US: A Vatican-ordered evaluation of all US seminaries will begin late next month, three years after the clergy sex abuse crisis rocked the US Roman Catholic Church.
Archbishop Edwin O'Brien, the US co-ordinator for the review, said 117 bishops and seminary staff would visit more than 220 campuses, working in teams of three for smaller programmes or four for the larger ones.
The visits are one result of the abuse crisis that hit the American church in 2002. The study will give special attention to preparation of schools for the celibate life and fidelity to church teachings on morality.
Another issue that could be involved is whether seminaries should enrol candidates who are homosexual, but willing to abide by the celibacy rule.
The teams will review documents provided by the schools in advance and may interview teachers, students and recent alumni.
Reviewers would file their reports directly to the Vatican, which would then send confidential evaluations to the bishops and religious superiors responsible for the schools and prepare an overall evaluation.
The teams were appointed by the Vatican Congregation for Catholic Education, which oversees seminaries, and in consultation with the US bishops committee on priestly training and heads of male religious orders.
The education congregation in Rome has also been drafting new guidelines for accepting candidates for the priesthood that could address questions about homosexuals. The status of that document and its exact contents are unknown. - (AP)