Cardinal Raffaele Farina, President of the Pontifical Commission for Reference on the Institute for Works of Religion (Italy) turns 80, ceases to be a Cardinal-elector

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Today, Tuesday, 24 September 2013, Cardinal Raffaele Farina, Cardinal-Deacon of S. Giovanni della Pigna, the Archivist Emeritus of the Vatican Secret Archives and the current President of the Pontifical Commission for Reference on the Institute for Works of Religion, of Italy, turns 80, and therefore, according to the rules written in the Apostolic Constitution Universi Dominici Gregis, he loses his right to vote in any future conclave.

Cardinal Raffaele Farina was made Cardinal-Deacon of S. Giovanni della Pigna by Pope Benedict XVI in the 2007 Consistory of Cardinals on 24 November 2007, the second of his pontificate. He was also the once the Rectors of several Pontifical Universities and the Prefect and later Librarian of the Vatican Apostolic Library.

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http://www.gcatholic.org/hierarchy/data/cardB16-2.htm#743

May God bless His Eminence Cardinal Farina, with a blessed old age and health. May he remain strong in the faith and hopefully can perhaps still carry out the mission God had given him.

The College of Cardinals now stands at 201 members in total, with 110 Cardinal-electors and 91 Cardinal non-electors. There are now vacancy of 10 Cardinal-electors as compared to the maximum number of electors allowed in the Conclave of 120, although Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI had sometimes surpassed this limit.

Next Cardinal-elector to age out (80) will be Cardinal Geraldo Majella Agnelo, the Metropolitan Archbishop Emeritus of Sao Salvador da Bahia (Brazil),  on 19 October 2013.