Page "Bishop" Paragraph 57

; Cardinal: In Roman Catholicism, a cardinal is a member of the clergy appointed by the pope to serve in the College of Cardinals, the body empowered to elect the pope ; however, on turning 80 a cardinal loses this right of election.

Cardinals also serve as advisors to the pope and hold positions of authority within the structure of the Catholic Church.

Under modern canon law, a man who is appointed a cardinal must accept ordination as a bishop, unless he already is one, or seek special permission from the pope to decline such ordination.

Most cardinals are already bishops at the time of their appointment, the majority being archbishops of important archdioceses or patriarchs, and a substantial portion of the rest already titular archbishops serving in the Vatican.

Recent popes have appointed a few priests, most of them influential theologians, to the College of Cardinals without requiring them to be ordained as bishops ; invariably, these men are over the age of 80, which means they are not permitted to take part in a conclave.

The purpose of these appointments is to recognise their tremendous contribution to the life of the Church.