Church clarifies penalties for sex abuse – The Washington Post:
The new laws state that clerics who abuse minors or other vulnerable people be punished with “deprivation from office,” and potentially with defrocking. Previously, the church had only said such cases merit “just penalties,” not excluding defrocking.
I think many of us are surprised to learn that there were any penalties at all. Further, the new penalties are so inadequate as to be ridiculous. It beggars belief that the Church sees their child abuse scandals as anything other that the most sinful of betrayals. The ideas that a penalty like “deprivation from office” is commensurate with the crime is laughable on its face.