Five Indian Cardinals Part of Papal Conclave to Elect New Pope

As the Papal Conclave begins in Rome's Vatican City, Indian Catholics have their eyes on the five Indian cardinals, who are a part of the election process for the next Pope.

These five cardinals are among the 115 eligible cardinals to vote at the conclave.

The five cardinals are Telesphore Toppo (Archbishop of Patna), Oswald Gracias (Archbishop of Mumbai,) Mar George Alencherry (head of Syro-Malabar Church), Mar Baselios Cleemis (head of Syro-Malankara Church) and Ivan Dias (Roman Curia and former Archbishop of Mumbai).

Cardinal Toppo, 73, had earlier voted in the 2005 Papal Conclave that elected Joseph Ratzinger as Pope Benedict XVI. It may be a proud moment for Indian Catholics to see an Indian cardinal head the Church, but for these cardinals maintain that nationality should not be a factor while electing a Pope.

In an interview to NDTV channel Cardinal Toppo said that he feels that it is the "community that produces a Pope."

"It is God's work. Nothing is impossible. Electing a new Pope is a deep spiritual experience," he said.

On a similar note, Cardinal Gracias, 68, said that the person most suited for the responsibility should be elected as the next Pope. "For me it is no important what continent he comes from. We want a person who is most suitable for this assignment and most suitable for the very great responsibility, the one to whom the Holy Spirit guides us," he told the Catholic News Service.

Catholics around the world too have their views. Peter Cabral, a 56-year-old baker, told AFP that it continent would be made proud if an Asian cardinal is elected as the next Pope. Richard D'Mello, a banker, said that the new pope should be liberal but at the same should forget the "traditional religious ethos."

Despite nationality and origin of the next Pope, Catholics around the world are bound to rejoice once the new Pope is chosen.