December 8, 2019
The appointment of Tagle as Prefect for Propaganda
Fide is an important signal for many reasons. But most of all because it gives
grounds to suppose that Pope Bergoglio believes the end of his pontificate is nigh.
An intuition, obviously; nonetheless, justifiable, if you consider another decision
taken - for no apparent reason - some
weeks ago.
We are referring here to the end of Fabiàn Pedacchio’s service as special
Secretary to the Pontiff over the last six years; a position commenced shortly
after the election of Jorge Mario Bergoglio on March 13, 2013. Fabián Pedacchio,
all this time, has maintained his position in the Congregation for Bishops, acting in support of his very close friend, Ilson
de Jesùs Montanari, appointed by Pope Francis as Secretary of that same
Congregation, resulting in an absolutely extraordinary leap in career; he divested
de facto the Prefect, Marc Ouellet, by
being, repeatedly, the leading voice in the choosing of bishops.
So, leaving the position of Secretary has a question
mark attached to it, if no other explanations are revealed. It has been said that Pedacchio will return to
the Congregation, but in reality, he never left it. However, if the rumors over
the last few weeks are true, the picture
would be very different. According to these rumors, in fact, the present Secretary
of the Congregation, Ilson Montanari, would be headed for Brazil, in an
important diocese (Salvador de Bahia). Bishop Krieger has already passed the age of retirement
by a year, to become the Primate of Brazil. And so the position of Secretary of
the Congregation would be taken over specifically by Fabián Pedacchio, who of
course, would become a titular Bishop.
In modern times, it has become standard practice that
the special Secretary to the Pontiff, is appointed bishop when it is thought the
reign is coming to an end; a sign of gratitude for services carried out, and
also a way of protecting him from possible retorsion. The work of a Pope’s special
Secretary creates friendships, but also generates less amiable, less positive sentiments.
Benedict XVI appointed Georg Gänswein to this role in
December 2012, a few months before announcing his demission in February 2013.
We will see if these rumors become reality in the upcoming
months.
But meantime, we have the unexpected appointment of Tagle
in Rome. The present Prefect of Propaganda Fide (…) Fernando Filoni is
seventy-three years old. Which means that his time to resign should be April 15, 2021. He has been the Prefect for the Congregation since May 2011;
so, his second mandate would come to an end in May 2021. This is a change of position that cannot be
explained by the numbers.
So, how hard is it to decipher sixty-two year
old Luis Tagle’s appointment to that position. He isn’t the first Asian to head
the Propaganda (he was preceded by Ivan Dias). Yet it is difficult to shake off
the idea, that by giving Tagle a position in Rome, to learn about the Curia and
broaden his audience of contacts and relationships, that Pope Francis doesn’t
want to give a clear signal for the succession, which other candidates, like
the present Secretary of State, Parolin, or the Prefect for Bishops, Ouellet
are [already] preparing for. But also
this signal - if this interpretation is correct
– indicates that, there is the sense that
the end of this reign is beginning to insinuate itself behind the Walls.
Source:https: https://www.marcotosatti.com/2019/12/08/papa-bergoglio-pensa-che-il-pontificato-stia-per-finire/
Translation:
Contributor Francesca Romana
