Pope Benedict threw his authority behind a new and uncompromising approach to sex abuse in the Roman Catholic Church on Friday when he ordered one of its most influential figures, who faces multiple allegations, to give up his ministry and retire to a life of "prayer and repentance."
A statement issued by the Vatican said 86-year-old Father Marcial Maciel, the founder of the ultra-orthodox Legion of Christ, had only escaped a full trial in an ecclesiastical court because of his "advanced age [and] frail health."
Father Maciel's case had been repeatedly shelved by Church leaders over a period of 30 years.
The statement made a point of noting that the sanctions against the priest had been personally endorsed by the pontiff.
His landmark ruling astonished and delighted campaigners for the victims of abuse. It represented a clear departure from the timorous policy of John Paul II, and appeared to be a first step toward fulfilling the new pontiff's vow to sweep "filth" from the Church.
The Legion said in a statement that its founder maintained his innocence but accepted the Vatican's decision with "faith, complete serenity and tranquillity of conscience."
It said he considered the ruling "a new cross that God, the father of mercy, has allowed him to suffer and that will obtain many graces for the Legion of Christ."
Father Maciel is revered by tens of thousands of followers in more than 20 countries. His official biography gives his distinguishing characteristic as "his strong commitment to the family."
Church leaders have described how the late pope would highlight their shortcomings by contrasting them unfavorably with Father Maciel.
In 1991, pope John Paul presided at a mass ordination of Legionaries at St Peter's and three years later made their founder a permanent adviser to the Vatican department responsible for priests.
The US-based Survivors' Network of those Abused by Priests welcomed Pope Benedict's decision as a "wise and compassionate step."
The organization added: "We deeply appreciate that, at the highest levels of the Church, action has been taken against such an extraordinarily high-ranking Catholic leader."
Allegations of sex abuse have been the subject of controversy within the Roman Catholic Church ever since they burst into the open in the US four years ago.
However, Father Maciel was first accused in 1976, when the case against him was taken up by a US bishop.
The allegations concerned his behavior toward young seminarians in Spain and Italy in the 1940s and 1950s. Documents sent to the Vatican were ignored on three occasions.
But in 1991, seven other former Legionaries accused Father Maciel of abusing them, and the following year a case was lodged with the Vatican department of which Pope Benedict, the former Cardinal Ratzinger, was then head. Once again, proceedings were halted.
HOUSES FLOODED: The ground shook in Tonga as explosions were heard, followed by gushing water and pelting rocks, sending people running to higher ground A massive volcanic eruption in Tonga that triggered tsunami waves around the Pacific caused “significant damage” to the island nation’s capital and smothered it in dust, but the full extent was not apparent with communications still cut off yesterday. The eruption on Saturday was so powerful that it was recorded around the world, triggering a tsunami that flooded Pacific coastlines from Japan to the US. Tonga’s capital, Nuku’alofa, suffered “significant” damage, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said, adding that there had been no reports of injury or death, but a full assessment was not possible with communication lines down. “The tsunami has
Two years ago, Qi Jiayao visited his mother’s hometown of Shaoxing in eastern China. When he tried to speak to his cousin’s children in the local dialect, Qi was surprised. “None of them was able to,” said the 38-year-old linguist, who teaches Mandarin in Mexico. The decline in local dialects among the younger generation has become more apparent in recent years as Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) has sought to bolster a uniform Chinese identity. Mandarin is now spoken by more than 80 percent of China’s population, up from 70 percent a decade ago. Last month, China’s State Council promised to
DEMOGRAPHIC CRISIS: Beijing is attempting to address its population decline, including considering raising the retirement age and allowing more than two children China’s birthrate has fallen to its lowest level in six decades, barely outnumbering deaths last year despite major government efforts to increase population growth and stave off a demographic crisis. Across China, 10.62 million babies were born last year, a rate of 7.52 per thousand people, the Chinese National Bureau of Statistics said yesterday. In the same period 10.14 million deaths were recorded, a mortality rate of 7.18 per thousand, producing a population growth rate of just 0.34 per 1,000 people. The growth rate is the lowest since 1960, and adds to the findings of May last year’s once-per-decade census, which found
‘PRECAUTIONARY MEASURE’: Authorities asked anyone who bought a hamster after Dec. 22 to hand it over after hamsters at a shop tested positive for the Delta variant Hong Kong’s government yesterday faced outrage over its decision to cull hundreds of small animals after hamsters in a store tested positive for COVID-19. Like China, Hong Kong maintains a staunch “zero COVID” policy, stamping out the merest trace of the virus with contact tracing, mass testing, strict quarantines and prolonged social distancing rules. Its latest measures target hamsters and other small mammals — including chinchillas, rabbits and guinea pigs, which authorities on Tuesday said would be culled as a “precautionary measure.” The drastic move came after hamsters sold at the Little Boss pet shop tested positive for the Delta variant of
RSS