imposes responsibility upon one person for the failure of another with whom the person has a special relationship (such as parent and child, employer and employee, or owner of vehicle and driver), to exercise such care as a reasonably prudent person would use under similar circumstances.
In the case of the abuse crisis, it is well within reason to hold the Vatican vicariously liable for the tortious actions of its priests since those priests committed their unlawful acts as part of their employment and exploited the spiritual and social authority imputed to them from Rome in order to sexually dominate thousands of underage church-goers and students.
Therefore, Cardinal Sodano's attempt to exculpate the Vatican from liability in this case is inaccurate, misleading, and morally reprehensible.
I am rooting for the attorneys who are attempting to bypass procedural stops in order to draw the Vatican and even Pope Benedict himself into a federal lawsuit. The Vatican needs to answer for turning a blind eye to this worldwide pandemic of sexual perversity and the endless robbing of young children's innocence.
.- Cardinal Angelo Sodano, Dean of the College of Cardinals, voiced his support and solidarity with Pope Benedict on Tuesday. The prelate underscored that, as Jesus was not at fault for the betrayal of Judas, neither are Pope Benedict XVI or bishops to be blamed for the "grave faults" of priests.
Speaking to the Vatican's newspaper L'Osservatore Romano in Rome, the cardinal explained that "before these unjust attacks we were told that we are making mistakes in strategy, that we should react differently. The Church has its own style and does not adopt the methods that are being used against the Pope today.
"The only strategy we have comes to us from the Gospel," he said.
The dean of the College of Cardinals went on to say that the Christian community feels "justly hurt" when attempts are made to involve it en masse "in the grave and painful acts of some priests, transforming individual fault and responsibility into collective fault.”
He later underlined that "if any minister has been unfaithful, you can't and you shouldn't generalize.
"Certainly, we suffer, and Benedict XVI has asked forgiveness many times," he noted. "But it is not Christ's fault if Judas has betrayed (him). It is not a bishop's fault if one of his priests has stained himself with grave faults.
"And surely the Pontiff is not responsible," said Cardinal Sodano.
The cardinal also explained why he spoke out on behalf of the "people of God" in support and admiration of the Pope before this past Sunday's Mass.
The Easter Liturgy, he said, offered a good occasion to "reaffirm the deep relations of unity that hold all members of the Church close to him who the Holy Spirit has put in place to guide the community of believers."
Cardinal Sodano also expressed the support of the College of Cardinals and the world's 400,000 priests for the Holy Father, referring to a passage from John's Gospel for inspiration: "In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world."
The cardinal said he feels "a duty to recognize Benedict XVI for the apostolic devotion with which he gives his daily service to the Church.
"My words were born also of a personal demand, from the profound affection that I hold for the Vicar of Christ."
Cardinal Sodano said that "in addition to offering a witness of closeness to the Pope," his words of support "were an invitation to serenity. It is a call that the Pope himself, firstly and continuously, makes to the Church and to the world, following his grand predecessors on the chair of Peter."
