Pope asks officials to ensure priests understand chaste lifestyle

Published: 2004-02-06

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The best way for the Catholic Church to deal with clerical sex abuse is to ensure that its priests understand and embrace the chaste lifestyle the church requires of them, Pope John Paul II said. The pope called on the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to work with other Vatican offices to ensure seminary and post-ordination programs are effective in guaranteeing that those who minister in the church's name will not sexually abuse anyone. The members of the doctrinal congregation, which bears ultimate responsibility for investigating claims of clerical sexual abuse against minors and punishing guilty priests, met the pope at the end of their Feb. 3-6 plenary meeting. Pope John Paul said that in the past two years, under stronger rules for dealing with "grave crimes" against the sacraments, "a notable increase in the number of disciplinary cases" has been referred to the congregation.

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