Mathias Busekist
The Vatican has commented on their decision.
Cardinal Roger Mahony, the retired Archbishop of Los Angeles who has faced long-standing criticism for his handling of clerical sexual abuse cases, is slated to participate in the official ceremonies for the closing of Pope Francis’ coffin and his burial, the Vatican confirmed.
Mahony is listed among nine cardinals and a small group of bishops and priests who will take part in the solemn rites at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. Despite having been stripped of all public duties within the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in 2013,
A Vatican spokesman said Mahony was chosen to participate due to his seniority within the college, with several more senior cardinal priests unable to attend. As one of the longest-serving members, Mahony ranks prominently among cardinal priests.
Other notable cardinals participating in the ceremonies include Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Dean of the College of Cardinals; Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s Secretary of State and senior cardinal bishop under age 80; and Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, the protodeacon who will announce the election of the next pope.
Mahony’s involvement has reignited controversy over his past role in managing sexual abuse cases within the church. He served as Archbishop of Los Angeles from 1985 until his retirement in 2011. In 2013, internal church documents revealed that during the 1980s,
Mahony failed to remove abusive priests or cooperate with law enforcement. That same year, his successor, Archbishop José Gomez, announced that Mahony would no longer have public or administrative duties, though the archdiocese later clarified that he remained a “priest in good standing.”
Mahony responded publicly to Gomez’s move, defending his record and asserting that his actions had evolved in later years. He acknowledged making “mistakes, especially in the mid-1980s,” but insisted that he had left behind an archdiocese “second to none in protecting children and youth.”
The clerical abuse crisis in Los Angeles has resulted in some of the largest settlements in the history of the Catholic Church. In 2007, the archdiocese paid $660 million to 508 victims. In 2023, it agreed to an additional $880 million settlement with 1,353 survivors in cases spanning decades.