HOLY SEE DEFICIT IS $11.8 MILLION; VATICAN CITY, $10.9 MILLION

VATICAN CITY, JUL 8, 2004 (VIS) - The 2003 Consolidated Financial Statements for both the Holy See and Vatican City State were presented at a press conference held this morning in the Holy See Press Office. Cardinal Sergio Sebastiani and Bishop Franco Croci, president and secretary of the Prefecture of the Economic Affairs of the Holy See, made the presentation, which included a summary of the 38th meeting of the Council of Cardinals for the Study of Organizational and Economic Problems of the Holy See, which was held on Tuesday, July 6 under the presidency of Cardinal Angelo Sodano, secretary of State.

  The following cardinals, all members of that council, attended the meeting: Joachim Meisner, Bernard Francis Law, Jose Freire Falcao, Roger Michael Mahony, Camillo Ruini, Jean-Claude Turcotte, Ricardo Maria Carles Gordo, Ivan Dias, Cormac Murphy-O'Connor and Edward Michael Egan. Representing offices of the Holy See were Cardinal Sebastiani, Bishop Croci, Cardinal Edmund Szoka, president of the Governorate of Vatican City State and Cardinal Attilio Nicora and Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli, president and secretary of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA).

  The 2003 Consolidated Financial Statement for the Holy See showed a deficit of $11,840,196 (Euro 9,569,456). Income totaled $251,776,543 (€203,659,498) and expenses amounted to $263,732,738 (€213,228,954). The report states that the greater part of expenses were due to the ordinary and extraordinary administration of the various organisms of the Holy See: Secretariat of State (two sections), 9 congregations, 3 tribunals, 11 pontifical councils, the Apostolic Chamber, APSA, Prefecture of the Economic Affairs of the Holy See, Prefecture of the Papal Household, Office of the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff, Holy See Press Office, Vatican Information Service, Central Office of Church Statistics, 5 pontifical commissions and committees, 9 institutions linked to the Holy See, the Synod of Bishops, and 6 pontifical academies. To these central offices of the Holy See must be added 118 pontifical representations to Nations and to international organizations.

  There are 2,674 people who work in the Roman Curia: 755 ecclesiastics, 344 religious and 1,575 lay people. There are about 1,000 retired persons.

  The deficit for Vatican City State, 45 percent lower than 2002, was $10,908,401 (€8,820,678). This was caused by extraordinary expenses for the realization of various works and the restructuring or restoration of several buildings in addition to the $12,918,557 (€10,452,543) that was contributed to Vatican Radio to help cover its deficit. There were also great expenditures for the maintenance, restoration and preservation of the Holy See's artistic patrimony, visited by millions of people every year. Vatican City State employs 1,534 people.

  The 2003 Peter's Pence collection totaled $55,842,854. The Holy Father used these monies for charitable purposes, in particular for the populations of countries struck by calamities of various natures: earthquakes, floods, wars, famine, epidemics, and refugees and for aid to Catholic works in the Holy Land that are experiencing economic difficulties due to the tensions and conflicts in that region.
CCARD:PRE/FINANCIAL STATEMENTS/SEBASTIANI    VIS 20040708 (480)