Knights of Malta Condom row exposed…
Files just released show Cardinal Burke pushed for action against the Grand Chancellor, despite Pope Francis calling for discussion
http://archive.today/2019.01.31-160655/https://www.thetablet.co.uk/news/11312/wikileaks-docs-reveal-background-to-knights-of-malta-condom-row
Cardinal Raymond Burke told the former leader of the Knights of Malta to tackle the issue of condom distribution or face a Vatican investigation, according to documents released by WikiLeaks. The files concern the constitutional crisis which occurred inside the order at the end of 2016 and early 2017 when a senior knight, Albrecht von Boeselager, was sacked for allegedly allowing the distribution of condoms. The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta is one of the oldest and most venerable institutions in the Catholic Church. Established in the eleventh century to care for pilgrims to the Holy Lands and to defend Christians during the Crusades, it has evolved into a major global humanitarian agency.
Released on Wednesday 30 January, the Wikileaks cache of documents suggest that Cardinal Burke, the Patron of the Order, sought to co-opt papal authority by giving the then Grand Master of the Order, Matthew Festing, Vatican approval to remove von Boeselager as Grand Chancellor. On 6 December 2016 the cardinal – whose job was to serve as papal envoy to the knights – wrote to Fra’ Matthew calling for his “fullest co-operation” in tacking the “use of methods and means contrary to the moral law”. If this doesn’t happen, the cardinal says, inside Pope would “find it necessary to address directly his concerns through a visitation”. But Pope Francis, in a letter released in the same cache of Wikileaks files, urges the cardinal to resolve the matter by following the principle of St Paul by “speaking the truth in love.” Contrary to the claims in the cardinal’s letter, Francis makes no mention of any visitation.