Pope Francis accepts resignation of two more Chilean bishops

Pope Francis on Thursday accepted the resignations of two Chilean bishops who faced criticism for mishandling claims of abuse made against a priest. The resignations of Bishop Horacio del Carmen Valenzuela Abarca of Talca and Bishop Alejandro Goic Karmelic of Rancagua bring to five the number of accepted resignations over the church’s sex abuse scandal. Goic had spearheaded the church’s child protection commission. Last month, all 31 Roman Catholic bishops in Chile offered to resign after two Vatican-appointed investigators reported “grave defects” in the way Chilean church authorities handled sex abuse reports. The investigation came after Bishop Juan Barros Madrid, who stepped down earlier this month, was accused of ignoring reports of abuse committed by Chilean priest Fernando Karadima. The Vatican in 2011 ordered Karadima to retire to a “life of prayer and penitence” for his sex abuse crimes.