Paedophiles in the Church.

Priest sex abusers should “always” be turned in to civil authorities, the Vatican said on Monday in guidelines on handling paedophilia cases posted on its website.

“Civil law concerning reporting of crimes to the appropriate authorities should always be followed,” state the guidelines compiled from existing Vatican rules.

The document also confirms that the pope can intervene directly to defrock the worst offenders.

“In very grave cases where a civil criminal trial has found the cleric guilty of sexual abuse of minors or where the evidence is overwhelming” the pope may issue a decree to remove him from the priesthood.

“If the allegation has a semblance of truth the case is referred to the CDF,” they say, referring to the Vatican’s morals watchdog, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

“There is no canonical remedy against such a papal decree,” add the guidelines, drawn from the Church’s canon law and a papal instruction signed in 2001 by then Pope John Paul II.

The decree on “serious crimes” was drafted by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger — now Pope Benedict XVI — when he headed the CDF.

The Vatican announced on Friday that it would post the guidelines as a way of helping Roman Catholic authorities deal with predator priests.

Large-scale paedophilia scandals have rocked the Catholic churches of Ireland, Austria, the United States and the pope’s native Germany in recent months.
The pontiff, who turns 83 on Friday, has himself faced allegations that he failed to take action against predator priests both as head of the CDF and earlier as the archbishop of Munich. –

On Friday he faced fresh charges that he dragged his feet over defrocking a predator priest in California.

The same day the Canadian Church was hit by revelations that bishops sought to hide a paedophile priest’s crimes by urging the Vatican not to promote him some 20 years ago.

Norway joined the list of churches embroiled in scandal last Wednesday with the disclosure that one of Norway’s former bishops, the German-born Georg Mueller, had abused a choirboy in the early 1990s.

I would say that if the church is going to investigate then it should be done openly and honestly. If you say the scandals go back to 1963 I would bet that these crimes have been committed since a lot longer.

Also I wonder what checks the church carries out on applicants for the priesthood. When you read the FBI and The UK police advice on doing the best you can to stop paedophiles from entering your organization and this advice is as old as the hills and been updated daily as more evidence comes to them in highlighting the way the organized groups of paedophiles operate.

These so called humans pardon me but I do have difficulty with calling them humans are so well experienced in ways to get children, they are organized the world over. The Church is a world wide organization so the question I have is it the target for these paedophiles.

If this be the case then the church must seek out the existing perpetrators and for anyone now entering the priesthood there should be stringent examinations and tests carried out to confirm there wellness to act as priests.

As a parent it is my duty to educate my children that no-one has the right to interfere with them sexually or make remarks leading to sexual abuse. They have to have the courage to inform me of any such occasions and then I must involve the law of the land and seek justice.

Author.