Retired Australian bishop raps Church response to abuse problem
August 24, 2015
A retired Australian bishop has criticized Pope Francis for failing to act decisively against sexual abuse, and charged that an effort against abuse by Cardinal George Pell was divisive.
Bishop Geoffrey Robinson, who has been a persistent critic of the hierarchy's response to abuse, reminded an Australian investigative panel that Cardinal Pell, while serving in Melbourne, set up his own archdiocesan policy for handling abuse complaints. Bishop Robinson, who had proposed a nationwide policy, said that the "Melbourne Response" had "destroyed the unity" of the Australian hierarchy on the issue.
The retired bishop also said that St. John Paul II had handled the abuse issue poorly.
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