What's the buzz? At Vatican, officials wait for curial changes

Published: 2005-09-09

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- When Pope Benedict XVI returns to the Vatican at the end of September, he'll find his "in" basket full and the rumor mill humming. On the docket in coming months are a Synod of Bishops, an ecumenical trip to Istanbul, commemorations of the Second Vatican Council, an upcoming encyclical, five canonizations, several rounds of bishops' visits and a full slate of daily meetings with church groups, religious representatives and political leaders from around the world. Meanwhile, the buzz around the Roman Curia has concentrated -- not surprisingly -- on possible changes in the Roman Curia. Murmurs of a clean sweep of several top Vatican officials and a major "shrinking" of Vatican departments have been echoing down the marble hallways for several weeks. Like his predecessors, the pope chose to spend most of his summer at the papal villa in Castel Gandolfo. He returns to the Vatican Sept. 28, just fours days before the start of the Oct. 2-23 synod on the Eucharist. Many observers believe the synod will help delineate the role of collegiality in Pope Benedict's governing style.

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