Cardinal Sean O'Malley is the icon for the fight against abuse in the Church.
Thus, as more stories are coming to light about abuse committed by the former cardinal from Washington, Theodore McCarrick, O'Malley has called for a clearer way of reporting them when they involve bishops or cardinals.
O'Malley, who presides over the Vatican commission for the protection of minors, proposes three immediate measures:
1) Swift investigation of the accusations against Cardinal Theodore McCarrick.
2) Assessment of the Church's standards and policies at every level.
3) Communicating more clearly to everyone the process for reporting abuse by bishops and cardinals.
On June 20, the pope instructed Cardinal Theodore McCarrick to refrain from “any public ministry” until a decision was made regarding a “credible” claim of sexual abuse of a minor, which reportedly occurred 50 years ago while he was a priest in New York.
Since then, another person has also reported abuse by the current cardinal.
