New York City, N.Y., Sep 28, 2010 / 18:03 pm
Dr. Bill Donohue of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights issued a statement decrying a recent CNN documentary on Pope Benedict which, he argued, attempted to make the Holy Father “out to be a co-conspirator” in the clerical sex abuse scandals.
Donohue asserted that the main objective of CNN program – which aired on Sept. 25 and 26 – was to “tarnish the image” of the Pope. He then proceeded in his column on Tuesday to address each point of contention raised by the network.
“We learn from CNN host Gary Tuchman that 'For decades, before he became pope, Joseph Ratzinger was a high-ranking Vatican official who, more than anyone else beside Pope John Paul, could have taken decisive action to stem the sexual abuse crisis,'” began Dohonue. “Similarly, author David Gibson says the pope 'always took the stalling tactic.'”
However, Donohue countered, it “is simply not true that Ratzinger was in charge of this issue 'for decades.' In fact, he wasn't given the authority to police the sexual abuse problem until 2001.”