Now, the jurist Giuseppe Sciacca who had been Prelate Auditor of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota for thirteen years, has left the Governorate to return to the world of law, which is his specialism.
Pope Francis has nominated him Adjunct Secretary of the Apostolic Signatura, the Supreme Tribunal of the Holy See, headed by U.S. cardinal Raymond Leo Burke.
Sciacca will be working alongside the Secretary of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura, the 72-year old Belgian archbishop Frans Daneels.
As is known, it was the issue of the Governorate’s expenses and the letters of criticism which the former Secretary Viganò sent Pope Benedict XVI and the Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone that were at the root of the Vatileaks scandal: these letters, which were taken from a dossier on Benedict XVI’s desk and photocopied by the former Pope’s butler, Paolo Gabriele, were brought to light on television at the beginning of 2012.
In the letters, Viganò spoke out against waste, excessive spending and corruption, drawing attention to the fact that a jaw-dropping 500 thousand Euros had been spent on the Nativity Scene in St. Peter’s Square.
The tensions that arose within the Governorate persuaded both Benedict XVI and Bertone that it was time to replace Viganò.
Viganò in turn, had expected to be nominated president and cardinal, but was instead sent away from the Vatican and appointed as the Holy See’s ambassador to the U.S.
Mgr. Sciacca was born in Acireale, Sicily, in 1955. He knew Ratzinger and Bertone personally, having had the opportunity to work with them and was nominated Secretary of the Governorate and Bishop on 3 September 2011.
Less than a month later, the president of the Governoarte changed as well, with the arrival of Piedmontese archbishop Giuseppe Bertello who up until that point had been Apostolic Nuncio to Italy and became a cardinal in February 2012.
Sciacca was not only called to continue the Vatican’s efforts towards reconstruction and greater transparency but also to calm the waters. One of the achievements he is most proud of is last year’s zero cost Nativity Scene in St. Peter’s Square, which was paid for through external sponsorship.
Some observers say that Sciacca’s return to the legal sphere after a short break from it could herald the strengthening of some powers of the Apostolic Signatura and the return of certain powers to the Administrative Tribunal of Last Instance, which Paul VI ordered, in order to defend “entitlements”.
In recent years, these powers were lost to a certain extent, as a result of “emergency” legislation.