UPDATE: "A source who spoke to CNS said his understanding was that Pope Francis was not planning to evict Cardinal Burke from his Vatican-owned apartment but that he did plan to ask the cardinal to start paying rent."
Pope Francis apparently told a meeting of the heads of Vatican offices last week that he was moving against Burke because he was a source of “disunity” in the church, said one of the participants at the Nov. 20 meeting. The participant spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to reveal the contents of the encounter.
The pope reportedly said he was removing Burke’s privileges of having a subsidized Vatican apartment and his retired cardinal salary because he was using the privileges against the church, said another person source. That person also spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to reveal the details. A Vatican salary is around 5-6,000 euros a month with a spacious rent-free Vatican apartment of over 400 square meters (close to 5,000 square feet).
Burke has not received any notification of measures being taken, his secretary said in a text message Tuesday to The Associated Press.
The Pillar wrote that they have: confirmed that there was a Vatican meeting last week, at which Pope Francis discussed a punitive measure, pertaining to Cardinal Burke’s stipend and apartment, mentioning specifically that Cardinal Burke has been a source of “disunity” in the Church.
It was not clear to our sources-close-to-the-situation whether the measure would include both apartment and stipend — but since the stipend goes to cardinals living in Rome, if Burke loses the apartment and leaves Rome, he also loses the stipend.
The Pillar has also confirmed that Burke has not been informed directly of the decision.Burke, a 75-year-old canon lawyer whom Francis had removed as the Vatican’s high court justice in 2014, and made Burke the cardinal patron of the Knights of Malta, a prestigious role. He has since become one of the most outspoken critics of the pope.
Pope Francis apparently told a meeting of the heads of Vatican offices last week that he was moving against Burke because he was a source of “disunity” in the church, said one of the participants at the Nov. 20 meeting. The participant spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to reveal the contents of the encounter.
The pope reportedly said he was removing Burke’s privileges of having a subsidized Vatican apartment and his retired cardinal salary because he was using the privileges against the church, said another person source. That person also spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to reveal the details. A Vatican salary is around 5-6,000 euros a month with a spacious rent-free Vatican apartment of over 400 square meters (close to 5,000 square feet).
Burke has not received any notification of measures being taken, his secretary said in a text message Tuesday to The Associated Press.
The Pillar wrote that they have: confirmed that there was a Vatican meeting last week, at which Pope Francis discussed a punitive measure, pertaining to Cardinal Burke’s stipend and apartment, mentioning specifically that Cardinal Burke has been a source of “disunity” in the Church.
It was not clear to our sources-close-to-the-situation whether the measure would include both apartment and stipend — but since the stipend goes to cardinals living in Rome, if Burke loses the apartment and leaves Rome, he also loses the stipend.
The Pillar has also confirmed that Burke has not been informed directly of the decision.Burke, a 75-year-old canon lawyer whom Francis had removed as the Vatican’s high court justice in 2014, and made Burke the cardinal patron of the Knights of Malta, a prestigious role. He has since become one of the most outspoken critics of the pope.
The papal biographer, Austen Iverleigh wrote:
I met with Pope Francis on the afternoon of November 27th. It was a short meeting because of his lung inflammation, which meant it took him some effort to speak. (The following evening his trip to Dubai was cancelled because it had not improved enough.) In the course of our conversation, Francis told me he had decided to remove Cardinal Burke’s cardinal privileges — his apartment and salary — because he had been using those privileges against the Church. He told me that while the decision wasn’t a secret, he didn’t intend a public announcement but earlier that day (Monday) it had been leaked.
He also noted:
A cardinal, in his oath, promises obedience “to blessed Peter in the person of the supreme Pontiff.”
On two occasions, Burke has joined other cardinals in issuing formal questions to the pontiff, known as “dubia,” asking him to clarify questions of doctrine that upset some traditionalists. In the first, they asked Francis to clarify his outreach to divorced and civilly remarried Catholics, and the second, they asked whether same-sex couples could receive church blessings — and received a conditional response.
Then, on the eve of Francis’ synod, Burke presided over a type of counter-synod of sorts near St. Peter’s Square. There, Burke delivered a rebuke of Francis’ vision of “synodality” as well as his overall reform project for the church.
“It’s unfortunately very clear that the invocation of the Holy Spirit by some has the aim of bringing forward an agenda that is more political and human than ecclesial and divine,” Burke told the conference titled “The Synodal Babel.”
“The sheep depend on the courage of pastors who must protect them from the poison of confusion, error and division,” he told the Oct. 3 conference.
September of Francis’ hand-picked new doctrine czar, Argentine Cardinal Victor Fernández.
Earlier in November, Francis removed the bishop of Tyler, Texas, Joseph Strickland, who had also criticized the pope on numerous occasions. Strickland was removed after a Vatican investigation into the governance of his diocese.
When questioned about word of Francis’ decision, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni didn’t deny the reports but referred questions to Burke.
“I don’t have anything particular to say about that,” Bruni told reporters.
Pope Benedict XVI had made Burke a cardinal in 2010, after he appointed him prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, the Vatican’s high court.
Please Pray for Pope Francis, Cardinal Burke and all Clergy....
Edited from https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2023/11/28/pope-francis-cardinal-burke-punish-246596 with information from The Pillar and Where Peter Is
On two occasions, Burke has joined other cardinals in issuing formal questions to the pontiff, known as “dubia,” asking him to clarify questions of doctrine that upset some traditionalists. In the first, they asked Francis to clarify his outreach to divorced and civilly remarried Catholics, and the second, they asked whether same-sex couples could receive church blessings — and received a conditional response.
Then, on the eve of Francis’ synod, Burke presided over a type of counter-synod of sorts near St. Peter’s Square. There, Burke delivered a rebuke of Francis’ vision of “synodality” as well as his overall reform project for the church.
“It’s unfortunately very clear that the invocation of the Holy Spirit by some has the aim of bringing forward an agenda that is more political and human than ecclesial and divine,” Burke told the conference titled “The Synodal Babel.”
“The sheep depend on the courage of pastors who must protect them from the poison of confusion, error and division,” he told the Oct. 3 conference.
September of Francis’ hand-picked new doctrine czar, Argentine Cardinal Victor Fernández.
Earlier in November, Francis removed the bishop of Tyler, Texas, Joseph Strickland, who had also criticized the pope on numerous occasions. Strickland was removed after a Vatican investigation into the governance of his diocese.
When questioned about word of Francis’ decision, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni didn’t deny the reports but referred questions to Burke.
“I don’t have anything particular to say about that,” Bruni told reporters.
Pope Benedict XVI had made Burke a cardinal in 2010, after he appointed him prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, the Vatican’s high court.
Please Pray for Pope Francis, Cardinal Burke and all Clergy....
Edited from https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2023/11/28/pope-francis-cardinal-burke-punish-246596 with information from The Pillar and Where Peter Is
Pope to impose sanctions on Cardinal Raymond Burke, including removal of his Vatican privileges (monthly salary, big apartment) following years of the cardinal attacking, accusing and undermining the authority of the pope to whom he promised obedience. https://t.co/vfUJHwkSwX
— Austen Ivereigh (@austeni) November 28, 2023
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