Vatican Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone on Wednesday thanked Pope Benedict for his service.
Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican's secretary of state, is involved in a power struggle with his predecessor, the observers said.
Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone presided over the Mass as an envoy from Pope Benedict XVI, who plans to visit the region after Easter.
During the vacancy, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Holy See's camerlengo, Italian for chamberlain, takes charge with the help of three cardinal assistants.
Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone said church leaders could not be "simple spectators to the tragedy taking place in Syria".
The favorites include Archbishop Angelo Scola and Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone of Italy.
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Vatican Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone later thanked Benedict for his service.
They attended a Mass led by Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone.
Others concern poison pen memos criticising Carinal Tarcisio Bertone, the pope's number two, and the reporting of suspicious payments by the Vatican Bank.
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Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, who heads the commission of cardinals overseeing the scandal-marred Institute for Religious Works, outlined the efforts to clean up the bank's image in international financial circles.
Some cardinals have suggested restructuring the Curia's chain of command, breaking up the all-powerful post of secretary of state, which was held by Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone under Pope Benedict XVI.
Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, secretary of state, has been ordered by Pope Benedict XVI to ensure that the Vatican's money managers "reduce costs in the face of a continuing inability to increase revenues".
The Vatican vehemently denied the allegations Saturday, with Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone criticizing a rash of "often unverified, unverifiable or completely false news stories" as the cardinals prepare for their conclave.
During the time between the Pope's resignation and the election of his successor, the college of cardinals will govern the Church, headed by Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, as the cardinal camerlengo - or chamberlain.
Some Vatican officials say the administration needs to be completely restructured, saying too much power is concentrated in the hands of the secretary of state, a position held by Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone until Benedict's resignation in February.
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The Vatican emphatically denied the allegations, with Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone criticizing a rash of "often unverified, unverifiable or completely false news stories" as the cardinals prepare for their conclave to select a new pope.
Vatican Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone said it was "deplorable" that as the time for the Roman Catholic cardinals to elect a new pope approaches, a rash of "often unverified, unverifiable or completely false news stories" has appeared.
"We wouldn't be sincere, Your Holiness, if we didn't tell you that there's a veil of sadness on our hearts this evening, " Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Benedict's longtime deputy, told the pope at the end of the service, his voice breaking.
Its police force, the Gendarmerie, is hunting for the source of an unprecedented string of leaks, most of them apparently intended to get Pope Benedict XVI to dismiss Tarcisio Bertone, who as secretary of state is the Vatican's most senior official.
The others listed are Leonardo Sandri of Argentina, George Pell of Australia, Marc Ouellet of Canada, Dominik Duka or the Czech Republic, Peter Turkson of Ghana, Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga of Honduras, Tarcisio Bertone and Angelo Scola of Italy, and Norberto Rivera Carrera of Mexico, the group said.
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