Pope Francis on Tuesday named a bishop in his own image, Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, as the new head of the Italian bishops conference, as the Italian Catholic Church comes under mounting pressure to confront its legacy of clerical sexual abuse with an independent inquiry. Francis’ widely expected choice was announced during the second day of Read more
Posts Tagged ‘Clerical sexual abuse’
NZ canon lawyer wants laity and transparency in bishop appointments
Thursday, May 26th, 2022
New Zealand canon lawyer Msgr Brendan Daly (pictured) says the Church needs more lay people in governance roles. Its episcopal appointment process could also be altered so it is more open – it could save a lot of unnecessary distress, he says. The clerical sexual abuse scandal shows the necessity for these changes, he wrote Read more
Enough with the sex abuse reports
Thursday, February 10th, 2022
The Church does not need more sex abuse reports, but personal and ecclesial conversion. Powerful, pandemic experiences and images have stimulated new respect for first responders who work selflessly to save others from harm, even at personal risk. They have also shown the crucial need for research into the nature and causes of the harm Read more
Confronting sexual abuse in the Catholic church is a must
Thursday, October 14th, 2021
When Pope Francis met with the Archbishop of Paris and other French bishops at the end of September, he observed on the matter of the then-forthcoming report on sex abuse in the church of France: “Look the truth in the face.” It is not only the hierarchy that is now doing so, but all of Read more
Survivors have little hope in churches changing
Thursday, March 18th, 2021
Survivor groups are not hopeful that the Royal Commission into the Abuse in Care will bring around change in churches. A spokesperson for the Network of Survivors of Abuse in Faith-Based Institutions, Liz Tonks, told RNZ that “victim-survivors were not hopeful because their experiences of churches is they have not been able to trust them Read more
Polish cardinal chastised by Vatican in hospital
Thursday, November 12th, 2020A prominent Polish cardinal who was recently sanctioned by the Vatican over sexual abuse allegations has been hospitalized since last week and remains unconscious, Polish media reported Tuesday. Retired Archbishop Henryk Gulbinowicz was sanctioned by the Vatican last week after the 97-year-old was accused of sexually abusing a seminarian and of covering up abuse in Read more
Irish abuse commission says it overestimated kids in religious-run homes
Thursday, December 5th, 2019More than 10 years after its final report, the commission set up by the Irish government to investigate claims of abuse in religious-run institutions has admitted that it overestimated the number of children in the homes. In a statement Nov. 25, the Commission to Inquire Into Child Abuse said the number of children housed in Read more
Two priests in Argentina sentenced to more than 40 years in sex abuse case
Thursday, November 28th, 2019An Argentine court on Monday convicted two Roman Catholic priests and the former gardener of a church-run school for deaf students in the province of Mendoza on 28 counts of sexual abuse and corruption of minors. Priests Nicola Corradi and Horacio Corbacho were sentenced to 42 and 45 years in prison, respectively, while the school Read more
New Vatican law on abuse cover-up has hit-and-miss week
Monday, September 16th, 2019
When the Vatican announced new procedures to hold bishops accountable in May, the main question was: Will it work? The legislation – called Vos Estis Lux Mundi – enacted what is known as the Metropolitan Model, in which archbishops would play a prominent role in policing those bishops in their ecclesiastical province. This week, the Read more
Mandatory reporting of clerical sexual abuse
Friday, May 10th, 2019
Pope Francis has released a new law making it mandatory for all clerics and members of religious orders to report cases of clerical sexual abuse to Church authorities. It also includes actions or omissions of bishops and religious superiors that in any way interfere with or fail to investigate abuse. “The crimes of sexual abuse Read more