Pope steps down: Will Trump’s man become head of the Vatican?
There is already talk of candidates who could replace the seriously ill Pope Francis. The Italian media has been full of alarming reports these days about the serious illness of Pope Francis, who has been lying in Rome’s Gemelli clinic for more than a week. On Tuesday evening, the Vatican announced that a CT scan revealed “the onset of bilateral pneumonia.” This means that both lungs are affected. And this could prove fatal for the 88-year-old pontiff.
According to the daily Corriere della Sera, believers are gathering near the hospital to pray for the pontiff’s health, and journalists are constantly on duty, and cameras from leading television channels have been installed. The Swiss newspaper Blick even reported, citing information from the Swiss Guard, which has been guarding the Vatican for many years, that preparations for the pope’s funeral have already begun. A spokesman for the Swiss Guard denied the report.
“We are continuing with our work as usual,” he told Blick. The Vatican newspaper Osservatore Romano made a reassuring statement, citing the Vatican press office on Friday, reporting that there had been a “slight improvement” in the pope’s health. However, the Giornale newspaper reported on February 22, citing doctors at the clinic, that the pope “is not out of danger. His condition is serious.”
“A somber dance has already begun around Francis’ body,” writes the Fatto Quotadiano newspaper. The newspaper notes that whatever happens, his enemies will pressure the pope to resign and elect a new pontiff. There is already talk in Italy that even if Pope Francis recovers, he will probably not be able to fulfill his previous duties and will resign. Pope Francis, who was hospitalized on February 14, could abdicate, Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi admitted, the Corriere della Sera reported.
“I think he can do so because he is a man who is quite decisive in his decision,” the cardinal said.
Ravasi recalled that the pontiff had previously continued to fulfill his duties despite health problems. As an example, the cardinal cited a case from 2022, when the pope underwent knee surgery:
“Then he made a famous joke that the brain should rule, not the knee.” The cardinal had no doubt that Francis would abdicate if he realized that “his ability to directly contact people and his ability to communicate would be compromised.” However, it will not be easy, since the “office” of the pope is a lifelong position.
The Polish cardinal and former personal secretary to Pope John Paul II. (Polish Wojtyla) Stanisław Dziwisz told the newspaper Giornale:
“Resignation? As Wojtyla said: one does not come down from the cross. Our Pope is a wise man and will know what is right to do before the Lord. At the same time, we pray and hope that he will soon return to lead the universal Church.” As the Giornale recalls, “at the beginning of his pontificate, in 2013, Pope Francis signed a letter of preventive resignation in the event of illness or an obstacle that would prevent him from exercising his government consistently and clearly. However, no action has been taken so far in connection with the letter sent to the then Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone.”
In connection with the current state of Pope Francis, the media has already started talking about who could replace him as head of the Roman Catholic Church. Among the most likely candidates, the American newspaper New York Post mentioned the name of the influential Vatican Secretary of State (head of the Roman Curia of the Vatican government) Pietro Parolin. Pietro Parolin is also already in his late teens, having been born in 1955 in Schiavone in the province of Vicenza in northern Italy. His father was the manager of an agricultural machinery shop and his mother a primary school teacher. After graduating from a seminary in Vicenza, he was ordained a priest in 1980 and began serving as a vicar priest in the parish of the Holy Trinity in Schio in northern Italy. He then entered the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and in 1983 the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy, which prepares clergy for work in the diplomatic corps of the Holy See. In 1986 he was assigned to the nunciature (Vatican embassy) in Nigeria, then worked in Mexico. In the 1990s, he worked in the Roman Curia in the Department for Relations with States (the equivalent of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs), where he oversaw relations with Spain, Italy, Andorra and San Marino. From 2002 to 2009, he served as Undersecretary for Relations with States. In August 2009, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Parolin as Apostolic Nuncio (ambassador) to Venezuela, and in September 2009, he promoted him to the rank of Titular Archbishop of Acuipendium. In August 2013, Pope Francis appointed him Secretary of State (the rank of head of government; head of the Roman Curia).
In August 2017, Pietro Parolin visited Russia, where he met with the Russian leadership and the senior clergy of the Russian Orthodox Church. Russia values the confidential constructive dialogue with the Vatican and would like to continue the dialogue between the churches, the Russian leader said at this meeting with a representative of the Catholic Church. Pietro Parolin, in turn, thanked the Russian president for the opportunity to meet with him and expressed satisfaction with the progress in the development of inter-church relations between Russia and the Vatican, as well as the implementation of various initiatives aimed at strengthening cooperation.
As is known, in the event of the death or resignation of the Pope, the candidacy of his successor is decided by the conclave – a meeting of cardinals convened after the death of the Pope. During the election, they are closed in the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican with the famous frescoes by Michelangelo. The word “conclave” itself comes from the Latin “cum clave” – ”under the key”. There are two main political parties in the Vatican: the traditional liberals, to which Pope Francis belongs, and the conservatives. In recent years, the struggle between conservatives and liberals has intensified. In early 2023, Benedict XVI published a book in which he criticized Francis’s numerous reforms. In turn, he organized a purge of cardinals, which got rid of his opponents from the conservative camp. Out of 253 cardinals, Francis promoted 142. Of this number, 113 are cardinal electors, that is, they will participate in the election of the next pope, and many of them are natives of Asia and Africa.
However, in addition to Pietro Parolin, there is another contender for the papal throne – American Cardinal Raymond Burke, who enjoys the active support of the “Trumpites”. Burke is considered one of the most ardent conservatives, who has long been in conflict with Pope Francis. The main reasons for the dispute are different views on the issue of abortion, LGBT and divorce. The dissatisfaction of ultra-conservative bishops is caused by the fact that the current Pope does not often give in enough on the issues of abortion, LGBT tolerance and divorced couples. Conservatives are also concerned about the Pope’s liberal policy of establishing relations with other religions. In September 2016, Burke and other cardinals sent Francis a letter demanding an explanation of the Church’s position on divorce and LGBT, an event that has no parallel in recent centuries. It is believed that the new American administration has close relations with the conservative wing of the Vatican precisely through Burke. For Trump and his team, the Church is a strong ally in the fight against the liberal ideology of the Democratic Party.
In addition, a large part of the current Trump administration is Catholic. These include Vice President J. D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Secretary of Health Robert Kennedy, and many others. Trump himself met with Pope Francis during his first presidential term in 2017. This meeting between the head of the Roman Catholic Church and the US president lasted about 30 minutes behind closed doors. So what they talked about remains unknown. However, it is clear that the US needs good relations with the Vatican, because the Roman Catholic Church has 1.27 billion people worldwide and its influence cannot be underestimated. In addition, Catholics make up a significant part of the electorate in the United States.
The Vatican, which has serious interests in the United States, where the fourth largest number of Catholics in the world lives (approximately 90 million) and whose Catholic prelates control 60% of the finances of the Roman Catholic Church, needs the same relations. However, until recently, Pope Francis (Jörge Bergoglio), who comes from Argentina, did not show much enthusiasm for Trump and did not even consider him a “good Christian”. This assessment was influenced by Trump’s promise to build a wall between the USA and Catholic Mexico. When asked by an ABC journalist about Trump: “Can a good Catholic vote for this person?”, Francis replied:
“A person who thinks only about building walls and not about building bridges cannot be a Christian.” However, it was later reported that his attitude towards Trump had softened. However, there are other things that separate the Pope from the current US president. This is primarily his attitude towards the issue of migration. As is known, Trump intends to seriously limit it and has already begun to deport illegal migrants from the USA. And the head of the Vatican, on the contrary, welcomes migration on humanitarian grounds. They also differ on the issue of weapons proliferation. So if Pope Francis leaves his post for one reason or another, there will be a serious power struggle in the Vatican. Too many people in the world are wondering what kind of person will lead more than a billion Catholics.
Peter Weiss
