In its weekly newsletter, the Seoul Archdiocese has published financial statements audited by an accounting firm for fiscal years 2005 and 2006.The archdiocese said it would unveil its financial operation every year from now on.
The Seoul archdiocese previously has disclosed internally audited financial statements to its clergymen, but this is the first time it has made such information public after auditing by outside accountants.
The move should be viewed as a milestone in enhancing financial transparency in a major Korean religious group, where lack of financial transparency has been cited as the main weakness.
Among Koreans, 53 percent follow a religion. Religious figures are highly regarded in society, while churches, cathedrals and temples have vast amounts of human and material resources.
But in many cases, only a small group of people know how much money these religious groups receive in terms of cash and donations and how they spend them.
There are religious organizations such as the God's Will Soongeui Church in Mt. Namsan and Bulkwangsa Temple in Seokchon-dong which reveal their financial operation to outsiders. But the financial affairs of a wide majority of religious organizations remained veiled.
Under these circumstances, the Seoul Archdiocese, which is the center of the Catholic Church in Korea, with 1.33 million followers and 213 cathedrals, has boldly revealed its financial statements and asked its followers to take a deep look at the meaning of donations and to pray for their diocese.
Once devotees learn about how their donations are being spent, their trust and admiration toward their church and priests will become stronger.
In some corners of Korean society and religious groups, there have been concerns voiced over the lack of transparency in financial records, raising calls for the establishment of laws giving corporate status to religious groups.
While offering tax breaks to religious entities like in the U.S. and Japan, the laws would require them to report their financial operation to authorities.
But if more and more religious groups do this voluntarily, then external regulations will not be necessary.
A chronic problem in Korea’s religious community is that it has a “mouth” but no “ears.”
They say what they want to say, but are unable to listen to the various comments being made about them. And this is more true for religious groups that are more socially active.
The reason the Seoul Archdiocese unveiled its financial statements is because it wants to listen to the recommendations of its followers and the broader public.
Finally, one of our religious groups has gained a large “ear.”
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Disclaimer
No responsibility or liability shall attach itself to either myself or to the blogspot ‘Clerical Whispers’ for any or all of the articles placed here.
The placing of an article hereupon does not necessarily imply that I agree or accept the contents of the article as being necessarily factual in theology, dogma or otherwise.
Sotto Voce