Centralized globalization: The Holy See and human mobility since World War II

Abstract

Through an examination of the official teaching of the Church I show how the increased mobility of large masses of Catholics since World War II has led to continuing efforts by the Holy See to follow and, to a certain extent, to control these fluxes of people. In turn, global human mobility has had an influence on institutional structures and on the self-understanding of the Church. While this evolution has contributed to the globalization of the Catholic Church, the trend towards centralization of power in Rome has hindered the development of more inclusive and democratic reforms and the participation of local churches in the decision-making process.

‘The Pope’s own hand outstretched’: Holy See diplomacy as a hybrid mode of diplomatic agency

“…Globally, religion wields an arguably growing influence in international politics ( Thomas, 2010 ), and there is more space for creative diplomatic engagement ( Constantinou et al, 2016 ), both of which are significant trends for the future of understanding diplomacy and international politics. The HS, for example, has found global reach and mobility accompanying globalisation as a vehicle to overcome the traditional territorial and nation bound state ( Turina, 2015 : 201) without giving away its secular features of diplomatic practice ( Parolin, 2017 ).…”

“…There is a solid body of literature that situates the HS and the Catholic Church in an international context ( Abdullah, 1996 ; Barbato, 2013 ; Cardinale, 1976 ; Graham, 1959 ; Hanson, 1987 ; Kurth, 1993 ; Martens, 2006 ; Murphy, 1974 ; Rotte, 2007 ). This literature focuses variously on soft power ( Byrnes, 2017 ; Sommeregger, 2011 ; Troy, 2010 ), international organisations ( Abdullah, 1996 ; Araujo and Lucal, 2004a , 2004b , 2010 ; Chong and Troy, 2011 ; Leustean, 2013 ; Neale, 1998 ), bilateral relations, 1 international law ( Casaroli, 1981 ; Morss, 2016 ), the HS and the church as transnational actors ( Barbato, 2013 ; Ryall, 2001 ; Vallier, 1971 ) and their mobilising power ( Barbato, 2016 ; Turina, 2015 ), the Pope as chief diplomat and moral authority ( Hall, 1997 ), or theological explanations of political outcomes where the Church has been involved in peacebuilding efforts ( Cortright, 2008 : 200–203; Riccards, 1998 ).…”

“… 16. See, for example, canon 363, § 1 and canon 364. Revising the Canon law, John Paul II put more emphasis on ecclesiastical matters to conserve Christian unity (Feldkamp, 2010: 131; Morss, 2016; Turina, 2015). …”

'The Pope's Own Hand Outstretched': Holy See Diplomacy as a Hybrid Mode of Diplomatic Agency

“…See, for example, canon 363, § 1 and canon 364. Revising the Canon law, John Paul II put more emphasis on ecclesiastical matters to conserve Christian unity (Feldkamp, 2010: 131;Morss, 2016;Turina, 2015). 17.…”

“…There is a solid body of literature that situates the HS and the Catholic Church in an international context (Abdullah, 1996;Barbato, 2013;Cardinale, 1976;Graham, 1959;Hanson, 1987;Kurth, 1993;Martens, 2006;Murphy, 1974;Rotte, 2007). This literature focuses variously on soft power (Byrnes, 2017;Sommeregger, 2011;Troy, 2010), international organisations (Abdullah, 1996;Araujo and Lucal, 2004a, 2004bChong and Troy, 2011;Leustean, 2013;Neale, 1998), bilateral relations, 1 international law (Casaroli, 1981;Morss, 2016), the HS and the church as transnational actors (Barbato, 2013;Ryall, 2001;Vallier, 1971) and their mobilising power (Barbato, 2016;Turina, 2015), the Pope as chief diplomat and moral authority (Hall, 1997), or theological explanations of political outcomes where the Church has been involved in peacebuilding efforts (Cortright, 2008: 200-203;Riccards, 1998).…”