Like it or not, the Vatican has entered the digital age

Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman, in a recent photo. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

VATICAN CITY — The news yesterday that cardinals preparing for the upcoming papal election had agreed to a gag order — after two days of increasingly popular press briefings by U.S. cardinals — immediately aroused protests that the Vatican had stifled a salutary move toward greater openness.

But the very manner in which the news broke illustrates why church leaders (like any other person or group under media scrutiny today) can no longer hope to manage news coverage by 20th-century means.

Hundreds of reporters were sitting in the Vatican press hall for the regular mid-day briefing led by the director, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, when many of us received a brief email message on our smart-phones. Sister Mary Ann Walsh, director of media relations for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, had written to announce that a press briefing with two U.S. cardinals scheduled for one hour later had been canceled.

As soon as Father Lombardi began taking questions, one of our colleagues, Philip Pullella of Reuters, asked if the cancellation had been requested by the Vatican or discussed by the assembled cardinals at their meeting that morning.

Father Lombardi, who had not mentioned the matter in his presentation, was obviously prepared for the question, which he answered with a careful explanation of the need for increasing levels of privacy as a conclave draws nearer. But he did not specify whether a new policy had been established, or if so by whom.

Reporters were still in the press hall when Sister Walsh sent another email, 19 minutes after her first, in reply to a query from Laurie Goodstein of the New York Times, explaining that the assembled cardinals had agreed to stop giving interviews as a precaution prompted by “leaks of confidential proceedings reported in Italian newspapers.”

This message arrived in time for John Allen of the National Catholic Reporter to ask the penultimate question of the briefing, a request for confirmation and clarification of Sister Walsh’s statement. Father Lombardi demurred, essentially confining himself to repeating his earlier remarks.

The U.S. bishops’ spokeswoman was clearly not seeking to disrupt or distract from the work of her counterpart at the Holy See, but needed to act quickly to prevent a stampede of quote-hungry journalists from arriving at an empty dais.

Nevertheless, thanks to 21st-century information technology, the result was that a Vatican press briefing had been taken over by the simultaneous back and forth between reporters and Sister Walsh. Just a small incident, but one that epitomizes the communications challenge the church faces in an age of merciless transparency and vanishing privacy.

Prophecy of the popes

By Lauren Colegrove

Catholic News Service

Medallion of future pope to be placed in slot next to retired Pope Benedict XVI.
An empty slot indicates where a medallion of the future pope will be placed next to retired Pope Benedict XVI and his predecessor Blessed John Paul II in the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome. The upper basilica walls contain medallions of all 265 popes (CNS photo/ Paul Haring).

VATICAN CITY– While many people are making conjectures about the future in order to anticipate who will be the next pope, others are looking back to the writings of a 12th century Irish bishop to see if the prediction has already been made.

Saint Malachy O’Morgair, whose biography was written by his contemporary St. Bernard of Clairvaux, became a priest and eventual archbishop in Ireland during the early 1100s. Described as a strong promoter of morality and religious zeal, Malachy is said to have had “the spirit of prophecy” and has had numerous miracles attributed to him, including the healing of the son of a Scottish king.

In 1139 Malachy traveled to Rome to meet with Pope Innocent II, and according to writer Abbe Cucherat it is there that he had his visions of the papal prophecies. Legend has it that the pope was given the writings of Malachy’s revelations and placed the record in the Vatican archives, where it was “discovered” four centuries later by Benedictine historian Arnold de Wyon.

The prophecy describes 112 popes and antipopes in cryptic verses, beginning with the phrase “from a castle of the Tiber” which is attributed to the birthplace of Pope Celestine II. Verse 111 depicts the “glory of the olive,” which is usually connected to Pope Benedict XVI since his papal name refers to the founder of the Benedictine Order, which has a monastic branch called the Olivetans.

The end of the prophecy portrays “Peter the Roman, who will pasture his sheep in many tribulations, and when these things are finished, the city of seven hills will be destroyed, and the dreadful judge will judge his people.”

Because of the placement of the last few lines of text, interpreters of the prophecy are uncertain whether there are supposed to be other popes between the “prophecy of the olive” and the reign of “Peter the Roman,” and analyses of the text widely vary. Although no pope has been called by the  name Peter since the time of the disciples, there is speculation that the prophecy could be referring to Cardinal Peter Turkson of Ghana, who gained the nickname “Peter the Roman” because of his studies in Rome.

Because St. Bernard’s biography of Malachy does not mention the specific prophecy and there is no documentation of it prior to its publication in 1595, many historians believe that the prophecy is a forgery from the late 16th century. Some people claim that the prophecy was created in order to influence a 16th century conclave, while others believe that even if Malachy did not write the prophecy the predictions are still compelling.

While the authenticity of the “Prophecy of the Popes” may be uncertain, it is undeniable that centuries later the trend of predicting who will be next in the long line of successors of Peter has not lost its appeal.

Lauren Colegrove is an intern in the CNS Rome bureau while she attends Villanova University’s Rome program.

Cardinal Mahony says Vatican told him to attend conclave

Cardinal Roger M. Mahony, retired archbishop of Los Angeles, waits for the start of Pope Benedict XVI’s final general audience in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican Feb. 27. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

UPDATED WITH VATICAN REACTION

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Cardinal Roger M. Mahony expressed “amazement” at calls that he withdraw from the upcoming papal conclave because of his record on clergy sex abuse, and said that the Vatican, acting through its ambassador to the United States, had instructed him to take part in the election of the next pope.

“I’m here because the Holy Father appointed me a cardinal in 1991, and the primary job of a cardinal, the number one job, is actually the election of a new pope should a vacancy occur,” the cardinal told Catholic News Service Feb. 28, two days after arriving in Rome.

“Without my even having to inquire, the nuncio in Washington phoned me a week or so ago and said, ‘I have had word from the highest folks in the Vatican: you are to come to Rome and you are to participate in the conclave’,” the cardinal said.

The Vatican spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, replied to a request for comment that the cardinal’s statement “can be understood in light of the communique of the Secretariat of State that insisted on the importance of not giving in to external pressures that might limit the freedom of the electors and the conclave.”

The communique in question, issued Feb. 23, defended the electors’ freedom as a “guarantee of a choice … based on evaluations addressed solely for the good of the church,” and condemned attempts to influence the papal election “through public opinion that is often based on judgements that do not typically capture the spiritual aspect of the moment that the church is living.”

Advocates for sex-abuse victims have urged Cardinal Mahony, 77, to abstain from voting in the election of a successor to Pope Benedict XVI because of evidence that he mishandled cases of pedophile priests during his time as archbishop of Los Angeles.

Acting under court order Jan. 31, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles released thousands of pages of personnel files which suggest that Cardinal Mahony, who retired as archbishop in 2011, worked to protect accused priests from criminal investigation beginning in the 1980s.

The cardinal’s successor, Archbishop Jose H. Gomez, cited the files when he announced that Cardinal Mahony would “no longer have any administrative or public duties” in the archdiocese. Archbishop Gomez later added that the cardinal remains a bishop in “good standing,” with “full rights to celebrate the holy sacraments of the church and to minister to the faithful without restriction.”

Cardinal Mahony said he was “amazed” at the controversy over the Los Angeles files, claiming that the salient information about sex abuse in them could be found in a 22-page report available on the archdiocese’s website since 2004.

“There are some new things in the files that came out, but as far as I know I don’t find anything in there disqualifying,” he said.

The cardinal said that criticisms of his record on sex abuse unfairly applied latter-day standards to what was normal practice at the time.

“People say, ‘well, why didn’t you call the police?’ In those days no one reported these things to the police, usually at the request of families,” he said. “What I did in those years was consistent with what everybody did, in the Boy Scouts, in public schools, private schools, across the country.”

Cardinal Mahony arrived in Rome the day after Scottish Cardinal Keith O’Brien, 74, announced he would not participate in the conclave because he did not want media attention focused on him, following reports that three priests and a former priest had accused him of “inappropriate conduct” with them going back to the 1980s.

(On March 3, Cardinal O’Brien publicly asked forgiveness for “times that my sexual conduct has fallen below the standards expected of me as a priest, archbishop and cardinal,” and announced that he would “play no further part in the public life of the Catholic Church in Scotland.”)

Pope Benedict: I am not abandoning the church

Pope Benedict greets the crowd in St. Peter’s Square as he arrives to lead his final Angelus at the Vatican (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

VATICAN CITY — In one of his last public appearances, Pope Benedict XVI told an overflow crowd in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday that his upcoming retirement does not mean he is abandoning the church, but that he will be serving it in a new way, through prayer and meditation.

At noon the pope appeared at his window in the Apostolic Palace to pray the Angelus, a papal Sunday ritual that will not be repeated until after the election of a new pope.

Despite the blustery weather, turnout was several times the usual for such occasions — easily over 150,000, with some estimates as high as a quarter of a million. The crowd filled the Square except where prevented by barricades, and spilled out into the Via della Conciliazione. Many groups held signs expressing gratitude and affection — “You are not alone,” one read — and national flags from countries as far away as Brazil.

“Prayer doesn’t mean isolating one’s self from the world and its contradictions,” the pope said, “prayer leads one back to the path, to action.

“Christian existence,” he said, “consists in a continuous climbing of the mountain for an encounter with God, in order to descend again bearing the love and strength derived from it, so as to serve our brothers and sisters with the same love of God.”

If the relevance to his Feb. 28 resignation was not already clear, the Pope made the connection explicit:

I feel that this word of God is directed in particular to me, in this moment of my life. The Lord calls me to “climb the mountain,” to dedicate myself even more to prayer and meditation. But this does not mean abandoning the church, on the contrary, if God asks this of me it is precisely so that I may continue to serve (the church) with the same dedication and the same love with which I have done so till now, but in a way more suited to my age and strength.

Speaking these words, Pope Benedict was interrupted twice by applause, and afterwards received an ovation 30 seconds long. He smiled broadly, thanked the crowd, and added: “Let us thank God for the bit of sun he has granted us.”

The long goodbye — in St. Peter’s Square

Selling copies of the Italian Catholic daily, Avvenire, in front of St. Peter’s Square.
(CNS photo/Carol Glatz)

VATICAN CITY — Italian authorities estimated that perhaps as many as 200,000 people turned out for Pope Benedict’s last public Angelus address today with people gathered in St. Peter’s Square. The square was already full when I squeezed my way in at 11:15, almost an hour before the pope was scheduled to appear.

Damien McDonnell came to Rome with family and friends for the Year of Faith and to say goodbye to the pope. (CNS photo/Carol Glatz)

There were flags from dozens of countries as well as hand-made signs saying “You are not alone” and giant banners saying “Thank you, Holy Father.”

The pope was interrupted a number of times by spontaneous applause, cheers and chants of “Long live the pope!”

Damien McDonnell from the Diocese of Kildare and Leighlin in Ireland was leading a six-person family pilgrimage to Rome to celebrate the Year of Faith. He was one of several people who talked to CNS about this historic moment.

This is a blessing for us that we were able to come and say goodbye. (Pope Benedict’s) writings are so phenomenal and my first thought (upon hearing he was resigning) was ‘Please don’t stop writing!’ His work is so important for us and the for the church today…The next pope needs to be, to an extent, conservative, to say it like it is and not be indecisive, afraid to make decisions. Pope Benedict wasn’t afraid to make decisions and the new pope needs to  follow the same line.

Hrvoje Mravak is in Rome studying for the priesthood. (CNS photo/Carol Glatz)

Hrvoje Mravak from Croatia is studying theology in Rome as he pursues a vocation with the Society of Jesus.

I am very grateful to the pope for what he has done. He is a great theologian who always highlighted the importance of prayer. I like his humility and, in his mind, his resigning is the best thing for the church. We are praying for him and the new pope. (The new pope) should adhere to doctrine, of course, he should be open to the many cultures in the world, be a man of prayer, a good communicator, and humble and spiritual.

The Aguirre family from San Francisco took off work to be able to say goodbye. (CNS photo/Carol Glatz)

The Aguirre family (one brother and two sisters) from Our Lady of Mercy parish in Daly City near San Francisco took off work to come to Rome for the pope’s last week as the head of the universal church. Balthazar said the thing he will miss most about Pope Benedict is how he was able to be “the rock: solid, strong and unwavering and yet kind and compassionate and loving at the same time.”

US pilgrims hold the flag in St. Peter’s Square after Pope Benedict’s last Sunday Angelus. (CNS photo/Carol Glatz)

Maria Rosario Aguirre said:

He’s stepping down not because he doesn’t love us, but because he is aware of his age and is prepared to hand the job down to another younger person. I think (his retirement) will be a second vocation for him. He will have a hidden life that won’t be public, but his prayers will be a great help to the whole world. We won’t see him, but he will still have a real presence and impact.

The pope addressed an estimated 200,000 people in St. Peter’s Square for his last public Angelus. (CNS photo/Carol Glatz).

Simone Rascioni of the Diocese of Rome said she thought the pope’s request for prayers from the faithful “was very beautiful. He’s like a father asking his children for support.”

During his pontificate, he gave  me serenity. I saw him as being a very peaceful person, a man of truth who guides people along a clear path with — as a German — his logical  rationale. He was able to be so sure of himself because he is a man of prayer, knowing that God was behind him.

When asked about the furor in the Italian press over claims of corruption and scandal within the Vatican, Simone said:

We are all human and people can make mistakes. Instead of criticizing, we need to pray, that’s the responsibility of a person of faith. It doesn’t mean deny or hide from the mistakes, but criticism only destroys. We need to see the truth and build anew starting with prayer. Pope Benedict is an example of this when he asked forgiveness (for the sexual abuse of children by clergy). We also have to remember and recognize there are lots of very good people in the church. Nobody notices or thanks them, the only thing that makes the news is when someone makes a mistake.

Mexican pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square. (CNS photo/Carol Glatz).

Religious sisters proudly wave their nations’ flags in St. Peter’s Square. (CNS photo/Carol Glatz).

An empty papal apartment window. (CNS photo/Carol Glatz).

Deploring ‘gossip, misinformation and sometimes slander’

VATICAN CITY — Vatican officials released a pair of unusual statements Saturday condemning some press coverage of the papal transition.

A communiqué from the Secretariat of State called “deplorable” the “widespread distribution of often unverified, unverifiable or completely false news stories” intended to exert “pressures on the election of the pope.”

The Vatican spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, delivered an editorial on Vatican Radio lamenting “pressures and considerations that are foreign to the spirit with which the church would like to live this period of waiting and preparation”:

There is no lack, in fact, of those who seek to profit from the moment of surprise and disorientation of the spiritually naive to sow confusion and to discredit the Church and its governance, making recourse to old tools, such as gossip, misinformation and sometimes slander, or exercising unacceptable pressures to condition the exercise of the voting duty on the part of one or another member of the College of Cardinals, who they consider to be objectionable for one reason or another.

Neither statement specified the news stories in question, but Father Lombardi’s editorial referred to distortions by “those who consider money, sex and power before all else and are used to reading diverse realities from these perspectives.”

Articles in the Italian press this week have portrayed a Vatican divided among political factions, with some officials supposedly subject to blackmail, and have suggested a link between bureaucratic infighting and Pope Benedict’s historic decision to step down Feb. 28.

The stories refer to a confidential internal report on the so-called “Vatileaks” of confidential documents last year, but there is no reason to believe that any journalist has had access to the contents of that report.

Whoever the sources of these stories may be, if they are seeking to discredit particular electors in the upcoming conclave, their targets are presumably among those cardinals who work in the Vatican itself.

Pope thanks Curia for helping ‘carry the burden’ of papacy

VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI thanked members of the Roman Curia “for these eight years during which you have helped me carry the burden of the Petrine ministry with great competence, affection, love and faith.”

The pope make his remarks this morning at the end of his annual Lenten retreat with his top collaborators. Since last Sunday evening, the pope and Vatican officials had been gathered in the Redemptoris Mater Chapel in the Apostolic Palace for prayer, eucharistic adoration and 17 meditations offered by Italian Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture.

File photo: Pope Benedict XVI prays during last year’s retreat. (CNS/L’Osservatore Romano)

The pope said that while his close collaboration with the Curia officials would end, their “spiritual closeness” would remain, as would “a profound communion in prayer.”

“With this certainty, let us move forward, certain of the victory of God, certain of truth, beauty and love,” he said.

Vatican Radio said Cardinal Ravasi ended the retreat by telling the pope that other members of the Curia wanted him to express their affection for him and some “told me to ask forgiveness for the ways we were unable to support you in your ministry.”

The cardinal said it was most appropriate, though, simply “to thank you for your teaching and your ministry.”

Cardinal Ravasi said the pope’s ministry will continue in a different form, with what the cardinal described as the pope’s “hiding” or withdrawal from public life.

Anticipating the conclave — literally

VATICAN CITY — Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, confirmed this morning that top cardinals and canon lawyers at the Vatican are studying the possibility of beginning the conclave to elect a new pope before March 15.

But only the cardinals can announce the exact date the conclave will begin, he told reporters this morning.

Under the rules established in the apostolic constitution “Universi Dominici Gregis” on the vacancy of the papacy and the election of a pope, cardinals in Rome “must wait 15 full days for those who are absent” before they can enter into a conclave and begin the process of electing a new pope.

However, Pope Benedict XVI has scheduled a farewell meeting with cardinals the morning of Feb. 28 — just before he leaves office — and many of the world’s cardinals are expected to be present.

In addition, the fact that Pope Benedict announced his resignation Feb. 11 has given the cardinals plenty of time to make their arrangements to get to Rome. Therefore, the question has arisen: Does the 15-day rule apply if all the cardinals are in Rome before that?

Father Lombardi (CNS/Paul Haring)

“One could interpret the constitution in a way, precisely, that would say there is no longer a reason to wait,” Father Lombardi said.

The rules also say: “Should doubts arise concerning the prescriptions contained in this constitution, or concerning the manner of putting them into effect, I decree that all power of issuing a judgment in this regard belongs to the College of Cardinals, to which I grant the faculty of interpreting doubtful or controverted points.”

The spokesman said, “The situation is a bit different” than it would be with the death of a pope, which would be the normal situation addressed by “Universi Dominici Gregis.”

It is possible, he said, that Pope Benedict will intervene and rewrite the rules, “but at this point I would move” more along the path of the cardinals determining what is and is not possible for them to do under the rules as they are.

A little normalcy in the pope’s library

Cindy greets the pope! (CNS/L’Osservatore Romano)

VATICAN CITY — Almost nothing is normal at the Vatican these days.

I was surprised this morning that Pope Benedict XVI’s meeting with Romanian President Traian Basescu seemed so much like any other audience with a visiting head of state held in the last eight years.

The only difference was that after the president left, Salvatore Mazza and I were allowed to greet the pope on behalf of the International Association of Journalists Accredited to the Vatican. Mazza, a reporter for Avvenire, the Italian Catholic daily, is president of the association. I am secretary.

In the name of the more than 400 journalists permanently accredited to the Vatican, Mazza thanked the pope “for these eight years,” and I thanked him for his clear and patient teaching style.

The rest of the audience went by the book:

The president and his entourage arrived in the Apostolic Palace, walked by Swiss Guards at attention in the Clementine Hall, and then were led to a little waiting room for 10 minutes.

At 11:06, Pope Benedict greeted Basescu in the Room of the Throne, saying, “Welcome, welcome.” The president thanked the pope for allowing him to keep the appointment set long before Pope Benedict announced his resignation. The pope told him again that he was welcome and turned the president so they both were facing photographers.

Pope Benedict led the president into his private library, where the two sat on either side of the pope’s desk and had a private conversation for almost 20 minutes.

The journalists, who had been led to a small waiting room during the private meeting, were escorted back into the papal library as Basescu presented the 12 members of his entourage.

The Romanian gave Pope Benedict a huge book, made of handmade paper, recounting the history of Christianity in Romania. He told the pope it was made under the supervision of the Romanian Orthodox Church.

After turning several pages of the book, the pope told Basescu, “My gift is modest.”

Nestled in a large white gift box was a medal in a filigree frame. “It’s a medal of my pontificate,” the pope said.

Pope Benedict walked Basescu to the door of the library. Gripping the pope’s hand, the president said, “I will pray for you.”

The pope has another presidential audience scheduled for tomorrow morning: a meeting with the president of Guatemala, which also was on the pope’s agenda before he announced his resignation.

Only two politicians received appointments with the pope after the Feb. 11 announcement: tomorrow evening Pope Benedict will hold a private meeting with Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti and the morning of Feb. 23 he will meet Italian President Giorgio Napolitano.

U.S. cardinals on Pope Benedict’s resignation, the next pope

Cardinals Edwin F. O’Brien and Theodore E. McCarrick spoke to Catholic News Service today about their reactions to the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI and the qualities the next pope will need to have.