Robert de Mattei
Corrispondenza Romana
December 24, 2016
Has the Pope appointed an external commissioner to the
Order of Malta? Pope Francis undeniably likes the strategy of appointing
external commissioners as he has already adopted this draconian measure against
two religious communities considered too “traditional”: the Franciscans of the
Immaculate and the religious of the Incarnate Word. Further, it is not by chance that the
announcement of a commission to “gather suitable elements to inform the Holy
See thoroughly and swiftly with regard to the matter which has recently
involved the Grand Chancellor of the Order of Malta, Mr. Albrecht Freiherr von
Boeselager”, was given by the Vatican
Press Office on December 22nd, precisely while Pope Bergoglio was
transforming his traditional Christmas greetings to the Curia into a bitter chiding
against those who are resistant to his project of radical change in the Church,
with implicit reference to Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke, Patron of the Order of
Malta. However, in this case, the appointing of an external commissioner is not
at all possible.
As Don Fabrizio
Turriziani Colonna explains in a documented study dedicated to the Sovereignty
and independence of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (Libreria Editrice
Vaticana 2006), the Order of Malta and the Holy See are placed one in front of
the other as subjects of International Law and thus are in a position of
reciprocal independence. The Order of Malta, has in fact a twofold juridical
character; at the level of Canon Law, it is subordinate to the Holy See, but at
the level of International Law it is guaranteed independence from it. The fact
that the Order of Malta maintains diplomatic relations with 94 states and has
an ambassador to the Holy See, confirms that, in a certain sphere, their
relations are as equals. The Sovereign Military Order of Malta, is, in short, a
sovereign State, even if it has no territory, jealous of its autonomy and
privileges. Throughout nine centuries of history, the Knights of Malta have
been covered in glory, shedding their blood for the Church, but there have been
no want of conflicts between them and the Holy See.
The last one, narrated
by Roger Peyrefitte (Chevaliers de Malte,
Flammarion, Paris 1957), was after the Second World War, when the Order was able
to thwart an attempt to fuse them with the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre. This struggle
came to a halt in 1953 with the sentence by a Tribunal of cardinals which
recognized the sovereignty of the Order of Malta, but nonetheless affirming its
dependence on the Holy See as far as concerned the religious life of the
knights. The Order of Malta accepted the
sentence, conditioning it on some points:
1) the recognition of the rights due to it as subject of
international law; 2) the limitation of religious independence of the Order
only to professed knights and Chaplains; 3) the exclusion of subjection to the
Vatican Secretary of State.
The Holy See’s
competence does not involve then the internal and international governing of the Order, but limits itself to
the strictly religious sphere. At this point one could imagine that the Pope,
having identified deviations of a moral and doctrinal order among the knights,
had thought of intervening to straighten out the situation. What happened
instead? It was brought to light that
Albrecht von Boeselager, during his time as Grand Hospitaller of the Order, had
abused his power. promoting the distribution of tens of thousands of condoms
and contraceptives, also abortifacients, (so the reports related to the United
Nations’ programme against HIV/AIDS in Myanmar document), [so] the Grand Master
Matthew Festing intervened to bring an
end to the scandal and asked Boeselager to resign, appealing to the vow of
obedience made to him.
The Grand Chancellor,
strong in his friendship with the Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin and of his
brother George’s recent appointment to the board of the IOR (Institute for the
Works of Religion -the Vatican Bank) rejected
the request arrogantly, laying claim to his "liberal" Catholic stance. The
creation on the part of the Secretary of State of an investigative group of
five members, all of them more or less connected to Boeselager, constitutes a
serious case of interference in the governing of the Order. The Holy See should
limit itself to watching over the religious life through its Cardinal Patron,
Cardinal Burke, appointed by Pope Francis himself. The Pope has every right to
be informed with regard to the Order’s internal affairs, but it is irregular
for this to take place through a commission which bypasses the pontifical representative,
unless there is the desire to accuse the latter.
A Cardinal, however,
can be judged only by his peers and not by Vatican bureaucrats. Equally
improper is entrusting a Vatican Commission with the judgement of matters
regarding not the religious life, but the governing of the Order, accusing, in
this case, the Grand Master. The latter has done well to reject the bogus actions
by the commission. Unfortunately not only is the procedure bogus,
but the judgment in particular coming from the Vatican Authorities regarding
it. Whoever favours contraception and
abortion, disdaining the Church’s Magisterium, and violates their own vows, merits
rehabilitation nowadays. Whoever defends the Church’s teachings and the moral
integrity of the institutions he belongs to, is, on the other hand, accused of
“malevolent resistance” to the Holy Father and ends up in the dock. Let us hope that the Knights react. The
sovereignty of the Order of Malta is at stake as well as its uninterrupted
tradition in defense of the faith and Catholic morality.
Translation: Contributor Francesca Romana
