Pope Francis is often referred
to as the “Pope of surprises” for many reasons.
One of them is the
unexpected clergy he elevates to cardinal, as he will do with 16 bishops
and an elderly priest tomorrow in Rome. Religion News Service reports.
But the real surprise in these picks, as in past appointments, is that they came as a complete surprise to many of the new cardinals themselves, and to the Pope’s closest collaborators.
Cardinal-designate Joseph Tobin of Indianapolis, for instance, found out about his red hat in the early morning hours on October 9 when he turned on his iPad to say his morning prayers and saw the news that the Pope had included him among the list of new cardinals announced at the Vatican.
“I am shocked beyond words by the decision of the Holy Father,” Cardinal-designate Tobin tweeted a few moments later.
Fr Ernest Simoni, an 88-year-old Albanian priest who spent years in jail and under forced labour during the communist dictatorship, was watching Francis on television as he read the list that same day and was stunned to hear his name as well.
“I did not believe either my ears or eyes,” Fr Simoni told Reuters. “The Pope said it, but I could not believe it. 'Can he be talking about another Ernest?’ I said to myself.”
In a previous round of appointments, in early 2015, Cardinal Jose Lacunza Maestrojuan of Panama – also a country that had never had a cardinal – first heard about his elevation when his sister in Spain texted him on the instant messaging service WhatsApp: “You have nothing to tell me?” she wrote.
Cardinal Lacunza thought it was “crazy” and didn’t believe her until he got a congratulatory phone call from a cardinal in neighbouring Nicaragua.