Commission of 8 cardinals already working on Vatican reform proposals

June 26, 2013

The commission of 8 cardinals formed by Pope Francis to advise him on Vatican reforms has already begun its work, according to leading Vatican journalist Andrea Tornielli, and the reforms being discussed are not limited to changes in the Roman Curia.

In April the Pope appointed 8 cardinals, drawn from all around the world, to “advise him in the government of the universal Church and to study a plan for revising the apostolic constitution on the Roman Curia, Pastor Bonus.” (Pastor Bonus is the 1988 document that established the current structure of the Roman Curia.) At the time the commission was announced, the Vatican said that its first meeting would take place in October.

However, the members of the commission have already begun to exchange information and ideas, Tornielli reports. Although the group has not held a meeting, individual cardinals have conferred with the Pope and with each other. In fact, the Italian journalist says, “they are in constant contact.”

Since the election of Pope Francis, Vatican-watchers have looked for a reform of the Roman Curia—the Vatican’s internal bureaucracy. But Tornielli reports that the 8-cardinal panel is taking a broader approach to reform in the Church, which could include suggestions for changes in the way the Vatican works with the world’s dioceses. Of the 8 cardinals on the commission, 7 are diocesan archbishops (one retired), while only one is currently working in the Roman Curia.

 

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Further information:

• Pope’s eight cardinal advisors say the Curia is not the only thing they’ll be reforming (La Stampa)
• Pope appoints panel of cardinals to weigh major reform of Roman Curia (CWN, 4/13)