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Pope's top aide accused in abuse case

The Oak Ridger - 7/1/2017

Pope Francis suffered a major blow Thursday when his top financial adviser, Cardinal George Pell, was charged in his native Australia with multiple counts of sexual assault from years ago, bringing a criminal case in the long-running abuse scandal inside the frescoed walls of the Vatican for the first time.

The 76-year-old Pell - the highest-ranking Vatican official ever implicated in the scandal - forcefully denied the accusations and took an immediate leave of absence as Vatican finance czar to return to Australia to defend himself.

"The whole idea of sexual abuse is abhorrent to me," Pell told reporters in the Vatican press office. "News of these charges strengthens my resolve, and court proceedings now offer me an opportunity to clear my name." The pope thanked him for his "honest" work and collaboration, and set about trying to ensure that the financial reforms he had entrusted to Pell would continue in his absence.