Cardinal Bellini has a lot of contradictory things about him, but one thing I’ve noticed is the value he consistently gives to people (and specifically, Cardinal Lawrence) having the freedom to make choices.
When Benitez first shows up, Lawrence says to Bellini, “I don’t think we have any choice but to admit him.”
Bellini’s immediate response to that is to make sure that Lawrence knows that he does have a choice: he could question the competency of the LHF when he made the appointment.
Bellini says this despite remarking earlier that the LHF always won at chess, presumably well after the time when the appointment would have been made, a year ago. The LHF was working and socializing actively right up until the end of his life.
So this offer of a way out is strictly for the purpose of giving Lawrence a choice in whether to admit Benitez.
After that, Lawrence is forced to consider his own actual opinion about whether Benitez ought to be allowed to join the conclave.
When Bellini meets with his supporters, he defends his stance that individual opinions are important to him and he will not let his own choices and beliefs be swept aside for the convenience of winning over others.
Then, when Lawrence is talking about taking extreme measures like breaking the seal on the LFH’s rooms in order to find out who is behind the disruption of the conclave, he says again, “I felt I didn’t have a choice.”
Again, Bellini immediately reminds Lawrence that he did have options, that he still does.
“Put them back,” Bellini says, referring to hiding the secret incriminating papers that Lawrence uncovered.
This is, again, not an honest option. But it is an option. A reminder that Lawrence’s choices exist, that his choices are his own.
Later, in the chaos of the fallout of that decision, Lawrence says, “You must take over the supervision of this election, Aldo.”
Bellini once again puts choice right back in Lawrence’s hands by saying, “Oh, no thank you. You are steering this conclave. Exactly where, I do not know.”
Finally, Bellini is the one to push back when Tedesco rants about suppressing freedom of religion.
He is a representation of the freedom to choose.
titsay
yousharknotpass
turnnoffyourmind
theartofmadeline
romaincrisis
