Proposed protocol outlines restrictions on bishops facing claim of abuse

If a credible accusation of sexual misconduct has been reported against a retired bishop, his successor may act to limit the retired bishop’s scope of ministry, including the celebration of the sacraments and the right to be buried in the diocesan cathedral, according to a proposed document presented to the bishops the first day of their June 11-13 spring general assembly in Baltimore.

Nuncio’s message to bishops: ‘Unity prevails over conflict’

Recalling “there were some expressions of ‘dissent'” by some U.S. bishops when the bishops met last November over the Vatican’s request that they postpone voting on agenda items related to the reemergent clergy sexual abuse crisis, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, the Vatican’s nuncio to the United States, reminded them that “unity prevails over conflict.”