New catholic cardinals, Nigeria’s John Onaiyekan included

Six non-European Catholic prelates on wednesday joined the Vatican’s College of Cardinals in a move which may influence the election of the future pope, amid uncertainty over Pope Benedict XVI’s health.

The 85-year-old Benedict, who has been looking increasingly tired and worn, appointed cardinals from Colombia, India, Lebanon, Nigeria, the Philippines and the United States in a surprise consistory in November.

The new cardinals are, American James Michael Harvey, Lebanon’s Bechara Boutros Rahi, India’s Baselios Cleemis, Nigeria’s John Onaiyekan, Colombia’s Ruben Salazar Gomez and Filipino Luis Antonio Tagle.

John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan, the Catholic Archbishop of Abuja has now achieved the highest career rank for the catholic clergy.

For Onaiyekan, this honour comes as an icing on the cake in a week that he was also announced as recipient of this year’s coveted Pax Christi International prize for his effort at interfaith dialogue in the face of the escalating Boko Haram terror campaign in Nigeria.