Vatican Diary / Cuts and consolidations in the curia. Here's where

Around ten dicasteries are hanging in the balance. And so are their current heads. Including cardinals Burke, Cañizares, Versaldi, Coccopalmerio. And archbishops Paglia, Celli, Fisichella

by Sandro Magister

VATICAN CITY, June 3, 2014 – "Combine the dicasteries, for example, to streamline the organization a bit."

This is what Pope Francis said he wanted to do in the Roman curia, responding to journalists on the return flight from his pilgrimage to the Holy Land.

The fact that the merger of dicasteries was one of the changes studied by the council of eight cardinals - the "C8," selected by the pontiff to assist him in the reform of the curia and in the governance of the universal Church - was not a secret.

But for the first time Francis himself has expressly indicated this objective. The pope added that the C8 will discuss it not only at the scheduled four-day meeting at the beginning of July, but also at a subsequent meeting on the calendar for September.

Jorge Mario Bergoglio made no reference to what the projected mergers may entail.

But by connecting the dots it is already possible to figure out which dicasteries are most at risk.

Let's start with a first consideration.

The immediate predecessors of Pope Francis, once they were elected, over the span of a few weeks had confirmed in their positions the heads of all the curial dicasteries who had lost their mandates during the sede vacante.

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