Cdl Caffarra, Dubia cosigner and "one of the greatest theologians of our time" dies

He was a lion of orthodoxy, a subtle intellect, a humble man, and one who believed with every fibre of his being

The death of Cardinal Caffarra marks the departure of one of the great sons of the Church. I met the Cardinal about 16 years ago, when he was Archbishop of Ferrara, and that meeting, brief as it was, has stayed with me. There will doubtless be lots of well thought out obituaries of his late Eminence, but here are a few thoughts of mine in the immediate aftermath of his death.

Carlo Caffarra was a great theologian; indeed, I would say, after Saint John Paul II and Benedict XVI, probably the greatest in the Church in our times. He started life as a seminary professor, but by the time he was in his thirties he was called to be part of the International Theological Commission, the body which advises the Pope on such matters, and later was handpicked by Saint John Paul as the first head of the John Paul II Institute for Family Life. The saint realised that family life was crucial, and needed able defenders, so he picked Caffarra for the job, which tells you something.

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