Archbishop of Cape Town, Stephen Brislin, was elevated to cardinal by Pope Francis in St Peter’s Square in the Vatican on Saturday.
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He was one of 21 clergymen from across the globe elevated to the position, with the pope saying that diversity was indispensable to the future of the Catholic Church.
‘The College of Cardinals is called to resemble a symphony orchestra, representing the harmony… of the Church,’ said Francis, before the gathered cardinals on the steps of St Peter’s Basilica.
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‘Diversity is necessary; it is indispensable. However, each sound must contribute to the common design,’ he added.
The consistory on Saturday is the ninth since Pope Francis was named leader of the 1.3 billion Catholics around the world in 2013.
A scarlet four-cornered cap known as a biretta and a cardinal’s ring were presented by the pope to each of the red-clad cardinals as they kneeled before him.
‘This is the richness of the Church, to bring people together, different cultures, different backgrounds, languages,’ the Archbishop of Cape Town, Stephen Brislin, told AFP on Thursday before his elevation to cardinal.
The variety of cardinals represents ‘a richness and a variety of experience, and that’s what the Church is all about,’ he added.
The Church encompasses all people, not just with the promotion of the archbishops of Juba in South Sudan, Tabora in Tanzania, and Cape Town’s Brislin, there are three new cardinals from South America, including two Argentinians, and three from Africa.
The Bishop of Penang, Malaysia, and the Bishop of Hong Kong, Stephen Chow, who is regarded as playing a significant role in efforts to defuse tense relations between the Vatican and Beijing, respectively, serve as Asia’s representatives.
The Holy See hopes to play a significant diplomatic role in sensitive regions of the world, and some of the new cardinals, like Chow, have prior experience there.
The list also includes Italian Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the first Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem to be elevated to cardinal and the foremost Catholic figure in the Holy Land.
Following the ceremony, the new cardinals were congratulated by members of the public at the Vatican’s sumptuous Apostolic Palace.
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