Did the Vatican cover up evidence of Kiesle’s predatory behavior? No. The civil courts of California destroyed that evidence after the priest completed a sentence of probation — before the case reached Rome.
So this was not a question of cover-up or poor Vatican oversight or failure to discipline a priest. Kiesle merely asked to be released from his vows, and the Vatican wanted to consider the request carefully.
When a priest is laicized, he returns to a lay state and is no longer under the control of the Church. Who is responsible for his actions after laicization? Ratzinger only requested more time to consider the request for laicization. In two years, he was laicized. But it took the civil authorities nine years to investigate, prosecute and finally convict the priest. Who is truly at fault? There is no evidence of any cover-up in this case or any other adjudicated by Pope Benedict XVI.
I urge members of the media to get their facts right in the frenzied discourse on child sexual abuse, which has become a hydra-headed monster in our society. As was recently seen in Malta, Pope Benedict is deeply moved by the stories told by victims and has expressed his shame and sorrow, assuring them that the Church will continue to do all in its power to investigate allegations, to bring to justice those responsible for abuse and to implement effective measures designed to safeguard young people in the future. No one else has done as much as Pope Benedict XVI, and by extension, the Catholic Church, to provide a safer environment for our children. Today, the Catholic Church — its schools, hospitals and organizations are the safest environments for children in today’s world bedeviled by sexual predators. The records are there for everyone to see.
Read it all.
R.C. Bishop of Charleston, S.C.: Media should get facts straight on actions taken by the Church
Did the Vatican cover up evidence of Kiesle’s predatory behavior? No. The civil courts of California destroyed that evidence after the priest completed a sentence of probation — before the case reached Rome.
So this was not a question of cover-up or poor Vatican oversight or failure to discipline a priest. Kiesle merely asked to be released from his vows, and the Vatican wanted to consider the request carefully.
When a priest is laicized, he returns to a lay state and is no longer under the control of the Church. Who is responsible for his actions after laicization? Ratzinger only requested more time to consider the request for laicization. In two years, he was laicized. But it took the civil authorities nine years to investigate, prosecute and finally convict the priest. Who is truly at fault? There is no evidence of any cover-up in this case or any other adjudicated by Pope Benedict XVI.
I urge members of the media to get their facts right in the frenzied discourse on child sexual abuse, which has become a hydra-headed monster in our society. As was recently seen in Malta, Pope Benedict is deeply moved by the stories told by victims and has expressed his shame and sorrow, assuring them that the Church will continue to do all in its power to investigate allegations, to bring to justice those responsible for abuse and to implement effective measures designed to safeguard young people in the future. No one else has done as much as Pope Benedict XVI, and by extension, the Catholic Church, to provide a safer environment for our children. Today, the Catholic Church — its schools, hospitals and organizations are the safest environments for children in today’s world bedeviled by sexual predators. The records are there for everyone to see.
Read it all.