He called the acquittal a "scandalous verdict" as it had been made without hearing the plaintiff Doris Wagner-Reisinger.

On 15 May, the Apostolic Signatura, the highest judicial authority in the Church apart from the Pope, acquitted Fr Geissler, 53, of charges of solicitation during Confession made against him by Doris Wagner-Reisinger, a former nun born in 1983, when she, too, was a member of the FSO (The Spiritual Family "The Work").

The reason given for the acquittal was that "the circumstances of an alleged serious crime had not been proven with sufficient moral certainty." Read more

Burke had earlier served as a prefect of the court for six years. It is nearly three years since Francis removed him.

Over that time Francis has removed or failed to reappoint Burke as a member of the Vatican's Congregation for Bishops, the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, which are responsible for liturgical policy.

Burke is often seen in the media criticising Francis on key points, especially in relation to the possibility (as expressed in Amoris Laetitia, the pope's encyclical on family life) that divorced and civilly remarried Catholics might be able to receive holy communion.

Burke was also one of four cardinals who sent Francis a list of questions called dubia, asking for clarity on aspects of Amoris Laetitia to settle what they called "grave confusion".

While there's little indication the disagreement over Amoris Laetitia has subsided, both Francis and Burke say impressions of a rupture between them are overblown.

Burke recently described media depictions of conflict between himself and the pontiff as a "caricature."

"They depict Pope Francis as a wonderful, open person and there's nothing wrong with that, but they depict me as just the opposite," he says.

"It's meant in a certain way to advance their own agenda, but the pope is actually not in favour of their agenda."

"They're making a caricature of someone who's asking for clarity about certain matters, they're saying ‘well, he's the enemy of the pope' and he's trying to build opposition to the pope, which of course isn't the case at all," Burke says.

Source

• Catholic Herald
• Crux
• Image: Novus Ordo Watch

Cardinal Burke, 66, was formerly the prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, the Church's highest court.

His role in the Order of Malta is largely a ceremonial one, without any influence in the governance of the Church.

Given his age and seniority, the much-anticipated move is unprecedented and many therefore view it as a demotion.

But he is expected to continue to live in Rome and be prominent in the media.

Cardinal Burke has been an outspoken critic of the recent Synod on the Family where many participants called for the Church to adopt less harsh language when talking about homosexuality, the divorced and remarried, and cohabiting couples.

He said many prelates were horrified at the suggestion there could be good elements in mortally sinful acts.

Last week, Cardinal Burke reportedly likened the Church to "a ship without a rudder".

He insisted he was not speaking out against the Pope personally, but was raising concerns about his leadership.

He said he does not see himself as an opponent of the Pope.

In recent days, Cardinal Burke told media the idea that the Church could teach the indissolubility of marriage, while at the same time denying that truth in practice, is unacceptable.

Last year, Pope Francis removed Cardinal Burke from a committee of the Congregation for Bishops that advises the Pope on episcopal appointments.

A small group of cardinals had advised Francis to remove him from the committee because of his tendency to block candidates who were considered not sufficiently orthodox or capable of serving as bishops.

Last week, Austrian church authorities denied Cardinal Burke permission to celebrate Mass in the extraordinary form in a parish church.

The new prefect of the Apostolic Signtura is Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, who was the Vatican's Secretary for Relations with States - effectively the Holy See's foreign minister.

Archbishop Paul Gallagher, the apostolic nuncio in Australia, has been appointed to Archbishop Mamberti's former position.

Sources

• The Tablet
• National Catholic Register
• Catholic World News
• Image: Courageous Priest

American Cardinal Raymond Burke confirmed to the National Catholic Reporter that he has been told he will be removed from his current role.

Asked who told him he would be removed, Cardinal Burke replied: "Who do you think?"

Late last year, Pope Francis removed Cardinal Burke from the Congregation for Bishops.

Cardinal Burke reportedly said he has enjoyed his role at the Apostolic Signatura, which he has held from 2008, and is disappointed to leave it.

"In the Church as priests, we always have to be ready to accept whatever assignment we're given," Cardinal Burke is reported to have said.

The cardinal has yet to receive formal notice of his move.

The Apostolic Signatura is the Catholic Church's highest court.

Rumours have been circulating for weeks inside the Vatican that Cardinal Burke will be assigned as patron of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, which is a largely ceremonial role.

Cardinal Burke has made news frequently in recent days voicing disapproval with the direction of the synod on the family.

He voiced staunch disapproval of the relatio document released at the synod mid-point last week, saying that it would cause confusion among the laity.

This document called on the Church to listen more widely to people's concerns and to apply mercy more generously.

Cardinal Burke said in interviews that the mid-point document was "not of the Church" and that Francis should issue a clarification reaffirming traditional Catholic doctrines.

The mid-point document was eventually superseded by a less liberal final document.

Last month, Cardinal Burke accused sections of the media of trying to hijack the synod.

In 2009, Cardinal Burke called on US bishops to withhold Communion from pro-choice Catholic politicians.

Sources

• National Catholic Reporter
• BBC
• Catholic News Agency
• Catholic News Agency
• Image: Catholic News Agency

Cardinal Raymond Burke, who heads the Apostolic Signatura, said the media has created an expectation of changes to Church teaching that can't happen.

The Apostolic Signatura is the highest judicial body in the Church, other than the Pope.

The danger, Cardinal Burke told the Catholic News Agency, is that "the media has created a situation in which people expect that there are going to be these major changes which would, in fact, constitute a change in Church teaching, which is impossible".

"That's why it's very important for those who are in charge to be very clear," he said.

Cardinal Burke was one of the contributors to a book called "Remaining in the Truth of Christ: Marriage and Communion in the Catholic Church", set to be released before the synod.

Among the other contributors is the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith prefect Cardinal Gerhard Müller.

The Church's teaching on marriage outside the Church and Communion, Cardinal Burke said, is merciful, "because it respects the truth that the person is indeed bound by a prior union which the person, for whatever reason, is no longer living".

"The Church holds the person to the truth of that marriage," Cardinal Burke continued, "while at the same time, being compassionate, understanding the situation of the person, welcoming them into the parish community in ways that are appropriate, and trying to help them to lead as holy a life as they can, but without betraying the truth about their marriage."

Cardinal Burke said the book seeks to defend marriage at a time when there is "tremendous amount of confusion and even error", both from outside and within the Church.

Cardinal Burke hopes the synod will "set forth the beauty of the Church's teaching on marriage, in all its aspects, as a union between one man and one woman, faithful, indissoluble for life, and procreative".

He also hoped the synod will underline the teaching of Pope Paul VI in "his courageous and very wise Encyclical, Humanae Vitae".

Paul VI will be beatified at the end of the synod.

Cardinal Burke also cautioned against the Church adopting some sort of "easy and light-hearted" annulment process.

Source

• Catholic News Agency
• Image: CathNewsUSA

Writing for L'Espresso, Vatican journalist Sandro Mangister posited that the next "victim" of Pope Francis's "revolution" will be the prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, Cardinal Raymond Burke.

The Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura is the Church's highest judicial authority, other than the Pope.

Magister believes Cardinal Burke will be appointed "cardinal patron" of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, a purely honorary position, which would be a spectacular ecclesiastical demotion.

Previously, being appointed cardinal patron of the Malta order would be in addition to other roles, Magister noted, so being appointed to this role by itself would be without precedent.

It would lead to Cardinal Burke not having any role in the Roman Curia at all.

Liturgically and theologically, Cardinal Burke is very close to Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI), Magister wrote.

The journalist pointed out that Cardinal Burke had crossed swords with other US prelates over issues like giving Communion to politicians who vote for laws against Church teaching.

Cardinal Burke also once described Pope Francis's Evangelii Gaudium as "orientational", but not "magisterial".

An expert in canon law, Cardinal Burke "is also recognised as having the rare virtue of never having struck any deals to obtain ecclesiastical promotions or benefices", Magister wrote.

But recent conservative decisions by the Apostolic Signatura might have counted against him the journalist wrote.

Late last year, Pope Francis removed Cardinal Burke as a member of the Congregation for Bishops.

Meanwhile, Pope Francis's so-called C9 council of cardinals has met this week to further work on Church governance reform.

In their three days of talks and study, the nine cardinals "focused on two principle hotspots", a Vatican spokesman said in a written statement.

The first topic included the laity, the family, "the role of women in society and the Church, youth, childhood, or matters related to lay associations and movements and so on", Fr Federico Lombardi, SJ, wrote.

The second topic combined the issues of "justice and peace, charity, migrants and refugees, health, and the protection of life and ecology, especially human ecology", the written statement said.

The way the different issues were divided into two major areas seemed to lend credence to news reports predicting mergers of pontifical councils into larger congregations.

Sources

• L'Espresso
• Catholic World News
• Catholic News Service
• Image: Patheos

Cardinal Raymond Burke, prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura, said the practice could result in the unique role of the individual priest in the sacred liturgy being obscured.

"I don't think there should be an excessive encouragement of concelebration because the norm is for the individual priest to offer the holy sacrifice of the Mass," he said in an interview with CNA at the end of an international liturgy conference in Cork, Ireland.

"If it is repeated too frequently, it can develop within him a sense of being another one of the participants instead of actually being the priest who is offering the Mass."

Cardinal Burke was concerned that, whereas the priest's action is distinct, he "can seem to be participating in the Mass in the same manner as the congregation" if he concelebrates too often.

"That's the danger I see in excessive concelebration," he said.

The cardinal's words of caution echoed comments made early this year by the head of the Vatican's Congregation for Divine Worship, Cardinal Antonio Cañizares.

He told a gathering at Rome's University of the Holy Cross on March 5 that the "widening of the faculty to concelebrate needs to be moderated, as we can see when we read the [Second Vatican] Council texts."

Cardinal Cañizares explained that concelebration "is an extraordinary, solemn and public rite, normally presided over by the bishop or his delegate," surrounded by his priests and the entire community.

But "the daily concelebrations of priests only, which are practised ‘privately'…do not form part of the Latin liturgical tradition," he said.

Source:

Catholic News Agency

Image: Catholic News Service