Genuinely “nasty” comments do not deserve the dignity of a response. If someone is instead sincerely curious as to why the Church owns a lot of property, it can be explained that Christians have for many centuries entrusted land and other property to the Church, giving it to the Church for a multitude of personal reasons, some of which are contradictory (e.g., a desire for personal poverty, a desire for the prestige of being a generous benefactor, a desire to assist the Church in its work, a desire to give disputed land or property to a neutral party so as to prevent war, etc.). All that the Church receives is intended for the common benefit of all and for the furthering of the Church’s mission to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ.
