Cardinal Mahony will have role in papal burial

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Cardinal Roger M. Mahony, retired archbishop of Los Angeles, will have a role in the ceremony to bury Pope Francis.

After allegations were made that Cardinal Mahony failed to protect young people from abusive priests, his successor, Archbishop José H. Gomez, had said in 2013 that Cardinal Mahony no longer had administrative duties since he was retired.

However, Archbishop Gomez later explained that Cardinal Mahony remained a bishop "in good standing in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, with full rights to celebrate the Holy Sacraments of the Church and to minister to the faithful without restriction."

The archdiocese said in a statement April 24 that Cardinal Mahony "is very much taking part in the general congregations, meetings, public Masses, and other events that the Cardinals are attending this week and in the coming days" and "is representing the Archdiocese of Los Angeles during this time of mourning for our Catholic community and as we unite in prayer for our voting Cardinals who will be electing our new Pope."

Matteo Bruni, director of the Vatican press office, told reporters April 24 that the choice of Cardinal Mahony to be among the few cardinals present when Pope Francis' casket is sealed late April 25 and buried April 26 is simply "a matter of precedence in the orders of the College of Cardinals."

The college has a three-tier internal hierarchy: cardinal bishops, cardinal priests and cardinal deacons.

The cardinal bishops are 11 senior Latin-rite cardinals residing in Rome; one of them, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, is dean of the College of Cardinals.

Diocesan bishops make up the bulk of the rank of cardinal priests, while cardinal deacons are mostly officials of the Roman Curia.

Cardinal Mahony is a cardinal priest and has been a cardinal longer than the other cardinals of that rank. St. John Paul II named him a cardinal in 1991.

For the ritual closing of Pope Francis' casket, Cardinal Mahony will be one of eight cardinals present, according to information released April 23 by the Vatican Office of Liturgical Ceremonies. For the burial, he will be one of nine cardinals present.

Both rituals will be led by Cardinal Kevin J. Farrell, chamberlain of the Holy Roman Church, with Cardinal Re, the top-ranking cardinal bishop, and Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, the top-ranking cardinal deacon and retired prefect of the Apostolic Signature, a Vatican court.

Because he is over 80, Cardinal Mahony is not eligible to enter the conclave to elect a new pope. He is, however, invited to the "general congregations" or daily meetings of the cardinals to discuss the needs of the church.