Editor’s Note: This article from “The Pillar” — a website stared by a group of Canon lawyers, but which nearly always reads the law wrongly or incorrectly — says that Cardinal Becciu insists on attending the Conclave, but that “the Vatican” has denied this.
This is the first clue that the article is worthless, because “the Vatican” means nothing as a legal term. Did the Secretary of State, Cardinal Parolin, deny Becciu’s request?
Seemingly no.
All that happened is that the Vatican website published a list of Cardinal Electors, which does not include the name of Cardinal Becciu.
So Cardinal Becciu is correct in saying that this list has no canonical value.
Also, since Cardinal Becciu claims that there is no written document removing his right to vote in a conclave, he has the right, if his claim be true, and it would be a grave violation of the Papal Law to exclude him.
Furthermore, he claims that when he verbally renounced his rights, prior to his prosecution for mismanagement and theft of Vatican funds, he never put it in writing.
It remains to be seen if his “renunciation” was made before a Vatican tribunal or if before the Pope. If it was made privately before the Pope and no rescript was written to document the “renunciation”, then the Cardinal must be presumed to keep his voting rights, because, when it regards a question of rights, one never presumes that they have ended, one needs documented and testified evidence.
“The Pillar”, therefore, has struck out three times on this report. And the facts of the case are still not clear.
A professional news site, L’Unione Sarda reports that Cardinal Becciu will attend the Conclave:
If the facts are as the Cardinal claims, then his exclusion from the Conclave will be the first definitive sign that the Conclave will be canonically irregular and perhaps invalid. The Cardinals cannot refuse another Cardinal who has not renounced his rights in a due manner, that is documented way: either before witnesses who gave witness or before a tribunal. If they do refuse him, without such evidence, it appears that the Conclave’s election will be invalid, if the “winning” candidate does not obtain the 2/3+1 votes which would have been necessary had Becciu been admitted. However, since the papal law requires that the Cardinals not discuss anything after the Conclave, it seems difficult to admit how such a case could be verified, if all the Cardinals agree to exclude Becciu regardless of his rights.
Cardinal Becciu will have to find another Cardinal, elector or not, who will take up his cause in one of the General Congregations and demand that it be heard: that is, demand that evidence be brought forth that Pope Francis deprived him of his right to participate in the Conclave. If he merely willingly forwent his rights so that he could be prosecuted in a Vatican tribunal, but gave no written renunciation, even his verbal “renunciation” would be doubtful: and then, it must be presumed that he kept his rights.
At least, he should be allowed to attend the General Congregations, because even Cardinals who are not electors, are allowed to attend. And as a matter of fact, Cardinal Becciu is still listed as a Cardinal in the Annuario Pontificio, it appears, since Catholic-Hierarchy.org still lists him as a Cardinal.
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What was his conviction?
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-67738595
He is appealing it.