Pope Benedict (bless him), predicted (prophesied) that the Church would become much smaller and poorer (and purer?). This might come true more quickly than any of us thought. The European Court has allowed a case brought by the proprietor of a school that the Church in Italy has been the beneficiary of an unfair tax arrangement whereby no property taxes were paid by commercial and semi-Commercial Church enterprises (such as hotels, hostels, convention centres, fee paying schools etc.) thus putting competitors at a substantial disadvantage. The Italian government has been ordered to collect 4 BILLION euros from the Church and the court is considering ordering further collection of up to an additional 9 BILLION euros for an earlier period. As Pope Francis is on record as urging governments to tax rich individuals and organisations for the benefit of the poor, some amusement is being expressed among Italians that he will now be able to 'put his euros where his mouth is'. This VAST liability in a financially corrupt organisation will have some interesting effects, in my opinion. Cardinal Pell, who was put in charge of Vatican finances and apparently discovered millions of euros in obscure and unaudited accounts was suddenly recalled to Australia to face charges from 4 decades ago laid by some very dodgy characters and was not replaced. The Chief Vatican auditor and several of his staff resigned. (Could there have been some link between these events and high Church officials who had been 'dipping in'? Some believe so and drug fuelled orgies (per Vagano) don't come cheap, I suppose). Perhaps those who have accused Cardinal Pell will suddenly withdraw their accusations and the Cardinal may be recalled by Francis who may now need to get his hands on the money in such accounts? The German Church (the richest in the world) has been chafing at the bit because the Pope's reforms have been slower and less drastic than they wish. This situation puts them in a powerful position to close the purse strings until they get what they want (acceptance of homosexuality as a 'valid lifestyle', blessings of their 'unions', married clergy, female priests etc. etc.) This creates all sorts of other possible outcomes to which I shall be a fascinated witness. Whatever the outcome, remember the phrase 'follow the money'. It is the basis of worldly power and vast unaccounted funds are what many in the Vatican appear to have relied upon to do what they want and live as they wish without concerning themselves with the widows who gave their mites. . I hope that all the luxurious accommodations of so many US (and other) prelates will 'catch the eye' of Vatican officials who may soon to be desperate to raise cash by any means available to them. I am put in mind of a lottery winner who sacks a wise financial advisor but allows his closest friends to squander it and ends up begging on the street.
I have felt in my heart that Cardinal Pell was innocent. Knew there had to be something up with that. My own feelings.
Perhaps all the "gay friendly" stuff coming out of the Vatican has more to do with money than mercy. The recently elected Italian government must have been the Vatican's worst nightmare. It's a coalition government of a leftist anti-Catholic party and what the media refer to as a "far right" anti-immigration party. Italy also has massive debt and very high youth unemployment of about 40%. The left wing party in the government will like nothing more than impoverishing the Catholic Church and the Pope's globalist, open borders rhetoric is the polar opposite of the platform of the right wing party in government. Italy has a bit of a reputation for tax evasion by the wealthy. The Church could be low hanging fruit for the cash-strapped government there. The Vatican being a separate State, it's unlikely that the Italian government could force the Vatican to cover the tax liabilities of individual dioceses. Nevertheless, it's hard to see how the Vatican can maintain cordial relations with Italy if the Church doesn't pay up. Handing over billions for the Vatican to pass on to Italy's taxman might not be so easy for the Germans. And there is talk of an investigation in Germany of how the Church handled abuse, so funds could start to dry up there. I suppose that the Vatican's other go-to source for a bail-out would be the Church in the US. Catholic Charities in the US get a lot of funds from the government. Someone with a suspicious mind might link that to US Bishops cosying up to pro-abortion, pro-gay marriage, pro-open borders and pro-cultural imperialist politicians, especially nominal Catholics in the Democratic Party. The trouble with making a pact with the devil is that friendly relations and turning a blind eye are never enough because the devil wants it all, especially the soul. An extremely suspicious person might wonder whether there is more than coincidence in this political focus on the Church, especially in Italy, Germany and the US. From a financial point of view, it does seem like a perfect storm. In the US, the intense focus appears to have been sparked by Democratic Party influence, despite the Church echoing that party's open borders platform. For example, NYT publishing the McCarrick story and the spate of States' investigations of US Dioceses which have been sparked by the Democratic Party's Pennysylvania Attorney General. US forum members would be more conversant with the potential impact of the clamour for investigations. Will the Church lose its tax exempt status or its charities lose government funding if it were found that predators were moved around US States? And what if any seminary were found to have permitted the abuse of young seminarians imported from abroad? The Democrats smell Catholic blood and nothing short of official Catholic approval of ABC, divorce, gay marriage, abortion and euthanasia will be enough for them. Given high profile Bishops' and Vatican spokesmen's somewhat partisan digs at the President and Evangelicals, there won't be much point turning to the Republicans for support. The lavender lobby seems to have unlimited funds and is very powerful in the Church, in politics, in the media and entertainment. What Archbishop Vigano referred to as the "deviated wing" of the Jesuits appears to be very well connected to the lavender lobby both inside and outside the Church. https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/f...-gay-friendly-bishops-cardinals-to-change-chu https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/l...weeting-support-for-newly-elected-pro-abortio This article in NPR blames the divisions in the Church on conservatives attacking the reforming Pope, a line supported by someone from Jesuit Fordham University and a theologian from Villanova. (Judging by the video on YouTube, Cardinal McCarrick was a big hit with the audience in Villanova when he told them how his friend, newly elected Pope Francis, would change the Church). https://www.npr.org/2018/11/07/6651...ndals-emboldens-popes-critics?t=1541660430933 Then there's the expert on all things Vatican, Andrea Tornielli of La Stampa, who says that McCarrick didn't have homosexual relations (it was clericalism): https://www.lifesitenews.com/blogs/...sman-claims-mccarrick-did-not-have-homosexual It will be hard, especially for faithful, innocent clergy who have given their all to serve the Lord and His Church, but if a poorer, purer Church means seeing the back of clergy with a perverted agenda, their hangers on and their wealthy, powerful friends, perhaps it would be better to get it over with now than suffer years of decline from a myriad of heresies promoted under the guise of mercy, accompaniment, ecumenism, etc. An impoverished Church in the West could save the faith from corruption in Africa and Asia. Catholics there could be spared the influence of McCarrick's fellow travellers.
Mere speculation on my part, Steve, but in these days of confusion and double speak from our shepherds one person's speculation has as much value as another's.
Easy for us to say. We don't have the kind of problems faithful Bishops would bring upon themselves by taking a stand for God over mammon, especially when it appears they would be in the minority.
PROPHECIES GIVEN AT ST. PETER'S https://www.renewalministries.net/files/freeliterature/Prophecies_Pentecost_Monday.pdf ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ “We are now standing in the face of the greatest historical confrontation humanity has ever experienced. I do not think that the wide circle of the American Society, or the whole wide circle of the Christian Community realize this fully. We are now facing the final confrontation between the Church and the anti-church, between the gospel and the anti-gospel, between Christ and the antichrist. The confrontation lies within the plans of Divine Providence. It is, therefore, in God’s Plan, and it must be a trial which the Church must take up, and face courageously” - Cardinal Karol Wojtyla [Pope St. John Paul II] during an address at the 41st Eucharistic Congress (August, 1976) held in Philadelphia, U.S.A.
I don't think many take literally what Pope John Paul said in the following: We are now facing the final confrontation between the Church and the anti-church, between the gospel and the anti-gospel, between Christ and the antichrist. Yet it was both a pope and a canonized saint who clearly declared we are facing this final confrontation of the antichrist. And he is right in that we must "take up and face courageously this fight" we are now in.
