The court found that Cardinal Marc Ouellet dismissed Mother Marie Ferréol from her religious house in Brittany without sufficient cause.

Ferréol, who had been part of the community since 1987, was abruptly removed in 2021. Her dismissal followed an apostolic visitation led by Ouellet.

The religious sister experienced an expulsion described by the court as "infamous and vexatious" without having committed "the slightest offence".

The court said the dismissal was based on "non-established motives" adding that she was "sent back to lay life without mercy".

The court ordered the congregation to pay Sister Marie €32,000 (NZ$57,500) in relief. It also ordered over €192,000 (NZ$345,000) for material and moral damages.

Lack of impartiality

The French court's ruling argued that there was no evidence that Ferréol's removal had been carried out according to the community's statutes.

"It has not been demonstrated that the decree…signed by Ouellet…would have received any papal approval" the ruling stated.

The court also said that Ouellet should not have presided over this disciplinary investigation.

It said Ouellet had a friendship with "one of the sisters of the Dominican Sisters of the Holy Spirit, whose positions were notoriously opposed to those" of Sister Marie.

"Cardinal Ouellet was found to have committed an abuse of rights and a lack of impartiality" the sister's lawyer, Adeline Le Gouvello, said in a press release.

In a statement, Le Gouvello said that "this decision brings great relief" to the religious sister she represents.

"Justice has been able to objectively note that an injustice had been committed, an abuse of power proven" Le Gouvello said.

According to La Croix International, "the convicted parties have announced that they will appeal today's decision".

In 2021, La Croix International's Robert Mickens identified Ouellet as the leading conservative candidate to succeed Pope Francis.

"The strongest candidate in the anti-Francis camp still appears to be Cardinal Marc Ouellet, 77, who has been head of the powerful Congregation for Bishops the past 11 years.

"He's carefully downplayed and even hidden his more traditionalist views, which line up almost identically with those of Benedict XVI," wrote Mickens.

Sources

The Pillar

UCA News

CathNews New Zealand

CathNews New Zealand

The cardinal has denied the claims and contended that the allegations of such "reprehensible behavior" only further defame him. He stressed the need for the judicial process to determine the truth.

The 79-year-old cardinal previously filed a defamation lawsuit against Pamela Groleau for her claims that the cardinal inappropriately kissed or touched her on four occasions, characterizing it as sexual assault.

The woman initially made these claims in an August 2021 class-action sex abuse lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Quebec concerning many priests, including those who allegedly abused children.

Read More

The resignation acceptance was confirmed in an official statement by the Bishops' Conference of France over the weekend.

Archbishop Ravel's resignation comes on the heels of an investigation ordered by the Vatican in 2022 into the Strasbourg diocese, which represents about 1.3 million Catholics.

Ravel had served as the archbishop since 2017 and was the subject of an investigation initiated by the Vatican in 2022.

The investigation was prompted by complaints from Catholics residing in the Alsace region.

Ravel's leadership style, characterised as authoritarian, had alienated numerous parishioners and church officials.

His decision to remove women and laypeople from various councils in his diocese and appoint traditionalist priests with contrasting views to their congregations drew significant criticism.

Furthermore, Ravel faced backlash for dismissing the finance director of the diocese and an auxiliary bishop within the space of little over a year.

Ongoing calls for resignation

Despite his resignation, Archbishop Ravel staunchly defended his six-year tenure, which had been marked by controversy.

However, calls for his resignation had been ongoing, with an online petition garnering over a thousand signatures.

Ravel's leadership style, which neglected to prioritise communication and engagement with his priests, further exacerbated tensions.

His absence during Holy Week, notably the Chrism Mass with the archdiocese priests, deepened grievances among the clergy, who felt neglected by their archbishop.

In June 2022, the Vatican initiated an investigation into Ravel's governance, focusing on numerous complaints about his authoritarian behaviour.

However, the findings of the investigation were not released to the public.

Ravel summoned to Rome

Ravel was subsequently summoned to Rome for a meeting with Cardinal Marc Ouellet, the former prefect for the Dicastery for Bishops, who requested his resignation and a letter to the French president, as mandated by the concordat.

Ravel did not initially submit the resignation letter, and Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Pope's Secretary of State, summoned Ravel to Rome.

However, citing health reasons, the Archbishop did not attend the meeting.

But, on April 20, Ravel said he had "presented my resignation to the Holy Father," without giving further details.

"The Holy Father and the President of the Republic [Emmanuel Macron] have jointly accepted the resignation" of Luc Ravel, the Bishops' Conference of France said in a statement on Saturday.

Francis appointed Philippe Ballot, the archbishop of nearby Metz, as diocese administrator, "awaiting the appointment of the next archbishop of Strasbourg," the statement added.

Sources

Deutsche Welle

CathNews New Zealand

Bishop Prevost succeeds Cardinal Marc Ouellet, both as prefect and as president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.

The Holy Father has accepted the resignation from the offices of prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops and president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, presented, upon reaching the age limit, by His Eminence Cardinal Marc Ouellet, P.S.S..

Pope Francis has called Bishop Robert Francis Prevost, O.S.A., until now bishop of Chiclayo, Peru, to succeed Ouellet in the same offices. At the same time, the pope conferred the title of Archbishop-Bishop Emeritus of Chiclayo. He will assume office on 12 April 2023.

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Luc Ravel, the Archbishop of Strasbourg, announced his resignation on April 20. However, he gave no reason for his resignation.

"Peace being the supreme good (...), I have presented my resignation to the Holy Father, for whom I pray every day", he said.

Ravel, 65, resigned from his position, despite being a decade away from the customary retirement age for diocesan bishops.

Archbishop Ravel is known for being heavy-handed and authoritarian and for his commitment to fighting against sex abuse in the Catholic Church.

His approach to leadership had increasingly isolated him from his priests and the Catholic community of Alsace.

The Catholic community of Alsace had long been calling for his resignation and an online petition for this attracted more than a thousand signatures.

As a new archbishop, Ravel did not take the time to meet his priests, angering a large segment of the clergy.

According to reports, he spent too much time in his native Paris and relied more on his secretary than his closest associates.

During Holy Week, Archbishop Ravel did not celebrate the Chrism Mass with the archdiocese priests. He thereby avoided confrontation with demonstrators who were demanding his removal. But his absence aggravated the complaints of priests who said he spent little time with his clergy.

Vatican investigated Archbishop Ravel

The Vatican investigated Archbishop Ravel's governance in June 2022.

Their focus was a number of complaints about his authoritarian approach.

Bishop Stanislas Lalanne of Pontoise and Archbishop Joël Mercier, former secretary of the Dicastery for the Clergy, conducted the investigation.

The report has never been released.

The former prefect for the Dicastery for Bishops, Cardinal Marc Ouellet, summoned Ravel to Rome for a meeting, during which he was asked to resign and send a letter to the French president, as required by the concordat.

However, the resignation letter never materialised, leading to Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Pope's Secretary of State, summoning Ravel to Rome again.

This time, the Archbishop cited health reasons for not attending.

The Holy See is expected to transfer Archbishop Ravel to a titular diocese, as was done with Bishop Jacques Gaillot in 1995. Titular sees are usually reserved for bishops who are not diocesan ordinaries, and the move does not require the approval of the French president.

Sources

La Croix International

The Pillar

Catholic Culture

Cardinal Marc Ouellet (pictured) issued a statement via the Vatican press office after the Holy See said an investigation into the woman's allegations determined the case didn't warrant further investigation or canonical trial.

The statements responded to lawyers in Quebec who filed a class-action complaint by 101 alleged victims accusing 88 prelates of sexual abuse and assault over decades.

He said he would vigorously fight the "false" and "defamatory" accusations if the case proceeds.

"I firmly deny having made inappropriate gestures against her person and consider the interpretation and diffusion of these accusations as sexual aggression to be defamatory," he said.

If the lawsuit proceeds, "I intend to actively participate so that the truth is established and my innocence is recognised".

The Vatican's statement said that after a preliminary investigation, Pope Francis had concluded there were "insufficient elements" to open a formal canonical trial for sexual assault by Cardinal Ouellet against a person identified only as "F".

Through her lawyer, Ouellet's alleged victim told The Pillar that she was "disappointed" in the Holy See's decision. She charged that the Vatican had mishandled her complaint.

Canadian media reported that Ouellet had been accused of inappropriately touching the woman on several occasions. It alleged he gave her unwanted hugs, massages and kisses on the cheek and touched her posterior at a 2010 event. The woman alleged that on one occasion, Ouellet "held her firmly against him, caressing her back with his hands".

The touching was "quite intrusive … for someone who is my superior, who is the archbishop of Quebec," the unnamed woman told Radio-Canada.

The 78-year-old cardinal has served as head of the Dicastery for Bishops for more than a decade. In that position, Ouellet worked closely with Francis to select bishops worldwide. The cardinal has been touted as a future pope.

Sources

• CruxNow
• The Pillar
• Religion News
• CathNews New Zealand

Cardinal Marc Armand Ouellet has been named in a class action suit that targets more than 80 members of the clergy in the Quebec diocese, court documents showed.

Ouellet is a prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, one of the most important functions within the Curia, the government of the Vatican. He has also been touted as a contender to become Pope.

The accusation over the alleged abuse of a female intern in 2008 comes just weeks after Pope Francis visited Canada, where he apologised for the decades-long abuse of indigenous children in Catholic-run residential schools.

When contacted by Agence France-Presse, the Quebec diocese said in a statement that it had "taken note of the allegations with respect to Cardinal Marc Ouellet" and had no further comment.

The claims against Cardinal Ouellet in the civil suit are among testimonies of 101 people who have accused members of the clergy and church staff of sexual assault from 1940 to today. The Quebec supreme court ruled in May that the suit could proceed.

According to the class action documents, most of the assaults allegedly took place in the '50s and '60s.

Ouellet's accuser, identified only as "F," says the cardinal - then the archbishop of Quebec - assaulted her multiple times. She alleges that in 2010 he kissed her and slid his hand along her back to her buttocks.

On different occasions, Ouellet allegedly held the woman against his body, massaged her shoulders or vigorously caressed her back "down to the spot where the buttocks start," each time making her feel very uncomfortable.

"I felt chased after. It became more and more invasive, more and more intense to the point where I stopped attending events. I tried avoiding being in his presence as much as possible," she said.

So far, the cardinal is not facing criminal charges.

In February, Ouellet opened a Vatican symposium on the priesthood by apologising for "unworthy" clergy and the cover-up of child sexual abuse by Catholic clergy. The audience included Pope Francis.

"We are all torn and humbled by these crucial questions that every day question us as members of the Church," Ouellet said.

He commented that the symposium was an opportunity to express regret and ask victims for forgiveness, after their lives were "destroyed by abusive and criminal behaviour" that was hidden or treated lightly to protect the institution and the perpetrators.

Since becoming pope in 2013, Pope Francis has striven to tackle the decades-long sexual abuse scandals. However, many activists against paedophilia insist much more needs to be done.

Sources

Catholic News Agency

RTE

The Globe and Mail

French Salesian Sr Yvonne Reungoat made the comments to Vida Nueva, a Spanish publication.

Reungoat told the publication that while there is no perfect bishop, he has to be a shepherd who is "close to the people entrusted to him, he has to know how to involve priests, laity and religious, and people of different generations".

"To be a bishop, one must have the ability to listen, both to those who have the same ideas and to those who protest.

"Is not easy," she added.

Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet, who heads the Dicastery for Bishops, once told Vida Nueva that "30% of those chosen to be bishops reject the appointment".

Vida Nueva asked Sister Reungoat what might explain this situation.

"There may be a difficulty in accepting the responsibility of being bishop of a particular church with all the joys, challenges and complaints that it entails," she said.

Sister Reungoat, who headed the congregation of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians (Salesians) until October 2021, told Vida Nueva that it is important for women to have a role in naming new bishops.

The presence of women in the dicastery will allow for views and a sensitivity or awareness that are both common among men and women and "complementary", she said.

Women are more likely to be working very closely and have "direct contact" with people and situations "on the ground," she said. "We have knowledge that starts from reality. This experience is also about listening and dialoguing with this reality."

Having this "complementary vision" can help get "closer to reality, which is complex" and varied since bishops serve in different parts of the world. Sr Reungoat said that the dicastery must study and discern much information from the different nunciatures.

Seeing more women represented at high levels of the church may make women feel more involved, she said.

However, having a woman in a particular position "does not mean that the situation will automatically change. There needs to be a reciprocal openness".

In mid-July, Pope Francis named 14 new members to the dicastery responsible for helping the pope choose bishops. For the first time ever, the members included women: two religious and one lay.

Before Pope Francis' reform of the Roman Curia took effect in June, members of the dicastery were only cardinals and a few bishops.

Sources

• Catholic News
• Vida Nueva

It's about allowing the church to fulfil the mission given to it by God, said women at an international conference on priesthood at the Vatican last week.

Organized by Cardinal Marc Ouellet, the conference examined the theology of the priesthood and its relationship to consecrated life.

The speakers included Professor Michelina Tenace, Sister Alessandra Smerilli and Martha Olavarrieta de Gómez Serrano.

"The church needs women and must call them to serve for the good of all people" said Tenace (pictured).

She spoke of the 2016 Study Commission on the Women's Diaconate of which she is a member.

Women deacons' disappearance in the Latin-rite church didn't mean women no longer had a place - their holiness continued to be recognised and their service utilised.

"As all the baptised are called to serve humanity, today the issue's not about restoring the past, but discovering what ministry do the people of God need.

"Ministries for women are urgently needed to recognise the true identity of the church" Tenace said.

"Our duty to serve the church must constantly. Ask: 'How can we better serve humanity seeking salvation and in the way most in compliance with the mandate of the Lord'".

Smerilli said the ministry should be examined from the 'logic of communion' as part of the covenant between God and human beings, rather than a perspective of 'claiming' rights or powers.

Genesis describes the covenant as beginning with God entrusting creation's care to a man and a woman — a responsibility that remains today.

The church, its mission and women suffer when women's gifts and call to service are underutilised, she said.

"We need to reflect both the male and female aspects of God, and to work together in reciprocity and dialogue, in communion and fruitfulness in every area of human experience.

"Women are a rightful part of this advancement toward the truth inspired by the Holy Spirit", she said. Women in the church and 'female charisms' have achieved 'extraordinary things' in the past.

"The church is called to seek alliances between men and women, despite any resistance to change", she said.

"Constructive, unifying and mission-oriented collaboration among men and women, both religious and lay, and of multiple generations, already happens in many places, parishes or associations" Smerilli said.

Olavarrieta, a mother of nine, was active in family ministry in Mexico City and helped organise the World Meeting of Families there in 2009. She spoke of ways families cultivate the faith among their members and reach out to evangelise and serve the larger community.

It is a vocation of saying 'yes' to the gifts and graces of life and marriage and journeying together with priests.

"Women have always walked alongside Jesus, reaching out to him as mothers, sisters, daughters, and this is how he addressed them," Smerilli said. Priests today still need a variety of women to carry out Christ's mission.

Source

• CNS
• IMAGO - images

Once called the "shrink of the Church", Fr Tony Anatrella (81), registered for the event on his own accord.

He joined around 400 participants in the Paul VI Hall to hear Pope Francis speak, attended the event for two of its three days and even dined with other attendees at Casa Santa Marta.

An unwelcome guest

Embarrassed event organiser, Cardinal Marc Ouellet, said Anatrella had not been invited. Registrations were managed by a local professional company and Anatrella simply registered and showed up.

As head of the Vatican's Congregation for Bishops, Ouellet has one of the most significant roles in the Catholic Church. His office vets prospective bishop candidates to lead dioceses across most of the world.

'Stupefaction' and 'dismay' were terms used by one bishop when he noticed the suspended psychoanalyst-priest.

Why he was unwelcome

Anatrella was sanctioned by the Archbishop of Paris in 2018 and has been under the shadow of a canonical trial since 2021 after complaints from former patients.

They accused the priest-therapist of practising 'therapies' aimed at 'curing' them of homosexuality, which led to sexual abuse.

His ability to hear confessions or spiritually accompany people was subsequently removed and he was asked to renounce all public interventions and therapeutic activities.

In 2007, three civil cases against Anatrella were dismissed.

In 2019 the diocese received a new allegation dating back to 1974.

In 2021 the Diocese of Paris began a canonical trial which is still underway. Trial details are not public.

Anatrella has repeatedly denied all accusations saying he is a victim of factions in the Church.

Security questioned

In his weekly Letter from Rome column, the Editor of la Croix International, Robert Micken, has been vocal in his criticism of the Vatican's handling of the matter.

"Even if an outside company handled the logistics, did no one among the Vatican organisers - chief among them Cardinal Ouellet - think that maybe it might a good idea to check who had actually signed up for symposium?" he asked when La Croix broke the story.

"Just for security reasons alone. After all, the registered participants were going to be in the same room with the pope!

"Secondly, Anatrella isn't just any old priest. He's been a fixture around the Vatican for many years, serving as one of its most influential advisors on sexual matters," Mickens clarified.

Sources

• Aleteia
• La Croix
• Image: Le Point

In particular, they highlighted the "disproportionate punishments" inflicted on bishops accused of cover-ups in comparison with convicted abusers.

Archbishop Stanislaw Gadecki, president of the Polish bishops' conference, told Poland's Catholic Information Agency, KAI, that Polish bishops met with Cardinal Marc Ouellet, prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, at the Vatican Oct 12.

Gadecki said the bishops were trying to be faithful to Pope Francis' May 2019 motu proprio, "Vos Estis Lux Mundi". This revised and clarified norms and procedures for holding bishops and religious superiors accountable for protecting abusers.

"Our task is to work with the Holy Father in clearing up our church's current situation. This has undermined trust among certain people," Archbishop Gadecki told KAI after the meeting with Cardinal Ouellet.

"But critical remarks have been made about the Holy See's treatment of bishops who have had punishments imposed for shortcomings, transgressions or acts of forgetfulness in dealing with clergy accused of paedophilia.

Some (Polish bishops) highlighted the disproportionate, lasting penalties imposed on bishops after initial investigations, when paedophile criminals can leave prison after five years and begin a new life with a clean sheet."

"We're talking about the civil death of an accused member in the hierarchy who isn't a paedophile, who's removed from office, falls into infamy and is effectively annihilated by the media", Archbishop Gadecki told KAI.

"The cardinal was rather surprised by my words", Gadecki continued. "But he accepted we were not being aggressive toward the Holy See, just asking questions whether all of this conforms with the principle of proportionate guilt and punishment."

Ten mostly retired bishops have faced sanctions for ignoring abuse complaints in Poland, where allegations of past cover-ups are surfacing.

Archbishop Gadecki told KAI Cardinal Ouellet pledged to take account of the Polish bishops' criticisms when procedures set out in "Vos Estis Lux Mundi" were reviewed in 2022.

The archbishop said the aim of the review should be "not to release bishops from responsibility for their actions, but to reflect on a possible gradation of punishments."

Sources

Catholic News

Despite major intestinal surgery last July and his upcoming 85th birthday in December, the Italo-Argentine pope — amazingly! — is showing absolutely no signs that he's slowing down or planning to close up shop anytime soon.

His recent four-day visit to Budapest, the capital of Hungary, and then to three cities in neighbouring Slovakia, did nothing to slacken his pace.

Although he looked tired at times during the first day of the September 12-15 trip to Central Europe (he rose around 3:30 in the morning that day), Francis seemed to gain energy as the journey unfolded.

And he resumed his busy schedule of meetings with individuals and groups the very next day after returning to the Vatican.

But the pope is well aware that he has moved into the final and most critical phase of his pontificate, which he has positioned to — among other things — radically transform the governing structures and decision-making mechanisms of the Roman Catholic Church.

"Some wanted me dead"

And he knows there are influential Catholics, and even men in the hierarchy, who would like to see this and other projects brought immediately to a halt.

When a Jesuit confrere in Slovakia asked how he was doing, Francis replied: "Still alive. Despite the fact that some wanted me dead."

It was a reference to his July operation.

"I know there were meetings among prelates who thought (the pope's health) was even more serious than was reported. They were preparing the conclave," the pope said.

Francis then went on to complain about clerics who make "nasty comments" about him and even a large Catholic television network (it seems he meant EWTN) that "badmouths (him) continuously without any qualms".

It is highly unusual for a pope to openly admit — and lament — that he is facing opposition.

Was Francis conceding that his power to rally the troops has been weakened? Or, rather, was he warning those who are being uncooperative and even adversarial that he has finally lost his patience?

Either way, it looks very much like he's decided to move into high gear, despite any efforts by opposing forces to derail this final phase of his pontificate.

Things to be done

One of the major projects during his time as pope has been to rewrite the apostolic constitution for the Rome Curia, the Church's central bureaucracy at the Vatican.

It is said that the document for the "reformed" Curia was completed several months ago and is currently undergoing final corrections, but we still have no idea when it will finally be published.

In all truth, Francis has been implementing reforms, bit-by-bit, all throughout his pontificate by combining or suppressing certain offices, changing a number of protocols and legislation, etc.

He claimed in an interview a couple of months ago that there will be no surprises when the new apostolic constitution is unveiled. But surprises, like beauty, are in the eye of the beholder. There will likely be things that some people will not like at all.

The bigger challenge will be selecting officials who can implement the reform and, more importantly, its guiding vision and ethos. Francis has to make numerous key personnel changes, especially to replace several cardinals in major Vatican posts who are already past the normal retirement age of 75.

The Jesuit pope has habitually by-passed the Roman Curia during much of his pontificate and has increasingly said and done things to "smoke out" those who are not in line with his policies.

He's provoked reactions in a way that has forced bishops and cardinals to show their true colours and reveal where they really stand on disputed issues.

And he's operated in unconventional ways — like ordering apostolic visitations of Curia offices — that keep those who work in the Vatican "guessing" or "off-balance".

It's not only possible, but also probable, that rumours of the pope's ill-health were spread by Francis himself!

As the first pope since Pius X (over a hundred years ago) who never studied or worked in Rome, Francis is an outsider. And he's had to move creatively and strategically to outmanoeuvre the Curia forces.

One of the keys to this has been his deliberate moves to de-mythologize the papacy, mainly by speaking and acting as if he were just any other bishop and by conducting many of his affairs in a non-institutional way.

Obviously, this has infuriated many in the Vatican and in the hierarchy.

Will he ever resign?

There is no question that Francis would like to see it become quite normal for the Bishop of Rome to have the option to freely resign his office, rather than maintaining papal resignations as something extraordinary that happen only once every four- or five-hundred years.

As a Jesuit, he knows better than any that normalizing resignation from a once considered a lifetime office can more easily gain traction when consecutive office holders step down.

The late Peter-Hans Kolvenbach was the Jesuits' first-ever Father General to resign voluntarily from his lifetime post. But it was not easy.

John Paul II refused to allow him to retire. Kolvenbach had to wait until after Benedict XVI was elected pope to finally be able to resign. He and Benedict agreed in 2006 that the Dutch Jesuit would step down two years later upon his 80th birthday.

Kolvenbach's successor, Adolfo Nicolás, resigned in 2016, also when he turned 80 years of age. And it is expected that the man who replaced him and is the current Father General will also resign one day, rather than remain in office for life.

It seems clear that Francis would like to see a similar situation happen with the papacy — in an ideal world. But things are far from ideal right now and much depends on the circumstances.

It is said that it would be unwise to have two retired popes who are still alive. But if Francis were to feel he is unable to fulfill his duties as pope, he probably would not hesitate to step down, even if Benedict were still alive.

However, if Benedict dies before he does, the current pope could decide to resign precisely in order to "normalize" papal resignations.

What about the opposition?

Some Italian reports, following up on Francis' comments to the Jesuits in Slovakia, say there are four or five cardinals and bishops — all members of the Roman Curia and mostly non-Italians — who have already begun strategizing for the next conclave.

Cardinal George Pell

One person to keep an eye on is Australian Cardinal George Pell, the man who backed Angelo Scola in the 2013 conclave that elected Francis.

Pell turned 80 in June and is ineligible to vote for the next pope, but he can do a lot of politicking for the forces inside the College of Cardinals who want to reverse (or severely alter) the direction in which Francis is steering the Barque of Peter.

Pell, the Vatican's former financial czar, returned to Australia in 2017 to be tried on historic sex abuse charges. He was convicted and jailed for just over a year, but then the sentence was reversed in April 2020.

At the time, the cardinal said he would go to Rome to clean out his apartment but planned on returning to Sydney for good. He arrived in the Eternal City exactly one year ago — in September 2020 — and he has never left.

And the only way he'll likely go back to Australia before the next conclave is in a box. Because he and others who are not fans of Francis want to be part of the conversation and politics leading up to the next papal election.

Cardinal Marc Ouellet

The strongest candidate in the anti-Francis camp still appears to be Cardinal Marc Ouellet, 77, who has been head of the powerful Congregation for Bishops the past 11 years. He's carefully downplayed and even hidden his more traditionalist views, which line up almost identically with those of Benedict XVI.

Surely, enough of the cardinal-electors will see through this, right? Don't be so sure. Many of them are from far-flung places. They are not theological heavy-hitters or very fluent in the language of Vatican politics.

Cardinal Péter Erdő

Another candidate of the anti-Francis bloc is Hungarian Cardinal Péter Erdő. He got his red hat in 2003 at the same consistory at which Pell, Scola and Ouellet also became cardinals.

The 69-year-old canon lawyer speaks Italian flawlessly and is also conversant in German, French and Spanish. He is a former two-term president of the Council of the Episcopal Conferences of Europe (CCEE), which consists of the heads of all national bishops' conferences on the Old Continent.

Erdő has carefully cultivated friendships and alliances in the College of Cardinals and is expected to be a major player at the next conclave, either as a candidate or kingmaker. He won praise for being a gracious host at the International Eucharistic Congress earlier this month in Budapest.

No fewer than 11 voting-age cardinals attended the all-expenses-paid weeklong congress. Even prelates who do not share all of the Hungarian cardinal's theological perspectives came away with a much more favorable impression of him.

Do the pope's allies have a strategy?

Francis has named 70 of the current 121 cardinal-electors. And he's sure to name more, perhaps as early as November, just to keep the slots filled over the next several months.

If there is a consistory in a couple of months from now, the pope will probably create only five to seven new cardinals. That will keep the number of electors hovering just over the 120 limit that Paul VI set. That is an arbitrary limit, actually, that the pope has absolute freedom to exceed at any moment.

John Paul II twice pushed the number to 135 and Benedict XVI once expanded it to 125.

Five of the current electors age out between now and next June, but three of them are cardinals that Francis named; the other two got their red hats from John Paul.

Six more reach the age of 80 between June 2022 and the end of that year. Only one of them was named by Francis, but four were created by Benedict.

Therefore, barring any deaths among the body of electors, the Jesuit pope's cardinals could, by the end of 2020, constitute well over the required 2/3 majority needed to choose his successor.

Will the next pope continue Francis' vision?

Fans of the current pope's style and course of action should thank God that Benedict XVI was elected in 2005.

Because it is very likely that if Jorge Mario Bergoglio from Argentina had been chosen at that conclave, he would have been a much different pope than the one he is today.

Without Benedict there is no Francis.

We cannot know for sure what kind of pontificate Bergoglio would have had as the immediate successor of John Paul II. But it probably would have looked somewhat different from the one we've been experiencing since 2013.

The current pope reportedly told a fellow cardinal after the 2005 conclave that he probably would have called himself John XXIV had the votes gone to him instead of Benedict.

But would he have been ready — would the Church have been ready — back then for the reforms and change of ethos he has championed as Pope Francis?

We do not know. And neither do we know if the man who succeeds him will carry the reforming spirit forward.

There are simply no guarantees.

Even if Francis stacks the College of Cardinals with supporters, there is no way he or anyone else can ensure that one of his men will get elected.

Think about this: John Paul's successor (Benedict) got his red hat from Paul VI. And Benedict's successor (Francis) got his from John Paul.

Take a good look at the 38 electors who got their red hats from Benedict and see if you'd be excited if any of them were to succeed Pope Francis.

• Robert Mickens is LCI Editor in Chief.
• First published in La-Croix International. Republished with permission.

It will be held in February 2022.

Increasing vocations to the priesthood, improving the way laypeople and priests work together and ensuring that service, not power, motivates the request for ordination are all possible outcomes of the 3-day symposium.

"A theological symposium does not claim to offer practical solutions to all the pastoral and missionary problems of the church. But it can help us deepen the foundation of the church's mission," said Cardinal Marc Ouellet, prefect of the Congregation for Bishops and the chief organizer of the symposium.

"The baptismal life is the fundamental human vocation, and all must exercise the priesthood received at baptism. Ministry is at the service of this," he said.

"Reflecting on the fundamental theology of the priesthood will also make it possible to return to the justifications for priestly celibacy and the way it is lived."

The symposium seeks to encourage an understanding of the ministerial priesthood that is conferred at baptism.

This gets away from the idea of ordained ministry as belonging to "ecclesiastical power," the cardinal said.

The relationship between baptism and ordained ministry needs greater emphasis today, Ouellet said. But reviewing the foundations of a theology of priesthood also "involves ecumenical questions not to be ignored, as well as the cultural movements that question the place of women in the church."

Michelina Tenace, a professor of theology at Rome's Pontifical Gregorian University, is helping organize the symposium.

She said going back to baptism and the priesthood of all believers "isn't just a fashion, it's the basis for all Christian life."

The clerical abuse scandal, Tenace said, makes the questions of priestly identity, vocational discernment and formation more urgent.

Fr. Vincent Siret, rector of the Pontifical French Seminary in Rome, said a deeper reflection on the priesthood — both the priesthood of all the baptized and ministerial priesthood — is essential for those engaged in training men for the priesthood.

The Catholic Church requires most priests in its Latin rite to be celibate.

While Ouellet, Siret and Tenace all mentioned the importance of celibacy in the Latin rite, none mentioned the traditions of the Eastern Catholic churches that continue to have both married and celibate clergy.

Sources

National Catholic Reporter

The Holy See Press Office did not release any information on the meeting other than that it took place. Much of the press speculated that the meeting was probably to discuss what happened 10 days before, when the cardinal publicly criticized the U.S. bishops' official statement on the inauguration of President Joe Biden.

But sources in Rome who spoke to CNA on background said that Cupich met the pope not to speak of what happened in the recent past, but what may happen in the near future: Blase Cupich replacing Cardinal Marc Ouellet as prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.

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And some observers wonder if this is the start of a trend that could continue in 2020, when at least two more such posts are expected to come free.

• French Cardinal Marc Ouellet, who has led the Congregation of Bishops since 2010, will conclude a second five-year term in the role on June 30.
• Guinean Cardinal Robert Sarah, who heads the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, passed the conclusion date of his first term this Nov. 23.

"Francis is really beginning to put together a team of his own inside the Curia," said Marco Politi, a respected Italian journalist who is author of nearly a dozen books on the Vatican.

"Many of Francis' supporters have criticized him behind the scenes for not having put in place a spoils system at the Vatican and for not putting people dedicated to his reform agenda in key posts," said Politi, a former long-time Vatican correspondent for the daily newspaper La Repubblica.

"Future appointments to the posts now occupied by Cardinals Sarah and Ouellet will permit Francis to create a more uniform leadership at the Vatican's highest levels," he said.

Although Francis' plans for Ouellet and Sarah are unknown, Ouellet turned 75, the traditional retirement age for bishops and cardinals, last June. Sarah will turn 75 in June 2020.

A third Vatican official who appears near retirement is Italian Cardinal Beniamino Stella, the prefect for the Congregation of the Clergy, who is 78 and passed the limit on his five-year term on Sept. 21, 2018.

The Vatican does not publicize Francis' choices on whether or not to renew his officials' terms of office.

In response to a question regarding whether Francis has renewed Stella or Sarah's mandates, the director of the Vatican Press Office, Matteo Bruni, noted that heads of Vatican offices frequently serve beyond the dates of expiration of their terms, at the pope's discretion.

Massimo Faggioli, a theologian and historian who has written extensively on Francis' papacy, said he did not know whether the pontiff might be wanting to free up space at the top of Vatican offices in order to call in allies.

"This is an open question for me," said Faggioli, a professor at Villanova University. Earlier in his papacy, said the theologian, Francis appeared to think that "he could do without the Curia."

"I don't know if he has changed his mind compared to the first years," said Faggioli. "It is very possible."

Neither Ouellet nor Sarah have openly criticized Francis. Both have, however, made clear that they disagree with the pontiff in certain areas.

Ouellet, for example, publicly opposed the proposal of October's Synod of Bishops for the Amazon to allow for the priestly ordination of married men on a limited basis in order to meet sacramental needs in the nine-nation region.

And the cardinal held a book launch at the Vatican days before the start of the synod for a volume enunciating his views, titled Friends of the Bridegroom: For a Renewed Vision of Priestly Celibacy.

For his part, Sarah famously waited a year to implement a 2014 request from Francis that he issue a decree making clear that women are allowed to participate in Holy Thursday foot-washing rites. Continue reading

Ouellet says a deepened understanding of celibacy is preferable to grabbing at quick solutions to resolve the current lack of priests.

He makes the claim in his newly published book "Friends of the Bridegroom: For a Renewed Vision of Priestly Celibacy."

Ouellet says he is "skeptical" of the proposed idea in the Amazon of ordaining to the priesthood "viri probati" - older, married men.

Without naming names, he says he also knows some in higher positions "in the Roman Curia" who have similar doubts.

"I am not against the fact that there is a debate, but I think at this time of history and of the Church there is a need of reflection…" he says.

"And so, my intervention is to substantiate the debate, to give something substantial to aid discernment.

"I remain skeptical out of convictions and knowledge of the Catholic tradition in the Latin rite, so I think this has to be very much taken care of in the debate".

Ouellet says he remains open to what will happen during the synod.

Ouellet also says he knows Francis has mentioned having no intention to change Church practice on priestly celibacy in the Latin rite.

He has not excluded the possibility of an exception, however.

Ouellet has given Francis two copies of his new book and that Francis is happy he is joining in on the viri probati debate.

He says in writing it, he thought it was a good time to contribute his years of "knowledge, wisdom, and experience" to the Church's discussion of priestly celibacy, and in the particular context of this month's Amazon synod, to the debate on "viri probati."

"I think that priestly celibacy, but also religious consecration, is a powerful witness to the divinity of Jesus Christ and to his call to follow him and to leave everything to be with him, and to do what he asks us to do.

The close link between celibacy and the priesthood "is the fact that the priest is in charge of ... proclaiming and giving the definitive and ultimate Word of God to the world," he says.

"The link between celibacy and the priesthood in the Latin Church comes from the apostles and it has been kept through the centuries despite times of decadence, of difficulties, of refusal...

"It's been always difficult, but it remains an extraordinary witness to the divinity of Christ and to the presence of the Risen Lord among us so that we give him an answer, because he is there, calling us to communion."

Source

• Catholic News Agency
• Image: America Magazine

Their meetings followed correspondence earlier this month in which Ouellet told Marx earlier the proposed synodal process could not begin without the pope's approval.

Ouellet included a four-page legal assessment of the synodal plans with his letter, which concludes the proposed synodal assembly is "not ecclesiologically valid".

The legal assessment also says the synodal plans aim to treat matters of universal Church teaching and discipline which "cannot be the object of the deliberations or decisions of a particular Church without contravening what is expressed by the Holy Father in his letter."

Despite this, Marx, who is the president of the German Episcopal Conference, was positive about the meetings.

"In both talks, a constructive dialogue took place, which will feed into the deliberations of the general assembly of the German Episcopal Conference next week."

Marx said he Francis and Ouellet discussed the draft statutes for a "Synodal Assembly" that the German bishops plan to form in partnership with the Central Committee of German Catholics.

The final plans for the process are on the agenda for the conference's meeting in Fulda this week.

If implemented the German process is likely to involve the conference and the lay Central Committee leadership engaging in a two-year partnership which would begin in Advent.

The conference's new direction was driven by an independent study about the extent of clerical sexual abuse in Germany.

Source

• The Catholic World Report
• Crux Now
• Image: AsiaNews

However, Cardinal Reinhard Marx is defending the "synodal procedure" the German bishops have initiated with the Central Committee of German lay Catholics, against Rome's attempts to question its canonical legality.

He says the German bishops have the right to debate matters on which the Magisterium has already ruled.

Marx announced plans for a "binding synodal process" earlier this year.

The planned "Synodal Assembly" documents were approved in August by the executive committee of the German bishops' conference, ahead of a final hearing at a full meeting which will be held next week.

Cardinal Marc Ouellet, head of the Vatican's Congregation for Bishops, says the Assembly must conform to guidelines issued by Pope Francis in June.

He was referring to a letter Francis wrote to the German bishops warning them to respect the universal communion of the Church.

"Every time the ecclesial community has tried to resolve its problems alone, trusting and focusing exclusively on its forces or its methods, its intelligence, its will or prestige, it ended up increasing and perpetuating the evils it tried to solve," Francis wrote.

Ouelett's letter also points out that a synod in Germany cannot act to change universal Church teaching or discipline.

A four-page legal assessment of the German bishops' draft statutes was attached to his letter.

The assessment, which came from the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, says the German bishops' plans violate canonical norms and set out to alter universal norms and doctrines of the Church.

It notes the German bishops' proposal to discuss four key themes: "authority, participation, and separation of powers," "sexual morality," "the form of priestly life," and "women in Church ministries and offices."

"It is easy to see that these themes do not only affect the Church in Germany but the universal Church and - with few exceptions - cannot be the object of the deliberations or decisions of a particular Church without contravening what is expressed by the Holy Father in his letter," the assessment adds.

Marx repudiates the Vatican's assessment of the synodal process for the upcoming meeting and the topics it plans to discuss.

"The suspicion on Rome's part that by discussing such subjects as power, women's position in the Church, sexual morality and the priestly way of life, the German bishops were ignoring their true calling as shepherds was unacceptable", he says.

"We bishops are doing what we are committed to as shepherds in order to liberate evangelisation and proclamation of Christ's Message from the obstacles which stand in the way."

Source

• Catholic News Agency
• The Tablet
• Image: Crux Now

Noting Viganò had urged him to tell the truth about Archbishop Emeritus Theodore McCarrick, Ouellet - with Pope Francis's permission - offered Viganò his "personal testimony, as the Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops."

Ouellet says his response is based partly on his personal knowledge "regarding the events concerning McCarrick and his presumed links with Pope Francis" and partly on documents in the Congregation for Bishops' archive.

The events Ouellet refers to constitute the subject of what he calls Viganò's "sensational public denunciation, as well as [his] demand that the Holy Father resign."

Addressing his letter to "Dear fellow brother, Carlo Maria Viganò," Ouellet went on to denounce the former nuncio's accusations against Francis, charging him with "blasphemy" for calling into question the pope's faith and asking him to repent.

"Your present position appears to me incomprehensible and extremely reprehensible, not only because of the confusion that it sows in the People of God, but also because of the accusations that seriously damage the good name of the Successors of the Apostles," Ouellet told Viganò.

Ouellet provided Viganò with numerous reasons for disbelieving his testimony against Francis. These include:

• lack of written evidence
• that he "strongly" doubted McCarrick was of interest to Francis in 2011 "to the point [Viganò] believed him to be, since ... he was an 82-year-old Archbishop Emeritus who had been without an appointment for seven years"
• the written brief the Congregation of Bishops prepared for Viganò at the beginning of his service in 2011 said only one thing about McCarrick

The written brief focused on McCarrick's situation as an emeritus Bishop: he was supposed to obey certain conditions and restrictions due to rumours surrounding his past behaviour.

Source

• America Magazine
• Vatican News
• Image: CBC.ca

This would help prevent future sex abuse, says Ouellet the prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.

He also thinks bishops should also be chosen more carefully.

"We are facing a crisis in the life of the church... and also to a certain extent a rebellion," Ouellet says.

"This [the sex abuse scandal] is a very serious matter that has to be dealt with in a spiritual way, not only in a political way."

He also says direct attacks against Pope Francis over the scandals were "unjust."

Ouellet's comments come amid a string of revelations regarding allegations of sexual abuse and cover-up by clergy in several regions of the world.

The pope has met with numerous victims of abuse and many clergy since disclosure of abuse has been brought into the open.

Several senior members of the clergy have resigned as a result.

In late July, Francis accepted the resignation of retired Washington DC Archbishop Theodore McCarrick from the College of Cardinals and suspended him from the exercise of any public ministry, amid allegations of sexual abuse and coercion.

Francis has just met US bishops and cardinals to discuss the Vatican's response after McCarrick was accused of sexually abusing a teenager while working as a priest in New York in the early 1970s.

Source

• Catholic Herald
• GeoTV
• The BC Catholic
• Image: Catholic Herald