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	Claims Aim to Tarnish Church: Vatican United States Conference of Catholic Bishops March 23, 2010 http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Claims+tarnish+church+Vatican/2716873/story.html Fresh allegations made against Austrian clergy The Vatican criticized yesterday what it said was a bid to undermine the Roman Catholic Church, which is facing a deepening scandal over child abuse by priests in Europe. As fresh allegations mounted against clergy in Austria, adding to hundreds of cases in Germany and the Netherlands, Vatican Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone acknowledged that confidence in the church had declined. "There has been a reduction in faith in all institutions, including the church," said Bertone, second in the Vatican hierarchy, after meeting Italian business leaders. "The church still enjoys great confidence on the part of the faithful, it is just that someone is trying to undermine that," he said, without referring directly to the pedophilia scandal. "But the church has special help from above." In recent weeks, senior prelates have said it is unfair to single out the church for child abuse, which also occurs in secular institutions. They have accused the media of exaggerating the problem. However, in Austria local media reported yesterday rising numbers of people leaving the Catholic Church as accusations of priestly pedophilia continued to shock the nation. Fresh allegations surfaced in the Tyrol, and five clergy were suspended from an Austrian monastery at the centre of another case. A newspaper published an apology from one of the men to ex-pupils saying: "I never wanted to be a sadist." Austrian authorities said religious and secular groups were being invited to a roundtable in April about how to protect children better. "This is far from being just about the church: 80 to 90 per cent of the cases happen in families," said junior family minister Christine Marek.
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