VATICAN: On a grey and windy Rome morning yesterday, Pope Benedict XVI formally "created" the first new cardinals of his pontificate. In a ceremony known as a consistory and held on the front steps of St Peter's Basilicia, 15 men from 11 countries received their famous red hats.
Greeting the new cardinals, the pope linked their appointments to his own first encyclical, Deus Caritas Est (God is Love), released in January: "I want to sum up the meaning of this new call that you have received in the word that I placed at the heart of my first encyclical: caritas. This matches well the colour of your cardinalatial robes. May the scarlet that you now wear always express the caritas Christi, inspiring you to a passionate love for Christ, for his church and for all humanity.
"I am counting on you to see to it that the church's solicitude for the poor and needy challenges the world with a powerful statement on the civilisation of love."
Fittingly, yesterday's consistory embodied an obvious link to Pope Benedict's predecessor, John Paul II. Among those elevated was Archbishop of Cracow, Stanislaw Dziwisz, who served as private secretary to the late pope for the 27 years of his pontificate. As Cardinal Dziwisz stepped up to receive his biretta, he was greeted with the day's biggest round of applause.
Perhaps the biggest surprise among the new cardinals was Bishop of Hong Kong Joseph Zen Ze-Kiun, who has criticised China's human rights' record and who is widely seen as a pro-democracy figure. A prayer read to the congregation in Chinese on behalf of those "who still suffer because of their Christian faith" appeared to reflect the situation of Chinese Catholics who, under Beijing's restrictive religious policies, are not allowed to recognise the pope's authority.
Another poignant moment came when the oldest of the new cardinals, 87-year-old Peter Poreku Dery of Ghana, now wheelchair-bound, was carried up the steps in front of the basilica to receive his hat.
Cardinal Dery is one of three "over-age" or over 80-year-old cardinals among the new appointees. Only cardinals under the age of 80 are allowed to vote in a papal election.
When the pope announced the new cardinals last month, he said they reflected the "universality" of the Catholic church.
Seven are from outside Europe, with two from the US, and one each from Hong Kong, South Korea, the Philippines, Venezuela and Ghana. There are now 193 members of the College of Cardinals, with 120 under 80 and eligible to vote in a conclave.