At the eve of the sixth meeting of the Council of Cardinals, it seems that the path of the reform of the Roman Curia has come to a halt – Pope Francis himself said that reforms will not carried out within the next year. As there was a de facto halt for [...]
The next meeting of the Vatican chiefs of dicasteries, scheduled for around the end of this month, will provide an overview of the streamlining of the Curia project. The Council of Cardinals, which next meeting is scheduled for December 9 to 11, wants to put into effect the first concrete change, in order [...]
There is a Council in the Pope’s mind. Not the Third Vatican Council, wished by many, especially within progressive circles. Rather, it is the Second Vatican Council, as it seems that Pope Francis is pursuing the spirit of the Council. The same spirit that 50 years ago had put the Church in a [...]
It is rumored that the Peter’s Pence funds increased this year, and this news will certainly relieve Pope Francis. Peter Pence’s will give a breath of support to the Vatican operating funds,which are facing the always higher expenses of an elephantine curial machinery that needs to be streamlined. Not because of a theological-pastoral [...]
Watch, judge, act. These are the three steps put into action by Pope Francis. After almost one year of pontificate, Pope Francis has decided on a way forward on how to reform the Curia. Those who were thinking of a wide reform, built on a solid legal framework, will be perhaps disappointed. Pope Francis [...]
The signal was a letter signed by Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and delivered to every head of dicastery of the Roman Curia. The economic outlook for the Holy See in 2014– the Secretary of State wrote – requires «immediate measures to limit spending» on personnel. Which means: a hiring freeze, no overtime or [...]
Pope Francis is seemingly putting on a new hat, an institutional one. At a time when conclusions are being drawn from the reform process started under Benedict XVI and continued by his successor, Pope Francis is counterbalancing the weight of external consultants who, one way or another, have featured prominently during the first months [...]
The Roman Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls has been entrusted to Benedictines for 1300 years. There was such a strong tradition of ecumenical dialogue there, that Benedict XVI ultimately decided to give the basilica a specific mandate to promote ecumenism. Popes have been concluding the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity [...]
Pope Francis gave himself a «birthday gift». On December 17 the Pope received Cardinal Amato, the Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. The Pope listened to the report that he asked Amato to write about Peter Faber, the first companion of St. Ignatius and “a model of virtue,” according to [...]
After three days of discussions, the Council of Eight Cardinals advising Pope Francis on the Curia Reform made official its first proposal: establishing a specific commission for the protection of children who have been victims of abuse. The proposal represents one further step in the fight against clergy pedophilia, a fight pushed forward [...]