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Miguel Obando Bravo, 79
Archbishop of Managua, Nicaragua
Miguel Obando Bravo was born Feb. 2, 1926, in La Libertad, Nicaragua. After having attended the Salesian College of Granada he obtained a baccalaureate in Latin and Greek. In San Salvador he received a doctorate in mathematics, physics and philosophy.
After entering the Salesians he studied theology in Guatemala and thereafter vocational psychology in Colombia, Venezuela and Rome.
He was ordained a priest Aug. 10, 1958, and was professor of mathematics and physics in Nicaragua and El Salvador; prefect of discipline of the Salesian seminary of San Salvador, in 1959; and rector of the Rinaldi Institute.
Named auxiliary bishop of Matagalpa, Nicaragua, in January 1968, he received episcopal ordination that March 31.
In February 1970 he was named archbishop of Managua, taking possession of the archdiocese in April 1970.
He was president of the Nicaraguan bishops’ conference for six different terms from 1971-1997 and then again in 1999. He was elevated to cardinal in May 1985.
Curial membership:
* Divine Worship and the Sacraments, Clergy, Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life (congregations)
* Latin America (council)
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Keith O’Brien, 67
Archbishop of Saint Andrews and Edinburgh, Scotland
Keith Patrick Michael O’Brien was born March 17, 1938, in Ballycastle, Northern Ireland. He was ordained a priest April 3, 1965. He obtained a bachelor of science degree in chemistry and mathematics from the University of Edinburgh and a diploma in education.
He served as assistant parish priest and as a chaplain. He was spiritual director of St. Andrew’s College in Drygrange and rector of St Mary’ College, Blairs.
In August 1985 he was ordained archbishop of Saint Andrews and Edinburgh. From 1996-99 he served as apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Argyll and the Isles.
Since March 2002, he has been president of the Scottish bishops’ conference. He was elevated to cardinal in October 2003.
Curial membership:
* Migrants and Travelers, Social Communications (councils)
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Anthony Olubunmi Okogie, 68
Archbishop of Lagos, Nigeria
Anthony Olubunmi Okogie was born June 16, 1936, in Lagos, Nigeria. He was ordained a priest Dec. 11, 1966. He holds a licentiate in sacred theology.
He served for a short time as pastoral assistant at the Holy Cross Cathedral in Lagos. He was then drafted into the Nigerian army as a chaplain.
In August 1971 he was ordained auxiliary bishop of Oyo. He was transferred to Lagos first as auxiliary bishop, then in April 1973 named archbishop. Cardinal Okogie played a prominent role in the Christian Association of Nigeria, where he served as president.
He also served as president of the Nigerian bishops’ conference from 1994-2000. He was elevated to cardinal in October 2003.
Curial membership:
* Evangelization of Peoples (congregation)
* Social Communications (council)
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Jaime Lucas Ortega y Alamino, 68
Archbishop of St. Cristobal, Havana
Jaime Lucas Ortega y Alamino was born in Jagüey Grande, Cuba, on Oct. 18, 1936. His father was first a worker in a sugar factory, and subsequently a shopkeeper.
He earned a diploma in arts and sciences in 1955 and after one year at a university, entered the diocesan seminary of San Alberto Magno, directed by the Fathers of the Foreign Mission of Quebec.
After four years studying humanities and philosophy, the bishop sent him to study theology at the seminary of the Foreign Mission in Quebec.
He then returned to Cuba and was ordained priest Aug. 2, 1964. His ministry as coadjutor vicar of Cárdenas was interrupted in 1966 when he was detained in work camps. In 1967, at the end of his imprisonment, he was appointed parish priest of Jagüey Grande.
In December 1978, he was named bishop of Pinar del Rio. He received episcopal ordination on Jan. 14, 1979, in the Cathedral of Matanzas, and on Jan. 21 he took possession of his diocese.
In November 1981 he was promoted to the Archdiocese of Havana as archbishop. In 1988 until November 1998, he was president of the Cuban bishops’ conference.
From 1995 to 1999, he was the second vice president of the Latin American bishops’ council (CELAM). In December 2001, he was renamed president of the Cuban bishops’ conference. He was elevated to cardinal in November 1994.
Curial membership:
* Clergy (congregation)
* Health Care Workers (council)
* Latin America (commission)
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Marc Ouellet, 60
Archbishop of Quebec and primate of Canada
Marc Ouellet was born June 8, 1944, in Lamotte, Quebec. He was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Amos in May 1968. He holds licentiates in theology and philosophy, and a doctorate in dogmatic theology.
He served as consultor to the Sulpicians’ Provincial Council of Canada, and then director and teacher at the major seminary of Montreal, where he became rector in 1990. He also served briefly as rector of St. Joseph’s Seminary, Edmonton.
He was consultor to the Congregation for Clergy, then to the General Council of the Priests of Saint Sulpice. He later taught at the John Paul II Institute at the Lateran University, where in 1997 he was appointed to the chair of dogmatic theology.
In March 2001, he was named secretary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity; he was ordained a bishop that March 19.
In November 2002, he was appointed metropolitan archbishop of Quebec. He is a member of the Pontifical Academy of Theology. He was elevated to cardinal in October 2003.
Curial membership:
* Divine Worship and the Sacraments (congregation)
* Latin America (commission)
* International Eucharistic Congresses
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Bernard Panafieu, 74
Archbishop of Marseilles, France
Bernard Panafieu was born Jan. 26, 1931, in Chatellerault, France. He was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Albi in April 1956.
He served as vicar at Saint-Sauveur di Mazamet, and as chaplain of La Perouse School, Albi, and of the university parish. He was also chaplain of students in Tolosa, parish dean of Brassac and general secretary of the Presbyteral Council of Albi.
He was ordained auxiliary bishop of Annecy on June 9, 1974. In 1978 he was transferred to Aix-en-Provence. He was appointed coadjutor bishop of Marseilles in 1994, and became archbishop April 22, 1995.
Cardinal Panafieu is president of the episcopal Committee for Interreligious Relations and New Religious Trends, and president of the Secretariat for Religious Relations with Islam. He was elevated to cardinal in October 2003.
Curial membership:
* Interreligious Dialogue, Justice and Peace (councils)
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Laszlo Paskai, 77
Retired archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest, Hungary
Laszlo Paskai was born May 8, 1927, in Szeged, in southeast Hungary. He entered the Order of Friars Minor and studied theology in Gyoongyos and at the seminary of Budapest.
He was ordained a priest May 3, 1951, and began his pastoral ministry in the Diocese of Nagyvarad. The following year, he obtained a doctorate in theology from the Bucharest Academy, and then returned to his native city to serve as the bishop’s master of ceremonies.
From 1955 to 1962, he was a professor of theology and philosophy at the seminary of Szeged. He was prefect of the interdiocesan seminary and then in 1962 was spiritual director and professor of philosophy, ascetical theology and liturgy.
Always as spiritual director, in 1965 he was transferred to the seminary of Budapest and in 1973 he became rector.
In March 1978, Pope Paul VI appointed him apostolic administrator of Veszprem. He received episcop
al ordination on April 5, 1978. About a year later, on March 31, 1979, he became bishop of Veszprem.
Three years later, in April 1982, he was promoted to coadjutor archbishop of Kalocsa. In July 1986 he was elected president of the Hungarian episcopal conference and then in March 1987 he was transferred to the metropolitan see of Esztergom. He took possession of the archdiocese and also was given the title of primate of Hungary.
He was elevated to cardinal in June 1988. He retired as archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest in December 2002.
Curial membership:
* Eastern Churches, Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life (congregations)
* Legislative Texts (council)
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George Pell, 63
Archbishop of Sydney, Australia
George Pell was born June 8, 1941, in Ballarat, Australia. He was ordained a priest Dec. 16, 1966, and holds a licentiate in theology from the Urbaniana University of Rome, a master’s degree in education from Monash University and a doctorate of philosophy in Church History from the University of Oxford.
He served as director of the Aquinas Campus of the Institute of Catholic Education (1974-84) and principal of the Institute of Catholic Education (1981-84). He was Episcopal Vicar for Education in the Diocese of Ballarat and a founding member of the Catholic Education Commission of Victoria.
In May 1987 he was ordained an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Melbourne.
From 1988-97 he was chairman of Caritas Australia. From 1985-87 he was rector of Corpus Christi College, the provincial seminary for Victoria and Tasmania.
He was appointed by Pope John Paul II to represent the bishops of Australia and Oceania at the Special Synod for European Bishops in 1999 and the Synod of Bishops held in 2001.
In April 2002, he was named president of the Vox Clara committee for the English translations of liturgical texts.
In 2001 he was appointed the metropolitan archbishop of Sydney and installed that May 10. He was elevated to cardinal in October 2003.
Curial membership:
* Family, Justice and Peace (councils)
* Ordinary Council of the General Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops
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Polycarp Pengo, 60
Archbishop of Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania
Polycarp Pengo was born Aug. 5, 1944, in the parish of Mwazye, Diocese of Sumbawanga, in Tanzania.
In 1965 he entered the major seminary in Kipalalpala for three years of philosophy and four years of theology.
He was ordained a priest in the Diocese of Sumbawanga in June 1971 and for two years was secretary to the bishop.
From 1973 to 1977, he studied moral theology in Rome at the Lateran University, obtaining a doctorate. He then returned to Tanzania and taught moral theology at the major seminary in Kipalalpala for nine months in 1977. He then was made the first rector of the major seminary in Segerea, a post he held from 1978 to 1983.
He was named bishop of Nachingwea in November 1983 and received episcopal ordination Jan. 6, 1984. He took possession of the diocese Feb. 19, 1984.
In October 1986 he was named bishop of the new diocese of Tunduru-Masasi and he was installed there on Feb. 12, 1987.
He was named coadjutor archbishop of Dar-es-Salaam in January 1990, and took possession of the archdiocese July 22, 1992. He was elevated to cardinal in February 1998.
Curial membership:
* Evangelization of Peoples, Doctrine of the Faith (congregations)
* Interreligious Dialogue, Culture (councils)
* Special Council for Africa of the General of the Synod of Bishops
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Jean-Baptiste Pham Minh Mân, 71
Archbishop of Than-Pho Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
Jean-Baptiste Pham Minh Mân was born in 1934 in Hoa Thanh, Vietnam. He was ordained a priest May 25, 1965.
Following ordination, he was a teacher at the minor seminary of Beato Quy in Cai Rang. In 1975, due to the radical change of political system in South Vietnam, the Church underwent persecution and the seminaries were closed or confiscated by the State.
During this period, Father Pham Minh Mân was made responsible for the formation of priests. In 1988, when six major seminaries in Vietnam were again opened, he was appointed as rector of the Seminary of Santo Quy in Cai Rang.
In August 1993 he was ordained as coadjutor bishop to the Diocese of My Tho. In March 1998 he was named archbishop of Than-Pho Ho Chi Minh. He was elevated to cardinal in October 2003.
Curial membership:
* Divine Worship and the Sacraments, Evangelization of Peoples (congregations)
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Severino Poletto, 72
Archbishop of Turin, Italy
Severino Poletto was born March 18, 1933, in Salgareda, Italy. He was ordained for the Diocese of Casale Monferrato on June 29, 1957, and holds a licentiate in moral theology from the Alphonsian Academy, Rome.
He was a curate in Montemagno, prefect of discipline at the diocesan seminary and vocation director. In 1973 he founded the Diocesan Centre for Family Ministry.
In April 1980 he was appointed coadjutor bishop of Fossano and received episcopal ordination that May 17. In October 1980 he succeeded Archbishop Giovanni Dadone.
In March 1989 he was named bishop of Asti and in June 1999 was appointed archbishop of Turin. He was elevated to cardinal in February 2001.
Curial membership:
* Clergy (congregation)
* Economic Affairs of the Holy See (office)
* Cultural Heritage of the Church (commission)
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Mario Pompedda, 75
Retired prefect of Supreme Tribunal of Apostolic Signature
Mario Francesco Pompedda was born April 18, 1929, in Ozieri, Sardinia. He was ordained for the Vatican clergy in December 1951 and holds a doctorate in theology from the Gregorian University, a licentiate in Scripture from the Pontifical Biblical Institute and a doctorate in “utroque iure” from the Lateran University.
He started working at the Tribunal of the Roman Rota in 1955 and held various positions, including defender of the bond. He was named a prelate auditor in 1969 and dean in 1993. He was also president of the Appellate Court of Vatican City State.
He was appointed a titular archbishop in November 1997 and received episcopal ordination Jan. 6, 1998.
In November 1999 he was appointed prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signature and president of the Court of Cassation of Vatican City State. He was elevated to cardinal in February 2001.
He retired as prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signature in Mary 2004.
Curial membership:
* Divine Worship and the Sacraments; Doctrine of the Faith; Evangelization of Peoples (congregations)
* Legislative Texts (council)
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Paul Poupard, 74
President of Pontifical Council for Culture
Paul Poupard was born Aug. 30, 1930, in Bouzille, France. He was ordained a priest on Dec. 18, 1954, and shortly thereafter he began to teach while he continued his studies and commitment to his pastoral ministry.
He received a doctorate in theology and history from the Sorbonne University. He also obtained a diploma in religious sciences from the School of Higher Studies.
From 1958 to 1959 he worked at the national center of scientific research and from 1959 to 1971 he served as an official of the Vatican Secretary of State.
Upon returning to France, he served for 10 years as rector of the Catholic Institute of Paris, and in February 1979 he was named auxiliary bishop of Paris. He received episcopal ordination April 6, 1979, and in the same period was called to be member of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples and of the Secretariat for non-Christians.
He served as auxiliary bishop until June 27, 1980, when John Paul II promoted him to archbishop, calling him to serve as pro-president of the Secre
tariat for Non-believers. Two years later, he became the president of the executive committee of the newly created Pontifical Council for Culture.
He served as president of the Pontifical Council for Dialogue with Non-Believers until April 1993 when this council was incorporated into the Pontifical Council for Culture; he became president of this council in April 1988.
He was elevated to cardinal in May 1985.
Curial membership:
* Divine Worship and the Sacraments, Evangelization of Peoples, Catholic Education (congregations)
* Interreligious Dialogue, Laity (councils)
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Janis Pujats, 74
Archbishop of Riga, Latvia
Janis Pujats was born Nov. 14, 1930, in the Nautreni district of Latvia. He attended the Catholic Theological Seminary and was ordained for the Archdiocese of Riga on March 29, 1951.
He engaged in pastoral work mainly in Riga parishes, while teaching art history and liturgy at the Catholic Theological Seminary.
From 1979 to 1984 he served as vicar general in the metropolitan curia. In 1984 he was declared a persona non grata by the KGB and had to return to parish work.
He was appointed archbishop of Riga in May 1991 and received episcopal consecration that June 1. He also serves as president of the Latvian bishops’ conference.
He was named a cardinal “in pectore” by John Paul II in the consistory of February 1998, and proclaimed in the consistory of February 2001.
Curial membership:
* Sainthood Causes (congregation)
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Vinko Puljic, 59
Archbishop of Vrhbosna, Sarajevo
Vinko Puljic was born Sept. 8, 1945, in Prijecani, in the Diocese of Banja Luka. His family was materially poor but rich in the Catholic faith. He was the 12th of 13 children. His mother died when he was 3. His father remarried and he was raised by his stepmother.
He completed his secondary education at the interdiocesan minor seminary of Zagreb and the minor seminary of Djakovo.
He studied philosophy and theology at the major seminary of Djakovo and was ordained a priest in the Cathedral of Djakovo in June 1970. From 1973 to 1978 he was parish priest of Ravska, near the mine of Ljubija. In autumn 1978, he was named spiritual director of the minor seminary “Vicko Zmajevic” of Zara.
Pope John Paul II appointed him archbishop of Vrhbosna, Sarajevo, in November 1990 and in January 1991 ordained him bishop.
He thus became the sixth archbishop of that see after the reconstruction of the ordinary ecclesiastical hierarchy in 1881 in present-day Bosnia-Herzegovina, after the Turkish occupation which had lasted more than four centuries.
He was elevated to cardinal in November 1994. Since 1995 until March 2002, he was the president of the bishops’ conference of Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Curial membership:
* Evangelization of Peoples (congregation)
* Interreligious Dialogue (council)
