"Jesus Christ with an MBA"
My latest in Forbes on how the next Pope can prevent the Vatican from returning to its bad history of financial mismanagement and corruption
Pope Francis’ sweeping reforms cleaned up some of the mess at the scandal-plagued Vatican Bank, but his management also left its coffers severely depleted. Inside the Holy See’s murky financial future.
“Choosing a successor to Pope Francis comes at a critical time for the Catholic Church. There are the obvious hot-button theological divisions —including whether priests should be allowed to marry as well as the church’s views on gay rights and divorce—but Vatican insiders report that religious issues will not be the only ones debated by the 135 cardinals gathering for the upcoming Papal Conclave. Some are also concerned with management expertise and who might make a good Vatican CEO.
That might come as a surprise to those who think of the Holy See only as the home for the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics. And Vatican City is a sovereign nation with diplomatic missions in 183 countries. So while the next Pope needs to be a religious scholar and good communicator, having the skill set of a top CEO might be more necessary now than at any time in the church’s nearly 2000-year history. Or, as National Catholic Reporter columnist Thomas Reese famously put it 12 years ago, when Francis was selected: ‘In other words, they want Jesus Christ with an MBA.’”
Link in email not working
The Catholic Church ultimately rests in the hands of God and is sustained by His divine providence and power. As the Mystical Body of Christ, the Church is guided by the Holy Spirit, who ensures her fidelity to truth and her continuity through time.
However, the administrative and managerial affairs of the Church—particularly within the Vatican and its various departments—are entrusted to human stewards, both ordained clergy and qualified lay professionals. These individuals bear responsibility for the proper governance of the Church’s temporal matters. When administrative decisions are made wisely, they contribute to the Church’s earthly mission. When mismanaged, the consequences are the result of human frailty, not of divine will.
The faith of the Church—rooted in the Deposit of Faith, Sacred Scripture, and Sacred Tradition—is the heart and soul of Catholic life. It surpasses and transcends all earthly structures, bureaucracies, and institutional models. The essence of the Church is not administrative but sacramental and spiritual, grounded in the mystery of Christ and nourished by the grace of the Holy Spirit.
While academic qualifications, such as an MBA, may offer valuable knowledge in areas like financial stewardship or organizational leadership, such credentials are tools of human prudence, not divine authority. They can be helpful in service to the Church’s mission, but they do not replace the guidance of the Holy Spirit or the discernment of those entrusted with spiritual leadership.
Let us therefore entrust the governance of the Church to God’s Spirit, while recognizing that those who serve administratively are instruments—imperfect but necessary—within God’s plan. In this, the Church remains both divinely instituted and humanly administered, a sacred mystery held together by grace and human cooperation.