Will it be a Hungarian Pope?

Hungarian Cardinal Péter Erdő – Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest – may be emerging as a front-runner to succeed Pope Francis. The canon law expert is fast becoming a contender to succeed the Holy Father as rumours mount about the latter’s health, even with a potential candidate from Asia emerging as a frontrunner as well. Filipino Cardinal Tagle would certainly align with the more liberal position taken by the current Pope. His appointment would also point to the changing demographics of the Church. A Hungarian Pope however would be enormously significant given the cultural Iron Curtain dividing a de-Christianised western Europe from a re-Christianising east.

As John Gizzi – Chief Political Correspondent for Newsmax – recently pointed out, “talk of Erdő as a future Pope is nothing new.” Indeed, Cardinal Erdő was being talked about as early as 2013. But, as Gizzi wrote, one Vatican insider told Newsmax the current Pope “is not going to be around for long”, adding that “at the most, he will be there until December.” Meanwhile the source told Newsmax to closely “watch Cardinal Erdő … he is the one who [the College of Cardinals, who will elect the next Pope] are beginning to talk about.”

So, who exactly is Cardinal Erdő?

Cardinal Erdő is considered a traditionalist who respects the celebration of the Latin Mass. But Cardinal Erdő is also respected by liberals like the Holy Father, suggesting he could be a unifying force within the Church. Pope Francis has already appointed Cardinal Erdő as the “relator general” of the Third Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops. The Hungarian cardinal has also been vocal in his support for outreach to Orthodox Christians which may be significant given the huge numbers of Ukrainians currently in Hungary.

But what Cardinal Erdő has said is perhaps less important than what his appointment would represent. Pope St. John Paul II was considered instrumental in the collapse of communism in central and eastern Europe. The Polish Pope’s election helped spark the peaceful end of communism in his native country, with his visit in 1979 being a major turning point. While it would be wrong to characterise Cardinal Erdő as aligned directly with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, a man at the forefront of the culture clash within the EU, his past statements suggest some sympathies, while he is the leading Catholic in a country which is now 80 per cent Christian and very much on the conservative nationalist side of the great European cultural divide.

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