Child abuse 'disfigured' Church

The Vatican has been on the defensive in recent days as criticism over the handling of some of the abuse probes in the US and in the Pope's German homeland have threatened to engulf the papacy.

The Pope, in his previous role as Vatican-based Cardinal Joseph

Ratzinger, directed the office that deals with sex allegations. Earlier, as Munich archbishop, he was the top authority in the diocese in his German homeland.

The letter to him from French bishops, and a website statement by the religious order the Legionaries of Christ, were the latest expressions of shame and regret from local churches or religious orders. Both contained expressions of solidarity toward the Pope for his handling of abuse cases.

Abuse victims from the US to Europe have been demanding that he take responsibility for what he did or did not do, both in his tenure in Germany and as the director of a Vatican policy that centralised cases in Rome under a cloak of confidentiality.

French bishops said in their letter that they are ashamed of priests who molested and raped children. The bishops said these "abominable acts" had "disfigured the Church, wounded Christian communities and cast suspicion on all the members of the clergy". But they said the sexual abuse scandals were "being used in a campaign to attack you personally."

Meanwhile an international religious order which long had been held out as a model of staunch faith by the pontiff's late predecessor, John Paul II thanked him for his role in investigating abuse allegation.

Leaders of the Legionaries of Christ said that at first they could not believe the accusations against the late Mexican prelate Marcial Maciel, including molestation of seminarians and a relationship with a woman and fathered a daughter with her. But they said it was thanks to an investigation by the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, under the direction of the Pope when he was Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger that they were convinced the allegations were true.

But while churchmen rallied to his side, the Holy See was on the defence. Spokesman the Rev Federico Lombardi reiterated the Vatican's insistence that the Pope did not know about a Munich archdiocese decision to return a priest in therapy for peadophilia to pastoral work. And details have emerged from the US from former students of a US priest suspected of molesting up to 200 deaf boys.

Church and Vatican documents showed that in the mid-1990s, two

Wisconsin bishops urged the Vatican office led by then Cardinal Ratzinger to let them hold a Church trial against Father Lawrence Murphy.

The cardinal's deputy decided the alleged molestation occurred too long ago and said Father Murphy – then ailing and elderly – should instead repent and be restricted from celebrating Mass. One victim received $80,000 (56,000) compensation from the archdiocese.

The Vatican issued a strong defence of its handling of the Murphy case. Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano said there was no cover-up and denounced what it said was a "clear and despicable intention" to strike at Pope Benedict "at any cost".

Spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi issued a statement noting the Murphy case did not reach the Vatican until 1996 – 20 years after Milwaukee church authorities first learned of the allegations.