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A Cardinal Call for Change.(call for reform of the Roman Curia)(Brief Article)
The papacy is the last of Europe's Renaissance courts, a system that makes courtiers of the cardinals and straight talk a rare experience. And so, when Pope John Paul II summoned his cardinals to Rome last week for a three-day consistory, many of them spoke in obsequious sentences- -often quoting the pope's own words--rather than giving him what he asked for: their own thoughts on issues affecting the future of the church. The remarkable thing is that a few cardinals found the courage to ask him to loosen the papal reins and treat his fellow bishops as genuine colleagues.
Of the 155 cardinals at the secret sessions, several called for reform of the Roman Curia, the Vatican bureaucracy, including two members of the Curia itself. For at least six years, John Paul has left the daily business of running the Holy See to Curia officials, who often ignore the bishops around the world. For example, the Vatican official in charge of overseeing the translation of liturgical texts has refused for two years to meet with a committee of English-speaking bishops. At a coffee break cardinals cornered him and demanded a date to air their differences.
Petty skirmishes such as this led at least eight important cardinals to call for mild "collegial" reforms in the way the church is governed. Under John Paul II, decision making has been centralized in Rome. But German Cardinal Walter Kasper, seconded by Cardinal Carlo Martini of Milan, urged the pope to grant more freedom and responsibility to local bishops and their national and regional conferences. Cardinal Godfried Danneels of Brussels suggested that the international synod of bishops, which meets every three years, become a "truly democratic process" rather than the timid advisory council it is today. Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor of England went even further: he proposed that a representative of the world's bishops be given a permanent position, second only to the Vatican's secretary of State, to ensure that voices of the local churches and their leaders be heard and respected in Rome.
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