POLAND
Associated Press
December 8, 2020
A popular Polish priest apologized Tuesday for a sermon in which he defended a bishop accused of covering up for pedophile priests. His sermon, delivered to a congregation including the justice minister and other top politicians, was later condemned by government officials.
Father Tadeusz Rydzyk insisted that he had not intended to hurt victims or downplay the church’s role in the “sin and crime of pedophilia.”
Rydzyk’s apology came days after he had defended Bishop Henryk Janiak, who was recently removed by Pope Francis amid an investigation into media allegations that he had covered up cases of sexual abuse by priests. Rydzyk called Janiak a “contemporary martyr of the media.”
He said that priests also commit sins, adding: “Who does not have temptations?”
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