Pope declares war on sexual abuse but victims feel betrayed

By Philip Pullella

 

Pope Francis is seen during the last day of the four-day meeting on the global sexual abuse crisis, at the Vatican, February 24, 2019, in this screen grab taken from video. CTV via REUTERS

 

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis ended his conference on the sexual abuse of children by clergy on Sunday by calling for an "all-out battle" against a crime that should be "erased from the face of the earth".

 

But victims and their advocates expressed deep disappointment, saying Francis had merely repeated old promises and offered few new concrete proposals.

 

In his closing address to the almost 200 Church leaders he had summoned to Rome, Francis said national guidelines on preventing and punishing abuse would be strengthened and the Church's definition of minors in cases of possession by clergy of pornography would be raised from the current age of 14.

 

At least two Vatican officials have been convicted in recent years of possessing child pornography.

 

Shortly after the conference, the Vatican said it would enact a law to protect minors and vulnerable adults within the Vatican City - the tiny enclave surrounded by Rome which is one of the few countries without one.

 

The Vatican will also issue a "guidebook" to "help bishops around the world clearly understand their duties" and set up teams of experts to be sent to countries to help inexperienced bishops handle cases of abuse.

 

A list of 21 "reflection points" circulated at the conference included actions such as informing civil authorities of substantial accusations and making sure non-clerics are involved in Church investigations of abuse.

 

Francis vowed the Roman Catholic Church would "spare no effort" to bring abusers to justice and would not cover up or underestimate abuse.

 

But he dedicated much of the first part of a speech lasting more than half an hour to statistics from the United Nations and other organisations showing that most sexual abuse of children takes place in families.

 

"We are thus facing a universal problem, tragically present almost everywhere and affecting everyone. Yet we need to be clear, that while gravely affecting our societies as a whole, this evil is in no way less monstrous when it takes place within the Church," he said.

 

"RECYCLED RHETORIC"

Anne Barrett-Doyle of the U.S.-based clergy abuse tracking group bishopaccountability.org, called it a "stunning letdown".

 

"As the world's Catholics cry out for concrete change, the Pope instead provides tepid promises, all of which we've heard before," she said in a statement.

 

"Especially distressing was the pope's familiar rationalization that abuse happens in all sectors of society ... We needed him to offer a bold and decisive plan. He gave us instead defensive, recycled rhetoric," Barrett-Doyle said.

 

Italian abuse survivor Alessandro Battaglia cried in St. Peter's Square along with other victims.

 

"I did not hear a 'sorry' ... I didn't hear anything, anything concrete, nothing that was fair," he said. "It is they who destroyed us. This isn't enough, we are not satisfied."

 

The conference brought together bishops from countries such as the United States, where cases of abuse have fallen dramatically because of measures enacted nearly 20 years ago, and bishops from mostly poor countries that still have not come to terms with the problem.

 

Several cardinals, archbishops and canon lawyers at the conference said the Church should stop applying the "pontifical secret" sex abuse trials, because, instead of guaranteeing confidentiality it was often used to hide problems.

 

"OUR OWN WORST ENEMY"

The meeting took place after events in 2018 made it the most problematic year for the pope since his election in 2013.

 

In Ireland, which he visited in August, the sexual abuse scandal shattered the power of the Church had dominated society.

 

In Chile, which he visited in January, all of the country's bishops offered their resignations last year over a widespread cover-up. Francis accepted seven of the resignations and dismissed two others from the priesthood.

 

A report by a grand jury in Pennsylvania last year revealed that priests had sexually abused about 1,000 people over seven decades in that U.S. state alone.

 

Archbishop Mark Coleridge of Brisbane, Australia, delivered a homily at the Mass that formally ended the conference, with words that were in many ways more pungent than the pope's.

 

"We will not go unpunished," Coleridge said. "In abuse and its concealment, the powerful (of the Church) show themselves not men of heaven but men of earth ...

 

"At times, however, we have seen victims and survivors as the enemy, but we have not loved them, we have not blessed them. In that sense, we have been our own worst enemy."

 

(Additional reporting by Antonio Denti, Editing by Robin Pomeroy)

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-02-25

I genuinely like this Pope (as far as Popes go) and respect his focus on the poor and downtrodden. And, unlike others on this Forum, I don't really have a problem with religion; as far as I am concerned, anyone can believe anything that they like. Finally, I think freedom of religion, and freedom from religion, are very good things.

 

However, as much as I am willing to give the Catholic Church a pass to deal with spiritual matters, I am unwilling to give them a pass on secular crimes.

 

Sexual assault, sexual assault on children, molestation, child abuse and the like are all CRIMES. And, unless the Church can treat them as CRIMES, it should not be allowed to continue its mission.

 

If Microsoft was responsible for a hundred thousand plus sexual crimes over the last few decades, it would be disbanded.

 

If FIFA was responsible for a hundred thousand plus sexual crimes over the last few decades, it would be disbanded.

 

If The United Nations was responsible for a hundred thousand plus sexual crimes over the last few decades, it would be disbanded.

 

If Sony was responsible for a hundred thousand plus sexual crimes over the last few decades, it would be disbanded.

 

If The Red Cross was responsible for a hundred thousand plus sexual crimes over the last few decades, it would be disbanded.

 

If the Catholic Church cannot stop the sexual assault on women and children immediately, it should be shut down. 

 

The days of Popes making promises have passed; too many victims are out there to allow it to continue.

 

It has to stop.

 

 

This cult has and is still committing sexual assaults, rape, murder, etc... on hundreds of thousands of people, including kids.  i won't give them a second chance.  it's all about money for them, and if a million kids get raped....well, i'm sure confession will solve it all.  

 

 

Edited February 25, 20197 yr by puukao

You do not censure the bishops, priests and Cardinals. You lock them up for a decade or two. Show the world you are serious about punishing these heinous crimes. Or admit you condone them. 

49 minutes ago, webfact said:

"We are thus facing a universal problem, tragically present almost everywhere and affecting everyone. Yet we need to be clear, that while gravely affecting our societies as a whole, this evil is in no way less monstrous when it takes place within the Church," he said.

Incorrect, it is MORE monstrous when it takes place within the church! 

But note how he refers to it as a universal problem in a way to deflect criticism for the church which considers itself a pillar of that society to which he refers.  Much research shows that child abusers were abused as children themselves; so it would appear that the church may be responsible for much of what happens in the universal problem.

Never trust a man in a frock.

The Catholic Church have shown that they cannot be trusted and will do anything to protect their money making church business. Allowing large numbers of sexual perverts to be members of their clergy, then protecting rather than handing over for prosecution is one example.

 

A few are now being thrown under the bus for the good of their corrupt church. And it is a tiny few. Lots of talk talk and no walk walk. Is this action going to result in the exposure and prosecution of many vile perverts? 

 

Or well the try the old con of repent and forgiveness with a few hail mary's or whatever?

The Catholic Church has since its inception been a paedophile organisation.

The current Bishops and Ultra Bishops (or whatever) were either participants in paedophilia,

or persons that covered up the crime. The whole exercise by the current chief paedophile organiser

has been to cover up, deflect and minimise.

Most of the attendants were either paedophiles or covered up the crimes.

Priests convicted of crimes of this nature and released after serving their term in prison in Australia

are living in fully subsidised  accommodation.

Unlike their victims, who live trauma every day, who can never wash away the filth that priests imposed on them.

And the perverse priests feel no remorse and know that the Paedophile ring will support them no matter what happens.

God rot them and all organisations are a front for these scum.

 

The one thing absent from the phoney conference by the deflecting pope was three questions to his audience of a paedophile ring.

Hands up to those who has raped or molested a child?

Hands up to those who have covered up heinous crimes including rape and molestation?

Hands up those who have raped nuns?

 No, it was just a political wordfest. And the scum priests know that this will possibly take the heat off them, will excuse them.

No way. They have ruined lives and they need to go to jail for long terms.

Blaming it on another non-existent god...Satan...and not holding the creeps responsible and severely punishing them, is a total cop out. Playing the superstition blame game is just BS. And those covering up, relocating and protecting the predators should also be held responsible. 

*Deleted quote edited out*

 

MOST on this forum have no problem with people believing whatever flavor of superstition they like. We DO, however, have a problem when they start legislating and forcing their ignorant, very subjective beliefs and ideals on those that don't agree...like health care, who can have sex with whom, abortion, contraception and on and on. We DO have a problem when they get special treatment and privilege from governments. We DO have a problem when they deny science, facts and evidence and try to stop public schools from teaching the truth and the facts. We DO have a problem when they kill, harm or cause terror based on these very subjective and unproven, ancient beliefs. We DO have a problem when governments kowtow and show special treatment to groups because they claim some sort of god-knowledge. We DO have a problem when they let a "for profit" institution dodge taxes because they falsely claim to be a non profit AND we DO have a problem when they get a free pass and are not held to the same criminal law that any other institution and people would be subject to for using their authority for misleading, then sexually abusing, assaulting and raping children. We also have a problem when those that harbored, lied for, transferred, sheltered and covered up for the predators are not held responsible in kind. 

 

Freedom of religion...good.

Freedom to break the law, change the law based on ignorance, do whatever they please, deny science and teach ridiculous bullcrap, get preferential treatment and rape kids...NOT GOOD. 

Edited February 26, 20197 yr by Scott

As Francis prepares to host a historic bishops’ summit this week to address clerical sexual abuse, the lapses in the case — affecting the pope’s home country of Argentina and the home country of the Roman Catholic Church — illustrate the still-present failures of the church to fix a system that has allowed priests to continue to abuse children long after they were first accused.”

Pope Francis should resign and the Vatican should sell their churches and properties to pay off all the victims of these terrible crimes, but this is never going to happen because their pedophile elite still rules the world.

 

http://leozagami.com/2019/02/20/pope-francis-shamefully-ignored-the-sexual-abuse-of-deaf-children-in-argentina/

Absolutely ridiculous BS. The Vatican has a long legacy of protecting their child rapists, and it will continue to do so. This ridiculous and dangerous cult should've been disbanded a long time ago.