Holy Father Elevates 2 Americans to College of Cardinals

US newly appointed cardinal Donald William Wuerl (left) is congratulated by Cardinal Keeler (our former bishop) and other cardinals after receiving his birettafrom Pope Benedict XVI on November 20, at St Peter's basilica at The Vatican.

Pope Benedict installed 24 new Roman Catholic cardinals from around the world on Saturday in his latest batch of appointments that could include his successor as leader of the 1.2 billion member church.  As their national delegations cheered, the men were elevated to their new rank as top advisers to the pope at a solemn ceremony in St Peter's Basilica known as a consistory. Each of the 24 men swore their loyalty to him, to future popes and to the church, even if it meant giving their lives.  Twenty of the new cardinals are under 80 and thus eligible under church rules to take part in the conclave that chooses a successor after the death or resignation of the current pope.

Newly-appointed US Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke, left, hugs Cardinal Giovanni Lajolo during a consistory inside St. Peter's Basilica, at the Vatican, Saturday, Nov. 20, 2010.

The new cardinals include Archbishop Raymond Burke (the Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura - the Church's highest court of Canon Law) and Archbishop Donald Wuerl of Washington D.C., who, as a senior figure in the American capital, will likely play a leading role in the U.S. church's response to the sexual abuse scandal.

At a pre-consistory meeting on Friday, the Vatican told bishops they would have to take more responsibility to prevent sexual abuse of children by priests and said it was preparing new guidelines for bishops on how to deal with the sexual abuse, including cooperation with local authorities.

The German pope has now named 50 of the 121 electors who can pick his successor from among their own ranks, raising the possibility that the next pontiff will be a conservative in Benedict's own image.

In his homily before he bestowed each new cardinal with the red hat of their office, known as a berretta (which signifies the blood of the martyrs), Benedict told them their role was "not to be served, but to serve" and urged them to shun "the logic of power" for the "logic of the cross."

Below is a video showing various images of the Consistory.