In the corner of a page, O Estado de S.Paulo reveals today that minister Gilberto Carvalho (Dilma's cabinet) went to the Vatican a few months ago. The purpose? Persuading the pope to stop by the capital of Brazil just before going to Rio on the occasion of the WYD.
Anyone can easily realize that the minister failed. Francis is only visiting Rio and Aparecida, not Brasília. What is most embarrassing, however, is that, as stated in that newspaper, the pontiff not even received Gilberto Carvalho.
Just after the Argentinian cardinal emerged as the successor to the resigning Benedict XVI, Dilma was eventually received by the new pope. She went through so much effort to utter silliness before the pontiff: "The pope is now Argentinian, but God is Brazilian", she said to the new pope.
We can be sure Pope Francis regretted his time with Dilma in the end. And certainly made sure not to forget that. Besides, let us remember that pride is one of the capital sins and Dilma has just failed to remember that in the presence of the pope. So, the next development is not to surprise us - Gilberto Carvalho is sent away promptly. (God is Brazilian! What are you going here?)
Gilberto had been to the Vatican at least once before. He served as an envoy, taking a letter from Dilma to Benedict XVI just after she emerged as the new president in the end. Yes, in the end. Benedict had warned Brazilian citizens about the mistake of electing her in 2010.
This time, there is more to the episode of the bouncing Gilberto that makes it even more delicate than his previous visit to the Vatican.
Brazilians have proved infuriated, over the past weeks, due to the abusive, fruitless taxes and fat government expenditures. Widespred news about Gilberto's innocuous trip to the Vatican - one more extravagance that affronts their miserable standards of living - is prone to diffuse even more violent popular actions, which have already been arising doubts over the viability of the very WYD.
As to the pope's declining to meet Dilma at Brasilia this month, we can see that important lessons on strategy have been learned at the Vatican. Moreover, one of the tenants in the Dictatum Papae (1075) holds that lesser 'kings' (those rulers below the pope) come and go to the possible risk of even the biggest empires, while the maximum pontifex - the formal title of the head of the Catholic Church - inherits an eternal kingdom and untouchable is his power, even if he resigns.
So have in mind that the WYD is not just a 'private event' meant to promote catholicism as simply one idea among a multitude of others. As the pope gathers his sheep from all over the world, especially the younger share of it, he is exerting his authority to the highest; he acts as the top ruler - actually, the single ruler - of that population. No other issue stands greater than the 'force' that unites such people. That is not religion; that is the spirit of the strongest power on Earth, and Pope Francis's posture has been just in line with that.
As protests erupted last month, Francis could only be greatly reassured of his decision to not make Dilma look like his partner on the WYD occasion. This, however, does not mean no voices against the Church are expected. There are, actually, several street manifestations under preparation and aimed at 'problematic' issues as far as the Catholic Church is concerned: even priest's celibacy is expected to engross the ones sensitive to, or dissatisfied with, the rulings of the most influential Church in the West. But Pope Francis is just fully confident about his role above and beyond all that.
