VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis, saying he does not want a ‘‘Vatican-centric’’ church concerned about itself, appealed Tuesday for a missionary church that reaches out to the poor, the young, the elderly, and even to nonbelievers. That’s the vision he laid out as he opened a landmark meeting on reforming the 2,000-year-old institution....
The closed-door meeting got underway against the backdrop of one of the most tangible signs that change is already afoot: The secretive Vatican bank, under investigation for alleged money-laundering by Italian prosecutors, released its first-ever annual report Tuesday, the latest step toward financial transparency championed by Francis and his predecessor, Benedict XVI.
Related: Sunday Globe Special: The History of Banking
Net earnings at the bank, known as the Institute for Religious Works, rose fourfold to $116.95 million in 2012, the report said. More than half of that was given to the pope for his charitable works.
Francis has put the bank on notice, forming a commission of inquiry to look into its activities amid accusations that its clients may have used its lax controls to launder money.
Francis’ decision to name the eight cardinals from around the world as a permanent advisory panel represents the most significant sign that he wants to shake things up at the Vatican.
The eight cardinals include Sean O’Malley, the archbishop of Boston; Cardinals Oswald Gracias, archbishop of Mumbai, India; Laurent Monsengwo Pasinya, archbishop of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo; and Reinhard Marx, archbishop of Munich and Freising, Germany, all of whom head bishops conferences in their regions.
It’s unclear how this parallel cabinet will work with the Vatican bureaucracy that constitutes a pope’s primary cabinet, known as the Vatican Curia. A scandal over leaked papal documents last year showed the Curia to be a dysfunctional warren of political infighting and turf battles, fueling calls for reform from the cardinals....
--more--"
"Bishop’s spending at issue in Vatican" Associated Press, October 14, 2013
BERLIN — A German bishop under fire for lavish spending traveled to Rome on Sunday for talks at the Vatican, church officials said, placing his future in the hands of a pope who has espoused a simple lifestyle.
Allegations of excessive spending by the Rev. Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst, bishop of Limburg, have stirred controversy among Roman Catholics in the country where Martin Luther launched the Reformation five centuries ago in response to what he said were church excesses and abuses.
A spokesman for the diocese of Limburg, Martin Wind, told the German news agency dpa Tebartz-van Elst was meeting with church officials but gave no details. German media said he made the trip aboard a budget airline.
At the center of the controversy is the $42 million price tag for the construction of a bishop’s residence complex and related renovations. Tebartz-van Elst told the Bild newspaper the bill was actually for 10 projects and there were additional costs because of regulations on buildings under historical protection.
The controversy has split the 24 million-member Catholic community in Germany as the church struggles with diminishing numbers of followers. ‘‘It hurts me because of the impression that wasting money is a core feature of the church,’’ Julia Kloeckner, deputy chairwoman of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party, said.
--more--"
Related:
Pope expels German ‘luxury bishop’ from diocese
Pope suspends free-spending bishop
Vatican cool to German challenge to divorce rule
Vatican reinforces rules on remarriage
"Bishop’s spending at issue in Vatican" Associated Press, October 14, 2013
BERLIN — A German bishop under fire for lavish spending traveled to Rome on Sunday for talks at the Vatican, church officials said, placing his future in the hands of a pope who has espoused a simple lifestyle.
Allegations of excessive spending by the Rev. Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst, bishop of Limburg, have stirred controversy among Roman Catholics in the country where Martin Luther launched the Reformation five centuries ago in response to what he said were church excesses and abuses.
A spokesman for the diocese of Limburg, Martin Wind, told the German news agency dpa Tebartz-van Elst was meeting with church officials but gave no details. German media said he made the trip aboard a budget airline.
At the center of the controversy is the $42 million price tag for the construction of a bishop’s residence complex and related renovations. Tebartz-van Elst told the Bild newspaper the bill was actually for 10 projects and there were additional costs because of regulations on buildings under historical protection.
The controversy has split the 24 million-member Catholic community in Germany as the church struggles with diminishing numbers of followers. ‘‘It hurts me because of the impression that wasting money is a core feature of the church,’’ Julia Kloeckner, deputy chairwoman of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party, said.
--more--"
Related:
Pope expels German ‘luxury bishop’ from diocese
Pope suspends free-spending bishop
Vatican cool to German challenge to divorce rule
Vatican reinforces rules on remarriage
Also see: Pope visits Assisi on namesake’s day
