It is worrisome when rich dioceses do not help train clergy in places that are economically disadvantaged; or priests unwilling to work in places that are perpetually poor. Sometime ago, we were sharing and a priest friend of mine said, “The Church is Universal in everything except money.” For a moment, I thought about what he said and asked why he made such a statement. He clarified, saying, “Well, you see, some parishes and dioceses are counting millions while others are counting some fractions.” Although we joked about the matter, upon a deeper reflection, I realised that, undoubtedly, the Church tries to reach out to local Churches across the globe by training and retraining priests and religious, building healthcare and educational institutions, donating to charities and caring for the most vulnerable members of society through the Holy Father’s magnanimity. However, somehow, that magnanimity is not seemingly replicated between parishes, nations and dioceses across the world. This piece attempts to call to attention ecclesiastical stakeholders to do the needful.
The RCM effect
The Roman Catholic Mission (RCM) as the Church is fondly referred to in most parts of Africa and Asia is without doubt, the most organised human institution in the world. Well, the Church’s divine mandate (Cf. Matt. 18:18 & 16:18), sense of accountability and moral rectitude endears her to generous support across board. The post-resurrection Church was characterised by a generous spirit which made every believer sell all they had and put the money at the feet of the Apostles (Cf. Acts 2:45). Mind you, the development of doctrine and the sacraments came with division of labour as the Apostles clearly separated Diaconate as a ministry of service to cater for widows of Hellenists’ extraction who were discriminated upon while they concentrate on the ministry of the word (Cf. Acts 6:1-15). As time went on, the Church kept faith as a bastion of charity. As a faithful steward, she tries to redistribute her meager resources while urging secular leaders to ensure equity, justice and peace. It falls to Catholic Action powered by the Catholic Social Teachings of the Church to make the world a better place to live in. This is a moral obligation that the Church tries to fulfill as a vanguard for good governance. The Church’s magnanimity is modeled after Christ the good shepherd who came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many (Cf. Matt. 20:28). John 3: 16 further illustrates the fact that “He gave his only begotten son.” That giving is an act of self-emulation which the Master expects of the Church as she superintendents over temporal goods. The RCM effect comes in as a consequence of the missionary enterprise which saw the fulfillment of the Great Commission (Cf. Matt. 28:16-20).Recall that the persecution of the early Church and the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles catalysed the faith unto bountiful harvests. From Jerusalem to Rome, Carthage to Constantinople, the faith grew in leaps and bounds. From the first through the fifth centuries, the Church blossomed as “an Outstation” of the Roman Empire. Thanks to Cyprian of Carthage, St. Augustine of Hippo, female martyrs like Perpetua, Felicity, Agatha, Lucy and Agnes, the Church kept expanding its frontiers in Africa. With citadels in Constantinople (now Turkey), Nubia, Egypt and later Congo and Uganda, the Church nursed and suckled its newborn terrains through the milk of human kindness which flowed from Christians who were convinced about keeping the legacy of “selling everything they had and bringing the proceeds to the Church” (Cf. Acts 2:45) plus being true to the name Christian as it was in Antioch (Cf. Acts 11:26).
Pontifical mission societies, learning from the popes
Centuries have come and gone and Holy Mother Church has not failed in taking care of the needs of the faithful all over the world. This she does through Catholic missionary societies otherwise known as Missio.These organisations which are directly under the jurisdiction of the pope include the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, the Society of St. Peter the Apostle, the Holy Childhood Association and the Missionary Union of Priests and Religious. Founded in 1922 as a body for overseas’ missions, Mission spreads the gospel of Christ to the world in countries where the Christian faith is new, young or poor until such Churches are self-reliant. With specific roles such as combating poverty, disease, injustice and exploitation, through its 120 offices worldwide, the body raises awareness and fosters prayer and collaboration across the Catholic world. More concretely, PMS caters for the spiritual and material needs of Catholic children all over the world through the Holy Childhood Association. With crowd-funding, the Church is able to make giant strides in propagating the faith in new, young and poor countries of the world like Latin America, Asia and Africa; this is in addition to training clergy and religious as well as erecting seminaries, convents, rectories, health care centres and educational institutions through the Society of St. Peter the Apostle and the Missionary Union of Priests and Religious. Little wonder, the Prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy at the Vatican, Father Juan Antonio Guerrero, SJ disclosed that the Holy See’s budget for 2022 showed an operating income of $823 million (compared with $265 million in 2021), expenditure of $885 million (compared with $336 million in 2021), and a deficit of $37 million (compared with $55 million in 2021) making it much bigger than previous years. It is instructive to note that the budget was presented in Euros but is converted here to U.S. dollars. The Spanish Jesuit explained that while 30 percent of these resources were spent on “Apostolic Mission” which includes 69 entities, eight of which absorb around two-thirds of the resources, 21 percent went on support for local churches in difficulty and specific contexts of evangelization.
Local Churches and the scandal of one Church, different accounts
Despite the aforementioned achievements of the Universal Church in perfectly coordinating charities across the seven continents of the world, local Churches are seemingly caught up in the narcissist tendency of decorating themselves while ignoring the suffering Church to die in penury. Perhaps it is crucial to ask how the Church is fearing in the Islamic Maghreb. With a zero tolerance on Christians in “countries of particular concern” such as Burma, China, Eritrea, India, Iran, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Vietnam, how many sister-Christian countries are deliberately and strategically making concerted efforts in cash and kind towards helping their fellow Christians in these countries? While extant efforts from the Hungarian government and elsewhere in the United States of America are commendable, it is sad to note that while some nations are well off, there are other nations where Christians are dying just because they bear the name of Christ. It is worrisome that there are rich dioceses that are not willing to help train clergy in places that are economically disadvantaged. It is not unlikely to find priests who are unwilling to work in wartorn countries or where Lazarus is perpetually poor. To describe this as scandalous puts it mildly. The dynamics are no different of how richer parishes in the same diocese treat poorer ones like lepers. For example, in Nigeria, while the dioceses of Maiduguri, Yola, Jalingo and Sokoto are under the yoke of persecution and wanton destruction of lives and livelihoods including Churches, big-sister dioceses appear unperturbed as their resources hardly reach them. In most dioceses, transfers are a big deal as those who are posted to the “manger” (poor parishes) are often pitied or seen as priests who have offended the bishop. While for some, pastoral ministry is seen as cash and carry, for others, it is a cartel where those who belong to win big at the “casino.”Until the Church’s hierarchy puts round pegs in round holes, ours would remain one Church with different accounts in the bank and in narrative.
• Rev. Fr. Justine John Dyikuk, a Catholic Priest, is a Lecturer of Mass Communication, University of Jos; Editor of Caritas
