Religion News Service The two have a long history and have partnered together in the past. But as Draghi assumes his new role over the Italian government, the relationship faces obstacles. Mainly: Vatican financial scandals and its relationship with China.
VATICAN CITY (RNS) — In the Vatican’s Apostolic Library on March 27, Pope Francis had his first official meeting with Mario Draghi, the new prime minister of Italy. An ally across the Tiber River could prove beneficial for the Vatican, but it might require this pontificate to move its center of gravity away from the East and toward the Atlantic once again.
Good relations between the Italian leadership and the popes tend to have massive repercussions, not only in the peninsula but also within Vatican City and for the estimated 1.2 billion Catholics in the world. Francis and Draghi are both perceived as reformers, at a time when Italy and Catholicism face staggering challenges. They could become a powerful duo when it comes to the future of Europe, the environmental crisis and immigration.
The deep, historical ties between the Vatican and Italy have always had an impact on the Catholic Church. While Vatican City is an independent state, it is in the heart of Italy’s political and geographical center. From the birth of the Italian Republic to the dictatorship of Benito Mussolini to Silvio Berlusconi’s “bunga bunga,” popes have had to negotiate the interconnected nature of relations with Rome.
Francis and Draghi have a long history and have partnered together in the past. But as Draghi assumes his new role over the Italian government, the relationship faces obstacles. A series of mishaps concerning Vatican financial scandals risks hindering diplomatic ties with Italy, while Draghi’s outspoken criticism of China and Russia is at odds with Pope Francis’ continued efforts of appeasement with Beijing.
Common goals and a desire for reform
When Pope Francis was elected in 2013, he picked up a church in shambles. His predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, shocked the world when he announced his retirement and chose to live as emeritus pope at the Vatican. Sexual abuse scandals emptied the pews and media reports uncovered decades of financial mismanagement. Francis was brought in as a reformer, with the hope he might restore the church’s structural and moral credibility worldwide….READ MORE HERE… (religionnews.com)
