Quote:
Originally Posted by KiraYamatoFan
I was expecting a much younger cardinal to get the nod considering how stressful Papacy is becoming.
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Nate Silver has a
posting on his 538 blog at the New York Times on the ages of recent Popes. Francis appears to be the ninth oldest at election of the 255 Bishops of Rome. Nate speculates that perhaps many of the voting cardinals want to have the chance to appoint another Pope in the years ahead. Also Benedict's decision to step down could set a precedent that might lead to pressures on Francis to follow in his precedessor's footsteps if the Argentine starts to display the effects of aging.
Silver also presents this graph of the trends in their ages dating back to 1500. Popes elected since 1800 were considerably younger than those elected in the past couple of decades and served much longer terms.
One can see this trend as an effort by the cardinals to have more control over the Popes they elect.