Francis and the eight sages

The election of Pope Francis was something of a devolution in the Roman Curia. His humble personality conquered the hearts of the faithful with the spontaneity of his gestures. But is it enough to govern the Universal Church? One can argue that it is not. Most likely the figure of Pope Francis would not have been considered had the Vatican not been steeped in the darkness of scandals. In this sense, the election of Cardinal Bergoglio signaled a turning point. Nothing will be the same.
It is in this light that we must consider the choice of Pope Francis calling on eight wise men to reform the Roman Curia. For decades, maybe centuries, the Roman Curia was the center of plots and scandals, but the key point is that the Curia was no longer able to govern the Universal Church. Pope Francis is perfectly aware of the limits of the Vatican structure. This is the reason why he called on eight men to reform the Pastor Bonus constitution that came out from Vatican Council II. Some observers view this as a little Vatican Council III – in other words, it will have a deep impact on the Curia and its tenure on power.
So who are these wise men entitled to reform the Curia? They are all cardinals and only one of them comes from Italy: Cardinal Giuseppe Bertello, the President of the Vatican Governatorate. The other seven members of the group come from all over the world: Cardinal Oswald Gracias from India; Cardinal Francisco Javier Errazuriz Ossa from Chile; Cardinal Reinhard Marx from Germany; Cardinal Laurent Monsegwo Pasinya from Congo; Cardinal Sean O’Malley from the United States; Cardinal Oscar Andres Rodriguez Maradiaga from Honduras and cardinal George Pell from Australia. Their task is not easy, but the future of Catholic Church depends on it.