Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See

This article is part of a series on the
Roman Curia
Secretariat of State
Congregations Doctrine of the Faith Oriental Churches Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments Causes of Saints Bishops Evangelization of Peoples Clergy Religious Catholic Education
Tribunals Apostolic Signatura Roman Rota Apostolic Penitentiary
Pontifical Councils Laity Promoting Christian Unity Family Justice and Peace "Cor Unum" Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People Pastoral Assistance to Health Care Workers Legislative Texts Interreligious Dialogue Culture Social Communications Promoting the New Evangelisation
Administrative Services Apostolic Camera Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See Prefecture for the Economic Affairs of the Holy See
Institutes Prefecture of the Papal Household Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff
History/Other Dicastery Reform of Paul VI Reform of John Paul II

The Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (Italian: Amministrazione del Patrimonio della Sede Apostolica, abbreviated APSA) is the office of the Roman Curia that deals with the "properties owned by the Holy See in order to provide the funds necessary for the Roman Curia to function" (Pastor Bonus, 172). It was established by Pope Paul VI on 15 August 1967.

Organization

It is composed of two sections. The Ordinary Section continues the work of the Administration of the Property of the Holy See (Italian: Amministrazione dei Beni della Santa Sede), a commission that Pope Leo XIII set up in 1880, initially as an advisory body, and to which in 1891 he gave direct responsibility for administering the property remaining to the Holy See after the complete loss of the Papal States in 1870. The Extraordinary Section administers the funds given by the Italian government to implement the Financial Convention attached to the Lateran Treaty of 1929. Before the establishment of the APSA, these latter funds were managed by the Special Administration of the Holy See.

It is distinct from the Prefecture for the Economic Affairs of the Holy See.

After World War II, the International Monetary Fund recognized the Administration of the Property of the Holy See, as the central bank of Vatican City.

It is quite distinct from the Institute for Works of Religion, commonly called the "Vatican Bank".

An organizational chart of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See, with the names of its senior officials, is given on the website of the Holy See, which also gives the regulations that govern its functioning.

The present heads ("Delegates") of the two sections are Massimo Boarotto for the Ordinary Section and Paolo Mennini for the Extraordinary.

Assets of the Extraordinary Section

The assets entrusted to the Extraordinary Section were initially 750 million Italian lire (at that time equivalent to 8,152,000 pounds sterling) in cash and 1000 million Italian lire (at that time equivalent to 10,869,000 pounds sterling) in Italian State bonds, an amount less than Italy would have paid under the Law of Guarantees of 1871, if the Holy See had accepted this.

According to an article by David Leigh in the Guardian newspaper, a 2012 report from the Council of Europe identified the value of a section of the Vatican's property assets as an amount in excess of €680m (£570m); as of January 2013, a papal official in Rome named Paolo Mennini manages this portion of the Holy See's assets—consisting of British investments, other European holdings and a currency trading arm. The Guardian newspaper described Mennini and his role in the following manner: "... Paolo Mennini, who is in effect the pope's merchant banker. Mennini heads a special unit inside the Vatican called the extraordinary division of APSA – Amministrazione del Patrimonio della Sede Apostolica – which handles the so-called "patrimony of the Holy See"."

List of Presidents

• Amleto Giovanni Cicognani (7 May 1968 - 30 Apr 1969)
• Jean-Marie Villot (30 Apr 1969 - 28 Apr 1979)
• Giuseppe Caprio (28 Apr 1979 - 30 Jan 1981)
• Agostino Casaroli (30 Jan 1981 - 8 Apr 1984)
• Agnelo Rossi (8 Apr 1984 - 6 Dec 1989)
• Rosalio José Castillo Lara (6 Dec 1989 - 24 Jun 1995)
• Lorenzo Antonetti (24 Jun 1995 - 5 Nov 1998)
• Agostino Cacciavillan (5 Nov 1998 - 1 Oct 2002)
• Attilio Nicora (1 Oct 2002 - 7 July 2011)
• Domenico Calcagno (7 July 2011 - )

Members

• Justin Francis Rigali

Literature

• Malachi Martin - Rich Church, Poor Church (Putnam, New York, 1984) ISBN 0-399-12906-5
• Pollard, John F. (2005). Money and the Rise of the Modern Papacy: Financing the Vatican, 1850–1950. Cambridge University Press.