Further looking back to just one year ago to a development completely ignored by the media in their hyper-enthusiastic reaction to Pope Francis's announcement that he was naming an 8-man commission of cardinals to assist him in the governance of the Church. At the peak of the media outcry over Vatileaks last summer, Benedict XVI not only created a three-man cardinals' commission to conduct an internal inquiry into Vatileaks and the circumstances at the Vatican that have created the abiding culture of suspicion about the Roman Curia. After meeting with the heads of curial offices, he also met with five cardinals whose judgment he trusted to discuss the problems that this culture has caused in the governance of the Church. Of course, despite all of Benedict XVI's best intentions, this was probably too little too late, but I have no doubt that whatever lessons he drew from the experience of Vatileaks and its far-reaching consequences were contained in the documents he consigned to his successor to assist him in carrying out the reforms he was unable to pursue before stepping down as Pope.
The headline and the contents of this analysis may well represent at best the writer's wishful thinking, and one gathers he will not be saddened if Cardinal Bertone goes, though he ascribes the same sentiment to more than just 'a few people'. What, in fact, has Bertone done that has served to inspire confidence in his ability as an administrator, which he was hired to do? He said very famously - and rather unrealistically - when he took office, that he did not intend to be 'a minister of State but a minister of the Church'. But he was hired to be a minister of State, and it is his duty to be a minister of State, which is not at all incompatible with being a minister of the Church. Being Secretary of State, and a most efficient one at that, did not make Eugenio Pacelli, future Pius XII, any less holy, a reputation he held unsullied, nor any less worthy as a cardinal of the Holy Roman Church.
Significant maneuvers in the Vatican:
Is the Pope preparing a post-Bertone
administration by technocrats?
by Giacomo Galeazzi
Translated from the Italian service of
June 24, 2012
Yesterday morning, Benedict XVI consulted the heads of the Curial dicasteries and offices (including Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone), and in the afternoon, he met with five other cardinals, presumably to stem the negative effects from the publication of private documents that have passed through his desk in the past two years.
The Curia, despite the usual formalities, is inevitably concerned over the unprecedented seriousness of a crisis in administration to solve which the Pope has started consulting the members of the College of Cardinals.
Mons. Angelo Becciu, deputy Secretary of State (Sostituto) for general affairs, and therefore #2 to Bertone, admits: "Today, the credibility of the Church appears to be in doubt - now is not the time to abandon her".
[He was addressing seminarians in his native Sardinia.]
The urgency manifested by Benedict XVI is interpreted in the Vatican i two ways. On the one hand, it would seem to mark a countdown to the ever more likely replacement of Bertone as Secretary of State when he reaches age 78 in December.
On the other hand, the Pontiff is telling the Curia to protect itself by giving his principal ministers the responsibility for guarding the privacy of their documents.
In effect, the Pope appears to be sounding the Church hierarchy over the possibility of a 'technocratic government' entrusted to a representative of the Vatican diplomatic world.
In December, Bertone turns 78, and protests about his work as Secretary of State have reached the Pope both from the majority of Curial officials as well as from bishops and apostolic nuncios. Some errors (such as the Williamson fiasco) have been
attributed to him, even by Papa Ratzinger [How does Galeazzi know this, who does not even hedge the statement with a 'reportedly'!]?], who is, however, ever aware that his closest collaborator has been the object of hostile reaction from various sectors that have been dominant for decades in strategic areas like geopolitics and health care.
[In both of which Bertone has openly indicated in words and actions that he would like to take control. Think CEI-Bagnasco, San Raffaele and Toniolo-Gemelli!]]
Therefore, in order not to leave the field open to old and emerging power centers, the Pope seems to be analyzing all possible scenarios. So this does not exclude that he may decide to keep Bertone in command - someone he has always trusted even now that he has been crippled by Vatileaks - but 'ordering' him to a more collegial conduct of the Vatican bureaucracy.
In recent days, two prominent and authoritative cardinals have sounded an alarm by publicly saying they desire clarification on what is happening in the Vatican: Cardinal Andre Vingt-Trois, Archbishop of Paris and president of the French bishops' conference, who might be said to represent the thinking of some local bishops, and Cardinal Peter Turkson, who heads one of the dicasteries of the Roman Curia.
"The Holy Father wishes to explore in depth his thoughts about the situation by consulting persons who share with him the responsibility for the governance of the Church," said Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi yesterday.
The Pope presided at the 10 a.m. meeting yesterday of his 'Council of Ministers' - the heads of the various Curial offices - and then at 6 pm, in his own residence, he met with cardinals who have his complete confidence - Ouellet, Pell, Ruini, Tauran and Tomko - in an effort to 're-establish a climate of calm and confidence in the services of the Roman Curia'. The latter was an atypical move, one of exceprional significance.
In the next few days, he will continue such consultations, "availing of the presence in Rome of so many cardinals and bishops who will be here for the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul".
Meanwhile, exactly one month (yesterday) since the search of his Vatican apartment which yielded a huge volume of documents presumably copied from originals that were on the Pope's desk of that of his private secretary, Paolo Gabriele, the Pope's ex-valet, continues to be deatained at Vatican police headquarteers.
"Gabriele appears to be a monster created by the vanity of those who got into his brain and exploited him for years as a source of documents but who then lost control over him or yielded it", says Vaticanista Salvatore Izzo of AGI. "In fact, it is likely that Gabriele was recommended to be the Pope's valet because his patrons thought he would thus be useful to them".
[With all due respect to Izzo, 1) he is thereby casting doubt unfairly on the motivations of persons like Mons. Harvey, in whose household Gabriele once served; Angelo Gugel, the papal valet to whom he was an assistant for years; and the Polish chaplain who was Gabriele's parish priest near the Vatican - all of whom vouched for Gabriele; and 2) How is it that none of the leaked documents so far dates back to more than two years ago? Does it mean that Gabriele - or whoever is pulling his strings - thought that any earlier documents were completely unimportant? There has to be a logical relevance of the time period to which the purloined documents date back, but as far as I can see, no one has publicly questioned this arbitrary timing at all.]
"It is not known into what other hands the stolen files may have fallen, other than the journalist who published them, but perhaps
some corrupt members of the Curia who intend to use them as a shield", Izzo continues.
[Unless these hypothetical figures have documents more damaging than those that have been published - none of which are objectively damaging in terms of proving evil-doing by anyone in the Secretariat of State or the Curia, but at best, only of bad faith and intentions gone wrong - can any of the revealed documents really 'shield' anyone from accusations of corruption? If this is what passes for analysis, Izzo is best left to reporting on the Vatican which he does excellently, not attempt any 'analysis' which does not even abide by elementary logic.]
Benedict XVI could well entrust to a 'sdirectory' of cardinals in whom he trusts completely the transition towards a new leadership in the Secretariat of State. An administration that will be less 'Italian' that will be able to manage the 'control room' of the unviersal Church.
This would be a sign of farsightedness and humility on the part of a Pontiff who is seeking not just an emergency exit from the quagmire of Vatileaks but also to force a reform of the Curial structure that has always been hampered, whoever the Pope is.
Meanwhile, the Secretariat of State has named Fox News correspondent Greg Burke, an Opus Dei member, to be a communications adviser to the Secretariat of State.
"To confront a crisis, it is an absolute novelty that the Pope decided to consult these five cardinals," some said at the Vatican. "It seems the Pope has decided to consult trusted cardinals he has known for a long time who are neither too closely tied in with Italian interests nor with the current administration".
They also claim that after hearing from local bishops of the same thinking as the Archbishop of Paris, "the Pope realized the need to listen to more opinions and above all, to ask help in governing the Church from prelates with international prestige and proven reliability".
Therefore, a possible benefit springing from a setback. A cardinal observed that "Before Papa Ratzinger, only Pope Paul VI had the advantage of having such a long experience with the Curia before becoming Pope.
[Before Paul VI, there was, more famously, Pius XII, who was, in fact, his predecessor's Secretary of State, whereas Paul VI was 'sidelined' to Milan after his long service in the Secretariat of State without ever becoming Secretary of State].]
Quite a few Vaticanistas today (Monday, June 25) went out on a limb to assert that Benedict XVI's recent moves indicate he is planning for a post-Bertone administration in the Vatican, going so far as to mention some likely candidates from the Vatican's experienced diplomats. I don't know how much credibility - or even plausibility - one can place in these judgments, but Giacomo Galeazzi gives the rationale for their point of view, and cites some 'facts' regarding the private meeting between the Pope and the five cardinals that could be sheer conjecture... As much as my mind is made up about the utter management fiasco at SecState - and how it all works against the Pope's best intentions for the Church - I do not wish to indulge in wishful thinking, and I hope the Vaticanistas are not doing that...
After a season of vipers and venom,
Benedict XVI seems set to revamp
the Vatican's administration
by Giacomo Galeazzi
Translated from the Italian service of
June 25, 2012
Phase 2 of this Pontificate may be starting. Benedict XVI plans to restore Vatican diplomacy to the top of the Vatican administrative pyramid, and will most likely name one of the Vatican's most experienced Apostolic Nuncios to succeed Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone as Secretary of State.
The five cardinals who met with the Pope privately on Saturday evening are said to have agreed on two possible names, both with outstanding diplomatic experience - Italian Luigi Ventura, now Nuncio to France, and Spaniard Pedro Lopez Quintana, now Nuncio to Canada.
Of course, the Pope does not move at the pace of the 24/7 news cycle, and for now, he is seeking to understand the situation within the Church as a consequence of Vatileaks and its related developments, as well as keep track of the investigations being carried out by the Vatican police and by his three-man cardinals' commission.
Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi said that for now, the Pope wishes to restore 'calm and confidence' in the Roman Curia
[that has unfairly been vilified in general by the media due to Vatileaks, even if clearly all the negative inferences and deductions emerging from the documents divulged have to do with mismanagement and false moves at the Secretariat of State and its two main dependencies, the Governatorate and IOR].
However, it appears as if it's a done deal. Cardinals Pell and Ruini reportedly advised the replacement of Bertone, a solution said to be favored even by Benedict's faithful secretary, Georg Gaenswein, who is believed to be increasingly trusted by the Pope.
Cardinals Tomko, Ouellet and Tauran were said to be more prudent though they concurred on the criticality and gaps apparent in the 'governance' by the Secretariat of State.
Benedict XVI obviously wishes to put an end to any power infighting in the Vatican. His Saturday morning meeting with all the heads of the Curial offices and then with the five trusted cardinals in the evening, shows he wants to listen to diverse opinions and be kept up to date on what's happening in the Curia after Vatileaks, but more specifically, the meetings serve as informal consultations about the possible choice of a new Secretary of State.
A changing of the guard could take place as early as October (after the Pope ends his annual summer stay in Castel Gandolfo), or in December
[when Bertone turns 78, though age apparently is not always a factor for retirement, the same way John Paul II named Joseph Ratzinger to a fifth five-year term as CDF Prefect after he turned 75. What's more, Secretaries of State do not have a fixed term as the Curial cardinals do. So, unless the Holy Father himself decides that Bertone has become more of a liability than an asset, it would really be wishful thinking to count on Bertone going when he turns 78! I love the Pope unconditionally, but I pray he will make an objective rather than an affective decision in this case.]
The cardinals' commission and the Vatican police and magistrates continue their separate investigations into Vatileaks. Meanwhile, the leaked documents have evidenced a state of non-governance that has reached a tipping point and that must be confronted.
Of course, Benedict XVI does not make his decisions - much less strategic choices such as a changeover at State - because of 'scandals' and media pressure. But the College of Cardinals is rallying behind him to make the right decision because they saw how he singlehandedly handled the pedophile-priest crisis in 2009 and 2010, going against established (and erroneous) Vatican practice in terms of transparency.
But it will be recalled that when Bertone presented a customary letter of resignation when he turned 75, the Pope turned it down. And last May, speaking publicly about Vatileaks for the first time, Benedict reiterated his confidence in 'my closest collaborators'.
Age is not a factor in this. Cardinal Angelo Sodano, appointed Secretary of State back in 1990 by John Paul II, continued as Benedict XVI's Secretary of State for another 18 months, retiring a month and a half before he turned 79. So the matter of replacing Bertone is a matter of substance, not just of form.
Perhaps after an unnerving war of attrition between Bertonians and Sodanians, Benedict XVI may wish a more collegial and shared leadership at State, a 'Prime Minister' with a more palatable style of being 'first among equals' in the Curia.
But he is also facing a more general problem regarding fundamental aspects of governance at the Vatican that will not be solved by simply having a new Secretary of State.
Perhaps he is thinking of accelerating the pace of Curial reform that has been pending for decades. For less bureaucracy and more coordination. In which everything must be, by definition and in fact, considered 'service to the Church'.
The lingering image now of infinite power struggles in the Curia is damaging to Papa Ratzinger's Church of preaching and purification. And Fr. Lombardi underscored Saturday that the Pope is well aware of the central role that his Secretary of State has in that image.
Whatever the Pope decides to do, it will be a well-considered move, not a punitive measure nor the sacking of a cardinal who had been Cardinal Ratzinger's right-hand man for six years at the CDF.
It will be an acknowledgment that changed conditions demand new responses. Vatileaks has weakened Bertone, not the Pope. A 'technocratic' government that will allow a 'settling down' would seem to be the only feasible escape from the venomous quagmire of Vatileaks.
Meanwhile, the Holy See appears to be shielding itself in a way by turning to the Opus Dei and its reputation for quietly systematic order. First, Cardinal Julian Herranz who leads the three-man cardinals' commission looking into Vatileaks.
[Herranz served closely with Opus Dei founder St. Josemaria Escriva for almost two decades.]
And then, on Saturday, the announcement that Greg Burke, veteran Rome correspondent for over two decades for Reuters, Time and Fox News, will the senior communications adviser to the Secretariat of State. Burke is an Opus Dei lay member.
[I think the Opus Dei connection is purely coincidental. Two swallows don't make a summer, although I don't doubt that, following the precedent of John Paul II in hiring lay journalist and Opus Dei member Joaquin Navarro Valls, Burke's being Opus Dei must have given him an advantage when the Vatican was making its choice, in addition to the fact that he is American and therefore quite knowledgeable in the ways of both the conventional media and the new Internet-based outlets. I cannot think of any other present Vaticanista who has such a connection...
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 26/06/2013 14:33]