Throughout this year, the Church has continued to suffer the consequences of the uncovering of sins committed by priests against children. During the early months of 2010, multiple accusations of sexual abuse by Catholic priests began emerging out of Germany and several other European countries.

In Germany, one case was especially significant because the accusations centered on a priest who had been previously charged with the molestation of children while Benedict XVI was archbishop of Munich. According to many media reports, the accused priest had been given the authorization by then-Archbishop Ratzinger to move to Munich for therapy; after which, the priest was allowed to continue ministry in the church.

The new cases of sexual abuse that erupted this year sparked additional anxiety among many Catholics and non-Catholics in terms of possible cover-ups and mishandling by bishops. Several church officials have commented on these allegations before.

Papal Emblem

I apologize for the lack of posts over the last few days. There is not much ecclesial news happening around these parts. When the Pope goes on vacation for the summer the Catholic news cycle slows down quite dramatically.

The most interesting tid-bit that has emerged within the last week is the Vatican’s release of modifications to the norms on grave crimes against the church. The official notice from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith stated:

[T]he Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith…held it necessary to proceed with a reform of the [Normae de gravioribus delictis], emending it not in its entirety, but only in certain areas, in order to render the text more useful.

The most significant adjustments within the document come in response to two particular offenses: the molestation of minors by priests and the ordination of women.

Over the last several weeks, as has been covered here, there have been allegations that Diocesan and Vatican officials have neglected victims of clerical sexual abuse by allowing priests who have been accused of such atrocities to remain in pastoral ministry. Many people have been calling for the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI for his reported handling of such cases when he was the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF). Earlier today, the Vatican released the following guidelines that are applicable in all cases of allegations of sexual abuse.

Guide to Understanding Basic CDF Procedures concerning Sexual Abuse Allegations

The applicable law is the Motu Proprio “Sacramentorum sanctitatis tutela” (MP SST) of 30 April 2001 together with the 1983 Code of Canon Law. This is an introductory guide which may be helpful to lay persons and non-canonists.

A: Preliminary Procedures

The local diocese investigates every allegation of sexual abuse of a minor by a cleric.

If the allegation has a semblance of truth the case is referred to the CDF. The local bishop transmits all the necessary information to the CDF and expresses his opinion on the procedures to be followed and the measures to be adopted in the short and long term.

Civil law concerning reporting of crimes to the appropriate authorities should always be followed.