ROME
Herald Scotland
Sunday 10 March 2013
It seemed like business as usual at the Vatican yesterday as Rome firefighters fitted a chimney on the top of the Sistine Chapel for the puff of white smoke which will herald the election of a new pontiff by the conclave.
However, it will be clerical sexual abuse, financial scandal and homosexuality that top the agenda for the 115 cardinals as they reflect on the role of the Roman Catholic Church in the modern world under Michelangelo’s towering depiction of the Last Judgement.
An American activist group has ensured that sexual abuse remains a lead issue by publishing a list of 12 cardinals it says should not be considered for election, claiming they had a poor record in handling cases of priestly paedophilia, or had been negligent in oversight. There is no allegation any of the 12 cardinals were involved in any criminal acts themselves.
The blacklist, published by Survivors Network For Those Abused By Priests, included several candidates thought to have a real chance of lifting the pope’s white “zucchetto” hat.
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