VATICAN CITY - The archbishop of
Washington D.C. stepped down over the handling of sex abuse
cases but received fulsome praise from the pope, drawing
criticism from campaigners who said it showed the Catholic
Church cared more for its leaders than abuse victims.
Cardinal Donald Wuerl, a loyal ally of Pope Francis, was
criticised in a U.S. grand jury report in August for failing to
halt abuse in his previous role as archbishop of Pittsburgh.
He becomes one of the highest ranking Catholic leaders to
step aside over global accusations that the Church harboured sex
abusers. His resignation also further exposes a rift between
Francis and members of the Church's conservative wing, some of
whom say the pope himself should quit over the sex abuse crisis.
In a glowing letter of support, Francis made clear that he
accepted Wuerl's resignation reluctantly, at Wuerl's insistence,
and believed he was not guilty of trying to conceal abuse.
"You have sufficient elements to 'justify' your actions and
distinguish between what it means to cover up crimes or not to
deal with problems, and to commit some mistakes. However, your
nobility has led you not to choose this way of defence. Of this,
I am proud and thank you," the pope wrote.
Victims advocacy groups were outraged.
"The pope’s letter to Cardinal Wuerl sends a clear message
that for Pope Francis, Cardinal Wuerl is more important than the
children he put in harm’s way," said Terence McKiernan,
president of BishopAccountability.org.
"Until Pope Francis reverses this emphasis on coddling the
hierarchy at the expense of children, the Catholic Church will
never emerge from this crisis," he said in a statement.
Wuerl has come under fire since the release in August of a
U.S. Grand Jury report on sexual abuse which found evidence that
at least 1,000 people, mostly children, had been sexually abused
by some 300 clergymen over the course of 70 years.
The report covered six diocese in Pennsylvania, including
Pittsburgh, where Wuerl served as archbishop from 1998-2006. The
report mentioned Wuerl's name more than 200 times. Wuerl has
defended his overall record in Pittsburgh.
In a highly unusual move, Francis asked Wuerl, who keeps the
title of cardinal, to stay on as administrator of the Washington
diocese until another archbishop could be appointed. Usually a
new bishop is announced at the same time as such a resignation.
The Washington position is the most important and visible
for the Church in the United States because of its proximity to
national political power.
"Francis would want to take his time in finding a successor
in sympathy with his vision of where the Church should be
going," said Father Tom Reese, author of several books on the
Vatican and the Roman Catholic Church in the United States.
ERRORS IN JUDGMENT
In a statement thanking the Pope, Wuerl said he apologised
for "any past errors in judgment".
"My resignation is one way to express my great and abiding
love for you, the people of the Church of Washington," he said.
The Church has recently been hit by one sexual abuse scandal
after another, from Germany, to the United States, to Chile. At
the same time, a deepening polarisation between conservatives
and liberals in the Church has played out on social media.
In his letter to Wuerl, the pope said he recognised that
Wuerl wanted to step down for the greater good of the Church. He
also thanked Wuerl for "actions that support, stimulate and make
the unity and mission of the Church grow above every kind of
sterile division sown by the father of lies."
In Christian parlance, "father of lies" is a synonym for the
devil. Francis has said the devil is ultimately behind sex abuse
of children by priests and current divisions in the Church.
Wuerl has also been accused of knowing that his predecessor
in Washington, ex-cardinal Theodore McCarrick, had forced male
adult seminarians to have sex with him years ago. Wuerl denies
having been aware.
In July McCarrick became the first cardinal in about 100
years to be stripped of his red hat and title of "eminence".
Francis ordered McCarrick to retire to a life of prayer and
penitence after American Church officials said as part of a
separate investigation that allegations that McCarrick had
sexually abused a 16-year-old boy almost 50 years ago were
credible and substantiated.
Francis has sought to make the Church more welcoming to
divorced Catholics and homosexuals, and has chosen to
concentrate on social issues such as poverty and immigration
rather than moral ones. But that has angered conservatives, some
of whom have accused him of heresy and sowing confusion among
the faithful.