Wielgus and repercussions

Sandro Magister has a lengthy and informative article about the affair of Archbishop Wielgus: The Wielgus Case: The Reasons for His Resignation. These Italian commentators are often very well informed. I know of Sandro Magister's Italian blog. If there are any other blogs in Italian by journalists interested in the Vatican, I'd be grateful to hear in the combox.

Magister discusses the situation in Poland, and the polarisation that has arisen there. He also looks at the question from the point of view of Rome. He says,

The current director of “Tygodnik,” Fr. Adam Boniecki, once a personal friend of Wojtyla’s and head of the Polish edition of “L’Osservatore Romano,” has said:

“I don’t know who, but someone has misled pope Joseph Ratzinger. This is a serious matter, and someone must pay for it, in Poland or in the Vatican.”

These words, given in an interview with the Italian newspaper “la Repubblica” on the day of Wielgus’ resignation, were reprinted with great emphasis in “Avvenire,” the newspaper of the Italian bishops’ conference, which has a direct link to the Vatican secretary of state, cardinal Tarcisio Bertone: this is a sign of strong displeasure and irritation on the part of Church leadership over how that matter came to a conclusion.

In effect, the final curtain of this drama – the resignation of Wielgus just 40 hours after he had formally taken his post as archbishop of Warsaw – can be explained only by an authoritative decision by Benedict XVI himself.

If by ordering his resignation the pope finally decided to reverse his position of constant support for Wielgus as head of the most important diocese in Poland, it must be because he was convinced by very serious facts.

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