There is no connection between the timing of Cardinal George Pell’s return to Rome and the recent resignation of Cardinal Angelo Becciu. Pell and Becciu were known rivals in the bid to reform the finances of the Holy See before Pell returned to Australia to face child sex abuse charges. “There is no connection between Read more
The economy of the Holy See should be transparent like a house of glass, says Vatican Secretariat for the Economy prefect Fr. Juan A. Guerrero SJ. He made the comment when the Secretariat released the 2019 balance sheet for the Roman Curia last Thursday. “We want the budget to explain how the Holy See uses Read more
According to Italian media, recently-sacked Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu allegedly sent funds covertly to Australia during Cardinal George Pell’s child sex-abuse trial. Denying the claims, Becciu issued a strongly worded statement saying: “I categorically deny interfering in any way in the trial of Cardinal Pell.” Becciu called the allegations against him “surreal” and a misunderstanding. Read more
Cardinal George Pell has returned to Rome. It is the first time Pell has returned to the Holy See since 2017, since he left to face historic child abuse charges. In 2014 Pope Francis appointed Pell, then aged 73, to lead the Vatican Secretariat of State. His role was to reform the Vatican’s finances. However, Read more
A new probe into Vatican finances coincided with the resignation of Cardinal Angelo Becciu (pictured) last week. His resignation followed an unscheduled meeting with the pope. Francis told him he had lost his trust and ordered him to step down. News of Becciu’s resignation was followed by reports that Italian businessman Gianluigi Torzi has provided Read more
The Vatican tourism revenue has been hit hard by the pandemic. Like other major visitor hotspots, the Vatican is predicting big losses and has had to make cutbacks. The museums (which include the Sistine Chapel) cost about €20 (about $NZ35) to visit. Normally, tens of thousands of people arrive every day, generating millions of dollars Read more
To be credible, the Vatican’s finances need to show integrity, be transparent and have set of values that everyone can operate under, says a recent appointee to the Holy See’s Council for the Economy. Leslie Ferrar, is one of six women Pope Francis appointed to the board overseeing the Holy See’s finances. Reforming the Vatican’s Read more
The Vatican has jailed an Italian banker for extortion, embezzlement, aggravated fraud and money laundering. The arrest warrant for Gianluigi Torzi, who had acted as an intermediary for the Holy See in the 2018 purchase of a luxury building in London, was issued last week by the Vatican’s civil court. It has been carrying out Read more
Vatican police on Friday arrested Gianluigi Torzi, an Italian middleman who was part of a controversial deal in which the Vatican used Church money to purchase a luxury building in London as an investment. Torzi, who was arrested after questioning by Vatican magistrates, was accused of extortion, embezzlement, aggravated fraud and money laundering, the Vatican Read more
Vatican prosecutors are investigating a lay official who oversaw investments for the Vatican’s Secretariat of State. The investigation is probing the secretariat official’s appointment as a director of a company owned by the financier who brokered the deal for a London luxury apartment building. Vatican prosecutors are also continuing to look into suspicious financial transactions Read more