March 2, 2013

What Cardinals Want in a New Pope

Andrea Tornielli, La Stampa

AP Photo

One of the cardinals getting ready to enter the upcoming conclave knows that he himself is not papabile -- that is, his is not one of the names being considered as a possible next pope. Perhaps for this reason he has taken the time to lay out to La Stampa, in a letter written with an old-fashioned silver fountain pen, what he believes is the ideal profile for the successor to Pope Benedict XVI. Other cardinals have spoken to us in confidence, and a few have even spoken in public, about the man they will be seeking when the conclave begins later this month. While an ideal picture begins to come into focus, so too does the challenge of finding one man to meet all the requirements.

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TAGGED: Catholic Church, Vatican

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