No secular group or charity has anything approaching the war chest found in the Vatican.
Totally agree. Having personnally been to Vatican City twice I can say this is an understatement. Biggest religious racketeer in human history.
Yes, much of that is solid or plated gold.
Do you wonder where all the gold from the plunders, at the backs, torture and deaths of millions of Native American's and other indigenous people from around the world, went? Look no further (though the Vatican is not the only guilty party).
One of the saddest lessons of history is this: If we've been bamboozled long enough, we tend to reject any evidence of the bamboozle. We're no longer interested in finding out the truth. The bamboozle has captured us. It is simply too painful to acknowledge -- even to ourselves -- that we've been so credulous. - Carl Sagan, The Fine Art of Baloney Detection
"You can't convince a believer of anything; for their belief is not based on evidence, it's based on a deep seated need to believe." - Carl Sagan
"It is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring." - Carl Sagan, The Demon-Haunted World