Catholic group calls on Pope Francis to set up independent abuse inquiry for Vatican files

Network wants investigation to ‘determine global extent of cover-ups of clerical abuse’

The Catholic We Are Church International network of groups has called on Pope Francis to establish an independent legal investigation of the files at the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) “to determine the global extent of the cover-ups of clerical sex abuse cases”.

In a statement, it noted how “a decade ago in Ireland State judges investigating clerical abuse cases sought relevant files from the office of the Vatican’s CDF. The CDF refused to supply any files.”

The group referred to the recent “detailed Munich independent legal investigation” which “accused . . . [Emeritus] Pope Benedict XVl with failing to report four cases of clerical abuse [by priests] while he was archbishop of Munich”. It recalled how “in his statement . . . [to] this Munich report . . . [Benedict] did not tell the truth and severely damaged his own reputation”.

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https://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/religion-and-beliefs/catholic-group-calls-on-pope-francis-to-set-up-independent-abuse-inquiry-for-vatican-files-1.4793055