Rev. Gabriele Martinelli is accused of the sexual abuse of altar boys who served the papal masses in St. Peter’s Basilica and who lived in a Vatican pre-seminary in the years before 2012.

His critics know Pope Francis "will not change,” said Father Sosa, adding, “In reality, these [attacks] are a way to influence the election of the next pope.”

The Vatican announced that Pope Francis personally would ordain the cardinal-designate a bishop Oct. 4, the day before the consistory.

Clergy sexual abuse survivor Marie Collins reveals her disappointment with the results of the Vatican summit on child protection and calls for the Church to remove anyone who abuses children.

The German bishops began discussing plans for the gathering in September 2018 after they published a study that revealed an estimated 3,700 cases of sexual abuse had been reported in the German church from 1946 to 2014.

Pope Francis does not aspire to fulfill his role as a theologian but as a pastor.