Religion
Pope Francis appoints 20 new cardinals
London, Feb 15
Pope Francis has appointed 20
new cardinals, boosting the number of men from developing countries in
the group, which would elect his successor.
The new cardinals
include prelates (a bishop or other high ecclesiastical dignitary) from
Myanmar, Tonga and Ethiopia, BBC reported Saturday.
Fifteen are under 80, making them eligible to vote for the next pope.
For
the first time, there are more non-Europeans in the electoral body as
the Pope seeks to reflect the the global diversity of the Church.
With
the appointments, made during a celebration at the Vatican Saturday,
the Pope has underlined his determination to change the balance of power
in the Church and make it more representative.
When he announced
the appointments in January, the Pope said the naming of cardinals from
14 countries across the world showed the Vatican's "inseparable link"
with Catholics around the world.