Scottish Catholic Observer

Cardinal Gerhard Müller has said that, while the leak of a letter allegedly sent to Pope Francis by leading cardinals raising concerns over new synod procedures is ‘a new Vatileaks,’ there is no great dispute over the family synod.

The German cardinal (above), who is also Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, has declined to confirm whether he signed the letter or not. He did admit to tensions in the synod ‘between doctrine and pastoral approach,’ but added that it is the task of the synod ‘to see these two aspects together.’

“The scandal is that it makes public a private letter of the Pope,” Cardinal Müller said. “This is a new Vatileaks: The Pope’s private documents are private property of the Pope and no one else. No one can publish it, I do not know how that could happen.”

I do not know anyone here who is against the Pope," Cardinal Müller said. "Always the synod discusses how to improve procedures, everyone has the freedom to say their opinion on this.

Cardinal Müller is one of a number of cardinals who, it was claimed, signed the letter to the Pope. Following an earlier report by journalist Sandro Magister, the Jesuit periodical America reports that 13 cardinals wrote to Pope Francis on October 5 to express serious concerns about the synod of bishops’ working document and procedures.

Cardinal Wilfrid Napier has confirmed that he signed a letter but said that it was different to the text that has been published, while Cardinal George Pell, another reported signatory, said the letter to the Pope was private and ‘should remain private’ and that there were ‘errors in both the content and the list of signatories’ in the original report.

Cardinal Péter Erdõ, Cardinal André Vingt-Trois, Cardinal Mauro Piacenza and Cardinal Angelo Scola have denied signing the letter.

America reports that the correct list of 13 cardinals includes Cardinals Carlo Caffarra, Thomas Collins, Daniel Di Nardo, Timothy Dolan, Willem Eijk, Gerhard Müller ,Wilfrid Napier, John Njue, George Pell, Norberto Rivera Carrera, Robert Sarah, Elio Sgreccia, and Jorge Urosa Savino.

Cardinal Müller also said it was not true to say there was great dispute over the family synod.

“To say we are friends of the Pope and those guys are the enemy, this is hermeneutics of conspiracy,” he said. “I do not know anyone here who is against the Pope. Always the synod discusses how to improve procedures, everyone has the freedom to say their opinion on this.”

His views were echoed by Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga, one of Pope Francis’ closest advisers.

“It seems to me that no one here wants to be in opposition or bring confrontations,” the Honduran cardinal said. “Some in the media want to present it that way because that is the style of the world today. Here we are all united under the light of the Holy Spirit and under the love of God.”

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