CV NEWS FEED // Before his hospitalization for bilateral pneumonia and bronchitis, Pope Francis established a commission Feb. 11 to oversee donations to the Vatican in an effort to combat the Church’s financial crisis.
Vatican News reported Feb. 26 that the commission’s main job is to fundraise among faithful Catholics, bishops’ conferences, and “potential benefactors” to decrease the Vatican’s deficit.
According to The Times, the Vatican last reported its deficit in 2022, which totaled €45.8 million ($47.6 million). Reuters estimated the current deficit to be much larger, reporting that “the last set of accounts, approved in mid-2024, included an 83-million-euro ($87 million) shortfall.”
The Times added that significant contributors to the Vatican’s financial issues included compensation payments and legal costs from settling clergy sex abuse scandals as well as a failed property investment in London that cost the Vatican millions. The Vatican also generates revenue from the Vatican Museums, but the COVID-19 pandemic dramatically reduced income from that source between 2020 and 2022.
According to Reuters, Pope Francis has been attempting to fix the Vatican’s budget for several years, initiating moves like repeatedly cutting cardinals’ salaries and calling for a “zero deficit” agenda last September.
Vatican News reported that the new commission seeks to provide more direction and guidance for fundraising initiatives and campaigns, delegating tasks when necessary and “establishing priorities for funding.”
The new commission is chaired by Monsignor Roberto Campisi, assessor for General Affairs of the Secretariat of State, and includes four other members, including an archbishop, two religious sisters, and a lawyer.
Fr. Tom Reese, a Jesuit priest and commentator on the Vatican’s financial situation, told Reuters that the Holy See may decide to sell some of its investment portfolio to further reduce the budget deficit. Reuters reported that the Vatican’s portfolio currently includes more than 5,000 properties, mainly in Italy. However, selling properties “would provide immediate income but reduce future investment profits,” Reuters added.
Maria Antonietta Calabrò, a Vatican specialist at the Huffington Post, told the Times that another solution to remedy the Vatican’s financial crisis could be to utilize its gold reserves, which could allow it to “keep going for years.”
According to Vatican News, an implementation plan for the commission is expected to be finalized within three months.
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