Quite a feud between the Apostolic See (through its Secretariat of State) and the supposedly Catholic international organization known as "Caritas" (its main American affiliate is Catholic Charities, and its main British affiliate is CAFOD). Since the position of Caritas International has been dubiously Catholic in the past few decades, the Holy See has at last intervened in what had become a scandalous situation.The Vatican has indicated that it blocked Lesley-Anne Knight from a second term at the helm of the Church’s largest development organisation because it wants a new leader who can strengthen its Catholic identity and forge more cordial working relations with the Holy See.
Rome’s reasons for failing to allow the re-appointment of Dr Knight as secretary general of the Rome-based Caritas Internationalis (CI) are given in a letter sent by the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone SDB, to all the world’s episcopal conferences and seen this week by The Tablet.
“During the next four years particular attention will have to be given to harmonising the theological dimension of Caritas Internationalis … with its role as an organisation operating on the international stage,” says the three-page letter, dated 15 February. It adds that the next CI secretary general will also need to improve communication with other ecclesial bodies and with the dicasteries of the Roman Curia that have an “interest” in CI activities.
The letter, which was also sent to bishops responsible for the 165 member charities that make up the Caritas confederation, further indicates that the advocacy work that Caritas carries out must be better coordinated “in strict cooperation with the Holy See, which is specifically competent in this regard”.
Mrs. Knight's predecessor as secretary-general of Caritas International, Duncan MacLaren, had already been quite vocal defending his predecessor and attacking the Roman See in an article published in Australian Jesuit (what a shock!) website Eureka Street:
In an extraordinary move, Lesley-Anne Knight, my successor as Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis (CI, the Church's international relief agency), has not been granted the nihil obstat (basically, official approval) by the Vatican's Secretariat of State to stand for another four-year term.
There is outrage in the Confederation.
According to the statutes, a list of candidates must be presented timeously to the Holy See which then rings the secretary of the applicant's bishops' conference to ascertain whether the candidate is 'in good standing' with the Church.
What an outrage! The Roman and Apostolic See wants her main charitable institution to be Catholic and act in a clearly Catholic way? How dare they!?
Too bad for Mrs. Knight because, since the Pope's informal and indirect references to condoms last year, she was aching for some official policy allowing for a "change" in Caritas International regarding condoms... Is it too much to wonder, by the way, if Caritas workers do not already recommend or even distribute contraceptives in some places around the world?...
Too bad for Mrs. Knight because, since the Pope's informal and indirect references to condoms last year, she was aching for some official policy allowing for a "change" in Caritas International regarding condoms... Is it too much to wonder, by the way, if Caritas workers do not already recommend or even distribute contraceptives in some places around the world?...
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Merci au Forum Catholique!
