Two figures do not come out well: Cardinal Angelo Sodano, secretary of state -- effectively, the head of the Curia -- under Pope John Paul II, stands accused of blocking attempts to act against the two abusers; and Pope John Paul II, who was portrayed as being in denial. The current Cardinal Archishop of Vienna, Christoph Schonborn, says Cardinal Ratzinger's attempts to deal with them were thwarted by Sodano, and the evidence in favour of this reading seemed compelling from the others Marshall interviews.
Moving against Maciel, of course, was one of the first acts of Pope Benedict after his election.
The answer seems to be: "part of the solution".
