VATICAN CITY -- The Vatican has rejected the U.S. Roman Catholic Church's new sexual abuse policy, claiming the zero-tolerance stance conflicts with universal church law.
While supporting the U.S. bishops' efforts to crack down on clergy abuse, the Vatican said the policy contained provisions that were "difficult to reconcile" with church law, according to The New York Times. Portions of the policy also were difficult to interpret, according to Vatican officials, and left open procedural questions. The Vatican did not offer specifics.
The U.S. bishops adopted the plan in June in response to pressure that they take a tough stance against abusive clergy and stem the scandal that has shaken many American Catholics' faith in the church leadership.
Victims groups, responding to word Oct. 17 that the Vatican would reject elements of the policy, said the response showed the Vatican was more concerned about protecting offending priests than minors, according to the Times.
A senior Vatican official said in September that the Americans would be allowed to implement the policy on an experimental basis, despite the misgivings. This was not addressed in the Vatican response, and it was unclear how U.S. Catholic dioceses would proceed.
