Day four of preparations

The Fifth General Congregation of the College of Cardinals took place on today from 9:30am until 12:40pm.

Card. Nycz

Two newly arrived cardinals were sworn in: His Eminence, Kazimierz Cardoma; Nycz, Archbishop of Warsaw, Poland, who is a Cardinal elector and Cardinal Giovanni Coppa, Apostolic Nuncio emeritus to the Czech Republic, who is not an elector. The number of Cardinal electors who have arrived so far is thus 114.  The final Cardinal elector is expected to arrive in Rome today, most probably in time for the evening Congregation which begins at 5:00pm.

In conformity with the prescriptions of Universi Dominici Gregis, three new Cardinal assistants to the Camerlengo were chosen by lot to serve on the Particular Congregation for the following three days. The Cardinal assistants chosen were: from the Order of Bishops, Cardinal Béchara Boutros Raï, O.M.M., Patriarch of Antioch of the Maronites, Lebanon; from the Order of Priests, Cardinal Laurent Monsengwo Pasinya, Archbishop of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo; and from the Order of Deacons, Cardinal Velasio De Paolis, C.S., President emeritus of the Prefecture for the Economic Affairs of the Holy See.

The Particular Congregation is made up of the Cardinal Camerlengo of Holy Roman Church and three Cardinals, one from each Order, chosen by lot from among the Cardinal electors already present in Rome. The office of these Cardinals, called Assistants, ceases at the conclusion of the third full day, and their place is taken by others, also chosen by lot and having the same term of office, also after the election has begun. (UDG, 7)

Cardinal Dean Angelo Sodano then read the draft of a telegram of condolence to be sent on behalf of the College of Cardinals to the Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela on the occasion of the death of President Hugo Chavez (which took place yesterday), in accordance with the Holy Father’s custom of sending a telegram when a Head of State dies.

Proceedings then resumed with interventions from the three Cardinal presidents of the Holy See’s economic departments: Cardinal Giuseppe Versaldi, president of the Prefecture for the Economic Affairs of the Holy See; Cardinal Domenico Calcagno, president of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA); and Cardinal Giuseppe Bertello, president of the Governorate of Vatican City State. Each gave a brief report in their area of competence in accordance with the provisions outlined in No. 171 § 2 of the Apostolic Constitution Pastor Bonus issued by His Holiness, Blessed John Paul II on June 28, 1988.

When the Apostolic See falls vacant, it is the right and the duty of the cardinal camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, personally or through his delegate, to request reports from all the administrations dependent on the Holy See on their patrimonial and economic status as well as information on any extraordinary business that may at that time be under way, and, from the Prefecture for the Economic Affairs of the Holy See he shall request a financial statement on income and expenditures of the previous year and the budgetary estimates for the following year. He is obliged to submit these reports and estimates to the College of Cardinals. (PB, 171, § 2)

The interventions that followed, of which there were 13 in addition to the three aforementioned ones, again covered a wide range of topics including,

• Ecumenism; and 
• the Church's charitable efforts and attention to the poor.

No decision regarding the starting date of the Conclave has yet been made.  It is likely that this decision is being delayed, pending the arrival of the final Cardinal elector, later today.