Cardinal Law makes first public appearance in new Rome position

Published: 2004-06-11

ROME (CNS) -- When Pope John Paul II led a Corpus Christi procession to the Basilica of St. Mary Major in early June, awaiting him on the steps of the church was U.S. Cardinal Bernard F. Law, recently named archpriest of the Rome basilica. It was Cardinal Law's first public appearance after his appointment, on a feast day that is dear to the city. But not all Romans were pleased at the presence of the cardinal, who resigned as archbishop of Boston in 2002 after criticism of his handling of priestly sex abuse cases. On June 9, the evening before the Corpus Christi procession, about 200 Catholics from Rome gathered outside the St. Mary Major Basilica to protest Cardinal Law's appointment. One banner hung on the basilica fence read: "Pedophiles out of the temple!" "For years he covered up pedophilia crimes, as the Vatican well knows. I think he should be expelled from the church," said Giuliano Castellino, 27, a member of the far-right "Fiamma Tricolore" party that helped organize the protest. The demonstration was mostly silent, under the watchful eyes of more than 40 police officers deployed around the basilica.

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