How's that again?

By Diogenes ( articles ) | Jan 27, 2006

John Allen reports on a news conference accompanying the release of the new encyclical:

Archbishop William Levada, the pope's successor as head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, admitted he was "a little bit surprised" that Benedict chose to submit his text to Vatican doctrinal consultors prior to publication, rather than simply putting it out, but he said it was "a normal practice, even for a great theologian."

Help me out here. What practice are we to understand is normal?