Lisbon, Sept. 14, 2025 (Lusa) - The Vatican Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin, said on Sunday that "false expectations" of changes in the Roman Catholic Church have been created, considering that any change must respect the sacramental and hierarchical dimension of the organisation.
In an interview with the Lusa news agency, the head of Vatican diplomacy acknowledged that the synodal journey, a process initiated by Pope Francis to discuss changes within the Church and in the relationship with the laity, has created "false expectations" from many sectors, who are clamouring for a more worldly structure.
In my opinion, changes must always be, let's say, in line with the tradition of the Church, so perhaps false expectations have also been created which must be, so to speak, scaled back, explained Pope Francis' number two, who continues in office with Leo XIV.
"Indeed, there are also structural changes that can be [made], but you can't change the nature of the Church," namely its “sacramental” and "hierarchical" dimension, of pastoral unity with the Pope, Parolin said.
This "may or may not please you, but this is the Church that Jesus Christ instituted and that has been handed down to us over the centuries through living tradition," he said, admitting that "clarification is needed so that there are no false expectations" on the part of many of the faithful.
Today, the "Church is much more diverse than in the past," which is helped by distances, cultures and the use of national languages.
For this reason, "announcing [the Church's] unity makes it more complex, if not more difficult," emphasised the Italian cardinal, who has even topped the betting exchanges to succeed Francis.
"In the Church we must be united in fundamental things" and "there is no discussion about that", as far as the "truths of the faith" are concerned, so this "is also the Pope's task: to confirm our brothers and sisters in the faith".
"Then there are many areas where we can also be free and where everyone can make their own choices," the cardinal added, without specifying.
Regarding the synodal process begun by Pope Francis, Parolin trusts that Leo XIV will continue with what was intended, the "participation of all the baptised in the Church's mission of evangelisation".
This "also means greater participation [of the laity] in the internal organisms of the Church", and "has repercussions at the intra-ecclesial level", added the Secretary of State, expressing his confidence: "The basic line of the Synod will certainly continue".
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Lusa
