Moderator of the Curia is the priest appointed, where useful, to coordinate diocesan curial business and ensure that its personnel fulfill their offices properly.
Moderator of the curia is a top administrative position held by a Catholic priest in a diocese under the supervision of the bishop. The moderator coordinates the exercise of the administrative duties and oversees the office holders, or curia, in the diocese. Moderator of the curia has been compared to that of a chief operating officer (COO) in a corporation. Although the office was first included in the 1983 Code of Canon Law, the concept is much older.
A bishop does not have to appoint a moderator; he can supervise the diocese administration himself or delegate the responsibility to other priests. The vicar general of the diocese frequently serves also as moderator.[2] According to the Vatican, the moderator of the curia must follow the general principle:
"...that diocesan structures should always be at the service of the good of souls and that administrative demands should not take precedence over the care of persons. Therefore, he should see that the operation is smooth and efficient, avoiding all unnecessary complexity or bureaucracy, and always directed towards its proper supernatural end."[3]
A coordinating office
Canon 473 permits the diocesan bishop to appoint a moderator of the curia when the bishop judges it expedient for coordinating administrative affairs and curial personnel. The moderator must be a priest and ordinarily should be the vicar general unless circumstances suggest otherwise. The role promotes unity of execution across offices that might otherwise operate in isolation.[1]
The moderator is not the diocesan bishop's superior, a corporate chief executive replacing canonical offices, or necessarily the same person as the chancellor. The bishop remains the legislator and governor of the diocese; vicars possess ordinary executive power according to law; judicial officers retain their proper independence and competence.
Limits and sound administration
The decree of appointment and diocesan norms should define responsibilities, reporting, and relationships with vicars, the finance officer, chancellor, and tribunal. Coordination concerns faithful workflow, communication, records, implementation of episcopal decisions, and observance of office duties. It cannot confer powers the law reserves to another authority.
A good moderator keeps administration pastoral by making it accurate, timely, and just. Confidential information must be handled lawfully; staff should receive clear mandates and formation; and allegations, finances, and canonical processes must never be managed through informal personal loyalty at the expense of truth or rights.
References
- 1.Code of Canon Law, canons 460–572 — Diocesan structures, parishes, pastoral councils, rectors, and chaplains
- 2."Canon 473". Code of Canon Law. The Holy See. 1983. Retrieved 2010-01-19.
- 3."177.The Coordination of Different Offices". DIRECTORY FOR THE PASTORAL MINISTRY OF BISHOPS. The Holy See. 2004. Retrieved 2010-01-19.