteps of the late John Paul II, a Pole who played an important role in the collapse of communism in his home country.
As primate of Hungary, Cardinal Erdo has paid special attention to the socio-economic plight of the minority Roma population, also known as Gypsies, and the church’s role in their community. An expert in canon law, he is also president of the Council of European Bishops’ Conferences.
In an interview with Hungarian news agency MTI before he left for the conclave, Cardinal Erdo said the next pope’s most important job is spreading Christ’s message. "People have to be guided to Jesus Christ," he said. "This is the big problem, the great challenge, the central task."
United States
Born: June 29, 1944
Age: 68
Cardinal O’Malley was appointed as archbishop in Boston in 2003 by Pope John Paul II, and was named a cardinal in 2006 by Pope Benedict.
Born in Lakewood, Ohio, and raised in Western Pennsylvania, he professed his vows at age 21 to the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin and at age 26 was ordained to the priesthood. He earned a Ph.D. in Spanish and Portuguese literature from the Catholic University of America, and led the Spanish Catholic Center in Washington D.C., where he ministered to the Spanish-speaking community in his archdiocese.
Before coming to Boston, he served as bishop of the dioceses of Palm Beach, Fla., St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, and Fall River, Mass.
Cardinal O’Malley has had a highly visible role in the Roman Catholic Church’s response to the sexual-abuse crisis. In Fall River, Palm Beach, and Boston, he was brought in to restore order and calm to Catholic communities that were rocked by the scandal. He has generally received praise for his outreach to victims, for settling lawsuits, and for putting in new policies to prevent abuse. In 2011, Pope Benedict appointed Cardinal O’Malley to lead the review of Archdiocese of Dublin’s response to sexual abuse.
Age: 68
Cardinal O’Malley was appointed as archbishop in Boston in 2003 by Pope John Paul II, and was named a cardinal in 2006 by Pope Benedict.
Born in Lakewood, Ohio, and raised in Western Pennsylvania, he professed his vows at age 21 to the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin and at age 26 was ordained to the priesthood. He earned a Ph.D. in Spanish and Portuguese literature from the Catholic University of America, and led the Spanish Catholic Center in Washington D.C., where he ministered to the Spanish-speaking community in his archdiocese.
Before coming to Boston, he served as bishop of the dioceses of Palm Beach, Fla., St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, and Fall River, Mass.
Cardinal O’Malley has had a highly visible role in the Roman Catholic Church’s response to the sexual-abuse crisis. In Fall River, Palm Beach, and Boston, he was brought in to restore order and calm to Catholic communities that were rocked by the scandal. He has generally received praise for his outreach to victims, for settling lawsuits, and for putting in new policies to prevent abuse. In 2011, Pope Benedict appointed Cardinal O’Malley to lead the review of Archdiocese of Dublin’s response to sexual abuse.
Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan
Nigeria
Born: Jan. 29, 1944
Age: 69
John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan is the archbishop of Abuja, Nigeria. He was born in central Nigeria, attended seminary in the country and became an ordained priest in 1959. In 2012, he was elevated to cardinal, becoming the fourth Nigerian Catholic priest to reach that position.
Like other African leaders in the Catholic Church, Cardinal Onaiyekan has staked out conservative ground on social issues. He has condemned legislation that would safeguard same-sex marriage, for example, saying the marital bond can be only between a man and woman.
But he has also tried to tackle religious intolerance, criticizing extremism among both Christians and Muslims. In the face of a spate of church bombings by an Islamic insurgency, called Boko Haram, Cardinal Onaiyekan urged Christians to refrain from revenge attacks. He also lacerated the Nigerian government for failing to protect its citizens.
Age: 69
John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan is the archbishop of Abuja, Nigeria. He was born in central Nigeria, attended seminary in the country and became an ordained priest in 1959. In 2012, he was elevated to cardinal, becoming the fourth Nigerian Catholic priest to reach that position.
Like other African leaders in the Catholic Church, Cardinal Onaiyekan has staked out conservative ground on social issues. He has condemned legislation that would safeguard same-sex marriage, for example, saying the marital bond can be only between a man and woman.
But he has also tried to tackle religious intolerance, criticizing extremism among both Christians and Muslims. In the face of a spate of church bombings by an Islamic insurgency, called Boko Haram, Cardinal Onaiyekan urged Christians to refrain from revenge attacks. He also lacerated the Nigerian government for failing to protect its citizens.
Cardinal Marc Ouellet
Canada
Born: June 8, 1944
Age: 68
Born in a small town in rural, French-speaking Quebec, Cardinal Ouellet was ordained to the priesthood in his home parish in Amos, Quebec, in May 1968. Cardinal Ouellet has said he found his vocation for the priesthood after a hockey injury took him off the ice for several months when he was young man and gave him a chance to reflect.
He has spent much of his career as a teacher in Quebec and Rome, and as a rector in seminaries. Pope John Paul II ordained Cardinal Ouellet a bishop in March 2001. He was elevated to archbishop of Quebec in November 2002.
In 2010, Pope Benedict appointed Cardinal Ouellet to head the Congregation of Bishops. The influential office vets bishop appointments, giving the Canadian cardinal a critical role in shaping the next generation of leaders who oversee local dioceses.
The decision was seen as significant at the time because it was made as the church struggled with intense scrutiny over the failure of some bishops to report alleged sexual abuse to civil authorities. The role placed Cardinal Ouellet in a position to shape how the church would require bishops and other top church officials to better monitor priests under their supervision.
Cardinal Ouellet also comes with a conservative reputation in Catholic doctrinal issues, a reputation that helped endear Pope Benedict to cardinals who elected him in 2005.
Age: 68
Born in a small town in rural, French-speaking Quebec, Cardinal Ouellet was ordained to the priesthood in his home parish in Amos, Quebec, in May 1968. Cardinal Ouellet has said he found his vocation for the priesthood after a hockey injury took him off the ice for several months when he was young man and gave him a chance to reflect.
He has spent much of his career as a teacher in Quebec and Rome, and as a rector in seminaries. Pope John Paul II ordained Cardinal Ouellet a bishop in March 2001. He was elevated to archbishop of Quebec in November 2002.
In 2010, Pope Benedict appointed Cardinal Ouellet to head the Congregation of Bishops. The influential office vets bishop appointments, giving the Canadian cardinal a critical role in shaping the next generation of leaders who oversee local dioceses.
The decision was seen as significant at the time because it was made as the church struggled with intense scrutiny over the failure of some bishops to report alleged sexual abuse to civil authorities. The role placed Cardinal Ouellet in a position to shape how the church would require bishops and other top church officials to better monitor priests under their supervision.
Cardinal Ouellet also comes with a conservative reputation in Catholic doctrinal issues, a reputation that helped endear Pope Benedict to cardinals who elected him in 2005.
Christoph Schönborn
Austria
Born: Jan. 22, 1945
Age: 68
The archbishop of Vienna, Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, is a member of the Schuelerkreis, a group of Pope Benedict XVI’s former students who meet once a year to discuss theology with the former pope. He is also seen as a reform-minded crisis manager.
Cardinal Schönborn became archbishop in September 1995 after his predecessor, Cardinal Hans Hermann Groër, stepped down in the midst of sex-abuse allegations. “The days of cover-up are over,” Cardinal Schönborn said in 2010.
He has reached out to younger Catholics. He has an active Facebook account. And on his website and YouTube channel “Frag den Kardinal,” he posts videos in answer to people’s questions. In one 2012 post, a young man asks the cardinal: “Would you like to become pope?” His answer is a clear “No.”
Age: 68
The archbishop of Vienna, Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, is a member of the Schuelerkreis, a group of Pope Benedict XVI’s former students who meet once a year to discuss theology with the former pope. He is also seen as a reform-minded crisis manager.
Cardinal Schönborn became archbishop in September 1995 after his predecessor, Cardinal Hans Hermann Groër, stepped down in the midst of sex-abuse allegations. “The days of cover-up are over,” Cardinal Schönborn said in 2010.
He has reached out to younger Catholics. He has an active Facebook account. And on his website and YouTube channel “Frag den Kardinal,” he posts videos in answer to people’s questions. In one 2012 post, a young man asks the cardinal: “Would you like to become pope?” His answer is a clear “No.”
Cardinal Angelo Scola
Italy
Born: Nov. 7, 1941
Age: 71
Cardinal Scola, the patriarch of Venice since 2002 and a cardinal since 2003, is considered to be an open-minded conservative.
The son of a truck driver, he was ordained a priest in 1970 and named bishop of Grosseto in 1991. Since 1982 he has taught theological anthropology at the Pontifical Institute John Paul II for Studies on Marriage and the Family, where in 1995 he was named dean. In the same year, he was named rector of the Pontifical Council of the Lateran University in Rome.
He has called for broadening Catholic religious instruction to include issues involving the economic and bioethical challenges facing society. He has also been vocal about the need for the church to find a way to confront the Muslim world and recently launched a publication dedicated to that topic.
Age: 71
Cardinal Scola, the patriarch of Venice since 2002 and a cardinal since 2003, is considered to be an open-minded conservative.
The son of a truck driver, he was ordained a priest in 1970 and named bishop of Grosseto in 1991. Since 1982 he has taught theological anthropology at the Pontifical Institute John Paul II for Studies on Marriage and the Family, where in 1995 he was named dean. In the same year, he was named rector of the Pontifical Council of the Lateran University in Rome.
He has called for broadening Catholic religious instruction to include issues involving the economic and bioethical challenges facing society. He has also been vocal about the need for the church to find a way to confront the Muslim world and recently launched a publication dedicated to that topic.
Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle
Philippines
Born: June 21, 1957
Age: 55
Manila Archbishop Cardinal Tagle is still calling himself a greenhorn after being named a cardinal last October. On Feb. 17, he told a leadership forum in Manila that he was reading up on what is involved in selecting the next pope after Pope Benedict XVI announced his plans to retire. Yet Cardinal Tagle, 55 years old, is attracting growing attention, thanks in large part to his theological conservatism, denouncing government plans to extend the use of contraceptives, and his gifts as a communicator.
Faced with the growing lure of televangelist and charismatic preachers in the Philippines, Cardinal Tagle takes airwaves himself in a regular television show and has developed a reputation as a priest with a common touch. Among other things, he has been known to visit parishoners on a cheap bicycle.
Vatican analysts, however, suggest that Cardinal Tagle’s age might count against him for the papacy. The Roman Catholic Church generally prefers its popes a little older. But the cardinals have surprised observers before. In 1978, 58-year-old Cardinal Karol Josef Wojtyla became Pope John Paul II.
Age: 55
Manila Archbishop Cardinal Tagle is still calling himself a greenhorn after being named a cardinal last October. On Feb. 17, he told a leadership forum in Manila that he was reading up on what is involved in selecting the next pope after Pope Benedict XVI announced his plans to retire. Yet Cardinal Tagle, 55 years old, is attracting growing attention, thanks in large part to his theological conservatism, denouncing government plans to extend the use of contraceptives, and his gifts as a communicator.
Faced with the growing lure of televangelist and charismatic preachers in the Philippines, Cardinal Tagle takes airwaves himself in a regular television show and has developed a reputation as a priest with a common touch. Among other things, he has been known to visit parishoners on a cheap bicycle.
Vatican analysts, however, suggest that Cardinal Tagle’s age might count against him for the papacy. The Roman Catholic Church generally prefers its popes a little older. But the cardinals have surprised observers before. In 1978, 58-year-old Cardinal Karol Josef Wojtyla became Pope John Paul II.
Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson
Ghana
Born: Oct. 11, 1948
Age: 64
The former archbishop of Cape Coast, Ghana, Cardinal Turkson is a native of that country. He studied at the Seminary of St. Anthony-on-Hudson in Rensselaer, N.Y., before being ordained to the priesthood in Ghana in 1975. In 1992 he was elected archbishop of Cape Coast. He was ordained a cardinal in 2003, the first from his country. In October 2009, he was appointed by Benedict to be president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace.
Cardinal Turkson has addressed some of the church's most contentious positions, including its opposition to distributing condoms to curb HIV transmission. In 2007, he stirred controversy by saying the Roman Catholic Church should counsel the faithful on whether condoms were the best option for fighting HIV. In 2010, the Vatican went on to refine its view, saying the use of condoms among homosexuals and heterosexuals was preferable to risking HIV infection.
Seasoned Vatican watchers have long spoken of Cardinal Turkson as the most likely to become the first African pope since Gelasius I in the late fifth century, and only the third African pope in history. But while Gelasius hailed from Africa's Mediterranean, a significant incubator of the early church, Cardinal Turkson comes from the Vatican's newest growth region: Sub-Saharan Africa.
Age: 64
The former archbishop of Cape Coast, Ghana, Cardinal Turkson is a native of that country. He studied at the Seminary of St. Anthony-on-Hudson in Rensselaer, N.Y., before being ordained to the priesthood in Ghana in 1975. In 1992 he was elected archbishop of Cape Coast. He was ordained a cardinal in 2003, the first from his country. In October 2009, he was appointed by Benedict to be president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace.
Cardinal Turkson has addressed some of the church's most contentious positions, including its opposition to distributing condoms to curb HIV transmission. In 2007, he stirred controversy by saying the Roman Catholic Church should counsel the faithful on whether condoms were the best option for fighting HIV. In 2010, the Vatican went on to refine its view, saying the use of condoms among homosexuals and heterosexuals was preferable to risking HIV infection.
Seasoned Vatican watchers have long spoken of Cardinal Turkson as the most likely to become the first African pope since Gelasius I in the late fifth century, and only the third African pope in history. But while Gelasius hailed from Africa's Mediterranean, a significant incubator of the early church, Cardinal Turkson comes from the Vatican's newest growth region: Sub-Saharan Africa.
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