The question on the public’s mind as details of the Boston Archdiocese sex scandals came into the open was “How could it have been possible that years of sexual abuse with numerous abusers and hundreds of victims not been reported to the authorities?”  Cover-up and scandal were one thing, but even decent and respectable priests with knowledge of wrong doings in the church had not reported priests to the police.  Was the entire Catholic faith working together to cover up the various scandals that went on behind closed doors?  What did this say about Catholicism?

Although there it was made clear that there is no moral reason as to why the sexual abuse crimes were not reported to the police, the release of the confidential document Crimen Sollicitationis offered a bit of understanding.  The document was written in 1962 and sent by Cardinal Alfredo Ottaviani to “All Patriarchs, Archbishops, Bishops, and other Local Ordinaries.”  Crimen Sollicitationis, Latin for “Crimes of Solicitation,” gave all men in authority in Catholicism a set of rules and procedures to follow if sex crimes occurred, particularly during the Sacrament of Confession, or if any other sex crimes occurred with animals, minors, or men and followed the Code of Canon Law.  It was enforced for twenty years under then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger.  Ratzinger became the Pope on April 19, 2005.  

The document stated that anyone caught performing crimes of solicitation during Confession was to be suspended from celebrating Mass, declared unfit for hearing further confessions, and depending on the severity of the solicitation crime, was to be punished accordingly.  So far, the document seems to take legitimate actions in the church.  However, the part of the document that deals with allegations of cover-up and the “hush hush” tone that followed the Boston Archdiocese sex scandal is the section of the document that demands upmost secrecy from all parties involved with any crimes of solicitation.  Crimen Sollicitationis called for a vow of secrecy surrounding all aspects of the Canon Trial of someone found guilty solicitation.  Even after the trial had concluded, all parties were sworn to secrecy under the Oath of the Holy Office.  The Oath can be summarized as follows: “I do promise, vow and swear that I will maintain inviolate secrecy about each and every thing brought to my knowledge in the performance of my aforesaid function, excepting only what may happen to be lawfully published when this process is concluded and put into effect … and that I will never directly or indirectly, by gesture, word, writing or in any other way, and under any pretext, even that of a greater good or of a highly urgent and serious reason, do anything against this fidelity to secrecy, unless special permission or dispensation is expressly granted to me by the Supreme Pontiff.”  Breaking the Oath of the Holy Office called for excommunication from the Catholic Church.  Crimen Sollicitationis forced all priest, whether with good or bad intentions, to be silenced from the authorities.  The purpose of the oath of secrecy was to protect all parties involved from further scrutiny, but some feel as though it was a strategy used by the Catholic Church to avoid scandal and controversy.