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The dean of the College of Cardinals (Latin: Decanus Collegii Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae Cardinalium) presides over the College of Cardinals in the Catholic Church, serving as primus inter pares (first among equals). The position was established in the 12th century.[citation needed] He always holds the rank of a cardinal bishop, and is assisted by a vice-dean. Both are elected by and from the cardinal bishops who are not Eastern Catholic patriarchs, with their election subject to papal confirmation. Except for presiding over the college, the dean and vice-dean have no power over the other cardinals. In the order of precedence in the Catholic Church, the dean and vice-dean, as the two most senior cardinals, are placed second and third, respectively, after the pope.

Thumb
Giovanni Battista Re, the incumbent dean

For centuries, the cardinal bishop who had been a bishop of a suburbicarian see the longest was the dean. This custom became a requirement with the canon law of 1917.[1][2][lower-alpha 1] On 26 February 1965, Pope Paul VI empowered the cardinal bishops to elect the dean from among their number.[3][lower-alpha 2] Both the dean and subdean must reside in Rome.[1]

Until December 2019, the dean held the position until death or resignation; there was no mandatory age of retirement.[4] Then, upon accepting Cardinal Angelo Sodano's resignation as dean of the College of Cardinals, Pope Francis established that the dean would henceforth serve a five-year term that may be renewed once.[5][6] In anticipation of the election of a new dean, Francis said: "I am hoping they will elect someone who can carry this important responsibility full time."[7]

Responsibilities

The dean summons the conclave for the purposes of electing a new pope following a death or resignation. The Dean presides over the daily meetings of the College of Cardinals in advance of the conclave and then presides over the conclave if his age does not prohibit his participation. The dean also has the responsibility of communicating the "news of the Pope's death to the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See and to the Heads of the respective Nations".[8] He is the public face of the Holy See until a new pope is elected. If he participates in the conclave, the dean asks the pope-elect if he accepts the election, and then asks the new pope what name he wishes to use. If the dean himself is elected pope, the aforementioned tasks are assumed by the sub-dean of the College of Cardinals. If the newly elected pope is not already a bishop, the dean ordains him a bishop.[9]

The dean has "the title of the diocese of Ostia, together with that of any other church to which he already has a title,"[10] such as his suburbicarian diocese. This has been the case since 1914, by decree of Pope Pius X—previous deans had given up their suburbicarian see and taken the joint title of Ostia and Velletri, which were separated in that same 1914 decree.[11]

Deans elected pope

Nine Deans have been elected pope:[12]

  1. Corrado Demitri, elected Pope Anastasius IV in 1153
  2. Ubaldo Allucingoli, elected Pope Lucius III in 1181
  3. Ugolino di Conti was elected Pope Gregory IX in 1227
  4. Rinaldo di Jenne was elected Pope Alexander IV in 1254
  5. Pedro Julião was elected Pope John XXI in September 1276
  6. Rodrigo Borgia was elected Pope Alexander VI in 1492
  7. Alessandro Farnese was elected Pope Paul III in 1534
  8. Gian Pietro Carafa was elected Pope Paul IV in May 1555
  9. Joseph Ratzinger was elected Pope Benedict XVI in 2005

List of deans

The following is the list of deans of the Sacred College of Cardinals, separated into three groups to account for the Western Schism, which ended after the Council of Constance. The earliest attested reference to the "College of Cardinals" is at the Council of Reims in 1148.[13]

Each name in the following list includes years of birth and death, then comma-separated years of cardinalate and deanship.

Before the Western Schism

12th century

13th century

14th century

During the Western Schism

See also: Avignon Papacy and Council of Pisa

After the Council of Constance

15th century

16th century

17th century

18th century

19th century

20th century

21st century

More information Image, Name of Incumbent ...
Image Name of Incumbent Life dates Cardinalate Deanship Notes
Birth Death and age
ThumbJoseph Ratzinger16 April 192731 December 2022(2022-12-31) (aged 95)27 June 1977
by Pope Paul VI		30 November 2002–16 April 2005
(2 years, 147 days)		Elected Pope Benedict XVI in 2005, Resigned on 28 February 2013
ThumbAngelo Sodano23 November 192727 May 2022(2022-05-27) (aged 94)28 June 1991
by Pope John Paul II		30 April 2005–21 December 2019
(14 years, 235 days)		retired in 2019
ThumbGiovanni Battista Re (1934-01-30) 30 January 1934 (age 90)21 February 2001
by Pope John Paul II		18 January 2020–present (4 years, 258 days)elected to a five-year term, renewable once
Close

Notes

  1. Quote: "Sacro Cardinalium Collegio praeest Decanus, idest antiquior promotione ad aliquam Sedem suburbicariam, cui tamen nulla est in ceteros Cardinales iurisdictio, sed ipse primus habetur inter aequales."[2] Translation: "The Sacred College of Cardinals is presided over by a Dean, that one who is senior by promotion to any suburbicarian See, who, however, has no jurisdiction over the other Cardinals, but he is held first among equals."
  2. For the remainder of Paul VI's papacy, the cardinal bishops followed tradition and elected as dean the cardinal who had been a cardinal bishop the longest.[citation needed] When Agnelo Rossi was elected dean in 1984, he had been a cardinal bishop for just two and a half years, less than three other cardinal bishops: Sebastiano Baggio, Paolo Bertoli, Francesco Carpino.

References

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