With the death of Pope Benedict XVI. and Cardinal George Pell once again focus on the abuse scandals in the Catholic Church. Image: Corbis Historical / Alessandra Benedetti – Corbis
analysis
01/12/2023, 19:3901/12/2023, 19:40
For believers, the church is a sacred place. Most probably treat the priests with respect. After all they are men god.
Why not trust them – or your own children entrust?
The priests take the children to the summer camp. Sing with them in the church choir, hear their confessions or prepare for mass together. Some come close to them – too close.
Many children are involved in the Catholic Church and sing in the children’s choir.Image: IMAGO/Panama Pictures / Christoph Hardt
Abuse in the church was not previously considered a crime
Child Abuse in the Catholic Church: A Dark Shadow Cast by the Powerful Spiritual Institution. The recently deceased Pope Benedict XVI. was involved in various scandals. Although he was never accused of abuse himself, did he try to cover up any cases? With every case of abuse that is uncovered, more light comes into the darkness. In the 21st century, these incidents are no longer tolerated as a taboo subject in the Church. It used to be different.
“Sexualized force was not considered a crime,” explains Christian Weisner in an interview with watson. He was a co-initiator of the church people’s initiative “We are Church” in Germany, which was launched in 1995 in Austria after the abuse scandal surrounding Cardinal Hans-Hermann Groër in Vienna. Weisner is also one of the co-founders of “We are Church International” in Rome in 1996. The aim of this globally networked reform movement is to renew the Roman Catholic Church.
Christian Weisner wants to reform the Roman Catholic Church.Image: bild / Christian Weisner
An important topic here is above all sexualized violence in the church. For evidently some in the church still cling to antiquated views. Weisser says:
“In previous decades, sexualized violence against children and young people was not perceived as a serious problem in society and – what is particularly scandalous – also in the churches.”
According to Weisner, they took People At that time, the experience of sexual abuse was usually processed quickly. The lifelong effects on those affected were not considered.
Saving the face of the church – by all means
Apparently, the reputation of the church was more important than protecting children and young people. “Sexual matters were generally regarded as a strict seal of confession that must not be broken under any circumstances,” says the church reformer. To this day, the male bond between the celibate priests and bishops in the Roman Catholic Church allows them to cover for one another.
Spiritualists in the Catholic Church are committed to sexual abstinence.Credit: IMAGO/ZUMA Wire / Grzegorz Galazka
Because of celibacy, Catholic priests commit to one life without marriage and thus also to sexual abstinence. Weisner explains that the church did not want to let it leak out that priests cannot be abstinent, but can also be invasive and violent. He says:
“The reputation of the institution of the church, which officially sees itself as ‘societas perfecta’, perfect community, is more important than avoiding future crimes. That’s why the churches are often content with admonitions and transfers, sometimes even abroad.”
In addition, the church is trying to avoid reports to state law enforcement agencies. Sometimes hush money is paid to those affected, says Weisner. Because every cover-up attempt uncovered by the church immensely damages its reputation. Especially when assistance was provided through transfers – as in the case of the late Pope Benedict XVI.
Abuse report: Serious allegations against Pope Benedict
Before becoming Pope, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was Archbishop of Munich from 1977 to 1982. During this time, a total of four abusers were reinstated in pastoral care under his care. The most prominent case, according to Weisner, is from meal replied Father H. He returned to the ministry against the therapist’s advice.
The late Pope Benedict XVI. is suspected of having covered up incidents of abuse. Image: imago images/epd
The second Munich abuse report in January 2022 explained that this Knowledge must have happened by Joseph Ratzinger. “But he questioned his shared responsibility at the time with irritating statements and with the help of expensive lawyers.”says Weisser. At the end of his life, Ratzinger’s reputation as a “collaborator of truth”, his bishop’s verdict, was extremely damaged.
Cardinal George Pell was convicted of child molestation
Also Cardinal George Pell, who died on January 10, 2023 Australia made headlines around the world in 2019. He received a six-year prison sentence for child abuse. Pell thus became the senior clergyman in the Story of the Catholic Church, who was convicted of child abuse. In the 1990s, after the service, he is said to have molested two choirboys who were 13 at the time. The testimony of a former choirboy was instrumental in the verdict.
But: After thirteen months, Pell was free again.
Cardinal George Pell was the first senior minister to be convicted of child molestation.Image: AP / Andrew Medichini
Pell’s defense attorneys argued that the victim’s testimony was insufficient to establish the cardinal’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. They also said it was impossible for an archbishop to be alone in the sacristy with two choirboys for five or six minutes after a Sunday mass – as it is said to have been during an assault.
Due to a lack of evidence, Pell was a free man again and returned to the Vatican a few months after his release. According to media reports, the former choirboy died of an overdose in 2014 drugs.
Although allegations against Pell persisted, his career in the Catholic Church continued. He later became a confidante of Pope Francis, who appointed him Prefect of the Economic Secretariat in 2014 to help shore up the Vatican’s finances.
What role does the state play in such crimes? Should he intervene more? The church reformer Weisner thinks yes.
The failure of the state in ecclesiastical crimes
According to Weisner, the state often fails as a supervisory authority because too much trust is placed in church institutions. This has been shown by state investigation reports, such as those in Ireland and Australia. “Until now, the Church’s claims to judicial self-government have been naively respected,” says the expert.
The Catholic Church claims judicial self-government, which has long been respected.Image: IMAGO/Funke Photo Services / Marco Kneise
In the meantime, however, he sees a change in politics. For example, the statute of limitations has been extended or lifted. The position of the independent commissioner for questions of sexual abuse (UBSKM) in the federal government has also contributed a lot to changing awareness and made the churches responsible. But more needs to be done, says Weisner. He says:
“It was assumed that the church could regulate the offenses within its own canon law and that no cooperation with the law enforcement authorities was necessary. But this view is wrong.”
In 2001, all cases of abuse worldwide were placed under the so-called “papal secret” under penalty of excommunication, i.e. exclusion from the church, and had to be handed over to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in the Vatican.
Close your eyes: Under Pope Benedict (right), there was no persecution of the abusers. Image: AP / Alessandra Tarantino
“The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which is responsible for the teaching of the Church and was then headed by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, was completely overwhelmed both technically and organizationally,” says Weisner. What was supposed to make the pursuit of the perpetrators more efficient ultimately served more of a cover-up.
According to the expert, the Catholic Church has fallen into what is probably the worst crisis since the Reformation as a result of the sexualised and also spiritual violence perpetrated by clerics. “Ultimately, what is needed is not only structural reforms, but also a change in the image of the priest and the Christian image of man,” says Weisner.
(With material from the dpa)
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