Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, released last week after his trial for failing to report the sexual abuse of a priest, told Le Point that this case had "changed", but that it would remain "still stuck "to his face.
"Turn the page"
"This case will remain attached to my name and will always stick to my face. I will remain the one who did not denounce heinous acts", regretted the prelate in an interview published Wednesday evening, less than a week after the acquittal pronounced by the Lyon Court of Appeal, which he said "comforted" him. The Archbishop of Lyon announced at the end of his trial that he would again resign to the Pope to "turn the page" on this case symbol of the failings of the Church in the face of pedophile crime in its ranks. The Pope has indicated that he will allow himself a period of reflection to decide.
With hindsight, Philippe Barbarin believes that these last years have "changed". "Victims came to me from everywhere, and helped me understand the seriousness and the persistence of this deep wound that has changed their lives," he said.
"Public opinion decides"
Last March, the criminal court had sentenced the 69-year-old prelate to six months suspended prison sentence for not having reported to justice the sexual assaults committed by a parish priest in his diocese, Bernard Preynat, on young scouts between 1971 and 1991. As at his trial, the cardinal repeats that he was unaware of the priest's actions before meeting a victim in 2014. "It was not until the end of 2014 (...) that I became aware , brutally, of the reality of the acts committed, of what they signified concretely, of the suffering of the victims (...) I realize that I did not take the right measures, "he explains.
"I regret not having deepened the investigation with Preynat (...) The scandal has grown enormously because we have waited too long. I never wanted or thought to hide anything. Learning from the attacks, I never I never said: 'As long as it is not known', "continues the Primate of Gaul. Asked about his feeling of rehabilitation, Barbarin explains: "I was found not guilty. I am first of all a French citizen, and in this sense, yes, it is a rehabilitation. Afterwards, it is public opinion that decided".