Pope Francis orders sweeping audit of the Vatican

Pope Francis continues his work to clean up the Vatican.

Pope Francis continues to clean up the Vatican, ordering a survey of all the city-state's finances. The unprecedented audit will reveal even more corruption and impose better controls on spending, while making more money available for charitable projects.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Pope Francis has been something of a disruptive force in the Vatican. Arriving there in 2013 to find an institution that had become too self-serving, he set about at once to change it. From handing over pedophile priests to holding officials accountable for their dealings, Pope Francis has been an overwhelming force for good in the Vatican.

Close to Pope Francis' heart are the poor, and his primary concern is their care. This obsessive focus has caused him to change many Vatican practices. For example the Vatican Almoner was sent out of his office and into the street to actually distribute alms again. Instead of serving as a bureaucrat, the almoner became a pastor again.

However, the Vatican has become a financial mess over the centuries because it has not been managed effectively. Church leaders tend to be excellent pastors and theologians, but they are not so excellent with business and accounting. Worse, a few appear to be genuinely corrupt and self-serving.

This is what Pope Francis has been working to sanitize. Pope Francis has established the "Working Party for the Economic Future" which involves the Secretariat of State, the bank, and several other offices within the Vatican. The Working Party is "to address the financial challenges and identify how more resources can be devoted to the many good works of the Church, especially supporting the poor and vulnerable."

By making the Vatican more efficient, and by eliminating waste and corruption, the Church will be better able to serve the poor and to continue its work as a moral voice for the world.

It is believed that Pope Francis will also bring in an outside firm to assist with the auditing, and it will be one of the world's top accounting firms.