The statement released two days ago by the Holy See regarding the Legionaries of Christ is extremely significant. It is reproduced in its entirety further below, and should be read from start to finish. But a thorough understanding of it requires some explanatory notes.

THE GENESIS OF THE STATEMENT

The five bishops who made the apostolic visit to the Legion – all of them prominent figures in their respective countries – delivered their reports to the Vatican authorities in the middle of last March, after seven months of investigations in their respective geographic areas.

On the basis of their reports, and with extensive citations from them, the Vatican secretariat of state prepared a working document.

Called back to the Vatican at the end of April, the five visitors worked intensely, all day Friday, April 30, and the morning of Saturday, May 1, on the basis of the document. They did so under the presidency of Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, and together with Cardinal William J. Levada, prefect of the congregation for the doctrine of the faith, Cardinal Franc Rodé, prefect of the congregation for religious, and Archbishop Fernando Filoni, substitute for general affairs at the secretariat of state.

The drafting of the final statement was also part of the work.

THE ROLE OF THE POPE

Benedict XVI sat in on the group's work for an hour and a half, in silence, on the morning of Friday, April 30. Before leaving them, he encouraged those present to make concrete proposals, on the basis of which he would make his decisions.

But this was only the latest action in the role of absolute leadership played by Joseph Ratzinger in the case of the Legionaries of Christ. At the end of 2004, he was the one who ordered an investigation of their founder, Marcial Maciel Degollado, against the general conviction of innocence held by the entire curia at the time, and by Pope John Paul II himself. It was he, as pope, who in 2006 issued the sentence of condemnation against Maciel. It was he who in the summer of 2009 ordered the apostolic visit of the Legion.

THE JUDGMENT ON MACIEL

The statement enunciates, for the first time in an official Vatican document, the offenses of the founder of the Legionaries, offenses that not even the sentence in 2006 had formulated.

These are identified as "extremely serious and objectively immoral behaviors," and in some cases as "real crimes," tending to depict "a life devoid of scruples and of authentic religious sentiment."

THE COMPLICITY OF THE LEADERS

The statement also makes a severe and unprecedented judgment of the "system of relationships" constructed around Maciel, of the "silence of the entourage," of the "mechanism of defense" of his disgraceful life.

Writing that "most of the Legionaries were unaware of this life," the statement implicitly affirms that some of them did know about it.

So there will be no indulgence for the "system of power" that closed ranks around Maciel before and after his death, meaning the current central and territorial leaders of the Legion.

In particular, it is completely unrealistic to think that the ax might spare the two supreme leaders, director general Álvaro Corcuera and vicar general Luís Garza Medina.

The latter of these, until now the real man in charge of the Legion from the financial point of view, has done everything possible over the past few weeks to position himself as a new Talleyrand, capable of remaining in the saddle even in the Thermidor, after having supported the Terror.

But Maciel also appeared "untouchable" – as the statement recalls – and capsized in the end.

THE "WAGER" ON THE FUTURE

With a great deal of realism, the working document that was discussed did not take for granted the success of the work of reconstruction that the Legion will have to accomplish. About the future, it used the word "wager."

One element of hope – according to the statement – is provided by the "great number of exemplary religious" encountered by the visitors, animated by "authentic zeal for the spread of the Kingdom of God."

But of the 800 priests of the Legion, only about 100 are now deliberately working for a "journey of profound revision." Most of them are still disoriented, traumatized by the revelations about the founder, submissive to the authority of the leaders they see as their only source of stability.

 THE NEXT AGENDA

In addition to the appointment of a commissioner, the Vatican authorities announced two other provisions in the statement.

The first was already expected, and will be a supplemental apostolic visit relative to Regnum Christi, the lay association that flanks the Legionaries, also founded by Maciel.

The second provision, on the other hand, emerged from the discussion in recent days. An independent commission will be created to study the constitutions of the Legion, and in particular to "review the exercise of authority."

WHO THE COMMISSIONER WILL BE

As for the commissioner, or better, the papal "delegate" who will assume full powers in the phase of rebuilding the Legion, it is expected that Benedict XVI will appoint him before the summer.

This was discussed at the meeting. The ideal qualities were described. And a name was mentioned, the only one so far: that of Mexican cardinal Juan Sandoval Íñiguez, archbishop of Guadalajara.

Cardinal Sandoval is well acquainted with the Legion, which has its historic homeland in Mexico. He is also the titular archbishop of the church of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Rome, which belongs to the Legionaries. But he has never gotten mixed up with them and their intrigues, neither with Maciel nor with the current leaders. He is 77 years old, and is about to resign as head of the diocese because he is past the cutoff age: he would therefore be able to dedicate himself to the matter full time. At the Vatican, he is a member of the congregations for religious and for Catholic education, and of the prefecture for the economic affairs of the Holy See. Moreover, he is part of the commission of cardinals that supervises the Institute for Works of Religion. He is seen as very resolute and trustworthy.

A NEW MEDIA STRATEGY

One last observation. With this statement, the Holy See has overturned the dominant model of recent reporting on pedophilia. Instead of letting its agenda be dictated by the newspapers, instead of responding case by case to the deluge of accusations, this time the Holy See has taken the initiative.

In the case of the Legionaries, it is the media that have to play catch-up with the decisions of the Vatican authorities, and of the pope in the first place. And it is hard to contest these decisions. Distinctively ecclesiastical decisions, which no earthly tribunal may co-opt. Decisions intended not only to punish, but above all to heal, reinforce, purify, reconstruct. In that order of grace of which the Church is treasury and custodian.

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STATEMENT OF THE HOLY SEE

May 1, 2010

1. On April 30 and May 1, the Cardinal Secretary of State presided over a meeting at the Vatican with the five bishops charged with the apostolic visit to the congregation of the Legionaries of Christ (Ricardo Blázquez Pérez, Archbishop of Valladolid; Charles Joseph Chaput, OFM Cap., archbishop of Denver; Ricardo Ezzati Andrello SDB, archbishop of Concepción; Giuseppe Versaldi, bishop of Alessandria; Ricardo Watty Urquidi, M.Sp.S., bishop of Tepic). It was attended by the prefects of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, and by the Substitute for General Affairs of the Secretariat of State.

One of the sessions was held in the presence of the Holy Father, to whom the visitors presented a summary of their previously submitted reports.

The visitors met personally with more than 1,000 Legionaries, and examined several hundred written testimonies. They went to almost all of the religious houses, and to many of the apostolates directed by the congregation. They considered, in person or in writing, the judgment of many diocesan bishops of the countries in which the congregation operates. The visitors also met with many members of the movement "Regnum Christi," although this was not an object of the visit, in particular with consecrated men and women. They also received a great deal of correspondence from laypeople involved in the movement, and from relatives of members.

The five visitors testified to the sincere welcome that was extended to them, and to the spirit of practical cooperation demonstrated by the congregation and by individual religious. Although they worked independently, they reached a substantially convergent assessment and a shared judgment. They attested to having met a great number of exemplary religious, honest, talented, many of them young, who are seeking Christ with authentic zeal and offering their entire existence for the spread of the Kingdom of God.

2. The apostolic visit was able to confirm that the conduct of Fr. Marcial Maciel Degollado has caused such serious consequences in the life and structure of the Legion that a profound review is needed.

The extremely serious and objectively immoral behavior of Fr. Maciel, confirmed by incontrovertible testimonies, in some cases constituted real crimes, and manifest a life devoid of scruples and authentic religious sentiment. Most of the Legionaries were unaware of this life, above all because of the system of relationships constructed by Fr. Maciel, who skilfully created alibis, obtained trust, confidence, and silence from his entourage, and reinforced his own role as charismatic founder.

Not rarely, a deplorable discrediting and ostracism of those who doubted his upright behavior, as well as the mistaken conviction of not wanting to harm the good that the Legion was doing, had created around him a mechanism of defense that made him untouchable for a long time, thus making it rather difficult to find out the truth about his life.

3. The sincere zeal of the majority of the Legionaries, which also emerged in the visits to the congregation's houses and to many of its projects, which are widely appreciated, led many in the past to maintain that the accusations, which gradually became more insistent and pervasive, could not be anything but slander.

For this reason, the discovery and knowledge of the truth about the founder has provoked surprise, distress, and profound sadness among members of the Legion, which were distinctly highlighted by the visitors.

4. From the results of the apostolic visit have clearly emerged, among other elements:

a) the need to redefine the charism of the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ, preserving the true core, that of the "militia Christi," which distinguishes the apostolic and missionary action of the Church and is not to be identified with efficiency at any cost;

b) the need to review the exercise of authority, which must be joined to the truth, in order to respect conscience and develop in the light of the Gospel as an authentic ecclesial service;

c) the need to preserve the enthusiasm of the faith of young people, missionary zeal, apostolic dynamism, by means of an adequate formation. In fact, disappointment about the founder could bring into question the vocation and the central charism that belongs to the Legionaries of Christ and is proper to them.

 5. The Holy Father intends to reassure all the Legionaries and members of the movement "Regnum Christi" that they will not be left alone: the Church has the firm intention of accompanying and assisting them in the journey of purification that is waiting for them. It will also involve a sincere encounter with those, inside and outside of the Legion, who have been victims of the sexual abuse and of the system of power enacted by the founder: it is to them that the Holy Father's thoughts and prayers go out at this moment, together with gratitude for those of them who, although in the midst of great difficulties, have had the courage and determination to demand the truth.

6. The Holy Father, in thanking the visitors for the delicate work that they have done with competence, generosity, and profound pastoral sensitivity, said that he would soon indicate the next phases of the process, beginning with his appointment of a delegate and of a commission to study the constitutions.

To the consecrated members of the movement "Regnum Christi," who have asked for it insistently, the Holy Father will send a visitor.

7. Finally, the pope renews to all the Legionaries of Christ, to their families, to the laypeople involved in the movement "Regnum Christi," his encouragement, at this difficult moment, for the congregation and for each one of them. He urges them not to lose sight of the fact that their vocation, sprung from the call of Christ and inspired by the ideal of being witnesses of his love to the world, is an authentic gift from God, a treasure for the Church, the indestructible foundation on which to build their personal future and that of the Legion.st."