Pope Benedict XVI announced this morning that he is to create 22 new cardinals. 18 of the new cardinals will be eligible to vote in a papal election since they are under the age of 80 while 4 are considerd honourary cardinals being age over 80. Here is the list of the 22 cardinals-designate, in…

  Vatican may face huge tax bill The head of the Italian bishops’ conference has signalled the Vatican may be willing to examine tax obligations amid new austerity measures in Italy. As world media reported a growing campaign within the country’s parliament towards seeking taxation on the Vatican’s extensive property portfolio, Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco indicated…

  Letter from Australia: The Battler of Ballarat George Weigel hails the ministry of Cardinal George Pell In the Baltimore of the 1960s, my canny pastor devised a neat scheme for getting ‘Father Visitor’ (as the confessional doors read) to fill in during the summer for his vacationing curates: bring over newly-ordained Australians from their…