This controversial appointment could lead to more headaches at the Vatican.
The appointment of Archbishop Víctor Manuel Fernández as the new Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) has caused considerable consternation in Rome and abroad.
In certain quarters, this centres around his alleged departures from Catholic orthodoxy. More popularly, however, interest has focused on a book he published in 1995 entitled Heal Me with Your Mouth: The Art of Kissing (I shall spare you, dear reader, the details). Although Fernández asserts that its insights do not result from personal experience, if so, they certainly imply a startling capacity for empathy. Some have wondered whether this suggests quite the right disposition for the job of doctrinal watchdog.
