By Michelle Powers
He called it prioritizing the peripheries when Pope Francis chose cardinals from distant dioceses like Mongolia and South Sudan. They were countries that never had a “prince of the Church” or a papal pick.
“It’s important for all Catholics to be able to identify with the Holy Father,” Father Anthony Ligato, the assistant vice rector at the Pontifical North American College, told Currents News.
He says that Pope Francis’ choices have the potential to stir things up a bit. Since his election in 2013, Pope Francis appointed more than 80 percent of the red hats eligible to vote in this conclave.
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There are 53 from Europe, 23 from Asia, 18 from Africa, 16 from North America, 17 from South America, four from Central America, and four from Oceania.
This shift away from a European core has sparked talks of a non-European pope.
“The diversity of the cardinals is a reflection of the universality of the Roman Catholic Church throughout the world and how we have been able to reach so many diverse people with that message of Jesus Christ,” Father Ligato said.
The diversity isn’t just geographic – it’s cultural. Cardinals from developing nations often bring perspectives shaped by poverty and persecution that differ from their counterparts.
Many people in St. Peter’s Square say they would love to see a pope that looked like them.
“I would feel proud having someone from Mexico to represent the Catholic Church here, would be amazing,” one pilgrim said.
The cardinals get to make the pick, but the faithful hope they pick a people’s pope.
A two-thirds majority is needed to be elected pope, meaning that if the number of electors holds at 133, the winner must secure 89 votes.