Archbishop of Toulouse in France rectifies appointment of priest convicted of rape and apologizes

The Archbishop of Toulouse (France), Mons. Guy de Kirimel, rectified his decision to appoint a chancellor to a priest convicted of rape and apologized to the victims of abuse, who did not intend to offend, according to a communication published this Saturday.

“In order not to cause division between the bishops and not remain at a dead point between the ‘in favor’ and the ‘against’, I decided to reverse my decision; this has already been done, with the appointment of a new chancellor,” says the archbishop.

The rectification of the appointment of Fr. Dominique Spina, a priest sentenced in 2006 to five years in prison, for the violation of a 16 -year -old teenager in 1993 – 32 years old – was later given that the French Episcopal Conference asked the archbishop to “reconsider the decision” on August 11.

The prelates of France then indicated that “an appointment of such importance, both canonical and symbolically, can only revive wounds, arouse suspicion and disconcert the people of God.”

When talking about the sexual abuses perpetrated by members of the Catholic Church in France, the bishops also pointed out that “little by little, we have learned to see these facts from the perspective of the victims and suffer the consequences of life.”

“This change of perspective, the moving listening to their anguish and pain, the acceptance of their invitation to humbly travel with them the path of truth, have begun, for our ecclesial institution, a long and demanding work of conversion, which we are determined to continue,” the prelates added.

Hosting the request of the French bishops, Mons. De Kirimel appointed as the new chancellor of the Archdiocese of Toulouse to the Affairwho will assume the position as of September 1, 2025.

Forgiveness order

“My decision was interpreted by many as a redeem to victims of sexual abuse; I ask forgiveness. Obviously, it was not my intention,” the Archbishop wrote in the statement of this August 16.

“Others, finally, saw it as a sign of hope for the abusers who fulfilled their sentence and are experiencing a very hard social death. In this sense, I must apologize to whom I named and in whom I put my trust, for not having been able to find the right place to which he is entitled,” he continued from Kirimel.

In its statement, the archbishop questions: “How can we find the right attitude that does not force us to take sides to the detriment of the other? How can we keep the victims present without eternally rejecting the guilty?”

After pointing out that in an abuse there is always irreparable damage and after remembering that Jesus in the Gospel forgives Paul’s sins, who pursued Christians, or Mary Magdalena, who was previously a prostitute; The Archbishop said that “justice does not oppose mercy, mercy does not oppose justice,” and urged to continue “reflecting on this issue.”