Catholic priests who abuse their authority to sexually abuse minors, as well as vulnerable adults, will now face tougher punishments, according to the revised Vatican’s Code of Canon Law.
The law also prescribes punishment for members of the congregation who hold church office and commit sex crimes.
The revised law issued by Pope Francis on Tuesday is the most extensive revision since the current code was approved by Pope John Paul in 1983.
The reforms, which took about 14 years of consultation, moved the canons concerning the crime of sexual abuse of minors and child pornography from the section on “crimes against special obligations” to “crimes against life, dignity, and freedom of the person”.
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The Pope said: “In the past, much damage has been caused by the Church’s failure to perceive the intimate relationship between the exercise of charity and recourse — when circumstances and justice require it — to the discipline of punishment.
“Such a way of thinking, experience teaches us, risks leading to living with behaviour contrary to the discipline of morals, for the remedy of which exhortations or suggestions alone are not sufficient.
“This situation often brings with it the danger that, with the passage of time, such behaviour will become consolidated to the point of making it more difficult to correct and in many cases creating scandal and confusion among the faithful.”
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The Pope reminded bishops that they are responsible for following the letter of the law and that one aim of the revisions was to “reduce the number of cases in which the imposition of a penalty was left to the discretion of authorities”.
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