Nearly 1500 academics in Poland have written an appeal against “slandering and rejecting St John Paul II” after the publication of the McCarrick report by the Vatican on November 10.
The report documented the rise of dis-graced former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, who was laicized by Pope Francis in 2019 after he was credibly accused of abusing minors, after rumours had for decades swirled around both the United States and the Vatican about his sexual misconduct with seminarians.
St John Paul played a significant role in McCarrick’s rise, appointing him a Bishop of Metuchen, Archbishop of Newark, and Archbishop of Washington before creating him a cardinal in 2001.
“We appeal to all people of goodwill for reflection. St John Paul II, as every other person, deserves to be discussed with honesty,” said the letter by the group of academics. “By slandering and rejecting St John Paul II we not only do harm to himself, but also to ourselves.”
Among the signatories were Krzysztof Zanussi, and award-winning director and teacher to a generation of filmmakers; Adam Daniel Rotfeld, former Minister of Foreign Affairs; and Hanna Suchocka, who served as Polish ambassador to the Holy See from 2001-2013.
“Unsupported attacks on the memory of St John Paul II are motivated by a preconceived thesis, which we view with sadness and deep disturbance,” the appeal reads.