Word: vaticans
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...membership and actually scheduled a lay synod this past weekend. The headlines have energized a graying generation of reformers and raised up new ones. Some dream of a nationwide lay congress and press for election of parish councils, pastors or even bishops. Others demand financial transparency or rollbacks of Vatican limitations on the lay liturgical role. Even the American Enterprise Institute's Michael Novak, a conservative theologian and columnist who would condone little of the above, admits that "both conservatives and liberals are very upset. The bishops are God's shepherds, and they've let the wolves among the flock...
...nonsense plan establishing a one-strike-and-you're-out rule for all future offenders (past abusers get more leniency) and requiring bishops to report any allegations to civil authorities. Upon reviewing it, most Catholics will probably hope it passes and--a dicier prospect--receives approval from skeptical Vatican officials...
Such constant proximity has given Dziwisz, 63, a degree of power only dreamed of by even the most ambitious prelates. "Dziwisz isn't just the gatekeeper. He's calling major shots and major appointments," says a Vatican official, who, like his colleagues, requested anonymity. "He seems to be a quiet, faithful secretary. And I think he is. But even with his quiet demeanor, he has incredible power--and uses it." He reportedly blocked one bishop's appointment to a key post because he considered that priest more vital to the Pope's personal needs...
...influence, most Vatican watchers agree, is rising in direct proportion to the decline in the Pope's health. Nineteen years older than his secretary, the Pope is said to have had a father-son relationship with Dziwisz. That has turned around in recent years. "Dziwisz takes care of everything from handing the Pope a tissue to helping him make important decisions and choosing who can see him," says Polish journalist Marek Lehnert, who has spent 20 years covering the Vatican...
...doctrinal issues, insiders say. Instead, the secretary has come to serve as a mediator among the powerful priests inside the Roman Curia. As John Paul's condition declines, the priests' individual powers seem to be expanding. "The Cardinals just bring him papers and say, 'Sign this,'" is how one Vatican insider describes the Pope's daily activity...