The parishioner interrupted the mass when Wuerl asked attendees to pray for Pope Francis
An angry Catholic parishioner confronted shamed archbishop of Washington Cardinal Donald Wuerl on his part in the allegations against Cardinal Theodore McCarrick during a mass at the Annunciation Catholic Church on Sunday.
The parishioner interrupted the mass when Wuerl asked attendees on Sunday to pray for the pope amid the growing Vatican child abuse scandal.
Video footage captured the moment when the parishioner interrupted Wuerl’s post-Communion remarks at the mass.
“Shame on you,” the parishioner yelled before storming out.
Wuerl, who seemed totally unphased by the interruption, was asking parishioners to pray for Pope Francis as he attempts to deal with the pedophile scandal before asking them to forgive his own “errors in judgment” in the handling of the child sex abuse scandal.
“Yes, my brothers and sisters, shame,” Wuerl said.
“I wish I could re-do everything over these 30 years as a bishop and each time get it always right. That’s not the case. I do think together, asking for God’s mercy, pleading for God’s grace, recognizing that we can move into light, I simply ask you to keep me, keep all of those that have been abused, all of those who have suffered, all of the church in your prayers.”
A source who is familiar with McCarrick’s abuse case spoke with anonymity claiming that Wuerl was informed of the investigation of McCarrick ‘s alleged sexual abuse in New York in 2017.
Meanwhile, the seminary had assigned seminarians to live with McCarrick as his aides and take him on various trips, including ones to the casino.
Italian Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò alleges Pope Francis covered for McCarrick, also claiming that Pontiff repealed sanctions imposed on McCarrick by Pope emeritus Benedict XVI in the late 2000s, despite Viganò personally briefing Francis on McCarrick’s abuse.
LIVE in DC: Cardinal Wuerl speaks about the current crisis in the Church. https://t.co/XEN7LD8x5N
— Jason Calvi (@JasonCalvi) September 2, 2018
According to Fox: A Pennsylvania grand jury report accused Wuerl of allowing priests accused of sexually abusing children to be reassigned or reinstated.
The report released last month documented abuse by 300 priests over the course of 70 years.
Since the report’s release, Wuerl has faced escalating calls by Catholic survivors groups to resign.
The calls grew more intense last week when a former Vatican ambassador to the United States, Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, published a letter accusing Wuerl of knowing about the alleged sexual misconduct committed by his predecessor in Washington, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, the Washington Post reported.
McCarrick, who was suspended this summer, is accused of abusing two minors and young priests and seminarians.
Wuerl has denied knowing any knowledge of the allegations against his predecessor.
In a statement, the Washington archdiocese acknowledged the dissenter and said Wuerl received “applause and expressions of support from parishioners.”