CHICAGO (IL)
NBC Chicago
By Mary Ann Ahern
Pope Francis has announced 20 new cardinals, 15 of whom are less than 80 years old. While there had been speculation that Chicago’s Archbishop Blase Cupich would be one of them, he was not included in Sunday’s list.
If Cupich had been chosen, it would certainly have seemed that he was on a very fast track, considering his recent appointment as archbishop. Other American archbishops, including Jose Gomez from Los Angeles, Wilton Gregory from Atlanta and Charles Chaput from Philadelphia, have not been named cardinals either, and they have been archbishops for much longer.
Another point against Cupich is that his predecessor, Francis George, is a cardinal. It would be unusual to have two voting cardinals from the same archdiocese. While Cardinal George has retired, he will still be a voting member of the College of Cardinals until he is 80 years old. George will turn 78 in January.
There isn’t much doubt that Cupich will eventually be named a cardinal, as Chicago has been a “cardinal seat” since George Mundelein in 1924.
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