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ROME – Pope Francis has ordered that the investigation conducted by the New York Archdiocese on sexual abuse charges against former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick be combined with a "thorough study of the All the documentation present in the archives of the dicasteries and offices of the Holy See ". to determine "all relevant facts, to place them in their historical context and to evaluate them objectively".
The how and when the results of this review could be communicated has not been clarified, although the Vatican said Saturday that its findings would be revealed "in due course".
The Holy See is aware that, "from the examination of the facts and circumstances, it can be clear that choices have been made that would not be compatible with a contemporary approach to these issues," says this statement.
"The abuse and its concealment can no longer to be tolerated and a different treatment for bishops who have committed acts of violence or concealed abuse is in fact a form of clericalism that is no longer acceptable, "he said.
According to the release, Francis has been monitoring McCarrick 's situation for more than a year.
"In September 2017, the Archdiocese of New York informed the Holy See that a man had accused former Cardinal McCarrick of having mistreated him in the 1970s," he said. -he declares. "The Holy Father has ordered a thorough preliminary inquiry into this subject, which was conducted by the Archdiocese of New York, at the end of which the corresponding documentation was transmitted to the Congregation for the Doctrine of New York. the faith."
"In the meantime, because of serious clues that appeared during the investigation, the Holy Father accepted the resignation of Archbishop McCarrick of the College of Cardinals, banning him by the exercise of his public ministry and obliging him to lead a life of prayer and penance, he says.
This statement fits into the context of growing concerns about Francis' role in the McCarrick scandals.
A little over a month ago, a former papal envoy to the United States accused Francis of having been informed of sexual misconduct concerns against the former cardinal as early as June 2013 and ignore it. Originally, Francis had refused to answer these accusations, telling reporters aboard his flight back from Ireland on August 26 to Rome: "I will not say a word".
Since then, the leaders of the American Bishops' Conference have come to Rome to ask Francis to sign an apostolic visit, that is, a Vatican inquiry, to get to the bottom of the McCarrick case. , a request that Francis refused.
At present, the American bishops are trying to find another way to guarantee the Vatican's participation in an inquiry into the four American dioceses where McCarrick's priestly career took place: New York, Metuchen, Newark and Washington.
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"Pope Francis renews his urgent invitation to join forces to fight the serious scourge of abuses within and beyond the Church and to prevent such crimes from being committed. Future at the expense of the most innocent and most vulnerable in society. Said Saturday's statement.
"As previously announced, the Holy Father has convened a meeting of Presidents of Episcopal Conferences around the world for next February," he said.
The former cardinal now lives in a convent of Capuchins in western Kansas, where he leads a life of penance and prayer as he awaits the results of the canonical trial announced by the Vatican after Francis accepted the resignation of McCarrick of the College of Cardinals.
In June, the New York Archdiocese had announced that the allegations of sexual abuse against McCarrick had been found to be "credible and well founded", following an investigation by an archdiocesan review board.
The victim was a 16-year-old altar boy who accused McCarrick of mistreating him at St. Patrick's Cathedral in 1971 and 1972 while still a priest in the Archdiocese of New York.
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