It’s Sunday, a cool dawn in Rome—much appreciated. Today we have the jubilee of the catechists, and the first early risers are arriving at the plaza. The obelisk was well accompanied at yesterday’s jubilee audience; the presence of the catechists present in Rome for their jubilee was already noticeable. We continue with many news items about the first important appointment of Pope Leo XIV with the prefect for Bishops. Things are coming along, and the period of ‘discernment’ is pointing to its end.
The Pope dedicated yesterday’s jubilee audience in St. Peter’s Square to the theme «Waiting is intuiting. Ambrose of Milan». Recalling the election of the holy bishop: «the voice of a child rose and shouted: ‘Ambrose, bishop!’», and the whole people joined the request. «Ambrose was not even baptized, but the people perceived something profound in this man and chose him». After an initial refusal, Ambrose «understood that it was a call from God», received baptism, and became bishop. «Do you see the great gift that the little ones gave to the Church? Even today, this is a grace we must ask for: to become Christians by living the call we have received». He reminded the catechists that «people have this instinct: they understand if we are becoming Christians or not. And they can correct us, they can show us the way of Jesus». «May the Jubilee help us to be little according to the Gospel to intuit and serve God’s dreams».
On Friday, September 26, audience with John Elkann, president of Stellantis, accompanied by his wife Lavinia Borromeo. A statement from the Holy See said that the meeting, which lasted approximately half an hour, was «an opportunity for mutual understanding and to share and discuss topics of interest to the Holy Father.» The gift was the original Ferrari steering wheel used by Charles Leclerc in a Formula 1 Grand Prix and a model of a Ferrari SF90 XX Stradale. He chose Leclerc’s steering wheel to emphasize how Formula 1 is not just sport and technology, but also a cultural and symbolic bridge, while the Ferrari SF90 XX Stradale is an iconic car, among the highest-performing of the ‘Cavallino Rampante’.
King Charles III and Queen Camilla will travel to the Vatican for a state visit to Pope Leo XIV in October, Buckingham Palace announced. The visit was initially scheduled for April of this year, but was postponed due to the poor health of the late Pope Francis, who died that same month. The Kings made a brief private visit to Pope Francis a few weeks before his death. It was one of the last audiences granted by the late Pope, who had been receiving visitors during his convalescence at Casa Santa Marta. This is the first time the King will meet with Pope Leo XIV. What gives this encounter a distinctive character between the ‘head’ of the Church of England and the ‘head’ of the 1.4 billion Catholics in the world. The palace announced that the trip «will celebrate the ecumenical work of the Church of England and the Catholic Church, reflecting the theme of the jubilee year of walking together as pilgrims of hope.» The King has long sought to strengthen ties between Christian traditions. Earlier this month, he attended the funeral of the Duchess of Kent, the first Catholic Requiem Mass officiated by a member of the Royal Family in modern times. The relations between the Catholic Church and the Church of England were marked by centuries of division after Henry VIII’s break with Rome in the 16th century; in recent times, they have been characterized by cordiality. It will be the first official occasion in which an English king, as Supreme Governor of the Church of England, meets with a pope from the rebellious land that became the United States after rebuking the British monarchy.
We close with today’s news, and as he confided to his closest collaborators, Pope Leo XIV has used the summer months to listen, observe, and make decisions. The healthy airs of Castelgandolfo suit much better than the air conditioning of Santa Marta, and we continue with relevant appointments. The time for listening has not ended; there are hundreds of audience requests to the Pope that are being finalized. A crucial point in the life of every bishop, and even more so in that of the Pope, concerns his closest collaborators. All must be faithful and capable of supporting him, but those who share more closely in the Pontiff’s daily life assume a decisive and very delicate role. It is no coincidence that Leo XIV has shown that he wants «to grease the machine with his own oil, and not with that of others«, choosing people with whom he feels comfortable and who can offer him loyal support. In recent weeks, his personal secretary, Don Edgard Iván Rimaycuna Inga, had been entrusted with some confidential missions by the Pope and had temporarily left Rome. In his absence, Don Daniel Pellizzon, a figure already well-known at the side of his predecessor, reappeared. Yesterday, Pope Leo has appointed his second secretary identified as the Reverend Don Marco Billeri, priest of the diocese of San Miniato.
The choice is not casual, but reveals the Pope’s desire to rely on collaborators selected directly by him. Prevost met the priest this summer, and has begun to interact with the Pope’s other collaborators in recent weeks. Born and raised in the Church of San Miniato, Don Billeri was ordained a priest in 2016. After studying in Rome, he earned a doctorate in Canon Law. He has held important positions: judge of the Ecclesiastical Tribunal of Tuscany, defender of the bond in the courts of San Miniato and Volterra, episcopal master of ceremonies, and secretary of the Presbyteral Council. In recent years, he has been vicar in the parish of Saints Stefano and Martino in San Miniato Basso. This appointment, beyond his personal profile, is part of a broader plan: Leo XIV wants to surround himself with carefully chosen collaborators, so that the machinery of government functions according to his imprint and not by the inertia of others. Two secular clergy secretaries for an Augustinian Pope, and neither comes from the diplomatic school. Undoubtedly, Pope Leo XIV wants to control his household.
It may seem like something unimportant; we assure you it is not, and it is another sign of the distancing from the people who made up the so-called ‘magic circle of Santa Marta’. As we had announced, it was a sure rumor in the sacred palaces, the unpleasant and predictable exit of Campisi. The appointment of Roberto Campisi as the new Permanent Observer of the Holy See to UNESCO is announced, with the task of also following the activities of Catholic International Organizations. Less known, but this appointment marks a clear transition in the internal geography of the Secretariat of State. Campisi was a schoolboy, with the typical Utroque Iure, entered the diplomatic service of the Holy See on July 1, 2010. His career has taken him to serve in the Pontifical Representations in Ivory Coast, Venezuela, Italy, and, later, in the Section for General Affairs of the Secretariat of State as Nunciature Counselor.
On October 26, 2022, he was appointed Advisor for General Affairs of the Secretariat of State by Pope Francis. On February 26, 2025, as an advisor, he was included in the Commission for Donations to the Holy See, established at the end of Pope Francis’s pontificate, in articulo mortis, when in the Third Loggia someone tried to put order in the «economic question» disrupted by the Bergoglian pontificate. Pope Francis had stripped the Secretariat of State of much of its financial resources, transferring them to bodies directly controlled by him, thus preventing the Secretariat from even performing its ordinary functions. Campisi, a figure encouraged and sponsored by the outgoing Luigi Roberto Cona—whose actions are best hidden and who, fortunately, is now nearly 10,000 kilometers from Rome—performed his functions in a way that was, to say the least, highly questionable.
The functions of the Advisor are delicate and are described in the Apostolic Constitution Praedicate Evangelium (articles 45-48). He assists the Substitute for General Affairs in the management of the Pope’s daily affairs, the coordination of Vatican dicasteries and agencies, the drafting and publication of pontifical documents, and the custody of the lead seal and the Fisherman’s Ring. In addition, he oversees appointments approved by the Pope, the preparation of honors, statistics on the life of the Church, and the coordination of official communications. It is a very delicate position that requires discretion, humility, and transparency; Campisi has distinguished himself by an attitude considered by many to be far from these criteria. As a skilled Sicilian he had cultivated a close relationship with the previous pontiff, often becoming an instrument of his power politics following the usual Bergoglio scheme: divide and conquer. Figures were created who would blindly obey his wishes, puppets without regard for relations with collaborators or loyalty to superiors. They enjoyed the unconditional support of the late Pope Francis and ended up adopting arrogant attitudes.
The result was that conflict developed with his direct superior, his friend Edgar, Substitute for General Affairs. Their relationship deteriorated rapidly: Campisi always acted on his own, even interfering in matters related to his own ecclesiastical region, from which he was supposed to stay away. His personal loyalty to Pope Francis was known, but, as was usual in that period, it was a loyalty of convenience. This appointment is the second significant action of the Substitute of the Secretariat of State, after ordering the transfer of the Committee for the children’s day to the Dicastery for Laity, Family, and Life. Campisi is the first advisor to leave his post without a miter; it is another of the followers, some call henchmen, most faithful to Pope Francis who has been dismissed. We are told that Campisi did not even show up at his office yesterday, thus preventing the announcement of his appointment from being made in the Secretariat of State in his presence, before his colleagues. Let us hope that the Secretariat of State recovers its authentic mission: to support the Pope and serve the universal Church .
We usually avoid references to news and topics that are ‘too Italian.’ Today we bring this information about the Italian synod because we believe that what is stated can be applied to the innumerable synods that populate the suffering Christianity. In the end, we all know that it is a mechanism to try to impose an erroneous vision of the Church as coming from the majority and therefore from the very ‘Holy Spirit.’ Participants in the synods and contributions are sifted to make it seem that only that exists. In Italy, many bishops have rebelled and are not willing to swallow it; everything points to the Italian synod having ended.
The Italian Church on the threshold of the Third Synodal Assembly, scheduled for October 25, 2025, a path plagued by tensions, misunderstandings, and conflicts. At the end of the Permanent Council, the bishops published a statement summarizing the work done in recent months. The text was drawn up from the amendments arising from the Second Synodal Assembly (March 31 – April 3, 2025). The document will be delivered in the coming days to the delegates of the dioceses, who, through debate in the ecclesiastical regions, can offer their own contributions. There is a video directed to the synodal representatives, «so that reflections and priorities do not remain the patrimony of a small elite, but can be shared and evaluated by the entire community of the faithful and their pastors.»
The Synod has become the favorite topic of a small part of the Church that seems incapable of living without meetings, conferences, and debates on issues more political than evangelical. In these so-called assemblies, everything is called into question, even the centrality of Jesus Christ, and the Gospel is increasingly replaced by civil agendas and social issues. In Italy, there were many expectations from the more ‘progressive’ sector that sought to impose its arguments. The 50-point summary prepared turned out to be explosive and had to be reduced from 74,000 to 46,000 characters, eliminating quotes and details. This was perceived as a betrayal of the process: «Four years of work have been reduced to nothing,» protested bishops and laity, especially from the progressive side. When the document fell into the groups, they did not limit themselves to proposing amendments, as requested, but even demanded a complete rewriting of the document. The atmosphere deteriorated. An annoyed Archbishop Giuliodori even refused to appear in the room. The assembly was suspended, and everything was postponed until October 24-26, 2025, coinciding with the Jubilee of the synodal teams. The incident highlighted the risks already denounced by Benedict XVI in Faith, Truth and Tolerance: the ambiguity of terms like «dialogue,» «openness,» or «updating,» when not anchored in doctrine, can give rise to secular ideologies. This was also evident in the synodal hall: instead of focusing on the proclamation of Christ, the Synod gave in to selfish agendas and personal ambitions, transforming into a political space rather than a religious one.
The new document approved in September presents a different perspective: it is not a simple collection of propositions, but a text that develops organically and narratively, based on the Second Vatican Council, the teachings of Pope Francis, and, here and there, the first indications of Leo XIV. Clearly, many critical issues emerge. Much of the text focuses on political and social issues—peace, non-violence, environment, solidarity economy, inclusion, fight against the mafia—that, without a doubt, are relevant, but risk obscuring the centrality of the proclamation of the Gospel and the salvation of souls, the heart of the Church’s mission. The co-responsibility and the decisional role of participatory bodies ends up feeding an assembly drift, reducing the sacred and hierarchical character of the clergy and allowing a kind of «Protestantization» of church governance to be glimpsed. The document privileges quotes from the Second Vatican Council, Pope Francis, and predominantly social language, but almost completely neglects the immense legacy of previous Magisterium, as well as the voices of the Church Fathers, reduced to marginal references.
The Italian Synodal Path resembles a parliamentary debate more, where norms, languages, and political orientations are discussed, than a serious discernment on the life of the Church. Why are only certain voices heard, those that fit the fashions of the moment? Why is there no space for more balanced positions, those that sincerely desire a Church capable of proclaiming Christ and not becoming a substitute for a left-wing party that Italy lacks?
«They have Moses and the Prophets. Let them listen to them!».
Good reading.