The pope rejected the resignation of the cardinal convicted for concealing sexual violence and angered the victims

Pope Francis invoked on Tuesday "the presumption of innocence" for reject the resignation of French cardinal Philippe Barbarin sentenced by justice to cover cases of badual abuse, infuriating the victims who consider the priest as a symbol of the silence of the Church against pedophilia.

Sentenced on March 7th to six months in prison suspended For not having brought to justice the badual abuse committed on minors by a priest of his diocese, Cardinal Barbarin, the highest dignitary of the church of France, was received Monday at the Vatican to present his resignation to the pope.

"On Monday morning, I handed my resignation in the hands of the Holy Father, invoking the presumption of innocence, he did not want to accept my resignation," Barbarin said in a statement.

The Vatican confirmed by a communication that "the Holy Father has not accepted the resignation presented by Cardinal Philippe Barbarin", Archbishop of Lyon since 2002, Cardinal since 2003, Primate of Gaul (honorary title awarded to the 39, archbishop of Lyon since the eleventh century).

The drop that has overflowed glbad

The prelate of 68 years he is still archbishop of Lyon (Downtown East) waiting for your appeal procedure. However, he announced that he would leave the daily direction of the current vicar general Yves Baumgarten, for "suggestion" of the pope "and because the Church of Lyon suffers since" that the scandal of the pedophilia in the diocese broke out three years ago.

This announcement provoked the indignation of pedophile victims of the diocese of Lyon, who described it as "the drop that has spilled over the glbad"

"It seemed unlikely to me that the pope could make such a mistake, it's incredible," said AFP François Devaux, co-founder of the liberated Word Victims Association.

"I think this man will succeed in killing the Church," he added, while another member of the badociation, Pierre-Emmanuel Germain-Thill, had announced a decision " shocking "and" a new misstep "of the pope.

The Episcopal Conference of France, in a statement in which it took exceptionally far, was expressed "surprised" at an "unprecedented" situation.

The president of the CEF, Monsignor Georges Pontier, said he understood that the pope's decision results from the "conflict between two claims", that of "respecting the course of justice" and that of "ensuring the good of the Diocese of Lyon". .

The silence of the church

In early March, the process of Cardinal Barbarin became in France the symbol of the crisis of the Church against pedophilia.

Barbarin was sentenced on March 7 to six months suspended sentence for his silence at the denunciations of pedophilia against Father Bernard Preynat, a priest who abused children in scout camps organized by this diocese in the eighties and nineties, of which he was informed by a victim in 2014. Priest Preynat has not yet been judged.

During the course of the trial, the cardinal insisted and repeated that "he never hid, let alone concealed these horrible facts" by referring to the information and advice given by the Vatican on the subject. ;case. However, the judgment accuses him of having chosen to say nothing to the French authorities "preserve the institution" scandal, which actually prevented other victims from reporting badual abuse.

The lawyers of Cardinal Barbarin have appealed and will have to await the judgment of this second trial to know the final fate of the prelate. "We hope that the appeal process will take place as quickly as possible, in July or September," said AFP Andre Soulier, who celebrated the papal decision.

Pope Francis, who would be close to Barbarin, has long defended the French cardinal. When the scandal erupted in 2016, he also rejected his resignation on the grounds that it would be foolish, "reckless", to do so before the trial.