Archbishop László Német of Belgrade will ultimately decide on the successor of the current head of the Catholic Church.

As we wrote , Pope Francis plans to appoint twenty-one new cardinals in December. Among the new cardinals is Archbishop László Német of Belgrade, who was secretary of the Hungarian Catholic Bishops' Conference (MKPK) between 2006 and 2008.

Through these appointments, the Pope significantly broadens the membership of the College of Cardinals, which body will ultimately decide on the successor of the current Catholic Church head.

Of the 21 new cardinals, 20 will be eligible to participate in the conclave that elects the pope, given that those under the age of 80 can participate.

Most of the members of the current body of cardinals were appointed by Pope Francis, who was elected in March 2013, so he will have great influence in the selection of his successor.

As before, the first is of Latin American origin

this time, too, the pope preferred archbishops and bishops from non-European countries.

The candidates include priests from Indonesia, Japan, Iran, Algeria, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador and Peru.

Among the new cardinals is László Német, the Metropolitan Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Belgrade, a Verbite monk, who held the position of provincial head of the order in Hungary between 2004 and 2007. 2006-2008 he was secretary of the Hungarian Catholic Bishops' Conference, then XVI. On April 23, 2008, Pope Benedict appointed him the county bishop of Nagybecskerek. From 2016, he is the president of the Saint Cyril and Methodius International Bishops' Conference. From September 2021, he is the first vice-president of the Council of European Bishops' Conferences. Pope Francis appointed him Metropolitan Archbishop of Belgrade on November 5, 2022. On December 10, 2022, he was installed in the archbishopric of the Serbian capital in the Belgrade Cathedral, www.vaticannews.va wrote.

Due to his age, the 68-year-old László Német is among the cardinals who elect the pope.

The cardinal appointment of Archbishop Angelo Acerbi, apostolic nuncio, is also connected to the Hungarian local church. The now 99-year-old senior pastor represented the Holy See in Hungary as apostolic nuncio between 1990-97 after the regime change.

Cover image: Archbishop László Német of Belgrade / Photo: Archdiocese of Belgrade

Source: vasarnap.hu