Vatican diplomats must be loyal to Pontiff, Pope says
June 11, 2012
During a June 11 meeting with future members of the Vatican diplomatic corps, Pope Benedict XVI stressed the importance of fidelity to the Roman Pontiff.
The Holy Father told students at the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy that the “unique bond” between the Pope and his diplomatic representatives is “grounded in the priestly character that they have received, which is then specified in the particular mission entrusted to each in the service of the Successor of Peter.”
All Catholics should feel a personal tie to the Vicar of Christ, the Pope said. “Yet for those who work in the Holy See, it is of particular importance, since they spend much of their energy, their time and their daily ministry in the service of the Successor of Peter.”
"Faithfulness to Peter, who sends you forth, also gives rise to a special faithfulness towards those to whom you are sent,” the Pope continued. He said that through pastoral care for the faithful in the countries where they are stationed, papal diplomats “will also help the Successor of Peter to be faithful to the mission he has received from Christ.”
The Pope’s call for unity carried special significance because it was made to students at the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy, the training grounds for future officials of the Vatican’s Secretariat of State. In the “Vatileaks” scandal, many observers believe, officials of the Secretariat of State have leaked documents in an attempt to influence the Pope’s policy decisions.
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