An attorney for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has confirmed that federal officials have asked the organization to keep documents and other files that might pertain to possible sex abuse allegations and other matters and to order the same of all dioceses around the country.
The firestorm surrounding the clergy sex abuse crisis and the way some bishops handled allegations of abuse against priests will be an important part of the agenda of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ fall general assembly.
The Archdiocese of Philadelphia has received a subpoena as part of a federal grand jury investigating allegations of child sexual abuse and a cover-up of such claims, church officials confirmed Oct. 18.
Pope Francis, Cardinal Marc Ouellet and an official Vatican statement seem to be laying the groundwork for an admission that mistakes were made in handling allegations that Archbishop Theodore McCarrick engaged in sexual misconduct and even abuse.
Promising a thorough review of how the Vatican handled allegations of sexual misconduct by former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, the Vatican acknowledged that what happened may fall short of the procedures that are in place today.
California Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed a measure Sept. 30 that would have extended the state’s statute of limitations for decades for childhood sexual abuse survivors.
Pope Francis expelled from the priesthood a Chilean who gained notoriety for sexually abusing young men in his parish.
Returning to Rome from a trip Sept. 22-25 to the Baltic nations, Pope Francis was asked about his remarks to young people in Tallinn, Estonia, when he said young people are scandalized when they see the church fail to condemn abuse clearly.
