Left: A cover of Italy's Vanity Fair magazine shows Archbishop Georg
Ganswein on cover in this handout picture released by the Vanity Fair press
office on Tuesday. – Photo courtesy of Reuters/Vanity Fair press office
ROME: Archbishop Georg Ganswein,
Pope Benedict's private secretary, who has been dubbed "Gorgeous
George" by the Italian media, is now a real-life cover boy.
The prelate has landed on the cover
of Vanity Fair.
The cover on the Italian edition of
the magazine shows the 56-year-old archbishop smiling, his blue eyes beaming,
above a headline that reads "Father Georg - It's not a sin to be
beautiful."
The magazine calls Ganswein
"The George Clooney of St Peter's" and says it dedicated a cover story
to honor his recent promotion to the rank of archbishop and as recognition of
his growing power in the Roman Catholic Church.
A spokeswoman for the magazine said
Ganswein was not interviewed for the article and did not pose for the cover
photo, which she said was a close-up of an existing picture.
Ganswein, who has been Benedict's
personal secretary since the former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was elected Roman
Catholic leader in 2005, was elevated to the rank of archbishop earlier this
month.
A German like the pope, he was also
promoted to the job of Prefect of the Pontifical Household, a position that
will significantly increase his power as the pope gets older and frailer.
As prefect, Ganswein - already one
of the most recognizable and powerful figures in the papal court - will arrange
all the pope's private and public audiences and his daily schedule.
And, because he will be keeping his
job as chief private secretary, he will have even more power in deciding who
has access to the 85-year-old pope.
Vanity Fair said the article about
Ganswein was a "close up profile of a particular monsignor".
The
magazine goes on sale on Wednesday in Italy. – Reuters
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