magister

The letter and questions were first published on the blogs of veteran Vatican reporter Sandro Magister and Messa in Latino two days before the start of a major three-week synod, or meeting, at the Vatican.

"In the last years of his life Pell was working to build a unifying network by meeting conservatives and also moderates. He wanted them to reflect on the central issues of the Church looking ahead to the choice of Francis' successor," Magister said.

"The conservative world lacks a unifying vision, which is something that Benedict provided," said Sandro Magister, a veteran conservative author, journalist and blogger who has been critical of Francis.

The conservative opposition to Francis has become more fractured, in part because of what Magister says is a flourishing of divisive extremism in Catholic social media, which has scared off some once vocal protagonists.

The journalist, Sandro Magister, published the text last March on his Vatican blog, Settimo Cielo.