Pope Francis’s advice to the Church’s 13 new cardinals is straightforward: “Proclaim the true word, not boring speeches no one understands.”
Francis made the comments in his homily at the consistory Mass at St Peter’s Basilica last Saturday.
All 13 of the new cardinals share Francis’s pastoral concerns at a time when conservatives within the College of Cardinals are putting pressure on his ministry.
Warning the new cardinals to be aware of and avoid disloyalty in the Church, Francis explained his views on its causes.
It is rooted in a lack of compassion and indifference, he said.
Without a “lively awareness” of God’s compassion, disloyalty to “our own ministry” seeps in.
Francis’s challenges to the new cardinals are said to be unusual given the oath of loyalty and obedience cardinals make to the pope.
Unusual or not, pope emeritus Benedict echoed his words when the new cardinals went to him for his blessing after the Mass.
According to a Vatican statement, Benedict reminded them of the “value of fidelity to the Pope”.
The new cardinals and the future of the church
As 10 of the 13 new cardinals are under 80, they will be eligible to vote in a conclave.
Their promotion brings the proportion of voting-age cardinals Francis has named to 52 per cent.
His choice of cardinals reflects his desire to mirror the universal face of the Church in its leadership ranks and to elevate the work of missionaries and of religious life.
Of the new cardinals, many are from churches in the developing world that have never had a “prince” representing them. Eight belong to religious orders.
They are described as are churchmen who care for migrants, promote dialogue with Muslims and minister to the faithful in poor, far-flung missionary posts.
The new cardinals are:
- Miguel Ángel Ayuso Guixot MCCJ (b.1952)
- José Tolentino Calaça de Mendonça (b.1965)
- Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo (b.1950)
- Juan de la Caridad García Rodríguez (b1.1948)
- Fridolin Ambongo Besungu OFM Cap (b.1960)
- Jean-Claude Hollerich SJ (b.1958)
- Álvaro Leonel Ramazzini Imeri (b.1947)
- Matteo Maria Zuppi (b.1955)
- Cristóbal López Romero SDB (b.1952)
- Michael Czerny SJ (b.1946)
- Michael Louis Fitzgerald M Afr (b.1937)
- Sigitas Tamkevicius SJ (b.1938)
- Eugenio Dal Corso PSDP (b.1939).
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