Senior Quebec church leader resumes role after six-month leave due to abuse claims

Cardinal Gerard Lacroix reacts to his nomination by Pope Francis, Jan. 13, 2014, in Quebec City. (The Canadian Press/Jacques Boissinot)

Cardinal Gérald Lacroix announced on Monday he is resuming his duties as archbishop of Quebec City, after a Vatican-mandated investigation released in May found no evidence tying the senior church leader to sexual misconduct allegations.

Lacroix, 66, had taken a six-month absence beginning in late January when the abuse allegations first surfaced as part of a class-action lawsuit against the Quebec City diocese for alleged historical sexual abuse cases.

In response to those claims, Pope Francis mandated retired Quebec judge André Denis to investigate. And while the alleged victim did not participate in the probe, Denis announced in May that his investigation didn't exonerate Lacroix but failed to uncover any evidence that would justify a canonical trial.

In the weeks since Denis's report, Lacroix and others accused in the class action have requested intervener status, which will allow them to make submissions before the court. A ruling is pending in the request.

On Monday in a news release, the archbishop — who is a member of the Pope's Council of Cardinals — described the past months as a "difficult journey."

"But the conclusions of Judge Denis' investigation, the support of those around me and the possibility of making myself heard that could result from the request for intervention (in the lawsuit) lead me to calmly resume my ministry," Lacroix said.

"The community knows to what extent the (Catholic) church in Quebec City condemns reprehensible acts and knows the measures we have taken to prevent them."

Lacroix's name was among 15 added to a list in January of perpetrators in a class-action lawsuit, authorized by the Superior Court in 2022, alleging sexual abuse by clergy and staff dating back to 1940. The alleged sexual touching involving Lacroix took place between 1987 and 1988 in Quebec City when the unnamed female plaintiff was 17. In January, lawyer Alain Arsenault says the alleged victim, now in her 50s, had been reluctant to come forward because of the impact her allegations would have had on her devout parents.

Lacroix has denied the allegations, which he has described as "unfounded," and the claims against him have not been tested in court.

Back in May, the Vatican said Denis's report did not "permit to identify any actions that amount to misconduct or abuse," adding, "no further canonical procedure" is expected.

Denis, a retired Quebec Superior Court justice, told reporters in May that his investigation was incomplete because of the complainant's refusal to take part. But he said that despite the interviews he conducted and his extensive search through church archives, he couldn't find anything to substantiate the allegations. Denis described the cardinal’s record as “impeccable.”

A lawyer representing the alleged victim said in May his client preferred to testify in court and did not wish to take part in the Vatican-mandated investigation because it was an internal church process that lacked credibility.

The allegations against Lacroix are part of the same lawsuit that alleged sexual misconduct by Quebec Cardinal Marc Ouellet between 2008 and 2010. Ouellet, 80, has denied the allegations and countersued the woman who made them for defamation. He was later hit with another allegation of sexual misconduct in 2020, which he has also denied. Ouellet retired last April from a posting at the Vatican where he oversaw the powerful Bishops’ Office.

Lacroix will preside over the mass for the feast of St-Anne on Friday at the shrine of Ste-Anne-de Beaupré, northeast of Quebec City.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 22, 2024.

— By Sidhartha Banerjee in Montreal.