(Quebec) Cardinal Gérald Cyprien Lacroix resumed his duties as archbishop of Quebec on Monday, after a Vatican-mandated investigation found no evidence linking the top church leader to allegations of sexual misconduct.
Bishop Lacroix had voluntarily left his post in late January, when the sexual abuse allegations first surfaced as part of a class action lawsuit against the diocese.
Bishop Lacroix’s name was among 15 people added last January to a list of alleged perpetrators in a class action, authorized by the Superior Court in 2022, alleging sexual abuse by clergy and staff dating back to 1940. The alleged sexual touching involving Bishop Lacroix allegedly took place between 1987 and 1988 in Quebec City, when the anonymous complainant was 17 years old.
In response to these allegations, last February, Pope Francis mandated retired Quebec judge André Denis to investigate.
Although the alleged victim did not testify, Judge Denis announced in May that his investigation had not exonerated Bishop Lacroix, but had not revealed any evidence justifying a canonical trial. “The elements gathered during my investigation make it implausible that the facts attributed to the cardinal occurred,” the investigator concluded.
Bishop Lacroix has denied the allegations, which he called “baseless.” The actions he was accused of have not been tested in court.
A lawyer representing the alleged victim said in May that his client preferred to testify in court and did not want to participate in the Vatican-mandated investigation because it was an internal church process that lacked credibility in his eyes.
In a press release Monday, the archbishop described the past few months as a “difficult journey.”
“The conclusions of Judge Denis’ investigation, the support of those around me and the possibility of making myself heard, which could result from the request for intervention, lead me to calmly resume my ministry. The community knows to what extent the Church of Quebec condemns reprehensible acts and knows the measures we have taken to prevent them,” the cardinal said in a statement released Monday.
He also wishes to obtain the status of intervener in the class action, but has delegated to the auxiliary bishop of Quebec, Mgr Marc Pelchat, the management of the class action and the processing of the allegations of abuse, he indicated in a press release.
His return having been made official, Mgr Lacroix will preside over the solemn mass of the feast of Saint Anne on Friday at the Sainte-Anne-de Beaupré sanctuary.