Onaiyekan, Others Set To Pick New Pope

Onaiyekan, Others Set To Pick New Pope
Pope Benedict XVI took the world by surprise yesterday following the sudden announcement of his resignation which takes effect from February 28, 2013. This is the second time in almost 600 years that a Pope would step down on his own volition. The announcement, which rattled the Catholic world,  led to frenzied speculation about who would succeed  him. Nigeria’s Catholic archbishop, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, and about 197 other Cardinals are expected to decide the Pope’s successor. According to the Vatican spokesman, Rev. Federico Lombardi, Cardinals will meet to choose Benedict’s successor sometime after his official resignation on February 28. He said, “Before Easter, we will have the new Pope”.

 It takes at least two-thirds plus one of the 120 voting Cardinals to elect a new leader for the church.

Benedict won’t be involved in the decision, Lombardi said. But his influence will undoubtedly be felt. Benedict appointed 67 of the 118 Cardinals who will make the decision.

In November last year, Pope Benedict XVI had while responding  to criticism that the club of churchmen who will choose his successor was too Eurocentric ,elevated  six new  Cardinals from Nigeria, Colombia, India, the Philippines, Lebanon and the US.

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