Pope Francis Money Quote
The web page for "Peter's Pence has this statement:
"The concrete participation, including economic, in the needs of the universal ecclesial community has taken different forms throughout history. These collections and donations by the individual faithful or entire local churches raise the awareness that all the baptized are called to materially sustain the work of evangelization and at the same time to help the poor in whatever way is possible."
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops states the following:
“Today, the Peter's Pence Collection supports the Pope's philanthropy by giving the Holy Father the means to provide emergency assistance to those in need because of natural disaster, war, oppression, and disease.”
Francis Bergoglio was asked about the financial corruption of the pennies of faithful Catholics around the world. It is hard to know if he's more corrupt or stupid.
Or thinks we are.
That scent you smell emanating from Francis is not frankincense.
Or thinks we are.
That scent you smell emanating from Francis is not frankincense.
Cristiana Caricato (TV2000, Italy): Holy Father, people read
in the newspapers that the Holy See has acquired an apartment for hundreds of
thousands of euros in the heart of London, and they become a bit disconcerted,
because of this use of Vatican finances. Also, in particular, because it
involves Peter’s Pence. Did you know of these financial things? And above all,
in your opinion, is it correct to use
Peter’s Pence in that way? You have often said that money should not be
made with money. You have often denounced the unscrupulous use of finances.
However, we see that this operation involves the Holy See. This scandalizes in
some way. How do you see this whole event?
Pope Francis: Thank you. First of all, in good
administration it is normal for a sum to come from the Peter’s Pence, and what
do I do? Put in a drawer? No, this is bad administration. But I look to make an
investment, and when there is the need, to give... when there is the necessity,
in one year, you take it. Your capital you do not devalue, if it maintains or
if it grows a little. This is good administration.
If [it is] an administration of the drawer, it is bad. But
you should try to make a good administration, a good investment. Is that clear?
Also an investment, as we say, an investment by widows? What
do widows do? [Ed.note: An Italian saying] Two or three here, five here, if one
falls, one of the others so that they are not ruined is always on security,
this is always moral.
If from Peter’s Pence you invest in a weapons factory, the
pence is not a pence there, eh?
If you make an investment and for years, without touching
it, the capital does not go, Peter’s Pence should be spent in one year, one
year and a half, until the other collection arrives which is made world-wide.
And this is good management.
On security, and also, yes, you can buy a property, rent it,
and then sell it. But, on security, with all of the securities, for the good of
the people of the Pence. This, one. Then, what passed passed: A scandal. They
have done things that do not seem ‘clean.’
But, the report did not come from the outside. That reform
of the economic methodology, that Benedict XVI had already started, is going
forward. And it was the auditor of the internal accounts to say: ‘Here there is
a bad thing. Here there is something that is not working.’ And he came to me.
And I said, but are you sure? ‘Yes.’ And he let me see the numbers. ‘What
should I do?’ [he asked]. [I said:] There is the Vatican justice. Go and give
the report to the Promoter of Justice. And in this I remained content, because
you see that the Vatican administration now has the resources to clarify the
bad things which happen inside, like in this case, that -- if it is not the
case of the apartment in London, because this is not yet clear -- but in that
[other instance] there were cases of corruption.
And the Promoter of Justice studied the accusations,
consulted, and saw an imbalance in the budget. And then, he asked me for
permission to make the searches. I said: ‘Is it clear, your report?’ He told
me, ‘yes, there is a presumption of corruption in these cases. I should carry
out searches in this office, this office, and this office.’ And I signed the
authorization.
The searches were done in five offices. And up to today, but
we have the presumption of innocence, but there is capital that is not
administered well, also with corruption.
I believe that in less than two months they will begin
questioning the five people that are blocked [suspended from the Vatican],
because there were indications of corruption. You will ask me: ‘And these five
are corrupt?’ No, the presumption of innocence is a guarantee, a human right.
But, there is corruption, and you will see. With the searches you will see if
they are guilty or not.
It’s a bad thing, it’s not good what is happening in the
Vatican. But it is clear that the internal mechanisms are beginning to work,
those that Benedict XVI had already started to make. And I thank God. I do not
thank God that there is corruption, but I thank God that the Vatican monitoring
system is working well.
Bruni: The next question is from Phil Pullella of Reuters.
Pope Francis: [small talk]
Philip Pullella (Reuters): [small talk] If you permit me, I
would like to follow a little on the question Cristiana asked, if you permit
me, with a few more details.
There is a lot of worry in the last few weeks about what
happened and about the finances of the Vatican. And according to some people,
there is an internal war over who should control the money, according to some
people. The major part of the members of the council of the administration of
AIF are dismissed. The Egmont Group, a group of these financial authorities
have suspended of the Vatican, the secure communication [...] The director of
AIF is still suspended, as you said, and still there is no general
revisore.
What can you do or say to guarantee to the international
financial community, and to the faithful in general, who are called to
contribute to Peter’s Pence, that the Vatican will not return to be considered
a pariah a thing [inaudible] that is, to have trust you will continue and not
return to the habits of the past?
Pope Francis: Thank you for the question. The Vatican has
made steps forward in its administration, for example, the IOR today has the
acceptance of all the banks and can act like the Italian banks, normal.
Something which was not there a year ago. There is progress.
Then, the Egmont Group, that is not an official
international group, a group to which the AIF belongs. And the international
control does not depend on the Egmont Group, a private group that has its
weight. It is a private group. And MONEYVAL will carry out the inspection it
has scheduled for the first months of the next year and it will do it, it will
do it.
The director of the AIF is in suspension because there were
suspicions of bad administration. The president of AIF was strong with the
Egmont Group to take back the documentation. And this the justice cannot do.
In front of this, I consulted with an Italian judge of a
high level. 'What should I do?' Justice in front of an accusation of corruption
is sovereign in a country. It's sovereign. And no one can involve themselves
there inside. No one can say to the Egmont Group, “your papers are here.” No,
the papers should be studied, that they add up (FARE) to what seems a bad
administration, in the sense of a bad control.
It was AIF that did not control, it seems, the crimes of
others. And therefore [it failed] in its duty of controls. I hope that they
prove it is not so. Because there is, still, the presumption of innocence.
And for the moment, the magistrates, the magistrate is
sovereign. He should study how it went. Because on the contrary,, a country
should have a superior administration that would harm the sovereignty of the
country.
And the [term of the] president of AIF was expiring
[November] 19th. I would call him a few days before and he was not in agreement
that I was re-calling him [as president of AIF] and announced that the 19th he
was leaving. I found a successor, a judge of the highest juridical and economic
level, national and international, and at my return, he takes charge of AIF and
things will continue like so.
It would have been a contradiction that the monitoring
authority to be sovereign over the state. It is something which is not easy to
understand, but what is a little disturbed is the Egmont Group, which is a
private group. It helps a lot, but it is not the monitoring authority of
MONEYVAL. MONEYVAL will study the numbers. It will study the procedures. It
will study how [...] the Promoter of Justice. And how the judges have
determined the things.
I know that in these days the interrogation of the five who were
suspended will begin or has already begun. It is not easy, but we should not be
naive. We should not be slaves.
Someone told me -- but I do not believe it -- but they said,
'yes, with this, we have touched the Egmont Group. You scare the people . We
are creating a little terrorism…’ Let’s leave that aside. We go forward with
the law, with MONEYVAL, with the new president of AIF, and the director was
suspended but maybe he is innocent. I would like that, because it is a
beautiful thing [if] one is innocent and not guilty. I felt a little bit of
noise with this group that was not wanting that the papers be touched that
belong to the group.
Pullella: And a guarantee for the faithful that…?
Pope Francis: To guarantee this? Look, it’s the first time
that in the Vatican the pot is discovered from the inside, not from the
outside, From the outside many times. And they said look there and we had so
much embarrassment... But in this Pope Benedict was wise. And he began a
process that matured and now the institutions that the auditor had the courage
to make a written report against five people… The auditor is working. Really, I
do not want to offend the Egmont Group, because they did so much good, help,
but in this case the state has sovereignty. And even justice is more sovereign
then the executive power, more sovereign. It is not easy to understand but I
ask you all to understand this difficulty.
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