Ex-Member of Sex Abuse Board Refutes Cardinal
The word war between a former member of a papal commission and the Vatican's doctrinal chief is not yet over. Marie Collins, a resigned member of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors (PCPM), wrote Cardinal Gerhard Müller to rebut him on his reply to her accusations.
Collins quit her position from Pope Francis' clerical abuse advisory commission last March 1 on the grounds that the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith (CDF) was blocking their recommendations. A week later, CDF Prefect Müller explained to an Italian newspaper the reasons for turning down the recommendations.
In that interview, Müller admitted that their congregation refused PCPM's "project" to establish a tribunal to prosecute negligent bishops who fail to act on complaints of clerical abuse, saying the Congregation of Bishops "already had the competencies, the tools and judicial means" to do so.
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In her letter, Collins questioned Müller's use of the word "project" for the tribunal they were pushing for when Pope Francis already approved it on June 10, 2015. The pope also authorized funding for the tribunal and the appointment of a secretary and other personnel.
Collins also asked if the Congregation of Bishops is competent enough and has the tools and legal means to prosecute as Müller claimed, "Why then has no bishop been officially, transparently sanctioned or removed for this negligence?" She further asked: "If it is not lack of laws, then is it lack of will?"
Collins was a valued member of the PCPM, being the lone victim of clerical abuse. Her departure from the commission is thus considered a big blow to Pope Francis' campaign to keep pedophiles out of the priesthood. It also contributed to speculation that certain cardinals in the Roman Curia are resisting his initiatives to fight corruption, abuse and other excesses among the clergy.
