A union representing the Vatican’s lay employees has distanced itself from an anonymous interview in which a worker complained bitterly about a stranglehold of gay and left-wing cliques over the Holy See.
The Association of Lay Vatican Employees nevertheless confirmed mounting “tension and dissatisfaction” among the Pope’s workforce over poor financial management also alleged by an anonymous whistle-blower.
The widely read Italian publication Panorama carried an interview with a Vatican employee identified by the false initials “GF”, complaining that working in the Vatican today has become “an act of pain” and a “via crucis” (way of the cross).
The source said the Pope was dangerously fickle and had surrounded himself with Spanish-speaking favourites with progressive agendas.
“You can’t move up unless you’re a friend of one of the two lobbies that count: either the ‘gay lobby,’ which is extensive and very powerful, or the ‘Santa Marta Club’ around the Pope,” GF said.
Of the latter, GF said: “If you want to join, you can’t read newspapers of the centre-right and you have to speak Spanish … You have to be green, pro-migrant and, above all, pro-Palestinian. For them, Nicolas Maduro is a saint and Donald Trump is a devil.”
“You also have to pay attention to the sudden changes in Bergoglio’s humours and opinions,” he said.
“If you ask for a raise, you risk excommunication,” he said. “If you want to be paid for overtime, they look at you like a trouble-maker.”
GF predicted that Vatican employees would begin “mobilising” to voice their discontent shortly after Pope Francis opens the Holy Door of St Peter’s Basilica to mark the official beginning of the jubilee, though he ruled out the idea of a full strike, since Vatican labour law does not recognise a right to strike.
