The Rise and Fall of Theodore McCarrick

Inside The Vatican

Former cardinal Theodore McCarrick died on April 3; he was the first cardinal to be removed from the College of Cardinals over sexual abuse and was ultimately laicized. This week, we’re re-presenting “Inside the Vatican”’s 2020 deep dive, “The Rise and Fall of Theodore McCarrick,” which was published just after the Vatican published an unprecedented report into how McCarrick was able to rise through the church’s ranks despite his abuse being an “open secret.”

In this episode, America’s Vatican correspondent Gerard O’Connell and host Colleen Dulle explain the rise and fall of Theodore McCarrick, once the most prominent prelates in the U.S. Catholic church.

The two unpack the accusations made in Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò’s incendiary 2018 letter and how those are addressed in the Vatican’s recent report. Gerry gives an up-close view of how the events of the last two years unfolded, and Colleen raises questions about whether this report will usher in a new era of accountability.

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Find a transcript of this episode here.

Links for further reading and listening:

• Inside the Vatican: A 3-minute summary of what the McCarrick Report reveals
• Disgraced former cardinal Theodore McCarrick dies at 94
• Sexual abuse case against defrocked Cardinal McCarrick suspended in Wisconsin
• Timeline: The allegations against former Cardinal McCarrick

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