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Vatican prosecutor seeks 7 years in prison, $15 million in cardinal’s financial trial

July 26, 2023 Catholic News Agency 1
Cardinal Angelo Becciu (left) at the consistory in St. Peter’s Basilica, Aug. 27, 2022. / Daniel Ibáñez / CNA

Vatican City, Jul 26, 2023 / 09:33 am (CNA).

The top public prosecutor for the Vatican on Wednesday asked the judge in Cardinal Angelo Becciu’s financial malfeasance trial to serve the embattled prelate with seven years and three months in prison and to confiscate more than $15 million in connection with his alleged mismanagement of Holy See funds. 

Becciu has been charged with embezzlement, abuse of office, and several other allegations regarding a series of financial investments that prosecutors claim were meant to benefit his family at the expense of the Vatican.

The trial is the culmination of more than two years of investigation by the Vatican into what happened in and around the Secretariat of State’s 350-million-euro purchase of an investment property in London between 2014 and 2018.

The Vatican maintains that the deal was problematic and designed to defraud the Secretariat of State of millions of euros.

The defendants in the trial have been adamant their actions were above board and that Vatican authorities were in the know.

Becciu has claimed the purchase of the London property was an “accepted practice.” He has also been accused of funneling tens of thousands of dollars to a charity run by his brother. 

Vatican prosecutor Alessandro Diddi on Wednesday asked Judge Giuseppe Pignatone to serve Becciu with seven years and three months in prison, to fine him more than $11,000, and to confiscate upwards of $15 million. 

The stiff sentencing, Diddi argued, was necessary to recompense for the “many crimes against the patrimony of the Holy See,” the Associated Press reported.

Becciu’s lawyers in the wake of Diddi’s request argued that the cardinal has always been a “loyal servant of the Church,” the AP reported.

“Not even one day would be a fair sentence,” the lawyers said. 

Diddi also requested prison sentences for other defendants in the trial, including 13 years for Fabrizio Tirabassi, a former official in the administrative section of the Secretariat of State.

In addition to recommending prison sentences, the prosecutor requested the confiscation of a total of $462 million from the case’s 10 defendants.

Earlier this year during trial proceedings it was revealed that Pope Francis had rebuffed Becciu’s attempts to have the Holy Father offer his approval of the disputed transactions, with Francis telling the cardinal bluntly: “I cannot comply with your request.”

The proposal to purchase the London property “immediately seemed strange to me,” Francis told Becciu in the letters. 

While Pope Francis intervened in 2020 to force Becciu’s resignation as prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints and barred him from the rights and privileges of cardinals, he has since unofficially reinstated the disgraced prelate, allowing him to participate in public Vatican Masses and other events.

In a 2021 interview with Spanish broadcaster COPE, Francis said he hoped “with all my heart” that the cardinal is proven to be innocent.

This week marks two years of hearings in the Vatican’s largest trial for financial crimes in the modern era, with 10 defendants and a laundry list of charges, including embezzlement, money laundering, abuse of office, misappropriation, and fraud.

Hearings will resume in September and a decision is expected before Christmas.

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News Briefs

Pope Francis speaks to young people ahead of World Youth Day in ‘Popecast’

July 25, 2023 Catholic News Agency 4
A screenshot from Pope Francis’ May 4 video message to young people attending World Youth Day 2023 in Lisbon, Portugal. / Vatican Media

Boston, Mass., Jul 25, 2023 / 12:30 pm (CNA).

Ahead of next week’s World Youth Day in Lisbon, Portugal, Pope Francis responded to the prerecorded questions and struggles of young people in Vatican News’ newly produced podcast, dubbed the “Popecast.”

The podcast, which is produced in Italian, released its second episode Tuesday with the Holy Father. The first podcast was released in March on the 10th anniversary of Pope Francis’ papal election.

In the episode, Pope Francis responded to Giona’s account of a personal struggle with transgenderism. 

“God loves us just as we are,” the Holy Father said, adding that “the Lord always accompanies us, always. Even if we are sinners, he draws near to help us,” Vatican News reported.

The pope said: “Do not give up, keep striving ahead.”

To a woman named Arianna who explained how she suffers from bipolar disorder, which has at times caused suicidal thoughts, but who feels “saved by God,” the pope encouraged her to listen to the guidance of health professionals. He added that everyone has wounds from different causes, which include sin. Our wounds require us to rely on God’s love and mercy, he said.

The Holy Father responded to Arianna’s recording reminding her to “always look ahead, not to lose sight of the horizon… and the horizon is God.”

A young man named Giuseppe shared his experience of leaving college, finding himself spending much of his time playing video games with others online, according to the outlet. 

Living his life online can become “aseptic” and isolated, the Holy Father said, adding that human contact is important.

The Holy Father also heard the regrets of Edward and Valerij, who both came from difficult family situations, which led to a life of crime resulting in juvenile detention, the outlet reported.

Pope Francis encouraged them to not allow mistakes to impede their lives, adding that the “human story goes on with its successes and its failures.”

The Holy Father told them to remember that Jesus is always with them and ready “to take you by the hand, to help lift you up.”

It is our responsibility to acknowledge our mistakes so God can help us change our lives, he said.

Then a religion teacher, Valeria, said in her recorded message that her students voice their desire for a more transparent and youthful Church that is closer to the people, according to the outlet.

The pope noted that it’s important for the Church to walk together with the people. The Church can become too closed in on itself and risk division, he added. He said that what makes the Church great is its diversity and unity.

The Holy Father also made comments aimed at Argentinian youth, from his native country, and encouraged them to better their society by rising to the occasion, the outlet reported.

He concluded the “Popecast” by urging the young people in the recordings to take part in World Youth Day. He said that they would find it fulfilling, with its community, celebration, hope, and joy.

For more information and live coverage of World Youth Day events, visit EWTN World Youth Day Central.

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News Briefs

Now hear this: St. Peter’s Basilica upgrades its sound system

July 23, 2023 Catholic News Agency 5
Pope Francis presides over a Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome on July 23, 2023, for the World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly. / Pablo Esparza/EWTN

Rome Newsroom, Jul 23, 2023 / 08:30 am (CNA).

A common struggle for elderly Mass-goers is being able to hear in church. It seems, then, that the unveiling of a new sound system in St. Peter’s Basilica couldn’t have had better timing. It was inaugurated on July 23, after 10 months of work, just in time for the papal Mass for the third World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly.

Some 80 new speakers and a state-of-the-art digital system replaced the previous sound system, installed nearly 25 years ago in the lead-up to the year 2000 jubilee.

The new system allows for “precise” and “perfect” sound, cutting down on the echo and reverberation that is typical of such a large space, according to the lead architect, Carlo Carbone.

With the new system, the sound seems to come from the altar, giving the congregation a more “natural” experience during the liturgies, he said. Voices and singing are heard more precisely as the sound distribution has been improved. “Before this renovation, there was an unnatural volume,” Carbone said. “The sound was overwhelming, as if coming from everywhere.”

The Dicastery for Communication’s Technology Department worked with the technical offices of the Fabbrica di San Pietro and Bose Professional to bring about the upgrade.

According to Vatican News, Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, the archpriest of St. Peter’s Basilica, said the project was “a great team effort, a beautiful synergy,” with the collaboration of experts from various fields.

Much of the work was done in the evening hours after the basilica was closed to the public. And it was no small effort. The sub-floor wiring that had accumulated over the last 70 years was replaced with 200 kilometers (about 125 miles) of fibers. The sound system now allows for some 20 distinct areas that can be engaged simultaneously or separately, depending on the celebration. It also seamlessly interfaces with the radio and television broadcasting systems.

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