Vatican City, 10 June 2015 (VIS) –
The director of the Holy See Press Office, Fr. Federico Lombardi,
S.J., gave a briefing this morning on the work of the tenth meeting
of the Council of Cardinals, which began on Monday and concluded this
morning in the Domus Sanctae Marthae. The Holy Father attended all
the sessions, both morning and afternoon, on Monday and Tuesday;
however as usual he did not participate in this morning's session due
to the Wednesday general audience.
Cardinal Laurent Mosengwo Pasinya was
unable to attend the meeting.
The first day was dedicated largely to
the examination of the draft Preamble of the new Constitution, which
will be further elaborated.
With regard to financial and economic
reform, Cardinal Pell, prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy,
presented a report with updated information on the financial reforms.
He mentioned the appointment of the new Auditor General, the approval
of the new Statute for Pension Funds and the completion of the list
of bodies subject to the control and supervision of the Council for
the Economy, in accordance with its Statutes. He also referred to
three new initiatives of the Council for the Economy, constituting
three working groups: one for the analysis of income and investments;
one for human resources management, and a third for the study of the
existing IT systems, their compatibility and their efficiency. He
concluded by reporting on the progress of the various current
activities of the Secretariat for the Economy.
In the afternoon session of 8 June
2015, the Council of Cardinals received a report from Cardinal Sean
Patrick O'Malley, OFM Cap. with a proposal for the Holy Father
regarding allegations of the abuse of office by a bishop connected to
the abuse of minors, originally prepared by the Pontifical Commission
for the Protection of Minors. Cardinal O'Malley’s report also
included a proposal regarding allegations of sexual abuse of minors
and vulnerable adults by clergy.
For each proposal, the report indicated
the general terms which define it, issues relating to procedure and
to the competent Tribunal, as well as the advantages of the proposal
compared with other possible solutions. The text concludes with a
list of five specific proposals made to the Holy Father, which are
listed below. It is proposed that:
1. because the competence to receive
and investigate complaints of the episcopal abuse of office belongs
to the Congregations for Bishops, Evangelisation of Peoples, or
Oriental Churches, there is the duty to report all complaints to the
appropriate Congregation;
2. the Holy Father mandate the
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to judge bishops with
regard to crimes of the abuse of office when connected to the abuse
of minors;
3. the Holy Father authorise the
establishment of a new Judicial Section in the Congregation for the
Doctrine of the Faith and appointment of stable personnel to
undertake service in the Tribunal. The implementation of this
decision would follow consultation with the prefect for the
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith;
4. the Holy Father appoint a secretary
to assist the prefect with the Tribunal. The secretary will be
responsible for the new Judicial Section and the personnel of the
section will also be available to the prefect for penal processes
regarding the abuse of minors and vulnerable adults by clergy. This
appointment will also follow the consultation with the prefect of the
Congregation;
5. the Holy Father establish a
five-year period for further development of these proposals and for
completing a formal evaluation of their effectiveness;
The Council of Cardinals agreed
unanimously on these proposals and resolved that they be submitted to
the Holy Father, Pope Francis, who approved the proposals and
authorised the provision of sufficient resources for this purpose.
In the morning of 9 June the Council of
Cardinals heard a report given by Msgr. Dario Vigano, director of the
Vatican Television Centre and president of the Commission for Vatican
communications instituted by the Holy Father Francis on 23 April 2015
(made public on 30 April), and expressed its unanimous approval of
the feasibility study conducted by the same Commission.
Starting from the analyses and reports
of McKinsey and the previous commissions (COSEA and the Vatican Media
Commission chaired by Lord Chris Patten), the current Commission
presented a plan for reform to be implemented over a four-year
period, ensuring the protection of staff and a gradual integration of
institutions. These are the Pontifical Council for Social
Communications, the Holy See Press Office, Vatican Radio, the Vatican
Television Centre, the Osservatore Romano, the Photographic Service,
the Vatican Publishing House, the Vatican Typography and the Internet
Office.
The Council of Cardinals expressed a
positive judgement to the Holy Father, also in relation to the
expected time span. The constitution of the dicastery will be
drafted, and the necessary appointments made during the coming months
to enable the process to be initiated. The Commission is currently
continuing its work, which has yet to be completed.
On Wednesday morning, the Council heard
a communique from Fr. Michael Czerny of the Pontifical Council
“Justice and Peace” regarding the Holy Father's new encyclical
and the preparation for its publication. Fr. Czerny explained that,
at the Pope's behest, emails will be sent, introduced by a letter
from Cardinal Turkson, to inform ordinaries throughout the world of
the upcoming publication of the encyclical and to provide suggestions
and assistance on the teaching and previous interventions by the Pope
on the theme of the environment. It is hoped that this will allow
individual bishops and episcopates to prepare for the new document
and to accompany it with appropriate explanations and comments, so as
to ensure that the publication of the encyclical is experienced as an
important event in the life of the universal Church and in communion
with the Holy Father.
The next meeting of the Council of
Cardinals is scheduled for 14 to 16 September.
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