An old Italian saying warns against putting faith, or money, in any presumed front-runner ahead of the conclave, the closed-door gathering of cardinals that picks the pontiff. It cautions: “He who enters a conclave as a pope, leaves it as a cardinal”.
But as curated by Reuters, here are some cardinals who are being talked about as “papabili” to succeed Pope Francis, whose death at the age of 88 was announced by the Vatican on Monday. They are listed in alphabetical order.
Jean-Marc Aveline, archbishop of Marseille, French, aged 66
According to the French press, he is known in some domestic Catholic circles as John XXIV, in a nod to his resemblance to Pope John XXIII, the round-faced reforming pope of the early 1960s.
Pope Francis once quipped that his successor might take the name of John XXIV.
. He is also a serious intellectual, with a doctorate in theology and a degree in philosophy.
He was born in Algeria to a family of Spanish immigrants who moved to France after Algerian independence, and has lived most of his life in Marseille, a port that has been a crossroads of cultures and religions for centuries.
If he got the top job, Aveline would become the first French pope since the 14th century, a turbulent period in which the papacy moved to Avignon.
He would also be the youngest pope since John Paul II. He understands but does not speak Italian – potentially a major drawback for a job that also carries the title Bishop of Rome and requires a lot of familiarity with Roman power games and intrigues.
Cardinal Peter Erdo, Hungarian, aged 72
If Erdo is elected, he would inevitably be seen as a compromise candidate — someone from the conservative camp who has nonetheless built bridges with Francis’ progressive world.
Erdo was already considered a papal contender in the last conclave in 2013 thanks to his extensive Church contacts in Europe and Africa as well as the fact that he was seen as a pioneer of the New Evangelisation drive to rekindle the Catholic faith in secularized advanced nations — a top priority for many cardinals.
He ranks as a conservative in theology and in speeches throughout Europe he stresses the Christian roots of the continent. However, he is also seen to be pragmatic and never clashed openly with Francis, unlike other tradition-minded clerics.
An expert in Church law, Erdo has been on a fast track his entire career, becoming a bishop in his 40s and a cardinal in 2003 when he was just 51, making him the youngest member of the College of Cardinals until 2010.
Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary-General of the Synod of Bishops, Maltese, aged 68
Grech comes from Gozo, a tiny island that is part of Malta, the smallest country in the European Union. But from small beginnings, he has gone on to big things, appointed by Pope Francis to be secretary general of the Synod of Bishops — a heavyweight position within the Vatican.
Initially viewed as a conservative, Grech has become a torchbearer of Francis’ reforms within the Church for years, moving sharply with the times.
Coming from a tiny country, his election as pope wouldn’t create any diplomatic or geopolitical headaches.
Cardinal Juan Jose Omella, archbishop of Barcelona, Spanish, aged 79
Omella is a man after Pope Francis’ own heart. Unassuming and good-natured, he lives a humble life despite his lofty title, dedicating his Church career to pastoral care, promoting social justice and embodying a compassionate and inclusive vision of Catholicism.
He was born in 1946 in the village of Cretas in northeastern Spain. After being ordained in 1970 he served as a priest in a number of Spanish parishes and also spent a year as a missionary in Zaire, now called Democratic Republic of Congo.
He became a bishop in 1996 and was promoted to archbishop of Barcelona in 2015. Just one year later, Francis gave him a red cardinal’s hat — a move seen as a clear endorsement of Omella’s progressive tendencies, which stand in contrast to more conservative elements that once dominated the Spanish Church.
Omella is a former president of Spain’s bishops’ conference. If the conclave decides the Church needs a new approach, then this proximity will count against Omella.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Italian, Vatican diplomat, aged 70
Parolin is seen as a compromise candidate between progressives and conservatives. He has been a Church diplomat for most of his life and served as Pope Francis’ secretary of state since 2013, the year Francis was elected.
The position is similar to that of a prime minister and secretaries of state are often called the “deputy pope” because they rank second to the pontiff in the Vatican hierarchy.
Parolin previously served as deputy foreign minister under Pope Benedict, who in 2009 appointed him the Vatican’s ambassador in Venezuela, where he defended the Church against moves to weaken it by then-President Hugo Chavez.
He entered the Vatican’s diplomatic service just three years after his priestly ordination in 1980 so his pastoral experience is limited. But a factor in his favour is that he speaks a number of languages.
Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle, Filipino, aged 67
Tagle is often called the “Asian Francis” because of his similar commitment to social justice and if elected, he would be the first pontiff from Asia.
On paper, Tagle, who generally prefers to be called by his nickname “Chito”, seems to have all the boxes ticked to qualify him to be a pope.
He has had decades of pastoral experience since his ordination to the priesthood in 1982. He then gained administrative experience, first as bishop of Imus and then as archbishop of Manila.
Pope Benedict made him a cardinal in 2012.
He comes from what some called “Asia’s Catholic lung,” because the Philippines has the region’s largest Catholic population. His mother was an ethnic Chinese Filipino. He speaks fluent Italian and English.
Between 2015 and 2022, he was the top leader of Caritas Internationalis, a confederation of more than 160 Catholic relief, social service, and development organisations around the world.
Cardinal Joseph Tobin, archbishop of Newark, N.J., American, aged 72
It’s unlikely the world’s cardinals would pick the first ever U.S. pope, but if they were up for that, Tobin would seem the likeliest possibility.
A former global leader of a major Catholic religious order known as the Redemptorists, the Detroit native has spent time in countries around the world and speaks Italian, Spanish, French and Portuguese fluently. He also has experience in Vatican service and in top positions across the U.S. church.
Tobin served a stint as second-in-command of a Vatican office from 2009-12, and was then named by Pope Benedict as archbishop of Indianapolis, Indiana. Francis promoted him to a cardinal in 2016, and later made him the archbishop of Newark.
In this latest role, Tobin, a big man known for his weight-lifting workout regime, has dealt with one of the highest-profile Catholic scandals in recent years. In 2018, then-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, one of Tobin’s predecessors in Newark, was removed from ministry over accusations of sexual misconduct with seminarians.
Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, Ghanaian, Vatican official, aged 76
From humble beginnings in a small African town, Cardinal Peter Turkson has gone on to great things in the Church, making him a contender to become the first pope from sub-Saharan Africa.
He combines a long pastoral background of tending to congregations in Ghana with hands-on experience of leading several Vatican offices, as well as strong communication skills.
The fact that he comes from one of the most dynamic regions for the Church, which is struggling against the forces of secularism in its European heartlands, should also bolster his standing.
The fourth son in a family of 10 children, Turkson was born in Wassaw Nsuta, in what was then called the Gold Coast in the British Empire. His father worked in a nearby mine and doubled as a carpenter while his mother sold vegetables in the market.
He studied at seminaries in Ghana and New York, was ordained in 1975, and then taught in his former Ghanaian seminary and did advanced Biblical studies in Rome.
Pope John Paul II appointed him archbishop of Cape Coast in 1992 and 11 years later made him the first cardinal in the history of the West African state.
In that role, he was one of the pope’s closest advisors on issues such as climate change and drew much attention by attending conferences such as the Davos economic forum.
Matteo Maria Zuppi, Italian, archbishop of Bologna, aged 69
When Zuppi got a promotion in 2015 and became archbishop of Bologna, national media referred to him as the “Italian Bergoglio”, due to his affinity with Francis, the Argentine pope who was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio.
Zuppi would be the first Italian pope since 1978.
Much like Pope Francis when he lived in Buenos Aires, Zuppi is known as a “street priest” who focuses on migrants and the poor, and cares little about pomp and protocol. He goes by the name of “Father Matteo”, and in Bologna he sometimes uses a bicycle rather than an official car.
If he were made pope, conservatives would likely view him with suspicion. Victims of Church sex abuse might also object to him, since the Italian Catholic Church, which he has led since 2022, has been slow to investigate and confront the issue.
Zuppi is a born-and-bred Roman with a fairly thick regional accent and solid Catholic family roots.
His father Enrico was the editor of the Sunday supplement of the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano, while his mother’s uncle, Carlo Confalonieri, was also a cardinal.
Culled from Reuters.
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