Vatican demands Order of Malta cooperate with commission
The Vatican has demanded that a defiant Order of Malta cooperate with its inquiry which seeks to investigate the circumstances of the removal of one of the order’s most senior members.
Following the sudden departure of Grand Chancellor Albrecht Freiherr von Boeselager on December 8 amid allegations he had backed the distribution of condoms in a medical project back by the Order of Malta, Pope Francis instructed that a five-member commission be set up to look into the matter. The order reacted angrily to this, stating in late December that the issue at hand was one of internal governance and not one for religious superiors.
This stance was repeated in a release this month, which went on to described the papal commission as legally “irrelevant” and an attack on the order’s sovereignty. The leadership has now insisted it will not cooperate with the commission and instructed members who might engage with it not to contradict the official stance on the dismissal of von Boeselager.
The Vatican responded: “The Holy See counts on the complete cooperation of all in this sensitive stage” and added it “rejects…any attempt to discredit (committee) members”.
For his part, von Boeselager has said of the issue that ousted him that, far from condoning any distribution of contraceptives, once this became known to him in relation to three distinct Order of Malta programmes in the developing world, he ordered two to be shut down immediately, holding off on the third as a sudden closure would have caused an unacceptable stop to vital medical services to the poor.
President Duterte reaches out to Rome
President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines has sent a personal letter to Pope Francis assuring the Pontiff that he values his nation’s “special relations” with the Holy See.
After a long record of derision for the Catholic Church and its representatives in the Philippines – who have repeatedly tackled the leader on his murderous campaign against suspected drug dealers – Mr Duterte said in is communication: “Your Holiness, with profound respect, I have the honour to extend my own and my people’s warmest greetings to Your Holiness. “The Philippines values its special relations with the Holy See and regards with gratitude Your Holiness’ gracious stewardship of the Catholic faith…Please accept, Your Holiness, the assurances of my highest esteem and respect.”
The letter also refers positively to Pope Francis’ 2015 visit to the Philippines, ignoring the fact that during the visit, the president referred to Pope Francis as “s son of a b***h”.
President Duterte continues to draw criticism from the Catholic Church locally, not least for his recent order for the widespread distribution of contraceptives in the face of an ongoing AIDS crisis and his plan to re-introduce the death penalty with a promise to execute at least six criminals every day.
Papal videos reach millions
The monthly video broadcasts in which Pope Francis explains his specific prayer intentions reached more than 13 million people across 2016, the Vatican has revealed. The 90-second video segments, first launched in 2016, were designed to make it easier for Catholics to join with the many millions already involved with the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, officially known as the Apostleship of Prayer. In each video, the Pontiff speaks in his native Spanish, with subtitles available in English, French, Italian, Dutch, Portuguese and Arabic. Of the more than 13 million views in 2016, 45% were in the original Spanish and 13% were with English subtitles.
www.thepopevideo.org