Author claims to have uncovered first Church sex abuse scandal

Ireland -

A BOOK written by an English academic claims to have uncovered the first child sex abuse scandal to rock the Catholic Church.Karen Liebreich says she has uncovered evidence of a cover up back in the 1640s where a man accused of abusing boys in his care was actually promoted.

In her book, Fallen Order, Ms Leibreich, says that in 1643, a group of priests was able to take control of a Europe-wide religious order dedicated to teaching impoverished children, after the church hierarchy failed to deal with child abuse scandals amongst its members.

She says it would be incorrect to call this group a paedophile ring, but it is nevertheless true that a man accused of abusing the boys in his care was promoted to universal superior of this order, supported by a group of like-minded priests The initial cover-up had the full complicity of the inquisition and the Pope himself, she claims, despite the fact that sex with children was clearly recognised at the time as a grave sin.

Read the article at Irish Examiner dated 2004/05/08