Pope Leo lays groundwork for future conclave by naming Filipino cardinal as dean of cardinals
Pope Leo XIV approved the vote, making Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle the first Asian to lead the body that elects popes.
- On Friday, the Holy See announced that Pope Leo XIV approved the election of Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle as Dean of the College of Cardinals, making him the first Asian cleric to lead the body that elects popes.
- Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re is stepping down after leading the College of Cardinals since 2020; the 92-year-old is a historic figure of the Roman Curia who has served through four pontificates.
- The Dean is considered the "first among equals" and coordinates activities without exercising hierarchical governing authority. Following reforms by Pope Francis, Tagle will serve a five-year term, renewable only once.
- Tagle, a former archbishop of Manila, currently serves as Pro-Prefect of the Section for First Evangelization and New Particular Churches within the Dicastery for Evangelization, leading the Church's missionary arm.
- The Dean's primary duty is to convene and preside over any future Conclave in the event of a vacant see, provided he remains under the age of eighty and is included among the cardinal-electors.
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67 Articles
This is the first Asian to hold this post.
Tagle election means less than it may seem
To be perfectly frank, I am only writing this because our Editor-in-Chief assigned the piece to me. He was uneasy – morally, I mean – because he couldn’t see his way to any conclusion that made this a story, but it is a thing that happened and people were talking about it, so he gave it to me. I’m talking about the election of Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle as Dean of the College of Cardinals on Friday. Don’t get me wrong: The story is news. Only, …
Cardinal Tagle elected first Asian dean of College of Cardinals - Asian Journal News
Photo by Perrant / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 3.0 (cropped and digitally adjusted). Pope Leo XIV approves former Manila archbishop’s election to senior Vatican position VATICAN CITY — Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle has been elected dean of the College of Cardinals, becoming...
Filipino Cardinal Tagle Becomes First Asian Dean
Pope Leo XIV on Oct. 8, 2026, approved Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, 69, as the first Asian dean of the College of Cardinals, succeeding Giovanni Battista Re, 92. · 19 sources across the spectrum on IJR News.
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