An Italian man dressed up in fake ecclesiastical robes was escorted out of a meeting of Catholic cardinals by Swiss Guards on Monday after trying to sneak into the closed-door Vatican meeting. The man had told reporters that his name was “Basilius” and that he was a member of the “Italian Orthodox Church”, which does Read more
It’s frequently observed that the only three remaining absolute monarchies/dictatorships left in the world are Saudi Arabia, North Korea and the Vatican. But the parallels that are of more powerful significance are those between the Vatican, Vietnam and China, both in terms of their governance and the current state of their political lives. All are Read more
An unnamed Cardinal has told a Milan newspaper, the Corriere della Sera, Cardinals’ plan to ask the next pope to pledge in his inaugural address that he will serve until death. As Emeritus Pope Benedict begins his retirement, the Sunday Times reported some cardinals are beginning to have doubts about Benedict’s decision. The Sunday Times Read more
In an frank interview in the Guardian, Diarmaid MacCulloch, a professor of the history of the Church at the University of Oxford, suggests just about every day we listen to the radio, watch TV or read the newspaper we are seeing evidence of a Church that needs change. He says, we see almost daily, evidence that Read more
Pope Benedict’s last words and gestures are worth noting. Take four of his last decisions, for example. 1) Nine months after the sacking of the President of the scandal-ridden Vatican bank, he appoints a new President: a lay man and a non-Italian. 2) He appoints a man of promise to a diplomatic post in a Read more
Informed sources both within and outside the Vatican confirm that a group of cardinals are seeking to have Archbishop of Sao Paolo, Brazil, Odilo Pedro Scherer as pope, accompanied by one of two options for Secretary of State. Cardinal Scherer, 63, is a well-respected Latin American prelate, of German extraction, he is considered to be “measured” Read more
It would be entirely understandable if Benedict XVI wanted “business as usual” signs to go up at the Vatican as soon as possible after his retirement, and for the new man in charge to carry on the good work of the old though perhaps with extra energy. What is emerging is something rather different – Read more
The Vatican, Thursday confirmed reports that it had ordered wiretaps on the phones of some Vatican officials. The wiretaps were part of its Vatileaks investigation. The admission came as Panorama magazine reported Thursday, that the Vatican Secretariat of State had ordered wiretaps on the phones of several Vatican prelates as part of an investigation into Read more
Australia’s Cardinal at the Papal Conclave in Rome, George Pell has come under fire for remarks he made about pope Benedict, reports Melbourne’s Age. Pell criticised the outgoing Pope, saying that despite being a great theologian and a brilliant teacher, governance and government wasn’t his strong point and that Benedict’s resignation leaves future Pontiffs vulnerable. Pell also Read more
More than 20,000 people have bet hundreds of thousands of dollars on the papal change and international bookmakers expect that dollar figure to quickly move into the millions, according to USA Today. Just two hours after Pope Benedict XVI announced his resignation, Irish bookmaker Paddy Power was out with their odds and within 48 hours, Read more