Vatican: Swiss bishops mishandled sex abuse claims, but no cover-up found

CNA Staff, Oct 25, 2024 / 13:50 pm

The Vatican has reprimanded the Swiss bishops for their handling of sexual abuse claims in that country after a more-than-yearlong investigation into how the bishops addressed allegations of clergy sex crimes there.

Yet the Vatican’s inquiry found no evidence of a conspiracy by the prelates to cover up abuse claims, one of the key allegations that launched the Holy See’s investigation last year.

In September of last year the Swiss Bishops’ Conference (SBK) revealed an ongoing Vatican-ordered investigation into the reported mishandling of sexual abuse allegations by Church officials there, specifically allegations that clergy had covered up abuse cases.

Allegations had been made in May “against several emeriti and acting members of the Swiss Bishops’ Conference” as well as against several other clerics there.

The Swiss bishops forwarded the allegations to the Dicastery for Bishops in Rome, which shortly thereafter opened a canonical investigation into the matter. Earlier this month the SBK announced that the investigation had concluded without moving forward into a full trial.

The allegations of mishandling were “not a matter of misconduct [that] would require the opening of internal criminal proceedings,” the statement said.

There were no “indications of punishable offenses, cover-up, negligence, or errors that would make the initiation of canonical criminal proceedings necessary.”

Nevertheless, the prelates this month acknowledged that “errors [and] omissions have been noted in the field of canonical procedural standards, which the bishops deeply regret.”

The dicastery issued “canonical reprimands” due to the irregularities in how the bishops handled the allegations, the statement said.

The Vatican office further directed the bishops to “act more attentively in the future, to treat the reported cases of abuse with the utmost care and expertise, and to strictly comply with all applicable standards of the investigation procedure.”

Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, the prefect of the bishops’ dicastery, sent letters to both the bishops’ conference and the individual bishops involved in the investigation. 

The cardinal encouraged the Swiss prelates to “continue the path of active and strict mindfulness in the application of canon law in dealing with sexual abuse,” the conference said.

The Associated Press last year had reported that it spoke to Father Nicolas Betticher, a priest at the parish of Bruder Klaus in Bern, who said he wrote the May letter that ultimately launched the inquiry.

Betticher told the AP last year that he had been motivated by Pope Francis’ urging clergy to proactively report allegations of abuse if they were aware of them. The priest criticized Church authorities for what he said were “mistakes” made in the past in dealing with such allegations.

“Today, we can no longer afford to simply say, ‘Ah yes, I know, but I didn’t do it quite right, but we’ll do better next time,’” Betticher told the news wire. “That’s over.”

In their statement this month, meanwhile, the Swiss bishops said they are “in a learning process and would like to express their will once again to take more decisive action against the abuses in the Church.”