The Vatican’s Congregation for Bishops has ordered an investigation into Bishop Oscar Cantu’s handling of allegations of clerical sexual abuse and misconduct. The investigation is being carried out under the provisions of Vos estis lux mundi, Pope Francis’ 2019 law for holding bishops accountable in the handling of sexual abuse cases.
Senior sources in the Vatican told CNA that the investigation was ordered by Cardinal Marc Ouellet, prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, in October and that the allegations concern Cantu’s handling of abuse and misconduct cases in his former diocese of Las Cruces, New Mexico. Cantu is now Bishop of San Jose, California.
One senior official in the Vatican congregation, who spoke to CNA on condition of anonymity because the investigation is confidential, said that Pope Francis has adopted a “zero tolerance” policy with regard to American bishops’ handling of clerical sexual misconduct.
Full story at Catholic News Agency.
if he’s guilty, he deserves to be demoted and replaced. He just approved a woke, possibly not even Catholic, black woman to be president of the diocesan high school. (Scored lots of diversity points there.) Lots of praise for her commitment to social justice but no mention of her Catholic faith at all. The bishop tried to conceal omitting whether she’s Catholic by mentioning that she’s committed to “Catholic education” but that’s not the same thing as being Catholic and having Catholic faith. If she were Catholic, you’d think they’d say so, and you’d think that being Catholic would be an important qualification to be president of a Catholic high school; because otherwise how can you lead effectively in providing a truly Catholic education? But BLM has replaced Christ as the paramount claim and value in the DSJ, especially in “Catholic” schools there. It was comical how all the diocesan and school administrators and principals rushed to grovel before BLM in statements they issued condemning “systemic racism” in the aftermath of all the demonstrations against police for their entirely justifiable attempts to subdue suspects resisting arrest.
“BLM has replaced Christ”??? Few things actually shock me. I am going to offer some serious prayers for you. Seriously.
I think you misread his point. He said that in the diocese of San Jose the top value is now BLM instead of Christ.
The clerical sex abuse scandal broke in Boston in 2002. So if this guy is found guilty for acts after 2013, he should be defrocked for simple incompetence.
Will the ‘jury’ be only other Bishops? Or will there be at least some laity, preferably at least one abuse victim?
Is the “zero tolerance” policy applied only to American bishops (or why did that Vatican official note Americans)?
It should apply universally.
But, how does that apply to the Pope who brought McCarrick back from exile and is sheltering an Argentine bishop awaiting trial in Argentina for sex (and financial) crimes?
Why was Bishop Farrell made a Cardinal by the Pope when he (Farrell) lived with McCarrick for a number of years and incredibly claims to know nothing about stories that were widespread in Church circles?
Is the lavender mafia back on the rise?
Cupich, Tobin and Gregory are made Cardinals while promoting the LGBTQ+ agenda.
A lot of things don’t pass the smell test. Educated Catholic lay faithful simply don’t believe anything and everything “Father” or bishop says, especially since they have a history of deceit and coverup.
Exactly Curious! Zero tolerance is a joke while he’s promoting pro-gay clerics. What hypocrisy! Sounds like him and Governor Newsom have something in common.
How about Pope St. John Paul II, with his tragic ignoring of clergy sex abuse victims– and publicly honoring the clergy criminals, who committed sex abuse crimes– like McCarrick and Maciel?? I bet there are many famous clerics, living and deceased– who either covered up sex abuse crimes– or committed these horrific crimes, themselves! Were any of Bp. Cantu’s predecessors (Bp. McGrath, etc.,) likewise guilty??
Anon I don’t believe St. John Paul II intentionally ignored the homosexual sex abuse scandal when those around him we’re keeping the truth from him. However I will agree that he has some culpability. But our current Pope is elevating men who are creating more problems by watering down the teachings on same gender confusion when the majority of abuse was homosexual abuse & he absolutely knows this by now.
Talking with my priest buddies, we are thinking that this is either a crazy coverup where the bishop knowingly covered up for a priest– difficult to imagine in the present age with all the Church has gone though– or some priest personnel files that had some past incident(s) that were overlooked by the diocese but discovered by the Attorney General’s review referenced in the CNA article. Given that Cantu is not from Las Cruces, it is hard to think that he would knowingly coverup for local New Mexico priests he barely knew. But, of course, one would think McCarrick’s situation could never occur either, yet it did. In any case, San Jose was already a spiritual dumpster fire before his arrival. This can’t help.
We were also discussing why Bishop Olmsted– and not Archbishop Wester– is the investigating bishop. That is a change from the procedure in Vos Estis.
Ronnie– so you don’t think Pope St. John Paul II “intentionally ignored the homosexual sex abuse scandals…?? Well, what about the excuses of all the other bishops– “I didn’t intentionally ignore reports brought to me, of clergy sex sbuse” (etc.)?? The former Pope was informed of many scandals, but made decisions to not try to take action to do anything– and refused the tragic letters and in-person pleas of victims– while publicly praising and promoting guilty clerics!! And he said that he was not strong in Church administrative skills… (excuses, excuses…) I say– perhaps worldwide– almost all of our clerics bear responsibility for scandals– and the Catholic Church cannot be trusted. Keep a careful watch over your kids, is what all laymen must do. Same thing, with the Boy Scouts!
Abp. Wester is a liberal leftist hypocrite, similar to McElroy, Cupich, etc. who likewise participated in scandal cover-ups with the deceased +Levada and +Quinn, in San Francisco. Bp. Olmsted may have been assigned the role for this situation by the USCCB or the Vatican.
+Wester, +McElroy, and +McGrath all started out as SF Archdiocese Auxiliary Bishops. Lots of scandals in SF!
What does it mean, when a criminal sex abuser priest is made a Cathedral Rector for 8 years (former “Fr.” Milton T. Walsh) who is then elevated to teach and hold an important post, at St. Patrick’s Seminary, in Menlo Park– and he has a criminal child sex abuse case history– and the Archbishop and Auxiliary Bishops all know it– and finally– the criminal priest gets caught by the police! Plus, many similar Cathedral priest sex abuse scandals, and scandals all over the Archdiocese– ignored and covered-up– and lied about!– by all our Church leaders?? What is this– a dumb, irreligious criminal “Mafia” underworld operation– or what?? And they all sure do promote each other!– all their “criminal buddies” get huge promotions to the highest posts!
Anon No I don’t believe JPII intentionally ignored the homosexual sex abuse scandal. I believe he asked people to investigate trusting “wolves in sheep’s clothing” unfortunately and he accepted that. The cover-up was massive by so many Bishops & Cardinals (I think of homosexual Cardinal Weakland) and others who were so afraid of the Churches reputation. And do we know if those letters & personal pleas ever reached him? Yes I agree protect your children & get involved in their lives especially in their schools whether public or private & of course any organization they join. Trust but verify!
I recall one particularly horrific case of clergy child sex abuse, committed over 20 years ago, by former Salesian “Fr.” Ben Dabbenne, (now deceased) whom +Levada (also deceased) picked to be his vicar for parishes, and for the SF Archdiocese Board.of Education. Dabbenne had a decades-long, horrific criminal child sex abuse history, serving in many high posts in the Salesian education system. Many of his fellow SF Salesian clerics had similar criminal child sex abuse histories. One day, “Fr.” Ben introduced his 90-year-old mother at the Cathedral’s Sat. Vigil Mass, as she was celebrating her birthday that day, and had come to visit her son. After Mass, he checked out the rectory car, for presumably an errand. Next thing we knew– the police had picked him up in the Mission district, committing horrific sex acts on a 17-year-old boy, windows and car doors.locked! His unzipped pants fell off, when police ordered him out of the car! The police called the Cathedral, and everyone was horrified! What would they tell his poor mother– on her birthday?? A disaster! And what about all the Sunday Masses scheduled for the next day?? Horrifying!!