Bishops should get regular performance reviews

As we prepare for the next phase of the Synod on Synodality, we have heard much talk from the information-gathering process about greater inclusion and diversity in church governance.

However, there has been little discussion about the shape of the church hierarchy, particularly with respect to accountability for performance.

We often think of the accountability of the parish priest to the diocesan bishop or local ordinary.

But for better and worse, the hierarchical structure stops there.

Yes, each diocesan bishop reports to the pope.

However there are over 3,000 diocesan jurisdictions in the Roman Catholic Church.

Among the leaders of these local jurisdictions are “ordinaries” with the titles of bishop, archbishop and cardinal.

While the variety of these titles gives the impression of a hierarchical structure, there really is none. At the level of diocesan leadership, the hierarchy flattens out.

Most countries have a national conference of bishops that, among other functions, makes statements about public policy, but it has no real jurisdiction over its members.

There are also ecclesiastical provinces, such as New York, Pennsylvania, and Los Angeles and San Francisco in California, in which an archbishop, called a metropolitan, presides at meetings of the ordinaries, but the bishops are not officially accountable to their metropolitan.

Finally, there are Vatican diplomats, called apostolic nuncios, assigned to particular countries, but they have no jurisdiction over the ordinaries in their countries, and their role is only advisory to the Dicastery for Bishops in Rome.

In legal terms, each diocese is a “corporation sole,” under one person, with no corporate board of trustees.

So we have more than 3,000 ordinaries reporting directly to the Bishop of Rome, who is aided in the governance of bishops by the Dicastery for Bishops with a cardinal as its prefect.

This is akin to 3,000 professors reporting directly to a university president, with department chairs and deans having only ceremonial authority.

What happens when an ordinary is not performing well? I am not referring here to episcopal negligence or misconduct related to finances or the abuse of minors. I mean normal performance evaluation.

Of course, the ordination of a bishop includes a prayer for the charism of good governance.

Bishops are carefully vetted by the nuncios and by the Dicastery for Bishops before they are assigned by the pope to their respective dioceses.

But these appointments are made with less-than-perfect information.

Some bishops are able to hit the ground running when they assume governance of their diocese, but others may need more guidance. Regular performance reviews, as found in most career fields, could help both them and the people under their pastoral care.

As a professor, I have benefited from feedback from students, peer reviewers at academic journals and regular merit reviews.

Similarly, medical doctors must pass regular exams to maintain board certification.

Again, I am not referring to disciplinary matters. (Universities follow special procedures for plagiarism and other violations of codes of conduct.)

I am speaking about effective performance.

One important distinction is that bishops are not doing their jobs with an eye toward salary increases or promotion (at least we hope not).

We can take it on faith that they want to be more effective in their apostolic mission.

So the metrics for performance review should entail more than statistics about sacramental participation.

Reviews should include intangible factors such as the morale of the local clergy, the participation of the laity in the governance of local churches, transparency in decision making, the ability of the bishop and pastors to communicate with one another and with their lay colleagues and confidence in the pastoral care and formation of young people in matters of faith. Continue reading

• Paul D. McNelis, S.J., is America’s contributing editor for economics and professor emeritus of finance at the Gabelli School of Business at Fordham University, in New York City.