Countering much speculation that next Pope will be chosen based on geographic concerns, three American cardinals say the best candidate to succeed Benedict XVI is a man of holiness who can communicate the Gospel.
“Our people back home and throughout the world are all praying for this event, that we will be guided to be able to choose the very best person to lead the Church,” Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston said.
Cardinal Francis George of Chicago has said that he and his fellow cardinals aim to choose the man who is “best suited” for the papacy and not base their decision on a candidate’s age or national origin.
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He said the cardinals’ first concern is “that the faith be strengthened and passed on” and that Catholics “be cared for” no matter where they are in the world.
Cardinal O’Malley, Cardinal George and Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston spoke about the upcoming conclave at a Feb. 28 press conference at the Pontifical North American College in Rome. The press conference came after Pope Benedict’s departure from the Vatican for Castel Gandolfo, but before his resignation took effect at 8 p.m. Rome time.
Cardinal George was in the 2005 conclave that elected Pope Benedict XVI, but the other two cardinals have never been in a papal conclave. Only 117 cardinals are eligible to vote in the 2013 conclave, and two have said they will miss the conclave due to health reasons.
Cardinal O’Malley was not sure he could identify a single “top priority” for selecting the next pontiff.
“Certainly there are some wonderful candidates there, and we all recognize their talent and their goodness and their competence,” he said.
“Certainly our people want a holy man to be the Pope. We’ve been very blessed in the last century to have extraordinarily learned and holy men as Pope. Many have been beatified or canonized.”
He said the next Pope must be “a man of deep faith” with an ability to communicate that faith. The Boston cardinal said Catholics are “anxious to have someone who can touch the hearts, particularly of our young people.” The next Pope must carry on the “new evangelization” and inspire those who have left Catholic practice to return to their faith. Cardinal DiNardo said Catholics want someone who can fill the role of the Apostle Peter and fulfill Jesus’ command “feed my sheep.” A shepherd of the Church must give “good teaching” and “encouragement” while serving as “a principle of unity,” he said.
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Cardinal George said he imagines each cardinal has a mental list of primary candidates and secondary candidates that shapes their “more intimate” conversations with each other. He said their questions for each other might include what kind of person a candidate is and how he would react to a certain situation. He said the Gospel is from God and so there will “always be those areas in which society and the Church don’t meet.”
“A good pastor will mediate those (differences) as best he can without betraying the faith or his people, in such a way that the Church remains an active agent for transformation of the world.”
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