My take on the odds (according to
Paddy Power)
Peter Turkson (3/1) -- Probably about where I'd put him. Being African might help, as there's been a lot of talk about the need to reach out to the developing world. He has a lot of experience at the Vatican and also has experience as a bishop, which should also help. He's also spent a lot of time in the U.S., which may get him some votes from there. He probably has a lot of support in the U.S., Africa and among bishops who want to see someone from the developing world in the chair of Saint Peter.
Mark Oullet (7/2) -- I think that there are some overly-optimistic Canadians putting their money where their hearts are. He'd probably make a pretty good Pope, though. Granted, he's pretty theologically conservative (they pretty much all are, after John Paul II and Benedict stacked the deck).
Francis Arinze (9/2) -- These odds are way too low. The man is 80, even older than Ratzinger was when he became Pope. They aren't going to pick such an old man as Pope after John Paul II and Benedict.
Leonardo Sandri (6/1) -- An Argentine but with Italian parents. Should get a lot of support in Latin America and Italy. A career diplomat, which could be helpful, especially in dealing with relations between Catholics in difficult areas for the faithful (eg the Middle East and China) and the respective governments. This might help him gain the support of cardinals who think the Pope will have a lot of diplomatic issues/headaches to deal with. What may count against him is that he has never been a bishop with his own diocese. His odds should probably be lower than 6/1.
Oscar Rodriquez Maradiaga (7/1) -- These odds are way too low. As far as I can tell, the thing he's known for is making inane comments about the sex abuse scandal.
Angelo Scola (8/1) -- Archbishop of Milan. Former Patriarch of Venice. The son of a truck driver. An intellectual. Scola is the author of numerous theological and pedagogical works on topics such as bio-medical ethics, theological anthropology, human sexuality and marriage and the family, which have been translated into several different languages. In addition, he is the author of more than 120 articles published in scholarly journals of philosophy and theology. He wrote his dissertation on the works of St. Thomas Aquinas. An active collaborator in the Communion and Liberation movement from the early 1970s, Scola was the Italian editor of the journal Communio founded by Henri de Lubac, Hans Urs von Balthasar, and Joseph Ratzinger (later to become Pope Benedict XVI). The odds should probably be a little lower, especially since he could get a lot of support from Italians and those with an intellectual bent. If I were a betting man, I'd probably bet on him, especially with those odds.
Gianfranco Ravasi (8/1) -- Lost out to Angelo Scola to succeed Dionigi Tettamanzi as archbishop of Milan. Not a good sign. I can't see him being more popular than Scola among Italians. His odds from Paddy Power seem pretty low to me; but somebody must like him. He's probably a good guy, just not quite Pope caliber. At least not yet.
