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Posts Tagged Osorno
Pope removes Chile bishop accused of abuse cover up / Cruxnow.com
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Clergy Sexual Abuse, Pope Francis, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on June 11, 2018
The removals come ahead of a pastoral visit by two papal investigators to Osorno to “advance the process of reparation and healing.” (Cruxnow.com)
Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of a controversial Chilean bishop accused of covering up clerical sexual abuse, making it the first such accepted resignation since all the country’s bishops offered to step down in May.
“The pontiff had appointed Bishop Juan Barros to the southern diocese of Osorno in 2015, causing uproar both among the locals and the victims of the country’s most infamous pedophile priest.
“The Vatican announced Francis’s decision on Monday, and said Bishop Jorge Enrique Concha Cayuqueo, an auxiliary bishop from the capital Santiago, would serve as apostolic administrator of the diocese.
“Two other bishops also had their resignations accepted: Archbishop Cristián Caro Cordero of Puerto Montt and Bishop Gonzalo Duarte García de Cortázar of Valparaíso.
“Barros was only 61; the other two bishops were 75, the mandatory retirement age for bishops in the Church.
“The removals come ahead of a pastoral visit by two papal investigators to Osorno to ‘advance the process of reparation and healing.'”
By Inés San Martin, Cruxnow.com — Read more …
accountability, Barros, bishops, catholic bishop accountability, catholic bishops, catholic church, Chile, Chilean bishop, clergy sexual abuse scandal, clerical sexual abuse, coverup, Cruxnow.com, Ines San Martin, Osorno, Pope Francis, roman catholic church, sexual abuse scandal, vatican, voice of the faithful
Pope’s sex abuse advisors meet in Rome over Chile bishop / Associated Press
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, Clergy Sexual Abuse, Pope Francis, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on April 13, 2015
Four members of Pope Francis’ sex abuse advisory commission traveled to Rome on Sunday (Apr. 12) to voice their concerns in person about Francis’ appointment of a Chilean bishop accused of covering up for the country’s most notorious molester.
“The four met with Francis’ point-man on abuse, Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston, who agreed to relay their concerns to the pope about the appointment of Juan Barros as bishop of Osorno in southern Chile, the commission members said in a statement.”
By Nicole Winfield, Associated Press in The Island Packet — Click here to read the rest of this story.
accountability, Associated Press, Bishop Juan Barros, bishop of Osorno, Cardinal Sean O'Malley, catholic bishop accountability, catholic bishops, catholic church, catholic hierarchy, catholic priests, child sex abuse, child sexual abuse, Chile, clergy, Diocese of Osorno, Francis, Juan Barros, Nicole Winfield, Osorno, Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, Pope Francis, roman catholic church, sex abuse advisory commission, sexual abuse scandal, vatican, voice of the faithful
Vatican abuse commission members hope to meet with Francis about Chilean bishop / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, Clergy Sexual Abuse, Pope Francis, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on April 10, 2015
Members of the Vatican commission advising Pope Francis on clergy sexual abuse are making an unscheduled visit to Rome on Sunday (April 12), hoping to personally tell the pope their concerns about his appointment of a Chilean bishop accused of covering up abuse.
“Two members of the commission who are survivors of abuse will make the trip with two other survivors and are scheduled to meet Sunday evening with Boston’s Cardinal Sean O’Malley, head of the Vatican commission and also a member of Francis’ Council of Cardinals.”
By Joshua J. McElwee, National Catholic Reporter — Click here to read the rest of this story.
abuse cover up, abuse survivors, accountability, Bishop Juan Barros, bishop of Osorno, Cardinal Sean O'Malley, catholic bishop accountability, catholic bishops, catholic church, catholic hierarchy, Catican commission, child sex abuse, child sexual abuse, Chile, Chilean bishop, clergy, clergy sexual abuse, Council of Cardinals, Diocese of Osorno, Francis, Joshua J. McElwee, national catholic reporter, Osorno, Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, Pope Francis, roman catholic church, sexual abuse scandal, survivors of abuse, vatican, voice of the faithful
In Chile decision, Pope Francis risks reputation as reformer / dotCommonweal
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, church reform, Pope Francis, Voice of the Faithful on April 2, 2015
Episcopal installation Masses don’t usually involve teeming protesters, shouting matches, and popping balloons. But Juan de la Cruz Barros Madrid’s did. Last Saturday (Mar. 28), Barros was installed as bishop of Osorno, Chile, following allegations that he covered up for a sexually abusive priest who had been his mentor. ‘Barros, get out of the city!’ chanted the demonstrators, waving black balloons. The bishop’s supporters tried to drown them out, brandishing white balloons. Some demonstrators attempted to climb the cathedral altar. The service was cut short, and Barros was escorted by police through a side door. Chile’s cardinals, along with most of its bishops, were not in attendance. Familiar with recent history, they knew it was going to be an ugly scene …
“Some had hoped that pressure brought by members of the pope’s new sexual-abuse commission—several of whom recently expressed grave reservations about the appointment—might persuade Francis to act, or Barros to resign. After all, just last month the pope said that “everything possible must be done to rid the church of the scourge of the sexual abuse of minors and to open pathways of reconciliation and healing for those who were abused.” He even seemed to chide bishops who had used the excuse of not giving scandal to avoid addressing the issue. But yesterday the Holy See released a terse, curiously worded statement responding to the growing controversy: “Prior to the recent appointment of His Excellency Msgr. Juan de la Cruz Barros Madrid as bishop of Osorno, Chile, the Congregation for Bishops carefully examined the prelate’s candidature and did not find objective reasons to preclude the appointment.” If this is Rome’s last word on Barros, then Francis should know that his decision has imperiled not only the Diocese of Osorno, but also his own reputation as a reformer.”
By Grant Gallicho, dotCommonweal — Click here to read the rest of this story. Click here to see Voice of the Faithful’s statement on the Bishop Barros situation.
accountability, Barros, Bishop Barros, Bishop Juan de la Cruz Barros, bishop of Osorno, catholic bishop accountability, catholic bishops, catholic church, Catholic Church reform, catholic hierarchy, child sex abuse, child sexual abuse, Chile, church reform, clergy sexual abuse, Diocese of Osorno, dotcommonweal, Grant Gallicho, Juan de la Cruz Barros Madrid, Osorno, Pope Francis, roman catholic church, sexual abuse scandal, transparency, vatican, voice of the faithful
Vatican’s failure to hold Bishop Barros accountable disheartens Voice of the Faithful Church reform movement
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, Clergy Sexual Abuse, Pope Francis, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on March 31, 2015
The Vatican’s recent statement that the Congregation of Bishops has found “no objective reason to preclude” Juan Madrid Barros’ appointment as bishop of Osorno, Chile, is extremely disheartening to Catholic Church reform movement Voice of the Faithful, especially in light of the promise of Francis’ papacy for a more accountable, collegial Church.
Barros is accused by victims of covering up for Fr. Fernando Karadima, whom the Vatican found guilty in 2011 of sexual abuse of minors. Apparently, the terse Vatican statement on Barros’ appointment does not address these allegations.
The Vatican’s position is particularly troubling in at least two ways.
First, Pope Francis appears to be going back on his word to hold bishops accountable for covering up clergy sexual abuse. He has said repeatedly that such accountability is necessary. In July 2014, for example, he is reported as saying bishops “will be held accountable” for failing to protect children from sexual abuse in his homily during Mass with clergy sexual abuse survivors. Similarly, following the meeting this past February of his Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, the Vatican is reported to have vowed a keen awareness “that the issue of accountability is of major importance.”
Second, the concerns of clergy and laity in Osorno seem to have been ignored. Their attempts to bar Barros’ appointment failed, and congregants at his installation Mass created a near riot that drove the bishop to escape the cathedral through a side door. The Vatican’s failure to listen to clergy and laity in Osorno brings into question all of Pope Francis’ statements about his wishes to bring collegiality to Church governance, to listen to the laity and to make decisions at the local level.
Now installed, it’s hard to see how Barros could live up to what Francis admonished papal nuncios to heed in a June 2013 address: “In the delicate task of carrying out inquiries for episcopal appointments, be careful that the candidates are pastors close to the people, fathers and brothers …”
Pope Francis has addressed this issue many times over the past two years, but his most telling remark concerning how he would like to see the Church make decisions comes from his October 2013 interview with America magazine: “All the faithful, considered as a whole, are infallible in matters of belief … When the dialogue among the people and the bishops and the pope goes down this road and is genuine, then it is assisted by the Holy Spirit .. We should not even think, therefore, that ‘thinking with the Church’ means only thinking with the hierarchy of the Church.”
In Osorno, no “dialogue among the people and the bishops and the pope” seems to have occurred, at the expense of Francis’ accountable, collegial Church. Barros is bishop, and the Vatican appears disinclined to remove him. Perhaps, in considering the situation, Barros will take to heart Chilean Cardinal Ricardo Ezzati’s remark. Ezzati is reported to have said that “a bishop can, eventually, resign.”
accountability, Bishop Juan Barros, Cardinal Ricardo Ezzati, catholic bishop accountability, catholic bishops, catholic church, Catholic Church reform, Catholic clergy, catholic hierarchy, catholic laity, child sex abuse, child sexual abuse, Chile, church reform, clergy, Diocese of Osorno, Juan Madrid Barros, laity, Osorno, Pope Francis, roman catholic church, sexual abuse scandal, The Vatican, transparency, vatican, voice of the faithful
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