Cardinal O’Malley correctly points out the grave error Pope Francis made with his comments in Chile. Pope Francis was correct in saying that there should be proof of the allegations that the bishop covered up sexual abuse before action should be taken against him; no one should be tried and convicted without evidence. Where Pope Francis went too far is accusing the victims of slander; how does he know that the accusations are false? Maybe the accusations are true, maybe they aren’t. But if something does come out to corroborate their story, then Pope Francis is going to look like a fool and it will damage his credibility even further in these matters. Pope Francis essentially slandered those who he believes are slandering the bishop, as he just accused them of slander without any proof as well. Perhaps he needs to heed his own advice.
