The Council of Cardinals has concluded its consultations on the Congregations for the Doctrine of the Faith, for Worship and the Sacraments, for the Causes of Saints and for Consecrated Life. Pell, Marx and Viganò have reported on the ongoing reform of the Vatican economy and media
The Council of nine Cardinals assisting the Pope in the reform of the Curia and Church government (the so-called C9) has delivered a proposal to the Pope for the creation of a previously announced new “dicastery” (it has not been defined as either a congregation or a pontifical council) titled “Charity, Justice and Peace”. The Council has also concluded its consultations regarding a number of congregations (Doctrine of the Faith, Causes of Saints, Consecrated Life). The Vatican spokesman said this in a briefing on the 15th meeting of the C9, which began Monday morning and concludes this evening. During the meeting, Cardinals George Pell – who turns 75 today – Reinhard Marx and Mgr. Dario Edoardo Viganò (respectively Prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, Coordinator of the Council for the Economy and Prefect of the Secretariat for Communications) updated the Council on the reforms in their respective offices.
Last Saturday Francis approved the motu proprio titled “Like a loving mother”, which includes child abuse among the “grave reasons” for which bishops can be removed from office under Canon law. The Archbishop of Boston, Cardinal Sean O’Malley, updated the Council on the papal provision. On Saturday, the Pope also welcomed the proposal presented to him by the C9 and approved the statutes of a new dicastery for the laity, the family and life “ad experimentum”. On 1 September 2016, the current Pontifical Councils for Laity and the Family will be merged into this single dicastery. Fr. Lombardi clarified that the C9 has chosen – at least at this stage of the discussions – to refer to the new body as a “dicastery”, not as a congregation and pontifical council: “Whether in the definitive description of the new constitution it will be given a different name and specification based on a specific criterion I don’t know, but for the time being, the new dicastery has no title”.
In the meeting that took place in recent days “many of the consultations once again focused on further considerations to do with various Curia dicasteries which had been discussed in previous meetings in view of the new apostolic Constitution,” Lombardi said. Notably: the Congregations for Bishops, Catholic Education, the Oriental Churches, and the Clergy and the Pontifical Councils for Culture, Christian Unity and Interreligious Dialogue. “The results of the considerations during prior sessions regarding various Congregations – for the Doctrine of the Faith, Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Causes of Saints, Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life – as well as the new dicastery on “Charity, Justice and Peace” (which as mentioned previously, will incorporate the current competences of Justice and Peace, Cor Unum, Health Care Workers, Migrants and Itinerant Peoples) have been entrusted to the Pope for further examination and consultations as he may consider appropriate.” The material in question are “chapters which the C9 believes have been sufficiently developed”. The Council’s evaluation is “almost complete” and will be submitted to the Pope so that “he may proceed as he sees fit,” Lombardi said. He added that “the criteria of these reflections have included, for instance, simplification, harmonisation of the tasks of the difference Organisms, and possible forms of decentralisation in relation with the Episcopal Conferences”.
During the meeting, “the prefect of the Secretariat for Communication, Mgr. Dario Viganò reported on the progress of reforms of the Holy See system of communication, on the ongoing re-evaluation of work organisation and on production processes, and on the process of integration, especially with regard to Vatican Radio and the Vatican Television Centre during the current year. The Council expressed its gratitude and encouraged the continuing progress on this path.”
Updates were given by the coordinator of the Council for the Economy, Cardinal Marx, and the prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, Cardinal Pell, “on issues within their competence,” Lombardi said. In response to a question about Pell turning 75 today and the idea of keeping him on as Prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, all the spokesman said, was that Cardinal Angelo Amato also turns 78 today and he is still Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. He also recalled that when the Pope recently visited his dicastery, the idea of the Australian cardinal non retiring yet, emerged as a possibility.
The next meetings of the Council are scheduled to take place from 12 to 14 September and from 12 to 14 December 2016. Lombardi did not comment on the end of the work on Curia reform but simply said that the work is now “more downhill than uphill”.
