THE Pope Francis issued today the most sweeping revision of the Catholic Church code in four decades, tightening regulations for clergy who abuse minors and vulnerable adults or commit fraud, according to APE.
The revision, which has been in preparation since 2009, includes the entire sixth section of the Ecclesiastical Code and Canon, which consists of seven books with approximately 1,750 articles. It is the most extensive revision since the adoption of the current code by Pope John Paul in 1983.
The pope reminded the bishops that they are responsible for keeping the letter of the law and that one of the aims of the revision is to “reduce the number of cases in which the imposition of punishment is left to the discretion of the authorities.”
The new section, which includes about 80 articles on crime and punishment, incorporates some changes made to the ecclesiastical code since 1983 by the pontiffs and introduces new categories.
THE Monsignor Filippo Ianone, head of the Vatican who oversaw the plan, said there was a climate of “excessive laxity in the interpretation of criminal law”, where mercy was sometimes placed above justice.
THE sexual abuse of minors was placed under a new section entitled “Criminal Offenses against Human Life, Dignity and Freedom” instead of the previously vague “Crimes Against Special Obligations”.
This section is expanded to include new crimes such as «grooming» (unlawful access of children via the internet) to minors or vulnerable adults for sexual abuse and possession of child pornography material.
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