THE VATICAN: A cardinal at the centre of child sex abuse scandals rocking the Catholic Church in the United States said he won the backing of Pope John Paul II to remain on in his post in secret talks at the Vatican this week.
Cardinal Bernard Law, the Archbishop of Boston, said in a statement released by the Vatican yesterday that he had travelled to Rome "to seek counsel and advice" from the Pope.
He said he had been "graciously received" by John Paul II, and would not be stepping down.
"As a result of my stay in Rome, I return home encouraged in my efforts to provide the strongest possible leadership in ensuring, as far as is humanly possible, that no child is ever abused again by a priest of this archdiocese." Cardinal Law (71) has been at the eye of a gathering storm in the US over claims that he and other senior clerics have failed to take action for years in a spate of child sex abuse cases involving clergy. More than 400 complaints have been made against priests in his archdiocese.
The focus of his meetings with the Pope and several Vatican officials was the impact of the sexual abuse cases "upon public opinion in general and specifically on the members of the archdiocese".
"It is clear to me that the primary emphasis of the Holy See, like that of the Church in the archdiocese, is the protection of children," said Cardinal Law. The cardinal pledged to undertake a thorough review of the record of the archdiocese's handling of sex abuse cases "so that legitimate questions which have been raised might be answered". - (AFP)