Profiles: Papal contenders
As the conclave to elect the next pope begins, here's a look at some of the cardinals that may become the next Bishop of Rome.
Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco:
Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio:
Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone:
- Born: Dec. 2, 1934, in Romano Canavese, Italy.
- Education: Holds license in theology with dissertation on tolerance and religious freedom. Also has a doctorate in canon law.
- Languages: Besides his native Italian, Bertone also speaks French, German, Portuguese and Spanish.
- Ordained a priest on July 1, 1960.
- Since the 1980s, has served as consultor in several departments of the Roman Curia, especially in the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.Was trained as a canon lawyer as part of the Salesian order and taught in various Roman universities for several years before going to work for the Vatican's doctrine office in 1995.
- Full profile: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/03/10/cardinal-tarcisio-bertone/1976857/
Cardinal Timothy Dolan:
- Born: Feb. 6, 1950, in St. Louis, the oldest of five children.
- Childhood: As a boy, Dolan would set up cardboard boxes with sheets to make a play altar in the basement.
- Education: Holds bachelor of arts degree in philosophy from Cardinal Glennon College, a license in sacred theology from Pontifical University of St. Thomas and a doctorate in church history from Catholic University of America.
- Ordained a priest on June 19, 1976.
- Full profile: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/03/10/cardinal-timothy-dolan/1976871/
Cardinal Peter Erdo:
- Born: June 25, 1952, in Budapest, Hungary, the oldest of six siblings. Has a twin brother, Pal.
- Childhood: Became an altar boy at the age of 6 and enjoyed the parochial activities at his local church, but he didn't seriously consider becoming a priest until he was close to finishing high school.
- Education: Holds doctorates in theology and canon law.
- Languages: Speaks German, Italian, Spanish and French. Erdo has taken lessons to improve his English.
- Full profile: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/03/10/cardinal-peter-erdo/1976883/
Cardinal Sean O'Malley:
- Born: June 29, 1944, in Lakewood, Ohio.
- Education: Master's degree in religious education and a doctorate in Spanish and Portuguese literature.
- Ordained a priest on Aug. 29, 1970.
- Ordained bishop of St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, on Oct. 16, 1985.
- Appointed bishop of Fall River, Mass., on June 16, 1992.
- Appointed bishop of Palm Beach, Fla., on Sept. 3, 2002.
- Appointed archbishop of Boston on July 1, 2003.
- Proclaimed cardinal by Pope Benedict XVI on March 24, 2006.
- Full profile: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/03/10/cardinal-sean-omalley/1976979/
Cardinal Marc Ouellet:
Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi:
- Born: Oct. 18, 1942, in Merate, Italy.
- Education: Studied at Pontifical Gregorian University and Pontifical Biblical Institute, obtaining a licentiate in Sacred Scriptures.
- Spent summers in Syria, Jordan, Iraq and Turkey, where he worked as an archaeologist.
- Has written articles for L'Osservatore Romano and L'Avvenire and hosts the weekly television show Frontiers of the Spirit.
- Full profile: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/03/10/cardinal-gianfranco-ravasi/1976911/
Cardinal Leonardo Sandri:
Cardinal Odilo Pedro Scherer:
- Born: Sept. 21, 1949, in Sao Francisco, Brazil, the seventh of 13 children in a family that descended from German immigrants.
- Education: Holds a doctorate in theology and master in philosophy from Pontifical Gregorian University.
- Ordained a priest on Dec. 7, 1976.
- Held numerous pastoral and teaching positions across Brazil before appointed in 1994 to the Vatican's powerful Congregation for Bishops, where he stayed until 2001.
- Languages: Fluent in Italian, German, Portuguese. Proficient in English, French and Spanish.
- Full profile: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/03/10/cardinal-odilo-pedro-scherer/1976927/
Cardinal Angelo Scola:
- Born: Nov. 7, 1941, in Malgrate, Italy, the son of a truck driver and a housewife.
- Education: Studied at Catholic University of the Sacred Heart in Milan, where he earned a doctorate in philosophy. Later, he earned a doctorate in theology from the University of Fribourg in Switzerland, where he did a thesis on St. Thomas Aquinas.
- Languages: Besides his native Italian, Scola speaks French, English and Spanish.
- Full profile: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/03/10/cardinal-angelo-scola/1976939/
Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn:
- Born: Jan. 22, 1945, in what is now Skalsko, Czech Republic. Nineteen of his ancestors were priests, bishops or archbishops.
- Education: Obtained a licentiate and doctorate in theology.
- Languages: Besides his native German, Schoenborn also speaks English, French and Italian.
- Ordained a priest Dec. 27, 1970.
- Became a theology professor at Catholic University of Fribourg, Switzerland, in 1975
- Full profile: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/03/10/cardinal-christoph-schoenborn/1976951/
Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle:
- Born: June 21, 1957, in Manila, Philippines, the younger of two children of a pious couple who worked in a bank.
- Childhood: Tagle dreamed of becoming a doctor, but was redirected by a Jesuit friend to the priesthood at a seminary in the upscale Ateneo de Manila University, where he graduated summa cum laude.
- Education: Received doctorate in theology from Catholic University of America in 1991.
- Languages: Italian, English and Tagalog. Proficient in French.
- Ordained a priest on Feb. 27, 1982.
- Full profile: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/03/10/cardinal-luis-antonio-tagle/1976957/
Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson:
- Born: Oct. 11, 1948, in Wassaw Nsuta, Ghana, the child of a carpenter and vegetable seller.
- Education: Attended St. Peter's Regional Seminary in Ghana. Earned two master's degrees in theology and divinity in 1974 at St. Anthony-on-Hudson Seminary in New York. Earned doctorate in Sacred Scripture from the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome in 1992.
- Languages: Besides his native Fante, Turkson speaks English, French, Italian, German and Hebrew.
- Ordained a priest on July 20, 1975.
- Full profile: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/03/10/cardinal-peter-kodwo-appiah-turkson/1976967/
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