Vatican says abuse report to be 'scientific foundation' for policy

Published: 2004-02-23

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- A report examining recent research on sexual abuse will serve as a "scientific foundation" for future policy decisions by Vatican agencies, a Vatican official said. Father Ciro Benedettini, vice director of the Vatican Press Office, commented Feb. 23 on the 220-page volume, "Sexual Abuse and the Catholic Church: Scientific and Legal Perspectives," published by the Vatican's Pontifical Academy for Life. In a briefing for reporters, Father Benedettini emphasized that the report focused primarily on scientific input and not Vatican positions, but he said the findings could influence future decisions at the Vatican. "These results will be taken into consideration by Vatican departments and will serve as a scientific foundation, as information, for appropriate guidelines," he said. "It is a point of reference for the (Vatican) departments, and that's why the conference was held at the Vatican," he said. The Vatican press office made three copies of the report available to the Vatican press corps for several hours Feb. 23. The report was expected to be released sometime in March.

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