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	Diocese Reports Losses of $2.3 Million By Bruce Rushton Springfield Journal-Register [Springfield IL] February 5, 2007 http://www.sj-r.com/sections/news/stories/107126.asp The Catholic Diocese of Springfield recently reported more than $2.3 million in operating losses during the fiscal year ending June 30, continuing a trend that goes back at least four years. Since 2002, the diocese has recorded more income than expenses just once. That was in 2005, when the church had a net operating gain of just $12,251. By contrast, the diocese reported $1.8 million in operating losses in 2003 and more than $400,000 in losses in 2004 and 2002. All told, operating losses since 2002 total more than $5 million. "Money is tight," Kathie Sass, diocese spokeswoman, said last week. The diocese has cut travel expenses but also has reduced the amount of money that it collects from parishes, which also are experiencing hard times, Sass said. In a recent message to parishioners published in Catholic Times, the diocesan newspaper, John J. Maxwell, director of finances for the diocese, attributed the most recent losses to a decline in investment revenue. In addition, the church spent $1 million on construction at Effingham St. Anthony High School, according to a summary of audited financial statements released by the diocese. Keeping a promise made last summer, Bishop George J. Lucas told parishioners in the same issue of Catholic Times that the diocese has spent $175,000 investigating allegations of clergy misconduct during the past three years. The investigation, led by former U.S. attorney Bill Roberts, culminated in an August report that concluded eight church officials had engaged in sexual and financial misconduct. Priest sex scandals that have rocked the Catholic Church nationwide continue to be costly to the Springfield diocese, which reported spending more than $485,000 last year to handle abuse claims. Still, that's significantly less than the $701,000 the diocese paid out in 2005 and the $4.8 million in claims settled in 2004. Contributions and bequests were down by more than $300,000 in 2006, but that's not a cause for concern, Sass said. "It's like a roller-coaster. One year it's up, one year it's down," Sass said of major donations to the diocese. "People continue to be generous. When asked, I think they always give from the heart." But they could give more, according to one national expert on church finances. "Catholics, in general, are not very good givers," said Charles Zech, director of the Center for the Study of Church Management at Villanova University. The average Protestant household gives 2.2 percent of its income to its church, Zech said. That's twice as much as Catholic households give, he said. Zech said the Springfield diocese's financial problems are not uncommon. Zech said he surveyed dioceses nationwide last year and found that smaller dioceses ran deficits once every three years. Larger ones, with budgets of $10 million or more, reported deficits every other year. Since 2002, the Springfield diocese has reported annual operating expenses of between $6.8 million and $12.5 million. "A lot of things are happening, even aside from the clergy abuse scandal," Zech said. For one thing, labor costs are exploding as nuns and priests are replaced with laypeople who receive larger salaries, Zech said. Many strapped dioceses have put off maintenance and face bills for new parking lots, roofs and other upkeep items, he said. A lackluster stock market in recent years also has limited investment income, he said. Francis Butler, president of Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Services, a Washington, D.C.-based consortium of individual donors and foundations devoted to religious philanthropy, agreed that Springfield's finances aren't in an unusual state. "It doesn't stand out as exceptional," Butler said. "The general trend in dioceses has been that their revenues are not increasing to keep up with their costs." Besides factors cited by Zech, Butler said demographics come into play. "Sunday attendance has been going down," Butler said. "That's been somewhat of a factor." In general, Butler said, dioceses in the Midwest and northern climes are faring worse than those in states such as Florida. "In some of the older dioceses, the population is moving to the Sunbelt," he said. Bruce Rushton can be reached at 788-1542 or bruce.rushton@sj-r.com.
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