Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini, S.J. (1927-2012). / Mafon1959 via Wikimedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).Milan, Italy, May 17, 2022 / 05:47 am (CNA).Vatican Cardinal Michael Czerny on Monday described the late Italian Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini as a "prophet."Czerny, the prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, said that the controversial Jesuit theologian anticipated recent developments in the Catholic Church.Martini, a renowned biblical scholar, was described by the New York Times as one of the Catholic Church's "most influential progressive thinkers" and a "possible successor to Pope John Paul II," when the Polish pope died in 2005.Martini, who led the Milan archdiocese from 1979 to 2002, declared in an interview shortly before his death in 2012 that "the Church is 200 years behind the times."Speaking in Milan on May 16, Cardinal Czerny said: "Many already appreciated him while he was among you, not without misunderstandings, uncertainties, and opposition." "Now ...