The Vatican: anything but holier than thou ...

"The Nativity" by Giotto di Bondone (1304-06)

It's a moving story, even for atheists like me. The baby in the manger, in the stable, has served as a gentle symbol of humility, simplicity, innocence and vulnerability for over two millennia. If you'll pardon the pun, the nativity has been stable, unchanging, a constant reminder of the central teachings of the Bible.

Santa Maria Antiqua, in the Forum Romanum, 5th century, seat of Pope John VII

But another largely stable dimension of Christianity has been the ever-spiralling wealth of the Church, most notably the Roman Catholic Church.

Pope's chair, Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano, Rome, Italy

The Holy See, which dates back to early Christianity, is the governing body of the entire Catholic Church. It represents the spiritual leadership and authority of the Pope, who is considered the spiritual successor to Saint Peter. Vatican City is the physical territory over which the Holy See has sovereignty, making it the smallest independent state in the world.

Palace of the Governate, Vatican City State, opulent home of the Pontifical Commission of the Vatican City State

Beyond its administrative and diplomatic roles, the Holy See is a moral and religious authority, guiding Catholics worldwide in matters of faith, morality and ethics. The Holy See's influence extends far beyond the borders of Vatican City, with its immensely valuable treasures and buildings, impacting Catholics and non-Catholics around the world through its teachings, decisions and diplomatic activities.

View of the Vatican Gardens and Museum

Clearly the enormous wealth of the Church controlled by the Vatican stands in stark contrast to that simple scene of an innocent baby, in a manger, in a stable. It seems more than odd (to me) that that small agricultural building should have inspired the construction of such a vast and wealthy estate as The Vatican and Vatican City. What's more, in a further contrast, the pure innocence of that nativity scene jars against the history of a Roman Catholic Church which has on many occasions been infested with corrupt, often criminal individuals and systems. Financial and sexual scandals have dogged this property-based enterprise, which, in consequence perhaps of its elaborate administrative structures, has often seemed to be allowed to exercise limp self-regulation and immunity from outside investigation. As a barrel, it has had far more than its fair share of rotten apples.

And even now there seems no end to all of this. Just a few days ago, former Cardinal, Angelo Becciu, who had been an adviser to Pope Francis, received a five-and-a-half year prison sentence following a scandal involving the Vatican's investment in a luxury real estate property in London, which resulted in substantial financial losses for the Holy See. Like so many other Vatican-related controversies, the investment raised questions about oversight and control in the use of Church funds and financial mismanagement. Becciu's lawyer has said he will appeal.

Martin Luther's Ninety-Five Theses, posted in 1517, is one of the most significant documents in the history of the Protestant Reformation. The Theses was a series of arguments against many of the practices of the Catholic Church of the time. Luther shone a bright light on the way the Church's hierarchy in Europe devoted enormous efforts to raising money and accumulating wealth, practices which stood in sharp contrast to the image of the shepherds, the stable and the baby Jesus.

Martin Luther, by Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472-1553)

Luther strongly criticised the Church's practice of selling indulgences, for instance, which were said to reduce punishment for sins. He argued that forgiveness was a matter of God's grace, not something that could be bought by the wealthy. He emphasised that salvation comes through faith alone, not through good works or monetary contributions. This was in direct opposition to the Church's teachings that good deeds and contributions could influence one's salvation. He also asserted that the Bible, not the Church hierarchy, was the ultimate authority in matters of Christian faith and practice, challenging the prevailing view that the Pope and Church traditions were the highest authority.

The sale of indulgences shown in A Question to a Mintmaker, woodcut by Joörg Breu the Elder of Augsburg, ca. 1530

Money-making, by whatever means, has been one of the primary foci of the Church throughout its existence. And over the past fifty years, the Vatican has been directly or indirectly implicated in a litany of financial and other scandals, reflecting massive failings in its administration and governance.

Aside from the financial scandals, of which more later, this religious enterprise has harboured an incalculable number of sexual misdemeanours. A report by The Independent Commission on Sexual Abuse in the Church (CIASE) in France, published on October 5th, 2021, concluded that an estimated 216,000 children were abused by priests, deacons, monks or nuns in the French Catholic Church from 1950 to 2020.

Notre Dame de Paris

When considering abuse by other Church workers, the estimated number of child victims rises to around 330,000. Note that this refers only to France and only to a seventy year period. This comprehensive investigation was led by Jean-Marc Sauvé, a senior civil servant.

The sexual abuse of children in Ireland has led to a major decline in the influence of the Catholic Church in that country. The number and nature of cases of abuse is breathtaking. Numerous investigations have taken place. Published in five volumes, The Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse (which became known as the Ryan Report) covered a sixty year period. It described systemic failures, in institutions run by religious orders, to treat children as human beings but more like slaves and prison inmates. The Commission's final report, released in 2009, is a comprehensive and harrowing document that details extensive physical, sexual and emotional abuse suffered by children in these institutions over several decades.

The report found that thousands of children were subjected to chronic abuse in schools, orphanages and other institutions that were supposed to care for them. This abuse was systemic and not merely the result of a few rogue individuals. The Commission identified a culture of silence and a failure of the state, religious authorities and society in general to protect these children.

In the aftermath of the report, there was a public outcry in Ireland and a demand for justice for the victims. The government issued a formal apology and set up a compensation scheme for survivors. The report has had a lasting impact on Irish society, prompting a re-evaluation of the role of the Church in Ireland, a "catastrophic" effect on Catholicism in the country, leading to significant changes in child protection policies.

In the US, the John Jay Report, published in 2004, formally titled The Nature and Scope of the Problem of Sexual Abuse of Minors by Catholic Priests and Deacons in the United States, was a comprehensive study conducted by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. It was commissioned by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and based on surveys completed by Roman Catholic dioceses in the United States. The report identified 11,000 allegations of abuse, with 6,700 substantiated. A significant number of allegations couldn't be investigated because the accused priest had died. The study found that the abuse ranged from verbal harassment to penile penetration, with most abusers engaging in multiple types of abuses. The most frequent context for abuse was social events, and many priests socialised with the families of victims. Abuse occurred in various locations, predominantly in the residence of the priest. The report found that 81% of the victims were male, with a significant portion of them aged between 11 and 14 years.

The report critiqued the response of some diocesan leaders, highlighting that there was a failure to take responsibility for the harms caused by priestly abuse. It was noted that some church officials allowed known offenders to be re-assigned to positions where they could continue to have unsupervised contact with children. The increase in abuse incidents during the 1960s and 1970s was found to be consistent with the rise in other types of 'deviant' behaviour during that era. However, the sexual abuse of minors was never legal, moral or justified.

To this day, cases of gross sexual misconduct continue to be unearthed. On December 14th, 2023, United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha announced that Father James W. Jackson, 68, a former Rhode Island priest assigned to St. Mary's Church in Providence, was sentenced to six years in federal prison. Jackson had previously admitted to a federal judge that he downloaded and stored thousands of files containing child pornography. A court-authorised search of a computer and digital device located in a church rectory bedroom utilised by Father Jackson was found to contain images and videos of child sexual abuse, including multiple images involving prepubescent females, some of which involved acts of bestiality and sadomasochism. A forensic audit of the devices subsequently identified over 12,000 images and 1,300 videos of child pornography, as reported by SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests).

In the 1970s and 1980s, the Vatican Bank, officially known as the Institute for the Works of Religion (IOR), was embroiled in a major scandal involving Banco Ambrosiano, an Italian bank with which it had significant financial ties. Banco Ambrosiano collapsed in 1982 with massive debts, leading to allegations of money laundering and fraud. The mysterious death of Banco Ambrosiano's chairman, Roberto Calvi, added to the scandal's intrigue.

Roberto Calvi (source: public domain)

The Vatican Bank has been plagued by scandal since its foundation in June 1942.

In the 2010s, the Vatican Bank faced accusations of money laundering and lack of financial transparency, leading to several reforms and investigations. In 2013, Pope Francis established a special commission to review the bank's activities. A Reuters release at the time indicated that "Cases of abuse by clergy have forced the church to pay hundreds of millions of dollars in compensation worldwide, bankrupting a string of dioceses in the United States".

In 2012, Paolo Gabriele, Pope Benedict XVI's butler, leaked confidential documents to the media. These documents revealed internal corruption, power struggles, and financial mismanagement within the Vatican. This scandal became known as Vatileaks 1, following later revelations in 2015, when several individuals, including a high-ranking clergyman, were charged with leaking and publishing confidential documents that suggested financial mismanagement and greed at the highest levels of the Church. This led to a highly publicised trial known as Vatileaks 2. The Pope's staff declined to confirm or deny La Repubblica claims linking the 'Vatileaks' affair to the discovery of 'blackmailed gay clergy', amid press reports that the peremptory resignation of Pope Benedict may have been motivated by blackmail of gay prelates. He was the first Pope to resign in 600 years.

There have been various allegations of financial irregularities and mismanagement involving different Vatican departments and investments over the years, leading to ongoing efforts at financial reform and transparency under recent Popes.

In July 2021, the Vatican appellate court upheld the sentences against Angelo Caloia, former president of the Vatican bank (Institute for the Works of Religion) from 1999 to 2009, and his lawyer Gabriele Liuzzo. They were found guilty of money laundering and embezzlement, involving millions of euros from sales of Vatican properties. Originally sentenced to eight years and six months in prison, their terms were reduced by five months after dropping two charges due to insufficient evidence and statute limitations.

As mentioned earlier, the Vatican faced a scandal involving a controversial investment in luxury real estate in London, in the present decade, leading to the loss of millions of euros of Church funds, allegations of financial mismanagement and the resignation and trial of several officials.

These scandals have elicited various responses from the organisation, including efforts at reform, legal proceedings against those involved and public apologies. They have also led to broader discussions about governance, accountability and transparency within both the Vatican and the wider Catholic Church.

And of course these various financial and sexual scandals are absolutely nothing new. Back in 1531, our friend Martin Luther noted that Pope Leo X had rejected a proposed law restricting cardinals in the number of boys they kept for their pleasure, "otherwise it would have been spread throughout the world how openly and shamelessly the Pope and the cardinals in Rome practice sodomy."¹

So, when considering the nativity - either as a believer or, like me, an atheist - why not think also about the countless, desperate human tragedies and gross criminal activities that have been key by-products of this "holy" enterprise?

"Judge not, that ye be not judged.

For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?

Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?

Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye."

Matthew 7, verses 1-5

The Bible, King James' version.