Opus Dei cult mentioned in Forbes article on Catholic Church:

[www.forbes.com]

Matt

Unfortunately, you need to register with Forbes to read the article...

Is there any new info in the article?

Oz

Here are some selected parts of the article with regards to the Opus Dei cult:

A pitched battle is shaping up between reformers and traditionalists within the U.S. Catholic Church. On the one side are businesspeople like Boisi and former baseball commissioner Fay Vincent. They have few if any disagreements with the Pope on matters of dogma. But they are openly defiant of the Church authorities on matters of money. The rebels argue that better financial management by an informed laity is the only way to reinvigorate the fallen-away faithful. "How could anyone in Rome argue it wouldn't be better if the Church were run more efficiently?" asks Vincent.

On the other side of the aisle are powerful organizations like Opus Dei, which has a direct line to the Vatican, and large donors like Domino's Pizza founder Thomas Monaghan. They see any change as a direct threat to the long-established order of things. "You don't need modern management techniques," says William Donohue, president of the Catholic League. "You need a return to orthodoxy." This is a struggle over authority and money--and the outcome will change forever the lives of the 65 million Catholics in the U.S.
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For an organization as hierarchical as the Church, run by a man who is (according to doctrine since 1870) infallible, the talk about "customers" borders on heresy. "The Church is not a business, and Catholics in the pews shouldn't be considered customers," insists Denis Coleman, onetime chairman of Covenant House and a former director at Bear Stearns. He says he's not against transparency. But, "if you follow Boisi's logic, then Catholics ultimately can choose who becomes a cardinal--or even the Pope." Other powerful conservative Catholics are lining up on Coleman's side. Among them is Father C. John McCloskey, a former stockbroker for Merrill Lynch who is a leading cleric in Opus Dei, and Bishop Fabian W. Bruskewitz of Lincoln, Neb. The call for reform, they fear, is really a Trojan horse to subvert the authority of the Church. "If Boisi and his group are anything like Voice of the Faithful,"says a prominent member of Opus Dei, referring to a group calling for more financial disclosure and lay involvement in running the Church, "that would be a sign of their intent for a putsch, a takeover." Voice of the Faithful, whose motto is "Keep the faith, change the Church," denies that characterization.
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The Church has other means to fill those financial gaps--from wealthy donors who are deeply invested in the status quo and have little interest in shaking up the system. In Boston, Archbishop Sean O'Malley turns to stalwart patrons like John A. Kaneb, chief executive of the megadairy HP Hood. New York's archdiocese frequently calls on Theodore Forstmann, the buyout king. And in Detroit, Domino's Monaghan--who also founded Legatus, an elite group of Catholic business leaders--has contributed millions of dollars to the Church. In return these donors enjoy rare opportunities to "rub the red," or fraternize, with the likes of cardinals and other high Church officials. But no matter how deep these pockets go, they can't singlehandedly support the dioceses. "That business model just isn't sustainable," says Boisi.

Which is one reason that Opus Dei, the ultraexclusive lay organization, plays such an important role in American dioceses. While only 3,000 of its 86,000 members worldwide are in the U.S., Opus Dei can still easily raise $49 million or so every year in this country, according to John L. Allen, author of the upcoming Opus Dei (Doubleday, November 2005). Most of that is spent on social services stateside--school programs, retreats and religion classes. Change, in Opus Dei's view, is not a good thing--unless it means the departure of dissidents. "If people leave [the Church] because they disagree with the program, that's sad, but it's better than them staying in," says a high-ranking leader in Opus Dei. "Seems far-fetched that just because some guy from Goldman Sachs comes along, the bishops are going to give over financial control of the Church to him and others like him."