The 115 Cardinals "The Vatican has to change"
VATICAN CITY
Collegiality and reform of the Curia. It has never happened that so many cardinals asked a change of direction in the management of the “machine” Vatican curia.
And face the last issue of the organization of the departments, their coordination, liaison with the episcopal conferences. And this means that the new Pope, whoever he may be, is unlikely to ignore these guidelines, which are a result of positive experiences certainly not experienced in recent years in the relationship between Rome and the bishops.
The discussion on this was frank but fraternal. Several cardinals weight in recent days have addressed the question bluntly, is asking for information on file Vatileaks, is talking about the need for a change of direction in the management of the Curia and the Secretary of State since the last period. The answers to the first request is not exhaustive, because Pope Ratzinger has stated that “the Report” prepared by the cardinals Herranz, Tomko and De Giorgi is delivered to the successor.
But the cardinals asking lights, the three eminences investigators have provided in the talks face to face some information. With regard to the Curia, both before and after the submission of proposals by Cardinal Coccopalmerio, other cardinals said they believed without delay is the reform that Benedict XVI, on the sidelines of the ceremony of Ash Wednesday, he said with regret not be able to do.
Interventions in this sense, in favor of a different management of the Curia and some reforms have come from the German Walter Kasper, the Austrian Christoph Schönborn, Hungarian Peter Erdo, the Peruvian Jean Luis Cipriani Thorne, from French André Vingt-Trois , by the Spaniard Antonio María Rouco Varela, from Indian Ivan Dias, Slovenian Franc Rode.
The need for a change of pace, more collegiality, a pope less isolated and less shielded by the Secretary of State are factors to be weighed in the conclave.
Some cardinals, as Camillo Ruini and Stanislaw Dzwisz have tried to trace un’identikit the future Pope, while others spoke more generally about the nature of the Church as Angelo Scola, or theme of truth, as Angelo Bagnasco.
Even yesterday at the eighth congregation, the Cardinals have dealt with many topics interreligious dialogue and in particular with Islam, a theme treated as early as Monday, for example by an African cardinal, who spoke in realistic terms, far idyllic visions and “buoniste.”
We talked about the challenges of bioethics, enter a fully-fledged challenges “social”, as Benedict XVI wrote in the encyclical “Caritas in Veritate.” He has returned to talk of evangelization, and of ‘”joyful love and mercy of God,” a Church which is next to the people where they live: a theme yesterday morning by the Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Jorge Mario Bergoglio. Also spoke of evangelization Cardinal Sepe.
On the feast day of 8 March the cardinal also addressed the issue of the role of women in the Church subject on which he had made statements Italo-Argentine Cardinal Leonardo Sandri. And also yesterday we spoke also of the importance of the laity in the new evangelization, a subject touched especially by the Portuguese Cardinal José Saraiva Martins. Other recurring themes were that of justice and the fight against poverty, and a greater presence of the Holy See in the international arena.
The “construction” of the new evangelization, left open by Benedict XVI, remains crucial: no need, therefore – to use the expression of the historian Alberto Melloni – a Pope “sheriff” and even a Pope ‘manager’. It requires a Pope shepherd that will show the smiling face and the merciful love of God to men and women contemporaries. And that of course is also able, through appropriate staff, to renew the face of the Roman Curia and to ensure more collegiality.
After almost a week of meetings, proposals shall be specified in field applications and consolidate. At the moment, several cardinals still have the impression of being in front of a conclave is not easy. It therefore seems unlikely that the “miracle” of the election of the new Pope may be repeated in 24 hours.
