ORAN, Argentina (AP) — The Vatican received information in 2015 and 2017 that an Argentine bishop close to Pope Francis had taken naked selfies, exhibited “obscene” behavior and had been accused of misconduct with seminarians, his former vicar general told The Associated Press, undermining Vatican claims that allegations of sexual abuse were only made a few months ago.
Francis accepted Bishop Gustavo Zanchetta’s resignation in August 2017, after priests in the remote northern Argentine diocese of Oran complained about his authoritarian rule and a former vicar, seminary rector and another prelate provided reports to the Vatican alleging abuses of power, inappropriate behavior and sexual harassment of adult seminarians, said the former vicar, the Rev. Juan Jose Manzano.
The scandal over Zanchetta, 54, is the latest to implicate Francis as he and the Catholic hierarchy as a whole face an unprecedented crisis of confidence over their mishandling of cases of clergy sexual abuse of minors and misconduct with adults. Francis has summoned church leaders to a summit next month to chart the course forward for the universal church, but his own actions in individual cases are increasingly in the spotlight.
The pope’s decision to allow Zanchetta to resign quietly, and then promote him to the No. 2 position in one of the Vatican’s most sensitive offices, has raised questions again about whether Francis turned a blind eye to misconduct of his allies and dismissed allegations against them as ideological attacks.
Manzano, Oran’s vicar general under Zanchetta who is now a parish priest, said he was one of the diocesan officials who raised the alarm about his boss in 2015 and sent the digital selfies to the Vatican. more
Takes one to know one. This Pope will introduce the antichrist to the world. Wait and see.
Billy Graham represented Christianity and what the Church should be standing for and doing.
The Pope does not.
During feudal times, Catholic Church came up with the rule that priests would not marry in order that they had no legal heirs, and that at their deaths, under the rules of inheritance then prevailing, the Church would gain the deceased’s land holdings.
Interestingly, this led, in some parts, to a tradition of second or third sons — who would not inherit themselves — being more likely to go into the priesthood. Note, though, the rule against marriage was not about sex per se, although that would seem to be a given. Over the years, however, other reasons were overlaid on the original purpose as the reason priests (and nuns) should not marry, e.g. to devote themselves solely to their work in order to detract from the original unseemly power-grabbing scheme.
Unfortunately, and especially in modern times, the no-marriage rule has led to too many men deciding to become priests who have found it easier to forego being married, because they also happened to have abnormal sexual proclivities.
This is only going to stop when the Church revokes the rule against priests being married.
The Pope is trying to define Inclusiveness in a jeweled orthodoxy of Exclusiveness. Give him 20 or 30 years and he’ll figure it out.
Janitor: Thanks for that history lesson.
The Dope is a fraud.
Communism – and buggering boys – is the goal.
Faggotry is Satanic.
Francis know this.
Men don’t become faggots because they’re vowed to celibacy.
Men become faggots because they embrace Satanism – or because they reject God.
(a distinction without a difference)
The Church will survive Francis. Mankind will survive faggotry.
The demons are railing in the darkness, smashing themselves against Hell’s gate.
But the truth must be told – the statement must be made – we cannot sit quietly while Heaven is assailed – at some point we must take up the gauntlet.
izlamo delenda est …
Well, who is he to judge, after all…
As I recall when the new Pope was being voted on the choice came down to two. One was an activist, left-wing bishop from South America who supported the leftist guerillas (and if rumour is true with more then Sunday sermons) and their murdering ways and a quiet, thoughtful french Canadian Bishop who was known for his commitment to the church but especially to the people and their souls in his parish(s) when he was a priest and later to the wider diocese when appointed Bishop. And we know who they chose and the church is struggling with the consequences as I imagine is God.
The vatican has become a sanctuary for deviency, perversion and ideological blasphemy. The vatican; highway to hell.
Yes cato, similar to democrats.
This bastard’s supporters were all in on this. Traditionalist Catholics have been trying to get their message out since prior to his election. Go back and watch video of how the mainstream media reacted to his election.
The Church has had known infiltrators inside the walls since Vat II, the absolute worst are the modernist “nuns,” when that aspect comes out it will make what has come out so far look like a walk in the park.
He’s a bad man. A very bad man. Please. Wish it to the cornfield.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jocI_R8lMpM .
It is difficult for sinners to judge other sinners.
NOT bowing the knee to Rome for 501 years now… and proud of it!
To janitor and marco,
the “Church” you refer to is only the western Half, of the church which split circa 900AD
.
The bishop of Rome, who claims unChristian ‘infallibility’ as self-proclaimed ‘pope’, has been deemed a heretic since the Great Schism. The eastern, Orthodox church has never banned marriage for priests.
This current pope is flagrantly the worst we’ve ever seen.
The “Roman” Catholic Church is very much like the Romans, if I have read history correctly. I guess it’s called that for a reason.
@extirpates,
it is for God to judge sinners. BUT he gave you the free will, and the God-like intelligence to seek redemption and forgiveness for your own sins.
Well, well… You folks obviously don’t know the other part of the story 🙂 The guy got promoted because he was the best candidate for the job at that time. You haven’t seen the resume’s of the other candidates, those are not fit for print anywhere!!! Now you know.
extirpates,
Christ said to judge with righteous judgment. This more than qualifies.
@guest – So you’re sayin the Vatican faced a similar choice as Americans six years ago – Barry O or Mittens Romney – both sucked. It was a lose lose choice.
Didn’t Dante write practically a whole Canto on the punishment of crooked Popes and priests?