As you'll see from the Bishops' Briefing documents library (left and below), the OpenBooks Project is my unique, long-running and eyebrow-raising contribution to the understanding of financial transparency & accountability today in Catholic parishes and dioceses - mostly in the UK but reaching far and wide. A sort of one-person synod, you might say.

As a non-academic and independent pew-based explorer, I've had the aim of helping make sure that "The Books" are open to those who fund much of them. That millions of quid given by parishioners get a proper pro quo.

The main research resource for me has been open and free - the contents of 1800+ websites - mostly UK parishes, but including all UK dioceses and most bishop's conferences worldwide. Plus many of the synodal pathway reports from parishes, diocesan and national syntheses, and the Vatican publications. So you can have a look for yourself.

They've been combed for evidence of the appreciation and observance of the 1983 Code of Canon Law 1287 §2. This requires parish priests to provide reports on parish finances to their parishioners - not just to the bishop as c1287 §1 and UK charity law demand. It was a completely new duty for the clergy and right of the laity in the spirit of Vatican II - created and painstakingly honed by experts right from the start of revising the 1917 Code, and then affirmed worldwide.

Canon 392 §1 seems clear on bishops' accountability: “…a bishop is bound to promote the common discipline of the whole Church and therefore to urge the observance of all ecclesiastical laws.”

So the question the faithful might well ask is: how do UK and other bishops actually go about urging the observance of Canon Law 1287 §2?
 

On UK parish websites, there's scant evidence of those obligatory reports - in some dioceses, none at all. There's rarely finance or other committee minutes or parish AGM, or other signs of financial transparency as a facet of good stewardship. Nearly all show you how to give more money, and appeals are constant refrain of bishops and parish clergy and advisors. Yet somehow they don't appreciate the duty to give the givers something in return: information, thanks, respect.

So it was no surprise to find concerns about transparency and accountability surfacing in the 2022 Synodal Pathway parish reports, diocesan and national syntheses - and the first report from the Synod itself.  The Project shows that it's possible to answer these with simple actions - and intentions.

There's a  library of OpenBooks Project briefings for bishops - and anyone else

You'll find this on a separate page - with PDFs on:

• Financial Transparency Policy for any UK diocese October 2023

• Project Summary & Suggestions October/November 2022

• Vatican, We Have a Problem - June 2023

• Birmingham UK v Birmingham USA - transparency differences in dioceses

• Helping Synodality Live in Liverpool

• Witnesses Statement - contribution to the Portsmouth diocesan 10-year plan

• PPriest's appreciation of parish - 10 years on!

• Synodalitrees - suggestions for applied synodality

• and more to follow...

With all best wishes

Hugh Gibbons

Creator, Conductor and, ahem,

Expostulator of The OpenBooks Project