On Oct. 3, a group of eight cardinals appointed by Pope Francis started their reconstruction of Vatican Constitution.
The Vatican Constitution, known as Pastor Bonus, is an Apostolic Constitution written by Pope John Paul II and officially announced in 1988. Aimed at improving the church’s governance, this document has been at the center of the Roman Catholic Church. Now, it has an influence over every Roman Catholic sector all over the world.
Pastor Bonus contains revolutionary reforms for the church and was written to promote the unity of the church and the faith. However, as the world has changed greatly in the last 25 years, Pope Francis sees the a necessity of writing a new one to ease the hardships of many Roman Catholic churches and cleanse Vatican city’s infamy at the same time.
The pope will work with his cardinals to reform the church, starting from abolishing old policies such as granting a €25,000 annual bonus to the cardinals. The eight cardinals, who openly listened to all kinds of requests made by the churches from all around the world, aim to rewrite Pastor Bonus from the beginning.
Cardinal Rodriguez Maradiaga noted that 80 pages of suggestions came solely from Latin America, the home region of the new pope.
“I am more than happy to hear that Pope Francis is heading the right direction. As a faithful Catholic, it is disappointing to hear my religion denounced by others for the problems caused by the minority in Vatican City. Now with the reform that goes deep down the roots of the religions itself, I am hoping to see the change in how the world sees soon-to-be reformed Catholicism,” said Daniel Barboza, a Catholic and a senior at Woodbridge High School.
“Although I am an atheist , I am excited to see the changes. Many people relate the Roman Catholic Church to all different kinds of uncomfortable scandals. Pope Francis, who actually is considered favorite pope of the atheist community, should keep reforming the church to erase its bad name,” said Caleb Mason, another Woodbridge senior.
