“Trust in justice and respect for the work of the Rota Court”. With this single sentence, the Spanish Episcopal Conference (EEC) evaluates the news discovered on Monday by EL PAÍS: the Vatican opens an investigation for pedophilia against the bishop of Cadiz Rafael Zornoza, 76 years old. When questioned by this newspaper, the conference did not even want to evaluate the victim’s pain. The bishop is under investigation for allegedly sexually molesting a minor continuously in the 1990s, when the prelate was a priest in Getafe and directed the diocese’s seminary.
This newspaper attempted unsuccessfully this Sunday to speak to Zornoza to get his side of the story. The communications manager of the diocese of Cadiz also did not respond to questions from this newspaper. The alleged victim accuses the bishop of having abused him from the age of 14 to 21. The facts reported – touching, caresses on the private parts and kisses on the mouth – date back to 1994, when Zornoza was 45 years old and directed the major seminary of the diocese of Getafe.
The diocese of Cadiz and Ceuta said after the news was published that Zornoza had “temporarily suspended his schedule to clarify the facts and deal with the treatment of an aggressive cancer he is receiving.” At the same time he denied the news, although this newspaper accepted the complaint and ecclesiastical sources confirmed the opening of the investigation. “The accusations made, referring to events that occurred almost thirty years ago, are very serious and also false”, the note continues.
It is the first time in Spain that it is publicly known that a bishop is canonically under investigation for a crime of pedophilia. The court investigating the case is expected to collect statements from the accused, the victim (or victims) and any witnesses or persons informed of the facts. Technically this is called a “preventive investigation”. Once completed it is sent to the Vatican. Then it will be decided whether or not to open proceedings which will end with a canonical trial and a sentence. The resolution is sent to the Doctrine of Faith for ratification. The case is already barred by civil justice.
EL PAÍS launched an investigation into pedophilia in the Spanish Church in 2018 and did a database updated with all known cases. If you know of any cases that have not seen the light of day, you can write to us at: Abusos@elpais.es. If it is Latin America, the address is: abusesamerica@elpais.es.
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