We talk a lot on this show about the church’s sexual abuse crisis, and while Gerry and I try to break down what’s new, we don’t often get to talk about the problems that are at the root of this scandal—or how hearing these stories over and over affects our own faith.

Thankfully, there’s a new podcast from America Media that explores all of these questions. It’s called “Deliver Us.” Its host, Maggi Van Dorn, is a young Catholic reckoning with the abuse crisis. She interviews abuse survivors, experts and regular Catholics about how the church got so broken, and whether it can be fixed.

So this week, instead of our usual Vatican news, we’re bringing you a special look behind the church’s sexual abuse crisis with episode one of Deliver Us. We’ll be back with more Vatican news next week.

For more information and to subscribe to "Deliver Us" visit:

http://deliveruspodcast.org

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This week on “Inside the Vatican” Gerry and I are in Rome covering the sexual abuse summit. So this week’s episode might sound a little different—you’ll hear the sounds of Rome, and some of the interviews that Gerry and I have been doing while we’re here.

We’ll talk about the surprises that came out of Pope Francis’ opening address to the summit, what happened on Thursday and what we can expect from the rest of the summit.

Learn More:

Pope Francis presents 21-point “road map” to guide discussion at abuse summit

Cardinal Tagle at abuse summit: How do we balance justice and forgiveness?

Pope Francis at abuse summit opening: “Listen to the cry of the little ones”

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This week on Inside the Vatican, we’ll fill you in on Cardinal Muller’s recent manifesto, along with updates on the McCarrick case, preparations for next week’s summit on sexual abuse, and information on a bombshell book that threatens to overshadow that summit.

“In the Closet of the Vatican” is a salacious new 571-page book that’s expected to be released on the first day of the Vatican’s summit on sexual abuse and the protection of minors. It’s by a French journalist, Frederic Martel, who claims that he’s interviewed hundreds of sources in and around the Vatican to reveal which Vatican officials are gay and have active sex lives, and are doing scandalous things like hiring male prostitutes.

The release of the book on the first day of the sexual abuse summit threatens to conflate the issue of gay priests with that of the abuse of children. So this week, we’ll look at the ethics of writing a book like this, as well as the intentions behind it.

Read more:

• Deliver Us podcast
• Explainer: Former Cardinal McCarrick faces laicization. What does that mean?
• Cardinal Muller warns against being silent about Catholic faith

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This week, Pope Francis visited Abu Dhabi to meet with religious leaders at the Global Inter-Religious Meeting on Human Fraternity, a conference aimed at combating religious extremism.

Where the pope chooses to visit will always be significant. But what makes this trip different from, say, his trip to Panama that we talked about in the last episode of “Inside the Vatican,” is that this is the first time a pope has visited the Arabian Peninsula. And by all accounts, it seems to have been a success.

Gerry told me this week, “I think it’s difficult to convey the long-term consequences that could emerge from this visit.”

On the show, we’ll get into some of the potential consequences of the pope’s work to facilitate interfaith dialogue between Catholics and Muslims, as well as his call for full citizenship protections for the United Arab Emirates’ eight million Christian migrant workers. We’ll also examine whether the pope’s more critical approach to the U.A.E.’s involvement in Yemen’s brutal civil war signifies a shift in his general diplomatic strategy.

Links:

• Preview: Francis makes first-ever papal visit to Arabian Peninsula
• Before arriving in U.A.E., pope challenges his hosts to help end Yemen crisis
• Why Pope Francis is traveling to ‘the heartland of the Muslim world’
• Pope Francis to world’s religious leaders: We build the future together or there will be no future
• Pope Francis leads largest ever Christian act of worship in the Arabian Peninsula
• Pope Francis on Yemen, Venezuela and the abuse of nuns by clergy

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Whenever Pope Francis goes on a trip somewhere around the world, he usually invites journalists to join him on the papal plane, and he’ll spend a few minutes taking questions from them. Pretty much every subject is on the table, and some of the pope’s most famous quotes have come from these impromptu press conferences—like his “Who am I to judge” comment about gay priests. But since he’s speaking off the cuff, it’s often up to journalists on board the plane, like Gerry, to translate his comments, give them context and sort out what they mean.

So we’re spending our episode this week unpacking a couple of the pope’s comments from his flight back from Panama: one about married priests and the other about the situation in Venezuela.

Links from the show:

Pope Francis on Venezuela, Married Priests, and the Sex Abuse Summit

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This week on “Inside the Vatican” we look at why the Vatican seems to be lowering expectations for its upcoming international summit on sexual abuse.

Then, we talk about World Youth Day, which is being held in Panama this week. Gerry has covered every World Youth Day since the inaugural one in 1985, and he explains how the young people at this event have had a significant impact on their bishops, and even on popes.

We also look at how Pope Francis is empowering young people and local churches by decentralizing the Vatican’s power.

Links from the show:

• Inside the Vatican: Will the Vatican’s summit on sexual abuse make a difference?
• Vatican lowers expectations ahead of February’s sex abuse summit
• Pope Francis heads to Panama for World Youth Day

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This week on “Inside the Vatican,” we explore the topic of women deacons. We feature some clips from America’s exclusive interview with two members of the Vatican’s commission to research women deacons in the early church. Then, Rome correspondent Gerry O’Connell and I unpack what Pope Francis might do next with the commission's research.

In the second half of the show, we look at three recent developments in the case of former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, whose alleged sexual abuse is being investigated by the Vatican. We update you on the progress of that investigation, and discuss the latest letter from Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò asking Archbishop McCarrick to repent of his crimes.

Finally, we re-examine the question of who knew what when about Archbishop McCarrick in light of the news that Cardinal Donald Wuerl reported Archbishop McCarrick’s misconduct with seminarians to the Vatican in 2004.

Explore these stories:

• Full video interview with Phyllis Zagano and Bernard Pottier, S.J.
• Special Topic: Women deacons
• Viganò begs McCarrick to repent as abuse verdict nears

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As 2019 begins, all eyes in the Vatican are turned towards the upcoming summit on sexual abuse, and recent weeks have brought a number of stories that reveal how Pope Francis aims to lead the church on this issue.

First, the Vatican confirmed this past weekend that it is investigating a third accusation of abuse against Archbishop Theodore McCarrick. On “Inside the Vatican” this week, Gerry O’Connell and I look at how—and why—the Vatican is expediting that investigation.

Next, we examine the American bishops’ retreat, which they held at the behest of Pope Francis. The pope sent the Vatican’s top preacher, along with a personal letter to guide the retreatants in their reflection.

Finally, Gerry and I look at the resignation of the director and deputy director of the Vatican’s press office, and what challenges the interim director will face as he coordinates media coverage of February’s summit on sexual abuse.

Read more:

• Will the Vatican’s summit on sexual abuse make a difference?
• The Vatican may be deciding fate of former Cardinal McCarrick
• Pope Francis to U.S. bishops on retreat: Abuse crisis requires conversion and humility
• Director and deputy director of Vatican press office resign on last day of 2018

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This week before “Inside the Vatican” goes on break, we are giving you a round-up of this year’s top Vatican news—and digging into the questions that remain about these stories going into the new year.

We examine whether Pope Francis’ document on holiness “Gaudete et Exsultate” has had an impact beyond its short appearance in the news cycle. We also look at the open questions from this year’s sexual abuse scandals in both the United States in Chile—and ask when those questions might finally be answered.

We also cover whether worrying developments in China will affect this year’s major provisional deal between the Vatican and the People’s Republic, and we discuss how the Vatican plans to follow up on the Synod on Young People.

Gerry and I also share some the stories we wish had gotten more attention in 2018.

“Inside the Vatican” will be on a Christmas break until Jan. 8. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the entire team!

Read more:

• America Special Topics: “Gaudete et Exsultate”

• America Special Topics: Sexual Abuse and the Catholic Church

• The Extremely High Stakes of the China-Vatican Deal
• What you need to know about the 2018 Synod on Young People

Overlooked stories of 2018:

• Who is Madeleine Delbrêl—the “French Dorothy Day” Pope Francis made venerable this weekend?

• Surprise! Pope Francis makes several impromptu visits

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This week on “Inside the Vatican,” we look at Pope Francis’ recent comments about homosexuality and religious life. His new book on consecrated life, “The Strength of a Vocation,” is based on a long interview and Pope Francis has a number of quotations that have made headlines around the world.

“The issue of homosexuality is a very serious issue that we need to adequately discern right from the start with the candidates, if that’s the case,” Pope Francis said. “In consecrated life and in priestly life, there is no room for this type of affection. For this reason, the Church recommends that people with this ingrained tendency not be accepted into the ministry or into consecrated life. Their place is not in ministry or in consecrated life.”

He ends the brief section by urging gay consecrated people to live their vows of celibacy.

On this week’s episode, we look at these comments in the context of the pope’s other famous comment on gay priests: “Who am I to judge?” We examine what Pope Francis’ pastoral history with gay and lesbian people can tell us about the intentions behind these new comments.

Read more:

• Understanding Pope Francis’ controversial remarks on homosexuality in the priesthood

Read full show notes

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