CNA Staff, Jun 28, 2024 / 15:05 pm
The pope’s top adviser on sexual abuse by clergy is asking Vatican officials not to use art by a former Jesuit priest accused of sexually abusing women — even as some Church officials continue to do so.
Cardinal Seán O’Malley, the archbishop of Boston and head of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, sent a letter to the dicasteries that govern day-to-day affairs of the Roman Curia expressing hope that “pastoral prudence would prevent displaying artwork in a way that could imply either exoneration or a subtle defense” of those of accused of abuse.
“We must avoid sending a message that the Holy See is oblivious to the psychological distress that so many are suffering,” O’Malley wrote in a letter to leaders of the Curia on Wednesday, June 26, according to the commission he heads.
The letter — which was made public Friday, June 28, one day before O’Malley turns 80 and therefore must give up his Vatican posts — refers to Father Marko Rupnik, 69, a Slovenian priest and former Jesuit whose mosaic art decorates Catholic churches around the world.