Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
Inside the VaticanJanuary 20, 2021
Cardinal Angelo Becciu speaks with journalists during a news conference in Rome Sept. 25, 2020, after he was asked by Pope Francis to resign as prefect of the Congregation for Saints' Causes. The Vatican announced Jan. 18 that it withdrew an arrest and extradition request for Cecilia Marogna, an Italian political analyst, who allegedly was hired as a consultant by Cardinal Becciu, and is now accused of embezzlement. (CNS photo/Guglielmo Mangiapane, Reuters)

The Vatican’s judicial system is entering a busy season: Soon, it will deliver a verdict in the trial of the former head of the Vatican Bank who was accused of embezzlement; it will hear the abuse trial of a former St. Peter’s Basilica altar server; and it’s expected to bring charges against a woman accused of embezzling more than 500,000 euros from the Vatican while employed under Cardinal Angelo Becciu.

Listen to “Inside the Vatican” on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

This week, the Vatican dropped its effort to extradite the woman from Italy to Vatican City, which has raised questions about whether the extradition could stand: Some argue that her lawyers could have made the case against extradition because the woman was not guaranteed a fair trial in the Vatican.

This week on “Inside the Vatican,” host Colleen Dulle and veteran Vatican correspondent Gerard O’Connell unpack this question: What makes the Vatican’s judicial system different from a modern democratic one, like Italy’s, and what are its pros and cons?

The hosts also discuss Australia’s recent admission that it overestimated the amount of money transferred from the Vatican to Australia by $1.5 billion. Colleen and Gerry discuss how such a big blunder could have been made and what questions remain about the transfers.

Links from the show:

Gerard O’Connell | Australia admits $1.5 billion error in investigation into suspected Vatican money laundering

Can defendants get a fair trial at the Vatican? The Vatican decides it doesn’t want to hear Italy’s answer

Inside the Vatican | The Vatican’s $200 million London real estate scandal, explained

The latest from america

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., speaks with other members of the House July 3, 2025, on Capitol Hill in Washington after final passage of U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping spending and tax bill. (OSV News photo/Jonathan Ernst, Reuters)
“Deep cuts” to SNAP and Medicaid will “inflict real suffering on these families…. SNAP and Medicaid are not luxuries, they are lifelines for millions of children across our country.”
Kevin ClarkeJuly 03, 2025
It was one of the first times Leo has spoken unscripted at length in public, responding to questions posed to him by the children.
The Vatican has named the judges that will preside over the trial of disgraced Father Marko Rupnik.
For so many of us, Roger Haight marked off a breathtakingly wide horizon in which we, agreeing with him or not, could fulfill our mission for God’s people.