Relations
between Benedict XVI and diplomats in cassocks have never been good;
now, with the Conclave just around the corner, efforts are being focused
on trying to give Vatican diplomats their lustre back. Nuncios – at least a good number of them, including their leaders who answer to his eminence Angelo Sodano, the Prefect of the Congregation for Eastern Churches, Sandri and the Patron of the Order of Malta, Cardinal Paolo Sardi – have suffered a number of decisions taken during Benedict XVI’s pontificate.
First of all, the now former Pope’s decision to no longer receive nuncios in audience, with some rare exceptions.
Instead, Bertone was supposed to receive them, but apparently nuncios did not find this solution satisfactory.
The second decision was perhaps key to the fate of Benedict XVI’s papacy. Sodano chose Tarcisio Bertone, who was not a diplomat, as Secretary of State. Many Vatican diplomats saw this choice as a slap in the face.
Unfortunately, Cardinal Bertone was not lucky in some of his choices.
One could say he had the inverse of King Midas’ charisma. He chose the current Prefect of Propaganda Fide, Nuncio Filoni, as Substitute.
Nuncio Filoni proceeded to take actions that were in contrast to what his benefactor had done. A similar phenomenon was seen with the current Substitute (who has his eye on the Secretary of State’s job) Angelo Becciu, a member of the Focolare movement.
To add insult to injury, apparently Bertone at one point mistakenly promised the cardinals’ biretta to the then Secretary of the Governorate, Carlo Maria Viganò (who also has a diplomatic background).
But when his candidacy was presented to the Pope, Benedict XVI turned it down outright.
Vatican Insider believes this was probably after Benedict XVI consulted with the President of the Governorate, Cardinal Lajolo and others.
That is when the transparency “case” and the alleged shady dealings in the Governorate exploded.
But an internal investigation did not lead to any nothing shocking revelations.
Lajolo rightly said that it was not just Viganò who involved in reorganisation work but the whole leadership, including Lajolo.
Meanwhile, however, this controversy only worsened relations between Vatican diplomats in general – not all of them of course – and the head of Benedict XVI’s kingdom.
Maybe it is just a coincidence, but just a few weeks before Benedict XVI announced his resignation, two of the diplomats who conformed the least to the existing power logic - Nicolas Thevenina and Ettore Balestrero - were promoted (and it was definitely a promotion) but sent away from Rome and the papal apartment –a context they were familiar with.
Some information filtered through in December about Benedict XVI’s reasons for moving them away from the Vatican and some snatched the chance to give their interpretations of certain signs and half-phrases.
But the post-Benedict XVI period had already been contemplated. Not surprisingly, about a month ago, a major American Catholic magazine referred to Leonardo Sandri, Angelo Sodano’s “dolphin”, as a possible papabile. Leonardo Sandri was Substitute of the Secretariat of State when Sodano was Secretariat of State.
Both figures raised suspicions over their management of the Maciel case, the biggest scandal the Catholic Church has faced since time immemorial. Rome protected Fr. Maciel Degollado, founder of the Legion of Christ, a bigamist, a paedophile and who knows what else, from accusations being made against him in Mexico.
This was until Benedict XVI finally punished him. In May 2005, however, an official statement - sent from the Secretariat of State led by Sodano and Sandri – claimed the situation was under control and that all rumours that had gone round were just hearsay.
“The Holy See has recently informed the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ that there is currently no canonical lawsuit against the founder Fr. Marcial Maciel Degollado, and no lawsuit is going to be launched.”
The theory of Leonardo Sandri becoming Benedict XVI’s successor seems to fall apart.
Meanwhile, the resolute Cardinal Sodano is trying to restore lost lustre to Vatican diplomacy by putting his own candidate forward for the position of Secretary of State, in exchange for his support for a plausible figure as Pope, Odilo Scherer for example.
A delayed triumph over Bertone, who could it seems bolster support for Scherer with his packet of Salesian votes, having gained weak consensus over his first favourite, Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi.
As Secretary of State under the leadership of a new Pope, Sandri would ensure the continuation of the Sodano “spiritual school of thought” in Vatican diplomacy.