Pell: The Pope does not want the Vatican to be seen as a renaissance court

Gerard O'Connel
Vatican Insider
June 27, 2013

The cardinal archbishop of Sydney, George Pell, in Rome for various meetings in the Vatican, granted me this interview on June 24, in which he shared his impressions on Pope Francis’s first 100 days in office and discussed the reform of the Roman Curia.

“We’ve got a different type of Pope” who is “doing very well”, he said. But he also expressed some concern for the pope’s health because of “the cracking pace” at which he has begun his work.

Pell, one of the Pope’s eight cardinal advisors said he envisages “a major re-configuration” of the Roman Curia and hopes a better way can be set up to select people for positions at all levels in it.

Francis has been pope for 100 days. What are the two or three things that stand out in your mind from this period?

I think his recent encounter with the Harley Davidson riders was emblematic. Thousands of them came on these enormous motorbikes on Sunday morning to get a blessing from Francis. By all accounts, the Pope was perfectly at home with them, and blessed them. They gave him two big motorbikes which he’s going to sell off and give the proceeds to the poor.

I think that’s emblematic that we’ve got a different type of a pope. He’s a pope who very much understands the importance of symbols, and he’s inclined to talk through stories and parables.

He took the name of Francis. St Francis of Assisi was distinguished for many things, including one saying that’s allegedly come from him where he tells his brothers: “Preach (the Gospel) by deeds and, if necessary use words”. Now I think the Holy Father very much understands that, and so his style of teaching is quite different from that of Pope Benedict. Somebody said Benedict was a great teacher for intellectuals, bishops and priests, but Francis is much more immediate and direct, and for ordinary people. Then again, in another symbolic act, he rode in the bus with the other bishops after giving his first blessing to the people after his election. And, of course, he has decided to live in Santa Marta.

What do you make of his decision to stay at Santa Marta?

I think it’s obviously the action of a man who likes company. It’s very much the action of a Pope who does not want to be isolated and, if I could venture an hypothesis, I suspect it’s the action of a man who doesn’t want to be controlled. I’m all in favor of popes being popes.

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By his commitment to a simple life, marked by poverty, Pope Francis is setting a style of how to be a priest, how to be a bishop, how to be a pope. Do you think many bishops and priests will review their own style of life in the light of his example?

There’s no doubt about it, the style of papacy, the content of the teaching, the way the Pope lives, all this influences the life of the whole Church. I think the general direction which the Holy Father is going in is very good. He certainly doesn’t want the Vatican to be seen as a Renaissance court or even an 18th century court, but rather as a place where people are serious about serving Christ and serving the people. He’s certainly not into pomp and circumstance. So to answer your question, yes, I think his example and style of life will have an effect.

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