The coat of arms of a Cardinal are indicated by a red
galero (wide-brimmed hat) with 15 tassels
on each side (the motto and
escutcheon
are proper to the individual Cardinal).
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually a bishop, of the Roman Catholic Church. They are
collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new
pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and making
themselves available individually or collectively to the pope if he requests their counsel. Most cardinals have additional
duties, such as leading a diocese or archdiocese or running a
department of the Roman Curia.
A cardinal's other main function is electing the pope, whenever by death or
resignation, the seat becomes vacant. In 1059 the right of electing the Pope was reserved to the principal clergy of Rome and the
bishops of the seven suburbicarian sees. During the sede vacante, the period between a pope's death and the election of his successor, the day-to-day
governance of the Church as a whole is in the hands of the College of Cardinals. The right to enter the conclave of cardinals who elect the pope is now limited to those not over 80 years old on the day of the
pope's death.
The term "cardinal" at one time applied to any priest permanently assigned or incardinated to a church,[1] or specifically to the senior priest of an important church, based on the Latin
cardo (hinge), meaning "principal" or "chief". The term was applied in this sense as early as the ninth century to the
priests of the tituli (parishes) of the diocese of Rome.[1] In the twelfth century the practice of appointing ecclesiastics
from outside Rome as cardinals began, with each of them being assigned a church in Rome as his titular church, or being linked with one of the suburbicarian dioceses, while still being
incardinated in a diocese other than Rome.
History
The election of the pope was not always reserved to the cardinals; the pope was originally elected by the clergy and the
people of the diocese of Rome. In medieval times, Roman
nobility gained influence. The Holy Roman Emperors had a hand in choosing the pontiff. But as the pope gained greater political
independence, the right of election was given to the cardinals in 1059.
Cardinal de Fleury, chief minister of France
However the influence of temporal rulers, notably the French kings, largely reemerged via cardinals of certain nationalities
or politically significant movements; there even developed traditions entitling certain monarchs — e.g. of Austria, Spain, and
Portugal — to nominate one of their trusted clerical subjects to be created cardinal, a so-called crown-cardinal.
In theory, the pope could substitute another body of electors for the College of Cardinals. Some proposed that the
Synod of Bishops should perform this function, a proposal that was not accepted, because, among
other reasons, the Synod of Bishops can only meet when called by the Pope.
In early modern times, Cardinals often had important roles in secular affairs. In
some cases, they took on powerful positions in government. An example of this was found in Henry VIII's England where his chief minister was Thomas Cardinal
Wolsey. An even more prominent example is that of Cardinal Richelieu whose
power in France was so great that he is considerd by many as the world's first Prime Minister.[attribution needed] Indeed, Richelieu was so
successful his successor, Jules Mazarin was also a Cardinal. André-Hercule de Fleury was another Cardinal to hold this rôle.
College and orders of cardinalate
Pope Sixtus V limited the number of cardinals to 70, composed of six Cardinal Bishops,
50 Cardinal Priests, and 14 Cardinal Deacons. In 1975, Pope Paul VI set an age limit of
eighty years for electors, who were to be no more than 120, but set no limit to the number of cardinals as a whole, including
those over eighty. On one occasion, October 21, 2003,
Pope John Paul II brought the number of cardinals with the right to enter the
conclave to over 120, perhaps calculating that, though his death was approaching, the
number would be sufficiently reduced when his successor was elected. And in fact, at John Paul II's death, only 117 of the
then-current 183 cardinals were young enough to be electors.[1] Pope Paul
VI also increased the number of Cardinal Bishops by giving that rank to patriarchs of the Eastern Catholic Churches who are made cardinals.
Title
Each cardinal takes on a "title" to a certain church in Rome or one of the
suburbicarian sees. The only exception is for patriarchs of Eastern Catholic Churches. The Dean of the College of Cardinals always adds the title Bishop of Ostia to the title of the suburbicarian see
that he already holds. Not only Eastern patriarchs, but also Western bishops and archbishops retain the governance of the
particular Church that is in their charge at the time of their appointment to the
cardinalate.
Since 1630, cardinals have taken the style
Eminence. In accordance with Latin tradition, they,
like the pope, sign by placing the title (Papa, abbreviated P.P., or Cardinalis abbreviated Card.)
after their first name, as, for instance, "Benedictus P.P. XVI" or "John Card. Doe". This order is also found when
referring to cardinals in English, and is the form that James-Charles Noonan, in The Church Visible, p. 205, cites as the
correct form. (It is also common, though not universal, for archdioceses led, or traditionally led, by cardinals to use this
form: Boston,[2] Chicago,[3] Dublin,[4]
New York,[5] St Andrews and Edinburgh,[6] Toronto,[7] and Washington.[8]) However,
the form that places the title before the first name, e.g., "Cardinal John Doe", in line with usages concerning other figures,
both lay and religious (such as "Pope Benedict XVI", "President George W. Bush", "Archbishop John Smith"), is the usual form on
the Vatican website and in the media; some dioceses, such as the Diocese of Westminster[9] and the Archdiocese of Wellington,[10] opt for this style. Some archdioceses, such as the Archdiocese of Sydney,[11][12] use
the two forms interchangeably. Accordingly, the full style of Cardinal
McCarrick is either "His Eminence, Theodore Cardinal McCarrick, Archbishop Emeritus of Washington," or "His Eminence, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Archbishop Emeritus
of Washington." Ultimately, it is a matter of personal
preference which form one chooses to use, as both forms are now generally recognized. When the name of the new pope is annunced
to people of Rome the cardinal protodeacon says: Eminentissimum ac reverendissimum Dominum,( first name of the elected pope )
then Sanctæ Romanæ Ecclesiæ Cardinalem ( last name ).
Cardinal Bishop
Cardinal Sodano, current Dean of the College
Cardinal Bishops, or Cardinals of the Episcopal Order, are among the most senior prelates of
the Catholic Church. Since, normally, all cardinals are also bishops, the title of Cardinal Bishop only means that the cardinal
in question holds the title of one of the "suburbicarian" sees — they include the
Dean of the College of Cardinals — or is a patriarch of an Eastern
Catholic church.
The Cardinal Bishops are the only order of Cardinals who have always been required to be bishops, and in former times
when a Cardinal of one of the lower orders became a Cardinal Bishop, and so the head of a diocese, he was consecrated a bishop.
Since 1962 all cardinals have been bishops with rare exceptions, and those cardinals exceptionally
allowed to decline episcopal consecration obviously cannot head a suburbicarian see as a Cardinal Bishop.
The Dean, the head (as primus inter pares) of the College of Cardinals, is elected by the Cardinal Bishops holding
suburbicarian sees from among their own number, an election, however, that must be approved by the Pope. Formerly the position of
Dean belonged to the longest-serving of the Cardinal Bishops, all six of whom then headed a suburbicarian see. Though these sees
are seven, there were only six Cardinal Bishops, since the Dean always adds the title of Ostia to his original suburbicarian
diocese.
In early times the privilege of papal election was not reserved to the cardinals, and
for centuries the Pope was customarily a Roman priest and never a bishop from elsewhere; to preserve apostolic succession the rite of consecrating the Pope as a bishop
had to be performed by someone who was already a bishop. The rule remains that, if the person elected Pope is not yet a bishop,
he is consecrated by the Dean of the College of Cardinals, the Cardinal Bishop of
Ostia.
Currently the Cardinal-Bishops of the suburbicarian diocese are:
- Angelo Sodano, Cardinal Bishop of Ostia and
Albano, Dean of the College of
Cardinals, former Cardinal Secretary of State
- Bernardin Gantin, Cardinal Bishop of
Palestrina, Dean emeritus, the senior prelate from Africa, who long headed the Congregation for Bishops;
- Roger Etchegaray, Cardinal
Bishop of Porto-Santa Rufina, Vice-Dean, President emeritus of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace;
- Alfonso López Trujillo, Cardinal Bishop of Frascati, President of the Pontifical Council for the
Family, a leading figure in the Latin American Church;
- Giovanni Battista Re, Cardinal Bishop of
Sabina-Poggio Mirteto, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops;
- Francis Arinze, Cardinal Bishop of
Velletri-Segni, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the
Sacraments, widely regarded as the most Papabile African.
For a period ending in the mid-20th century, long-serving Cardinal Priests were entitled
to fill vacancies that arose among the Cardinal Bishops, just as Cardinal Deacons
of ten years' standing are still entitled to become Cardinal Priests. Since then, Cardinals have been advanced to Cardinal Bishop
(except for the Eastern Rite Patriarchs, no one ever joins the College of Cardinals
as a Cardinal Bishop) exclusively by Papal appointment. Only leading figures close to the Pope can expect to be appointed.
In 1965 Pope Paul VI decreed in his motu proprio Ad Purpuratorum Patrum that patriarchs of the
Eastern Catholic Churches who were named Cardinals would also be part of the
episcopal order, ranked after the six Cardinal Bishops of the suburbicarian sees (who had been relieved of direct
responsibilities for those sees by Pope John XXIII three years earlier). Not holding a
suburbicarian see, they cannot elect the dean nor become dean. The three Eastern patriarchs who are now Cardinal Bishops are the following:
The Latin Rite Patriarchs of Lisbon and
Venice, while in practice always made Cardinals at the consistory after they take possession of their sees, are made Cardinal Priests, not Cardinal Bishops.
Although the incumbents of such prestigious sees are usually created cardinal, no see carries an actual right to the cardinalate.
In matters of precedence, membership in the college outranks any title conferred by an office, other than the see of Rome.
Cardinal Priest
Cardinal Franz König, former Protopriest
Cardinal Priests are the most numerous of the three orders of Cardinals in the Catholic Church. They formally rank above the
Cardinal Deacons and below the Cardinal Bishops though this is not a matter of exercise of authority. Those who are named
Cardinal Priests today are generally archbishops of important dioceses throughout the world, though some hold Curial positions.
In modern times the name "Cardinal Priest" is interpreted as meaning a Cardinal who is of the order of priests. Originally,
however, the understanding of which word modified the other was the opposite: of the priests of the Diocese of Rome, certain key
priests of important churches were recognized as the cardinal priests, the important priests chosen by the
Pope to advise him in his duties as Bishop of Rome (the
Latin cardo means "hinge," and the term was used in the same way that "key" is used in English today: certain clerics in
many dioceses at the time, not just that of Rome, were said to be the "key" personnel, or, in Latin, the "hinges," cardinals —
the term gradually became exclusive to Rome to indicate those entrusted with electing the Bishop of Rome, the Pope).
All cardinals are given "titles", though they may be bishops or archbishops elsewhere. While the cardinalate has long been
expanded beyond the Roman pastoral clergy and Roman Curia, to this day every Cardinal Priest
has nominal title to a parish church in Rome, just as Cardinal Bishops are given the honorary title of one of the suburban
dioceses around Rome. A cardinal priest has no functional relationship to the parish's operations, though his name and coat of
arms are still posted in the church. Pope Paul VI abolished all administrative rights
cardinals had with regard to their titular churches. Some of the titular churches have been the seats of Cardinals since the
2nd century.
While the number of Cardinals was small from the times of the Roman Empire to the
Renaissance, and frequently smaller than the number of recognized churches entitled to a
Cardinal Priest, in the 16th century the College expanded markedly. In 1587 Pope Sixtus V sought to arrest this growth by fixing the maximum size
of the College at 70, including 50 Cardinal Priests, about twice the historical number. This limit was respected until
1958, and the list of titular churches modified only on rare occasions, generally due to a building
falling into disrepair. When Pope John XXIII abolished the limit, he began to add new
churches to the list, which Popes Paul VI and John Paul
II continued to do. Today there are close to 150 titular churches, out of over 300 churches in Rome.
The Cardinal who is the longest-serving member of the order of Cardinal Priests is titled Cardinal protopriest. He had
certain ceremonial duties in the conclave that have effectively ceased because he would generally be over the age of 80, past
which cardinals are barred from the conclave. Since the death of Franz König, the Cardinal
Protopriest has been Stephen Kim Sou-hwan of South
Korea.
Cardinal Deacon
Coat of arms of Castrillón Hoyos, current Protodeacon.
The Cardinal Deacons are the lowest-ranked of the three orders of Cardinals of the Catholic Church. Cardinals elevated to the
diaconal order are either officials of the Roman Curia or priests elevated after their
eightieth birthday. Bishops with pastoral responsibilities on the other hand are created Cardinal Priests.
Cardinal deacons derive originally from the seven deacons in the Papal Household and the seven deacons who supervised the Church's works in the
districts of Rome during the early Middle Ages, when the Church administration was effectively the
government of Rome and provided all social services. Cardinal Deacons are given title to one of these deaconries. There were
traditionally 14 Cardinal Deacons, but this number has been expanded in recent years.
Under the 1587 decree of Pope Sixtus V that fixed the
maximum size of the College of Cardinals until 1958,
there were fourteen diaconates, but the number has increased. As of 2005 there were over fifty
recognized titular diaconates, though only thirty cardinals were of the order of Deacons. Cardinal Deacons have long enjoyed the
right to "opt for the order of Cardinal Priests" (optazione) after they have been Cardinal Deacons for ten years, and
after this they rank in precedence as if they had been Cardinal Priests from when they first became Cardinals. They may on such
elevation take a vacant title (church allotted as the titular dignity of a Cardinal Priest) or their existing diaconate
may be elevated to title for that occasion.
Until 1918 it was possible to become a Cardinal without entering Holy Orders, but only the order of Cardinal Deacons was open to those who were not priests. For example, in the 16th century, Reginald Pole was a cardinal
for 18 years before he was ordained a priest. After 1918 it was established that all cardinals, even the Cardinal Deacons, had to
be priests, and since 1962 all cardinals have been bishops with rare exceptions where permission was granted to decline episcopal
consecration because of advanced age. Today, Canon 351 specifically requires that a
cardinal be at least in the order of priesthood at his appointment, and those who are not already
bishops must receive episcopal consecration, save by dispensation from the Pope. Most of these dispensations have involved eminent theologians who are priests,
such as was granted in 2001 to Avery Dulles.
Although he is not a bishop, and so could not be assigned to one of the suburbicarian sees, he is entitled to wear the
episcopal vestments and other pontificalia (episcopal regalia: mitre, crozier, pectoral cross and ring)
and to possess a cardinalatial coat of arms.
When not celebrating Mass but still serving a liturgical function, such as the bi-annual Urbi et Orbi Papal Blessing and some events at Ecumenical Councils, Cardinal Deacons can be recognized
by the Dalmatics they would don with the simple white mitre.
The Cardinal Protodeacon (that is, the senior Cardinal Deacon in order of appointment to
the College of Cardinals) has the privilege of announcing a new Pope's election in the famous "Habemus Papam" announcement given from the central loggia at the Basilica of Saint Peter. The current Cardinal Protodeacon is Darío Castrillón Hoyos.
List of Cardinal Protodeacons since 1983
In pectore and secret cardinals
In addition to the named cardinals, the Pope may name secret cardinals or cardinals in
pectore (Latin for in the breast).
Cardinals in pectore
During the Western Schism many cardinals were created by the contending popes.
Beginning with the reign of Pope Martin V,[1] cardinals were created without publishing their names until later,
termed creati et reservati in pectore. A cardinal named in pectore is known only to the Pope; not even the cardinal
so named is necessarily aware of his elevation, and in any event cannot function as a cardinal while his appointment is in
pectore. Today, cardinals are named in pectore to protect them or their congregations from reprisals if their
identities were known.
If conditions change, so that the Pope judges it safe to make the appointment public, he may do so at any time. The cardinal
in question then ranks in precedence with those raised to the cardinalate at the time of his in pectore appointment. If a
Pope dies before revealing the identity of an in pectore cardinal, the cardinalate expires. Some speculate that the Pope
could leave instructions in writing, perhaps in his will, for the appointment to be made known after his death; but it is
difficult to imagine a case in which the Pope would consider that his own death would remove the obstacle in the way of
publishing the name.
Pope John Paul II named four cardinals in pectore during his pontificate.
Three of the names were published later.[13][14]
Secret cardinals
The secret creations, instead, are different than those created and reserved in pectore. They are known to the other
cardinals. Pope Martin V was the first pope who created cardinals without "publishing"
them at the same time (secret creation), while it was Pope Paul III who created the first
cardinals in pectore.
Lay cardinals
-
At various times there have been lay cardinals, i.e. cardinals who were not
ordained clergymen. Giacomo Antonelli and
Teodolfo Merkel were among the last of those. From the papacy of John XXIII, only
priests may be appointed cardinal (Canon 351), and with rare exception is expected to be ordained a bishop if he is not already a
bishop.
Vesture and privileges
Excluding the rochet, which is always white, a Latin-rite cardinal wears scarlet garments (the blood-like red symbolizes a cardinal's willingness to die for his faith) when in
choir dress, including the cassock, mozzetta, zucchetto, and biretta. Until the
1460's it was customary for cardinals to wear a violet or blue cape unless granted the privilege of wearing red when acting on
papal business. His normal-wear simar is black but has scarlet piping and a scarlet fascia
(sash-like belt). Occasionally, a cardinal wears a scarlet ferraiolo which is a cape
worn over the shoulders, tied in a bow by narrow strips of cloth in the front, without any 'trim' or piping on it. (It is because
of the scarlet color of cardinals' vesture that the bird of the same name has become
known as such.)[15]
Eastern-rite Cardinals will continue to wear the normal dress appropriate to their rite, though some may line their cassocks
with scarlet and wear scarlet fascias, or in some cases, wear Eastern-style cassocks entirely of scarlet (there is a unique photograph of
Joseph Cardinal Slypyj of the Ukrainian Catholic Church wearing the
traditional eastern bishop's habit and a cardinal's galero).
Cardinal George Pell wearing the ordinary dress of a Cardinal: black
simar (cassock) with red piping and buttons, red fascia (sash), pectoral cross on a chain, and a red
zucchetto.
In previous times, at the consistory at which the pope named a new cardinal, he would
bestow upon him a distinctive wide-brimmed hat called a galero. Though this custom has been
discontinued, and the investiture now takes place with the red biretta, in ecclesiastical heraldry, the scarlet galero is still displayed on the cardinal's
coat of arms. Cardinals had the right to display the galero in their cathedral, and when a
cardinal died, it would be suspended from the ceiling above his tomb. Some cardinals will still have a galero made, even though
it is not officially part of their apparel.
If the cardinal is not already a bishop, he is usually consecrated a bishop upon appointment. The designated cardinal however can petition the pope to dispense
him from this requirement.
When celebrating Mass, a cardinal wears the same vestments as
a bishop, even if he has not been consecrated as a bishop. A cardinal deacon, on certain
occasions will wear a deacon's dalmatic as well as the episcopal mitre.
To symbolize their bond with the papacy, the pope gives the cardinals he appoints a gold ring,
which is traditionally kissed by Catholics when a cardinal is greeted. The pope chooses the
image on the outside: under Pope Benedict XVI it is a modern depiction of the
crucifixion of Jesus, with Mary and John to each side. The ring includes the pope's coat of arms on the inside.
Cardinals have a "privilege of forum" (i.e., a right to hear cases) in matters arising directly under canon law. Only the pope is competent to judge them in cases that refer to matters that are spiritual or
linked with the spiritual, or with regard to infringement of ecclesiastical laws and whatever contains an element of sin, where
culpability must be determined and the appropriate ecclesiastical penalty imposed. The Pope can either pass judgement in person
or delegate the decision to a body of the Holy See, such as the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith or the Supreme
Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura. All other ecclesiastical courts, even the
Roman Rota, are not considered to have authority over them.[16] This privilege, however, still leaves cardinals subject to normal civil
authority.
Cardinals in popular culture
See also
Bibliography
References
