Pope Francis has appointed a group of eight cardinals from around the
world to look into ways of reforming the Catholic Church, the Vatican
said Saturday.
The group, which includes
U.S. Cardinal Sean O'Malley from Boston, will examine ways to revise
the Vatican constitution, Pastor Bonus, which sets the rules for running
the Roman Curia, or church hierarchy.
The cardinals -- who come
from North America, Latin America, Africa, Asia and Europe -- will
first meet in October, the Vatican said.
The move follows on from
suggestions made during the General Congregations, a series of meetings
that brought together all the cardinals last month before they elected
Francis as pope, the Vatican said.
The other seven cardinals
are: Giuseppe Bertello, president of the Vatican City State
governorate; Francisco Javier Errazuriz Ossa from Chile; Oswald Gracias
from India; Reinhard Marx from Germany; Laurent Monsengwo Pasinya from
the Democratic Republic of the Congo; George Pell from Australia; and
Oscar Andres Rodriguez Maradiaga from Honduras.
An Italian bishop, Monsignor Marcello Semeraro, will act as secretary for the group.
Pope Francis has already been in touch with the chosen cardinals, the Vatican said.
The Catholic Church has
faced calls for reform in the wake of scandals involving the sexual
abuse of children by priests and allegations of corruption.
The Rev. Thomas Rosica,
issuing guidance on behalf of the Vatican, said the group of cardinals
was just that -- "not a commission, committee or council."
It "has no legislative
power and its main function is to 'advise' the pope," he said. "The
group will not in any way interfere in the normal functions of the Roman
Curia, which helps the Pope in the daily governance of the Church."
The group's formation,
exactly a month after Francis was elected, shows that the pope "listens
attentively" to what the cardinals say, Rosica said.
The document the
cardinals are studying is the Apostolic Constitution of Pope John Paul
II, known as the Pastor Bonus, which was published in 1988.
CNN Vatican analyst John Allen, who's also a correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter, wrote that the news was "a signal that major reform may be on the horizon."
"Strikingly, there was
only one member of the Roman Curia among the eight cardinals tapped to
assist the pope. The rest come from various parts of the world, with at
least one representing each continent," he said.
The group will be
coordinated by Rodriguez, from Tegucigalpa, who speaks several languages
and was himself seen as possible contender for the papacy.
In Honduras, "Rodriguez has long led the pack in terms of moral authority and social influence," Allen wrote in a profile ahead of the papal election, or conclave.