Sky News
July 8, 2008
http://www.skynews.com.au/news/article.aspx?id=247462
The Catholic Church is dealing with a second crisis ahead of World Youth Day, with Sydney Archbishop Cardinal George Pell defending his handling of a 'sex scandal.'
He is refusing to stand down, denying he intentionally 'covered up' an assault victim's claims.
Cardinal George Pell says a letter written to the victim was badly worded and a mistake.
The cover-up allegations come just days before hundreds of thousands of Catholic pilgrims descend on Sydney for World Youth day.
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| Pell church crisis |
Anthony Jones lodged a complaint against Father Terence Goodall in 2002 but says Cardinal Pell failed to act.
Father Goodall was later convicted of indecent assault.
In a letter obtained by the ABC, Cardinal Pell told Mr Jones the allegation had not been substantiated because the church had not received any other complaints against Father Goodall.
But another letter from Cardinal Pell, signed the same day, was sent to a second man who also claimed to have been abused by Father Goodall.
In the second letter, Cardinal Pell told the man his complaint had been substantiated.
'Cardinal Pell misrepresented the truth,' Mr Jones told ABC television.
'I now hate Catholicism because of what Cardinal Pell has done to me, more so than what Father Goodall did to me.'
In a statement, Cardinal Pell said he had sent a letter to the victim, Anthony Jones, that was 'badly worded and a mistake', and any fault in the drafting of the letter was his.
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