Pope Francis issued a new law Monday reorganizing Vatican finances following a series of scandals.
In a document issued Dec. 28, the pope formalized the transfer of financial responsibilities from the Vatican’s Secretariat of State to the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See, which functions as the Holy See’s treasury and sovereign wealth manager.
He first announced the shake-up in an Aug. 25 letter to Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin that was made public on Nov. 5 after the Secretariat of State was engulfed by accusations of financial mismanagement.
The pope promulgated the new law in an apostolic letter issued motu proprio (“on his own impulse”).
The text, entitled “A better organization,” also set out new regulations for the oversight of Peter’s Pence, an annual worldwide collection supporting the pope’s mission.
Vatican officials have been forced to deny that money raised for Peter’s Pence was used to cover losses on a controversial London property deal overseen by the Secretariat of State.
The document, signed Dec. 26 and coming into force before the start of the Vatican’s new fiscal year, contains four articles. The first concerns the transfer of investments and liquidity from the Secretariat of State to Apostolic See. The second regulates the management of papal funds. The third sets out “provisions on economic and financial monitoring and supervision” and the fourth addresses the functioning of the Secretariat of State’s administrative office.
Under the new law, Apostolic See will gain ownership of funds, bank accounts, and investments, including real estate, previously administered by the Secretariat of State from Jan. 1, 2021.
The Apostolic See’s management of its new responsibilities will be subject to “ad hoc control” by the Vatican’s Secretariat for the Economy, established in 2014 to oversee the financial activities of the Holy See and Vatican City State. The Secretariat for the Economy will in future also serve as the Papal Secretariat for Economic and Financial Matters.
The law requires the Secretariat of State to “transfer as soon as possible, and no later than Feb. 4, 2021,” all of its liquid assets held in current accounts at the Institute for the Works of Religion, commonly known as the “Vatican bank,” and foreign banks.
The law asks the Apostolic See to create a budgetary provision called “Papal Funds” which will be included in the Holy See’s consolidated financial statements. It will contain a sub-account called “Peter’s Pence.” Another sub-account, called the “Holy Father’s Discretionary Fund,” will be operated solely at the pope’s direction. A third sub-account, known as “Entitled Funds,” will be set up for funds that “have a particular restriction of destination by the will of the donors or by regulatory provision.”
The motu proprio gives the Secretariat for the Economy, led first by Cardinal George Pell and now by Fr. Juan Antonio Guerrero Alves, S.J., supervisory powers over entities previously overseen by the Secretariat of State. Various Vatican entities will transmit their budget and final balance sheets to the Secretariat for the Economy, which will then pass them for approval to the Council for the Economy, founded in 2014….
The above comes from a Dec. 28 story on the site of the Catholic News Agency.
The article states “[u]nder the new law, (sic) Apostolic See will gain ownership of funds, bank accounts, and investments, including real estate, previously administered by the Secretariat of State from January 1, 2021.”
Does this mean (A) new ownership relates only to the named items acquired by Secretariat on and after January 1, 2021 or (B) on January 1, 2021 ownership of all such items, whenever acquired, will be transferred from Secretariat? Sloppy writing. Perhaps the phrase “from January 1, 2021,” should have begun the sentence quoted above to avert ambiguity.
If there really is such a need for income redistribution, open borders, vaccine assistance, HIV-malaria-other disease assistance, food assistance, etc not to mention the prime need for evangelization so that all know Jesus and be baptized, why is this money donated for these social and spiritual causes invested in earthly ventures for future capital? I give money so that it go to the needy, not to be invested for the future while folks are still suffering hunger, disease, ignorance, and sin. I’ll give directly from now on to the actual missionaries in the countries who I know will distribute NOW what is needed for their people, or directly to people I know who are in need. Enough with the institutions and their administrative costs.
Well stated Fr.Richard.
Maybe Cardinal Becciu and cabal couldn’t resist the trendy temptation to become “Sloane Rangers”.