French cardinal says book royalties to go to abuse victims

WASHINGTON (DC)
Catholic News Service via Crux

October 10, 2020

By Jonathan Luxmoore

A French cardinal who resigned as archbishop of Lyon after being acquitted of failing to report clerical sex abuse said the royalties from his new book would go to abuse victims.

Cardinal Philippe Barbarin told France’s RTL radio that the Archdiocese of Lyon would distribute the money.

“I’m not benefiting personally and I’m happy to do anything which helps the victims,” he said in early October.

His book, En mon âme et conscience (“In my Spirit and Conscience”), details events that led to his March resignation, six weeks after his suspended sentence was overturned on appeal. The French-language book was published Oct. 1.

He said he had been living a “discreet life” since July 1 as a convent chaplain for the Little Sisters of the Poor at Saint-Pern in Brittany. He also teaches at the Rennes archdiocesan seminary.

“I was not guilty of what I was accused, but this doesn’t mean I didn’t make mistakes,” Barbarin told the radio.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.