Recent abuse cases by two priests from Arizona further cast the Catholic Church in a bad light. Moreover, there is increasing suspicion on the involvement of Pope Benedict XVI in shielding pedophiles in the clergy before he was pope.

The Associated Press reviewed several documents indicating that the then Vatican cardinal and future pope took over the abuse case of Rev. Michael Teta from Tucson, Arizona. He apparently let the case ‘sit’ in Vatican for years, despite repeated requests by the bishop to have Teta removed from priesthood.

Bishop Manuel Moreno also wrote to then-Cardinal Ratzinger regarding another abuse case with Msgr. Robert Trupia, also from Tucson. He called Trupia “a major risk factor to the children, adolescents and adults that he many have contact with.” There was no record of any response from Ratzinger regarding the case.

Records from the two cases further support allegations that Benedict, when he was a Vatican  cardinal, had been part of a “culture of cover-up and confidentiality.”

Photo and article source: The Huffington Post