Posts Tagged cardinals
Vatican Ex-Diplomat Awaiting Sex Abuse Trail Found Dead
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Voice of the Faithful on August 28, 2015
The Associated Press is reporting from Rome that Jozef Wesolowski, the former Vatican ambassador to the Dominican Republic was found dead in his Vatican apartment this morning. The Vatican press agency says it seems to be natural causes and that the autopsy results will be made public. Here’s the link for more information.
Assessing Pope Francis
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in church reform, Future of the Church, Pope Francis, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on April 14, 2015
Vatican watchers in the media continue to assess Francis’ impact a little more than two years and a month into his papacy. Here are three recent stories:
The barque of Peter in shark-infested waters
(Apr. 13, 2015) “The seas have suddenly become a lot more agitated for Pope Francis, who up to now has proven to be amazingly unsinkable in the face of any kind of adversity. But in the last few weeks, he has found himself in the midst of several minor crises and controversies that if not resolved well could work to undermine his credibility with many Catholics and deal a blow to his project for reforming the church.” By Robert Mickens, Global Pulse editor-in-chief, in National Catholic ReporterDespite rhetoric, Pope Francis treats cardinals like princes
(Apr. 10, 2015) “In his pre-Christmas talk to the cardinals and bishops of the Vatican Curia, Pope Francis shocked his audience and the world by his scathing words on the failings of those working in the Vatican. He warned them against 15 separate “diseases” in their work and attitudes … News stories of this talk naturally connected it with Pope Francis’ plans to reform the Curia, but the speech notwithstanding, little progress has been seen except in the area of financial reform. After such a speech, one would have expected heads to roll, but they did not. Despite the rhetoric, curial cardinals are still treated like princes.” By Thomas Reese, National Catholic ReporterPope Francis is wildly popular. So what?
(Apr. 8, 2015) “In the days before Easter, NBC News and the Wall Street Journal published the results of a poll finding that most Americans still hold a favorable view of Pope Francis. A few weeks before that, the Pew Research Center released a report showing that the pope remains popular even with non-Catholics. That was an update to a poll from last December demonstrating that Francis was popular around the world, too.” By Michael O’Loughlin, Cruxnow.com
Pope Francis faces a big week in his effort to reform the Vatican / Religion News Service
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Future of the Church, Pope Francis, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on February 10, 2015
Pope Francis on Monday (Feb. 9) began what could be a key week for his reformist papacy, starting with meetings with his hand-picked kitchen cabinet of nine senior cardinals, who are developing plans to overhaul the Roman Curia, the papal civil service that has been plagued with crisis and dysfunction.
“The three-day gathering was preceded by intense talks among his economic advisers, who are trying to revamp the scandal-plagued Vatican bank as well as instituting other reforms aimed at cleaning up the Vatican’s tangled finances.
“At the same time, the commission Francis set up to tackle the clergy sex abuse crisis held its first full meeting over the weekend, with its 17 members vowing to find ways to finally hold bishops accountable if they look the other way on abuse.
“The week will conclude with two days of closed-door meetings with the entire College of Cardinals — more than 150 scarlet-clad princes of the church — before Francis formally adds 20 members to their ranks at a service in St. Peter’s Basilica on Saturday (Feb. 14).”
By David Gibson, Religion News Service — Click here to read the rest of this story.
Pope names 15 new cardinals reflective of diversity of the Faithful / The New York Times
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Pope Francis, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on January 5, 2015
Pope Francis named 15 new cardinals from 14 countries on Sunday (Jan. 4), continuing his efforts to diversify the church hierarchy and extend the global reach of the church …
“‘He’s breaking all the patterns of cardinal nominations,’ and even the bishops of dioceses that in the past led to a cardinal post ‘will have to earn his respect,’ said Alberto Melloni, the director of the John XXIII Center in Bologna. ‘What’s striking is how quickly he broke with a centuries-old mechanism.’”
By Elisabetta Povoledo, The New York Times — Click here to read the rest of this story.
Pope Francis says one in 50 in the Church are pedophiles, including some cardinals and bishops / The Tablet
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, Clergy Sexual Abuse, Pope Francis, Voice of the Faithful on July 14, 2014
Pope Francis has reportedly claimed that ‘pedophilia inside the Church is at the level of two per cent” and includes “priests and even bishops and cardinals.’
“In an interview with the Italian newspaper la Repubblica he said that the statistic was provided to him by advisers in the Vatican.
“Assuming the Pope was referring to those who have taken vows, that would mean that about one in every 50 Catholic clergy and Religious is a pedophile.”
By Hannah Roberts, The Tablet — Click here to read the rest of this article.
The Italian Job / Commonweal
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in church reform, Future of the Church, Pope Francis, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on June 6, 2014
Can Pope Francis manage his local opposition as he attempts Church reforms?
A few weeks after Benedict XVI announced his resignation, the political philosopher Giorgio Agamben published a short book called “The Mystery of Evil: Benedict XVI and the End of Times.” In that volume, Agamben calls the pope’s resignation a prophetic moment, and argues that it highlights the crisis of institutional legitimacy … As the cardinals assembled in Rome to elect a new pope, curial reform became the conclave’s watchword. That is Francis’s mandate. It is also one of his greatest challenges. Whether he is able to rouse the church from its institutional coma depends entirely on his ability to manage his opposition …
“According to Bishop Fernández (Víctor Manuel Fernández, rector of the Catholic University of Argentina, whom Franics appointed bishop in May 2013), Francis believes in the participation of the people of God (bishops, priests, and laity) in the church’s decision-making processes. The pope is interested in reforming more than the Curia. That is important, but it won’t solve all the church’s structural problems. The church needs more ‘synodality.’ That is, the church must develop processes through which all Catholics ‘can feel represented and listened to…giving more autonomy to the local churches.’ In this sense, it is time for ‘more listening to the people of God.’
“But listening entails risk. If the pope really does want to allow all Catholics a place at the table, then he’ll have to listen to a lot of people who aren’t especially pleased with his leadership so far.”
By Massimo Faggioli, Commonweal magazine — Click here to read the rest of this article.
Pope Set to Open Meetings on Vatican Finances, Family / Associated Press
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in church reform, Pope Francis, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on February 18, 2014
Meetings this week between Pope Francis and his cardinals will deal with some of the thorniest issues facing the church, including church finances and the rejection by most Catholics of some of its core teachings on premarital sex, contraception, gays, and divorce.
“Cardinal Walter Kasper of Germany, who has called for ‘‘changes and openings’’ in the church’s treatment of divorced and remarried Catholics, will give the keynote speech Thursday (Feb. 20) to the pope and cardinals attending a preparatory meeting for an October summit on family issues.”
By Nicole Winfield, Associated Press, in The Boston Globe — Click here to read the rest of this story.
Pope Francis Picks Cardinals Who Point the Way to Catholicism’s Future / Religion News Service
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Pope Francis, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on January 13, 2014
In naming his first batch of new cardinals on Sunday (Jan. 12), Pope Francis made some surprising choices that largely confirmed the characteristics he wants in the Catholic Church he leads: a greater focus on the poor, a bigger voice for the Global South and a reduced emphasis on the traditional hierarchical perks.” By David Gibson, Religion News Service — Click here to read the rest of Gibson’s article.
Who Are Going to Be the New Cardinals? / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Pope Francis, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on January 9, 2014
Pope Francis will be naming new cardinals during the next consistory, which takes place Feb. 22. The cardinals the Pope names obviously will be of great importance to the future of the Church, even, or maybe especially, after Francis’ pontificate. The article quoted below is from news analysis by Fr. Thomas Reese, senior analyst at National Catholic Reporter. Fr. Reese will be a speaker at the Voice of the Faithful® 2014 Assembly on April 5 in Hartford, Connecticut. Go to www.votf.org for more information on the 2014 Assembly: Turning Talk into Action.
Whenever a bishop dies or approaches 75, the age of retirement, I get phone calls from local journalists asking who I think will be his successor. I immediately tell them, ‘I don’t play Jimmy the Greek,’ because the honest answer is I don’t have a clue. Those that know don’t talk; those who don’t know speculate. The same is true for predicting who will be made cardinals, except here, guessing is a little bit easier because there are certain positions in the Vatican that are usually held by cardinals and there are certain archdioceses that are usually headed by cardinals. Who might be created a cardinal at the next consistory to be held Feb. 22?” Click here to read the rest of this article.
Could Pope Francis Make Women Cardinals? / Religion News Service
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Pope Francis, Voice of the Faithful, Women in Catholic Church on October 21, 2013
Pope Francis has said repeatedly that he wants to see greater roles for women in the Catholic Church, and some argue that he could take a giant step in that direction by appointing women to the College of Cardinals – the select and (so far) all-male club of “Princes of the Church” that casts secret ballots in a conclave to elect a new pope.” By David Gibson, Religion News Service
Read the rest of Gibson’s article by clicking here.
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A lay movement for governance reform in the Roman Catholic Church, responding to the clergy sexual abuse scandal and supporting survivors.
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