The Cardinal, born in Merseyside, made a judgment on his chance to get Pope Francis after Pontiff’s death at 88

This afternoon, the leaders of the Catholic Church in England and Wales ruled out any chance of him taking over Pope Francis after Pontiff was 88 today.

Vincent Nichols, 79, of Merseyside, is one of the most powerful figures in the church, claiming he is “too old and incompetent” to consider the position.

Cardinal Timothy Ratcliffe, who joined Cardinal Nichols at a press conference, also appeared to have withdrawn from the competition and become the new pope.

He added: “I believe the Holy Spirit is too wise to even think of me in the shortest moments.”

The two are one of three British cardinals, who are technically qualified to succeed Pope Francis as Catholic president.

Liverpool-born Cardinal Vincent Nichols has been the Archbishop of Westminster and head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales since 2009. In 2014, he was appointed Cardinal.

The 79-year-old clergyman was appointed 55 years ago, initially serving in his hometown, before becoming the Archbishop of Birmingham in 2000 before receiving the highest position in the UK.

In recent years, Pope Francis has appointed him in a wider role, including as president of the Santa Marta Group, a global alliance of Catholic bishops and police chiefs formed in 2014.

Archbishop Nichols, left, Pope Francis in Vatican City in 2015

In October 2016, Cardinal Nichols, the son of two teachers, was elected vice-chairman of the European Bishops’ Council.

Cardinal Nichols paid tribute after announcing the death of the pope this morning: “A voice declares the innate dignity of everyone, especially those who are poor or marginalized, is now silent.”

When asked about the possibility of succeeding Pope Francis as the leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Roman Catholics in an interview in 2014, Cardinal Nichols had said he said it was impossible to “evaluate and judge the unfolding of the event.”

He told Liverpool Echo: “There are some very capable people in the Cardinals, and this is a large church on the mainland and most countries – except for a broad perspective, you can’t evaluate and judge the unfolding of events in the church. From this broad perspective, I’m a little bit!

He added: “We have seen the pope of the Argentinians (Pope Francis) – it expands everyone’s horizons. I think whenever it comes, it will be a global debate, not just a European debate.

The clergyman, seen as a “liberal” figure, once criticized the civil partnership and gay-friendly masses in London for six years until 2013, but he was openly opposed to gay marriage.

He also said the coalition government led by Lord Cameron opposed welfare reforms, warning that these changes have made people “poor”.

In his recent political intervention, he called the Labor government “deeply irresponsible” because it allowed the auxiliary dying legislation to take place after a morning debate, which took hundreds of hours two decades ago to debate the fox hunting ban.

Pope Francis greeted him in a Pope audience in Rome, his former chieftain, Cormac Murphy-o’Connor.

“I believe that any government is very irresponsible and can change this scale without the proper, proper government-supported parliamentary process.”

Cardinal Nichols’ independent investigation into child sexual abuse in 2020 found it “swept the carpet” by the British Catholic Church.

The 162-page report says: “The Church ignores the mission of love and care for innocent and vulnerable to the physical, emotional and spiritual well-being of children and young people.”

It said in Cardinal Nichols: “No personal responsibility for leadership or influence change is recognized. He also showed no compassion for the victims in the cases we have recently examined.”

The priest offered to resign, but Pope Francis asked him to stay. At the time, a church spokesman said that the Cardinal would not resign after the criticism of the investigation because he was “rightly determined.”

Cardinal Nichols previously talked about the call of standing on Anfield’s terrace.

Liverpool Football Club supporters told the Times in 2007: “I went to see Liverpool, (standing on Anderfield’s Kop), and said to God: “Why don’t you just leave me alone?” Why can’t I be just one of the crowd? ”.”

Cardinal Nichols was born in November 1945 in Crosby, Merseyside, where he attended SS Peter and Paul RC Elementary School and St. Mary’s College.

Cardinal Nichols is seen as a liberal from the church and has spoken in poverty and dying rescue but faces calls for a child sexual abuse scandal of resignation.

At St Mary’s, he recalls exploring faith in re-curriculars, and sports and music are also very important in school.

He said: “I am a member of the school orchestra – I played the courts and performed at the annual concerts at the Philharmonic Hall. My appreciation for music has grown and I have taught you about teamwork in the orchestra.

Since 1963, he studied priesthood at the Old English Academy in Rome.

Back in the UK, he continued his studies at the University of Manchester, earning his degree in “Master of Arts” and obtained his thesis in St. John Fisher’s theology.

He was appointed Archdiocese of Liverpool in December 1969.

His first role was to serve as a parish priest in Wigan, where he was also a pastor at the Sixth University, before he moved to work at Toxteth in Liverpool.

In January 1984, he became Secretary-General of the Bishops’ Conference in England and Wales, occupying nine years of post.

He worked closely with the then Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Basil Hume, and earned the reputation of “dynamic administrator”.

After the Pope’s death (or in a very few resignation cases), the Vatican convened the so-called Pope Council. This is where Cardinal College gathers to elect the next supervisor of the Catholic Church.

The Cardinals are the highest priests in the Catholic Church, who travel from all over the world to the Vatican (Church House) in Rome to participate in elections or conferences.

The latest rules of the Pope’s Council show that among the 252 cardinals, there are 138 voters. Only those under the age of 80 are allowed to participate in a secret vote held at Sistine Church.

There are four rounds of votes, which are held every day until a candidate gets two-thirds of the vote. This process usually lasts 15 to 20 days before choosing a new pope.

The only English pope was Adrian IV, born in Langley, Abbot, Hertfordshire, Nicholas Breakspear, who served between 1154 and 1159.

He became a priest in France and was appointed bishop of Italy by Pope Eugene III in 1150.