Cardinal Law and bishops ordered to appear before grand jury

BELEAGUERED Boston Cardinal Bernard Law and more than five bishops have been ordered to appear before a grand jury which is investigating church officials who supervised priests accused of paedophilia.

It emerged yesterday State troopers delivered the cardinal's subpoena last Friday the same day he set off for the Vatican where it is reported he his seeking to declare the Archdiocese of Boston bankrupt in face of millions of dollars worth of claims from alleged victims of paedophile priests.

Cardinal Law's resignation as archbishop of Boston is also said to be on the Vatican agenda.

Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas Reilly this week accused the Boston archdiocese of employing "every tool and manoeuvre" to impede his investigation into

paedophile priests, despite church officials' public pledges of co-operation.

The chorus of voices calling for the resignation of Cardinal Law grew louder as an influential reform group, the Voice of the Faithful, demanded he step down, citing a "spiritual and moral crisis" in the Boston Archdiocese.

The scandal has engulfed Boston for almost a year and pressure on Cardinal Law has increased since the archdiocese was forced to release 11,000 church personnel documents to attorneys representing hundreds of alleged victims.