When people learned about the death of Pope Francis on Monday morning, an Irish -American cardinal, a little known in the wider world, was the one who made the news known.

After announcing that the Pope “returned to the father’s house”, Irish American Cardinal Kevin Farrell He assumed one of his biggest roles so far: Camerlengo, or the person who runs the Vatican after death or resignation of a Pope until the election of the next Pontiff.

Pope Francis set the cardinal for this post in 2019 and is expected to play an important role in centuries -old ceremonies after the death of Pope Francis.

Who is Kevin Farrell

Born in 1947 in Dublin, Farrell studied at the University of Salamanca in Spain and at the Pontiff Gregorian University of Rome, according to the Vatican.

He took roles in churches around the world, serving as a priest at the University of Moderie in Mexico as well as in a parish in Bethesda, Maryland.

In total, the 77 -year -old spent more than 30 years working for churches in the US.

Farrell was appointed Bishop of Dallas in 2007 until Pope Francis asked him in 2016 to serve as the leader of the new Vatican section responsible for the pastoral care of families, upgrading him to the rank of Cardinal.

A few years after he named him as Camerlengo, in 2023, Pope Francis chose Farrell as president of the Vatican City State Court. He was also appointed Chairman of the Communication Committee.

How the next Pope is selected

As Camerlengo, Cardinal Farrell will undertake the procedures for the Conclave, the process through which the next Pontiff is selected.

Technically, a Camerlengo can become a Pope, as it has happened twice in history: Gioyakino Pesi (Pope Leo XIII) in 1878 and Eugene Patseli (Pope Pius Xii) in 1939.

The cardinal will also be the one who will put Pope Francis’ body in the casket. After that, the cardinal is expected to lead a procession by carrying the pope’s body from the Domus Santa Marta chapel to St. Peter’s Basilica.