An Early Front Runner

By Jeff Israely

Not only is it considered impolitic to campaign for the papacy, it is also against Vatican law. The Roman Catholic Church bars elector Cardinals (those under 80) from talking publicly about the matter. Still, as a frail John Paul II celebrated the 25th anniversary of his papacy last week, a quiet campaign for the post seems well under way, and an early--and active--front runner is the Archbishop of Milan, Dionigi Tettamanzi. His transfer a year ago from the helm of the Genoa Archdiocese to the world's largest one, in Milan, was akin to winning a party's nomination. "He's a natural candidate," says longtime Vatican watcher Luigi Accattoli of Italy's leading daily Corriere della Sera. Tettamanzi, 69, stands out in the pack because he is favored by the Italian Cardinals, who are eager to take back the papacy.

Short, pudgy and quick to smile, the Milan leader has few enemies--a miraculous accomplishment in Vatican circles. A moral theologian believed to have helped pen the Pope's seminal 1995 document on bioethics, Tettamanzi has strong conservative credentials. But he has also spoken out against the mistreatment of immigrants and in support of antiglobalization demonstrations. Progressive Catholic groups such as the Community of Sant'Egidio and the archtraditionalist Opus Dei seem to like him equally. He can reach out to the laity as well: the Archbishop showed up at the Monza racetrack last month for a spin in a Formula One car before the Grand Prix.

But Tettamanzi, like many early front runners, could see his prospects fade. Some feel the Cardinals will again look outside Italy, perhaps to Africa or Latin America, where an unabashed Catholicism is booming. And all the talk about his chances could wind up backfiring. "You can't seem to want it too badly," says a veteran Vatican official. Or, in the words of an old Roman dictum, "He who enters the conclave as Pope exits as Cardinal." --By Jeff Israely