Amidst the mounting accusations from a former Vatican envoy about the pontiff's alleged cover-up on the sexual misdemeanors of an ex-bishop, Pope Francis remains steadfast and has no plans to resign from his post, an Italian news agency cited "close associates" of the pope.
According to ABC News, the head of the Catholic Church was "embittered" by the document released by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano - Vatican City's former ambassador to the United States.
As reported earlier on this site, Vigano's 11-page statement accused the current pontiff of protecting Cardinal Theodore McCarrick who was marred with sexual allegations of "immoral behavior with seminarians and priests."
McCarrick was supposedly sanctioned by Pope Benedict XVI for his demeanors but it was later nullified by Pope Francis.
Vigano went on to specify that the pope "continued to cover" for the accused despite the surmounting allegations and even went on to include McCarrick in his lineup of trusted advisors.
The report from ANSA cited information from the group of insiders who said that the 81-year-old remains unyielding to the charges and is "not thinking about resignation."
Against the Law of The Church
It would be highly unlikely that a petition to oust the current head of the papacy will push through. For one, there is no provision in the Catholic canon law which specifies the removal of a pope. The job is for life and it can only be ended either by the death of the pope or through voluntary resignation.
According to papal biographer Gerald O'Connell, the Church law states that the pope is the "supreme legislator" which means no one "can remove him from his place" unless "he himself decides to go."
Moreover, there's no special counsel for popes and it is against the provision of the canon law to conduct an independent investigation on the pontiff, not unless he wishes to create one.
This slew of scandals involving sex abuse by high members of the cleric has long been tainting the image of the Catholic religion and, as experts pointed out, won't be going away any time soon.
As indicated in a previous report, Pope Francis is one of the main heads of the clergies that pushes the Church to exert more effort in reviving the trust and faith of its constituents amidst controversies of abuse.
Just this month, the Jesuit priest flew together with his delegates to Ireland for the World Meeting of Families where he reportedly met with the victims of sexual abuse by Catholic priests.
