U.S. cardinals’ bid for transparency squelched
VATICAN CITY — A bid by American cardinals to bring a touch of transparency to the process of choosing the next pope was halted Wednesday after complaints from fellow prelates attending meetings ahead of their election conclave.
Without breaking their vow not to discuss the content of the meetings, which started Monday, the Americans have held daily news briefings to give background to journalists about the selection of the new pope.
The briefings have been a welcome source of information and an attempt at greater openness in contrast with the Vatican’s ingrained tendency toward secrecy.
Noting that cardinals from no other countries were holding briefings, Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of the Galveston-Houston archdiocese said Tuesday that “this is more normal in the U.S. than in other places.”
The statements by American cardinals also contrasted with the continual reporting of anonymous leaks, purportedly from the pre-conclave meetings, that have appeared in the Italian press.
But on Wednesday, the briefing due to be held by Cardinal Francis George of Chicago and Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, retired archbishop of Washington, was called off with an hour’s notice.
In an emailed statement, a spokeswoman for the 11 American cardinals said that although they were committed to transparency, “due to concerns over accounts being reported in the Italian press, which breached confidentiality, the College of Cardinals has agreed not to give interviews.”
Asked about the clampdown in his own daily briefing for journalists, Vatican spokesman Federico Lom- bardi said, “The progress of the general congregations toward the conclave is not like a convention or a synod, where we try to give maximum information, but it is where we reflect to reach a decision.”
One Vatican expert said the American bid to follow the rules on confidentiality while bringing as much openness as possible to the conclave was being punished even though the leaks were coming from Italian cardinals.
“They’ve been slapped down,” said Thomas Reese, a Jesuit priest and author. “The Americans are being blamed for leaks in the Italian press. It’s a joke. The Italians do their leaking with reporters one at a time.”
Even though the cardi- nals taking part in the preconclave meetings were made to swear an oath of secrecy on the Bible at the start of the sessions, Italian papers have been packed with news from inside the conference hall, including the names of cardinals who have made speeches and even passages of speeches.
Lombardi said the last cardinal set to join the preconclave, Vietnam’s JeanBaptiste Pham Minh Man, was expected Thursday, suggesting a date for the conclave could be voted on then.
Journalists were shown video of the Sistine Chapel being readied for the conclave, with two stoves being unpacked: one to burn ballots after rounds of voting and another to produce smoke after voting. Black smoke will indicate no result and white will report that a pope has been elected.