Pope confirms files on Vatican’s ‘dark dealings’

A sitting Pope has for the first time revealed the existence of files detailing “abuse” and “dark dealings” in the Catholic Church. Pope Francis has confirmed that he inherited a “large white box” of documents detailing crimes by clergy when he took over from his predecessor Benedict XVI. The revelation features in the pontiff’s autobiography, Spera (Hope).

Francis became Pope in 2013 following the unexpected resignation of Benedict XVI, formerly German Cardinal Ratzinger, who was the first pontiff in almost 600 years to step down, citing deteriorating health. The papacy of Benedict, who died in December 2022, was marred by revelations of sexual abuse scandals in the Catholic Church which he was accused of having covered up.

The last year of his tenure was further smeared by the ‘Vatileaks’ scandal – a…