The Vatican has approved revisions to the Essential Norms of the US bishops governing to clergy sex-abuse, notes Thomas at AmericanPapist, and these revised Norms are set to become law at the US bishops’ conference meeting next month. Thomas asks, “So, does this effectively close the loophole that [Bishop Fabian] Bruskewitz [of Lincoln, Neb.] has been using recently?”
I wouldn’t call it a “loophole” exactly, and no it doesn’t. Here’s a link to a PDF comparing the 2002 and 2006 versions of the Norms (which I think are actually improved.)
Bruskewitz had said that there was a distinction between the Charter and the Essential Norms and that only the latter were particular law for the US. And if you read the Norms, both old and new versions, you will see nothing about the National Review Board nor about audits nor anything else that Bruskewitz objected to.
The Revisions
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