![]() ![]() In a statement to the Associated Press, Caritas said it has spent the past six months on a “journey of renewal and communion” in response to Pope Francis’ call for reform. Possible successors to Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, who was removed as Caritas president in November, include Cardinal Soane Patita Patita Paini Mafi, archbishop of Tonga Archbishop Tarcisius Isao Kikuchi of Tokyo the Maronite archbishop of Tripoli (Lebanon) Joseph Soueif, who was a candidate for the presidency of Caritas in 2015 and Monsignor Gabriel Hatti, president of the Middle East and North Africa office.Ĭandidates for general secretary include Cristina Calvo, consultant to Caritas America Latina, and Alistair Dutton, executive director of Caritas Scotland and former humanitarian director of Caritas Internationalis.ĬNA contacted Caritas Internationalis for comment about its former leaders’ criticisms Wednesday but did not receive a response before publication. Every four years, representatives from these organizations gather for a general assembly in Vatican City to elect a president, vice presidents, secretary general, and treasurer. National Caritas organizations are linked to their bishops’ conferences. From there, the organization’s leadership “coordinates emergency response, policy and advocacy, communications, international representation, and capacity building,” according to Caritas’ website. The General Secretariat of Caritas Internationalis is based in Vatican City. He adds: “The fact that the decision taken cannot be questioned because it is subject to a decree of the Holy Father cannot hide where it comes from.” Electing New Leaders He writes that “there is no doubt” that “those in charge” of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development are responsible for trying to centralize control over Caritas. ![]() ![]() In his letter, Roy warns that “the confederation is in danger of becoming a mere platform subject to decisions from above and not from its members.” John underlines that “the announcement of this suspension, made in haste, with incredible violence and little public communication, has discredited the Church and one of its jewels.” The provisional government, John asserts, humiliates “the members of the Confederation, who place their trust in this institution and its future.” These were “surprisingly vague” words that are “unfounded” and “the result of an investigation that was solely incriminating,” John maintains. At the same time, when Caritas’ management was removed, it was underlined that there had been “neither misappropriation of funds nor sexual abuse but a flaw in management.” Yet, the final report of the inspection was classified as “confidential,” he notes. The inspection had the task of “helping to understand the situation,” John writes in the letter. The inspection was requested because “some employees, unhappy with the changes, had written anonymous letters and a signed letter to the vice president of Caritas International.” In his letter, John recalls that the external inspection had begun in the summer of 2022, following a letter that he had sent to Cardinal Michael Czerny, prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, on June 23. In his view, the leadership changes stemmed from “a deliberate will on the part of some superiors of dicasteries who think and act in a logic of control of the institution, the people, the resources.” He also blamed a “colonialist” attitude on the part of some members of the confederation, saying they saw him as an outsider because he is of Indian origin. John, describing the move as a “brutal power grab,” says in his eight-page letter he considers it an “incomprehensible act” in the face of the synodal process underway in the worldwide Church. Yet in a pair of open letters sent to the delegates, obtained by CNA’s Italian-language news partner ACI Stampa along with other media outlets, Caritas’ two prior general secretaries - Aloysius John and his predecessor, Michel Roy - level sharp criticism at the pope’s actions. Pope Francis’ decree stated that Caritas would undergo a review “to improve its management rules and procedures - even if financial matters were managed well and fundraising objectives regularly achieved - and thereby better serve its member charities around the world.” ![]()
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