Asian Cardinal-designate who withdrew accused of covering-up clerical sex abuse
If you value articles like this, sign up for our daily email newsletter and support us with a donation.
Pope Francis has appointed the archbishop of Naples as cardinal after an Indonesian bishop asked the pontiff for permission not to "receive the red hat" in the forthcoming consistory in December.
Indonesian cardinal-designate Paskalis Bruno Syukur's decision to withdraw his appointment to the cardinalate sparked reports that he pulled out owing to allegations of clerical sex abuse cover-up, and that he may even have a wife and children.
Francis' pick of Abp. Domenico Battaglia is no less controversial, as the prelate has been accused of supporting LGBT+ initiatives in the Archdiocese of Naples, shutting down the traditional Latin Mass, and suing a Catholic knight for allegedly defaming him.
The Holy See Press Office announced the surprise nomination of Battaglia on Nov. 4, explaining that "Don Mimmo," as he is popularly known, has a background as a 'street priest' committed in particular to young people and those struggling with drug addiction.
The Pope also called him to be among the members of the two sessions of the Synod on Synodality, Vatican News reported.
In March, Italian media revealed that faithful Catholics in the Archdiocese of Naples and the Diocese of Chiavari were "shocked and alarmed" by LGBT+ initiatives being promoted there.
In February, the Church of Santa Maria di Piedigrotta in Naples held a discussion on homosexuality with representatives of Agedo, a pro-gay association of parents, friends and relatives of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons.
In the same week, the parishes of Santa Anna and Santi Gervasio and Protasio, in Rapallo, in the province of Genoa, held meetings titled "Paths of Faith in the LGBTQIA+ World."
Toni Brandi, president of Pro Vita e Famiglia, an Italian pro-life association, said that he contacted Abp. Battaglia and Bp. Giampio Luigi Devasini of Chiavari, for clarification but received no response.
"Despite the shared intent to promote a culture of respect and civil coexistence, it leaves us speechless that parishes have promoted such issues and leaves us even more disconcerted and sincerely surprised by the silence of both prelates," Brandi lamented.
The LGBT+ "doctrine aims at the systematic dismantling of the natural family founded by a man and a woman and of the right of every child to have a mother and a father, as well as the educational freedom of the latter," Brandi noted.
On June 28, an event titled "Homosexuality and Faith" was hosted to coincide with Naples Pride. Fr. Ciro Cozzolino who is in charge of LGBT+ pastoral care in the archdiocese of Naples was one of the main speakers at the event.
"Certainly with the pontificate of Francis, terms such as gay, transsexual people and LGBT+ are no longer taboo and most likely the word Queer will no longer be taboo either," the Italian pro-LGBT+ activist group Project Jonathan trumpeted.
Meanwhile, in September, a large group of faithful Catholics demonstrated in front of the archdiocesan curia with a petition asking Battaglia to revoke the ban on celebrating the traditional Latin Mass in the churches of the diocese.
The ban imposed by the archbishop's May 10 decree prohibits the celebration of Latin Masses that, for about 20 years, have been held in three churches in Naples and were widely followed by the faithful of all ages.
Only the Church of Rosariello alle Pigne, entrusted to the ICRSS, a French traditionalist society of priests, will be allowed to continue to celebrate the Latin Mass. Battaglia refused to reinstate the Masses despite a petition with 250 signatures.
The archbishop was also widely criticized for suing Giacomo Onorato for creating the Facebook page Gli amici di don Mimmo Battaglia prete sulla strada con i fratelli (The friends of Mimmo Battaglia priest of the street and friends).
According to the Italian Catholic portal New Daily Compass, "the Facebook page does not contain accusations against the bishop or defamatory comments against him."
"Onorato had created it to denounce the many shady operations that have been taking place in the diocese of Naples in the management of churches," the website reported.
"It was only supposed to be a denunciation and support for the bishop's work in the cleanup for transparency and the moral, social and Christian revival of the churches where God is exploited by denouncing businessmen and merchants," New Daily Compass noted.
Battaglia asked the judge for compensation "which for such serious injuries must be between 31 thousand and 50 thousand euros", later deeming it fair "to contain the compensation request within the limits of 40 thousand euros," the media added.
Souls and Liberty earlier reported that Bp. Syukur's decision to withdraw his papal nomination to the cardinalate could be linked to the cover-up of the clerical sex abuse of minors in his diocese.
The prelate is suspected of having protected priests of the Diocese of Bogor, in Indonesia, who sexually abused minors.
Indonesian media mentioned that there were concerns about his management as bishop, especially regarding a case involving Br. Angelo Ngalngola, a friar who was convicted in 2022 of sexual abuse against boys at an orphanage in the diocese.
On Oct. 2, an Indonesian court sentenced 27-year-old Engelbertus Lowa Sada to 12 years in prison for sexually abusing minors at the St. John Berchmans Mataloko Minor Seminary on the predominantly Catholic island of Flores.
In 2021, Syharil Marbun, a Church official at St. Herkulanus Parish, Bogor Diocese, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for molesting altar boys. The court was told the abuse began in 2002 and ended only in March 2020, when the case came to light.
Meanwhile, Italian daily Il Messaggero reported that Syukur could have a wife and children. Multiple other Italian news media also reported the possibility of the bishop's clandestine family.
In 2022, Luc Van Looy, bishop emeritus of Ghent, Belgium, submitted a similar appeal to Pope Francis, asking to be dispensed from his nomination as a cardinal.
According to the Belgian Bishops' Conference, the June 16, 2022 announcement "provoked many positive reactions, but also criticism of the fact that, while bishop of Ghent (2004-2020), he didn't always react forcefully enough to abuses within pastoral relationships."
In order to prevent "victims of such abuses from being hurt again as a result of his becoming a cardinal, Bishop Van Looy has asked the Pope to dispense him from the acceptance of this appointment. Pope Francis has accepted his request," the bishops said.
Dr. Jules Gomes, (BA, BD, MTh, PhD), has a doctorate in biblical studies from the University of Cambridge. Currently a Vatican-accredited journalist based in Rome, he is the author of five books and several academic articles. Gomes lectured at Catholic and Protestant seminaries and universities and was canon theologian and artistic director at Liverpool Cathedral.
t seems that acceptance of the LGBTPP agenda is a precondition of becoming a Cardinal under this Pope.