VATICAN CITY
Catholic News Agency
By Andrea Gagliarducci
Vatican City, Nov 11, 2014 / 11:10 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis established on Tuesday a new judicial body within the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith with responsibility for dealing with clerical sex abuse, thus confirming the Holy See’s continuing response to the crisis.
The new body, which is known as a college and which goes into effect Nov. 11, was established “due to the number of appeals and the need to guarantee that they are examined more rapidly and following detailed reflection.”
The decision was taken by Pope Francis during a Nov. 3 audience with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State, and issued in a rescript.
The department will be composed of seven members appointed by the Pope from among cardinals and bishops, and will be entrusted with examining appeals by clergy accused of commiting ‘delicta graviora’, or ‘more grave crimes’, in order to lighten the work of the ordinary session of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. The department’s members do not have to be members of the congregation.
The ordinary session is the plenary meeting of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, and it meets once a month, on Wednesday – hence the name of ‘feria quarta’ to label the meeting, ‘feria quarta’ being the Latin name for Wednesday.
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