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Pope Accepts Resignation of Chilean Bishop Tied to Abuse Scandal Pope Francis in the Vatican on Sunday. Victims expressed hope that a new era was opening in which the church hierarchy is held accountable for covering up or ignoring sexual abuse.Credit...Giuseppe Lami/EPA, via ShutterstockROME — In January, Pope Francis deeply offended survivors of clerical abuse and threatened the reputation of his pontificate when he defended a Chilean bishop from the “calumny” of victims and said that he had refused the bishop’s offers of resignation.
On Monday, Pope Francis accepted the resignation of that bishop, Juan Barros of Osorno.
The resignation of Bishop Barros and of two other bishops in Chile is a remarkable reversal for Francis. Only months ago, the Chilean scandal represented an enormous threat to the pope’s credibility. Now, abuse victims and their advocates express hope that a new era is beginning in which bishops and the church hierarchy will be held accountable for covering up and ignoring abuse.
“Today begins a new day for the Catholic Church in Chile and hopefully the world,” Juan Carlos Cruz, a victim of the Rev. Fernando Karadima, one of Chile’s most notorious abusive priests, wrote on Twitter on Monday. The priest was a mentor of Bishop Barros, who Mr. Cruz says witnessed his abuse and did nothing.
Mr. Cruz added that Francis, whom he has met with for hours of private and emotional talks in recent weeks, “has started the firing of bishops who are abusers or have covered up. We hope this is the beginning of the end of this culture of abuse and cover up in the Church. Emotional but great day!”
Image Pope Francis with Bishop Juan Barros at the Vatican in May.Credit...Vatican Television, via Associated PressThe pope also accepted the resignations of Cristián Caro Cordero, bishop of Puerto Montt, and Gonzalo Duarte García de Cortázar, bishop of Valparaíso, both of whom are 75, the mandatory retirement age for bishops in the church. Bishop Barros, who is accused of witnessing and covering up abuse, is 61. He denies the allegations against him.
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