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Digging deeper: 'Secrets of the Vatican'

By Lilly Fowler
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
March 5, 2014

http://www.stltoday.com/lifestyles/faith-and-values/divine-dispatches/digging-deeper-secrets-of-the-vatican/article_032fe789-3d21-50d7-b636-315170c084a1.html

In this photo provided by the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, Pope Francis poses with Vatican officers dealing with the media, during a meeting at the Vatican, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013.

In the category of in case you missed it, the documentary program Frontline aired “Secrets of the Vatican” last week, which is available online for viewing.

The piece starts out with a profile of the Legionaries of Christ, an order founded in Mexico by Marcial Maciel. Maciel was recently denounced by the organization he founded for having sexually abused children. Pope Benedict XVI removed him in 2006, and he died in 2008, but for years, even as criticism mounted, the Vatican supported him.

The program also features victims from the archdiocese of Milwaukee, which one expert said faces some of the most callous and disturbing cases of sexual abuse he's ever witnessed. It recounts Cardinal Timothy Dolan, former auxiliary bishop in St. Louis, 2007 transfer of $57 million to a cemetery fund to protect the archdiocese's assets from victims of clerical abuse.

The Associated Press recently reported that the archdiocese has proposed setting aside $4 million to compensate victims; it filed for bankruptcy in 2011 and the question of whether the cemetery funds can be used to compensate those abused is under appeal, according to the article.   

The documentary doesn't really present anything new, but it's a worthwhile watch if for nothing else than the heartfelt testimonials from abuse victims, though, warning, it is not an easy watch.

The show also makes clear that though Pope Benedict was gracious enough to hand over the reins to Pope Francis when it became clear he was in over his head, new allegations of sexual abuse are still cropping up and whether the remaking of the curia will be possible remains to be seen.

 

Contact: lfowler@post-dispatch.com




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