There is a story in today's El Mundo (in Madrid), reporting on a story in "La Repubblica" (Rome), that the Cardinals who are at least 80 and thus inelegible to vote in the conclave to choose the next pope have asked to have their voting rights in the conclave restored so they can vote on John Paul II's successor. The report states that among the cardinals who cannot vote due to their age there "exists discontent because it is an inconceivable rule" ("existe malestar porque es una regla inconcebible") since "a cardinal is primarily one who chooses the Pope" ("Un cardenal es lo que es primero porque elige al Papa").

-- Tom Quinn (tomquinn@mailinator.com), October 23, 2003

Answers

theyre just ticked off because JP II has picked a fair number of the cardinals, and for a time the older cardinals didnt like JP's zest for church reform and conservatism. those older cardinals know that if they dont get in on the vote then the new cardinals that JP appointed will elect another good conservative pope. probably a little older this time though, JP was a youngen to start out...

-- paul h (dontSendMeMail@notAnAddress.com), October 23, 2003.

Wojtyla a conservative? I think not.

Karl

-- Karl (Parkerkajwen@hotmail.com), October 23, 2003.

It hardly requires much imagination to figure out what the magazine, America's editors would have thought of today's neo-Catholic excuse factory and its convoluted argument that the complete lack of discipline in the Church today actually amounts to a brilliant and cagey plan. (What the editors of 1909 would have thought of the current editors of America is perhaps too sad to contemplate.)

-- Soapy (9999@444.com), October 23, 2003.

Paul H, I believe that I heard/read the following very recently:

There are about 200 cardinals, including about 65 who are ineligible to participate in a conclave due to advanced age. There are about 135 eligible -- of which only 5 (just 5) were named to the college by Pope Paul VI or by Pope John XXIII. The other 130 were named by the current pope.

The latest rules for conclaves, approved by Pope John Paul II, allow for just 120 electors. I seriously doubt that he will suddenly change the rules, allowing the very elderly to participate and bringing the number of electors up near 200. (He may compromise, raising the age of ineligibility to 85, based on his own current ability to reason clearly at age 83.)

The pope named so many new cardinals lately, going over 120 up to about 135, for two reasons:
1. Some of the 135 will reach age 80 during 2003/2004, and
2. Some of the 135 will probably die suddenly in 2003/2004.
The pope has made sure that the number will not fall below 120 any time soon. We will have to trust the Holy Spirit to guide the cardinals to do the right thing if the pope dies when the number of eligibles is still above 120 (contrary to the rules).

God bless you.
John

-- J. F. Gecik (jfgecik@hotmail.com), October 24, 2003.

John, you appear to be saying that if the number of cardinals is above 120 when the pope dies, the cardinals must “do the right thing” to decide which of them will not attend the conclave to bring the numbers attending down to 120. This is not necessary. Pope John Paul stated when naming the cardinals that he was overruling the limit of 120 on that occasion (as he has the power to do). Consequently all of the cardinals under 80 may attend the conclave, regardless of how many there are.

-- Steve (55555@aol.com), June 11, 2004.

Steve, isn't it that all cardinals, including those over 80, may attend the conclave and participate in arguments but only 120 can vote? I think John was talking about voting, not mere attendanc. This from Universi Dominici Gregis in 1996:

33. The right to elect the Roman Pontiff belongs exclusively to the Cardinals of Holy Roman Church, with the exception of those who have reached their eightieth birthday before the day of the Roman Pontiff's death or the day when the Apostolic See becomes vacant. The maximum number of Cardinal electors must not exceed one hundred and twenty. The right of active election by any other ecclesiastical dignitary or the intervention of any lay power of whatsoever grade or order is absolutely excluded

Full text of document here

-- Brian Crane (brian.crane@cranemills.com), June 11, 2004.

Sorry, Brian, when I said "attend" I meant "vote in". The cardinals over 80 may attend but may not vote. But my point stands that when the Pope named the last lot of cardinals he overruled the 120 limit which you have bolded. Thus all cardinals under 80 (I understand that there are at present 125 of them)could vote in a conclave if the Pope died today (God forbid).

-- Steve (55555@aol.com), June 13, 2004.