The Australian court has been told some of the alleged historical sexual offence charges against Cardinal George Pell will be dropped. Prosecutor Mark Gibson told the court last Friday one of Pell’s accusers is medically unfit to give evidence, so the charges cannot proceed. No other details were given. Another charge against Pell was dropped Read more
Posts Tagged ‘Clergy Abuse’
Archbishop Byrnes asks: What now for Guam?
Thursday, March 22nd, 2018
“Members of our Church, our island community, even those who have watched closely from beyond the seas, surely ask ‘now what?’” This was the question posed by Archbishop of Hagåtña (Guam), Michael Byrnes, at a press conference on Tuesday. He was speaking after an Apostolic Tribunal of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith announced that it Read more
Archbishop Apuron convicted on some charges of abuse
Monday, March 19th, 2018
The Vatican has convicted the suspended Anthony Apuron, Archbishop of Agaña (Guam), of some charges made against him of sexually abusing minors. A five-judge apostolic tribunal of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith announced its verdict in Apuron’s canonical case on March 16. The release did not specify which acts the archbishop had been Read more
Survey claims Catholic Church in Guam in decline
Thursday, March 8th, 2018
A survey being circulated in the Archdiocese of Agaña claims that Archbishop Michael Byrnes has said that baptisms, weddings, school enrollment and church attendance in Guam are decreasing even though the population has increased. The survey also claims that less than 50 percent of Guam’s population now identify as Catholic. According to the 2010 Census about 75 percent of Read more
One Pell sexual offence charge withdrawn
Monday, March 5th, 2018
A sexual offence charge against Australian Cardinal George Pell has been withdrawn because his accuser died. Mark Gibson SC, crown prosecutor, told the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Friday the charge following the death of key witness Damian Dignan was being withdrawn. However, Pell still faces numerous other sexual offence charges. He is denying all of Read more
The spiritual wounds of sexual abuse
Thursday, February 22nd, 2018
In a meeting with Pope Francis, a victim of sexual abuse said with profound sadness and desperation: “Jesus had his mother nearby when he faced suffering and death. But my mother, the Church, left me all alone in my time of pain.” These few words express the horror of abuse, especially the sexual abuse of Read more
Marie Collins shocked at Kilgallon’s omission
Thursday, February 22nd, 2018
Church-abuse-survivor, Marie Collins, says she’s shocked that Pope Francis dropped a Kiwi from his sex-abuse inquiry. Ms Collins resigned her membership of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors. She says she left in frustration last March at what she saw as a lack of progress. The commission’s 3-year term ended late last year. Read more
Key witness in Pell case unreliable: Court may withdraw charge
Monday, February 19th, 2018
Evidence from a key witness in the sexual abuse trial against Cardinal George Pell may be withdrawn and the charge against him dropped. The director of prosecutions told the Melbourne Magistrates Court that, although no decision has been made yet, the charge by the late Damian Dignan was “likely to be withdrawn”. Ruth Shann, a Read more
Chilean sex-abuse victim to have Vatican interview
Monday, February 12th, 2018
A Chilean sex-abuse victim will be interviewed personally by the Vatican’s sex-crimes expert, Archbishop Charles Scicluna. Scicluna will travel to New York next week to interview the victim, Juan Carlos Cruz. The victim is at the centre of a scandal involving Pope Francis. Cruz says a letter he wrote in 2015 asking Pope Francis to Read more
Virginia Noonan appointed director for Professional Standards Office
Thursday, February 8th, 2018
The National Professional Standards Committee (NPSC) has appointed former Christchurch lawyer and mother of two, Virginia Noonan, to the role of Director, National Office of Professional Standards (NOPS). Noonan, who most recently worked as the inaugural safeguarding coordinator for the Catholic Diocese of Christchurch, took up this new role in January. NOPS sets out the Read more