November 25, 2011. (Romereports.com) The Dutch cardinal, Adrianus Simonis, turns 80 on November 26, marking the loss of his right to participate in an eventual conclave. With his departure, the number of cardinal electors is reduced to 111, of which 63 were created by John Paul II and 48 by Benedict XVI.

There are currently 82 cardinals over 80 years old.


Adrianus Simonis was Bishop of Rotterdam and Utrecht in the Netherlands and became a cardinal in 1985.

In February of 2011 he testified in court in a case of sex abuse. It was based on a priest who was assigned to him in 1987 and had received psychological treatment for child abuse. In his new assignment, the priest again committed acts of child abuse.

The cardinal assured that no one had informed him the priest was committing abuses again.


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