Pope Francis has often said that his model is Pope Paul VI. He has said he admired Paul VI’s courage in drafting a Humanae Vitae that ran counter to world public opinion, and he recognized his spiritual depth. But Giovambattista Montini was also the skilled deputy of the Secretariat of State in the [...]

Pope Francis’ meeting with Cardinal Reinhard Marx last Sep. 19 will be a sort of watershed for the 
Pontificate. There is no news about the meeting. The Pope and the Cardinal likely talked about the 
upcoming Synod of the Church of Germany that is going to discuss the priestly celibacy, the Catholic 
moral [...]

Pope Francis will ordain four archbishops on October, 4: monsignors Antoine Camilleri, Paolo Borgia, and Paolo Rudelli; and Fr. Michael Czerny. The first three were promoted nuncios (i.e., Papal ambassadors) though their postings were not disclosed because hosting governments have not given the agrément. Fr. Michael Czerny will be created a cardinal in [...]

Cardinal Roger Etchegaray passed away Sep. 4, marking the end of a Vatican universe that will never be again. With the death of Cardinal Etchegaray, the Church does not only loses one of the main collaborators to St. John Paul II. She also loses a dear friend to Paul VI, and the man who [...]

Benedict XVI himself has wanted to address some of the issues raised after the publication of his essay on the abuse crisis. He thus wrote a short letter to answer a commentary by professor Aschmann. Both the commentary and Benedict XVI’s response were published in Herder Korrespondenz.

Benedict XVI wrote: “It seems to [...]