60 Minutes on CBS - Sunday, November 16, 2014

Broadway World
November 14, 2014

http://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwtv/article/Scoop-60-MINUTES-on-CBS-Sunday-November-16-2014-20141114

Cardinal Sean O'Malley, the Archbishop of Boston, tells 60 MINUTES that the Vatican needs to "urgently address" the fact that the first American bishop to be convicted of shielding an abusive priest still remains the head of an American Catholic diocese. O'Malley speaks to Norah O'Donnell in a rare extended interview in which the cardinal addresses several issues in the Catholic Church. It will be broadcast on 60 MINUTES, Sunday Nov. 16 (7:00-8:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

Bishop Robert Finn of the Kansas City-St. Joseph, Mo., diocese, pleaded guilty more than two years ago to the criminal misdemeanor of failing to tell law enforcement one of his priests was suspected of sexually abusing a minor. The Vatican began investigating Finn's leadership of his diocese in September, where he remains bishop. Citing the Church's stated "zero tolerance" policy on sex abuse, O'Donnell says to O'Malley that Finn "wouldn't be allowed to teach Sunday school in Boston."

"That's right," replies O'Malley. Asked what Finn's continued status says to Catholics, the Cardinal responds, "It's a question the Holy See needs to address urgently…There's a recognition of that from Pope Francis." Watch an excerpt. O'Malley is head of the Catholic Church's new commission formed to combat child abuse in the Church worldwide. He was also chosen by Pope Francis to be on the nine-member Council of Cardinals - the pontiff's closest advisors.

The issue of Finn in Missouri is not the only controversial decision by the Vatican that O'Donnell asks about. The Vatican's doctrine office reprimanded a body of American nuns last year for focusing more on social justice than on matters like contraception and abortion. The nuns were placed under the supervision of a panel of three bishops and the Catholic Church, perceived by many to be "cracking down" on nuns, suffered another image crisis.

What does O'Malley think of that affair? "A disaster," he tells O'Donnell.

O'Donnell's interview of the cardinal also includes a lively discussion of the role of women in the modern Church.