Word: marcinkus
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...very center of the scandal is Archbishop Paul C. Marcinkus, the American-born president of the Institute for Religious Works, the so-called Vatican Bank. Investigators now know that Marcinkus played a part, perhaps unwittingly, in a huge loan scheme that could bring down the Milan-based Banco Ambrosiano, Italy's eleventh largest bank...
...investigators unraveled Calvi's tangled financial affairs, they kept running across the name of Archbishop Marcinkus. The Vatican Bank has long owned 1.58% of the Banco Ambrosiano, but now there is suspicion that it actually holds much more. In addition, Marcinkus until very recently had sat on the board of the bank's Nassau-based subsidiary, Banco Ambrosiano Overseas Ltd., which helped arrange the questionable overseas loans...
...most damaging of the disclosures were documents that directly implicated Marcinkus in the loan scheme. The archbishop had signed "letters of patronage" for the dozen Panamanian ghost companies that received the loan money from the Banco Ambrosiano. The letters stated that the companies were controlled by the Vatican Bank and were apparently intended to serve as references or guarantees for the lender. Investigators are not sure at this point where the $1.4 billion went or what it was used for. It is believed that some of the money, perhaps as much as 10%, was used to buy stock in Banco...
...Pope is very much his own man," remarks one Vatican observer, "and will make up his own mind." He does not appear to be basing his decision on the counsel of the British Catholic hierarchy. But he will no doubt listen with special attentiveness to American Archbishop Paul Marcinkus, who handles the logistics and security for papal trips. By week's end, the archbishop was in constant touch with Portuguese authorities ("There will be police and security men everywhere," said one Fatima official) and worrying, next things next, about details of the trip to England...
...Presidents, new Popes put their top aides in place only gradually, as jobs open up. John Paul II's first major appointment, two years ago, was Papal Loyalist Agostino Cardinal Casaroli as Secretary of State. Other changes slowly followed, including the selection last September of U.S. Archbishop Paul Marcinkus as chief administrator of Vatican City. Now, at the start of John Paul's fourth year, his lineup is virtually complete. The Pope has just named West Germany's Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, 54, to be his doctrinal watchdog as Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine...