POWER CORRUPTS

Supreme Court chief justice uses a simple and humble  Ambassador car for travel. Pope uses a 2008 model Ford Focus in Vatican. Its cost won't be more than Rs 6 lakh (new model costs $ 20000 or around Rs 12.80 lakh). He was recently gifted a luxury car -- Lamborghini Huracan -- which costs $ 200000 (around Rs 1.28 crore). But Pope auctioned it and gave the money for charity.
However, there's no need to tell you the vehicle brands (and their cost) owned by our church heads. Everyone knows it. The heads of two Christian churches (not Catholic church) in Kerala  own Mercedes Benz cars.
The day when cyclone ockhi wreaked havoc,  the head of a protestant church -- who is based less than 10 kms from the ravaged area -- spent Rs 75000 to get a particular registration number for his brand new Innova Crysta. Bishop of a diocese bought a Toyota Hybrid car worth around Rs 45 lakh last year. Another bishop has a Toyota Fortuner which costs over Rs 30 lakh.
The head of a Protestant Church denomination is on a buying spree of rubber estates. Several dioceses have huge properties including estates and buildings across kerala. One Christian  congregation owns two shopping complexes in a central Kerala town. There could be more. Where's the income going? Are lay people benefiting from this huge wealth of Christian denominations?
We witnessed the spectacle  of a section of priests launching a mutiny against the Cardinal in Kerala. Reason: a mismanaged land deal involving a  middleman. Rebel priests are washing the dirty linen in the public. They lamented about lack of career growth options. They want power, position and career growth.
The trappings of power that come with various positions in the curia or institutions are immense.... a great attraction for clergy. The menace of clericalism. Church has become an institution to climb the social and church ladder and control the laity. They are cutting the branch on which they are sitting. All in the name of God. Laity is watching the tamasha helplessly.
As English historian Lord Acton said, "power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely."