Italian journalist publishes book of Vatican leaks

Rome, Italy, May 18, 2012 / 08:39 am

Italian journalist Gianluigi Nuzzi reveals private Vatican correspondence in a new book containing a collection of letters titled, “Sua Santita (His Holiness).”

Nuzzi, whose coverage of Vatican affairs is scant, was responsible for leaking two private letters in January that the Pope sent to the current Apostolic Nuncio to the United States and former secretary of the Vatican City Government, Archbishop Claudio Maria Vigano.

He also leaked other private letters from the Holy See, contributing to a series of confidentiality breaches dubbed “Vatileaks” by the media.

The journalist is also known as the host of the television program “The Untouchables,” and has been a collaborator with various Italian newspapers, including Espansione, Il Corriere della Sera, Il Giornale and Panorama. He is the author of the books “Vatican S.p.A.” and “Metastasis.”

Last month, Pope Benedict XVI launched an investigation to determine the source of the internal leaks by creating a special commission of cardinals.

The group includes Cardinal Julian Herranz, president emeritus of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts; Cardinal Josef Tomko, prefect emeritus of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, and Cardinal Salvatore De Giorgi, Archbishop emeritus of Palermo in Italy.

According to the publisher Chiarelettere, the book was titled “His Holiness” since “that is how the letters that are addressed to Pope Benedict XVI begin.” The publishing house noted that apart from an introduction by the author, the new book only features the leaked letters, most of which have already been published or refer to past events.

One leaked memo that emerged over the last few months concerns a cardinal’s complaint about another cardinal who reputedly spoke of a possible assassination attempt against the Pope within 12 months and speculated upon his successor.

In January, an Italian television show broadcast private letters to Pope Benedict XVI and Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone from Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, the former deputy governor of Vatican City, who is currently the apostolic nuncio to the U.S. The archbishop contended that other Vatican officials have conducted a smear campaign against him because of his changes to purchasing procedures.

Other leaks center on the Vatican’s financial institution, the Institute of Works of Religion, which is also trying to reform and comply with international norms.