Pope’s leaked papers show fractured Vatican

Pope Benedict XVI’s correspondence shows tales of betrayal and rivalries, allegations of corruption and systemic dysfunction.

5 Seconds

00:00

Pope Benedict XVI arrives for his weekly general audience on Feb. 13 at the Vatican. It was his first public appearance since he announced his resignation, effective at the end of the month.

Filippo Monteforte / Agence France-Presse via Getty Images

VatiLeaks, as the scandal of the pope's stolen correspondence came to be known, exposed the church bureaucracy's entrenched opposition to Pope Benedict XVI's fledgling effort to carve out a legacy as a reformer against the backdrop of a global child sex abuse scandal and the continued dwindling of his flock.

Max Rossi / Reuters

The letters showed how Pope Benedict XVI, seen in 2011, was no match for a culture that rejected even a modicum of transparency and preferred a damage-control campaign that diverted attention from the institution’s fundamental problems.

Stefano Rellandini / Reuters

Pope Benedict XVI's apartment is seen on Feb. 11, the evening after he announced his resignation. His correspondence was stolen from his apartment by his butler, who passed the information along to an Italian journalist, who published the letters.

Andreas Solaro / Agence France-Presse via Getty Images

The moon rises near St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican. Sine the VatiLeaks scandal, the Holy See responded by beefing up its public relations department and putting an emphasis on the transparency of the butler's trial.

Alessandro Bianchi / Reuters

Lightning strikes St. Peter's Dome at the Vatican on Feb. 11, the day Pope Benedict XVI announced he would resign as leader of the Catholic Church, citing his age and the pressures of the job.

Filippo Monteforte / Agence France-Presse via Getty Images

A 2010 photo shows Paolo Gabriele (front left) sitting beside the driver of the popemobile with Pope Benedict XVI being driven on St. Peter's Square. Gabriele, the pope's butler, would later be convicted of stealing Benedict's correspondence.

Ettore Ferrari / European Pressphoto Agency

In March 2012, Pope Benedict XVI waves from the popemobile wearing a Mexican sombrero as he arrives to celebrate Mass in Bicentennial Park near Silao, Mexico.

Eduardo Verdugo / Associated Press

Paolo Gabriele, the pope's former butler, arrives to take up his new social work job at a pediatric hospital in Rome on Feb. 13. He made no statement or comments to reporters as he arrived for his new duties. Gabriele, who was given an 18-month sentence October 2012 in the Vatileaks case, was pardoned by the pope just before Christmas.

Angelo Carconi / European Pressphoto Agency

Italian journalist Gianluigi Nuzzi used the letters he got from the pope's butler to write "His Holiness: The Secret Papers of Pope Benedict XVI," a blockbuster book published last year.

Gabriel Bouys / Agence France-Presse via Getty Images

In November, Pope Benedict XVI elevated six new cardinals from Colombia, India, Lebanon, Nigeria, the Philippines and the United States during a consistory ceremony in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican. (Photo by Guido MARZILLA/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

Guido Marzilla / Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone is secretary of state for the Vatican, the pope's number two person. While Benedict was the public face of the universal church, Bertone has been the private power broker who runs the Vatican on a daily basis.

Alessandro Bianchi / Reuters

These are a few of the Roman Catholic clergy from Latin America cited as being possible candidates to be the next Pope: from left, Brazilian Cardinal Joao Braz de Aviz, Sao Paulo Archbishop Odilo Scherer and Argentine Cardinal Leonardo Sandri.

Alessandro Bianchi / Reuters

Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone, left, and Italian President Giorgio Napolitano are seen at the Italian Embassy to the Holy See in February. Bertone has worked diligently to consolidate power. His allies control the church's main financial institutions, prompting one official to write in a leaked document that traditional checks and balances had been ignored.

Claudio Peri / European Pressphoto Agency

Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi meets with journalists at the Vatican on Feb.12. Lombardi says the resigning Pope Benedict XVI will play no role in the selection of his successor.

Gregorio Borgia / Associated Press

Vatican officials charged with running the church shrugged off the VatiLeaks scandal. "They are little things, pebbles in the shoe that hurt so much and seem to prevent you from going forward," said Cardinal Giovanni Lajolo. "If one looks at the act of betrayal, it is in itself a grave act, even more so because it is near the apex of the church. But what does this tell us? It tells us only about the fragility of a person or of some people."

Giampiero Sposito / Reuters

U.S. Archbishop James Michael Harvey, center, stands during the pontif's weekly general audience on Oct. 31, 2012, at St. Peter's Square. He was made cardinal the next month, though as the head of the papal household, Harvey had overseen Gabriele, and his new assignment seemed a classic example of promoveatur ut amoveatur — promote to remove.

Gabriel Bouys / Agence France-Presse via Getty Images

An image of Pope Benedict XVI is seen at St. Paul's Outside the Walls Basilica in Rome. Whoever he may be, the 266th pope will inherit a gerontocracy obsessed with turf and Italian politics, uninterested in basic management practices and hostile to reforms.

Alessandro Bianchi / Reuters

FEATURED PHOTO GALLERIES

TV presenter and conservationist Anneka Tanaka-Svenska wears a hat designed by Louis Mariette during the first day of Royal Ascot, in Berkshire, west of London, on June 18, 2013. The five-day meeting is one of the highlights of the horse racing calendar. Horse racing has been held at the famous Berkshire course since 1711 and tradition is a hallmark of the meeting. Top hats and tails remain compulsory in parts of the course while a daily procession of horse-drawn carriages brings the Queen to the course. AFP PHOTO / ADRIAN DENNISADRIAN DENNIS/AFP/Getty Images

Photos of the day

Royal Ascot, protests in Brazil, Lego exhibition, flooding in India, Cheetah-Cub robot and more.

epa03749440 US actor Brad Pitt arrives on the red carpet for the New York Premiere of 'World War Z' in Times Square in New York, USA, 17 June 2013. EPA/JASON SZENES

The premiere of ‘World War Z’

The zombie flick starring Brad Pitt opens from Berlin to New York.

Two-year old male rat named Dyatlik wears a costume during a rodent exhibition in Minsk, Belarus, Saturday, June 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Animal views

Rodent exhibition, swimming with elephants, Mexico’s feline mayoral candidate and more.

Inmates walk at a high-security male prison camp outside Russia's Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk May 14, 2013. High-security male prison camp number 17 is intended to house male inmates who are serving a sentence for the first time, and have been convicted for serious crimes. Prisoners at the facility work in wood and metal processing shops, manufacture furniture, sew clothes and do other kinds of work. They can also take part in educational, sport and cultural programs. Picture taken May 14, 2013. REUTERS/Ilya Naymushin (RUSSIA - Tags: CRIME LAW SOCIETY) ATTENTION EDITORS: PICTURE 4 OF 29 FOR PACKAGE 'INSIDE SIBERIA'S PRISONS' SEARCH 'ILYA PRISON' FOR ALL IMAGES

Life in a Siberian prison

A look inside a high-security prison camp outside Krasnoyarsk, Russia

WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 14: Johnathon Carrington, valedictorian at Dunbar High School, laughs with family and friends after his school's graduation ceremony at Howard University on Friday, June 14, 2013, in Washington, DC. Carrington, who grew up in Tyler House public-housing apartments and is graduating from one of DC's low-performing high schoolsy, where academic expectations are high. (Photo by Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post)

Johnathon’s journey

Johnathon Carrington graduated Friday as the valedictorian of his neighborhood school, Dunbar High, and is headed to Georgetown University. But Carrington, 17, is nervous, and so are...

NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 18: Madonna attends the Dolce & Gabbana and The Cinema Society screening of the Epix World premiere of 'Madonna: The MDNA Tour' at The Paris Theatre on June 18, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)

Eye on entertainment

Madonna, Michael Buble, Barbara Streisand, Jackie Chan, Jerry Seinfeld, Estelle and other celebrities.

In this June 8, 2013 photo, youth compete in the Sao Carlos slum local soccer tournament in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The pitch is just dirt and the incandescent lights aren't so bright. But when the boys' feet strike the football in the Sao Carlos slum as night falls every Saturday, big league dreams glow, inflated by the hope of escaping the shantytown with sporting skills. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Brazil’s other soccer fields

With the Confederations Cup opening this week and the World Cup one year away, all eyes are on Brazil, where soccer is arguably played with more passion and art than anywhere else....

WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 16: John F. Tatum Sr. hugs his grandson John F. Tatum III during his annual Father's Day block party on Sunday, June 16, 2013 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Amanda Voisard/For the Washington Post)

Father’s Day picnic in Northeast D.C.

A decades-old backyard barbecue in Northeast Washington draws hundreds in honor of dads everywhere. “It’s off-the-chain fun,” says Butch McNair, who has worked one...

Back to Previous Gallery

Discussion Policy | FAQ | About Discussions

Comments

Add your comment

Read what others are saying About Badges

SuperFan Badge

SuperFan badge holders consistently post smart, timely comments about Washington area sports and teams.

More about badges | Request a badge

Culture Connoisseur Badge

Culture Connoisseurs consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on the arts, lifestyle and entertainment.

More about badges | Request a badge

Fact Checker Badge

Fact Checkers contribute questions, information and facts to The Fact Checker.

More about badges | Request a badge

Washingtologist Badge

Washingtologists consistently post thought-provoking, timely comments on events, communities, and trends in the Washington area.

More about badges | Request a badge

Post Writer Badge

This commenter is a Washington Post editor, reporter or producer.

Post Forum Badge

Post Forum members consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on politics, national and international affairs.

More about badges | Request a badge

Weather Watcher Badge

Weather Watchers consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on climates and forecasts.

More about badges | Request a badge

World Watcher Badge

World Watchers consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on international affairs.

More about badges | Request a badge

Post Contributor Badge

This commenter is a Washington Post contributor. Post contributors aren’t staff, but may write articles or columns. In some cases, contributors are sources or experts quoted in a story.

More about badges | Request a badge

Post Recommended

Washington Post reporters or editors recommend this comment or reader post.

You must be logged in to report a comment.

Comments our editors find particularly useful or relevant are displayed in Top Comments, as are comments by users with these badges: . Replies to those posts appear here, as well as posts by staff writers.

All comments are posted in the All Comments tab.

More about badges

Get a badge

To pause and restart automatic updates, click "Live" or "Paused". If paused, you'll be notified of the number of additional comments that have come in.