VATICAN (CNS): “A cardinal loves the Church, always with that same spiritual fire, whether dealing with great questions or handling everyday problems, with the powerful of this world or those ordinary people who are great in God’s eyes,” Pope Francis said during the August 27 consistory, during which he created 20 new cardinals and welcomed them into the College of Cardinals.
The pope said that who have this apostolic zeal are compelled “by the fire of the Spirit to be concerned, courageously, with things great and small.” During the ceremony, each of the new cardinals professed their faith by reciting the Creed and formally swore fidelity and obedience to the pope and his successors.
They then approached Pope Francis, one by one, to receive their biretta, their cardinal’s ring and the assignment of a titular church in Rome, which makes them part of the Roman clergy.
In his homily, Pope Francis reflected on Jesus’ words to his disciples, in which he declared, “I came to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled.”
Focusing on the image of fire, Pope Francis said that the “flame of the spirit of God” represents his love “that purifies, regenerates and transfigures all things.” It also evokes the charcoal fire made by the risen Christ for his disciples along the shore of the Sea of Galilee.
A cardinal loves the Church, always with that same spiritual fire, whether dealing with great questions or handling everyday problems, with the powerful of this world or those ordinary people who are great in God’s eyes
Pope Francis
“That charcoal fire is quiet and gentle, yet it lasts longer and is used for cooking. There on the shore of the sea, it creates a familiar setting where the disciples, amazed and moved, savour their closeness to their Lord,” he said.
Jesus’ words, he continued, are also emblematic of the “fiery mission” entrusted to the newly created cardinals.
For those “who in the Church have been chosen from among the people for a ministry of particular service, it is as if Jesus is handing us a lighted torch and telling us: ‘Take this; as the Father has sent me, so I now send you’,” the pope said.
The fire of God’s divine love is what also inspires countless missionaries who “have come to know the exhausting yet sweet joy of evangelising, and whose lives themselves became a gospel, for they were before all else witnesses.”
Recalling the life of St. Charles de Foucauld, the pope praised both consecrated and lay those Christians who live in secular environments, yet still are true Christian witnesses who keep the flame of God’s love alive through their lives and actions.
Pope Francis called on Christians to contemplate on ‘the secret of the fire of God, which descends from heaven, brightening the sky from one end to the other, and slowly cooking the food of poor families, migrant and homeless persons
The pope also recalled the example of Agostino Cardinal Casaroli, a full-time Vatican diplomat for decades, who was Vatican secretary of state from 1979 to 1990.
Despite his responsibilities, the pope said the late cardinal would find time to visit young inmates at a juvenile prison in Rome.
Concluding his homily, Pope Francis called on Christians to contemplate on “the secret of the fire of God, which descends from heaven, brightening the sky from one end to the other, and slowly cooking the food of poor families, migrant and homeless persons.”
The pope said, “Today too, Jesus wants to bring this fire to the earth. He wants to light it anew on the shores of our daily lives. Jesus calls us by name; he looks us in the eye and he asks: ‘Can I count on you?’”
The consistory brought to 226 the total number of cardinals in the world, 132 cardinals of whome are under the age of 80 and eligible to vote in a conclave.
The those in the Roman Curia who received their red hats from the pope were: Arthur Cardinal Roche, the 72-year-old prefect of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments; 70-year-old Lazarus Cardinal You Heung-sik, prefect of the Dicastery for Clergy; Fernando Cardinal Vérgez Alzaga, the 77-year-old president of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and president of the Governor’s Office for Vatican City State.
Apart from Cardinal You, who is from South Korea, those representing Asia include: 54-year-old Virgílio do Carmo da Silva of Dili, East Timor; 69-year-old Filipe Neri António Sebasti Cardinal do Rosário Ferrão of Goa, India; Anthony Poola of Hyderabad, India, who is 60-years-old; 64-year-old William Cardinal Goh Seng Chye of Singapore; and 48-year-old Giorgio Marengo, apostolic prefect of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
Christians in Asia and, in our case, Mongolia, usually develop a very deep sense of being able to explain, to give reason to their own choice, and I believe in today’s world this is needed,
Cardinal Marengo
Other new cardinals included: Jean-Marc Cardinal Aveline of Marseille, France, 63; 59-year-old Peter Ebere Cardinal Okpaleke of Ekwulobia, Nigeria; Leonardo Ulrich Cardinal Steiner of Manaus, Brazil, who is 71-years-old; 68-year-old Robert Cardinal McElroy of San Diego, the United States; Oscar Cardinal Cantoni of Como, Italy, who is 71; Paulo Cezar Cardinal Costa of Brasília, Brazil, who is 54-years-old; Richard Kuuia Cardinal Baawobr of Wa, Ghana, 62; and 70-year-old Adalberto Cardinal Martínez Flores of Asunción, Paraguay; 80-year-old Jorge Cardinal Jiménez Carvajal of Cartagena, Colombia; Arrigo Cardinal Miglio of Cagliari, Italy, who is 80; Gianfranco Cardinal Ghirlanda, professor of canon law, also 80-years-old; and Fortunato Cardinal Frezza, the 80-years-old canon of St. Peter’s Basilica.
Cardinal You, said he is not worthy of the elevation, but he said he feels it is an invitation for him “to love more” and increase that love specifically for the pope, the Church, priests and laity.
Meanwhile Cardinal Marengo, the Italian serving in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, said that although he plans on learning from the more experienced members, he would like to share his perspective of serving a tiny Catholic minority.
There is a “strength and genuinity of the faith” in the men and women who are Catholic in parts of the world where the majority are Buddhist or follow another religious tradition, he said.
“It means that you are always asked to be able to answer, to give reasons for your faith. If you are in a country where being a Catholic is normal, maybe you are not so challenged,” Cardinal Marengo said.
“Christians in Asia and, in our case, Mongolia, usually develop a very deep sense of being able to explain, to give reason to their own choice, and I believe in today’s world this is needed,” he said.
