Church bureaucracy
is a universal problem. From a small parish to the Vatican bureaucracy, church
administration has been a nightmare to clergy and laity alike. A major reason
of Christians leaving the church is the attitude and approach of the Church
administration. Pope Francis launched a scathing attack on the Vatican
bureaucracy last week, outlining a "catalog of illnesses" plaguing
the church's central administration, including "spiritual
Alzheimer's".
This is not unique
to Vatican alone, one can sense déjà vu in many places. The words used by the
Pope about the church bureaucracy were harsh and came as bolt from blue for the
cardinals, bishops and priests who run the Holy See. It was less an exchange of
warm wishes but the Pope wants to cure the "ailments of the Curia".
Pope’s critique left many of the assembled clerics clearly uncomfortable.
“The Curia is always
required to better itself and to grow in communion, sanctity and wisdom to
fully accomplish its mission. However, like anybody, it is exposed to sickness,
malfunction and infirmity… I would like to mention some of these illnesses that
we encounter most frequently in our life in the Curia. They are illnesses and
temptations that weaken our service to the Lord,” said the Pontiff, who after
inviting all those present to an examination of conscience to prepare
themselves for Christmas, listed 15 most common Curial ailments.
1. Considering
oneself 'immortal', 'immune' or 'indispensable':
Quoting the Pope,
Vatican Radio said the first is “the sickness of considering oneself
'immortal', 'immune' or 'indispensable', neglecting the necessary and habitual
controls. A Curia that is not self-critical, that does not stay up-to-date,
that does not seek to better itself, is an ailing body. It is the sickness of
the rich fool who thinks he will live for all eternity, and of those who
transform themselves into masters and believe themselves superior to others,
rather than at their service”.
2. Martha-ism or sickness
of people immerse in work, but neglect 'the better part' of sitting at Jesus'
feet.
The second is “'Martha-ism', or excessive
industriousness; the sickness of those who immerse themselves in work,
inevitably neglecting 'the better part' of sitting at Jesus' feet. Therefore, Jesus
required his disciples to rest a little, as neglecting the necessary rest leads
to stress and agitation. Rest, once one who has brought his or her mission to a
close, is a necessary duty and must be taken seriously: in spending a little
time with relatives and respecting the holidays as a time for spiritual and
physical replenishment, it is necessary to learn the teaching of Ecclesiastes,
that 'there is a time for everything'”.\
3. Sickness of mental
and spiritual hardening
Then there is “the
sickness of mental and spiritual hardening: that of those who, along the way,
lose their inner serenity, vivacity and boldness and conceal themselves behind
paper, becoming working machines rather than men of God. “It is dangerous to
lose the human sensibility necessary to be able to weep with those who weep and
to rejoice with those who rejoice! It is the sickness of those who lose those
sentiments that were present in Jesus Christ,” he said.
4. Ailment of
excessive planning and functionalism:
“The ailment of
excessive planning and functionalism: this is when the apostle plans everything
in detail and believes that, by perfect planning things effectively progress,
thus becoming a sort of accountant. One falls prey to this sickness because it
is easier and more convenient to settle into static and unchanging positions.
Indeed, the Church shows herself to be faithful to the Holy Spirit to the
extent that she does not seek to regulate or domesticate it. The Spirit is
freshness, imagination and innovation”.
5. Sickness of poor
coordination:
The “sickness of poor
coordination develops when the communion between members is lost, and the body
loses its harmonious functionality and its temperance, becoming an orchestra of
cacophony because the members do not collaborate and do not work with a spirit
of communion or as a team”.
6. Spiritual
Alzheimer's disease, or forgetfulness of the history of Salvation:
“Spiritual
Alzheimer's disease, or rather forgetfulness of the history of Salvation, of
the personal history with the Lord, of the 'first love': this is a progressive
decline of spiritual faculties, that over a period of time causes serious
handicaps, making one incapable of carrying out certain activities
autonomously, living in a state of absolute dependence on one's own often
imaginary views. We see this in those who have lost their recollection of their
encounter with the Lord… in those who build walls around themselves and who
increasingly transform into slaves to the idols they have sculpted with their
own hands,” Pope said. This spiritual Alzheimer’s is a big problem in churches
and parishes.
7. Ailment of rivalry
and vainglory:
“The ailment of
rivalry and vainglory: when appearances, the colour of one's robes, insignia
and honours become the most important aim in life. It is the disorder that
leads us to become false men and women, living a false 'mysticism' and a false
'quietism'”.
8. Existential
schizophrenia:
Then there is
“existential schizophrenia: the sickness of those who live a double life, fruit
of the hypocrisy typical of the mediocre and the progressive spiritual
emptiness that cannot be filled by degrees or academic honours. This ailment
particularly afflicts those who, abandoning pastoral service, limit themselves
to bureaucratic matters, thus losing contact with reality and with real people.
They create a parallel world of their own, where they set aside everything they
teach with severity to others and live a hidden, often dissolute life”.
9. Sickness of
“chatter, grumbling and gossip:
The sickness of
“chatter, grumbling and gossip: this is a serious illness that begins simply,
often just in the form of having a chat, and takes people over, turning them
into sowers of discord, like Satan, and in many cases cold-blooded murderers of
the reputations of their colleagues and brethren. It is the sickness of the
cowardly who, not having the courage to speak directly to the people involved,
instead speak behind their backs”.
10. Sickness of
deifying leaders:
“The sickness of
deifying leaders is typical of those who court their superiors, with the hope
of receiving their benevolence. They are victims of careerism and opportunism,
honouring people rather than God. They are people who experience service
thinking only of what they might obtain and not of what they should give. They
are mean, unhappy and inspired only by their fatal selfishness”.
11. Disease of
indifference towards others:
The disease of
indifference towards others arises when each person thinks only of himself, and
loses the sincerity and warmth of personal relationships. “When the most expert
does not put his knowledge to the service of less expert colleagues; when out
of jealousy … one experiences joy in seeing another person instead of lifting
him up or encouraging him,” Pope said.
12. Illness of the
funeral face:
“The illness of the
funereal face: or rather, that of the gruff and the grim, those who believe
that in order to be serious it is necessary to paint their faces with
melancholy and severity, and to treat others – especially those they consider
inferior – with rigidity, hardness and arrogance. In reality, theatrical
severity and sterile pessimism are often symptoms of fear and insecurity”.\
13. Disease of
accumulation:
“The disease of
accumulation: when the apostle seeks to fill an existential emptiness of the
heart by accumulating material goods, not out of necessity but simply to feel
secure. … Accumulation only burdens and inexorably slows down our progress,” he
said.
14. Ailment of closed
circles:
“The ailment of
closed circles: when belonging to a group becomes stronger than belonging to
the Body and, in some situations, to Christ Himself. This sickness too may
start from good intentions but, as time passes, enslaves members and becomes a
'cancer' that threatens the harmony of the Body and causes a great deal of harm
– scandals – especially to our littlest brothers”.
15. Disease of
worldly profit and exhibitionism:
Then, there is the
“disease of worldly profit and exhibitionism: when the apostle transforms his
service into power, and his power into goods to obtain worldly profits or more
power. This is the disease of those who seek insatiably to multiply their power
and are therefore capable of slandering, defaming and discrediting others, even
in newspapers and magazines, naturally in order to brag and to show they are
more capable than others”.
After listing these ailments, Pope Francis said, “We are
therefore required, at this Christmas time and in all the time of our service
and our existence – to live 'speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in
every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body,
joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each
part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in
love'.”
Pope has earlier listed clericalism as a major problem troubling the church. According to Unam Sanctam Catholicam, clericalism is defined as
a state of affairs in which there is an unnecessary or overly exaggerated
importance attributed to clergy, in such a way that the laity relate to them as
subjects to be ruled rather than a people to be lovingly pastored.
“Basically,
a clericalist ideology is one that places too much emphasis on the clergy or
attributes undue importance to their actions. It is a defect of the virtue of
temperance by excess as applied to the government of the Church,” it says. It has often led to sacramental blackmails in
the church which are suppressed within its four walls.
