Pope Francis has finally broken his silence regarding accusations leveled last August that he had known of ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick’s serial homosexual abuse and yet reinstated him to a position of influence in the Vatican."About McCarrick I knew nothing, obviously, nothing, nothing," the pope told Mexican news hound Valentina Alazraki in a lengthy interview released Tuesday by Vatican News.
Last August the former Vatican nuncio to the United States, Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, released an 11-page report in which he declared he had personally informed Pope Francis about McCarrick’s misdeeds in 2013 but that Francis had restored him to a position of trust, consulting him regarding the naming of future U.S. bishops.
Pope Francis "knew from at least June 23, 2013 that McCarrick was a serial predator," Viganò stated, and yet, "although he knew that he was a corrupt man, he covered for him to the bitter end; indeed, he made McCarrick’s advice his own."
Viganò also said that Pope Benedict had placed a series of sanctions on McCarrick, including a ban on saying Mass in public or giving lectures, whereas Pope Francis set him "free from all constraints."
Further documentation came to light Tuesday from a separate source confirming the existence of sanctions against McCarrick dating back to 2008.