According to Bishop Georg Bätzing of Limburg, the Catholic Church has lost a lot of trust, even among its faithful followers. In connection with the abuse scandal, he sees “disastrous behavior” from church leaders.
The chairman of the German Bishops’ Conference said on Friday evening in front of the participants of a service in Trier: “This situation weighs enormously on many of you.” Bätzing spoke of “disastrous behavior” and in this context expressly mentioned the retired Pope Benedict XVI. “It was covered up long enough,” said the Limburg bishop, referring to the Munich report on abuse in the local archdiocese.
Bätzing: “I’m ashamed too”
The crisis had long since reached him, said Bätzing. “Many tell me: I have to justify myself to my family, my friends, my relatives that I still belong to this club.” In view of what the Munich study brought to light, he had to admit: “Sometimes I’m ashamed that we had such a past.”
Bätzing declared: “Now is the time of truth.” Because only she will possibly also create new trust for the church. Bätzing called out to the participants in the service: “Don’t lose heart.”
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. was heavily incriminated in an abuse report by the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising: As the archbishop of Munich at the time, he…
more…
The report presented on Thursday certifies that several archbishops of Munich and other members of the diocese leadership have failed in dealing with abusers and that there is a lack of concern for the injured. In this context, the study also raises allegations against Joseph Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, who headed the Archdiocese of Munich-Freising from 1977-1982.
The experts speak of at least 497 victims and 235 alleged perpetrators, but they assume a much larger number of unreported cases.