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What is a cardinal’s role in the Catholic Church?

FALL 2021

CATHOLICS AND NON-CATHOLICS IN THE NEW YORK metropolitan area take pride in the fact that our archbishop, Timothy Dolan, is not simply an archbishop but also a cardinal of the Holy Roman Church. He is one of 222 members of the Sacred College of Cardinals. Their best-known duty – reserved to cardinals under the age of 80 – is to elect a new pope whenever a reigning pontiff dies or resigns. But that is far from their only responsibility.

According to the Code of Canon Law (Canon 349), “The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church constitute a special College, whose prerogative it is to elect the Roman Pontiff.… The Cardinals are also available to the Roman Pontiff, either acting collegially, when they are summoned together to deal with questions of major importance, or acting individually, that is in the offices which they hold in assisting the Roman Pontiff especially in the daily care of the universal church.” Cardinals are thus the close collaborators of the pope, assisting him with their advice and counsel. Some of them work in the Roman Curia as the pope’s direct deputies.

The pope alone selects bishops and priests to become cardinals: “Those to be promoted Cardinals are men freely selected by the Roman Pontiff, who are at least in the order of priesthood and are truly outstanding in doctrine, virtue, piety and prudence in practical matters” (Canon 315). Technically, a priest must be consecrated as a bishop before becoming a cardinal, but the pope has the option to dispense with this requirement. When, for example, New York-based Jesuit Fr. Avery Dulles was named a cardinal by Pope John Paul II, he asked to forgo the obligation to be ordained a bishop, desiring simply to remain a priest. His request was granted.

According to Canon 356, “Cardinals have the obligation of cooperating closely with the Roman Pontiff.” Thus the heads of the various departments of the Holy See, known as dicasteries, are named cardinals, as are a select number of bishops throughout the world. Typically, the bishops of important and large cities are chosen to become cardinals. Since 1875, all but one of the archbishops of New York have been named cardinals. Pope John Paul II once told John Cardinal O’Connor that he was “the archbishop of the capital of the world”! Given New York’s prominence relative to other great cities, it is only fitting that our archbishop exercise the leadership role of a cardinal on the local, national and international scenes.

The most momentous duty of a cardinal is to vote for the new pope at the conclave held in the Sistine Chapel. This requires that he be attentive to the needs of the church at that particular moment in time, familiar with the qualities and gifts of his fellow cardinals (since one of them will almost certainly be selected pope), and open to the motions of the Holy Spirit for guidance in casting his vote. Before entering the conclave, voting and non-voting cardinals (those over 80 years old) meet to discuss the needs of the church. Once the conclave has begun, the voting cardinals pray, meet and vote until they have chosen the next pope. Canon law does not obligate the cardinals to pick one of their own to become pope, but centuries of historical precedent all but ensure that they will do so.

The cardinals of the Church have an awesome responsibility in electing the pope, and then advising and assisting him as he leads the flock of Christ and preaches the Gospel of salvation to the world. Let us keep them in our daily prayers, along with Christ’s vicar on earth, the pope. 
 

Fr. Gerald E. Murray, JCD
Pastor, Holy Family Church, Manhattan