Cardinal had Good Shepherd ring in pocket during conclave

The ring, which bore the image of the Good Shepherd, was considered apt for the task of the conclave, and had something of a history.

Cardinal Dew, in a reflection on his time in Rome for the funeral of Pope Francis and the subsequent election of Pope Leo, wrote that when he was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Wellington, Cardinal Tom Williams asked him if he had a bishop’s ring, which he didn’t.

“He showed me some rings that had belonged to previous bishops, including one with the Good Shepherd on it which had belonged to Cardinal Delargey,” Cardinal Dew said. “Cardinal Delargey had ordained me on Good Shepherd Sunday in 1976, so I said I thought that would be an appropriate ring to wear.

“I wore it for about five years until one day a priest commented and told me he thought I had a real cheek wearing a cardinal’s ring. I had no idea at all that cardinals were given special rings. I stopped wearing it at once – until I was entitled to wear it when I became a cardinal in 2015,” Cardinal Dew said.

“My own ring, the one presented to all cardinals appointed by Pope Francis, has an image of Sts Peter and Paul. However, as I was hurriedly preparing to leave for Rome, I decided to take the Good Shepherd ring with me. I did not wear it, but every day during the meetings, and during the conclave itself, it was safely in my pocket.

“I touched that ring often, reminding myself that we were looking to elect someone as the Bishop of Rome, as the successor of Peter and someone we would all be hoping and praying whose life would be modelled on the Good Shepherd.

“That ring was a powerful reminder to me of what we were about. I believe that, with the help of your prayers, we have elected a man whose life has been shaped and formed completely by Jesus, that Good Shepherd.”

Cardinal Dew wrote that when Cardinal Robert Prevost said “Accepto” – “I accept” – after the decisive vote at the conclave, “it was very clear that this was the work of the Holy Spirit”.

While singing the Litany of the Saints going to the Sistine Chapel at the start of the conclave, Cardinal Dew was “very aware that we were being accompanied in prayer by many people in New Zealand whom I had invited to pray the Litany of the Saints as we prepared to elect a new Bishop of Rome”.

“I was overwhelmed by the generosity of people who responded to that invitation to pray to all the saints, imploring their prayerful intercession. I knew that there were individuals, families, diocesan staffs, parish groups and many people who accompanied us with that powerful prayer. I take this opportunity to say, ‘Thank You’.”

FULL STORY

Cardinal Dew: The one word that changed a life – New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference (NZCBC)