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PDF versionVatican leaks scandal rolls on
by John L Allen Jr on Mar. 02, 2012
In the latest round of the Vatican leaks scandal, an Italian newspaper on Wednesday published two confidential letters documenting a failed 2011 effort by Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican’s powerful Secretary of State, to take control of an important Italian Catholic university and hospital system.
Release of the documents is seen as another embarrassment for Bertone, whose effectiveness had already been called into question by the leaks scandal and other episodes since Benedict XVI named Bertone to the position in 2006.
The letters, and their aftermath, also document a case in which Pope Benedict XVI sided with local bishops against an attempt to centralize additional ecclesiastical power in the Vatican.
The tug-of war centers on the “Giuseppe Toniolo Institute of Superior Studies,” effectively the governing body for the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, a sprawling academic operation based in Milan but with outposts up and down Italy. Its affiliated institutions include the famed Gemelli Clinic in Rome, where a private suite of rooms is always reserved for the pope.
Sacred Heart University is the largest private university in Europe and one of the most distinguished Catholic universities in the world, encompassing fourteen major academic departments, 1,400 faculty members, and some 7,000 employees.
Although tensions over the Toniolo Institute were widely reported a year ago, this is the first time Bertone’s February 2011 letter to the then-Cardinal of Milan, Dionigi Tettamanzi, ordering him to step down as president of the institute and to appoint Bertone’s chosen successor, has been published.
Bertone’s intervention was widely seen as an attempt to wrest control of the institute for the Vatican, and away from the Italian bishops, during the early 2011 transition in Milan from Tettamanzi to Cardinal Angelo Scola, the powerful Italian prelate whom many observers see as a leading candidate to succeed Benedict XVI.
On April 30, 2011, one day before the May 1 beatification of Pope John Paul II, Tettamanzi met with Benedict XVI to protest Bertone’s attempted take-over. In the end, Benedict sided with Tettamanzi, and no changes were made in the Toniolo Institute prior to Scola’s arrival in Milan.
In effect, the decision meant that control of Sacred Heart University remained with the Italian bishops rather than passing to the Vatican’s Secretariat of State.
In broad strokes, three things seem significant for non-Italians about this latest round of Vatican leaks.
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First, the dispute over the Toniolo Institute is a rare case in which Benedict XVI actually sided against Bertone, his longtime friend and aide who served under the future pope in the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. In that sense, it suggests that Benedict’s support and esteem for Bertone, which the pope has made clear on multiple occasions, is nevertheless not unlimited.
Second, this is a case in which a pope has sided with local bishops in efforts to defend their autonomy against the Vatican, despite perceptions of a trend towards Roman centralization in recent decades. Aside from Benedict’s broad views on church governance, his reluctance to change the status quo may also reflect the fact that Bertone’s move was seen as threatening to another of Benedict’s closest friends and supporters, Scola.
Third, this latest round of confidential Vatican documents to hit the press suggests that the “Vati-leaks” scandal is not yet over – either because personnel inside the Vatican are continuing to leak material, or because the material has already been leaked, in bulk, and is being selectively rolled out by media outlets.
In either case, the forecast would seem to be for more revelations yet to come.
And what about the control of
And what about the control of Lima's Catholic University, a "fight" that is getting close to a nasty end? And the Vatican support to the Opus Dei Cardinal and other OD bishops in Peru? This is not all about killing the influence of Gutièrrez' Liberation Theology?
VATILEAKS & REFORM HOPE ? ...
VATILEAKS & REFORM HOPE ? ... John, the pope may have only made a tactical, and temporary, retreat.
The petty and selfish behavior you too often report about these clerical clowns, important as your reports sometimes are, is sickening at times. The disconnect between what the hierarchy practices and what it preaches is appalling and unacceptable.
The disclosure drama is heightening. Who will reveal the smoking guns first? Will it be curial leakers, Jeff Anderson, the prosecutor from the International Criminal Court or perhaps the next pope? You will be busy for sure.
Meanwhile, the pope's ploy to replace Obama as US prosecutor-in-chief of child abuse crimes is failing dismally. Bevilacqua's "smoking gun" shredder has been uncovered in the Philly criminal trial of his aide. Dublin's Martin will report on the demise of the Irish Church on 60 Minutes this Sunday,March 4 on CBS, 7PM,EST. Chicago's George is snubbing th Irish Prime Minister. OVEY !!
For more details on the Vatileaks scandal, please read the NCR comment, including relevant cross-links, under "'Petty' Or Corrupt Secrets", readily accesible by clicking on at;
http://ncronline.org/news/vatican/puccini-meets-watergate-vatileaks-scandal
For more on the failed papal ploy to remove Obama, please read the NCR comment, including relevant cross-leaks, under, "Awake Men, For God's Sake!", readily accessible by clicking on at:
http://ncronline.org/blogs/ncr-today/alienation-catholic-women-and-men
Thanks Jerry. Your input and
Thanks Jerry.
Your input and information (with links) is invaluable to ncr readers.
What? Up until the time I
What? Up until the time I read your comment, I always thought that all of "the clerical clowns" in the Vatican ambulated slowly over the grounds in the presence of God, with their heads humbly bent in prayer! Are you inferring that they aren't the most holy and intelligent of all of the holy men ordained to be priests? Now, I don't think that I'll ever be able to look at members of the Curia in the same light. It's too bad that others can't wake up, as well. Thanks for the insight!
Ah yes, the "holy men, the
Ah yes, the "holy men, the good cardinals" who protect pedophile priests and tell us how to live our lives and preach on the evils of abortion, contraception, same sex marriage and run our Church and spend our hard earned donations. How very, very holy they are. How fortunate we have them to guide us, to tell us over and over, "Don't do as I do, do as I say do....:
Brother Luke
Bro. Luke, you forgot to
Bro. Luke, you forgot to mention the other evils relating to sexual behaviour.
Where the cardinals accept hetrosexual relationships of clergy providing it doesn't become public and the evident of scandal.
As you said, it's do as I say, not as I do.
This diplomatic faction has
This diplomatic faction has in fact dominated the Vatican for over a century now and contrary to conventional wisdom has been in the forefront of the liberalization of the catholic church during this same period. Benedict XV, Pius XII,John XXIII, and Paul Vi spent almost their entire careers in the secretariet of state and were the great reformers of the chuch during this century. Leo XIII, Pius XI, John Paul II relied heavily on the diplomatic corps. Although John Paul I was presented as a "pastoral pope" and we shall never know, but he too was elected by through the efforts of Cardinal Benelli, the quintessential vatican diplomat. Only two popes have stood out of this crowd, Pius X and Bendict XVI. That being said, the Vatican leak scandal in my opinion willl bring about the implosion of the moderate wing of the curia not its victory. That is the real victors will not be cardinals Sandri, Sodano, or Re (the insiders) but Cardinals Oulett, Koch, Casineres (the more conservative outsiders).
Truly, are those who
Truly, are those who continually post here Catholic?
As Harry S.Truman was fond of
As Harry S.Truman was fond of saying, "If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen!"
In many years of Catholic
In many years of Catholic School I learned, "Once a Catholic ALWAYS a Catholic!" It was like a life-sentence, so as a result many of us have been brain-washed to the degree that we still believe we are "Catholics." We just come into forums like these to show that we are still members of the Church, whether the Church and other Catholics like it or not!
I am no longer a catholic but
I am no longer a catholic but because of the great negative influence of the church all over the world, I like to come to NCR to see what the corrupt pope and bishops are up to. It's the only "catholic" journal that challenges the status quo in the institution.
Most likely anonymous, and we
Most likely anonymous, and we put our names to them to!
Things may not be what they
Things may not be what they appear. Rorate Caeli has a very interesting take on this:
Leaks, careerism, and a Curia in need of purification
http://rorate-caeli.blogspot.com/2012/03/leaks-careerism-and-church-in-n...
May God bless and our Blessed Mother protect our Holy Father.
I find myself frustrated at
I find myself frustrated at repeated columns about gossip - as if there is never any meat, any foundational basis for a complaint, or a substantial reason why Bertone should/should not take over the “Giuseppe Toniolo Institute of Superior Studies.” None of that matters, only who is involved in the power play and who wins and what that portends for the game of power that seems to be the primary activity of the Vatican. (Good heavens, it sounds like U.S. politics!)
What has the Vatican done to address the problem of Poland's bishops' ignoring sexual abuse by priests? There is a subject that has substance and, if the Vatican is doing anything, would show the Vatican in a good light.
When I attend the Liturgy I
When I attend the Liturgy I am proud to be Catholic, when I read these articles and see what is going on on in the religious political circuit, I want to leave the Church.
You can love the faith, but
You can love the faith, but have serious reservations about the church and its leadership. After all it is run by mere mortals, not Gods. And men have their own agendas.
Anonymous, unfortunately this
Anonymous, unfortunately this IS the Church - you can try to forget the reality of it if you want. Many Catholics succeed in doing so, losing themselves in busywork (think pro-life), chasing phony seers and alleged apparitions, and, if all else fails, they just stick their head in the sand or, as one dear soul told me, "focus on the positive" (becoming like finding a needle in a haystack).
Does anyone else here wonder if the whole institution is about to finally collapse? The only way to clean out the Vatican is to do just that...give everyone, and I do mean EVERYONE, the heave-ho and start from scratch.
Unfortunately, it's not so
Unfortunately, it's not so simple. Cleaning out the Vatican is sort of like cleaning out the CIA: What do you do with all those "operatives" and "secret agents"? If you just turn them loose, they'll have plenty of time on their hands to devote to undermining your clean-up plans. Especially nowadays, in our age of instant -- and constant -- interconnection.
One does need to get rid of (most of) them, but there is also a need to keep them constructively occupied, and also to allow retention of some institutional memory. The only other viable alternative would seem to be mass incarceration.
Ah, yes, you are right. I
Ah, yes, you are right. I forgot that it is best to keep your enemies close to you and occupied with busywork.
Maybe one state at a
Maybe one state at a time.
Beginning with Philadelphia unless the corridors are given a good sweep out.
Catholics4Change site has grown in momentum and opening up a lot of what goes on behind the scenes with tangable evidence, for those seeking accountability by the church.
RE: Purple ecclesiology: Vox
RE: Purple ecclesiology: Vox Populi died somewhere in the 12th century. It was replaced by "Roma locutus est, causa finita est".
John - You're an intelligent,
John - You're an intelligent, thoughtful person. Why do you write this rubbish. There are many, many positive things going on in the Church and in the Christian community. Why the constant focus on the scandal, the intrigue, blah, blah, blah. It only invites more negativity, and quite frankly personal scandal by those here who then comment in extremely uncharitable ways. Can't you focus on something positive for a change? Please, for the love of God and the Church, say something positive! Maybe it would cost you your NCR job, in which case, go somewhere else.
The all-too-human failures of
The all-too-human failures of the bishops are only exceeded by the failures of the members of the Church. There's a reason even the bishops go to confession, just as the rest of us in the pews do.
And really, there's nothing all that shocking in this particular release. It's an internal complaint about how to run the church and who should have what authority. Terrible to see the bishops snarking at each other, but oh well.
By the way, the pro-life movement is hardly "sticking ones head in the sand". Though that does sound like the whining of a person who wishes desperately the Church wasn't so dedicated to making it harder to murder infants in and out of the womb.
If you read Christopher
If you read Christopher Dawson and other great historians of the West, the Church is usually run by politicians, myopic sons of nobles, and petty bureaucrats. Great popes have been rare. The Church endures because the Holy Spirit gives it a holy shove through the transcendent energy, humility, and love of the saints. Wherever it seems not just lost but even reprobate, the Church Is herself saved and converted by someone hard-heatedly holy, e.g, Ss. Scholastica, Francis, Catherine of Sienna, Robert Bellarmine, or Maximilian Kolbe, one soul at a time. That is what convinced me to convert.
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