These scandals continue to erode the public's trust in the Church, prompting calls for greater transparency and accountability within Poland's Catholic hierarchy, state news agency PAP reported on Thursday.
One of the most recent incidents involves the death of a 29-year-old man found in the residence of a parish priest in Drobin, a town in central Poland's Mazowieckie region.
The district prosecutor's office in Sierpc is investigating the case as involuntary manslaughter under Article 155 of the Penal Code.
According to an autopsy, the man died of acute cardiovascular and respiratory failure.
Following the discovery, the local bishop, Szymon Stułkowski, removed the priest from his duties and ordered him to leave the parish.
The priest was also barred from performing sacraments or conducting public services.
A special team has been set up to investigate the incident and will report its findings to the Vatican.
In another case from March 2023, a 26-year-old deacon was found dead outside a Catholic building in the southern city of Sosnowiec.
The local prosecutor’s investigation revealed that a 40-year-old priest had killed the deacon before taking his own life.
The tragedy sent shockwaves through the local diocese, which has since been placed under the leadership of Bishop Artur Ważny.
Two commissions have been established to investigate clerical scandals in the diocese.
Earlier, in September 2023, a Sosnowiec priest, Tomasz Z., was charged with multiple crimes, including drug-related offenses. He was later sentenced to 18 months in prison and ordered to pay compensation to his victim.
His arrest and subsequent conviction contributed to the resignation of the then-bishop of Sosnowiec, Grzegorz Kaszak, in late 2023.
The Church’s problems extend beyond individual parishes and dioceses.
In July last year, Mariusz W., a former director of Poland's World Youth Day organizing office, was arrested on charges of sexual abuse and incitement to provide false testimony.
The alleged crimes occurred between 2011 and 2021, and the prosecutor’s office in Radom was informed of his actions in 2021 by the local diocese.
Another notable case concerns Paweł M., a Dominican priest whose abusive behavior in the late 1990s and early 2000s came to light in a 2021 report.
The report detailed his use of psychological and sexual abuse in a community he founded in the southwestern city of Wrocław.
Despite complaints from victims, including multiple accounts of sexual assault, no formal action was taken against him by his superiors until much later.
Similar issues have arisen within other religious orders. In 2022, Jesuit priest Maciej Sz. was revealed to have sexually abused two young women in 2007 and 2008.
His superiors initially took no formal disciplinary action, but later restrictions were imposed by the Vatican.
These cases have highlighted the broader issue of clerical abuse in Poland, with several high-ranking clergy members coming under investigation for their roles in covering up or neglecting to address allegations of sexual abuse.
Among those investigated is retired auxiliary bishop Jan Szkodoń, who was accused of improper conduct with a minor. Although the Vatican deemed his behavior imprudent, no formal charges were filed.
Similar investigations have been conducted by the Vatican into other Polish clergy, including Senior Bishop Tadeusz Rakoczy of the Bielsko-Żywiec diocese, Bishop Zbigniew Kiernikowski, who led the Siedlce diocese from 2002 to 2014, Cardinal Henryk Gulbinowicz, Archbishop Andrzej Dzięga, Archbishop Stanisław Gądecki, Archbishop Sławoj Leszek Głódź, and Bishop Edward Janiak.
However, not all of these cases resulted in confirmed allegations.
The Vatican found the accusations against Archbishop Gądecki to be unfounded, according to a June 2021 statement from the Apostolic Nunciature.
Other senior figures, including Cardinal Gulbinowicz and Archbishop Gądecki, have been investigated for alleged negligence in handling abuse cases.
However, not all accusations were substantiated.
The investigations, both by Polish authorities and the Vatican, are ongoing.
(rt/gs)
Source: PAP