Bishop resigns; delayed reporting priest’s lewd photos of girls
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Pope Francis accepted the resignation Tuesday of a U.S. bishop who pleaded guilty to failing to report a suspected child abuser, answering calls by victims to take action against bishops who cover up for pedophile priests.
Bishop Robert Finn, who led the Diocese of Kansas City-St Joseph in Missouri for nearly 10 years, resigned under canon law that allows bishops to resign early for illness or some “grave” rea- son that makes them unfit for office. But his resignation did not provide a specific reason.
Finn, 62, is 13 years shy of the normal retirement age of 75.
In 2012, Finn pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of failure to report suspected abuse and was sentenced to two years of probation, making him the highest-ranking church official in the U.S. to be convicted of not taking action in response to abuse allegations.
Prosecutors say the diocese did not notify police until six months after concerns were raised in 2011 about the Rev. Shawn Ratigan, whose computers were found to contain hundreds of lewd photos of young girls.
Since the convictions, Finn has faced pressure to resign, including local and national petition drives asking the pope to remove him from the diocese.
The removal was praised by Marie Collins, a prominent member of Francis’ own sex abuse advisory board who had called for Finn to go and demanded that the Vatican hold bishops accountable when they fail to protect children.
“Things are moving slowly, as I have said many times, but they are moving in the right direction!” she tweeted.
Francis appointed Archbishop Joseph Naumann, head of the Kansas City, Kan., Diocese, to lead the Missouri Diocese until Finn’s successor is named.
In a letter to the diocese, Naumann said he prayed “that the coming weeks and months will be a time of grace and healing for the diocese.”
Naumann will retain his duties in Kansas.
Finn, who apologized for Ratigan’s abuse and took measures to make the diocese safer for children, urged followers to pray for his successor.
Sister Jeanne Christensen, a member of the Sisters of Mercy who has been a vocal critic of Finn, said “it’s sad that it took so long.”