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tbcrawford
Guest
Thank God for Pope Francis addressing this terrible issue. I pray for the day these abusers are dealt with properly and we can regain credibility in the Catholic Church once again and save souls as we should be.
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cheezey
Guest
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EmperorNapoleon
Guest
I think people would be more receptive to another one of these declarations if the Pope took action himself rather than delegating it. Why can’t the Pope address these matters directly and defrock priests, bishops, and cardinals himself?
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tbcrawford
Guest
bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-22043312
"Pope Francis has inherited a major scandal which demands continuing decisive action. Archbishop Mueller, the German cleric in charge of the Vatican department which investigates cases of sexual abuse - and decides whether paedophile priests are to be defrocked - has had several meetings with Pope Francis since his recent election.
Only last month one American diocese - Green Bay, Wisconsin - paid $700,000 (£460,000) to two brothers who had been sexually abused by a Catholic priest decades ago. Several American Catholic dioceses have been forced to declare bankruptcy as a result of making huge payouts to victims.
Dr Rebecca Rist, a papal historian at Reading University, said: "The papacy has always taken a strong line on the importance of the purity of life of its clergy. In the 11th Century, the medieval papacy took stringent measures against the abuses of ‘simony’ - the buying and selling of ecclesiastical office - and ‘nicolaism’ - clerical concubinage. "
“Pope Francis is signalling that he regards clerical sexual abuse as the modern day scourge of the Church.”
"Pope Francis has inherited a major scandal which demands continuing decisive action. Archbishop Mueller, the German cleric in charge of the Vatican department which investigates cases of sexual abuse - and decides whether paedophile priests are to be defrocked - has had several meetings with Pope Francis since his recent election.
Only last month one American diocese - Green Bay, Wisconsin - paid $700,000 (£460,000) to two brothers who had been sexually abused by a Catholic priest decades ago. Several American Catholic dioceses have been forced to declare bankruptcy as a result of making huge payouts to victims.
Dr Rebecca Rist, a papal historian at Reading University, said: "The papacy has always taken a strong line on the importance of the purity of life of its clergy. In the 11th Century, the medieval papacy took stringent measures against the abuses of ‘simony’ - the buying and selling of ecclesiastical office - and ‘nicolaism’ - clerical concubinage. "
“Pope Francis is signalling that he regards clerical sexual abuse as the modern day scourge of the Church.”
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tbcrawford
Guest
reuters.com/article/2013/04/05/us-pope-abuse-idUSBRE9340DZ20130405
(Reuters) - Pope Francis wants the Catholic Church to “act decisively” to root out sexual abuse of children by priests and ensure the perpetrators are punished, the Vatican said on Friday.
Francis, in a meeting with the Holy See’s doctrinal chief, Archbishop Gerhard Mueller, had declared that combating sexual abuse was important “for the Church and its credibility”, a statement said.
Mueller is head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Vatican department which includes the office of the “promoter of justice”, or sex crimes prosecutor, which investigates cases of sexual abuse and decides if priests are to be defrocked.
A victims’ group, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) said the statement did not go far enough and criticized it for saying that the Church’s stance against sexual abuse was “a continuation” of the line wanted by Francis’ predecessor, Pope Benedict.
“Action, not discussion, is needed,” SNAP said in a statement.
"We can’t confuse words with actions. When we do, we hurt kids. We must insist on new tangible action that helps vulnerable children protect their bodies, not old vague pledges that help a widely-discredited institution protect its reputation
SNAP and other victims groups say there is much still to be discovered about how the Church behaved in the past and want more bishops who were aware of abuse to be held responsible.
(Reuters) - Pope Francis wants the Catholic Church to “act decisively” to root out sexual abuse of children by priests and ensure the perpetrators are punished, the Vatican said on Friday.
Francis, in a meeting with the Holy See’s doctrinal chief, Archbishop Gerhard Mueller, had declared that combating sexual abuse was important “for the Church and its credibility”, a statement said.
Mueller is head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Vatican department which includes the office of the “promoter of justice”, or sex crimes prosecutor, which investigates cases of sexual abuse and decides if priests are to be defrocked.
A victims’ group, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) said the statement did not go far enough and criticized it for saying that the Church’s stance against sexual abuse was “a continuation” of the line wanted by Francis’ predecessor, Pope Benedict.
“Action, not discussion, is needed,” SNAP said in a statement.
"We can’t confuse words with actions. When we do, we hurt kids. We must insist on new tangible action that helps vulnerable children protect their bodies, not old vague pledges that help a widely-discredited institution protect its reputation
SNAP and other victims groups say there is much still to be discovered about how the Church behaved in the past and want more bishops who were aware of abuse to be held responsible.
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Luigi_Daniele
Guest
I really like this Pope. Finally, someone is saying in no uncertain terms: enough.
With all due respect to SNAP, they will never be satisfied.
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