BOSTON (AP) - The Archdiocese of Boston will have “zero tolerance” for sexual abuse by priests, Cardinal Bernard Law said Wednesday while apologizing to children abused by a former priest scheduled to stand trial next week for molestation.
Law said he apologized with “heartfelt sorrow” to children abused by John Geoghan, who in addition to criminal charges faces 84 civil suits.
“There is no way for me to describe adequately the evil of such acts,” Law said.
Law announced a new policy mandating that all clergy and volunteers report allegations of abuse against minors, following procedures outlined under state law. Previously, he said, priests were not required to go to police if they learned of abuse.
However, priests would not be required to report information learned during confession or spiritual counseling.
“Any priest known to have sexually abused a minor simply will not function as a priest in any way in this archdiocese,” he said.
He said the policy goes further than guidelines announced Tuesday by the Vatican for the Roman Catholic Church. Those guidelines ordered church officials worldwide to inform the Vatican swiftly of such cases, but declared them subject to secrecy.
Law said he ordered a review of the archdiocese’s policy on sexual abuse of children by priests in August.
Geoghan was defrocked in 1998 and faces a criminal trial on sexual molestation charges starting Jan. 14 in Middlesex Superior Court.
“It sounds like a conditional apology,” said Mitchell Garabedian, a lawyer who has represented 118 people who say they were victims of Geoghan. “The cardinal knew in 1984 of Father Geoghan’s actions. It doesn’t make sense that he would solely rely on doctors to place Father Geoghan in the presence of children,” he said.