In April 2012, Pope Benedict created a special commission of three senior cardinals (Herranz, Tomko, and DeGiorgi) to investigate the nasty Vatican infighting that had resulted in the leaking of confidential documents that was quickly dubbed the “Vatileaks” scandal.
The cardinals submitted their report to Pope Benedict in July of that year. Their conclusions were never made public, but according to rumors that circulated freely at the time, they had gone beyond the question of leaked documents to identify sources of trouble within the Roman Curia, including the presence of an influential “lavender mafia.”
One fact about the cardinals’ report did become public knowledge, however. It was huge: a thick dossier. And the three cardinals evidently continued their research, even after delivering their report. They met with Pope Benedict again in December 2012 to discuss the implications of what they had reported.
Two months later Pope Benedict announced his plan to resign. He said at the time, and continued to insist later, that his resignation was prompted primarily by his declining strength; the effects of old age, aggravated by persistent insomnia, left him incapable of doing the work that he considered necessary.
But some Vatican-watchers, reading between the lines of the Pope’s announcement, wondered whether there was a deeper reason for this decision. Had Benedict concluded that only a younger, more energetic Pontiff could root out the corruption that had been exposed within the Vatican?
Shortly after Pope Francis was elected, in March 2013, the new Pope traveled to Castel Gandolfo to meet with his predecessor. No details of their conversation were disclosed, but a photo of the occasion showed the two Pontiffs, past and present, sitting at a table on which there was a large white box, apparently filled with documents.
Quite naturally, reporters speculated that the box contained the dossier submitted by that three-cardinal commission.
Now, with the publication of his autobiography, Hope, Pope Francis has essentially confirmed that speculation. He reveals that Pope-emeritus Benedict had presented him with documents “relating to the most difficult and painful situations: cases of abuse, corruption, dark dealings, wrongdoings.”
The retired Pontiff, he says, had told Francis that it was “your turn” to confront the mess.
The new Pope’s “turn” has now lasted nearly twelve years. During that time, Pope Francis has never mentioned the three cardinals’ report, nor has he attacked the sources of corruption those senior prelates reportedly discovered.
Quite the contrary.
Some day, in the not-too-distant future, a new Roman Pontiff will be elected. Among his top priorities, during his first days in office, should be a determined search to find and read that dossier (if it has not already been destroyed).
Perhaps he should then empanel a new commission of respected senior prelates, to augment the report with a new investigation of how the corruption has spread since 2013.