An influential priest and ally of Poland’s ruling party has said that he is “sorry for causing pain” if anyone “misunderstood” recent remarks on clerical paedophilia.
During a mass on Saturday, Father Tadeusz Rydzyk appeared to suggest that such crimes were the result of priests understandably giving in to “temptation”. He also referred to a bishop accused of covering up abuse as a “modern martyr” who has been victimised by the media.
Meanwhile, the event at which he spoke – marking the 29th birthday of Radio Maryja, the controversial broadcaster founded by Rydzyk – is being investigated by the sanitary authorities for apparent breaches of government coronavirus restrictions. Among those in attendance were the justice and defence ministers.
“Who doesn’t have temptations?”
During the ceremony in Toruń, Rydzyk referred to recent revelations of sexual abuse of minors by clergy. “The fact that a priest has sinned…Well, so he has sinned. Who doesn’t have temptations? Let him show himself” declared Rydzyk.
Rydzyk also described Edward Janiak – whom Pope Francis has removed as bishop of Kalisz while the Vatican investigates claims he covered up child sex abuse in the church – as a “modern martyr”.
He also blamed the media for the sex abuse scandals: “The media did this. Let’s not give in, Catholics – that they start to growl at some priest, make some little film, and everyone is left shaking.”
The Vatican’s actions against Janiak came following a documentary released in May this year that revealed cases of clerical paedophilia and alleged cover-ups by the church hierarchy, including Janiak.
Rydzyk’s remarks met with a quick response from senior figures in the church. The archbishop of Łódź, Grzegorz Ryś, who has been temporarily appointed to take over Janiak’s duties, released a statement saying that “downplaying sin, and even more so its consequences for the lives of the victims, has nothing to do with the path of the Gospel”.
The bishop of Toruń, Wiesław Śmigiel, declared that it was wrong to “use words that may downplay the problem [of sexual crimes against minors] or increase the suffering of the victims”.
The Primate of Poland, Archbishop Wojciech Polak, has asked Rydzyk to explain himself, reports Onet. The head of Polak’s office told PAP that Rydzyk’s words “downplay crimes and the sin of sexual abuse” and said that he had received many messages from victims who were hurt by Rydzyk’s words.
Public officials have also responded critically. A spokesman for the ruling conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, which is a close ally of Rydzyk, told RMF FM today that “these words should not have been uttered”.
Poland’s ombudsman for children’s rights, Mikołaj Pawlak, declared that “temptation does not explain away a crime” and that “paedophilia is a disgusting crime regardless of who is the perpetrator”.
Commentators have, however, pointed out that Pawlak – who was appointed by the PiS parliamentary majority – was present at Saturday’s event and clapped following Rydzyk’s speech.
Dlatego Pan klaskał tylko na pół gwizdka i raczej niechętnie.
Szanuję to. pic.twitter.com/gm5KgjkNm7— AleksanderTwardowski (@OloCzarny) December 7, 2020
Rydzyk “sorry” for being “misunderstood”
Rydzyk today responded to the criticism through Nasz Dziennik, a newspaper that is part of his Catholic media empre. He suggested that his remarks had been “taken out of context”. Yet he nevertheless repeated his description of Janiak as a “martyr”.
He accused the media of also making martyrs out of “many other bishops, cardinals, holy people” by “spreading hate” and “slander”. “This is how they want to kill the church,” he declared.
Another television documentary recently claimed that Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz – who for decades served as secretary to Polish pope John Paul II – covered up abuse in the church and took bribes from those accused of committing it.
A few hours later, Rydzyk issued a more conciliatory statement. He said that his “spontaneously spoken words [on Saturday] were misunderstood” and “hurt many people”, for which he is “sorry” as that “was not the intention,” reports RMF24.
“The sin of sexual harassment of minors is a crime that should be dealt with in accordance with the guidelines of the church and procedures of the law,” said Rydzyk, who added that he had no intention of “criticising or questioning” the Pope’s decision to remove Janiak from his position.
Alleged Covid violations
Saturday’s event in Toruń has also drawn criticism for appearing to contravene the government’s coronavirus regulations.
Attendance at religious services is restricted to one person per 15 square metres. However, images from Radio Maryja’s mass show an audience – including two government ministers and other politicians from Poland’s ruling coalition – that appears to exceed this.
Some were also not wearing masks, despite rules requiring everyone other than those conducting the ceremony to cover their mouth and nose.
W naszym Toruniu ostatnio spisywano spacerujących po ulicach młodych ludzi. Policjo toruńska, gdzie jesteś teraz?
➡️ Składam zawiadomienie do prokuratury na te towarzystwo, w związku ze złamaniem obostrzeń. pic.twitter.com/Mn85F0FRTR— J. Scheuring-Wielgus (@JoankaSW) December 5, 2020
On Monday, opposition MP Joanna Scheuring-Wielgus asked prosecutors in Toruń to investigate whether the event breached Article 165 of Poland’s criminal code on causing an epidemiological threat.
“It cannot be that in Poland there are those who are equal and more equal. It cannot be that the law is broken by a minister and the prosecutor [general],” said Scheuring-Wielgus. As well as being justice minister, Ziobro also serves as prosecutor general.
“Every day, people who demonstrate peacefully in the streets wearing masks are detained [for violating Covid restrictions]…People who go to fitness clubs, shopping centres are checked,” said Scheuring-Wielgus. “And here in Toruń there is an event for 200 people, where there were neither sanitary services nor the police.”
Today, the local sanitary inspectorate asked police in Toruń and the organisers of the event to provide detailed information, which it will use for an investigation into whether regulations were violated.
“In the church we should plead for law and justice”
Rydzyk has long had a close relationship with PiS. Earlier this year, when PiS candidate Andrzej Duda was standing for re-election as president, Rydzyk “congratulated” him on his “strength” and expressed “hope that pro-Polish forces” would win the election.
Since PiS returned to power in 2015, various entities linked to Rydzyk have received hefty state support. By 2019, the grants amounted to 214 million zloty (€48 million), according to a report by investigative news website OKO.press.
At Saturday’s mass in Toruń, Rydzyk declared that “in the church we should not be afraid and [should] plead for justice – for law and justice”. Law and Justice is the name of the ruling party.
As well as senior PiS figures attending Radio Maryja’s birthday event, the party’s parliamentary caucus sent a letter to the station thanking it for its “defence of Catholic values and Polish tradition”.
Meanwhile Ziobro, the justice minister, spoke alongside Rydzyk in the church. He warned that there are those who “want to take away” values such as “our culture, our traditions, our identity, the Polish soul”.
Main image credit: Radio Maryja/YouTube (screenshot)
Maria Wilczek is deputy editor of Notes from Poland. She is a regular writer for The Times, The Economist and Al Jazeera English, and has also featured in Foreign Policy, Politico Europe, The Spectator and Gazeta Wyborcza.
