„We send the material of the canonical process investigation to the Vatican, which responds with the procedures to continue – whether the bishop is left to make a decision by his decree, or a church process takes place. There can be various decisions there, up to removal from the priesthood. Priest Tadas has already requested this,“ G. Grušas said in an interview with the portal 15min on Wednesday.
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According to him, the only one who can return a priest accused of sexual crimes to the lay state is the pope.
„In the process, the priest has the right to ask, but the only one who can return him to the lay state is the Holy Father. Everything then goes to the Vatican, and the Vatican indicates which processes to carry out. When the processes there end, the bishop sends his decision again to the Vatican and they then confirm or adjust it, whatever the decision may be,“ he explained.
According to G. Grušas, T. Švedavičius did not immediately admit his crimes, he did so only later.
„He did not admit it immediately. He admitted it when it was put on the table that there is a victim and contact with her. The police started and developed the investigation, from then on there was no denial,“ he indicated.
As BNS wrote, this summer two priests’ cases were handed over to the courts, in which the clergymen are accused of sexual crimes against children.
Priest T. Švedavičius is accused of sexual crimes against 11 minors. According to law enforcement data, 34 criminal episodes were recorded – from forcing children to consume alcohol to their sexual assault. The crimes were committed over 23 years – from 2002 to 2025. This case was handed over to the Vilnius Regional Court for consideration.
In another case transferred to the Vilnius City District Court, another priest – Ryšardas Peciunas – is accused of possession of child pornography, and there are no victims in this case.
„I want to apologize, first of all to the victims themselves, for causing such pain, that a crime was committed against them. But also to the members of the Church and society, that we failed to prevent this crime and clarify it sooner,“ G. Grušas said.
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„I understand that crimes committed by clergymen especially affect the relationship with God. It cripples on another level, so I pray for the healing of the victims and society,“ he said.
In turn, the archbishop emphasized that the priest will have to compensate the harmed children.
„The crime was committed. There are accusations, the court will have to confirm them, but there is already a confession, cooperation with law enforcement, and a promise to compensate the damage,“ he said.
G. Grušas also added that changes in the Church are necessary, but they are happening slowly.
„Not everything is good, changes are needed and we will try to improve. Processes are underway, but slowly – you cannot quickly turn such a big ship around a corner. There is a synodal process, which we are trying to implement in our archdiocese by involving greater lay participation,“ he said.
„The synod is the Church’s way of newly implementing the documents of the Second Vatican Council. Pope Francis started this four years ago. The document foresees things like greater lay participation in the daily activities of the Church – so that not only the bishop but also the parish priest would not be left alone,“ G. Grušas explained.
According to the archbishop, a priest should not be considered an infallible authority, and the Church community should talk more, listen to each other, and work together.
BNS wrote that after these accusations, there has been renewed active discussion about the need to establish a public register of sexual offenders in Lithuania.
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