A
AALARD
Guest
Priest accused of abusing own son
NEW HAVEN, Conn., (UPI) -- A man claiming to be the son of a prominent Catholic priest charges in a lawsuit filed Monday in Connecticut his father sexually abused him.
The allegations are directed at the Rev. Marcial Maciel, founder of Mexico's Legion of Christ who died in 2008, ABC News reported Monday.
The Legion of Christ, one of the Catholic Church's most prominent, conservative and financially successful orders, has acknowledged Maciel fathered at least one child as a priest.
The lawsuit filed in Superior Court in New Haven, Conn., on behalf of Raul Gonzalez, 30, claims the Vatican turned a blind eye to reports of sexual abuse by Maciel since the 1950s, until Pope Benedict XVI forced him out of the Legion in 2006.
Citing his age, the Vatican declined to put Maciel on trial but ordered him to a "life of prayer and penitence."
The lawsuit filed by Maciel's alleged son claims the Vatican "engaged in a conspiracy to conceal their knowledge of Maciel's serial delicts, including the repeated sexual abuse of children."
Maciel was 60 when he fathered him with a 20-year old Mexican woman, Blanca Gutierrez Lara, Gonzalez said.
They lived a life of comfort in Cuernavaca, Mexico, with money secretly funneled to them by Maciel.
Gonzalez said his father had a second mistress in Spain, with whom he fathered a daughter. Published reports have claimed Maciel had a third mistress and family in Switzerland.
There was no immediate comment from the Vatican or the Legion of Christ, ABC reported.
NEW HAVEN, Conn., (UPI) -- A man claiming to be the son of a prominent Catholic priest charges in a lawsuit filed Monday in Connecticut his father sexually abused him.
The allegations are directed at the Rev. Marcial Maciel, founder of Mexico's Legion of Christ who died in 2008, ABC News reported Monday.
The Legion of Christ, one of the Catholic Church's most prominent, conservative and financially successful orders, has acknowledged Maciel fathered at least one child as a priest.
The lawsuit filed in Superior Court in New Haven, Conn., on behalf of Raul Gonzalez, 30, claims the Vatican turned a blind eye to reports of sexual abuse by Maciel since the 1950s, until Pope Benedict XVI forced him out of the Legion in 2006.
Citing his age, the Vatican declined to put Maciel on trial but ordered him to a "life of prayer and penitence."
The lawsuit filed by Maciel's alleged son claims the Vatican "engaged in a conspiracy to conceal their knowledge of Maciel's serial delicts, including the repeated sexual abuse of children."
Maciel was 60 when he fathered him with a 20-year old Mexican woman, Blanca Gutierrez Lara, Gonzalez said.
They lived a life of comfort in Cuernavaca, Mexico, with money secretly funneled to them by Maciel.
Gonzalez said his father had a second mistress in Spain, with whom he fathered a daughter. Published reports have claimed Maciel had a third mistress and family in Switzerland.
There was no immediate comment from the Vatican or the Legion of Christ, ABC reported.
