Vatican Plans Major Overhaul of Secretive Bank

... Who will elect his successor

(NEWSER) - Pope Benedict XVI named 24 new cardinals today, the third time during his tenure that he has added to the body of "princes of the church" who will eventually name his successor, reports the AP. The group is mostly Italian, spurring speculation that the papacy could swing back to Italy, and brings the College of Cardinals to 203 members—121 of whom are under age 80 and thus eligible to vote for the next pope. Benedict, 83, now will have directly appointed some 40% of the church's cardinals, very likely sealing his legacy. More»

(NEWSER) - The Vatican plans to build Europe’s largest solar power plant on land it owns north of Rome, Bloomberg reports. The 740-acre site—many times bigger than the 108 acres that make up the world’s smallest nation—is predicted to generate enough power for 40,000 households when it comes online in 2014, enabling the ever-greener Vatican to sell the excess. More»

Recent decisions fuel rare discord

(NEWSER) - In an unusual public display of church disharmony, cardinals are pushing back against the pope for being out of touch as controversies swirl over recent decisions, the Times of London reports. The pope spends too much of his day in solitude with his books, critics charge. “People feel that the pope is governing in a very monarchical way,” said a Vatican analyst. “He fails to consult bishops and he has isolated himself by ignoring advice.” More»

Decision to re-instate bishop a 'disaster' says Germany's top cardinal

(NEWSER) - Pope Benedict XIV's reinstatement of a Holocaust-denying bishop has received some unusually harsh criticism from within the church, the Guardian reports. Germany's top-ranking cardinal has labeled the decision "a disaster" and called for the Pope to apologize. Cardinal Walter Kasper, who oversees the Vatican's relations with Judaism, says the decision was badly handled and blames poor management in the church hierarchy. More»

Canon law, particularly on statute of limitations, evolving with sex scandal

(NEWSER) - Just a day after a Washington meeting where Pope Benedict XVI talked with victims sexually abused by Catholic priests, a Vatican official said the church would consider changes to canon law dictating how the church deals with such offenses, the New York Times reports. Cardinal William Levada holds Benedict’s old post as head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith. More»