The retirement of Cardinal Oswald Gracias as the Archbishop of Bombay on January 25, along with the conclusion of Cardinal Christoph Schönborn’s three-decade tenure as Archbishop of Vienna, has set in motion a significant generational shift in the Roman Curia and the global Church hierarchy.
This wave of changes affects residential cardinal bishops, with seven of them turning 75 in 2025. Additionally, eight cardinal heads of dicasteries within the Roman Curia will either surpass or have already exceeded the age limit of 75 by the end of the year.
Adding to these developments is a notable case within the Diocese of Rome. On January 28, Pope Francis appointed Bishop Paolo Ricciardi, formerly an auxiliary bishop of Rome, to lead the small Italian Diocese of Jesi. His reassignment marks another phase in the near-total restructuring of the diocese’s leadership.
The Diocese of Rome has undergone a complete transformation under Pope Francis. Cardinal Baldassare Reina, who serves as the pope’s vicar for the Diocese of Rome, is now left with just three auxiliary bishops: Renato Tarantelli Baccari, who also holds the role of vicegerent of the diocese; Benoni Ambarus, who oversees Charity, Migrants, Roma, and Sinti (a nomadic community predominantly based in Central Europe); and Michele Di Tolve, responsible for seminaries.
Baccari is the sole auxiliary bishop managing Rome’s southern sector. Meanwhile, the eastern sector—previously overseen by Ricciardi—and the northern sector, formerly led by Bishop Daniele Salera, remain vacant. Reina administers the western sector.
Over the past year, Rome has lost five auxiliary bishops, including Reina himself, as they have been transferred to new roles either within Italy or at the Vatican. Alongside Ricciardi, the reassigned bishops include Riccardo Lamba, who was appointed Archbishop of Udine; Daniele Libanori, now the pope’s assessor for consecrated life; Dario Gervasi, serving as adjunct secretary of the Dicastery for the Laity, the Family, and Life; and Salera, who has become the Bishop of Ivrea.
This restructuring began in 2024 with the transfer of Cardinal Angelo de Donatis, who was previously the vicar of Rome, to a less influential position as the major penitentiary. The Office of the Penitentiary, one of the three ordinary tribunals of the Holy See, mainly deals with matters concerning the forgiveness of sins. While this role holds spiritual significance, it carries far less authority than that of the vicar for the Diocese of Rome, who effectively administers the pope’s own diocese.
Key Cardinal Successions in 2025
Already this year, three cardinal-led archdioceses have witnessed transitions in leadership. Cardinal Robert McElroy has been named the new Archbishop of Washington. The Archdiocese of Vienna is currently under an apostolic administrator. Meanwhile, the Archdiocese of Mumbai (Bombay) has been placed under the leadership of John Rodrigues, who was appointed just two months after being named coadjutor and only two days after assuming his position.
Cardinal Gracias, who turned 80 in December, would typically be expected to step down from the Council of Cardinals. However, no formal announcement has been made regarding his departure. It is possible that Pope Francis will delay any changes until the spring, at which point Cardinal Fernando Vérgez, president of the Vatican City State administration, will also turn 80. At that time, the pope could choose to restructure the Council of Cardinals by replacing Vergez, Gracias, and Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston, who also turned 80 last year. Additionally, Cardinal Vincent Nichols of Westminster, England, will reach 80 in November.
Prominent Residential Cardinals Approaching Retirement
Several key residential cardinals are set to reach 75—the age at which they must submit their resignations to the pope—though the Holy Father ultimately decides when or if to accept them.
The first to reach this milestone in 2025 was Cardinal Carlos Aguiar Retes, Archbishop of Mexico City, who turned 75 on January 9. However, Pope Francis has decided to postpone his retirement indefinitely.
On February 6, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, also reached retirement age. By February 28, Cardinal Carlos Castillo Mattasoglio, who was elevated to the cardinalate in the last consistory, will do the same.
Cardinal Orani João Tempesta, Archbishop of Rio de Janeiro, will submit his resignation upon turning 75 on June 23. On July 9, Cardinal Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo, Archbishop of Jakarta, will follow suit. Additionally, Cardinal Oscar Cantoni, Bishop of Como, Italy, will reach retirement age on September 1, while Cardinal Leonardo Ulrich Steiner, Archbishop of Manaus, will turn 75 on November 6.
Two already-retired cardinals—Kazimierz Nycz, Archbishop Emeritus of Warsaw, and Philippe Barbarin, Archbishop Emeritus of Lyon—will also turn 75 in 2025.
Other residential cardinals who have already surpassed this age in recent years include Cardinal Álvaro Leonel Ramazzini Imeri, 77, of Huehuetenango, Guatemala; Cardinal Albert Ranjith Patabendige Don, 77; Cardinal Juan de la Caridad García Rodríguez, 76, of Havana, Cuba; Cardinal Berhaneyesus Demerew Souraphiel, 76, of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago, 75; Cardinal James Michael Harvey, 75, Archpriest of St. Paul Outside the Walls Basilica; Cardinal Vincent Nichols, 79, of Westminster; and Cardinal Juan José Omella Omella, 78, of Barcelona.
Changes in the Roman Curia
Beyond Cardinal Vergez, several heads of dicasteries within the Roman Curia are approaching 80 or have already passed the retirement threshold of 75. Cardinal Stanisław Ryłko, Archpriest of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, will turn 80 in July and is expected to be succeeded by newly appointed Cardinal Rolandas Makrickas, currently serving as coadjutor archpriest.
Cardinal Michael Czerny, the 78-year-old prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, is expected to continue in his role until at least 80. Similarly, Cardinal Kevin Farrell, prefect of the Dicastery for the Laity, the Family, and Life, and Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, are both 77 and could be replaced.
Additionally, three top officials will reach 75 in 2025: Cardinal Arthur Roche, prefect of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, on March 6; Cardinal Kurt Koch, head of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, on March 15; and Archbishop Vincenzo Zani, archivist and librarian of the Holy See, on March 24.
The College of Cardinals
By 2025, 14 cardinals will age out of the list of electors in a papal conclave, following 13 who did so in 2024. This generational transition could have significant implications for the future composition of the College of Cardinals.
The five-year terms of the dean and sub-dean of the College of Cardinals—Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, 90, and Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, 81—expired this January. As this system is relatively new, there is no historical precedent for how soon their replacements will be named.
Furthermore, ten years have passed since Pope Francis’s second consistory. Under Canon Law, cardinal deacons can request elevation to cardinal priests after a decade. As a result, Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura, is expected to vacate his position as cardinal protodeacon, which would then be assumed by Cardinal Mario Zenari, nuncio to Syria.
By November 2026, Zenari could also opt for a promotion to the order of cardinal presbyters, at which point Cardinal Kevin Farrell, currently serving as the camerlengo, would become cardinal protodeacon—the one tasked with announcing the election of a new pope with the words “habemus papam.”
