Why has Cardinal Fernandez been struck dumb? Not one word, even about the death of Francis

Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández's X (formerly Twitter) account might seem fake, but it isn't: @Tuchofernandez is authentic and personally managed by the controversial Argentine cardinal. With just 9,965 followers, his biography—"Bishop, theologian, poet, interior life and social sense, cultural analysis, popular phenomena, spiritual experience and healing"—is as creative as it is ambiguous, a faithful reflection of his theological style. It's surprising that he doesn't mention his current position as Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, one of the most important positions in the Vatican, and that his profile lacks official verification. Even so, Fernández personally responds to anonymous users who ask him about the authenticity of doctrinal documents. A disorganized presentation that, in its informality, reveals an even more bleak background.

It is, to say the least, striking that the person who embodies the highest doctrinal authority in the Catholic Church after the Pope offers such a sloppy, uninstitutional public image. But what's most disturbing today isn't so much his style, to which many have already resigned themselves, but his silence. Since March 23, when he shared an article in a progressive media outlet, Fernández has published absolutely nothing. Not a word, not even after the death of his great supporter, Pope Francis: his mentor, his protector, and perhaps his only unconditional fan.

This silence has fueled a theory circulating both in Rome and in specialized newsrooms: Fernández is lying in wait. As revealed by his close friend José Manuel Vidal in Religión Digital, in the audiences following the conclave, the cardinal had expressed his willingness to Leo XIV to continue leading the Dicastery. And the new Pope, it seems, had confirmed this. Yesterday, the fourth official meeting took place, according to the Holy See bulletin, and this is the Dicastery that most frequently meets with Leo XIV... Is this preparation for a change or a confirmation of continuity?

If the leak of Fernández's continuity isn't a trial balloon launched by Fernández himself—a recurring tactic in the corridors of the Curia—his confirmation in the post would be a difficult decision to understand. Back in 2009, then-Cardinal Bergoglio forced his appointment as rector of the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina despite the rejection of a large portion of the faculty and the dismay of the Vatican, which didn't consider him up to the required academic standards. Bergoglio, convinced of his worth, not only defended him tooth and nail at the time, but doubled his bet by elevating him in 2023 to prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, a position historically reserved for figures of great intellectual and theological stature. Sometimes in life, the most important thing is to have a good sponsor.

But there is one fact that cannot be glossed over: Víctor Manuel Fernández doesn't measure up. Not for lack of sympathy or enthusiasm—which he apparently has—but for a deeper and more objective reason: his profile clashes with the need for intellectual prestige that has characterized those in charge of the Holy Office. His appointment was, without a doubt, the most shocking eccentricity of Francis's pontificate. It can only be explained in a scenario where the katejón of Benedict, who had died months earlier, no longer existed, nor did there exist any weighty voices capable of dissuading the Pope from such an unlikely choice.

For the good of the Church—and also for his own—the most sensible thing would be to allow Cardinal Fernández to return full-time to what he undoubtedly feels most comfortable with: sentimental poetry, self-referential spirituality, and, if necessary, his particular interpretation of New Age sexology.

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