Pope Leo approves new dean of College of Cardinals

Pope Leo XIV approved Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle’s election as dean of the College of Cardinals Oct. 9.

As dean, Cardinal Tagle will lead the body responsible for electing a new pope. He succeeds 92-year-old Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, who has served as dean since 2020 and will now hold the title of dean emeritus, according to Vatican News.

The 69-year-old Filipino cardinal was elected Oct. 8 by the cardinals of the Order of Bishops. He serves as pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization’s Section for First Evangelization and New Particular Churches.

The dean plays a key role when a pope passes away or resigns, Vatican News explained. His responsibilities include convening the conclave to elect the next pope and presiding over it if he is under 80 and eligible to vote.

A native of Manila, Cardinal Tagle was ordained a priest in 1982, according to his Holy See biography. His early ministry included parish work, teaching philosophy and theology, and serving as a seminary spiritual director and rector.

He earned a doctorate in systematic theology from The Catholic University of America in Washington in 1991. He later led two dioceses in the Philippines, becoming bishop of Imus in 2001 and archbishop of Manila in 2011.

Pope Benedict XVI made him a cardinal in November 2012, and he participated in the conclave that elected Pope Francis the following March.

Pope Francis brought him to Vatican leadership in December 2019 as prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. He became pro-prefect of the dicastery’s evangelization section in 2022.

Cardinal Tagle recently celebrated Blessed Fulton Sheen’s beatification Mass Sept. 24 in St. Louis, as Zeale News previously reported. Acting as the papal representative, he read the apostolic letter declaring the American archbishop Blessed before more than 50,000 people.