Pope Francis’ new alleged declarations to the Italian journalist Eugenio Scalfari (who had not presented them as an interview) and the interpretation of the Pope’s words on evolution once more has rung the alarm bells on how much Pope Francis’ papacy is being romanticized. As if, through Pope Francis’ words, the secular [...]
The time for the diplomacy of truth came into play when the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue released a strongly worded statement last Aug. 12. For the first time, a Vatican dicastery listed all the horrible acts of the Caliphate, subtly reminding the secular world that it was the secularist [...]
That Pope Francis is very attentive to the dialogue with non-believers is clear from his most recent conversation with Eugenio Scalfari, the founder of the Italian leftist newspaper “La Repubblica”. Scalfari, a self-proclaimed atheist, who even wrote a book entitled “Me and God”, on his being a non-believer. The conversation published by [...]
The evolution of Vatican communication under Pope Francis can eventually “rehabilitate” the Benedict XVI’ pontificate, which had been at least undermined by a certain kind of media narrative. There are two peculiar examples on how the Vatican communication became more pro-active, handling problems in the most proper way and trying [...]
The most recent proposal floating is that of creating a Congregation for the Laity. After all – Cardinal Oscar Andrés Maradiaga has maintained – there is a Congregation for the Clergy and one for Bishops, but there is not one for the lay people, who are the biggest part of the Church. [...]
Pope John XXIII will be canonized. But the real news is that he will not be canonized as a result of the Congregation for the Cause of Saints acknowledging a miracle attributed to his intercession. John XXIII will be saint because Pope Francis has decided so. He made his proposal and submitted it [...]
The most beautiful Benedict XVI’s lesson on ecumenism was probably the homily he held during the Holy Mass that concluded the last Schuelerkreis meeting – i.e. the circle of ex Ratinzger’s students that rejoins once a year since the end of 70s. The Pope invited is pupils not to limit themselves to [...]
Should Vatican communication be overhauled? Perhaps this notion lead to the decision to appoint Greg Burke, formerly a reporter of Fox News in Italy, as advisor for communication of the Vatican Secretariat of State. In explaining his new job, Greg Burke said that it is «similar to the communication advisor of the [...]
The Holy See’s International agenda? The common good. Dominique Mamberti, Secretary for Relations with States of the Vatican Secretariat of State, explained it in an insightful lecture on «The Social Doctrine of the Church in International Relations» to the young students of the Studium Aquinatis-Workshop on the Social Doctrine of the Church [...]
«All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one». In Benedict XVI’s Church, this passage from Matthew’s Gospel is ever more being followed. Proof of it is the release of the no confidence resolution of the Board of Superintendence of the IOR (Institute for [...]