With the creation of six new cardinals for Asia on 27 August, the number of cardinals born or carrying out their ministry in Asia rises to 21 among the 132 electors who could be called to take part in a future conclave for the election of a pontiff.
This reflects the two priorities of Pope Francis, namely, evangelization and attention to the peripheries.
World-wide distribution of Cardinals Electors – Some Statistics
While 115 cardinals each voted in the Conclaves of April 2005, March 2013, currently there are 132 Cardinal electors after the August 27 consistory; 6 of them will turn 80 by December 2022.
Asian Cardinals – An Overview
18 Asian countries now have one or more cardinals, and 15 Asian countries have Cardinal electors in a conclave. Asia has altogether 31 cardinals, ten of them being above the age of being an elector. While Vietnam and Hong Kong lost, Singapore, Timor-Leste and Mongolia have gained. India now has the highest number of cardinals in Asia.
| Existing Electors | New voter | non-electors | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bangaladesh | 1 | 1 | ||
| China | 2 | 2 | ||
| East Timor | 1 | 1 | ||
| India | 3 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
| Indonesia | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Iraq | 1 | 1 | ||
| Japan | 1 | 1 | ||
| Korea (South) | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Laos | 1 | 1 | ||
| Lebanon | 1 | 1 | ||
| Mongolia | 1 | 1 | ||
| Myanmar | 1 | 1 | ||
| Pakistan | 1 | 1 | ||
| Philippines | 2 | 2 | 4 | |
| Singapore | 1 | 1 | ||
| Sri Lanka | 1 | 1 | ||
| Thailand | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Vietnam | 2 | 2 | ||
| 15 | 6 | 10 | 31 |
COMPLETE LIST OF ASIAN CARDINALS
- Cardinals Electors from Asia
|
|
Name |
Country |
Elevated |
Current Title |
|
1. |
Patrick Cardinal D’Rozario, C.S.C. |
Bangladesh |
19 Nov 2016 |
Archbishop Emeritus of Dhaka, Bangladesh |
|
2 |
Virgílio do Carmo da Silva SDB |
East Timor |
27 Aug 2022 |
Archbishop of Díli |
|
3. |
Baselios Cardinal Cleemis Cardinal Thottunkal |
India |
24 Nov 2012 |
Major Archbishop of Trivandrum (Syro-Malankara), India |
|
4. |
George Cardinal Alencherry |
India |
18 Feb 2012 |
Major Archbishop of Ernakulam-Angamaly (Syro-Malabar), India |
|
5. |
Oswald Cardinal Gracias |
India |
24 Nov 2007 |
Archbishop of Bombay, India |
|
6. |
Anthony Poola |
India |
27 Aug 2022 |
Archbishop of Hyderabad |
|
7. |
Filipe Neri António Sebastião di Rosário Ferrão |
India |
27 Aug 2022 |
Archbishop of Goa and Daman |
|
8. |
Ignatius Cardinal Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo |
Indonesia |
5 Oct 2019 |
Archbishop of Jakarta, Indonesia |
|
9. |
Louis Raphaël I Cardinal Sako |
Iraq |
28 Jun 2018 |
Patriarch of Baghdad (Chaldean), Iraq |
|
10 |
Thomas Aquino Manyo Cardinal Maeda |
Japan |
28 Jun 2018 |
Archbishop of Osaka, Japan |
|
11. |
Andrew Cardinal Yeom Soo-jung |
Korea (South) |
22 Feb 2014 |
Archbishop Emeritus of Seoul, Korea (South) |
|
12. |
Louis-Marie Ling Cardinal Mangkhanekhoun, I.V.D. |
Laos |
28 Jun 2017 |
Vicar Apostolic of Vientiane, Laos |
|
13. |
Giorgio Marengo |
Mongolia |
27 Aug 2022 |
Archbishop Prefect of Ulaanbaatar (Mongolia) |
|
14. |
Charles Maung Cardinal Bo, S.D.B. |
Myanmar |
14 Feb 2015 |
Archbishop of Yangon, Myanmar |
|
15. |
Joseph Cardinal Coutts |
Pakistan |
28 Jun 2018 |
Archbishop Emeritus of Karachi, Pakistan |
|
16. |
Luis Antonio Gokim Cardinal Tagle |
Philippines |
24 Nov 2012 |
Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization |
|
17. |
Jose Fuerte Cardinal Advincula |
Philippines |
28 Nov 2020 |
Archbishop of Manila, Philippines |
|
18. |
William Goh Seng Chye |
Singapore |
27 Aug 2022 |
Archbishop of Singapore |
|
19. |
Lazarus You Heung-sik |
South Korea |
27 Aug 2022 |
Prefect of the Congregation for Clergy |
|
20. |
Albert Malcolm Ranjith Cardinal Patabendige Don |
Sri Lanka |
20 Nov 2010 |
Archbishop of Colombo, Sri Lanka |
|
21. |
Francis Xavier Kriengsak Cardinal Kovithavanij |
Thailand |
14 Feb 2015 |
Archbishop of Bangkok, Thailand |
- Cardinals non-Electors in Asia
|
|
Name |
|
Elevated |
Current Title |
|
1. |
John Cardinal Tong Hon |
China |
18 Feb 2012 |
Bishop Emeritus of Hong Kong [Xianggang], China |
|
2. |
Joseph Cardinal Zen Ze-kiun |
China |
24 Mar 2006 |
Bishop emeritus of Hong Kong |
|
3. |
Telesphore Placidus Cardinal Toppo |
India |
21 Oct 2003 |
Archbishop Emeritus of Ranchi, India |
|
4. |
Julius Riyadi Cardinal Darmaatmadja, S.J. |
Indonesia |
26 Nov 1994 |
Archbishop Emeritus of Jakarta, Indonesia |
|
5. |
Béchara Cardinal Boutros Raï OMM |
Lebanon |
24 Nov 2012 |
Patriarch of Antioch and All the East |
|
6. |
Orlando Beltran Cardinal Quevedo, O.M.I. |
Philippines |
22 Feb 2014 |
Archbishop Emeritus of Cotabato, Philippines |
|
7. |
Gaudencio Borbon Cardinal Rosales |
Philippines |
24 Mar 2006 |
Archbishop Emeritus of Manila, Philippines |
|
8. |
Michael Michai Cardinal Kitbunchu |
Thailand |
2 Feb 1983 |
Archbishop Emeritus of Bangkok, Thailand |
|
9. |
Pierre Cardinal Nguyễn Văn Nhơn |
Viet Nam |
14 Feb 2015 |
Archbishop Emeritus of Hà Nội, Viet Nam |
|
10. |
Jean-Baptiste Cardinal Phạm Minh Mẫn |
Viet Nam |
21 Oct 2003 |
Archbishop Emeritus of Thành-Phô Hồ Chí Minh (Hôchiminh Ville), Viet Nam |
Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.” Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.
Latest News
