X-post in C & OC: Vatican leak inquiry: Confessor defends Pope’s butler

[meow2u3]

http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/homepage/the-vatican/detail/articolo/gabriele-vaticano-15397/

The confessor of the Pope’s butler, Paolo Gabriele, springs to his defence: “He is in love with the Church and adores the Pope”
Andrea Tornielli
vatican city

The voice of the elderly priest - who wished to remain anonymous - sounded broken from all the crying, as he spoke to Italian newspaper La Stampa, from his home in the Vatican. During the telephone interview he described what he knew about Benedict XVI’s 46 year old butler, Paolo Gabriele, husband and father of three, who was arrested after he was found in “illegal possession of confidential documents.” Like many in the Holy See, the monsignor is scared and still in shock after yesterday’s events.

But even thought he monsignor fears that the Pope’s butler will end up being used as a scapegoat, he cannot say that the arrest was made lightly - Fr. Lombardi said - because Paolo Gabriele was found in possession of confidential documents. “Knowing how simple and naïve he is, he does not strike me as the kind of person who would be capable of planning such an operation, unless he has a schizophrenic personality. And why would he do such a thing anyway?” A good question indeed and one that is on everyone’s lips in the Holy See. “We must recall that he is married, has three children and a beautiful family. He came to live in the Vatican about a year ago and spends his free time with his children, helping them with their homework. I cannot imagine what motive he would have to throw all the good things and the life he had built down the drain, betraying the Pope’s trust committing an offense as serious as leaking the documents published in [Italian journalist] Nuzzi’s book. I simply cannot believe it and I hope that he manages to prove his innocence. I remember how devoted he was to the Virgin Mary and how faithful he was to the Eucharist.”

[cbayer]

1. This is going to make a great movie!