The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1911-08-26
THE COLLEGE OF CARDINALS
Pope Selected From Body of Cardinals
Since 1869. What the Red Hat
Signifies.


dinal Gibbons jubilee, the following
information regarding Cardinals will
doubtless be of interest to many, says
the Montreal Tribune.
The title of Cardinal Oatin, cardo,
hinge), has existed in the Catholic
Church since the close of the fourth
century. In 492 the dignity of Car
dinal took it's specific rank among the
titular distinctions, and in the 18th
century to rank as Cardinal of the
Church was to be rated with the sons
ofsovereign prince"
Since 1859 it has been usual to Sc
lect the Pope from the body of Car
dinals. Not always, however, has an
elected Pope previously worn the pur-
ple Urban w, Gregory X, Celestine
v, Urban V and Urban vi had never
possessed the Cardinalatial dignity.
The constitution of the College of Car
dinals was drawn up in 1886 by Sixtus
" The body was limited to- 70 mem
bers, namely, 6 Bishops, so priests, IA
deacons. In modern times this num-
Der is not often complete, and not since
1865 and 1867 has the College been
filed. In 1245 Innocent Nv ordained
that all Cardinals should wear the red
hat to show that they ought to expose
themselves to the shedding of their
blood for the Church. The scarlet
skull, cap and biretta were Instituted
in the 18th century.
The creation of the largest number
of Cardinals by any one Pope goes
to the late Pontiff, Leo XIII, who gave
the red hat to no fewer than 147. Eight
Popes did not create single Cardinal.
The total number created since 1899
| is 1853 Two consistories, one pri-
vate, the other public, are held for
| the investiture of Cardinals who are
present in Rome. The ceremonies in
clude the giving of the hat, the acco-
lade, the ring, the closing and opening
of the mouth and the reading of the
letter comforting the title. Absent Car
dinals, when created, have the scarlet
cap sent to them by special Papal cour-
ier The hat and title are given only to
those who visit Rome, and since many,
through old age and infirmities, are
unable to undertake the journey, they
die without becoming completely Car
dinalatial Among those counted as
Cardinals are two who died before
their creation. They are William
Maresfield, an English priest, and a
Portuguese, Pablo de Carvalho, both
Of whom died but few days previous
TO their nomination. Many saints have
| figured among the Cardinals, namely
Peter Igneo, Peter Damien, Albert of
Brabant, Guarino Fuscari, Galdino
Sala, Raymond Nonnato, Charles Bor-
romeo and John Fisher. In 1855 Car
dinal Hohenlohe resigned his Cardinal
Bishopric to take inferior rank
The United States has produced two
| Cardinals-McCloske and Gibbons.
English Cardinals number AZ, begin
ming with Uric in 1107, the latest be-
ing Vaughan (1893-1903); Ireland has
had four Cardinals-Cullen, McCabe,
Logue and Moran; Taschereau is the
only Canadian. Scotland had two,
Beaton and Erskin. An interesting
feature of the present composition Of
the Sacred College is the fact that
never before, with perhaps the excep-
tion of the days of Avignon, was there
a closer proportion between Italian
and nonItalian Cardinals, there being
at present twenty-eight Italians and
twenty-one other nationalities. The
English-speaking world is represented
by three Cardinals, Moran, Gibbons
and Logue. France also has three,
Cardinals Couillie, Lucon and An
drieu; Germany has only two, Car
dinals Kopp and Fischer, while Spain
has four, Cardinals Merry del Val,
Wives " Tuto, Aguirre and de HERES,
and Austria has six Cardinals
Since the foregoing was written two
Cardinals have passed away-Moran
OF Australia and Gruscha of Austria.