Cardinal Mario Grech

Photo: Diocese of Gozo

Secretary General of General Secretary of the Synod

Dioceses/Religious Orders: Diocese of Gozo

As Bishop of Gozo, Malta, Cardinal Grech failed to report known abusers to civil authorities and delayed removing priests credibly accused of child sexual abuse. Victims and advocates criticized his handling of several cases, including one where a defrocked priest was only formally notified of his removal two years after the Vatican’s decision. Multiple survivors of horrific abuse in the Lourdes Home orphanage have spoken out Grech only took action on their complaints after media reports on the crimes that took place, even though the diocese had conducted its own investigation that it kept private for seven years.

SNAP filed a complaint against Grech under the pope’s 2023 decree Vos estis lux mundi on March 25, 2025

Vos estis lux mundi, Pope Francis’ 2023 decree, allows any bishop, cardinal, or religious superior to be reported and investigated for abuse or cover-up. These complaints, submitted to the Vatican, are not verdicts of guilt. They are evidence-based calls for investigation—each meeting the church’s own standard of “serious indications” that a violation occurred. In civil terms, this is equivalent to probable cause or reasonable grounds to investigate.

Every filing draws from a solid foundation of survivor and eyewitness testimony, public records and church statements, independent investigations by media and legal experts, official church documents and canonical proceedings, testimony, depositions, and court-ordered documents from criminal and civil cases.