The leader of the Catholic Church in Bavaria expressed “deep shame” on Thursday for cases of sexual molestation that have shaken the home region of Pope Benedict XVI, and said he was in favor of changing German law so that church officials would have a greater duty to report suspected child abuse to prosecutors. Reinhard Marx, the Archbishop of Munich and Freising, said he felt “deep shame” over the reports of abuse of children in church-run schools during a news conference on Thursday.
But in an often combative exchange with reporters at a hilltop pilgrimage site north of Nuremberg, the church official, Archbishop Reinhard Marx, defended the overall integrity of the church and said it would never be possible to ensure there is no abuse. He also refused to discuss individual cases or shift any responsibility to Benedict.
“I reject any blanket suspicion,” Archbishop Marx said, praising the thousands of people who work for the church. “There will never be 100-percent security in this world; we can only make a 100-percent effort.”
The archbishop’s comments came after revelations last week that a priest in the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising who was accused of molesting boys was allowed to continue working with children, even after being convicted of abuse.
He was suspended from duty only this week as scrutiny of the case grew amid questions over the role Benedict had played in its handling in 1980, when he led the archdiocese.
At that time, the future pope, Archbishop Joseph Ratzinger, approved the priest’s transfer for therapy.
A subordinate took full responsibility for allowing the priest to later resume pastoral work, the archdiocese said in a statement. Archbishop Ratzinger went on to supervise the Vatican’s review of abuse cases before succeeding Pope John Paul II.
Archbishop Marx, who now heads the Munich archdiocese, refused to discuss specifics of that case.
Speaking Thursday outside a meeting of Bavarian bishops near a famous basilica, he said he was open to financially compensating abuse victims, and to extending the statute of limitations on sexual abuse cases.
Many cases come to light decades after the fact, when the victims are adults, often in middle age. Archbishop Marx said the church had a moral obligation to investigate reports of abuse even if the statute of limitations had expired.
At the same time, Archbishop Marx criticized news reports that have cited anonymous sources for accusations against priests or the church. “The examination of the past must remain just,” he said.
Asked if the pope himself should speak to Bavarian Catholics on the abuse cases, Father Marx said Benedict had already repeatedly addressed the issue around the world.
“I don’t sense any deficit of support from the pope,” Archbishop Marx said. “It’s clear to everyone where he stands.”
On Saturday, Benedict is expected to release a pastoral letter to Catholics in Ireland, where a separate abuse scandal has embroiled the church and now threatens to topple the leading Irish cardinal.
The pope has said the letter would assist with “repentance, healing and renewal.”
Addressing the issue of church secrecy in abuse cases, Archbishop Marx said the Bavarian bishops were in favor of strengthening the duty of church officials to report cases of abuse, and said the church would do so independent of any legislative changes.
“We really need a culture of seeing and attentiveness,” said Ludwig Schick, the archbishop of nearby Bamberg, who also attended the press conference. There should not be “taboo zones where sexual as well as physical abuse is possible,” Archbishop Schick said.
The basilica where the archbishop spoke traces its origins to a shepherd who, in the 15th century, had a vision of 14 children who told him to build a chapel on the site. “Vierzehnheiligen” means “14 holy ones.”
The basilica, designed by the Baroque architect Johann Balthasar Neumann, remains a destination for pilgrims as well as people who hope to benefit from its healing powers.
The bishops’ gathering attracted a lone protester, 52-year-old Sigrid Behm, who stood in front of the basilica wearing a traffic sign around her neck of the kind used to warn children of a dangerous crossing.
Ms. Behm had placed a lace cloth on the ground before her with the handwritten slogan, “Not to the cloister — to jail.”
Archbishop Marx said he and other bishops had prayed in the basilica for forgiveness.
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