Catholic priests in France will be forced to wear scannable QR codes to signal whether they are sex offenders as part of a national crackdown on abuse, according to church officials.
Under the new system, people can scan the wallet-size cards with their smartphones to receive one of three color codes revealing the clergy member’s “status,” according to the Bishops’ Conference of France.
Red shows that the priest has been stripped of his clerical position potentially due to child sex abuse, though the nature of the sanction is not specified.
Green is a sign that the priest is in good standing, while orange indicates he’s not yet fully qualified to lead Mass.
The system — announced May 10 in an effort by the church to appear more “transparent” — also applies to bishops and deacons, France 24 reported.
The Catholic Church hailed the program as an efficient way to bust imposter priests and “intensify the fight against sexual violence in the Church,” though it came under fire from some sex abuse victims.
nypost.com
