Pope Francis fires management of Catholic charity community Caritas

VATICAN CITY (RNS) — Pope Francis on Tuesday (Nov. 22) dismissed the management of the worldwide Catholic charity community Caritas Internationalis and appointed a commissioner to run the group, citing the necessity to revise its constitution forward of elections for brand spanking new leaders subsequent yr.

Caritas Internationalis is a hub for 162 charitable organizations in 200 international locations geared toward serving the poor and most susceptible. The Vatican’s Dicastery for Selling Integral Human Improvement oversees it.

Among the many dismissed officers are Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Caritas’ president, and Aloysius John, the secretary-general. The group’s vice chairman, treasurer, ecclesiastical assistant and members of the manager council and board of administrators additionally stepped down.

In his decree, the pope named Pier Francesco Pinelli the non permanent administrator of Caritas, with Maria Amparo Alonso Escobar, a Caritas veteran, and the Rev. Manuel Morujão, the Jesuit provincial of Portugal, as his prime aides.

A press release issued by the dicastery mentioned a evaluate by an unbiased panel on Caritas Internationalis’ office surroundings had discovered no proof of economic mismanagement or sexual impropriety, “however different essential themes and areas for pressing consideration emerged from the panel’s work,” the assertion learn. “Actual deficiencies have been famous in administration and procedures, severely prejudicing team-spirit and workers morale.”

Pinelli, who was a advisor for Caritas, headed the panel.

The assertion mentioned that Pinelli and his aides will “present stability and empathetic management” at Caritas Internationalis, including that the interruption of the present administration won’t halt charitable work finished everywhere in the world; “quite the opposite, it can serve to strengthen such service.”

Pinelli will work with Tagle and Cardinal Michael Czerny, the pinnacle of the Dicastery for Selling Integral Human Improvement, to arrange for the subsequent Common Meeting of Caritas, deliberate for Might 2023, when new management can be elected. The final election came about on the twenty first Common Meeting in 2019.

PInelli, who describes himself as a “fortunately married boomer,” has three many years of expertise in administration and consultancy after incomes a level in engineering. Fashioned in Ignatian spirituality, Pinelli additionally has labored intently with Jesuit foundations and establishments.

Greater than 100 Caritas representatives occurred to be in Rome for a two-day day convention (Nov. 21-22) on the theme “Collectively, Serving out of Love — Strengthening our Fraternal Cooperation.” In response to a press release launched on Saturday, the members met “to mirror on the best way to strengthen native management inside the Confederation and improve fraternal cooperation amongst member organizations.”

The assertion went on to clarify that the umbrella group was going through challenges introduced on by the pandemic and new conflicts arising on this planet. “The reflections and the discussions on the best way ahead will assist mirror on new methods for collaboration to fight poverty and save lives,” it mentioned, including that the convention would offer the premise for the upcoming Common Meeting.