Two Vatican trials involving financial affairs have highlighted the difficulties involved in the Pope’s authority as the ultimate authority in all Vatican affairs, an AP report notes.
This week a Vatican tribunal heard the argument by the former auditor general, Libero Milone, who says that he was wrongfully fired when he investigated questionable transactions by the Secretariat of State. In its defense, the Secretariat of State argues that Milone’s dismissal was approved by the Pope, and consequently the Secretariat cannot be held responsible.
At the same time, The Pillar calls attention to the fact that in the Milone trial, the Secretariat of State has acknowledged that the auditor had authority from the Pope to investigate that office. In the “trial of the century,” which is coming to a close as the Milone trial opens, Cardinal Angelo Becciu— the most prominent of the ten defendants— has argued that his work in the Secretariat of State was not subject to the auditor’s investigation.
In the larger trial, defendants have also contended that since their financial transactions were approved by Pope Francis, they cannot be charged with misconduct.