The Church in the Age of Systemic Corruption

Tuesday, March 12, 2024, starting at 09:30, at the San Tommaso section of the Pontifical Theological Faculty of Southern Italy, located at viale Colli Aminei 2, as part of the conference 'Don Peppe Diana: for the love of my people. The context, the commitment, and the pastoral legacy of a martyr', the book 'The Church in the Age of Systemic Corruption' by Don Marcello Cozzi will be presented. The text, published by Editoriale Scientifica, is the result of the research effort of the San Tommaso d'Aquino section and systematically gathers notes and reflections intended for those, especially in the ecclesiastical field, who wish to delve into the serious and complex phenomenon of corruption to fundamentally answer the question: 'how should the Church deal with it?'. At the conference, during which the volume will be discussed in the presence of the author, among others, the Archbishop of Naples, monsignor Domenico Battaglia, the Vice President of the Italian Episcopal Conference, monsignor Francesco Savino, the Bishop of Aversa, monsignor Angelo Spinillo, the Mayor of Naples, professor Gaetano Manfredi, the honorable Federico Cafiero De Raho, former Deputy Prosecutor of Naples, the Dean of the San Tommaso section of the Pftim, monsignor Antonio Foderaro, and the Mayor of Casal di Principe, Renato Natale, will intervene. Starting from a biblical and magisterial deepening of the theme, the volume attempts to understand first of all not why to worry about corruption but how to make this concern its own by the Church. How should the Church position itself in the face of corruption? From which theological presuppositions should it start so that its commitment can effectively impact the construction of paths of justice and legality? In what idea of the Church should such a complex and delicate commitment be rooted? What kind of pastoral care should be concretely implemented in the parish and diocesan communities? Obviously, these are pages that do not claim to be an exhaustive work on the subject, but want to be a sort of manual for pastoral operators, both lay and presbyteral, not only because we are facing a phenomenon in continuous evolution, but also because, from the point of view of reflection and pastoral operation, attention to it is altogether recent, thanks also to the considerable and constant stimulation that comes from the magisterium of Pope Francis, to whom the author inevitably makes continuous reference. Don Marcello Cozzi is a priest from Lucania who has been committed for decades to education in legality and justice, in the fight against mafias, and in accompanying mafia repentants and witnesses of justice. He was vice president of the Italian Federation of Anti-Racket and Anti-Usury Associations, and vice president of Libera. He is currently president of the national anti-usury foundation 'Interesse uomo' and teaches at the Pontifical Theological Faculty of Southern Italy, section San Tommaso of Naples, the Pontifical Lateran University of Rome, and the Leoniano Theological Institute of Anagni.