Cardinal Angelo Sodano, controversial Vatican power broker for more than a quarter of a century, dies at 94

Cardinal Angelo Sodano was a Vatican power broker who had many controversies about covering up sexual abusers in the Catholic Church died at the age of 94. Sodano had been ill for some time and died Friday night. His death has been officially announced by the Vatican although the cause and location of his death have not been disclosed. He was secretary of state under two popes - John Paul II and Benedict XVI and held the position of second in command of the Vatican for nearly two decades, between 1990 and 2006.

It is also reported that Sodano and then Pope John Paul II, Stanislaw Dziwisz, took over the reins of church leadership in the last years of the late Pope's life as he suffered from Parkinson's disease and other illnesses that left his life in shambles. In fact, the Pope was once quoted as saying that Cardinal Angelo Sodano was his first and foremost ally. ” Pope John Paul II died in 2005.

In the wake of the controversy surrounding him, Sodano is accused of using the power he used in the Vatican Empire to close the investigation of sexually abusive clergy. His vision of the church following and communism made him put institutional protection above all else. Speaking to the public at Easter in 2010 he dismissed allegations of harassment, calling them "minor".


The current Pope Francis conveyed words of condolence to his sister Cardinal Sodano on Saturday in which he expressed his gratitude for Sodano's careful work in communications at the Vatican, calling him "a respected Churchman, who lived his priesthood generously."

Sodano was ambassador to the Vatican in Chile between 1977 and 1988.