Welcome to Thursday. A powerful Polish cardinal has been accused of covering up a clergy sexual abuse case that goes back decades. NCR's editorial staff hopes that the Vatican isn't returning to the time of policing theologians. "Nones" join religious sisters in dedicating their lives to activism.

Poland's powerful Cardinal Dziwisz accused of covering up abuse case

In a specially authorized translation of a report first published by Onet.pl, journalist and editor Szymon Piezgaz outlines the complicated decadeslong cover-up of a clergy sexual abuse case in Poland.

Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, the Polish bishops, and the Vatican's ambassador in Poland are responsible for the case of Janusz Szymik, a long-time victim of the abusive priest Fr. Jan Wodniak, Piezgaz asserts. Dziwisz was Pope John Paul II's secretary for 27 years before serving as the Archbishop of Krakow from 2005 to 2016.

Szymik claims that between the years of 1984 and 1989 he was sexually abused almost 500 times by Wodniak in the village of Międzybrodzie Bialskie, about two hours southeast of Krakow.

But after 25 years, justice has yet to be served.

You can read the rest of the report here.

More background:

Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, who was a close aide to St. John Paul II, vigorously defended the late pope's handling of sexual abuse by Catholic clergy and denied accusations that he ignored the problem during his 27-year pontificate.

Editorial: Let's not return to policing theologians

The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has said that Redemptorist Fr. Tony Flannery must affirm the church's official positions on male-only priesthood, LGBTQ relationships, civil unions and gender identity by signing fidelity oaths. If he doesn't, his suspension from the priesthood will remain indefinite.

Can we say: We've seen this movie before, and we didn't like it the first time?

In previous decades, under Pope John Paul II, a number of theologians, writers and teachers found themselves on the receiving end of investigations of their work under then-head of the doctrinal congregation, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the future Pope Benedict XVI - a process that was too often mimicked by bishops on the national level.

You can read the rest of NCR's editorial here.

More background:

The head of the Vatican's powerful doctrinal congregation defended his office's request that Redemptorist Fr. Tony Flannery sign four strict oaths of fidelity to Catholic teachings, saying the move, while "very unpleasant," was part of their duty as the global church's orthodoxy watchdogs.
Several prominent theologians are raising concerns about how the Vatican doctrinal office's approach to the case of Fr. Tony Flannery seems out of line with Pope Francis' calls for a church open to dialogue.

More headlines

At Global Sisters Report, for the many sisters who have dedicated their lives to fighting injustice, engaging in protests and activism is a form of prayer in action that helps maintain a sense of hope amidst the often-slow pace of change. Some young activists are adopting those concepts, learning from their vast experiences.
God's grace is missing from the recent letter from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith reaffirming church's opposition to euthanasia, says Jesuit Fr. Andrea Vicini.
For the first time, a clergy sex abuse trial opened in the Vatican's criminal tribunal, with one priest accused of molesting an altar boy in the Vatican's youth seminary and another priest accused of covering it up.
The Vatican's swirling financial corruption investigation has taken a mysterious new twist with the arrest on an international warrant of a Sardinian woman said to be close to one of the Holy See's most powerful cardinals before his downfall.

Final thoughts

This week is our Fall Member Drive, in which NCR asks our loyal readers to consider joining our community of NCR Forward members. Members have tons of benefits, such as special events, member polls, question and answer sessions and more. You can find out how to join here.

Until Friday,

Stephanie Yeagle

NCR Production/Online Editor

[email protected]

Twitter: @ncrSLY

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