Ambassador to the Holy See: ‘Mario Grech has the visibility other cardinals do not have’

Malta’s leading expert on the Vatican believes Cardinal Mario Grech has an advantage heading into the conclave because of his visibility with cardinals in non-European countries.

Frank Zammit, the ambassador to the Holy See, gave a glimpse of Grech’s chances during an interview on TVM’s Xtra. He said that, since Pope Francis extended the conclave to include cardinals from the Global South, the choice of a new pope has become more difficult to interpret.

“Mario Grech is widely travelled, having been tasked by the Pope to specifically visit Asia, Pacific and South America, so many cardinals know him instead of the ones which remained in Rome,” he said.

Zammit said Mario Grech has the advantage of having met Cardinals from non-European countries, unlike other potential candidates. He did however say that media attention did not help. 

“The more he is mentioned in the media the worse it is for a candidate,” he said.

Zammit had only praise for Pope Francis, who he said was affable and outreaching to the public, although when it came to the Curia he was strict and demanding. 

He was also unwavering and unforgiving with members of the clergy who were accused of misdemeanours. Zammit said that he had a special interest in the poor and deprived and he thought that the next pope would have to uphold this.

When asked about a personal anecdote with the pope, Zammit recounted the pope’s personal interest in his family. Zammit talked of the Pope’s concern when he learnt that Zammit’s daughter had passed through a difficult period of drug dependence.  “He would ask me with concern about this,” he said with tears in his eye.

In the studio, Zammit placed two zucchetti on the table: the pope’s cap and a cardinal’s cap.  “They were given to me by the late pope and the late Cardinal Sodano. I have others but I have bestowed them to places which need his blessing, such as the prison in Kordin.”