Chilean bishops offer to resign over abuse scandal

Every active Catholic bishop in Chile offered to resign Friday over a sex abuse and cover-up scandal within the Chilean Roman Catholic Church. The unprecedented move by the 31 bishops comes after Pope Francis called for a meeting with the national bishops’ conference over the case of Bishop Juan Barros, who faced accusations of ignoring abuse by the Rev. Fernando Karadima. Francis said an investigation by two Vatican sex crimes experts showed “grave defects” in the way Chilean church authorities handled the abuse reports. He cited little to no investigation into the accusations despite clear evidence and found “grave negligence” in protecting children from priests and religious superiors previously accused of immoral conduct. Francis said the actions displayed “an absolute lack of respect for the canonical process and worse, reprehensible practices that must be avoided in the future.” In a statement, the bishops confirmed their resignation offer and apologized to Chile, the abuse victims, and the pope. “We have put our positions in the hands of the Holy Father and will leave it to him to decide freely for each of us,” the statement read.