Washington, DC
‘We need answers’: Catholic women appeal to Pope Francis
More than 30,000 Catholic women have signed a letter to Pope Francis asking him to issue a “direct response” to allegations from the former US nuncio, Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò.
The 750-word letter, published on the website of the Washington DC-based Catholic Women’s Forum, began by quoting the Pope on the need for a “more incisive female presence in the Church”. The letter said: “We write to you, Holy Father, to pose questions that need answers.” It cited Francis’s statement that he would “not say a single word” about the Viganò accusations. “To your hurting flock, Pope Francis, your words are inadequate,” the letter says. “That a cardinal would prey on seminarians is abhorrent. We need to know we can trust you to be honest with us about what happened.”
