(KCEN) -- Everyone is now guessing who will be the next pope and as soon as Pope Benedict XVI announced he would resign, Cardinal Angelo Scola was immediately at the top of every list of possible successors.
Scola serves as the Archbishop of Milan and was close to both Pope Benedict and Pope John Paul II.
He was among the favorites to be named the successor to Pope John Paul, but the conclave chose Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger instead.
If there was ever a rivalry between the two it never showed.
One Vatican observer calls Scola smart and dynamic, but someone who may have a hard time reaching many Catholics.
Author of the Vatican Diaries John Thavis said, "Cardinal Scola is an intellectual, very much in line with Pope Benedict and John Paul II. He is also considered a good pastor. I remember visiting him in Venice and finding a great deal of enthusiasm among parishioners who would turn out to see him."
Scola has been a favorite of Benedict, who appointed him to his current post in Milan.
