The future Pope Benedict XVI resisted pleas to defrock a California priest with a record of sexually molesting children, citing concerns including “the good of the universal church,” according to a 1985 letter bearing his signature.
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Vatican knew of pedophile priest convicted of molesting children in 1981.
The following is a translation of the letter, from its original Latin, to English, provided by AP.
Most Excellent Bishop
Having received your letter of September 13 of this year, regarding the matter of the removal from all priestly burdens pertaining to Rev Stephen Miller Kiesle in your diocese, it is my duty to share with you the following:
This court, although it regards the arguments presented in favour of removal in this case to be of grave significance, nevertheless deems it necessary to consider the good of the Universal Church together with that of the petitioner, and it is also u
I think that sometimes these perpetrators actually think that we will not investigate their statements. See our new blog where we catch Fr. Jeyapaul in lies. Please leave a comment.
With Pope Benedict XVI in a stance of passive silence on the clergy sex abuse crisis, the Vatican strategy of attacking the news media has made the pope more vulnerable to criticism. Loyal Catholics, and even political leaders inclined to give the pontiff the benefit of the doubt, are wondering why he can’t say what went wrong and how he will make structural changes.
After Reverend Joseph Jeyapaul denied knowing the 15-year-old Minnesota girl he is charged with raping, attorney Jeff Anderson released emails showing the extent of their relationship.
At the heart of two lawsuits that are working their way through the federal courts lies one question: Does the Vatican control its Catholic bishops?
A Roman Catholic priest charged with sexually assaulting a teenage parishioner in Minnesota said Tuesday he would willingly leave his native India and try to clear his name in the courts if the United States tried to extradite him.
A Roman Catholic priest charged with sexually assaulting a teenage parishioner in Minnesota said Tuesday he would willingly leave his native India and try to clear his name in the courts if the United States tried to extradite him.
Top officials at the Vatican were warned more than four years ago about a Catholic priest later charged with sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl in Minnesota, according to newly released Vatican correspondence, but to this day he continues to work in his home diocese in India.