Tony Flannery

The attempts to clean up the Vatican bring home the extent of the corruption that has informed the Catholic Church’s administration.
The Italian bias in the way the church has been organised has led to its involvement in Italian politics and power, including connections with the Mafia.
Pope Benedict did not know what hit him when he was first confronted with the venal set-up in the administration of the church; it all seemed to be out of his reach, ending in his resignation.

I am currently reading, and greatly enjoying,Gabriel Daly’s book, Church, Always in need of Reform. It is both erudite and very readable. The following extract gives a flavour of the book. It is part of a chapter on ecumenical relations, and here he is reflecting on the Protestant Reformation:

“When in the sixteenth century western Christians became divided from one another, it was not only mutual love and unity that were damaged.

On the appointment of Bishops:
“The ACP expresses its grave disquiet at some of the policies presently being pursued in relation to the appointment of bishops in Ireland: the lack of any credible process of consultation; the preference in the main for candidates drawn from a particular mindset; the apparently haphazard policy of appointments to distant dioceses that pays little regard to the traditions and heritage of a diocese; and not least the choice of candidates who seem to be out of sync with the realities of life in Ireland today and uncomfortable with the openness of Pope Francis to change and reform the Church.”