Vatican City, 12 February 2015 (VIS) – A total of 165 cardinals participated in this morning’s first session of the Extraordinary Consistory with the Holy Father. Twenty-five were unable to attend due to illness or other serious problems, according to a report from the director of the Holy See Press Office, Fr. Federico Lombardi, S.J., following the morning meeting.
Cardinal Oscar Andres Rodriguez Maradiaga explained that the meeting of the Council of Cardinals (the so-called “C9”) which came to an end yesterday afternoon, focused primarily but not exclusively on the reform of the Curia; other themes addressed were the regulation of the Synod, the work of the Commission for the Protection of Minors, and relations with the economic entities of the Holy See (COSEA and IOR).
Bishop Marcello Semeraro, secretary of the C9, presented the main lines of reform of the Roman Curia, in the light of the meeting of heads of the dicasteries that took place in November 2014. The issues to be considered are the functions of the Roman Curia, its relationship with other entities such as the episcopal conferences, the criteria for rationalisation and simplification that must guide it in its tasks, the Secretariat of State, the coordination of the dicasteries of the Curia, the relationship between religious and laypersons and the procedures that must govern the preparation of the new constitution.
Reference was also made to the institution of two congregations. The first would encompass those organisms that until now have been concerned with the laity, the family and life. The second would deal with matters linked to charity, justice and peace. The collaboration of the Pontifical Councils and Academies dedicated to these themes could be strengthened.
Twelve prelates intervened during the morning session, observed Fr. Lombardi: mainly cardinals who have a profound knowledge of the workings of the Curia, although there have been contributions from a diverse range of contexts. It has been observed that reform is twofold, theological and juridical, and many of its assumptions relate to canon law and ecclesiastical jurisdiction, as well as relationships with the episcopates. It was also noted that the Pope is assisted not only by the Curia, but also by the College of Cardinals and the Synod of Bishops. In this regard, the themes of synodality and collegiality were discussed, and preference was expressed for the latter denomination rather than the former.
The issue of the ongoing training of staff of the Roman Curia was not overlooked, and consideration was given to the possibility of a rotation of duties to counteract routine. In this sector, both favourable and contrary opinions were expressed by the cardinals, who emphasised that some fields require a high level of specialisation and that for this reason, change would be inadvisable….
Vatican City, 12 February 2015 (VIS) – A total of 165 cardinals participated in this morning’s first session of the Extraordinary Consistory with the Holy Father. Twenty-five were unable to attend due to illness or other serious problems, according to a report from the director of the Holy See Press Office, Fr. Federico Lombardi, S.J.,…
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(Vatican Radio) One of the running themes through Pope Francis’ pontificate to date has been the need to move out to the peripheries of the Church and the world. In this context, it doesn’t get more peripheral than New Zealand. The Archbishop of Wellington, John Atcherley Dew, is one of the 20 men who will be created cardinal this Saturday in the extraordinary Consistory. Few were more surprised than he was to learn his name was on the Holy Father’s list. In fact speaking to Vatican Radio he confides that he learned about his appointment to the College of Cardinals via text message. Listen to Cardinal-designate Dew’s full interview with Emer McCarthy:
“It was three o’clock in the morning in New Zealand, and the Holy Father had said the Angelus and announced the new cardinals and I heard my phone beeping with messages saying congratulations and prayers for you and I had no idea what it was about”. Together with the Bishop of Tonga, Bishop Soane Patita Paini Mafi, he travelled from the other side of the world to receive his red hat and bring to his fellow cardinals the concerns of the young churches on the peripheries. These include the very real impact of global warming on the people of the pacific islands, the plague of human trafficking and care of migrants – all issues that echo with Pope Francis. However, in the two days of meetings ahead of Saturday’s celebration, he together with the 19 other new members of the College of Cardinals will be briefed on the pace of the reform of the Roman Curia. Cardinal-designate says Pope Francis’ choice of new cardinals not only reflects his reaching out to local churches but his desire to bring the voice of peripheral churches to the heart of the Vatican. In this context, he hopes the reform of the Curia will put greater emphasis on the need for people in positions of governance to have pastoral experience: “My particular hope…is the hope that those who work in the Curia have pastoral experience and know what it’s like to work in a diocese and work with people. That they have the opportunity to meet people who are very often struggling in life for one thing or another. I often think that people in the Curia don’t get this opportunity, you know they speak to other bishops day in day out. So where is their opportunity for real on the ground experience. So one hope is that people don’t spend too long in a particular office, but that they can go home to their diocese to be really aware of what people have to deal with in life”. Another hope of Cardinal-designate Dew is that some of the bureaucracy is ‘tightened up a bit’ so that it is ‘much more effective’ and maybe ‘not quite as costly’. (from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) One of the running themes through Pope Francis’ pontificate to date has been the need to move out to the peripheries of the Church and the world. In this context, it doesn’t get more peripheral than New Zealand. The Archbishop of Wellington, John Atcherley Dew, is one of the 20 men who…
Read more
(Vatican Radio) One of the running themes through Pope Francis’ pontificate to date has been the need to move out to the peripheries of the Church and the world. In this context, it doesn’t get more peripheral than New Zealand. The Archbishop of Wellington, John Atcherley Dew, is one of the 20 men who…
Read more