Earlier this year I was lucky enough to spend some time in Rome at the Anglican Centre. While we were there my group was fortunate to meet with two of the key figures involved with the current Special Synod of Bishops on the Family, Cardinal Baldisseri, and Father Federico Lombardi, the Pope’s spokesman. We spent time with each of these two key figures and I was lucky enough to ask them both about their areas of responsibility.
We visited Cardinal Baldisseri at the Vatican where he arrived with six aides. As the meeting went on he became more informal and spoke more openly about how he became involved in preparing for and effectively running the Synod and how the event would work. His story of how the Pope tapped him up to head up the preparation was a fascinating insight into how Pope Francis operates. Baldisseri said that for several days running, over breakfast, the Pope would come and sit next to him and ask him if he would like to undertake this piece of work. Baldisseri responded by saying of course he would do as he was asked. The Pope, however, was not satisfied with this response. He responded by saying that he wanted Baldisseri to undertake the role because he wanted Baldisseri to do it rather than simply because he had been told to do it by the Pope.
Baldisseri explained that as each morning went by with the Pope asking him the same question and with him giving the same response, with the Pope telling him to go away and think about it some more, he became increasingly worried and perplexed. He would, he said, do anything the Pope asked of him and could not understand why his answer did not satisfy him. It took some time for him to realise that what the Pope was doing was inviting him to embrace what he was being asked to do in a positive way. The Pope wanted him to take on this huge piece of work willingly and joyfully, not because he was told to. And this was the spirit in which Baldisseri embraced his new job.
Baldisseri also explained how Pope Francis was working with the grain of the structures and institutions of the post Vatican II church. He was using the mechanisms and organisational frameworks that had been put in place after that gathering to bring life to the workings of the current synod. So it is not just the change of the language that is remarkable, with emphasis on mercy and care for the vulnerable, but it is also the use of well-established but not used structures to facilitate the renewal the Pope is seeking.
The second conversation, which was equally fascinating was with the Pope’s spokesman, Father Frederico Lombardi who, after the Pope himself, is perhaps the most visible face of the Catholic Church. He gave generously of his time and he spoke with great insight and candour about the spontaneity of Pope Francis, the warmth of feeling that he has for all those around him and what it was like working for someone who relished scheduling last minute events and delivering off the cuff remarks.
He was very clear that it was not his job to interpret or explain what the Pope said. His role is not that of the traditional ‘spin doctor’. Lombardi was very clear that what the Pope said stood on its own merits and that his job, and that of the department which he heads, was to transmit not interpret what the Pope said. With a wry smile he gently made the point that he did not have any worries about the amount of coverage the Pope received, rather how to respond to information and interview requests with the limited resource that is available to him.
He talked through the contrast in style and manner between Pope Francis and Pope Benedict. With Pope Benedict texts would be delivered finished well in advance and everyone would know what was being said. With Pope Francis it was quite different, you could never be quite sure of what would be said but you could be certain that it would create interest. Father Lombardi didn’t say one approach was more preferable that the other. He simply noted the difference in styles and how that demanded a different response from the office which he led.
Talking to these two senior figures gave a fascinating insight into to part of the work of the Vatican and the current Synod. it was also a remarkable insight into how Pope Francis manages people, understands the institutions of the church, and how his natural response to teaching and communication thrives on warmth and spontaneity.