On the blog of Georgetown’s Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate, Mark Gray comments on the Economist report about the Catholic Church’s finances in the U.S. (Matthew Schmitz highlighted the story earlier today.) Gray argues that the piece shows a “lack of understanding of what the Church is as an institution.” He continues:
I am guessing The Economist does not have a copy of the Code of Canon Law. Even a glancing read of the Code would have revealed that the Church is quite clearly not run like a multinational corporation such as Walmart or General Electric and I for one am glad it’s not. The sole objective of the modern corporation is to extract and grow profits and in doing so it creates economic growth, wealth, and products and services we desire. But it sadly has no capacity for social justice. . . .
Why don’t the people and institutions that make up the Church in the United States take the time to communicate their budgets and revenue together in an annual hierarchical manner so the Church can produce a financial report that The Economist needs for its story? Because it would be an extraordinary waste of the Church’s resources and time. The Church is not in the business of generating profits like a corporation. It provides ministry, charity, and service to the communities it exists in. It also has no legal obligation to provide what The Economist desires.
As an institution, the Church is nearly 2,000 years old and its structure was fashioned well before modern communication. This reality required significant local autonomy. Priests were responsible for parishes, bishops for dioceses. This same feudal-like structure persists. Add on to this the development of colleges, schools, hospitals, and charities that were often associated with religious orders. Separate aspects of the Church operate for the most part independently—with their own leadership, budgets, revenues, and obligations (perhaps some of the frustration from The Economist comes from the realization that financials do exist for each of these institutions and organizations but it would take forever to collect and tally them all).
I hate to break this to The Economist but there is no “U.S. Catholic Church.”
Read the rest here.
h/t Rod Dreher
August 20th, 2012 | 6:01 pm
I have to say that I think it’s a little silly for people to expect The Economist to report on the finances of the Catholic Church in America in terms of the Church’s self-understanding as both a human and divine organization.
I hate to break this to The Economist but there is no “U.S. Catholic Church.”
Of course there is.
August 21st, 2012 | 1:01 am
[...] The Economist Shows a Lack of Understanding on Church Finances – Mark Gray, 1964 [...]
August 21st, 2012 | 8:01 am
Perhaps the comment was not given in this spirit, but in my opinion, “Of course there is.” implies knowledge of the “inner goods” of a particular subject that should be acquired before making a categorical statement about any entity.
If, on the other hand, the comment was intended to refer to lower case “c” catholic groups of diverse beliefs and commitments, that is another matter.
August 21st, 2012 | 8:18 am
There is, rather, a Catholic Church in the US. It is at least misleading to refer to it as a “US Catholic Church”, sometimes rendered “American Catholic Church.” The latter term, and the equivalent “US Catholic Church”, are terms used by dissidents in discussions of faith and morals. Their idea was that the “American Catholic Church” is somehow exempt from some of the teachings of the universal Church because pastoral considerations and cultural realities require revisionism.
Thank God these errors are, step by step, being rooted out and consigned to where they belong, to the dustbin of history, by the relentless march of the truth. Which sets us free in spite of being delivered by a 2000-year-old institution with many human failings.
Further, many think that each bishop heading a US diocese is under the authority of the USCCB in Washington. (Unfortunately, sometimes the USCCB’s modus operandi reinforces this idea.) However, in reality each bishop is answerable directly to the Holy See.
Specifically, the author of this article makes the point that from a financial-controls standpoint there is no US Catholic Church. And there need not be, and there should not be.
August 21st, 2012 | 9:03 am
Sorry David, but not as a fiscal agent, which is The Economist’s understanding. Each diocese stands on its own with considerable autonomy given to the parishes. And not as a religious agent which depends on all the bishops, worldwide, standing together but limited to understanding what God has revealed. (That is, they can’t make things up.) There is an abstract “U.S. Catholic Church” in the sense that there are a bunch of Catholics who live in the U.S., but that one is hardly unified in effort or thought, except through the worldwide bishops. Perhaps you would prefer, “There is no corporate U.S. Catholic Church”, which is the point.
August 21st, 2012 | 10:46 am
Sorry David, but not as a fiscal agent, which is The Economist’s understanding.
Mike,
I read the article, and I did not see any statement that the Catholic Church in America was organized as one large corporation with a CFO. Quibbling about whether there is or isn’t a “U.S. Catholic Church” is pointlessly arguing about definitions. There is a lot of useful and alarming information in the article that any Catholic parish or diocese should be grateful to have. If I were a priest, having read this article, I would definitely take a look into the provisions that were being made for my retirement.
Suppose the article had opened, “OF ALL the organisations that serve America’s poor, few do more good work than the U.S. Catholic Church: its schools and hospitals provide a lifeline for millions.” How many people would have said, “Sorry, there is no such thing as the U.S. Catholic Church.”
It seems to me in certain quarters the first reaction to any press coverage of the Catholic Church (or religion in general) is to assume it is an attack and mount a defense. Remember, Pope John Paul II said, “Be not afraid!”
August 21st, 2012 | 2:12 pm
Perhaps the “US Catholic Church” exists primarily as a “brand.” While I certainly agree that viewing it as one large corporation is not accurate, any complex modern institution (which again may not be relevant…) will know it is important to manage its brand. Each parish, diocese, or order may be legally independent, but there should be a common interest in ensuring that the brand is reputationally supported, by promoting good financial management. This could have many positive benefits that are aligned with our Catholic faith! So, I agree with the initial FT post suggesting that transparency would be for the good. Certainly, I feel my own parish does a good job on this.
August 24th, 2012 | 5:48 pm
The Economist may have a skewed view of the Church, but apparently some bishops know how to work the system.
The amount of money that has been paid out to victims and church funds stolen is scandalous.
More attention shoulb be paid by the bishops to leading their flocks and not heading finance committees and USCCB committees.
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