I made a new friend on the train this week.

Mark described himself as a Christian but not a Catholic.

As Amtrak #358 sped along the track from Chicago, where I'd been attending a conference, to Dearborn, Mark and I chatted about a lot of things: about our families, about our work, and about faith.

When he heard that I was a Catholic writer, he embraced the opportunity to raise a few questions about Pope Francis and to express some concerns that he had with the Church, as he understood it.

I know that Mark's questions are echoed by many others who see the Church from the outside, but who have never talked to a real Catholic to get an insider's perspective.

So here goes, in what will likely become a series of Quick Takes on the Catholic Faith. Today: The Church's wealth.

Mark had a good point: Certainly there are widows and orphans to feed, refugees to house, expectant mothers to assist and abandoned spouses to comfort.

Mindful of all of these profound needs, shouldn't the Church divest itself of its great wealth and give it all to the poor?

I'd like to suggest four key reasons why selling all is NOT the approach mandated by the Scriptures.

1. Gratitude Requires That We Preserve the Gifts of Those Who Have Gone Before Us.

Wouldn't you seem ungrateful if your parents had scrimped and saved to give you a pricey wedding gift, only to have you cast it aside?

Likewise, past generations of the faithful-grateful for God's beneficent care, and eager to share their appreciation by giving of their blessings-have donated the funds, or contributed the artwork, or supported the artist, with the expectation that their gift will be appreciated and will serve as an inspiration to prayer for future generations. Continue reading

Source

• Kathy Schiffer in Patheos

Kathy Schiffer is a freelance writer and speaker, and is Director of Publicity and Special Events for Ave Maria Radio.

One wonders, however, if an accountant would reach the same conclusion.

When it comes to the financial dimension of Catholic life, there are certainly some deep pockets out there. Just to offer a few examples:

• The University of Notre Dame, America's flagship Catholic university, has an annual budget of $1.2 billion and an endowment estimated at $7.5 billion.
• The Archdiocese of Chicago last year reported cash, investments and buildings valued at $2.472 billion.
• The Knights of Columbus has more than $85 billion of life insurance in force, with $8 billion in annual sales.
• In Rome, the Institute for the Works of Religion, known popularly (if, some say, inaccurately) as the "Vatican Bank," administers assets in excess of $6 billion.
• American Catholics drop more than $8 billion every year into the Sunday collection plate, which works out to more than $150 million a week.
• In Germany, the Catholic church netted $8.8 billion in 2010 from the national "church tax," allowing it to remain the country's largest private employer after Volkswagen.

Simply ticking off those dollar amounts, however, two points are easy to miss. Read more

Sources

• John L Allen Jr in National Catholic Reporter
• Image: Web Gallery of Art