It’s a decent piece, refreshingly devoid of ill-informed editorializing…and perhaps, at last, we might be getting past the deep temptation to speak of the papacy in American political terms or make the stereotype of "God’s Rottweiler" the guiding paradigm of reporting on this pope, for there’s none of that here, simply a focus on what we’ve known for a while is Benedict’s conviction that the Curia needs streamlining. Refreshing.
Additional Vatican offices are bound to close or get consolidated. With the more powerful and longer standing "Congregations" less likely to get chopped, eyes are focused on the "Pontifical Councils" that are a relatively recent addition to the Curia hierarchy. Those offices with dossiers for laity, family and Christian Unity could well get folded into others.
The article contains the interesting tidbit that perhaps Fr. Georg, the Pope’s brother, will be making a permanent move to Rome soon:
A guest of honor on Benedict’s travels in Bavaria on Monday was his brother Father Georg Ratzinger, 82, who has long lived in the town of Regensburg, where he directed the church choir. Georg has been spending more and more time with his younger brother (who still has a full-time job), passing much of the summer at the papal residence in Castel Gandolfo. So this fall, many expect that a small living area where Georg has stayed in the Apostolic Palace will become the papal brother’s permanent address. That’s one Curia assignment that had only one viable candidate.
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