The case is France’s most important church sex abuse case to date and poses a new challenge to the Vatican, amid growing demands in overwhelmingly Catholic France for a reckoning with decades of sexual abuse by the clergy.
Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, 68, appeared in a Lyon (pictured below) court along with other senior church officials accused of failing to protect children from alleged abuse by the Rev Bernard Preynat.
The top Vatican official in charge of sex abuse cases, Cardinal Luis Ladaria, is among the accused – but will not appear in court because the Vatican invoked his diplomatic immunity.
After taking his seat in the front row, Barbarin held his hands together and closed his eyes, as if in prayer.
The judge then read out the lengthy accusations against the defendants, and the defence used procedural arguments to try to get the case thrown out.
Nine people who said Preynat abused them in the 1970s and 1980s brought the case to court, and hope it marks a turning point in efforts to hold the French church hierarchy accountable for hushing up abuse.
The victims say top clergy were aware of Preynat’s actions for years, but allowed him to be in contact with children until his 2015 retirement.
Despite nationwide attention on the case, it may fall apart for legal reasons.
Prosecutors initially threw it out for…
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