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FILE – In this archival photo of August 22, 2018, Pope Francis is caught in a pensive mood during his weekly hearing at the Vatican. Francis' papacy was put in crisis by accusations that he concealed sexual misconduct of ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick. LessFILE – In this archival photo of August 22, 2018, Pope Francis is caught in a pensive mood during his weekly hearing at the Vatican. Francis's papacy was put in crisis by accusations that he had concealed … more
Photo: Andrew Medichini, AP
Photo: Andrew Medichini, AP
VATICAN CITY (AP) – The Vatican is preparing "necessary clarifications" on allegations that senior Vatican officials, including Pope Francis, have concealed the sexual misconduct of an ex-American cardinal today. He was disgraced, Francis's senior advisers announced Monday.
In a statement, Francis's nine cardinal councilors expressed their "full solidarity" with the pope over the scandal that put his papacy in crisis.
The cardinals, who are meeting at the Vatican this week, said they were aware that "the Holy See is working to formulate the potential and necessary clarifications."
Francis refused to respond to the 11-page document published on Aug. 26 by US retired Ambassador Carlo Maria Vigano.
Vigano has appointed more than two dozen former Vatican and US officials and accused them of knowing and hiding former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, accused of sexual assault and harassment of minors and adults.
Vigano notably accused Francis of rehabilitating McCarrick with the canonical sanctions imposed on him by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009 or 2010.
The Vatican has known since at least 2000 that McCarrick slept with seminarians.
Francis withdrew McCarrick as a cardinal in July on charges of testing a young altar in the 1970s, a canonical crime that could make him lose consciousness.
Francis' refusal to respond immediately to Vigano's demands frustrated many American Catholics, who were already outraged that McCarrick's inclination for seminarians and young priests was an open secret in some Catholic circles.
This scandal was compounded by revelations in the Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report, which described the mistreatment of more than 1,000 children by some 300 priests in 70 years, while the bishops covered them.
The nine cardinal councilors of Francis issued the declaration at the beginning of three days of meetings to bear the fruit of their five years of work: a proposal for reform of the Vatican bureaucracy.
Their work being essentially finished and some of the cardinals themselves involved in scandals of sexual abuse or camouflage, the prelates asked Francis to think about the "work, the structure and the composition of the council, taking into account of the advanced age of some members. "
This might suggest that Francis now has a stylish way of getting rid of prelates such as Chilean cardinal Javier Errazuriz, accused by the victims of being a key figure in Chile's poor record of abuse and mischief. camouflage. Errazuriz, the archbishop of Santiago retired, is 85 years old and far exceeds the retirement age.
Another aging member of the council is 77-year-old Cardinal George Pell, who has been tried in Australia, his homeland, for allegations of sexual abuse. He has denied wrongdoing and is on leave from his position as Vatican Finance Minister.
