The next phase of Vatican reforms will be crucial
Apr 2, 2022
Pope Francis’ highly acclaimed reform of the Roman Curia will rise or fall on the people he chooses to oversee its implementation.
It’s not quite the revolution that so many people are talking about, but it could be a significant step in the right direction, depending on what happens next. Pope Francis surprised everyone last week when he ordered the hasty publication of a new apostolic constitution that codifies his reform for the Catholic Church’s central bureaucracy known as the Roman Curia. The new text — Praedicate Evangelium (“Preach the Gospel”) — was published before it was even properly edited. It includes numerous typos and even at least one factual error — the use of the now obsolete term “extraordinary form of the Roman Rite” (Sec. III, Art. 93).
Furthermore, the document was issued only in Italian. That’s unacceptable for a text that insists that the people who are hired to work in the Roman Curia “must mirror the catholicity of the Church” by hailing from “diverse cultures” from around the world (Sec. II, par. 10). By order of the pope, diverse cultures also means diverse languages. But as it stands right now, most Catholics who live on Planet Earth will not be able to read Praedicate Evangelium until translations are provided in the world’s major languages. Vatican officials have not been able to give any indication when that will actually happen.
They must first clean up the editio typica (Italian). Time is in on their side, however. The new document does not go into effect until June 5 — which happens to be Pentecost Sunday. And, finally, the publication of the new apostolic constitution was not announced in advance, which is standard practice for a document of such import. A real shame in this case, since this is only the fifth major text in all of Church history to define the structures and tasks of the Roman Curia.
The reasons why it was so hastily rolled out are not clear. The only thing that is certain is that it was done by orders of the pope. No one else had the authority to do so. A bit more than just tinkering, but not that much…This is all very unfortunate because Praedicate Evangelium is a pretty big deal — for both historical reasons and its contents. The very first constitution regulating the Roman Curia dates back to the 16th Century.
The most recent documents to “reform” this Vatican structure were issued by Paul VI in 1967 (just two years after the end of the Second Vatican Council) and by John Paul II in 1988 (to better “correspond to the ecclesiology spelled out” by Vatican II). This latest edition by Francis — which runs to 54 pages and includes 250 articles — is the fruit of the current pope’s efforts during his nine years in office to change the ethos and revamp the structures of the Vatican apparatus. His goal all along has been to make the Roman Curia more fit for evangelical outreach and to assist him in his ministry as chief pastor of the universal Church.
The new document does not really mark a revolution because, quite frankly, the basic structure that was set up by Pope Sixtus V in 1588 remains almost completely intact. Names and competences of certain offices or departments have been changed. Some have been merged, others suppressed. There are also some new bureaus, too, as demanded by the passage of time.
Almost none of these alterations come as a surprise. Francis carried out most of them piece-by-piece over the course of the past several years. But the Jesuit pope has done more than just tinkering. He has actually written a few major changes into this new legal text.
And if he and his successors actually carry them out, it could lead to the “revolution” many are talking about. Lay people can hold “roles of governance”. The preamble of Praedicate Evangelium states that this new “updating (aggiornamento) of the Curia must provide for (prevedere) the involvement of lay women and lay men (laiche e laici) in roles of governance and responsibility” (Sec. I, par. 10)
Giving lay people “roles of governance” in offices that assist the pope in his pastoral duties for the universal Church is an important shift. Every curial institution carries out its specific mission in virtue of the power it receives from the Roman Pontiff in whose name it acts with vicarious power in the exercise of his primatial munus. For this reason any baptized member of the faithful can preside over a Dicastery or Body, depending on the competence, power of governance and function these entities have (Sec. II, par. 5). This means that authority to govern in the Curia is not conferred through Holy Orders, but through delegation by pope. In other words, the person exercises this power vicariously in the name of the Roman Pontiff. And one would presume the same principle can be applied at the local level.
A bishop should be able to delegate a lay person to be his “vicar” in certain areas, which at least one bishop (Charles Morerod OP of Switzerland) has already begun doing. The Curia at the service of the local bishops. Another shift reflects Pope Francis’ desire to bring about a “healthy decentralization” of decision-making authority in the Catholic Church, by granting more such authority to diocesan bishops, especially through the national and regional episcopal conferences. Until Francis was elected and began changing the way business is carried out at the Vatican, the offices of the Roman Curia traditionally functioned as a bridge — or more often as a barrier — between the Bishop of Rome and local bishops.
The preamble of Praedicate Evangelium strives to correct that by declaring this guiding principle: “The Roman Curia does not stand between the pope and the bishops, but rather it places itself at the service of both in a way that is proper to the nature of each” (Sec. I, par. 8).Synodal collaboration.
A third item in the new document is also important to note. It is how the Roman Curia relates to the Synod of Bishops.It will probably come as a surprise to most Catholics and even to some bishops, but this permanent institution, of which the Roman Pontiff is the president, is not part of the Curia. But, in any case, listen to what the apostolic constitution says:”The curial institutions shall collaborate, according to their respective specific competences, in the activity of the General Secretariat of the Synod” (Sec. III, Art. 33).
A Vatican official confirmed to a journalist that this is not sloppy wording or a typographical error. The text deliberately uses the term “Synod”, rather than “Synod of Bishops”.And then it says that “the Synod… offers effective collaboration to the Roman Pontiff, according to the ways established or are to be established by him”. This is not insignificant.The Holy Synod of the Roman Catholic Church? It suggests that more changes may be under consideration for this institution which is currently strictly a body of bishops.
Over the years, Francis has already made more room for non-bishops (especially lay people) and has given them more responsibilities (even some authority, like a deliberative vote) than his predecessors. Could it be that he is now contemplating a major overhaul to simply make it “The Synod”? By its very name this would underscore the fact that this body is no longer the exclusive property of the bishops.
Every Orthodox patriarchate has a Holy Synod that is also made up of bishops. But most of these bodies also include a mixed council of laity and priests who have certain deliberative and governing powers, including a vote in the election of their patriarch.Imagine the Synod of Bishops being renamed the (Holy) Synod of the Roman Catholic Church. Such a change is beyond the scope or concern of Praedicate Evangelium, but the purposely chosen wording in this document suggests a further reform may be underway there, too.Phase II: choosing people to implement the reform. So far we are talking only about words on a page — directives, principles and some structural modifications.
One should consider the publication of the apostolic constitution as Phase I of the reform of the Roman Curia.As essential as this is (or was), the next phase will be even more crucial and determine how this reform actually gets implemented.Phase II concerns the people Pope Francis now puts in charge of the tribunals, financial offices and “dicasteries” (that strange Greek word he’s chosen to call entities that were once known as congregations and pontifical councils) that make up the Curia.His next round of appointments will be extremely important.He must find people who are 100% on board with the vision for the Curia he has spelled out in Praedicate Evangelium.
And they must be just as committed to the type of dynamic missionary Church that he puts forth in Evengelii gaudium, the blueprint of this pontificate. The new candidates for the top jobs at the Vatican — and especially those in the second and third tiers of governance — need to have the determination, willingness and energy to implement the reform. Francis has the chance to make a large number of significant personnel changes immediately.Raising hopes and setting the right tone. The head of the Apostolic Penitentiary and the prefects of seven of the 16 dicasteries — those for doctrine, bishops, Eastern Churches, religious orders, ecumenism, human development, and the new office for culture and education — are already 75 or older (or will be in the next few months).
Most will be replaced. Several dicasteries will also need new secretaries — the second-highest ranking officials who basically oversee the day-to-day operations of these offices. Some have already reached retirement age, while others have been in their posts more than ten years. Like the previous apostolic constitution, this new text says Curia officials normally serve a term of five years, which can be renewed for another five years. But neither document sets a limit on a number of those terms.
This has led to some officials spending a lifetime at the Vatican. Francis needs to set the tone at the very outset of his reform and prove that this provision will not continue to be treated as a dead letter. He must also move quickly to make sure other provisions in Praedicate Evangelium are properly put in motion, because there is no guarantee that his successor(s) will. The pope has raised the hopes of many Catholics with Phase I of his reform of the Roman Curial. Whether those hopes are fulfilled, or whether they are dashed, depends on what actually happens in Phase II.Follow me on Twitter @robinrome