- ITALY
An attack on the Polish Church seeks papal support
- Ecclesia
- 01-07-2020
A small group of Polish Catholics bought an advertising space in the Italian newspaper La Repubblica in order to make an "appeal" to Pope Francis. They implored Francis to "repair" the Polish Church while accusing Catholic hierarchy of covering up child abuse cases. This is a specious attack. The issue, however painful it is, is relatively marginal among Polish clergy: of the 1000 persons convicted for paedophilia offences, 997 were lay people and 3 were priests. Still, the press are treating the matter as if it primarily concerned clergy and do not explain that the few cases of sexual abuse of young males involve mostly priests with homosexual tendencies. The appeal launched in La Repubblica is only the latest in a long series of attacks, including films and foundations, aimed at denigrating the Church.