News/International

Nigerian Sister Veronica Openibo, congregational leader of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus, attends the third day of the meeting on the protection of minors in the church at the Vatican Feb. 23, 2019.

Church credibility ruined by silent hypocrisy, Nigerian sister tells summit

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VATICAN – The hypocrisy of Catholic leaders who claimed to be guardians of morality yet remained silent about clerical sexual abuse has left the church's credibility in shambles, an African woman religious told bishops at the Vatican summit on abuse.
Pope Francis prays Feb. 22, 2019, the second day of the Vatican meeting on the protection of minors.

Vatican official urges reconsidering 'pontifical secret' in clerical abuse cases

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VATICAN – The Catholic Church should re-examine how "pontifical secret" is applied in clerical sex abuse cases so there is greater transparency in the cases and it is not invoked "to hide problems," said a canon lawyer and Vatican official.
Boston Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley, president of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, Cardinal Blase J. Cupich of Chicago and Archbishop Charles Scicluna of Malta attend a media briefing Feb. 22, 2019, the second day of the Vatican meeting on the protection of minors in the church.

Harming a child must be 'line in the sand' for removal, Cardinal O'Malley says

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VATICAN – For the Catholic Church, there is a "line in the sand," which can never be crossed, and that is to not allow anyone who harms or would harm a child to exercise public ministry, said Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley of Boston.
Cardinal Blase J. Cupich of Chicago and Cardinal Ruben Salazar Gomez of Bogota, Colombia, attend the second day of the meeting on the protection of minors in the church, at the Vatican Feb. 22, 2019.

Church needs new structure to ensure bishops' accountability, Cardinal Cupich says

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VATICAN – The Catholic Church needs "new legal structures of accountability" for bishops accused of sexual abuse or of negligence in handling abuse allegations, Cardinal Blase J. Cupich of Chicago told the Vatican summit on safeguarding.
Pope Francis, Cardinal Blase J. Cupich of Chicago and Cardinal Oswald Gracias of Mumbai, India, attend the second day of the meeting on the protection of minors in the church, at the Vatican Feb. 22, 2019.

Cardinal Gracias asks clerics to cultivate 'culture of fraternal correction'

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VATICAN – Only together, by humbly sharing their experiences, encouragement and corrective advice, can the bishops and leaders in the Catholic Church work to prevent the abuse of minors and help bring healing to survivors, said the head of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India.
People attend a national gathering in Paris Feb. 19, 2019, to protest the rise of anti-Semitic attacks. The placards read: "No to the trivialization of hatred."

French bishops urge mobilization against increasing anti-Semitism

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PARIS – The French bishops' conference has condemned rising anti-Semitism in the country, as official data showed a massive increase of attacks, prompting new government measures.
Pope Francis walks with his crosier next to Colombian Cardinal Ruben Salazar Gomez of Bogota as he arrives to celebrate Mass at Simon Bolivar Park in 2017. (Pope Francis walks with his crosier next to Colombian Cardinal Ruben Salazar Gomez of Bogota as he arrives to celebrate Mass at Simon Bolivar Park in 2017.

Clericalism, abuse of power, at heart of sex abuse crisis, Colombian cardinal says

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VATICAN – The abuse crisis in the Catholic Church is a call for bishops to unmask the deep-seated clericalism that placed protection of the institution of the church above the sufferings of victims, said the head of the council of Latin American bishops. 
A man holds a weapon next to burning barricades during anti-government protests Feb. 17 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

Haitian unrest hits Development and Peace partners

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Two weeks of violent political unrest in Haiti is wreaking havoc with Development and Peace’s partner organizations.

British Dominican Father Timothy Radcliffe poses in a chapel at the Canadian Montmartre in Quebec City Feb. 18, 2019.

Do not fear crisis, the Pope is leading us into uncharted territory, former head of Dominican says

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QUEBEC CITY – The Catholic Church should not be afraid of crisis; through crisis, it will grow and spring new life, said Dominican Father Timothy Radcliffe.
Prelates attend the opening session of the meeting on the protection of minors in the church at the Vatican Feb. 21, 2019.

Bishops must protect their flock from abuse at all costs, Archbishop Scicluna says

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VATICAN – Catholics need to know that their leaders "mean business" when it comes to protecting minors from abuse, the Vatican's top abuse investigator told representatives of the world's bishops and religious orders.
Prelates are seen during the opening session of the meeting on the protection of minors at the Vatican in this screen grab taken from video Feb. 21, 2019. Second from left is Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Survivors expose 'cancer' of clerical sex abuse at summit

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VATICAN – "Every time I refused to have sex with him, he would beat me," an abuse survivor from Africa told Pope Francis and bishops attending the Vatican summit on child protection and the abuse crisis.
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