Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell assumed the role of acting head of the Catholic Church on April 21 following the announcement of the death of Pope Francis.
The former bishop of Dallas announced the death from Casa Santa Marta, where Francis lived at the Vatican.
“Dearest brothers and sisters, with deep sorrow I must announce the death of our Holy Father Francis,” Farrell said in a statement on Vatican News. “At 7:35 this morning, the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the house of the Father.”
Farrell is set to usher in the papal conclave following a period of mourning for the deceased head of the Catholic Church.
The Irish-born cardinal spent most of his career in the United States before being called to Rome by Francis.
Here’s what you need to know about Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell.
Who is Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell?
Farrell, 77, was born in Dublin, Ireland and ordained in 1978, according to his Vatican biography, following which he served as the chaplain for the Regnun Christi Movement at the University of Monterrey in Mexico.
In 1984 he was incardinated in the archdiocese of Washington and held the positions of:
- Assistant pastor in the parish of St. Thomas the Apostle (1984-1985)
- Director of the Spanish Catholic Center (1986)
- Acting executive director of the Catholic Charitable Organizations (1987-1988)
- Secretary for financial affairs (1989-2001)
- Pastor of the Annunciation parish (2000-2002)
Under Pope John Paul II, Farrell was named auxiliary bishop of Washington in 2001 and held the office of vicar general for administration and moderator of the Curia, a high-ranking administrative role.
From 2002 until 2006, Farrell worked and lived with Theodore McCarrick, the defrocked former cardinal who was removed from the clergy in 2019 after a Vatican investigation determined he sexually abused minors, as well as adults, according to the Catholic News Service.
Farrell denied knowledge of the alleged abuses when they were revealed in 2018, according to NPR.
Farrell was named the bishop of Dallas in March 2007, during the papacy of Pope Benedict XVI.
Pope Francis called Farrel to the Roman Curia in the role of prefect of the new Dicastery for the Laity, the Family and Life in 2016.
Farrell was appointed camerlengo by Pope Francis in 2019, replacing French Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran following his death, according to the Catholic News Service.
What does the cardinal camerlengo do?
The cardinal camerlengo is responsible for multiple key moments in the transition to a new pope.
Farrell oversaw the rite of the certification of death and the laying of the body in the coffin in Rome at 8 p.m. local time, according to the Holy See press office.
The camerlengo is also responsible for destroying the Fisherman’s Ring and the lead bulla, which serve as seals for papal documents, according to Encyclopedia Brittanica. The action serves as a symbolic declaration of the end of the deceased pope’s power.
The camerlengo takes over the day-to-day operations of the Vatican during the sede vacante, the period between the death of the pope and the election of the new pope, in addition to preparing the papal conclave.
