>> what have they done with it?
There never seems to be a shortage of funds with which to pay off the victims of pedophile priests. The amounts would bankrupt any ordinary corporation (ref: Dow Corning and breast implants). Do you really want to go there?
Whatever the catholics want to do, or build, or wherever they want to go, it happens. Where does all that dough come from?
Similarly, that tight vatican budget is an accounting artifact. They’re a little over this year, a little behind last year... overall, they have enough. If the vatican ever needed a big infusion of dough, the call would go out to the bishops worldwide... and the money would appear. Prove it ain’t so.
No, that's boring. How about this: prove you're not Obama's gay lover. C'mon, big guy -- can you prove that negative?
It's bankrupted a number of dioceses already, or haven't you been paying attention?
Just as an interesting factoid, if you count assets per capita, the Mormons can buy and sell the Catholic Church many times over.
Settlements have been handled by each diocese and their own insurance, etc. A quick word about Church organization. A diocese is operationally and financially independent of Rome. So, when a new school or seminary needs to be built, those monies must come from the diocese and its donors, not from Rome.
While the story of abuse by priests has been large, and the victims numerous, it has also involved cases that are sometimes 40+ years old, and outside of the statute of limitations, therefore, no settlements. In other words, there are more stories than settlements.
The Roman Catholic Church is not a monolith. It is composed of 23 autonomous churches (think Eastern), and 2795 diocese (Vatican, Annuario Pontificio 2009, p. 1172).
Finally, what would it matter if Pope requested, and received additional monies? Perhaps it would mean more food for the starving, medicine for the sick, care for the aged, education for the ignorant. Would you be opposed to such things?