The Vatican’s secretary of state has dismissed the claim that clergy sexual abuse is linked to homosexuality, labeling it a “serious and scientifically untenable association.” “Homosexual orientation cannot be considered as either cause or aspect typical of the abuser, even more so when it is decoupled from the general arrangement of the person,” wrote Italian … Read more
A former campus minister at Franciscan University of Steubenville has been charged with rape and sexual battery against an individual with mental illness placed under his care for mental health treatment. The charges against Third Order Franciscan Fr. David Morrier were filed on April 7 in Jefferson County, Ohio. Morrier, 59, is charged with one … Read more
Archbishop Wilton Gregory of Washington doubled down on his criticism of President Donald Trump’s visit to the Saint John Paul II National Shrine earlier this week, saying Friday that a place dedicated to the memory of the late Polish pope should have “never been used as a place for a political statement.” “Long before he … Read more
A court-appointed official for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis is alleging that the Vatican’s Congregation for Bishops is failing to comply with new protocols for bishop accountability created by Pope Francis with regard to a potential investigation into former Archbishop John Nienstedt. Nienstedt led the archdiocese from 2008 until resigning under fire in … Read more
As parishioners attended the Feast of the Assumption Mass inside Guardian Angels Catholic Church on August 15, members of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) gathered outside on the sidewalk for a press conference marking an occasion that many believed would never come. Less than 24 hours earlier, police in Cheyenne, Wyoming … Read more
As pressure continues to mount for Buffalo Bishop Richard Malone to step down over his handling of sex abuse cases, two seminarians have publicly left the diocesan seminary and echoed calls for his resignation. The first seminarian, Stephen Parisi, withdrew in a 6-page letter dated August 15 where he outlines what he describes as a lack of … Read more
At a time when the U.S. Catholic bishops are meeting to vote on new measures for bishop accountability, Pope Francis has given the green light for a penal process for a retired U.S. bishop accused of multiple accounts of abuse. Bishop Steven Biegler of Cheyenne, Wyoming announced on Wednesday that the case of Bishop Joseph … Read more
Fulfilling a vow to release the names of all U.S.-based Jesuits credibly accused of abuse, the Northeast Province of the Jesuits released a list on Tuesday, becoming the final province of the Society of Jesus to do so. In all, 50 names from the province were released, only 15 of whom are still alive. The … Read more
Six months after the scandal surrounding former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick first came to light – wherein accusations of sexual abuse from a former altar boy prompted subsequent revelations of abuse and misconduct – Crux has learned that the Vatican is now investigating a total of three cases of abuse against the former archbishop of Washington, … Read more