Pope Francis unveils sweeping reform of Catholic Church’s penal sanctions
Vatican City, Jun 1, 2021 / 05:00 am
(excerpt)
The Vatican published Tuesday major revisions to Book VI of the Code of Canon Law, which covers penal law in the Church, including sanctions related to clerical sexual abuse.
The revisions, which have been more than a decade in the making, were first commissioned by Benedict XVI with the aim of making the code’s penal sanctions more effective and applied evenly across the Church.
Pope Francis introduced the changes with the apostolic constitution Pascite gregem Dei (“Tend the Flock of God”). He wrote that those who have committed a crime “need both mercy and correction on the part of the Church.”
The pope said that the revisions have improved “fundamental aspects of criminal law, such as the right of defense, the statute of limitations for criminal action, [and] a more precise determination of penalties.”
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/247850/pope-francis-unveils-sweeping-reform-of-catholic-churchs-penal-sanctions