Inside The Vatican

No, it’s not a schism.On this special deep dive episode of “Inside the Vatican,” host Colleen Dulle looks at the German synodal way: What is it, why is it happening, and why do some critics think it could lead to a schism in the Catholic Church?This episode features interviews with: Bishop Franz-Josef Overbeck of Essen, Germany, a participant in the synodal path and a leader of the path’s subgroup on power in the church Dr. Juliane Eckstein, a researcher at the Sankt Georgen Graduate School of Philosophy and Theology in Frankfurt, Germany, and a member of the synodal path’s subgroup on women Fr. Bernd Hagenkord, a Jesuit priest and former editor of Vatican News’ German edition, who is a spiritual director for the synodal path Dr. Thomas Schueller, director of the Institute of Canon Law at the University of Muenster, Germany, and a critic of the synodal path Gerard O’Connell, Vatican correspondent for America Magazine Links from the show:Take the “Inside the Vatican” listener survey!The German Synodal Path, Explained Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Take Inside the Vatican’s Listener Survey!On May 21, Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the archbishop of Munich and Freising and a top advisor to Pope Francis, submitted his resignation to the pope, saying he wanted to take “institutional responsibility” for the sexual abuse crisis.“It is important to me to share the responsibility for the catastrophe of the sexual abuse by Church officials over the past decades,” the cardinal wrote in a letter to the pope. Cardinal Marx has never been accused of sexual abuse or cover-up but expressed that he wanted to take responsibility for helping to mold church structures that failed to prevent sexual abuse.In a decision that came as a surprise to Cardinal Marx, Pope Francis refused to accept the resignation, using the opportunity to tell the world’s bishops to take action on abuse.The offer of resignation sent shockwaves through Germany and the Vatican. This week on “Inside the Vatican,” host Colleen Dulle and veteran Vatican correspondent Gerard O’Connell discuss the aftereffects of Cardinal Marx’s offer to resign.Tune in next week for a special deep dive episode on the German Synodal Way.Links from the show:Take Inside the Vatican’s Listener Survey!Cardinal Marx offers Pope Francis his resignation, citing ‘responsibility for the catastrophe of sexual abuse’Explainer: Cardinal Marx wasn’t accused of sexual abuse or cover-up. So why has he offered to resign?Pope Francis rejects Cardinal Marx’s offer of resignation, calls on all bishops to take responsibility for the abuse crisis Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After 17 years of preparation, a new edition of volume VI of the Code of Canon Law—the Vatican’s penal code—has been published, the first new edition since 1983. About two-thirds of the canons, or laws, in the volume have been updated, and a number of new canons have been added, most significantly in the areas of sexual abuse and requiring penalties for violations of the law.On this episode of “Inside the Vatican,” host Colleen Dulle and veteran Vatican correspondent Gerard O’Connell walk through the changes to canon law on sexual abuse, women’s ordination, and financial mismanagement.“What the law has tried to do and what his new Book VI of the Code of Canon Law is doing with the penalties is to reduce, as far as possible, the loopholes, to ensure justice for those who have been victims, to ensure proper exercise of authority by those who are in authority and hold penalties for failure to exercise authority properly,” Gerry said. “And also to guarantee to the wider public, to the people of God, the people in the church and outside the church, that they will know that such criminal acts are not acceptable and they will be punished.”After their conversation, Colleen gives updates on the discovery of the remains of more than 200 Indigenous children on the grounds of a former residential school in Canada and the unexpected offer of resignation from Cardinal Reinhard Marx.Links from the show:Pope Francis overhauls church’s criminal code to punish the sexual abuse of adults by priestsPope Francis calls for abandonment of colonial mentality after discovery of buried Indigenous children in CanadaCardinal Marx offers Pope Francis his resignation, citing ‘responsibility for the catastrophe of sexual abuse’Explainer: Cardinal Marx wasn’t accused of sexual abuse or cover-up. So why has he offered to resign? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The upcoming “synod on synodality” will look different from past synods, the Vatican announced last month: Instead of an event in Rome in 2022, the synod will be a process beginning on the diocesan level this fall, continuing on a continental level in 2022 and ending in Rome in 2023, discussing “communion, participation, and mission” within the church.This week on “Inside the Vatican,” host Colleen Dulle and Vatican correspondent Gerard O’Connell discuss what we know about the new process: who is involved, what the topics for discussion will be, and whether dioceses from the United States to China can pull off the local listening sessions the Vatican is asking for.“As a Catholic, you're part of a global church, which has got big problems in some areas, which is going reasonably well in others, but which has a major task,” Gerry says in this episode. “And I think the Pope is [challenging us to consider] mission. What is the mission of the church? What is the purpose?”Links from the show:Pope Francis: The People of God must be consulted before the October 2023 synod of bishopsPope Francis appoints Archbishop Roche as new prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship, successor to Cardinal SarahPope Francis overhauls church’s criminal code to punish the sexual abuse of adults by priests Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With summer just around the corner, Inside the Vatican is bringing you a special episode: our Pope Francis summer reading list.Papal biographer Austen Ivereigh joins Colleen Dulle for a discussion on three books that have shaped Pope Francis (and that he loves to quote): The Betrothed by Alessandro Manzoni, Lord of the World by Robert Hugh Benson, and the short story “The Garden of Forking Paths” by Pope Francis’ fellow Argentine, Jorge Luis Borges. Colleen and Austen discuss each work and Pope Francis’ connection to it, and how they’ve influenced the pope’s thinking.Want to discuss these books with other Inside the Vatican listeners? Join the Catholic Book Club Facebook group, where there will be a special post for discussions of this episode!Links from the show:Austen Ivereigh: The Pope & the PlagueAusten Ivereigh: An Interview with Pope FrancisThe Betrothed by Alessandro ManzoniLord of the World by Robert Hugh Benson“The Garden of Forking Paths” by Jorge Luis Borges“Calle Desconocida” (“Unknown Street”) by Jorge Luis BorgesLet Us Dream by Pope Francis and Austen IvereighSubscribe to America Media’s Catholic Book Club newsletter and join the Facebook group to discuss a new book every quarter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Sunday, Pope Francis called for an immediate ceasefire to the violence that has escalated between Israeli and Palestinian forces, killing more than 200 people in Gaza and 10 in Israel, according to the most recent statistics.The Vatican has long supported a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but Pope Francis’ goals also include limiting the sale of arms by countries outside the conflict and improving the situation of the Palestinians living in occupied territory. To that end, on Monday, the pope called Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, conversations which were believed to have included discussions about the crisis in the Holy Land. Pope Francis is also believed to have discussed the conflict with U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry in their meeting on Saturday.But what sway does Pope Francis really have in Israel? This week on “Inside the Vatican,” veteran Vatican correspondent Gerard O’Connell and host Colleen Dulle take a look at Pope Francis’ goals for the region and where they have been stalled in the past.Links from the show:Gerard O’Connell: Pope Francis calls for an end to clashes in JerusalemGerard O’Connell: Pope Francis calls for an immediate cease-fire in the Holy LandStephanie Saldaña: A Christian in Jerusalem at the Start of Another WarGerard O’Connell: Head of Chinese Jesuits named new bishop of Hong Kong Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s been 500 years since St. Ignatius suffered the cannonball injury that would pave the way to his conversion—from an ambitious young soldier rumored to be dating a princess, to leaving it all to found the Society of Jesus, the Jesuits.To commemorate that 500th anniversary, the Jesuits have declared an Ignatian Year, remembering their roots and announcing new initiatives for their future.So this week, “Inside the Vatican” host Colleen Dulle teamed up with Ashley McKinless from America Media’s “Jesuitical” podcast to interview the superior general of the Jesuits, Fr. Arturo Sosa. Colleen and Ashley asked Fr. Sosa about his plans for the Jesuits, what it’s like to run such a huge and diverse religious order, and, of course, about his relationship with his fellow Jesuit, Pope Francis.Links from the show:Learn more about the Ignatian YearListen to the “Jesuitical” podcast from America Media Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Vatican stepped into the U.S. bishops’ ongoing debate over giving Communion to pro-choice Catholic politicians last week, issuing a letter May 7 to every bishop in America urging them to undertake a two-part dialogue process before drafting any national guidelines on the issue.Up to now, the decision over whether to give a pro-choice politician Communion has been up to the local bishop, with varying results: President Joseph R. Biden’s previous local bishop in Wilmington, Delaware, along with his current bishop in Washington, D.C., have both allowed him to receive Communion, while House Speaker Nancy R. Polosi’s local bishop, Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone, recently wrote in support of denying pro-choice politicians communion without naming Ms. Polosi. Last fall, the national bishops’ conference assembled a committee to draft a proposal for a guideline that could be applied nationwide, to be voted on at the bishops’ upcoming meeting next month.The Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith stepped in with a letter signed by its head, Cardinal Luis Ladaria, putting the brakes on the drafting process until the bishops undertake an “extensive and serene” dialogue with one another and the politicians in question. It urges them to reach a “true consensus” on the issue.Will the bishops listen? This week on “Inside the Vatican,” host Colleen Dulle and veteran Vatican correspondent Gerard O’Connell unpack the letter, examining how binding the letter and the U.S. bishops’ agreements are, along with what decisions the bishops now face.Links from the show:Vatican sends letter to U.S. bishops: Don’t rush the debate on Communion, politicians and abortionBishop McElroy: The Eucharist is being weaponized for political ends. This must not happen.Archbishop Aquila: For the church to live in eucharistic coherence, we must be willing to challenge Catholics persisting in grave sin.Lay people have been passing on the Catholic faith for 2,000 years. Now Pope Francis has made it an official ministry Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last week, Pope Francis signed two big changes to Vatican law: First, he implemented a sweeping anti-corruption decree that limits the gifts Vatican employees can receive to $50; then, he updated a previous legal reform to remove bishops’ and cardinals’ special rights in Vatican courts.For most of the church’s history, bishops and cardinals could only be judged by the pope. Pope Francis changed that in 2019 as part of a slate of legal reforms aimed at combatting the sexual abuse crisis. In order to increase accountability and the number of cases that could be heard, the pope created a special court called the “court of cassation” to hear bishops’ and cardinals’ trials. With last week’s change, though, bishops and cardinals can now have their cases heard in the regular, lay-led Vatican tribunal.Why make the change now? In this week’s episode of Inside the Vatican, host Colleen Dulle and Vatican correspondent Gerard O’Connell take a look at what effect the change could have on the ongoing investigation—and possible trial—of the Vatican’s London finance scandal, in which bishops and cardinals may be among those tried.Colleen and Gerry also unpack the Vatican’s new anti-corruption law.Links from the show:Pope Francis issued a sweeping anti-corruption decree. How will it affect Vatican operations?Cardinals and bishops to lose special legal privileges under new papal decreeItalian bishop-elect shot in his home in South SudanUS Catholic bishops to vote on pressuring Joe Biden to stop taking Communion over abortion viewsBishop McElroy: The Eucharist is being weaponized for political ends. This must not happen.Pope Francis calls for monthlong global prayer marathon for end of pandemicPope Francis asks for prayers for peace in Myanmar Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Almost two months after his first papal trip since spring 2020, Pope Francis has set his sights on a few more international visits before the end of the year: To Hungary and Slovakia, Cyprus and Greece, Lebanon and Glasgow.On this week’s episode of “Inside the Vatican,” America’s veteran Vatican correspondent Gerard O’Connell and host Colleen Dulle dig into what we know about each trip and what is motivating the pope to go. “There’s a spiritual dimension; there’s also a political. You can’t get away from that,” Gerry says on the show.Colleen also gives updates on Pope Francis’ name day celebration, the appointment of San Diego bishop Robert McElroy to a Vatican board, and the possible upcoming canonization of Blessed Charles de Foucauld.Links from the show:Where else will Pope Francis travel in 2021?Pope Francis celebrates his name day at Vatican vaccination clinic for the poor and vulnerablePope Francis appoints San Diego’s Bishop McElroy to board of Vatican office promoting human developmentWho was Charles de Foucauld? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices