The consistory that Pope Benedict XVI announced at today’s general audience, and set for the 24th of November, has all the appearances of an in-between consistory. With only six cardinals to be created it is quite small, and it is as non-European as the previous consistory was European.
It’ll be Benedict’s fifth consistory, and by far his smallest. In fact, it will be the smallest consistory since Pope Paul VI elevated 4 cardinals in 1977. It will also be the first time since 1929 that there have been 2 consistories in one calendar year.
The six prelates to be elevated are:
Archbishop James Michael Harvey (63), the Prefect of the Papal Household, who will be appointed as archpriest of the papal basilica of St. Paul-outside-the-Walls..
Patriarch Béchara Boutros Raï (72), Patriarch of Antioch of the Maronite Church.
Archbishop Baselios Cleemis (Isaac) Thottunkal (53), Major Archbishop of Trivandrum of the Syro-Malankarese Church. Pictured at right.
Archbishop John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan (68), Archbishop of Abuja, Nigeria.
Archbishop Jesús Rubén Salazar Gómez (70), Archbishop of Bogotá, Colombia.
Archbishop Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle (55), Archbishop Of Manila, Philippines.
Archbishop Tagle and Patriarch Raï were among the expected choices for the red hat at a future consistory, but the others were not. Only Archbishop Thottunkal is from a see which until now was not traditionally associated wih the title of a cardinal.
Archbishops Thottunkal and Tagle will be the youngest members of the College.
Another indicator that this is something of an in-between consistory, intended to keep the number of electors at or near 120, is that there are metropolitan archbishops of traditionally cardinalatial sees – such as Léonard of Brussels, Nichols of Westminster, Chaput of Philadelphia and Gómez of Los Angeles – still awaiting the red hat. At least some of them will be made cardinals in the future, but, apparently, now is not yet the time.
Barring any deaths, next month’s conclave will bring to size of the College of Cardinals to 211, with a round 120 of them being electors (Cardinals Arinze and Martino will turn 80 beforehand), including all six new ones.
In Caelo et in Terra 