Pope Francis will designate 20 new cardinals on Saturday, chosen from all around the world, in an effort to set the stage for his future succession as head of the Catholic Church.
As Pope Francis moves closer to choosing the next spiritual leader of the 1.3 billion Catholics, the ceremony is reportedly scheduled to take place in St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City.
Pope’s ninth ceremony since assuming leadership in 2013 will take place on Saturday. In addition, he would have selected 83 of the 132 cardinals needed to elect a new Pope following the event.
16 of the 20 new cardinals will be under the age of 80 and qualified to serve as electors in the selection of the pontiff’s replacement.
In keeping with the times, the Church chose two Africans and five Asians, including two cardinals from India, to demonstrate diversity in its selection.
Currently, South America and Asua account for 16% of voters, followed by Africa with 13% and North America with 12%. Europe makes up 40% of the electorate.
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