That kind of snarky & sarcastic comment is misdirected though, because the residents of the Vatican need to be able to buy stuff just like the rest of us do, it's hardly a signifier of unwarranted wealth. Nor are all Cardinals wealthy.

Even Protestant denominations without a central church authority to accumulate vast sums of money insist on paying their priests/pastors a high enough wage to allow them to live comfortably but not richly.

There are plenty of opportunities to legitimately criticise the Catholic Church for its numerous problems, so why derail an interesting thread about a worthwhile topic?

Didn't intended to offend anyone, apologies

Why do developers need to be paid so much? Can't they just live in their moms basement and work in the garage?

Deleted the comment to avoid offending people with that joke. But you can't compare developers with priests. I don't see being a priest as being a job, it is rather a life commitment to follow a certain path which includes "being poor". I was just joking because they never are, and in catholic countries like mine they often have a higher than average living standard.

A commitment to the Catholic priesthood is not a commitment to being poor. It is possible for a very wealthy man to become a priest while retaining his personal wealth, because the Church has no hard and fast rules on the subject.

Religious orders such as the Dominicans, Franciscans, and Benedictines, whose members are often (not always) priests make a vow of poverty. Ordinary diocesan priests do not.

Probably because Catholic priests are not universally required to take a Vow of Poverty. A notable group in the Church that does take the vow are Jesuits.

Are only priests allowed in the Vatican now?

Technically, even if the machines were used only by priest, Catholic priest are not always required to take a Vow of Poverty. Certain orders do take one, some do not.