Vatican City, Sep 13, 2018 / 09:10 am
Cardinal Daniel DiNardo has called a Sept. 13 meeting between Pope Francis and leaders from the Church in United States "lengthy and fruitful."
The cardinal, who is Archbishop of Galveston-Houston and president of the U.S. bishops' conference, travelled to Rome together with Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles, the vice-president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, and USCCB General Secretary Msgr. Brian Bransfield.
Also present at the meeting was Cardinal Séan O'Malley of Boston, who serves as president of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors and is a member of the C9 Council of Cardinals charged with advising the pope on the governance of the universal Church.
DiNardo requested the meeting with Francis to discuss the ongoing sexual abuse scandals which have rocked the Church in America, in particular the case of Archbishop Theodore McCarrick. Cardinal DiNardo had previously pledged to investigate the case of Archbishop McCarrick to "the full extent of the USCCB's authority."