In a recent interview, H.E.R. Mons. Juan Ignacio Arrieta, Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, spoke to Almudena Martínez-Bordiú, EWTN Vatican Correspondent, about Pope Francis' Motu Proprio "Vos Estis Lux Mundi." This Motu Proprio, which was published in 2019 and updated recently, aims to ensure that complaints of abuse and other issues reach those who need to judge them. In the interview, Arrieta discussed the changes that have been made to the Motu Proprio, including the inclusion of vulnerable adults and laypeople responsible for ecclesiastical movements. He also spoke about the harassment resulting from abuse of authority and the procedure and deadlines for complaints. 

Good morning and thank you for your time, welcome. 

Thank you very much... No problem, pleased to meet you.  

I wanted to start by asking you about the origin of Pope Francis' Motu Proprio "Vos Estis Lux Mundi," which was published in 2019 and which was updated a few days ago. What do you think was Pope Francis' objective in publishing this Motu Proprio? 

Well, what has now been done is to make definitive something that was provisional in order to gather experiences from what the Pope did in 2019. The objective of the Motu Proprio is that complaints of abuse or other issues reach those who have to judge. And it is important to understand that the Church operates on five continents... it is a reality that is in contact with many countries, and there are certain people... bishops or major superiors... who depend on the Pope. And it is necessary that complaints reach Rome safely from the Philippines... or from the United States. This is the fundamental objective of this: to facilitate that complaints reach their destination. 

Could you highlight some of the novelties of the Motu Proprio? 

Well... (now) in these four years, experiences have been collected from the application of what was done then, and there has also been a great novelty, which is that the sixth book of the Code of Canon Law has been published, which is on criminal law, so some canonical offenses have been better defined, including abuses, but not only abuses because there are many other issues. These are the novelties that have occurred. There is new experience and with this data, a new law has been made, which is the same as before with some small modifications. 

In the document, there is a novelty that speaks of sexual abuses committed not only against minors but also against vulnerable adults. Who could we include in this group? 

The concept of vulnerable adult is not yet well established in doctrine. Therefore, in doctrine, those who work in this kind of thing -jurists, etc. - and as I say, since the Church operates on five continents, the sensitivity of a person in India is not the same as in Spain or in another country. That is why the Church, in universal canonical legislation, does not use the term "vulnerable," but uses the term "persons who in law deserve the same protection as minors or persons with disabilities." All these kinds of concepts are legal concepts that the Church has to apply, as I say, in very different countries and which have been very defined in the Code and also in the norms of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. 

One of the noteworthy changes is that this applies not only to religious and clergy but also to laypeople responsible for ecclesiastical movements. What does this change mean? 

Well, without further ado, the Holy See also wants to protect these sectors and give freedom for these individuals who hold higher positions - positions of greater responsibility - in associative institutions, international associations that depend on the Holy See, to also be under the guarantee that their behavior conforms to the doctrine of the Church and correct Christian morals. 

The document not only talks about sexual abuses, but also about the harassment resulting from abuse of authority. What exactly does that mean? 

This is also one of the things that has been better defined in the penal code that was promulgated a year and a half ago...two years ago. There may be behaviors of a religious superior, a bishop, a superior of an institution, an association, that involve an excess of authority, either because they invade the conscience or try to illegitimately influence the conscience of people, or because they entail commands or orders that are not legitimately given. That is what must be appreciated as abuse of authority. Forms of conscience or orders that are given. That is within this possible... They are not necessarily related to sexual abuses, but they can be of another type. And if they are of a serious entity, they also enter as crimes that have to be judged and eventually punished, right? 

And could you explain to us what the procedure and deadlines are from when the complaint is made to a possible resolution? 

As I said, this law from 2019 and this new one are not criminal laws. What they try to guarantee is information, to guarantee complaints, and that complaints reach their destination. So that they can then be verified, and that once verified, if there is something of entity, they are judged as they are in the laws of the Church to be judged. Therefore, the deadlines... one can say... Well, does this law establish deadlines to report? One can report whatever they want, what happens is that whoever receives the complaint will have to verify if this complaint is appropriate, if it has prescribed, if it is a very old complaint that is given for reasons that are not reasonable. One thing is that the complaint reaches its destination and then, once the content of the complaint has been verified, it has to be judged by the procedures established by the Church, right? So, the only deadline that is established in a prominent way that now comes to mind, is that the dicastery that receives the information has to decide within one month who has to initiate that investigation to verify if the complaint is correct or not. 

In your opinion, do you think that with the publication of this Motu Proprio, progress has been made in recent years in the fight against sexual abuses within the Church? 

I think it's practically the same as what was done in 2019. The thing is that now some aspects have been retouched, the issue has been extended -as you said- to the lay person who eventually directs an association, some deadline issues have been improved... But fundamentally, -the issue of abuse of authority has also been added- it is the same as what had already been done in 2019 but perfected so that things can be concluded better and so that they can be better resolved. 

And in these last 4 years from 2019 until now, has there been any change? 

Changes in...? 

In the fight against abuses. 

Well, what I'm saying is: the definition is being improved. I insist that it must be realized that the laws of the Church are laws that must be applied in very different contexts, they are not like Italian, Spanish, or US laws, but rules must be made that are adapted to the demands of each place. I think that perfecting aspects that appear and sometimes are very technical and very small, are to improve and effectively apply them throughout the world. 

Thank you very much. 

Delighted! Thank you very much!