Sex abuse, sanctions, silence: A primer on the pope saga

VATICAN CITY — Two weeks after Pope Francis’ papacy was thrown into crisis by accusations that he covered up sexual misconduct by ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Francis has refused to respond, his accuser has changed his story and a host of new characters have entered the fray.

Cardinals, bishops, priests and ordinary faithful are demanding answers, given that the Vatican knew since at least 2000 about allegations McCarrick had bedded seminarians.

Here is a look at the scandal, which has split the U.S. Catholic hierarchy and further tarnished Francis’ record on abuse.

What was the original accusation?

Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano said in his Aug. 26 expose that Pope Benedict imposed “canonical sanctions” on McCarrick in 2009 or 2010 that were similar to what Francis imposed this summer after McCarrick was accused of groping a minor.

“The cardinal was to leave the seminary where he was living, he was forbidden to celebrate Mass in public, to participate in public meetings, to give lectures, to travel, with the obligation of dedicating himself to a life of prayer and penance,” Vigano wrote.

Vigano said he told Francis on June 23, 2013, that McCarrick had “corrupted a generation of seminarians and priests” and that Benedict “ordered him to withdraw to a life of prayer and penance.”

But he said Francis effectively rehabilitated McCarrick and made him a trusted counselor as he sought to remake the U.S. church leadership to be less focused on the culture wars.

The public record, however, is rife with evidence that McCarrick lived a life devoid of any sanctions from 2009 onwards.

How has Vigano’s story changed?

Faced with such evidence, Vigano altered his story to say that while Benedict’s measures were in place, McCarrick “didn’t obey” them and Vigano was unable to enforce them.

Vigano told LifeSiteNews, an ultraconservative site, that Benedict had made the sanctions “private” probably because McCarrick was retired and Benedict, seeking to avoid scandal, thought he would obey.

Even the conservative National Catholic Register, which originally published Vigano’s revelation, acknowledged that the severity of the measures reported by Vigano is now an open question.

Citing someone close to Benedict, the Register reported that Benedict couldn’t recall how he handled the matter but that there was no formal decree against McCarrick, “just a private request” to keep a low profile.

If true, that would undercut Vigano’s core accusation that Francis rehabilitated McCarrick from actual canonical sanctions.

How has the Pope responded?

Hours after Vigano’s accusations came to light, Francis told an in-flight news conference: “I will not say a word about this.” He challenged journalists to investigate Vigano’s claims and said, “If time passes and you’ve drawn your conclusions, maybe I’ll speak.”

That said, Francis has referred indirectly to the scandal a few times since. He has said “silence and prayer” are often the best response to people seeking scandal. He has said it is un-Christian to accuse other people, but necessary to accuse oneself to recognize sin. And he has told newly ordained bishops to work in communion — not as lone actors bent on settling personal scores.

In a statement Monday, Francis’ nine cardinal advisers expressed their “full solidarity” with the pope over the scandal.

How has this been received in the U.S.?

More than a week before Vigano’s disclosure, the head of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, announced he wanted an audience with Francis to present his request for a full-fledged Vatican investigation into the McCarrick affair.

DiNardo followed up his request for a Vatican investigation with a statement saying Vigano’s accusations deserve answers. More than a dozen U.S. bishops have echoed the call, though others, including a top Francis appointee, Cardinal Blase Cupich, have demurred. Cupich has said Francis shouldn’t go down the “rabbit hole” by responding.

No date for a DiNardo audience has been set.

Meanwhile, Francis has met with embattled Washington Cardinal Donald Wuerl, who is facing calls to step down over both the McCarrick scandal and for mishandling some abuse cases when he was bishop in Pittsburgh. Those cases were exposed in a recent Pennsylvania grand jury report.

Who is now speaking out?

Amid the official silence from the Vatican, some new players have emerged to try to discredit Vigano’s version of events and defend Francis.

One of them is a familiar face, the Rev. Federico Lombardi , the Jesuit who served as Vatican spokesman for Benedict and Francis until 2016. Last weekend, amid a communications crisis for the Vatican, it was announced that Lombardi would rejoin the Jesuit magazine La Civilta Cattolica, which serves as an unofficial mouthpiece for the papacy.

Also last weekend, Lombardi and his English-speaking assistant, the Rev. Thomas Rosica, issued a joint statement contesting Vigano’s version of events about the controversial meeting that Vignao orchestrated between the pope and U.S. anti-gay marriage campaigner Kim Davis during Francis’ 2015 visit to the U.S.