Vatican City, 18 February 2014 (VIS) –
This morning a press conference was held during which Fr. Federico
Lombardi, S.J., director of the Holy See Press Office, gave a briefing on
the second meeting of the Holy Father and the Council of Cardinals
(C8). The meeting was also attended by Archbishop Pietro Parolin,
secretary of State, who will participate at all times, although he
will be absent from this afternoon's session due to an official
appointment at the Italian embassy to the Holy See.
Fr. Lombardi communicated that
yesterday afternoon the Council reflected on the results of the
Commission for Reference on the the Organisation of the
Economic-Administrative Structure of the Holy See (COSEA), presented
during the preceding morning session. The president of the
Commission, Joseph F.X. Zahra, was the only member of the Commission
present. Msgr. Alfred Xuereb also attended today's meeting in his
role as the papal delegate to the Pontifical Commission for Reference
on the Institute of Works of Religion.
The day's events began, as usual, at 7
a.m. with the celebration of Holy Mass in the Domus Sanctae Marthae
chapel; the meeting started at 9.30 a.m. in the same room where
yesterday's gathering was held. The morning was spent hearing the
representatives of the Pontifical Commission for Reference on the
Institute for Works of Religion (IOR), instituted by chirograph on 24
June 2013. This Commission was the result of the Holy Father's wish
to acquire a better knowledge of the legal position and the
activities of the Institute to enable greater harmonisation of the
latter with the mission of the Universal Church and the Apostolic
See, within the broader context of reforms involving some of the
Institutions which offer support to the Apostolic See. Its task is to
gather information on the functioning of the Institute and to report
the results to the Pontiff.
The session was attended by Cardinal
Raffaele Farina, president; Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, member;
Bishop Juan Ignacio Arrieta Ochoa de Chinchetru, coordinator; and
Msgr. Peter Bryan Wells, secretary. Professor Mary Ann Glendon was
not present as she does not reside in Rome.
The Commission presented the work
carried out during these months, which was received with great
interest by the cardinals, and provided information on the current
situation of the Institute and the problems that it must face.
Suggestions were offered for future changes, although no decisions
were made following the hearing. One of the key points was the
mission of the IOR in relation to the action of the Church in the
world and not only from the perspective of economic performance.
Fr. Lombardi commented that it is
important to bear in mind, considering the work of the two
Commissions, that their aims are different but that they both fit
into the contextual reality of the Holy See; for this reason the Holy
Father wishes to obtain an overall view with regard to the
reorganisation of its governance and structures.
The meeting will continue this
afternoon, and tomorrow the C8 Council of Cardinals will with the
Council of Fifteen. Due to the large number of attendees, the
Wednesday meeting will not be held in the room in the Domus Sanctae
Marthae, but is instead likely to be held in the Apostolic Palace.