Whenever Caesar is instructed by the contemporary Church about what he should or should not due, the ever present fiscal mismanagement of too much of the Church, especially the Vatican, makes the Church look ridiculous, and ever at the risk of being bought by Caesar at fire sale rates. The patron damned of all this of course is Judas, who kept the common purse of the Apostles and stole from it. Financial rectitude is not spoken about much from pulpits, but few of the virtues can survive among those who do not practice it, and talks about faithful stewardship are bad jokes without it being front and center.
Financial Mismanagement is a Sin
- Donald R. McClarey
Donald R. McClarey
Cradle Catholic. Active in the pro-life movement since 1973. Father of three, one in Heaven, and happily married for 43 years. Small town lawyer and amateur historian. Former president of the board of directors of the local crisis pregnancy center for a decade.
Priests and Bishops don’t like to talk about Ecclesial greed just as they don’t like to talk about Ecclesial gluttony. Apparently they intend to make their purses as fat as their bellies.
The Church’s hierarchy has squandered all moral authority. First they dismantled the theological foundation to get with the age and then adopted all of the sins of the age.
I learned the cut of the jib of those in the church as a young man. My father worked for a Catholic healthcare system. He was meeting with the head of the Health Care System who was a nun. I can’t remember the order. She rolls up in this white limousine. He used to refer to her as Sister Mary Megabucks. She said something along the lines of I don’t own anything, but I have access to millions. That says it all about those in the church. That’s the reason why we have places called The Bishop’s Palace.
The difference is that those millions came from nickles and dimes contributed by those in the pews. They didn’t earn them themselves. You don’t need to own anything as long as you have access to millions. Just like the politicians.
After all none of us really own anything. After we die others end up with whatever we’ve worked for. We are born naked and we die naked.
Modern medicine might be the most secular of all the world’s endeavors at this point.
The tendency to act as if medical care is in unlimited amounts, while dealing with the excruciatingly real limits of time, talent, and treasure is the great con of our time.
“Step right up! Always restored to health, perpetual prime of life, the death of death- well, that’s just around the corner!”
It’s a side show act that the Church apes because it believes “the rubes” would not come to the Church hospital otherwise.
Letting in the world has always really meant mimicking it – mostly to our detriment and (ironically) to the detriment of the world.
Last 3 lines of today’s Gospel (Mt. 20:25-28) some how seems appropriate to refocus today’s Church leadership:
“ Jesus summoned [the disciples] and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and the great ones make their authority over them felt.
But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.
Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Yeah, Pope Leo is showing all the financial management skills of a banana Republic. Born in Illinois, no matter. The man is a follower of Bergoglio.
There is enough American skill and know how to clean up the mess, straighten out the Vatican finances and put the Church on solid financial footing. Yet, he seems to do nothing but brush off trad Catholics
Due to all the financial scandals with APSA (the Vatican bank) and under pressure from the people in the European Union banking system (who are well aware of what money laundering looks like), Pope Francis ruled that Church investments would henceforth go through the (newly reformed under EU supervision) IOR.
Quite early in his pontificate, ¡Lio! rescinded that ruling, thereby restoring the episcopal slush fund to its previous lavender glory.
I think the Immaculate Dermatological Institute was also $800 million in debt back in Francis’ day … I’m sensing a pattern.
… I sure hope someone is keeping a list of these goings on just in case the faithful ever have an opportunity to do something about them.
Cardinal Parolin does not rise to the prestige of a left-wing moron. The man is a trainwreck on two legs. Pope Leo has some personnel alterations to make, but doesn’t appear to have the stones to make them.