Madam, – While the “Seriousness of intent evident in papal choice of heavy hitters” (Opinion, June 1st) is to be welcomed, this Vatican investigation is flawed by its very nature, as no institution, even one claiming to be divine in origin, can be relied upon to be a judge of itself. It is a principle accepted throughout society that an outside independent judgmental body is necessary if an important institution of society is to be investigated for serious offences – it cannot be a judge of itself.
This not to impugn the integrity of the Vatican-appointed investigating team, but to ensure that the processes and procedures adopted by this team must be seen to be fair as well as being so. Furthermore, there is no Vatican commitment that the conclusions of this team will ever be published so that we can judge whether these “heavy hitters” are what it says on the tin, or whether they are mere paper tigers.
Whether apostolic visitors are cardinals, archbishops or bishops matters not a whit; what is important and vital for the success of this mission is the presence of independent lay experts, both women and men, who will be given the freedom to search out the truth without let or hindrance.
Whatever credibility that the Catholic Church still retains is at stake here. – Yours, etc,