(see related)A Vatican
spokesman denied Wednesday that statements a senior cleric was
tricked into making on a satirical radio show last night reflect
the Holy See's position.
Msgr Vincenzo Paglia, head of the Pontifical Council for
the Family, told a bogus Premier Matteo Renzi on La Zanzara (The
Mosquito) that Pope Francis was "furious" about how Rome Mayor
Ignazio Marino tried to "crash" his party in Philadelphia on his
US trip last week.
"Yes, of course, Marino crashed it. He tried it on. He
tried to exploit this situation, and that enrages the Number
One....The mayor is a decent person. But no one invited him. The
pope was furious," Paglia is heard telling someone he believes
to be the premier himself.
Marino has faced widespread criticism for flying to
Philadelphia to attend the World Meeting of Families without
being invited by Pope Francis.
Asked by the fake premier how the incident might affect the
pope's upcoming Jubilee Holy Year, Paglia replied, "Undoubtedly,
it puts a big brake on the relationship".
On Wednesday, Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi
said "relations between representatives of the Holy See and
Italian authorities about the Jubilee have always taken place
and will continue to take place with serenity and decency, in
the appropriate venues".
"Statements taken from a private conversation, obtained
with unacceptable deceit, cannot in any way express the
positions of the Holy See," Lombardi concluded.
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