PONTIFICAL SECRETS
“Pope Benedict XVI faced claims last night,” according to the Guardian, “he had ‘obstructed justice’ after it emerged he issued an order ensuring the church’s investigations into child sex abuse claims be carried out in secret. The order was made in a confidential letter, obtained by The Observer, which was sent to every Catholic bishop in May 2001.”
“It asserted the church’s right to hold its inquiries behind closed doors and keep the evidence confidential for up to 10 years after the victims reached adulthood. The letter was signed by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger… Lawyers acting for abuse victims claim it was designed to prevent the allegations from becoming public knowledge or being investigated by the police. They accuse Ratzinger of committing a ‘clear obstruction of justice’.”
The letter, the newspaper continues, “orders that ‘preliminary investigations’ into any claims of abuse should be sent to Ratzinger’s office” and that all proceedings must be internal and conducted “only by priests.”
“‘Cases of this kind are subject to the pontifical secret,’ Ratzinger’s letter concludes. Breaching the pontifical secret at any time while the 10-year jurisdiction order is operating carries penalties, including the threat of excommunication.”
So Ratzinger believes that anyone telling the authorities of crimes against children should be excommunicated but the pedophile should be protected and even promoted...
What a sick cult it has become.
Nazis, moral authority, what a joke.
What a sick joke that story has become. Are you so desperate to disparage the Church that you will resort to quoting the Guardian and repeating lies? The letter you are referring to was written in 1922 and was re-issued in English in 1962. Your summary of the contents is fallacious.