Pope condoles Korean cardinal’s death

(February 16, 2009) Pope Benedict XVI has expressed his condolence for the death of South Korean Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan. The tireless advocate for democracy who opposed South Korea's military dictatorships, died on Monday at a Seoul hospital. He was 86. In a condolence telegram to the Archbishop of Seoul, Cardinal Nicholas Cheong Jinsuk, the Pope recalled with gratitude Cardinal Kim’s long years of devoted service to the Catholic community in Seoul and his many years of faithful assistance to the Holy Father as a member of the College of Cardinals. Caridanl Kim was born on May 8, 1922 in the southeastern city of Daegu and ordained as a priest in 1951. Pope Paul VI made him a cardinal in 1969, the east Asian nation’s first cardinal. He retired as archbishop of Seoul in 1998. With the death of Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan, the number of cardinals worldwide now stands at 188, 115 of whom are eligible to vote for a new Pope.