Cardinal Assures That Vatican Officials Aren't Resisting Pope's Reforms
German Cardinal Gerhard Muller dismissed accusations that some officials in Rome are against the efforts of Pope Francis to reform the Church. The doctrinal chief was responding to criticism by a papal commission member who resigned due to alleged resistance from Vatican offices to implement their recommendations.
"I think this cliché must be put to an end: the idea that the pope, who wants the reform, is on one side and, on the other, a group of resisters who want to block it," said Muller, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) which is tasked to carry out canonical trials on clerical abuse.
On March 1, Marie Collins resigned from the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors (PCPM) created by Pope Francis in 2014 to address the serious issue of sex abuse within the Church. The resigned member cited the reasons for her resignation in an open letter.
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"The most significant problem has been reluctance of some members of the Vatican Curia to implement the recommendations of the commission despite their approval by the Pope," she wrote. Collins' biggest frustration was that their recommendation to establish a tribunal to prosecute bishops was left unheeded.
Muller responded that after an intense dialogue with various departments, it was concluded that the Congregation of Bishops is competent enough, and has the tools and legal means to try bishops who failed to act on complaints of clerical abuse, the Catholic Herald reported.
Collins, who suffered from clerical abuse herself, also complained of the dicastery's refusal "to implement one of the simplest recommendations the commission has put forward to date" which is to acknowledge the complaints from her fellow victims that are sent to the Vatican.
But Muller explained that responding to letters "is best done by local shepherds" meaning, the task falls on the bishops in their particular churches in recognition and respect to their legitimate autonomy. He assured that they are dealing with the scourge of clerical abuse.
