Sleeping Cardinal almost lost 20 million euros

Nuncio forced to intervene

A translation of a piece appearing in the Belgian satirical magazine Pere Ubu

The de-christianisation which is well-known in our country has led to absurd situations of enormous convents situated in the centre of cities not being occupied by more than a few often elderly nuns and there are no more vocations. And the sharks smell easy prey.

Normally, if a congregation closes, the real estate must be returned to the Church, represented in our country by the “Papabile” Godfried Danneels. One knows what this man represents…..

In the case which worries us today, the Cardinal (who still has not explained… details of an unrepeatable scandal, talked about but rarely referred to in print) does not appear to be interested in the defence of a property worth 20 million euros.

Even though the group of those involved exploited the naivety of the enclosed Sisters and what we reproduce on page 5 stinks a mile away. An enormous amount of detail about the hijack of the charity holding the convent property and its transformation into another operation- violating Canon and civil law, deliberate underestimation of the value of the property, an ever-decreasing lease for the nuns and violation of planning laws, with work without permission. The Nuncio wrote on 7 January

It is not possible in a few lines to specify the illegalities committed in the framework of this operation. They relate to Canon Law, Civil Law, the statutes of the Congregation and probably to tax law.

Only the forceful intervention of the Papal nuncio and one can say a very rare intervention of the Vatican, supported totally the residents.

So that the religious in the case can dispose of their property to the benefit of Rome and Paris (I think they have a convent there)

If Danneels had done his duty instead of protecting paedophiles or hiring them to direct the choir at a Royal wedding, he would be concerned with many properties in the same situation – one cites Tournai, Mons, Liege but also the money raised from the Pastoral Funds appeal this year has to go to plug the financial deficit of the failed Cardinal Danneels Evangelisation Extravaganza.

Its a bit difficult to preach the Christian gospel when one of the closing speakers was Muslim. Whatever he said, indifferent, for better or for worse, was not the Gospel.

What the Pope's brother thinks of the Belgian Cardinal.