Vatican Connections: Friday March 14, 2014

Alicia Ambrosio

March 14, 2014
One year after (perhaps) the most watched interregnum and conclave in recent history, the church finds herself changed. Most would say changed for the better. This change has also established new bridges between the church and the wider world. The catalyst for that change was a 76 year old man who had already picked out his room in a local retirement residence.
Jorge Bergoglio has captured the attention of Catholics and non-Catholics alike for several reasons: His down to earth manner shows what it means to life a life of faith and highlights the fact that it is something anyone can do.
Over the last year people of all leanings and backgrounds have found themselves inspired by this example. Priests across Canada and Europe have noticed a rise in Mass attendance and more demand than ever for confession. Non Catholics have been heard professing their love of Pope Francis, and even many people estranged from the church have begun to discuss the reasons for their distance in a calm, open, dialogue.
Perhaps the biggest changes Pope Francis has engendered in the last year will never be seen on a screen or in interviews: a change in Vatican culture, and a change in the hearts of the faithful. Recent appointments and innovations at in the Roman Curia are more than just administrative decisions: people are being appointed to roles because they are qualified for that role, wok hard, and never forget their day job: Priest.
In living rooms around the world Pope Francis homilies have caused people to question their behavior, habits, prayer life, priorities, and values. This has resulted in changes big and small that, combined, “renew the face of the earth.”
 
*****
Curial reforms have been at the forefront these last few weeks. First the Vatican announced the creation of the Secretariat for the Economy, to be led by Australian Cardinal George Pell, and the Council for the Economy. This week the members of the Council for the Economy were announced.
The council is made up of eight cardinals and seven laypeople from around the world.
Cardinal Renhard Marx, Archbishop of Munich and Freising
The German prelate will serve as Coordinator of the council. He is also part of the so-called C8, the Council of Cardinal who are working with Pope Francis to rewrite the constitution of the Roman Curia.
Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, Archbishop of Galveston-Houston
The American cardinal has been archbishop in Texas since 2006, He worked in Rome at the Congregation for Bishops from 1980 to 1994, which gives him some knowledge of the inner workings of the Vatican, but enough time outside the Curia to bring a fresh view.
Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, Archbishop of Durban, South Africa
He has been Archbishop of Durban since 1992. Cardinal Napier was a member of the former Council of 15 Cardinals for the Study of Organizational and Economic Questions of the Apostolic See. Cardinal Napier is active on social media, tweeting regularly as he visits with different groups in his archdiocese.
Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera, Archbishop of Mexico City
The Mexican Cardinal has been Archbishop of Mexico City since 1995.
Cardinal Rivera Carrera was a member of the former Council of 15 Cardinals for the Study of Organizational and Economic Questions of the Apostolic See.
Cardinal Juan Cipriani Thorne, Archbishop of Lima, Peru
He has been Archbishop of Lima since 1999. Cardinal Cipriani Thorne was a member of the former Council of 15 Cardinals for the Study of Organizational and Economic Questions of the Apostolic See.
Cardinal Jean Pierre Ricard, Archbishop of Bordeaux, France
The French cardinal has been Archbishop of Bordeaux since 2001. Previously, he was Bishop of Montpellier (1996-2001. Cardinal Ricard was a member of the former Council of 15 Cardinals for the Study of Organizational and Economic Questions of the Apostolic See.
Cardinal John Tong Hon, Archbishop of Hong Kong
Cardinal Tong Hon succeeded Cardinal Joseph Zen in 2009. He has previously been Auxiliary and Coadjutor bishop of Hong Kong. Like many of the cardinals appointed to this council, he was a member of the Council of 15 Cardinals for the Study of Organizational and Economic Questions of the Apostolic See.
Cardinal Agostino Vallini, Vicar General of the Diocese of Rome
Cardinal Vallini has been Vicar General of Rome since 2008. Previously, he was Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, Bishop of Albano, and Auxiliary Bishop of Naples. Cardinal Vallini was a member of the former Council of 15 Cardinals for the Study of Organizational and Economic Questions of the Apostolic See.
Joseph Zahra, Malta
Zahra will serve as the Vice-Coordinator of the Council for the Economy. He is an economist and founding partner and Managing Director of MISCO, an independent consulting group operating in Malta, Italy and Cyprus. He has been a consultant and board facilitator in the Corporate World, for over 25 years guiding executives in changing the way they do business, using new technologies and business models. Zahra is also a former director of the Central Bank of Malta and former member of the Monetary Policy Committee. In July 2013, Pope Francis appointed him President of the Commission for the reforms of the economic and administrative structures of the Holy See. He sits on a number of boards of directors of both private and listed companies operating in financial services, oil services, transportation, retailing and accommodation
Jean-Baptiste de Franssu, France
Up to the end of October 2011 Franssu was Chief Executive Officer of Invesco Europe and a member of the Invesco Worldwide management committee. Jean-Baptiste was also a member of the European Commission's asset management expert group on UCITS regulatory regime evolution. Since 2013, Jean-Baptiste has been a member of the Pontifical Commission for Reference on the Organization of the Economic-Administrative Structure of the Holy See.
John Kyle, Canada/USA
Kyle retired in 2008 as Vice-President and Treasure of Imperial Oil Limited in Canada after 34 years of service. Born in the United States on January 16, 1943, he is a dual citizen of Canada and the United States. He has been a member of the Council of International Auditors of the Prefecture for the Economic Affairs of the Holy See since 2005. He was a member of the Finance Council of the Archdiocese of Toronto from 1991 to 2005, and a member and chair of the audit committee of the Board of Catholic Cemeteries of Toronto.
Enrique Llano Cueto, Spain
Llano Cueto is an Economist from the University of Madrid and a Chartered Accountant. He began his career at Deloitte Haskins and Sells (now Deloitte and Touche). He was elected in 1986 member of the Partnership Board until 1988. Then, between 1988 and 2008, he was audit partner of KPMG Peat Marwick (now KPMG). At present, he is an independent adviser to middle size and family business companies and has been a member of the Pontifical Commission for Reference on the Organization of the Economic- Administrative Structure of the Holy See since 2013.
Jochem Messemer, Germany
Messemer is a former Partner of McKinsey&Company (1993-2003), and has worked for various Catholic institutions in Germany. He has been an International Auditor of the Prefecture for Economic Affairs of the Vatican and the Holy See since 2009 and a member of the Pontifical Commission for Reference on the Organization of the Economic-Administrative Structure of the Holy See since 2013.
Francesco Vermiglio, Italy
Vermiglio is Full Professor of Business Administration at the University of Messina  since 1987 and has also taught at Rome’s LUISS University. He was member of the Executive Committee of the OIC (Organismo Italiano Contabilità), the institution that defines and maintains the Italian Accounting Standards. Vermiglio has been a board member for several companies and banks including Banco di Sicilia and Bank of Valletta (Malta). From 1992 to 2013 he was in the Board of Directors of the Diocesan Institute for the support of the Clergy of the Dioceses of Messina, Lipari and S. Lucia del Mela.
George Yeo, Singapore
Yeo has been Chairman of Kerry Logistics Network since 2012. He has served as the Singapore Government as Minister of State for Finance, then as Minister for Information and the Arts, Health, Trade and Industry, and Foreign Affairs. Mr. Yeo chairs the International Advisory Panel of India's Nalanda University, and is a member of the Foundation Board of the World Economic Forum, the Berggruen Institute on Governance, the Asia-Pacific Advisory Board of Harvard Business School, the International Advisory Board of IESE Business School, the Economic Development Commission, Hong Kong. In 2013, Mr. Yeo was appointed a member of the Pontifical Commission for Reference on the Economic-Administrative Structure of the Holy See.