JAPAN
La Croix International
June 18, 2018
By Father William Grimm, MM, Tokyo
The window of opportunity to deal with the problem before it becomes a major scandal is closing
Pope Francis accepted the resignations of three Chilean bishops in connection with the cover-up of sexual abuse by clergy in their country.
One bishop was the lightning rod for uproar among Chile’s Catholics because of accusations that as a priest he covered up abuse by a priest who was his mentor. The pope’s appointment of him as a bishop and his initial vehement defense of the man in the face of protests have been the low point of Francis’ papacy.
The other bishops whose resignations were accepted have already reached the episcopal retirement age of 75, so the pope’s having them step down is not going to satisfy critics who point out that cover-ups have been a systemic problem involving more than a handful of bishops.
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