The Vatican has reaffirmed its support for the UN in general, and for the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The comments from Vatican Spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi, come as part of a response to the UN Committee’s report into the rights of children.
However in a statement he also accused the Committee of going beyond its competencies and jurisdiction.
Lombardi said the Committee’s remarks gave “indications involving moral evaluations of contraception, or abortion, or education in families, or the vision of human sexuality, in light of [the Committee’s] own ideological vision of sexuality itself.”
Lombardi also accused the UN Committee of neglecting to attend to information actually submitted by the Vatican regarding the Holy See’s response to sexual abuse.
He expressed alarm, that instead, the UN relied on reports from groups invested in criticising the Church.
Lombardi also expressed amazement at the UN’s lack of understanding that the Vatican does not control the behaviour of priests in every country of the world and is not responsible for law enforcement efforts outside of its own restricted jurisdiction.
He accused the United Nations committee of a “lack of understanding of the specific nature of the Holy See”.
The UN report also came under fire from Fr Thomas Reese SJ a senior analyst for NCR, who called the report “missed opportunity”.
Reece admits the Church’s response to sexual abuse was disastrous, “When it comes to the historical record, the church deserves to be raked over the coals,” he said.
However, in omitting to examine the Vatican’s current policies, procedures and how they are now being enforced, Reece says the UN failed to do the hard work, making the recommendations meaningless.
Sources
- Vatican Radio
- NCR
- Image: Fox News