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Is Pope Francis Okay With Pedo Priests?
One of the senior Australian Catholic official has warned that Pope Francis appears to be unwilling to crackdown on pedophile priests.
The Vatican has been accused of not being flexible.
The official is known as Francis Sullivan. He is in charge of the Catholic Church’s Truth, Justice and Healing Council.
Sullivan said that he fears that the Vatican is trying its best to stop the Pope.
Back in 2014, the Pope said that members of church who raped children should not be tolerated.
Before the Pope made the statement, the church had been criticized by the UN. The UN said that the pedo priests should be taken to the police.
The Catholic Church moved pedo priests to different locations.
Mr. Sullivan also said that the resignation of Marie Collins from the Vatican’s child protection commission was a disgrace to the church.
Marie Collins said the institution was not cooperating.
Mr. Sullivan said that the Pope is delaying cracking down on pedo priests.
Pope Francis had made a statement last year in May. He called the rape of children a tragedy, adding that we must protect our children.
The Australia’s Royal Commission reported that 7 percent of Catholic priests were accused of raping children between 1950 and 2010.
However, few cases were ever looked into. Mr. Sullivan said that the results were shocking.
The Council also reported that 1,265 Catholic priests, brothers and nuns had also been reported between 1950 to 2010.
The Commission is also looking into rape at non-religious institutions such as schools and sports clubs.
The Commission was started in 2013 and it has been taking care of victims.
The Commission said that 4,444 people had reported being raped to 93 Catholic authorities between 1980 and 2015.