The Vatican Has Updated Its Laws to Target Sexual Abuse in the Church, Yet Still Leaving Gray Areas to Be Explored
The revision of “Book VI: Penal Sanctions in the Church” was promulgated June 1, 2021 and will go into effect on December 8, 2021, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Book VI is one of seven books that make up the Code of Canon Law, the code for the Latin rite of the Catholic Church. The last time the code was rewritten was in 1983, and before that in 1917. A series of laws and procedures have been added to the code by former Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis with the goal of promoting the investigation into allegations of clerical sexual abuse and protect, not only children, but adults from sexual abuse as well. Sixty-three of Book IV’s eighty-nine canons have been rewritten addressing issues that have become more apparent in the Catholic Church since the beginning of the “MeToo” era.
What the 1983 Vatican Code Got Wrong
The 1983 code has been criticized as being inadequate to deal with the sexual abuse of minors. The old code required the accused to undergo long trials and gave the accused a plethora of defenses which, in many instances, resulted in exoneration. The code also made those trials a last resort, not taking into account the effects this had on victims. Rather than focusing on protecting victims, the code centered around protecting the accused. The old code ultimately allowed Bishops to ignore the law and move credibly-accused pedophiles from one parish to another rather than sanctioning them. When this scandal came to light in the 1990s and 2000s, the Vatican, in 2001, ordered Bishops to send all their cases to the Holy See for review. Since then, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, under Pope Benedict XVI, has been working on reforming the administrative process.
Staying Silent is a Crime Under Vatican Canon Law
One of the biggest breakthroughs toward protecting victims happened in 2019, when Pope Francis issued a law requiring Bishops and religious superiors to report sexual crimes or risk being criminally investigated themselves. The new code is set to go in effect on December 8, 2021, incorporates that law, and makes it explicit that it now is a crime under canon law not to report abuse. While the former canons explained what “can” be done when an offense was committed, the new canons lay out what “must” be done. The sanction for not reporting abuse includes being removed from office.
Sexual Abuse, No Longer Just a Violation
The new code now considers sexual abuse to be a crime and not just a violation of celibacy. The revised canons removed the sections pertaining to sexual abuse of children by priests or those working for the church, from being listed as just a violation against celibacy, to a newly titled section called “Offenses Against Human Life, Dignity, and Liberty.” This change acknowledges the magnitude of sexual abuse and how it truly affects an individual’s dignity.
Vatican Recognizes “Grooming” as Criminal
For the first time, the church has recognized “grooming” as criminal. “Grooming” refers to the practice of building relationships with children or youth in order to exploit them. While the Vatican has criminalized the “grooming” of minors, it seems to have a narrow interpretation of what is considered “grooming.” The change specifically criminalizes a cleric who “grooms or induces a minor or a person who habitually has an imperfect use of reason or one to whom the law recognizes equal protection to expose himself or herself pornographically or to take part in pornographic exhibitions, whether real or simulated.” While a specific reading of this rule suggests that only grooming relating to the production of pornography is criminalized, it’s possible that the law will be interpreted to include grooming for other kinds of immoral sexual acts as well. It could be that the drafters intended to refer to “porneia,” in the Latin, which is a broader term referring to sexual sin and misconduct. This will likely be a question posed in the next few months and may lead to clarification.
Adults Can Be Victims Too
According to the new code, priests who engage in sexual acts with anyone, not just minors, can be defrocked if they used “force, threats, or abuse of his authority.” In the past, the Vatican considered any sexual relations between a priest and adult as sinful, but consensual. This came from the belief that adults could not be sexually abused, because they could refuse consent purely by the nature of their age. The code now acknowledges that priests and other clergy members can abuse their power to victimize adults as well.
The Vatican Law is Still Vague as to the “Vulnerable”
Unfortunately, the law is still vague as to which adults are covered. In the past, the law considered “vulnerable adults” to be the equivalent to children for the purpose of trying sexual abuse cases; however, what was considered “vulnerable” was always unclear. While some considered the “vulnerable” to be adults with “habitually imperfect use of reason” others considered the “vulnerable” to be “any person in a state of infirmity, physical or mental deficiency, or deprivation of personal liberty.” While canonists hoped that the new code would clarify the term, the new law seems to note the difference of definitions, without choosing one. The new code now includes along with minor victims of sexual abuse “a person who habitually has an imperfect use of reason or one to whom the law recognizes equal protection.” While this may seem to provide more specificity, it still requires discretion when determining which adults are covered by the law.
Lay People are Being Held Accountable
One of the changes to the code is that lay people are now also being held accountable. The new code recognizes that lay people play a significant role in the life of the church, and that priests and clergy members are not the only representatives of the church. While the canons in the past have focused on the punishments relating to abuse by priests and clergy members, the new canons now explicitly punish lay Catholics and religious brothers and sisters as well for sexual abuse.
There is Still Work to Be Done | Gray Areas of Vatican Sex Abuse Reform
Despite the positives that this reform brings, the code is still lacking in some areas. While the code sanctions abuse by defrocking priests and removing clergy members from clerical duties, it still states that these sanctions are appropriate “where the case calls for it.” This vague language leaves open gray areas where clergy abuse of both children and adults can still exist. Therefore, although the changes to the code seem like a step forward, there is still much work to be done in the Catholic Church to rectify past instances of abuse and to prevent future victimization.
Contact Our Pennsylvania and New Jersey Child Sex Abuse Lawyers
While the Catholic Church is taking steps to target sexual abuse, millions of individuals have already been victimized by the church. There have been millions of dollars in judgments awarded to victims of clergy abuse. If you or someone you love is a survivor of child sex abuse in Pennsylvania or New Jersey, you need an experienced and skilled child sex abuse lawyer on your side. The child sex abuse attorneys at McLaughlin & Lauricella, P.C., have more than 100 years of experience representing victims, including child sex abuse survivors and their families across Philadelphia, Berks, Bucks, Dauphin, Delaware, Lackawanna, Lehigh, Luzerne, Montgomery, and Northampton Counties, as well as in the State of New Jersey. Contact us today toll-free at 1-855-633-6251 or fill out our confidential contact form to learn more about your legal options.
