The Rising Tide of Bankruptcy Filings and Judgments by and Against Catholic Jurisdictions

https://www.ncronline.org/news/accountability/catholic-dioceses-and-orders-filed-bankruptcy-and-other-major-settlements

According to an article in the National Catholic Reporter, 19 dioceses or archdioceses have filed for bankruptcy following large judgments against them in the courts. Most of these have occurred because of child sexual abuse crimes committed by priests and other members of the church hierarchy.

In the article, all of the bankruptcies are listed, with the amount of the judgment and the number of victims. In addition, another long list of civil judgments against many other dioceses makes up another part of the article. These judgments, too, are for child sexual abuse cases, and the number of victims is listed.

The article was published in May of 2018. Since then, additional jurisdictions have been identified as hotbeds of child sexual abuse by priests, so this list will grow, no doubt. For example, the Pennsylvania situation is not included, nor are the cases in Texas. The lists will grow, because the situation is so widespread, with investigations ongoing as the truth has begun to come out.

And now, Pope Francis has said that people should not "expect too much" from a meeting in Rome about this child sexual abuse issue. What is he thinking, I wonder?

See the lists for yourself at the link at the top of this post.