Catholic Sisters Under Vatican Review Want Answers

August 18, 2009

Author: Rachel Zoll

Source: Google News

Wire Service: AP

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jSTgCugNoam_XAJxjVUwnFMBz6XQD9A4RB7G3

An association of U.S. Roman Catholic sisters raised questions Monday about why they are the target of, and who is paying for, a Vatican investigation that is shaping up to be a tough review of whether sisters have strayed from church teaching.


The Leadership Conference of Women Religious, representing about 800 heads of religious orders, said there was a "lack of full disclosure about the motivation and funding sources" for the inquiry. The group also said it objects to the Vatican plan to keep private the reports that will be submitted to the Holy See.
"There's no transparency there," said Sister Annmarie Sanders, a conference spokeswoman.


The investigation, announced earlier this year, will examine the practices of the roughly 59,000 Catholic sisters working in the United States. Some sisters have privately expressed anger over the assessment, which they say unfairly questions their commitment to church teaching. However, in public they have remained largely circumspect in their comments.