On 21 April, a local newspaper reported that “Pope Francis, in his Easter address before a large crowd, denounced “‘the immense wastefulness’ in the world while many go hungry”.

In its interview, in the same issue, with economist Joseph F.X. Zahra, who was appointed by Pope Francis to oversee reforms of the Vatican’s “scandal-plagued accounts”, the newspaper reported that “the Holy See’s problems, which have been acknowledged in Church circles, were revealed publicly last year through the leaks of papal correspondence by then Pope Benedict’s butler.

“The documents exposed the squabbles among Vatican bureaucrats, allegations of corruption in the awarding of contracts, and mammoth fiscal waste.”

In view of these scandals, it’s hypocritical of Pope Francis to denounce others for their wastefulness when there was “mammoth fiscal waste” at the Vatican itself “while many went hungry”.

John Guillaumier

St Julian’s