In yet another dramatic attempt to introduce financial discipline and order to the Vatican, Pope Francis replaced on Wednesday four of the five cardinals overseeing the Vatican Bank.
At the same time, the Vatican refused to dismiss persistent rumors Francis may simply decide to close the Vatican Bank altogether.
The four cardinals on the five-member Commission of Cardinals Overseeing the Institute for the Works of Religion, or IOR, the formal title of the Vatican Bank, were removed only 11 months into their five-year terms as commissioners, having been appointed by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, who resigned as pope last February....