Photo ~ As Pope Benedict XVI prepared to welcome 22 new cardinals on Saturday, the Vatican struggled to deal with the leak of confidential letters written by a top official.

Vatican’s Celebratory Mood Is Dampened by Leaks

VATICAN CITY — As the world’s Roman Catholics prepare for the addition of 22 members to the College of Cardinals, the Vatican has become embroiled in an embarrassing scandal in which a number of leaked documents have drawn back the curtains on the church’s inner workings.

The internal church squabbling, predictably dubbed “VatiLeaks” by the Italian news media, became public about three weeks ago with the disclosure on television and in newspapers of confidential letters written by a top Vatican official who had denounced alleged corruption and financial mismanagement in Vatican City.

The widespread feeling among experts who follow the Vatican is that the letters were a volley in a battle among officials jousting for power in a papal court whose anointed leader, they say, is more concerned with theological questions than with the day- to-day affairs of state.

Every journalist who follows the church has described the current controversy as part of “a clash between cardinals in the Curia,” even though the Vatican is denying it, said Paolo Rodari, who writes about the Vatican for two newspapers. The e-mails and letters and documents that have made their way into print “could not get out unless they came from someone inside,” he added.

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