Latest news with #Ouédraogo
Newsweek
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
Conclave Update: Vatican Conservatives Face Potential Blow Over Next Pope
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Confusion surrounding the birthdate of Cardinal Philippe Ouédraogo, a conservative cardinal from Burkina Faso, may cost him his spot at the upcoming papal conclave. Only cardinals under the age of 80 can participate in a conclave, a rule established by Pope Paul VI in 1970 and reaffirmed in subsequent papal decrees. But it is unclear whether Ouédraogo is 79 or 80, as he has different birth dates listed in Vatican yearbooks for 2024 and 2025. Newsweek has contacted the Vatican, via email, for comment. Cardinal Philippe Ouedraogo holds his skull cap as he arrives for the afternoon session of the Synod of bishops, at the Vatican, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. Cardinal Philippe Ouedraogo holds his skull cap as he arrives for the afternoon session of the Synod of bishops, at the Vatican, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. AP Why It Matters Ouédraogo is known as a theological conservative, meaning his vote could be important for traditionalists who want to roll back some of Pope Francis' more progressive stances—such as blessing same-sex unions—influencing the ideological trajectory of the next papacy. What To Know Last year, Ouédraogo, was listed by the Vatican as being born on January 25, 1945, which would make him 80. But, this year the Vatican now records his birthdate as December 31, 1945, leaving him just within the voting age threshold. He was interviewed about this by Dutch newspaper Nederlands Dagblad, when he said: "In my village, there were neither hospitals nor schools. I was born at home and was not given a birthdate." Ouédraogo said he had randomly selected January 25 when he joined the seminary for bureaucratic reasons, but the December 31 date appears in both his passport and the country's national registry. When asked why the date was only changed this year, just ahead of his 80th birthday, Ouédraogo answered: "In Africa, birthdays don't matter. We celebrate community events, not individual ones. A birthday has little influence on social life." This is according to a translation by La Croix, a French Roman Catholic newspaper. It quoted Burkina Faso's ambassador to the Holy See as saying: "It is common practice for governments to assign Dec. 31 as a birthdate when the actual date of birth is unknown." Newsweek has contacted Burkina Faso's Embassy to the Holy See, via email, for comment. Two cardinals—Kenya's John Njue and Spain's Antonio Cañizares Llovera—have already withdrawn from the conclave for health reasons, reducing the number of electors. Should Ouédraogo be excluded, only 132 cardinals will cast votes, most of whom were appointed by Pope Francis. To be elected the next pontiff, a candidate requires a two-thirds majority. What People Are Saying Speaking to reporters ahead of his trip to Michigan, President Donald Trump was asked about the upcoming conclave process and whom he would like to see as the next pope. "I'd like to be pope," the president quipped. "That would be my number one choice. No, I don't know, I have no preference...I must say we have a cardinal [Timothy Dolan, who has been the archbishop of New York since 2009] that happens to be out of a place called New York who's very good. So, we'll see what happens." What Happens Next The conclave is set to begin on May 7. There are currently four frontrunners in the race to become the next pope and decide the future path of the Church.
The Journal
01-05-2025
- Politics
- The Journal
After changing his date of birth, this Cardinal from Burkina Faso can now vote in the conclave
WE CAN ALL be guilty of leaving things to the last minute, but leaving something until the eve of your 80 th birthday can look a little suspect. The conclave to appoint the next pope will begin on 7 May and one Cardinal will be allowed a vote after he changed his age in the months running up to his 80 th birthday. Only Cardinals aged 80 or under when a pope dies (or resigns) are allowed a vote , and in March, it was reported that a Cardinal from Burkina Faso had legally changed his age. In last year's Annuario Pontificio, essentially a Vatican Yearbook, Cardinal Philippe Ouédraogo's date of birth was listed at 25 January, 1945. On the Wayback Machine – an internet archive – his date of birth on the Vatican website is listed as 25 January, 1945 in a webpage capture from last year. Several news articles also reference his date of birth as being 25 January, 1945 and people wished him a happy 80 th birthday on a Facebook group for the parish of Ouagadougou , the capital of Burkina Faso, on 25 January last. However, in this year's Vatican yearbook and on the Vatican website , his date of birth is now 31 December, 1945 – 11 months later, granting him a vote in the conclave. Journalist Hendro Munstermann, of the Dutch newspaper Nederlands Dagblad, interviewed Ouédraogo on the issue in Burkina Faso in March. 'In my village, there were neither hospitals nor schools. I was born at home and was not given a birthdate,' said Ouédraogo. He added that when he became a priest in 1973, he had to choose one and came up with 25 January. However, in Burkina Faso it is common practice to assign 31 December as a birthdate when the actual date of birth is unknown. Advertisement Ouédraogo said his passport also lists 31 December, 1945 as his date of birth. But when asked why his date of birth had only been changed on the Vatican website and in the yearbook when he was approaching his 80 th birthday, Ouédraogo 'remained silent', according to Munstermann. Il Messaggero , an Italian daily newspaper based in Rome, joked that Quédraogo had 'found the secret to stopping time'. Final conclave list Earlier this week, another conclave drama came to an end when Angelo Becciu, an Italian cardinal convicted of embezzlement and stripped of his privileges by Pope Francis, confirmed he will not take part in the conclave. Meanwhile, it was originally thought that the conclave would involve 135 cardinals. But this has been reduced to 133, meaning the next pope requires 89 votes to be elected. Two voting cardinals have dropped out due to illness, John Njue, a Cardinal from Kenya, and Antonio Canizares Llovera, a Spanish Cardinal. Last year, Cardinal Njue, who won't vote due to illness, similarly became two years younger when the Vatican changed his date of birth from being the somewhat vague '1944' to 1 January, 1946. Elsewhere, while Cardinal Vinko Puljić is too ill to be in the Sistine Chapel for the conclave he has arrived in Rome to have his say. Three Cardinals are chosen by lot for the task of collecting the votes of those who are sick and unable to be in the Sistine Chapel to vote. Puljić will vote from his sickbed in Santa Marta, the guesthouse which Pope Francis lived in. It's a hotel-like building constructed during the reign of Pope John Paul II to house cardinals during a conclave. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
