'Bling' Bishop's Lavish Mansion to Be Used to Serve the Needy

© 2013 The Wired Word

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A week ago, Pope Francis suspended Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst, the Roman Catholic bishop of Limburg in Germany, from his duties after the 53-year-old church leader spent about $40 million of church money on renovations and new construction on his residence and diocesan offices, leading European media to dub Tebartz-van Elst the "bishop of bling." Now he faces the prospect of seeing his lavish mansion turned into a refuge center or soup kitchen to feed the homeless.
According to the blog "Whispers in the Loggia," big-ticket expenditures at the bishop's manor included "$475,000 spent on walk-in closets and a $20,000 bathtub."
The bishop's over-the-top spending on his own luxury sparked outrage among German Catholics. When the Vatican learned of what Tebartz-van Elst had done, he was summoned to Rome for a private audience with the pope, who is known for his modest lifestyle and advocacy for the poor. Two days later, a statement from the Vatican press office announced that the bishop had been placed on leave of absence while an investigation of his expenditures and deportment is underway.
"A situation has been created," read the statement, "in which Bishop Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst currently cannot exercise his episcopal ministry." ("Episcopal" here means "the work of a bishop.")
Informed observers say it is unusual for a Catholic church leader to be relieved of office before the results of the investigation are available. But that shows, says Mathew Schmalz, a religious studies professor at the College of the Holy Cross in Worchester, Massachusetts, that "Pope Francis says what he means and means what he says when he talks about Catholicism becoming a 'church of the poor.'"
After learning that the bishop's luxury home is likely to be repurposed to serve the needy, a spokesperson for the Caritas organization for the homeless said, "The residence is like an inherited sin which the bishop has left in his wake. People who seek sanctuary with us could be given food in the residence."
More on this story can be found at these links:
German 'Bishop of Bling's' Multi-Million Euro Mansion to Be Used to Serve Needy. The Independent
Pope Francis Authorizes Leave of Absence for 'Luxury' Bishop. National Catholic Reporter
'Bishop of Bling' Suspended by Pope Francis. NPR
The 'Bling Bishop' Exits... of Sorts. Whispers in the Loggia
The Big Questions
1. It's easy to criticize extravagant spending of church money on oneself when done by a church leader, but are there ways in which congregations in general do that? For example, is it easier to raise significant sums for remodeling the sanctuary than for supporting a migrant ministry? What are the reasons for or against your making a donation one way or the other? What do you conclude from these answers?
2. In terms of finances, should a pastor's lifestyle be about on par with the lifestyle of the average parishioner he or she serves? Should it be less or more than par? Why? How do you expect your pastor to appear in public? If you are a pastor, what is your standard for public appearance regarding the way you dress and the place you live?
3. Is there a point at which a Christian's affluence becomes sinful? If so, where is that point? Does how the money is earned factor into your answer? How does attitude relate?
4. Do churches have an obligation to help the poor? Why or why not? How do you react to the statements on the part of the pope that the Catholic Church is meant to be a church of the poor? Is yours a church of the poor? Should it be? How do you define poverty? Whom does your church serve? Who attends?
5. In terms of church architecture, some of what we spend is to make our houses of worship "beautiful for God." How much of that is appropriate? In terms of our ongoing spending on our church buildings, where is the line between expenditures for improvements that maintain a building's integrity, and those that satisfy our vanity, or what we imagine is appropriate reverence?
Confronting the News With Scripture and Hope
Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:
Luke 16:19-21
There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man's table .... (For context, read 16:19-31.)
These are the opening lines of Jesus' parable of the rich man and Lazarus. We note that the rich man is not condemned for being rich, but for neglecting the poor man at his gate. What made the rich man's wealth "obscene" was not the extremes between the earthly circumstances of the two men, but that he saw no need to use some of his wealth to help the poor man.
In applying this parable to the "bishop of bling" story, we don't know that the bishop was ignoring the poor; he may have been overseeing some good work for the needy. But what seems clear is that he was spending more of the church's money to lavishly improve his own circumstances than to improve the circumstances of the needy in his diocese.
Questions: How does Jesus' parable of the rich man and Lazarus make you feel? Why? Is there a great disparity between rich and poor in your community? What efforts are made to bridge the gap? Who in your community (include yourself if you choose) would be grateful to receive the "crumbs," however you define them? Who (include yourself if you choose) has more than enough to be shared?
Luke 8:14
As for what fell among the thorns, these are the ones who hear; but as they go on their way, they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. (For context, read 8:4-8, 11-15.)
Assuming the facts of the Bishop Tebartz-van Elst story are accurate as reported, this might be a good verse for him to meditate upon. He presumably chose to enter the ministry because the seed of God's word had fallen upon the soil of his heart. But possibly the fruit of that seed has not matured because it was choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life.
Questions: What good seed in your life is being choked by the cares or riches or pleasures of life? How is it being choked by having too little? How is it being choked by having too much? In what ways do you work to clear such chokers?
Luke 18:14
... for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted. (For context, read 18:9-14.)
This is the "moral of the story" line from Jesus' parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector. The hubris of the Pharisee is set in stark contrast to the humility and repentance of the tax collector.
It seems likely that anyone who thinks he needs a $20,000 bathtub -- assuming the report is correct and is not talking about the renovation of an entire bathroom -- paid for with money collected for the overall work of the church has some problems with humility.
Question: What is your definition of what it means to humble yourself? In what areas do you have to fight against a sense of entitlement in order to follow Jesus' urging to humble yourself?
1 Timothy 6:9-10
But those who want to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains. (For context, read 6:6-10.)
In a sermon last month, Pope Francis said, "When a person is attached to money, he destroys himself, he destroys the family. Money destroys! It does, doesn't it? It binds you. Money serves to bring about many good things, so many works for human development, but when your heart is attached in this way, it destroys you."
Question: The first of the two verses above says that wanting to be rich can cause temptations that lead to being trapped by "senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction." When have you actually observed or experienced "ruin and destruction" as a result of possessions? Regardless of where you are on the economic continuum, what do you need to do to avoid such ruin and destruction?
1 Peter 2:5
... like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. (For context, read 2:1-10.)
God calls us to be "living stones" and to allow ourselves to "be built into a spiritual house."
There's a legend that as a deacon in Rome, Lawrence (A.D. 225-258) was charged with responsibility for the material goods of the church and the distribution of alms to the poor. As Wikipedia tells it, "St. Ambrose of Milan relates that when St. Lawrence was asked for the treasures of the church, he brought forward the poor, among whom he had divided the treasure as alms. 'Behold in these poor persons the treasures which I promised to show you; to which I will add pearls and precious stones, those widows and consecrated virgins, which are the church's crown.' The prefect [chief administrator of the city of Rome] was so angry that he had a great gridiron prepared, with coals beneath it, and had Lawrence's body placed on it (hence St. Lawrence's association with the gridiron). After the martyr had suffered the pain for a long time, the legend concludes, he made his famous cheerful remark, 'I'm well done. Turn me over!' From this derives his patronage of cooks and chefs."
Questions: In what ways should the actual house we live in reflect our being part of God's spiritual house? In what ways should the house (church building) we worship in reflect our being part of God's spiritual house?
For Further Discussion
1. Comment on this, from a TWW team member: "The church I served in Indiana was built on the model of the meetinghouse. It had some limitations, but it didn't prevent us from having programs that impacted the community, nor did it stop us from having joint services, Bible studies and vacation Bible schools with another church in town. Not only that, but it was in that simple meetinghouse that Dan West got up to propose the founding of Heifer Project, which initially was a Brethren program, but is now Heifer International, an ecumenical agency that sends live impregnated animals to people all around the globe and has had an immense influence on world hunger. So you don't need a fancy building to do God's work or reverently approach God."
2. Respond to this, from the same team member: "Clear glass rather than stained glass is what we have in meetinghouses. That can be a disadvantage, however. Like the Sunday when I noticed that people really weren't paying attention to my sermon, but kept stealing glances out the windows. I learned later that the farmer across the street had rented a bull, who was happily fulfilling his mission with several of the cows. Stained glass windows might have been a better option that morning, although not nearly as entertaining."
3. How might Jesus' parable of the rich fool in Luke 12:13-21 apply to today's lesson? Think especially about verses 18-20: "Then he said, 'I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.' But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?"
4. Discuss the architecture of your church. What are its advantages and disadvantages? How does it compare with other churches you've attended?
5. Respond to this, from another TWW team member: "Religion has the potential to fall victim to the arrogance that sees only a grander show for the clergy person, not for God. One expression I see is the massive crosses in front of many churches across the southern USA [the TWW member lives in the South]. Some churches seek to make their crosses taller than the others in the areas. When churches are within sight of each other, it can reach absurd proportions, trying to outdo one another. The same goes for the buildings."
Responding to the News
This is a good time to consider, prayerfully, you relationship with possessions, money and housing, and the lifestyle you lead. What does God say to you about your circumstances?
Closing Prayer

Day by day
Day by day
Oh, dear Lord
Three things I pray
To see thee more clearly
Love thee more dearly
Follow thee more nearly
Day by day
--Ascribed to St. Richard of Chichester (1197-1253) and G.R. Bullock-Webster (1913), as worded in the musical [ITALIC]Godspell (1971).