Pope's Hunky Secretary Makes Front Page of Vanity Fair
Pope Benedict XVI's dashing personal secretary Georg Gaenswein has made the front page of the Italian edition of Vanity Fair, under the headline "being beautiful is not a sin."
"The George Clooney of St. Peter's is the Vatican's number two, following his ordination as bishop," says the magazine, which goes on sale on Thursday and charts Gaenswein's rise up the Holy See hierarchy.
The blue-eyed 56-year-old, who lives in the Vatican as one of the tiny state's 832 residents, receives love letters from enamoured fans and has learnt not to be distracted from his work by the endless compliments on his looks, the magazine says.
Gaenswein is not officially the Vatican's number two -- that role is held by the powerful secretary of state Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone.
But his promotion to Prefect of the Papal Household in December means Benedict's closest adviser wields more influence than ever.
A dapper figure in his black robes and a broad pink sash, Gaenswein has been a constant presence at the pope's side at the Vatican and on foreign trips and his close relationship with the pontiff is said to have sparked jealousy within the Vatican walls.
"Personally, I see my role or service to the pope as being like a window. The cleaner, the better. I have to let the sun in, and the less you see the window the better," Gaenswein said as he received a prize a few weeks ago, according to La Repubblica newspaper.
It was Gaenswein who rooted out the whistleblower inside the Vatican last year, after he realized that the pope's butler Paolo Gabriele was the only person who could have had access to some of the secret documents revealing intrigue within the Holy See, which were stolen and leaked to the press.
Belief that he also has the pope's ear on key doctrinal issues has led some to speculate over whether the leaks may have been part of a power struggle between Gaenswein and Bertone.
His supporters have insisted he is too devoted to Benedict to betray his trust and spark one of the most embarrassing scandals to hit the Vatican, though Italy's media questioned how he failed to see the theft carried out on his watch.
The son of a blacksmith, Gaenswein was ordained in 1984 and rose through the ranks to become Joseph Ratzinger's secretary in 2003.
When Ratzinger was elected to the papacy in 2005, he kept the blond-haired monsignor by his side, propelling him into the limelight, much to the delight of the international media, instantly smitten by the pope's dashing assistant.
Those who thought he might be punished for failing to prevent the leaks were wrong: Gorgeous George, once private and reserved, is now even more powerful and visible than ever.
Source: Agence France Presse
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