What happened?
Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Bishop Juan Barros of Osorno, who faced fierce protests during his three-year tenure for allegedly covering up sex abuse by Fr Fernando Karadima. The Pope also accepted the resignations of two prelates past the age of retirement: Archbishop Cristián Caro Cordero of Puerto Montt and Bishop Gonzalo Duarte García de Cortazar of Valparaiso. All of Chile’s 34 serving bishops offered their resignations in a joint letter last month.
What the Chileans are saying
Juan Carlos Cruz, an abuse survivor who met the Pope last month, said the resignations signalled a “new day for the Catholic Church in Chile”.
He wrote on Twitter: “We hope this is the beginning of the end of this culture of abuse and cover-up.” The Chilean newspaper La Tercera reported that the three resignations were only the start. Some in the Church, it said, suggested up to 16 bishops could go – nearly half of the country’s bishops’ conference. “Nobody is safe,” it said.
The Vatican’s investigators arrived in the Diocese of Osorno a few days after the announcement. La Tercera said Archbishop Charles Scicluna and Fr Jordi Bertomeu were greeted at the airport like “rock stars”. At parishes strongly opposed to Bishop Barros, the paper said, the pair were received “amid songs and applause”.
What the vaticanisti are saying
Rocco Palmo, writing at Whispers in the Loggia, said the Pope’s most critical personnel decisions were still to come: he had to choose successors for “tainted nuncio”Archbishop Scapolo and the current Santiago archbishop, Cardinal Ezzati, who is a year past the retirement age of 75, as well as decide the fate of his predecessor, Cardinal Errázuriz. Cardinal Errázuriz attended the Pope’s Council of Cardinals
meeting last week despite allegedly ignoring claims of abuse for years.
Meanwhile, abuse survivor Marie Collins, who resigned from the Pope’s child protection commission, challenged Cruz’s assertion that the three bishops had been “fired”. She wrote on Twitter: “It would be good if they had been ‘fired’ – unfortunately nothing changes as they have been allowed to resign. It is not the same.”
✣✣ Archbishop: Duterte ‘emboldened’ murder of priests
What happened?
Archbishop Socrates Villegas of Lingayen-Dagupan urged the Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte to stop his “verbal persecution” of the Church, saying it could “embolden more crimes against priests”. Three have been shot dead since December. A spokesman for Duterte denied a link between his rhetoric and the murders.
Why was it under-reported
To the world’s media, the killing of three priests may seem a minor detail amid a war on drugs that has left 12,000 dead. But the murders – carried out by gunmen on motorbikes – have shaken the country. A spokesman for Duterte claimed they were intended to “sow division” and undermine a crackdown on crime. Senators have called for an inquiry. The Church, meanwhile, held a national day of reparation for the “sins of blasphemy, the sins of … calumny hurled against our priests and bishops, [and] the
murders that continue without relent”.
What will happen next?
The motives for the killings are unclear. One of the priests, Fr Mark Ventura, is accused of having a series of affairs – a detail that Duterte made public, citing a police report. Only one person, described as a known hitman by police, has been arrested so far (for the murder of Fr Richmond Nilo, who was shot through a chapel window as he was about to celebrate Mass). The Church says Duterte’s
war has weakened respect for life. Cardinal Tagle said last week: “Killing is not a solution to personal and societal problems.”
✣The week ahead
The statue of Our Lady of Walsingham visits Liverpool’s Metropolitan Cathedral today and tomorrow.
The occasion marks the start of a two-year tour of English cathedrals. This evening there will be sung Mass, Adoration and a talk about Walsingham. The tour is intended to prepare England for its rededication as the Dowry of Mary in 2020.
a Vatican trial of a former diplomat begins today. Mgr Carlo Alberto Capella (pictured) was recalled from the Vatican nunciature in Washington DC last year amid allegations relating to child pornography. If found guilty he could be jailed for up to five years.
Pope Francis will create 14 cardinals next Friday, the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul. They include Patriarch Louis Sako, leader of the Chaldean Church in Iraq, Archbishop Luis Ladaria, the Vatican’s doctrinal chief, and Archbishop Angelo Becciu, number two at the Secretariat of State. The new cardinals will concelebrate Mass with the Pope on the same day.
Areas of Catholic Herald business are still recovering post-pandemic.
However, we are reaching out to the Catholic community and readership, that has been so loyal to the Catholic Herald. Please join us on our 135 year mission by supporting us.
We are raising £250,000 to safeguard the Herald as a world-leading voice in Catholic journalism and teaching.
We have been a bold and influential voice in the church since 1888, standing up for traditional Catholic culture and values. Please consider donating.