UNITED STATES
Washington Post
Posted by Robert A. Gahl J.r. on May 7, 2013
In October of 1999, at the end of a meeting of departmental chiefs in the Vatican, I confronted Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger and challenged him. The meeting was meant to discuss available options for dealing with the already-burgeoning international crisis of sexual abuse. Everyone in that room aimed for justice, especially for the victims, but also for the accused. Ratzinger was leading the curial push to decisively deal with perpetrators who were still a threat because of some weak-minded administrators and their policy to move criminals first to treatment and then back into ministry.
I had been invited by the Congregation for Clergy to present an ethical analysis of the extrajudicial, administrative practices used by the church to prosecute cases of clerical sexual abuse. At that meeting, I highlighted the risks of violating the natural right to a fair trial. The cardinals expressed differences of opinion regarding their concern for the rights of the accused and the terrible wounds of the victims who had been abused by those whom they had held in sacred trust. Despite his gentleness, Ratzinger demonstrated deep determination to satisfy justice.
Ratzinger did not aim for a middle place between the competing interests of the victims and of the accused, but to ascertain the truth, reach a verdict, and impose a just penalty, all while doing everything possible to heal the victims and repair the damage done to the church and society. After noting my concern for judicial due process, he indicated his unshakeable commitment to do everything possible to root out abusive clergy, fully cognizant that he could be criticized by canon lawyers for eliminating traditional steps in ecclesiastical trials designed to protect the rights of the accused.
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