Sex Crimes and the Vatican (film)
Encyclopedia
Sex crimes and the Vatican (2006) is a documentary film
(39 min) filmed by Colm O'Gorman
, who was raped by a Catholic priest in the diocese of Ferns
in County Wexford
in Ireland
when he was 14 years old.
documentary series, and charged that the Vatican
used a secret document, Crimen sollicitationis, to silence allegations of sexual abuse by priests and that Crimen sollicitationis was enforced for 20 years by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger before he became the Pope.
The Vatican refused repeated requests from Panorama to respond to any of the cases shown in the film.
Many Catholic Bishops, priests and laity expressed anger at what they perceived as a clear bias against the church. They state that the program made no effort to highlight the efforts made by the church in recent years to combat sex abuse, particularly the efforts taken by the English and Welsh Catholic Church under the leaderships of both Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor and Archbishop Vincent Nichols, both of whom have significantly improved child protection procedures within the Catholic Church.
, who was raped by a Catholic priest in the diocese of Ferns
in County Wexford
in Ireland
when he was 14 years old. Father Seán Fortune
was charged with 66 counts of sexual, indecent assault and another serious sexual offence relating to eight boys but he committed suicide
on the eve of his trial. Colm started an investigation with the BBC in March 2002 called Suing the Pope
which led to the resignation of Dr. Brendan Comiskey
, the bishop leading the Ferns Diocese. Colm then pushed for a government inquiry which led to the Ferns Report.
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
(39 min) filmed by Colm O'Gorman
Colm O'Gorman
Colm O'Gorman is an Irishman from County Wexford, founder of One in Four, former senator, and current executive director of Amnesty International in Ireland...
, who was raped by a Catholic priest in the diocese of Ferns
Ferns, County Wexford
Ferns is a small historic town in north County Wexford, Ireland with a population of about 900. It is 16 km from Enniscorthy, where the Gorey to Enniscorthy N11 road joins the R745 regional road...
in County Wexford
County Wexford
County Wexford is a county in Ireland. It is part of the South-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wexford. In pre-Norman times it was part of the Kingdom of Uí Cheinnselaig, whose capital was at Ferns. Wexford County Council is the local...
in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
when he was 14 years old.
Crimen sollicitationis
It was filmed for the BBC's PanoramaPanorama (TV series)
Panorama is a BBC Television current affairs documentary programme, which was first broadcast in 1953, and is the longest-running public affairs television programme in the world. Panorama has been presented by many well known BBC presenters, including Richard Dimbleby, Robin Day, David Dimbleby...
documentary series, and charged that the Vatican
Roman Curia
The Roman Curia is the administrative apparatus of the Holy See and the central governing body of the entire Catholic Church, together with the Pope...
used a secret document, Crimen sollicitationis, to silence allegations of sexual abuse by priests and that Crimen sollicitationis was enforced for 20 years by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger before he became the Pope.
The Vatican refused repeated requests from Panorama to respond to any of the cases shown in the film.
Many Catholic Bishops, priests and laity expressed anger at what they perceived as a clear bias against the church. They state that the program made no effort to highlight the efforts made by the church in recent years to combat sex abuse, particularly the efforts taken by the English and Welsh Catholic Church under the leaderships of both Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor and Archbishop Vincent Nichols, both of whom have significantly improved child protection procedures within the Catholic Church.
Colm O'Gorman
Sex Crimes and the Vatican was filmed by Colm O'GormanColm O'Gorman
Colm O'Gorman is an Irishman from County Wexford, founder of One in Four, former senator, and current executive director of Amnesty International in Ireland...
, who was raped by a Catholic priest in the diocese of Ferns
Ferns, County Wexford
Ferns is a small historic town in north County Wexford, Ireland with a population of about 900. It is 16 km from Enniscorthy, where the Gorey to Enniscorthy N11 road joins the R745 regional road...
in County Wexford
County Wexford
County Wexford is a county in Ireland. It is part of the South-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wexford. In pre-Norman times it was part of the Kingdom of Uí Cheinnselaig, whose capital was at Ferns. Wexford County Council is the local...
in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
when he was 14 years old. Father Seán Fortune
Seán Fortune
Fr. Seán Fortune was an Irish priest accused of child molestation, who allegedly used his position to gain access to his victims. He was never tried, but committed suicide before any charges were proved against him,...
was charged with 66 counts of sexual, indecent assault and another serious sexual offence relating to eight boys but he committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
on the eve of his trial. Colm started an investigation with the BBC in March 2002 called Suing the Pope
Suing the Pope
Suing the Pope is a March 2002 documentary by Colm O'Gorman and the BBC which details the abusive activities of priest Sean Fortune and the response of the diocese of Ferns to his activities over the years....
which led to the resignation of Dr. Brendan Comiskey
Brendan Comiskey
Brendan Comiskey, is the Roman Catholic Bishop Emeritus of the Diocese of Ferns. He was born on 13 August 1935 in Clontibret, County Monaghan, Ireland.He resigned on 1 April 2002, over charges that he had failed to deal adequately with allegations that Fr...
, the bishop leading the Ferns Diocese. Colm then pushed for a government inquiry which led to the Ferns Report.
See also
- Crimen sollicitationisCrimen sollicitationisCrimen sollicitationis is the title of a 1962 document of the Holy Office codifying procedures to be followed in cases of priests or bishops of the Catholic Church accused of having used the sacrament of Penance to make sexual advances to penitents.It repeated, with additions, the contents of an...
- De delictis gravioribusDe delictis gravioribusDe delictis gravioribus was a letter written on 18 May 2001 by then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, to all the Bishops of the Catholic Church and the other Ordinaries concerned, including those of the Eastern Catholic Churches...
a letter sent from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith by its prefect, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, to Bishops of the entire Catholic Church - Roman Catholic sex abuse casesRoman Catholic sex abuse casesThe Catholic sex abuse cases are a series of convictions, trials and ongoing investigations into allegations of sex crimes committed by Catholic priests and members of religious orders. These cases began receiving public attention beginning in the mid-1980s...
- Roman Catholic priests accused of sex offenses
- Pontifical SecretPontifical secretThe pontifical secret or pontifical secrecy or papal secrecy is the code of confidentiality that, in accordance with the canon law of the Roman Catholic Church, applies in matters that require greater than ordinary confidentiality:...
- Sex Crimes and the Vatican (Panorama Documentary Episode)
- Deliver Us from Evil (2006 film)Deliver Us from Evil (2006 film)Deliver Us from Evil is a documentary film directed by Amy J. Berg which tells the true story of Catholic priest Oliver O'Grady, who admitted to having molested and raped approximately 25 children in Northern California between the late 1970s and early 1990s...
- Twist of FaithTwist of FaithTwist of Faith is a 2004 American documentary film directed by Kirby Dick about a man who confronts the Catholic Church about the abuse he suffered as a teenager. The film was produced for the cable network HBO and screened at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival...
- Barbara BlaineBarbara BlaineBarbara Blaine is the founder and president of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests , a national advocacy group for survivors of clerical sexual abuse. She alleges that she was sexually abused during her teenage years from junior high school until graduation by a priest. She revealed this...
, founder of SNAP (Survivors Network for those Abused by Priests) - Tarcisio Tadeu Spricigo - pedophile priest who was part of documentary
- Woodstock defence
External links
- Most Controversial Highlights in the 1962 Ottaviani Directive (English) Avvenire on-line special - L’"inchiesta" Bbc su preti e pedofilia. Some articles trying to rebut alleged mistakes and bias inside the documentary.