Dmitrieva V.D. Na puti k kardinal’skoy shapke: kar’yernyye trayektorii katolicheskoy elity Yevropy [On the way to the cardinal’s biretta: career trajectories of the catholic elite of Europe] ...

Òåêñò ñòàòüè íà ñàéòå æóðíàëà URL: http://socinst.ru/publications/powerelites/tom10-1/article2/ (äàòà îáðàùåíèÿ 04.01.2024)

Abstract

The article offers an analysis of the career trajectories of the Catholic elite of Europe. The work is intended to close the gap in the scientific literature, which consists in the absence of a comprehensive study of the biographies of all members or some part of the College of cardinals. The choice of Europe is due to the historical interdependence of the Catholic and European contexts, as well as the uniqueness of the current status of their relations. The empirical basis of the study was the SPSS database compiled from the biographies of cardinals collected from the official website of the Holy See. The information was updated after the last consistory and is current as of October 1, 2023. Cardinals are marked as elite according to the positional criterion and the functions they perform. The research hypothesis was the predominance among European cardinals of the career type, in which the prelate successively holds diocesan positions. It was found that the proportion of prelates involved in diocesan activities decreases as they move up the church hierarchy. There is a centripetal mobility of cardinals associated with their relocation to Rome/Vatican as the center of decisionmaking. The most common models of building the career among European cardinals are the transition from the archbishop to the head of the synod or conference of bishops (14 cases), as well as from secretary or member to the head of the institution of the Roman Curia (8). The hypothesis was not confirmed. However, the model correlating with the hypothesis stands out among all career trajectories by the largest number of cardinal electors erected by the current pope. Further research requires an analysis of the transformation of the personnel policy of the Holy See and the influence of historical, social, national and other contexts on the careers of the Catholic elite of Europe. It is also necessary to involve a wide range of unofficial sources containing cardinals’ biographies.