Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Live Today

Interview with Delia Gallagher, 'Inside the Vatican'

Aired April 22, 2002 - 10:19   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Now on to another complicated situation, back to the story from Rome. Let's get a look right now at what is going on and what could be going on inside the Vatican there, as the pope prepares to meet with the cardinals who are coming from the U.S.

Our next guest right now this morning is Delia Gallagher. She is the managing editing of "Inside the Vatican," a magazine which focuses on the issues and workings of the Vatican and the Catholic Church. She joins us from Rome -- good morning, good afternoon to you there -- glad to have you with us today, Delia.

DELIA GALLAGHER, "INSIDE THE VATICAN": Good morning.

HARRIS: Let me begin by first asking you about a report that has surfaced in the "Los Angeles Times" here, and one that has generated quite a bit of discussion this morning. Talk that other cardinals, fellow cardinals of Cardinal Law who are saying that they believe that he should be going. Do you know anything at all about that? Or have you heard talk along those lines?

GALLAGHER: Well, yes of course. We have heard the report. It was an anonymous cardinal who spoke to the "Los Angeles Times," and said precisely that there were some factions within the cardinals that wanted to see the resignation of Cardinal Law.

Now, we also heard from Cardinal McCarrick this morning, who said he would not be a party to that group. And so, we are not sure who the factions -- of what the factions -- who is a part of them, but we do know that this faction is being created and certainly poses a problem to the unity of the cardinals, which is of the utmost importance at this time.

HARRIS: What does that tell you then about how the meetings are probably going to play out then?

GALLAGHER: Well, I don't think that that's going to be the central issue of the discussions anyway. So I think that if anything, it might come up later amongst the cardinals themselves, but I can't see that that would be one of the central issues with the Curia.

HARRIS: Let me ask you about the Curia and the way the process works there with meetings of this sort. Is this a matter where the pope is actually just going to be hearing comments from the various cardinals, and that he has already got his mind made up about what it is he would like to do, but this is a necessary PR effort?

GALLAGHER: Well, no. I think that the pope doesn't have his mind made up about what needs to be done, because it needs to be addressed by a commission of cardinals, by other commissions in the United States, indeed as Britain and France have done to commission psychologists and other priests and other experts on the issue of pedophilia. So it's precisely a working meeting. Nothing has been decided yet.

They may use the examples of Britain and France, who have dealt with this issue in the past two years. But I don't think that the pope has any mindset as regards what exactly should be done, except to say, of course, that something needs to be done, and that a document needs to be issued and guidelines need to be announced.

HARRIS: Let me ask you this final question that occurred to me after listening to a number of debates over the weekend about the way the pope is actually selected. Almost all of the cardinals who right now are under the age of 80, most of them have been selected by this pope. And some have said or proposed the idea that perhaps this pope has cared more about two issues: birth control and keeping women out of the pulpit. And those are the only criteria that he actually cares about.

And this sort of thing is something that he has never really paid attention to, or did not care about. What do you say about that?

GALLAGHER: Well, frankly, that would be a very narrow view of the pope's concerns. Surely it is amongst his concerns, but he has an international body of diocese to care about, and I think that his papacy have evidenced that he cares about many more issues other than just the moral ones.

HARRIS: We have seen this pope offer apologies and words that have meant so much to people throughout his tenure. Finally here this morning, do you expect the pope to offer an apology after this meeting is all wrapped up?

GALLAGHER: Well, I think that he certainly will have some words to say to the victims and to all of the American Catholics, who have been hurt by this. However, the apologies must come from the diocese themselves from the people involved. I think those apologies are the first ones that need to be issued and indeed probably have been probably issued. So I think that the pope will support that.

HARRIS: Delia Gallagher, thank you very much. We sure do appreciate the time and the insight.

GALLAGHER: Thank you. You're welcome.

HARRIS: Delia Gallagher of "Inside the Vatican" magazine -- good luck to you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com