Like Maciel, McCarrick was a powerful and popular prelate who funneled millions in donations to the Vatican. Among Maciel’s staunchest admirers was Pope John Paul II, who later became a saint. Maciel’s sex crimes against children were ignored for decades by a Vatican impressed by his ability to bring in donations and vocations. Marcial Maciel, perhaps the 20th-century Catholic Church’s most notorious pedophile. Vatican watchers have compared the McCarrick cover-up scandal to that of the Rev. The Vatican has acknowledged the outcome may produce evidence that mistakes were made, but said Francis would “follow the path of truth, wherever it may lead.” But he has ordered a limited Vatican investigation. accused the pope of rehabilitating the cardinal from sanctions imposed by Pope Benedict XVI despite being told of his penchant for young men.įrancis hasn’t responded to the claims. The allegation regarding the altar boy was the first known to involve a minor - a far more serious offense than sleeping with adult seminarians.įrancis himself became implicated in the decade-long McCarrick cover-up after a former Vatican ambassador to the U.S. That perceived hypocrisy, coupled with allegations in the Pennsylvania grand jury report detailing decades of abuse and cover-up in six dioceses, outraged many among the rank-and-file faithful who had trusted church leaders to reform how they handled sex abuse after 2002. bishops when they enacted a “zero tolerance” policy against sexually abusive priests in 2002. It was called in part to respond to the McCarrick scandal as well as to the explosion of the abuse crisis in Chile and its escalation in the United States last year.ĭespite the apparent common knowledge in church circles of his sexual behavior, McCarrick rose to the heights of church power. 21-24, draws church leaders from around the world to talk about preventing abuse. It marks a remarkable downfall for the globe-trotting powerbroker and influential church fundraiser who mingled with presidents and popes but preferred to be called “Uncle Ted” by the young men he courted. The archdiocese of Washington, D.C., where McCarrick was posted at the pinnacle of his clerical career, from 2001-2006, said in a statement it hoped that the Vatican decision “serves to help the healing process for survivors of abuse, as well as those who have experienced disappointment or disillusionment because of what former Archbishop McCarrick has done.”Ĭomplaints were also made about McCarrick’s conduct in the New Jersey dioceses of Newark and Metuchen, where he previously served. McCarrick had appealed his penalty, but the doctrinal officials earlier this week rejected that, and he was notified of the decision on Friday, the Vatican announcement said. Coburn also declined to say if McCarrick was still residing at the Kansas friary. McCarrick’s civil lawyer, Barry Coburn, told The AP that for the time being his client had no comment. McCarrick moved from his Washington retirement home to a Kansas religious residence after Francis ordered him to live in penance and prayer while the investigation continued. “Hundreds of priests, bishops and cardinals are hiding behind man-made law,” he said.ĭan Diamond and Adam Cancryn and Brianna Ehley Saying it’s “time for us to cleanse the church,” Grein said pressure needs to be put on state attorney generals and senators to change the statute of limitations. Grein had testified to church officials that, among other abuses, McCarrick had repeatedly groped him during confession. In a statement issued through his lawyer, Grein also expressed hope that McCarrick “will no longer be able to use the power of Jesus’ church to manipulate families and sexually abuse children.” “Today I am happy that the pope believed me,” said one of McCarrick’s chief accusers, James Grein. The pope “has recognized the definitive nature of this decision made in accordance with (church) law, rendering it as ‘res iudicata,’” the Vatican said, using the Latin phrase for admitting no further recourse. McCarrick, when he was ordained a priest his native New York City in 1958, took a vow of celibacy, in accordance with church rules on priests.
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