Vatican Shines Light on Child Abuse as Claims Against Priests Persist
- 7 years ago
Vatican Shines Light on Child Abuse as Claims Against Priests Persist
5, 2017
VATICAN CITY — For a church hierarchy excoriated for decades over the sexual abuse of children in its trust, hosting a conference this week about
the spreading scourge of online child pornography was an opportunity to strike a positive note about the Vatican’s role in protecting minors.
Cardinal Parolin, speaking to reporters on Tuesday before his address, called the case a "very painful affair, a great trial for all those who are involved." He said the priest’s case was being handled with the "utmost seriousness." The Vatican has also said
that the Holy See’s chief prosecutor was investigating and that if the monsignor was tried and convicted, he could be sentenced up to 12 years in a Vatican jail.
Last week, as organizers prepared for the congress — with its keynote address by Cardinal Parolin, the second-highest-ranking official after Pope Francis; blanket coverage by the church’s news media;
and a papal audience with Francis on Friday — the Canadian police issued an arrest warrant for Monsignor Capella.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin said that Yes, yes, yes,
y to the fore in the Catholic Church, and extremely grave facts have emerged." Last month, Francis said in unscripted remarks to a commission he had created to advise him on the issue
that the church had "arrived late" to the crisis. that over the past few decades, this tragic reality has come powerfull
Advocates for abuse victims say they consider the Capella case a shameful echo of an earlier episode involving Josef Wesolowski,
a Polish archbishop accused of abusing children in the Dominican Republic, where he served as the Vatican ambassador.
5, 2017
VATICAN CITY — For a church hierarchy excoriated for decades over the sexual abuse of children in its trust, hosting a conference this week about
the spreading scourge of online child pornography was an opportunity to strike a positive note about the Vatican’s role in protecting minors.
Cardinal Parolin, speaking to reporters on Tuesday before his address, called the case a "very painful affair, a great trial for all those who are involved." He said the priest’s case was being handled with the "utmost seriousness." The Vatican has also said
that the Holy See’s chief prosecutor was investigating and that if the monsignor was tried and convicted, he could be sentenced up to 12 years in a Vatican jail.
Last week, as organizers prepared for the congress — with its keynote address by Cardinal Parolin, the second-highest-ranking official after Pope Francis; blanket coverage by the church’s news media;
and a papal audience with Francis on Friday — the Canadian police issued an arrest warrant for Monsignor Capella.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin said that Yes, yes, yes,
y to the fore in the Catholic Church, and extremely grave facts have emerged." Last month, Francis said in unscripted remarks to a commission he had created to advise him on the issue
that the church had "arrived late" to the crisis. that over the past few decades, this tragic reality has come powerfull
Advocates for abuse victims say they consider the Capella case a shameful echo of an earlier episode involving Josef Wesolowski,
a Polish archbishop accused of abusing children in the Dominican Republic, where he served as the Vatican ambassador.