Cables of Confusion from the Heart of the Vatican

Der Spiegel ^ | Decmber 13 2010 | Ulrich Schwarz

[Cardhu]

US diplomats seem bemused with the hierarchical structures and the lack of sophistication within the Vatican. Not only do most Catholic Church leaders lack an e-mail account, only a few "are aware of imminent decisions."

A month after the German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was elected pope in the Sistine Chapel, on April 19, 2005, the US Embassy to the Vatican sent a cable to the State Department in Washington providing its first readings on what the United States and the world at large should expect from the new head of the Roman Catholic Church.

Pope Benedict XVI had been one of the closest associates of his predecessor, Pope John Paul II. According to America's local Vatican watchers, it was "unthinkable" that he would at all deviate from the former's strict stances regarding ethical issues, such as abortion, euthanasia, contraception, cloning or homosexuality.

The profile drawn up by the embassy noted that the new pope had no political experience and that, owing to his age, he couldn't afford the luxury of acquiring it. But US diplomats in the Vatican could not complain about being underemployed. During the last 10 years, they've sent a total of 729 cables back to the State Department.

Sometimes, they merely tried to explain to the State Department how the Vatican functioned -- and in reports that depict a very curious world, indeed. According to a dispatch from 2009, although the church was "highly hierarchical," it was also chaotic. Likewise, it was usually the case that "only a handful of experts are aware of imminent decisions" and they normally just acquiesce to whatever their boss decides. If fact, the report continued, hardly anyone ever dared to criticize the pope or to deliver bad news to him. It was rare to find independent-minded advisers, they wrote.

[Cardhu]

Pope Benedict XVI: Few advisors are brave enough to deliver bad news

Communication in 'Coded Language'

The Vatican's innermost circle is almost exclusively made up of Italian men in their 70s. The Americans wryly note that "most of the top ranks of the Vatican ... do not understand modern media and new information technologies," and that "many officials do not even have official email accounts." They also note how the Cardinal Secretary of State, the name given to the Holy See's equivalent of a prime minister, doesn't even speak English and was also considered a "yes man."

[Pecos]

If the State Department “grades” foreign governnmets by their e-mail and Facebook accounts, they are more clueless than I ever thought.

[Pecos]

If the State Department “grades” foreign governmets by their e-mail and Facebook accounts, they are more clueless than I ever thought.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

The fact that the Vatican is not run like a Lefty community-agitator convention is actually very comforting.

[Campion]

If fact, the report continued, hardly anyone ever dared to criticize the pope or to deliver bad news to him. It was rare to find independent-minded advisers, they wrote.

You can replace the word "pope" with just about any leader's title -- from "senior management" to "president" to "company commander" -- and that's true of almost any organization in the world.

[Cardhu]

I would agree with that observation.

[circlecity]

There’s a scene in the movie “The Departed” where a Boston Detective says, “I believe you should treat FBI agents like mushrooms - keep them in the dark and feed them S**t.” Sounds like the Vatican feels the same way about foreign diplomats. (not that I blame them)

[Oratam]

USDOS OFFICER ROME: omg! u hv 2 b jokng. no 1 n vat hs email? wtf!
USDOS OFFICER WASH: i/k. gd luk fndng any 1 cool 2 hang wth! lol

[Cardhu]

Now that is funny - and they talk about the Vatican with their coded language.

Actually, I think it is a Mediterranean official method of communication. I have seen several intelligent native Spanish speakers discussing what an official letter really means.

My daughter, born in America, writes Spanish political letters in the straight forward no-nonsense Anglo Saxon way - passes them to her political functionary to obfuscate them until the finished product is so dense as to be completely unintelligible to her and I am sure the recipient.