Robert Prevost: What Is Behind Francis' Machinations?
Cardinal Prevost is under fire for mishandling abuse cases when he was bishop of Chiclayo, Peru.
Only in September 2023 did Francis make him a Cardinal-Deacon. Less than two years later, he promoted him to the post of Cardinal-Bishop of Albano, which had been vacant for almost three years.
There is no precedent for a Cardinal-Deacon becoming a Cardinal-Bishop without having been a Cardinal-Priest first, but Dictator Francis doesn't feel bound by any rules, but likes to believe that others are bound by his.
What is the meaning of Prevost's hasty promotion? Don Santiago Martín (ReligionELibertad.com, 8 February) seems to have guessed the answer. He links it to another of Francis' appointments.
Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, 91 (!), wanted to resign as Dean of the College of Cardinals in January when his term of office expired. However, the same Bergoglio who had limited the mandate of the Dean of Cardinals to five years, extended Re's term for another year.
The Dean of the College of Cardinals is, among other things, in charge of organising the conclave and the pre-conclave. He is elected by and from among the Cardinal-Bishops, but must be approved by the Pope.
So Bergoglio's plan is easy to see through. He wants Prevost to become the new Dean of Cardinals, probably because he remembers that Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was Dean of Cardinals when he was elected Pope in 2005.
However, after Bergoglio's disastrous tenure, an attempt by him to designate a candidate as his successor could be a kiss of death, even considering the embarrassingly low level of those who are currently cardinals of the Roman Church.
Picture: Robert Prevost © Mazur CC BY-NC-ND, #newsBrfddhwlre