Conclave issues

One of the best sources of information from inside the Vatican is the National Catholic Reporter, which seems to have access to all levels of the Vatican's complicated and often obfuscated bureaucracy. John L. Allen Jr reaches parts that other correspondents fail to reach. His marathon objective appraisal of Pope John Paul II's pontificate, which can be downloaded from the NCR website, is one of the best comprehensive reviews I have read. It is based on inside information difficult to come by.

On April 12 Mr Allen posted a report from Rome of a conversation he had with three cardinals, one European, one African and a North American. The European cardinal told Mr Allen that Pope John Paul in his heart was a collegial Pope - and to prove it he had elevated the secretary to the Bishops' Synod to cardinal. Yet the same European cardinal frankly admitted that the synod never lived up to its promise. "The challenge is to balance a strong papacy with a strong episcopacy. Why didn't it happen under Pope John Paul's reign? The Pope was so focused ad extra that he never really thought much about internal Church affairs. It just wasn't his cup of tea."

The African cardinal said more or less the same thing. "The notion of collegiality needs to be applied in the life of the Church." He will be asking: "Who would be best able to reform the Curia?" He also pointed out that the new Pope should be a man capable of reaching out to Muslims, Jews and secularity, especially in Europe.

The American cardinal picked up on secularity. "I look at the Church in northern Europe and it seems like a mess. Aside from pockets of life, especially among the young, it doesn't look like we've succeeded in getting through to secularised culture. We've got to find someone who can dialogue with secularity, because in fits and starts it is becoming the culture of the world." He was praying for a new St Francis who would change Europe in a few years. "We need a Church that is transparent, evangelical and close to the gospels. Europeans are very open to a 'pure' Christ, without power, without riches. A Christ who is a winner will not convert Europe, but a Christ who is a loser has a chance." Between them these three cardinals brought out issues which no doubt figure large in the discussions outside and inside conclave among the Princes of the Church.

Collegiality has long been an issue bursting to be put at the top of the agenda. When Pope John Paul met all the cardinals in May 2001 in an extraordinary consistory aimed at giving him advice about the Church in the new millennium, at least nine cardinals brought up the subject.

At that time Cardinal Franz Konig, the late Archbishop of Vienna, spoke of his belief that Pope John Paul was prepared to accept moves to decentralise the Church "on a national, regional or continental basis." However, he added that it would be the next Pontiff who would have the main responsibility for carrying out any major reforms.

The issue of collegiality has in fact been decided years ago by Vatican II but because the reforms needed to put it into practice depend so much on the Roman Curia itself, very little has been done. As one observer of Church affairs put it to me, "turkeys do not vote for Christmas". If collegiality were to be implemented in its fullness, many Curial officials who have carved a career for themselves in the Vatican congregations and departments would lose their power and their importance.

During the last pontificate there has been a huge shift of power from the Papacy to the Roman Curia, especially in the latter years of the last Pope due to his incapacity. But even in his heyday, Pope John Paul's trips abroad and the consequent absences from Rome, meant in effect that the Curia became indispensable in keeping Vatican affairs running smoothly.

Reaching out to Muslims and Jews is of course essential for peace in the world. The late Pope has been successful in building a firm basis on which his successor can build further. Of course there are serious problems regarding Islam. We are not dealing here with a religion which is organised on the lines of the Christian churches, with authority structures visible to all.

There are so many facets of Islam. From the mild acceptance of Allah in the humble day-to-day pursuance of Allah's will, to the fundamentalist manifestation that shows itself in the acceptance of suicide bombers and other forms of terrorism. A further complication rests in the fact that some Islamic states make no difference between "Church" and state.

Secularism is an area where the new Pope needs to come up with new ideas. The Church has a history of making all things holy. The major festivals we celebrate in our liturgical calendar are none other than christened pagan festivals and rituals. (There is, of course, the danger that due to excessive pagan rites that have crept into these celebrations, they will return to pagan festivities. Here, in Malta, we do not need to look too far.) For the Church to shun secularism is to bury its head in the sand. Secularity is here to stay and the Church needs to learn how to dialogue with it. There are those who fear this dialogue.

But how can the Church come up with solutions on issues such as bioethical ones without an open mind, discerning where the Spirit moves it? The same applies to issues of sexuality. The Church has to accept the damning statement of the American cardinal, that the Church in Europe is in a mess. One of the cardinals, Godfried Daneels from Belgium, recently stated: "Unless an influx of new priests occurs in Europe, Catholics will be starved of the sacraments. In Belgium, we have reached a very low level. It's the same in Holland, Switzerland, France and Germany."

I can add the United Kingdom to this list. Parishes are closing down every week. There are dioceses with hardly any seminarians. Priests are being imported from Asia and Africa to keep parishes going. And more often than not they are given a clutch of parishes to look after. Cardinal Daneels reflected on this situation and commented that there is a crisis of identity in the priesthood.

The priesthood is the link between organised religion and secularity. Unless the Church reforms the priesthood, the battle for the soul of Europe will be lost forever. Magisterium dictats banning discussion on celibacy or women priests are simply not taken seriously, both in Europe and America. They only succeed in deepening the haemorrhage of good pastors who lose their will to battle on.

Cardinal Daneels pointed out that there are 3.86 million people working in ministry and 2.44 million of these are lay catechists. "Presumably", he added, "many of these would accept ordination were it open to them."

He did not distinguish between single, married persons or even women. Did he purposely leave it open to discussion? In his astute way, he could have been preparing the post-John Paul II Church for reforms that are needed to make the Church relevant once more, both in Europe and in America.