Update on secrecy, cardinals summoned to Rome

It looks like next Monday is going to mark a showdown on the transparency issue in the run-up to the conclave.

That’s the day cardinals begin their twice-daily “general congregations,” meetings that will provide a forum for discussion of church priorities and offer cardinals a chance to size up potential papal candidates.

It’s also the day of the first scheduled briefing on the general congregations, for the hundreds of reporters who are in Rome for the papal transition. The type of information provided to journalists on Monday will probably set the tone for coming days.

Sources today said Vatican communications officials expect to furnish at least generic summaries of the main themes covered in the cardinals’ conversations — but without naming names. In other words, we may be told, for example, that the subject of the church’s relations with Islam drew some strong proposals, but we won’t be told who made them.

Likewise, the cardinals are expected to be told by the dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, to be very careful in talking with reporters and others about the content of their meetings, and to avoid identifying individual speakers. This would, of course, make it more difficult to identify protagonists (and potential candidates).

If history is any guide, U.S. cardinals will probably follow the rules to the letter, while others — particularly Italians — may take a more flexible approach.

All the cardinals are free to speak in the general congregations, including those over the age of 80. There are 207 cardinals in all, 117 of voting age.

Sodano summons the cardinals

The Vatican released the letter send out today by Cardinal Sodano, summoning the cardinals to Rome for the general congregations and the conclave.

From the wording of the letter, it seems Cardinal Sodano is willing to wait until all voting-age cardinals are present or accounted for before deciding a date for the start of the conclave. That could mean it will be several more days before we know when the actual voting begins, not necessarily on Monday.

We were assured that in addition to snail mail, the letter was also faxed and emailed to cardinals.

The pope’s first night as ’emeritus’

Although reporters weren’t really expecting it, Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi briefed them today on what Benedict did in the hours following his abdication last night. For one thing, the ex-pope sat down with his secretary to watch TV news reports on his resignation — and apparently they were both pleased at the depth of coverage. Lombardi, in fact, thanked journalists for the generally excellent presentation of what he called an “intense and emotional” event.

The retired pope took a walk through ceremonial rooms of the papal villa at Castel Gandolfo, where he’s living for a couple of months before moving into a monastery inside the Vatican. According to his secretary, Benedict slept well and celebrated Mass this morning.

Benedict was expected to spend some time each day praying his breviary, walking in the gardens of the villa, playing the piano and reading. He brought a number of theology and history books with him, in particular a volume titled, “Hans Urs Von Balthasar’s Theological Aesthetics” (typical light reading for Benedict.) He was also taking time to read the many messages he’s received from people all over the world.

What’s unusual here is that the spokesman is continuing to give information about the ex-pope, even though Benedict has entered what he has called a “hidden” life. It will be interesting to see whether news about Benedict will slowly fade from these briefings.

World premiere – sealing the papal apartments

The Vatican today showed reporters a four-minute film showing how the papal chamberlain, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, sealed the papal apartment following the pope’s resignation. Carrying a “ferula,” a scepter symbolizing his limited authority during the interregnum, Bertone taped shut the private elevator door leading to the papal quarters and then stamped a “sede vacante” seal with a little machine.

To tell the truth, the tape looked like glorified masking tape, and the scene drew laughs in the Vatican press office.

At the main apartment door, Bertone locked it, wrapped a long red ribbon through the handles and then used a hot-wax gun to mark it with the seal.

Benedict pledges ‘unconditional obedience’ to next pope

A few hours before his resignation, Pope Benedict sought to reassure cardinals and the rest of the church on two important points.

First, he said that the church is a “living reality” that can transform itself and adapt to modern times without changing its fundamental identity, which is found in Christ. The message here was that while papal resignation marks a shift in the office of the papacy, it does not mark a break with the church’s core mission and values.

Second, Benedict, in the clearest words possible, pledged his “unconditional reverence and obedience” to the next pope. Although no one expects Benedict to interfere in any way with the ministry of his successor, this was a line that probably needed to be pronounced so that no one has any doubts, and so that any question of split allegiances will be avoided in the future.

The pope spoke to more than 130 cardinals and dozens of Roman Curia officials who gathered in the Vatican’s ornate Clementine Hall to say goodbye, about nine hours before his resignation was to take affect. Some of the cardinals whispered in the pope’s ear as they came up for individual greetings, others handed him notes and a few posed afterward for a photo with the departing pontiff.

Addressing the pope briefly at the start of the ceremony, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, dean of the College of Cardinals, appeared to be sending some not-so-subtle signals about recent criticism of the Roman Curia. He underlined the pope’s recent words of appreciation for the Curia’s efforts over the last eight years, quoting the pontiff as praising the “great competence, affection, love and faith” of his Curia officials.

Over the last two weeks, commentators and even some cardinals have described the Roman Curia as part of the burden that weighed on Pope Benedict, pointing to recent episodes of mismanagement, leaks and power struggles in some Vatican quarters. In some accounts, the pope has been described as frustrated and disappointed by the mistakes of top aides, and alarmed at malfeasance inside Vatican walls.

Pope Benedict himself does not seem to be buying into that narrative. Yesterday, in a farewell address to the faithful, he went out of his way to praise the work of the Roman Curia, and said that despite some “rough waters” he looked back on his pontificate with a sense of joy and accomplishment.

The pope’s heartfelt goodbye — and a nod to the Curia

Those waiting for Pope Benedict to open his heart on the question of his resignation were not disappointed today.

In his final general audience, the day before he abdicates the papal throne, the pope spoke in an unusually personal way about his decision and offered a frank assessment of his pontificate – both the moments of joy and moments of “rough waters.”

His words appeared designed to counter the popular media image of a discouraged and defeated pope who felt let down by the top officials of the Roman Curia.

He went out of his way, in fact, to thank the Curia, in particular the secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, who has been seen by many observers as a big part of the problem when it comes to Curia tensions and infighting.

Benedict also expressed gratitude to the many Vatican employees who “remain in the shadows, but who precisely in their silence and daily dedication … have been for me a sure and trusted support.”

Speaking to an overflow and enthusiastic crowd in St. Peter’s Square, the pope took issue with what has become a dominant narrative in the media: that of a pontiff so frustrated with the problems of church governance and ill-served by his aides that he felt constrained to leave the scene.

“I have never felt alone in bearing the joy and the weight of the papal ministry,” he said. He said he’s relied on cardinals and the Roman Curia for advice, and always felt the “attention and great affection” of Catholic faithful around the world.

And despite the disappointments of his pontificate – which he did not specify – the pope said he was left with the conviction that the church still offers the path to real happiness, even “at a time when so many people talk about its decline.”

Some of the pope’s words also could be read as cautionary advice to a successor, especially when he said that “whoever assumes the papal ministry has no more privacy.” He no longer belongs to himself, but belongs to everyone, and any “private dimension” of his life disappears, the pope said.

That goes for a retired pope, too, he added.

“I’m not returning to a private life, to a life of trips, meetings, receptions or conferences,” he said. Instead, he said he plans to emulate St. Benedict, his papal namesake, in leading a life dedicated completely to God.

In explaining his own decision to retire, the pope made a remark that might have been aimed at the cardinals who will soon gather to elect his successor: “To love the church also means having the courage to make difficult choices, agonizing choices, keeping one’s focus always on the good of the church and not on oneself.”

The pope ended his talk on a characteristic note, asking his audience to remember that God loves them. Then he sat back and, with a beaming smile, listened as the crowd gave him a prolonged ovation.