Vigano in Hiding

https://catholicherald.co.uk/magazine/the-vigano-affair-has-revealed-the-depth-of-the-churchs-crisis/

Archbishop Vigano is in hiding. A cleric on the run is an intriguing if familiar chapter from Roman Catholic history. The fact that a high-ranking figure has gone underground in 2019 is particularly interesting. Scandal and intrigue swirl around the Vatican. This is hardly new but the Francis papacy has stirred the pot. Old scandals live on and while Francis has upset some of the traditionalists, the Vigano accusations in many respects reveal Francis to be (at least in part) a defender of the status quo.

For all his rhetoric it would appear that Francis is happy to look the other way when it comes to abusers and paedophiles within the hierarchy. Or is it that the hands of Francis are tied at certain points? With the Vatican it's always hard to tell.

Moves were made to reform the IOR (Vatican Bank) but critics have pointed out that little has actually been done. Reforms have been put in place but they're provisional and upon closer examination are revealed to be carefully crafted public moves that have little substance and are easily manipulated.

Interestingly both the Progressives and the Traditionalists want reform. I think the tendency is to think in terms of those pushing for women priests and the like. They certainly represent a powerful movement within the Roman Catholic organisation. And yet the traditionalist factions also want reform. They want to purge the filth and corruption and yet to add another layer to this discussion, even the traditional factions are divided as there are some who would support the IOR and the idea of Vatican political support for Right-wing causes while others believe such activities have morally compromised Catholicism. To say it's complicated would be an understatement.

Vigano shocked many in 2018 by calling for Francis to resign. This was unprecedented as Popes generally speaking don't resign. Of course the Ratzinger/Benedict XVI move in 2013 was also virtually unprecedented. And yet has it established a new precedent? It's too early to tell. Vigano's call was shocking as was his 'going public', something that's just not done. Some believe his life is in danger. He wouldn't be the first person caught up in a Vatican scandal to fall prey to the 'suicide' assassins.

While Vigano's main focus has been in the realm of the abuse cover-up he also has spoken out with regard to the 2019 Amazonian Synod. This has endeared him to the traditionalists who desperately want Francis gone and believe the upcoming meeting is rooted in heretical assumptions. While some of the traditionalists have been mixed in their response to the abuse crisis... blaming it on the 'liberals' and Vatican II crowd, others seized the opportunity presented by Vigano to tarnish the reputation of Francis. The matter of the Amazonian Synod has only added fuel to the fire and has increased Vigano's standing.

Some present the Amazonian meeting among other things as being a rekindling of Jesuit Liberation Theology even though Francis has a record of opposing it. In fact those who support it have been rather critical of Bergoglio and his tenure in Argentina during the dictatorship.

Francis seeks to make subtle changes to the operations and practices of Roman Catholicism. In many respects these changes are little more than official recognitions of already existing realities. But for the traditionalists the moves suggested by Francis will cross the line and give formal approval to immorality... conduct that is largely tolerated but not officially sanctioned. For those engaged in what they view to be as an existential fight, the moving of the bar as it were would represent catastrophic defeat and set the stage for further shifts to the Left. They would rather see the official line towed and permit hypocrisy than to see the on-the-ground realities regarding marriage and sexuality acknowledged and embraced.

Additionally Francis has thrown in with the environmentalists and has spoken out regarding the rapacious appetites of Capitalism. As many traditionalists have come to embrace Liberalism in the realm of economics, this move is something of a double-heresy. To them Francis has embraced pantheism (hardly new in Roman theology) and the heresy of anti-capitalism.

Ironically Catholic Social Teaching does not embrace Libertarian economics and yet through the influence of Austrian School, growing numbers of otherwise traditionalist Catholics have embraced the radically liberal creed... breaking with both Catholic Social Teaching and older Vatican I era teaching. This has just muddied the waters. But it's also instructive as it reveals many 'conservatives' and 'traditionalists' are in reality more affected by 20^th century ideology and the Cold War than an actual connection to historical doctrines and patterns of thought. This 'schizophrenia' parallels developments within conservative Protestantism.

How will the Vigano story end? There are many possibilities but regardless the story fascinates. Again for me it's probably tied to my years in Italy and my many trips to Rome. Roman Catholicism is a secretive organisation and walled and inaccessible monasteries and schools give a tangible quality to its sense of mystery and of course from my standpoint its more sinister aspects.