New Cardinals

Following the celebration of Mass for the Feast of the Epiphany earlier today. Pope Benedict announced his intention to create 22 new Cardinals on 18th February. 

Those named are:

• Fernando Filoni, Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples;
• Manuel Monteiro de Castro, Major Penitentiary of the Roman Church;
• Santos Abril y Castelló, Archpriest of St Mary Major;
• Antonio Maria Veglió, President of the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Refugees;
• Giuseppe Bertello, President of the Government of the Vatican City State;
• Francesco Coccopalmerio, President of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts
• Joao Braz de Aviz, Prefect of the Congregation for Religious;
• Edwin Frederick O'Brien, Grand Master of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre;
• Domenico Calcagno, President of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See;
• Giuseppe Versaldi, President of the Prefecture for the Economic Affairs of the Holy See;
• George Alencherry, Major-Archbishop of Erkugnalam-Angamaly of the Syro-Malybars;
• Thomas Christopher Collins, Archbishop of Toronto;
• Dominik Duka OP, Archbishop of Prague;
• Willem Jacobus Eijk, Archbishop of Utrecht;
• Giuseppe Betori, Archbishop of Florence;
• Timothy Michael Dolan, Archbishop of New York;
• Rainer Maria Woelki, Archbishop of Berlin;
• John Tong Hon, Bishop of Hong Kong
• Lucien Muresan, Major-Archbishop of Fagaras and Alba Julia of the Romanians;
• Fr Julien Ries, Belgian historian/anthropologist of religion;
• Prosper Grech OSA, Maltese Biblical scholar;
• Karl Josef Becker SJ

The last four named are already greater than 80 years of age and will thus not be eligible to take part in  any future Conclave.

As a result of this Consistory there will be 125 Cardinals eligible to vote in a future Conclave (one of the current members of the College, Cardinal Zen of Hong Kong turns 80 next week).  64 of this number will have been created by Pope Benedict XVI; 62 by Blessed Pope John Paul II.  There will be 88 Cardinals over the age of 80.  Of this number four were created by Pope Paul VI, 69 by Blessed Pope John Paul II and 15 by Pope Benedict XVI.