In case you missed the story, the Pope appointed 23 new cardinals today

[hedgehog]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21342463/

[KatyMan]

1. Nice to see Houston's Archbishop

elevated. We rather liked going to Mass there (well, except for one particular heavily protestantized church ;) ), and their schools are great.

[tjwmason]

2. Good to see the Patriarch of Babylon in the list

A most welcome recognition of the position of the Church in Iraq.

Very noticeable that neither Washington nor Baltimore got a galero.

[DemBones DemBones]

3. Looks like a good selection. nt

[pnwmom]

7. Not really. There are zero women on the list.

Even though nothing except habit and misogyny prevents a woman from being named one.

http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/new.php?n=9939

Father Von Gemminger said he thought it was “improbable that the Vatican would immediately open” the doors to women cardinals, but he added, “perhaps it will happen in ten years, since the change in mentality will come, even if slowly.”

The German Jesuit argued that throughout history it has not been necessary to be a priest in order to be named a cardinal. Therefore, “Why not think that in the future there will be women cardinals?” he asked.

In the past centuries, members of the laity were eligible to become cardinals but current Church law stipulates that cardinals must be priests or bishops.

SNIP

[Beer Snob-50]

4. I am not on the list!! nt

[hedgehog]

5. Dare I say I was disappointed by the continuing emphasis on

appointing Vatican bureacrats and Westerners over bishops with pastoral concerns and non-Westerners?

http://ncrcafe.org/node/1384

[tjwmason]

6. I think that the Pope is going to be making a big move in terms of diocesan Bishops soon.

His appointment rate has been very low indeed - I subscribe the Vatican Information Services daily e-mail, even in the very last days of Pope John-Paul II's pontificate there was usually one or two Bishops being appointed every day, under Pope Benedict a whole week can pass without any. His Holiness has been focussed on Rome so far, and I believe that this is getting the curia sorted out, then when that's finished he can turn his attention further afield.

One of my biggest problems with the Pope is that he only seems to trust people he knows very well, this can be a virtue in many places but when one is trying to head up an organisation of over a billion people it's simply impossible. This is one other reason for the predominance of Romans (he's been there for ages) and Westerners.