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IRELAND
Irish Examiner
By Dan Buckley
ABUSE groups have challenged the Christian Brothers to produce proof after the head of the order claimed evidence of abuse was contaminated and motivated by the prospect of compensation.
Giving evidence to the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse, the order’s provincial, Brother David Gibson branded as “tainted” evidence of abuse at some of his order’s institutions, including the notorious Letterfrack Industrial School in Galway. He told the
commission there had been “contamination of evidence” and complaints against one institution were applied to others.
Brother Gibson said a large number of meetings were organised by solicitors around the country where former residents of industrial schools were brought together. He said groups of solicitors had copied more than 1,000 copies of RTÉ programmes and had given them to former residents.
IRELAND
One in Four
One in Four, the national charity which supports women and men who have experienced sexual violence today welcomed the launch an advertising campaign by the Commission of Investigation into Clerical Sexual abuse in the Dublin Arch Diocese calling upon people with evidence relevant to its work to come forward. This campaign marks the commencement of the investigation which was first promised by Government in October 2002 following the broadcast of the RTE Primetime documentary Cardinal Secrets. The commission will examine the handling of complaints of child sexual abuse perpetrated by Catholic priests from or attached to the Archdiocese of Dublin.
One in Four first called for this investigation in 2002 and has been involved in ongoing consultation and discussions with the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform over the past four years in that regard. Our Advocacy Service continues to support a large number of women and men who have crucial evidence relevant to the work of the Commission. Today, Deirdre Fitzpatrick, Advocacy Co-ordinator at One in Four, encouraged those who have experienced sexual abuse perpetrated by priests in or attached to the Dublin Archdiocese to come forward.
DARIEN (CT)
The New York Times
By ALISON LEIGH COWAN
Published: May 24, 2006
DARIEN, Conn., May 23 — About 200 protesters gathered at the town's oldest Roman Catholic church to protest the Bridgeport Diocese's demotion on Tuesday of a priest, Father Michael Madden, who was put in charge of their parish only last week.
The change in Father Madden's responsibilities at Saint John Parish followed the unexpected announcement he made at Mass on Tuesday morning that unbeknownst to the diocese, he had helped hire the private investigator who cataloged instances of financial impropriety on the part of the previous pastor, Father Michael Jude Fay.
Those findings embarrassed the diocese and became part of the criminal investigation swirling around Father Fay.
Parishioners smarting over revelations that Father Fay may have been living the high life at their expense were angry that Father Madden, or Father Mike, as they call him, might have paid a price for having tried to put an end to it.
BOSTON (MA)
Boston Globe
By Bella English, Globe Staff | May 24, 2006
It was 1970 when James Moran took to the Yellow Pages and began calling rape crisis centers asking for help. No one would talk to him. Men were seen as the perpetrators, women as the victims.
Moran, 25 at the time, was a deacon in the Archdiocese of Boston, and his alleged attacker was an older priest at Sacred Heart in Roslindale, where Moran had just been assigned. On a day off, he accepted an invitation from the Rev. Anthony Laurano to a puppeteer's convention in Connecticut. A teenager from the parish would also be going.
According to Moran, the trio stayed at the home of Laurano's relative. Sometime during the night, he says, Laurano entered his room, held him down, and raped him. The next day, Laurano approached Moran. ``He informed me that he had no remorse, that I had asked for it. He said he used to come into my bedroom at the rectory and watch me sleep," said Moran. ``I was shocked. I was frozen."
More than 35 years later, Moran sparked a controversy in the archdiocese of Washington, D.C., with a homily he gave last month detailing his abuse and criticizing church leaders. Because of his remarks, Moran was relieved of his priestly duties six weeks before his early retirement on a medical disability.
STAMFORD (CT)
New York Post
By DAN MANGAN
May 24, 2006 -- A Connecticut church yesterday lost a pastor for the second time in a week after the newly appointed top priest confessed to hiring a private eye who uncovered financial wrongdoing by the former pastor.
"I made a huge mistake which has further complicated matters," said the Rev. Michael Madden in a letter to parishioners at St. John Catholic Church in Darien.
Madden apologized and resigned as acting administrator after meeting with a reportedly furious Bridgeport Diocese Bishop William Lori. By hiring a private eye on his own, without consulting his bishop, Madden breached the Catholic chain of command.
"I am deeply saddened that the situation in the parish has been worsened by today's events," Lori said.
IRELAND
Highland Radio
May 24, 12:19 pm
A Donegal priest has gone on trial at the Central Criminal Court for the alleged rape of a teenage parishioner over 20 years ago whom he told he wanted to experience sex in bed.
The 48-year-old accused has denied three charges of raping the woman on dates in 1985 and one charge of indecently assaulting her in 1984.
BOSTON (MA)
Boston Globe
By Yvonne Abraham, Globe Staff | May 24, 2006
Sympathy for Dr. Robert M. Haddad was in short supply yesterday at Bay Sweets Market in West Roxbury , where Lebanese customers were stocking up on olives and spinach pies.
Disapproval, rolling eyes, and mirth, on the other hand, were plentiful.
Female employees at Caritas Christi Health Care System have said that Haddad, president of the system, hugged them, kissed them on the lips, rubbed their backs, and called them late at night. Haddad issued a statement Monday saying that his behavior was an extension of his Lebanese heritage, ``where hugs and kisses are not only expected, but warmly given and received," and that the behavior was misinterpreted by his accusers.
That explanation was met with skepticism and laughter among Lebanese-Americans at Bay Sweets and beyond.
``Shame on him," said Fayze Ishac, spitting out the words in Arabic, when told of Haddad's situation. ``It's not Lebanese. It's not true."
BOSTON (MA)
Boston Globe
By Eileen McNamara, Globe Columnist | May 24, 2006
Get a lawyer, ladies.
Litigation is the only language the Archdiocese of Boston understands.
Sue Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley for trying to insulate Dr. Robert M. Haddad from charges of sexual harassment, or you will help perpetuate the wrist slapping that passes for disciplining sexual predators in the Catholic Church.
File suit against the alleged perpetrator, even if public outrage prompts O'Malley and the board of governors to do today what they should have done last week: fire the physician-administrator with the roving lips and hands, the one who is reputed to earn more than $1 million a year as president of the Caritas Christi Health Care System.
BOSTON (MA)
Boston Globe
By Steve Bailey, Globe Columnist | May 24, 2006
Does the board of directors of Keane Inc., the Charlestown technology-services company, hold its chief executive to a higher standard of personal conduct than does the board of Caritas Christi Health Care System, the Catholic Church's hospital chain?
The comparison is irresistible. Earlier this month the Keane board forced out its chief executive, Brian Keane, after he was accused of sexual harassment. Last week the Caritas board privately reprimanded its chief executive, Dr. Robert Haddad, after he was also accused of sexual harassment. Of course, the circumstances were different: Two women came forward to accuse Keane of inappropriate behavior; four women came forward initially to complain about Haddad's hugging and kissing. The number is now well into double digits.
Yesterday, Haddad was edging to the exit. But in this era of heightened director responsibility, the board's passive response to the serious charges against its chief executive is stunning. And all the more stunning -- even bizarre -- considering the church's immediate sorry history of dealing with victims of sexual abuse. Did the Caritas board learn nothing at all?
PENNSYLVANIA
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
By Jill King Greenwood
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
A former Lawrence County pastor has been charged with 192 counts of possession of child pornography.
The Rev. Robert D. Schmidtberger, 50, of New Castle, faces a preliminary hearing Thursday after a yearlong investigation by state police. He resigned April 22 as pastor of Rose Point Reformed Presbyterian Church in New Castle.
Schmidtberger is one of two area men charged in recent days with possession of child pornography.
Authorities said they seized computers, CD-ROMs and other hardware from his home and found 161 images of child pornography and bestiality on the CD-ROMs and 31 images of child pornography on ZIP drives. Investigators found six e-mails on the CDs that contained attachments of child pornography.
TOLEDO (OH)
Lima News
By KIMBERLY R. SIMMONS
419-993-2101
05/24/2006
ksimmons@limanews.com
TOLEDO — Amidst allegations of sexual abuse that date back nearly 30 years, a Catholic priest has been barred from public ministry.
The Rev. Robert J. Yeager, 68, was placed on administrative leave of absence Tuesday by the Diocese of Toledo.
The Diocese, in a written statement, reported that the Diocesan Review Board regarded the allegations, which were made two years ago, as credible. The statement also reported that the case would be referred to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome in accordance with church law.
The Rev. Thomas Gorman, pastor of St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in Delphos said he knew Yeager when the two came to Delphos in the late 1950s.
BURBANK (IL)
Chicago Sun-Times
May 24, 2006
BY CATHLEEN FALSANI Religion Reporter
A Roman Catholic priest stepped down from his position at a Burbank parish over the weekend amid allegations of sexual misconduct with minors, a spokesman for the Archdiocese of Chicago said Tuesday.
The priest, who the Sun-Times isn't naming because he has not been charged with a crime and because archdiocesan officials say they have not yet finished their own investigation, removed himself from St. Albert the Great in Burbank at Cardinal Francis George's request late last week, said archdiocesan spokesman Jim Dwyer.
The allegations, involving more than one person, date to the 1980s, Dwyer said. The archdiocese learned of them about 10 days ago, he said.
The Burbank priest's case marks the first time since the Rev. Daniel McCormack was charged criminally in January that archdiocesan officials have implemented a new policy where a priest is effectively put on "desk duty" pending the outcome of an investigation.
TOLEDO (OH)
Toledo Blade
By DAVID YONKE
BLADE RELIGION EDITOR
A Toledo priest who spearheaded a $60 million capital campaign for the diocese in 2001 has been barred from ministry over allegations of child sexual abuse.
The Rev. Robert J. Yeager, 68, is accused of molesting a boy nearly 30 years ago.
The diocese said in a statement yesterday that the abuse allegations first surfaced in 2004 but that it took until now for its review board to obtain "specific information sufficient to conclude that the allegations [are] indeed credible."
Father Yeager, who led the diocese's "One Faith ... Many Blessings" fund-raising campaign in 2001 and 2002, worked as a "planned giving consultant" for the diocese from 1997 until his retirement in July, 2005.
He is still listed as executive director of Diocesan Fiscal Management Conference, a private firm based in Waterville that provides dioceses around the country with advice on financial investments and spiritual growth.
BURBANK (IL)
Chicago Tribune
By Manya A. Brachear
Tribune staff reporter
Published May 24, 2006
Cardinal Francis George has asked a southwest suburban pastor to temporarily step down while authorities investigate at least two 20-year-old allegations of sexual misconduct with minors, church officials said Tuesday.
Officials of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago said they informed parish leaders last week that Rev. Robert Stepek, pastor of St. Albert the Great Church in Burbank, took a leave at the cardinal's request while the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and prosecutors investigate claims that date to the early 1980s when Stepek served at St. Symphorosa parish in Chicago.
Church officials said Tuesday they asked parish leaders to convey the information to parishioners, though it is unclear what churchgoers heard at masses this weekend.
Stepek has not been charged with any crimes or accused of any wrongdoing by the church. Unlike previous cases in which Catholic priests were removed from parishes, the archdiocesan review board has not yet reviewed the allegations.
IRELAND
One in Four
The Irish Times
A woman who refrained from making a complaint about a priest who sexually assaulted her because it would have upset her mother, yesterday said she wished her mother was alive to see her vindicated in court after the priest was convicted and given a suspended sentence.
Mary Morgan (46) had told Cork Circuit Criminal Court that she had waited until her mother had died before she made the complaint that Canon Denis Forde had sexually assaulted her in a sacristy because it would have been too upsetting for her mother, who worked as a sacristan.
"My mother would say that to be in the sacristy and be with a priest was the closest thing to God, he [ Forde] became her saviour and I couldn't destroy it - I would have destroyed her by telling her," said Ms Morgan after yesterday's hearing.
"I suffered all my life and she had no idea why I suffered the way I did - I just wish she could be here today if she knew what had happened and saw his conviction," said Ms Morgan, adding that it was Forde's conviction rather than sentence that meant most to her.
IRELAND
One in Four
The Irish Times
It would not be fair comment to say there was a culture of excessive punishment and systematic abuse at Artane industrial school, the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse was told yesterday.
Brother Michael Reynolds, deputy provincial of the Christian Brothers, St Mary's (northern) province, said some Brothers there never used corporal punishment while others did regularly.
However, he said that "in the round, it was the same as the others [institutions]."
He said there had been six instances of Brothers who sexually abused boys at Artane, with "five prior to 1944". He rejected suggestions by counsel for some of the complainants, Marcus Dowling, that Artane was seen by Brothers posted there as "a dumping ground" or "punishment". Br Reynolds said "the vast majority of Brothers would not accept it" nor would he.
JACKSONVILLE (FL)
News4Jax
POSTED: 5:03 pm EDT May 22, 2006
UPDATED: 7:06 am EDT May 23, 2006
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- A former pastor of a church on Jacksonville's Westside -- who was recently referred to as a great hero of the faith -- remains behind bars and at the center of a sexual battery investigation.
Police arrested 80-year-old Dr. Robert Gray on Friday evening. The former Trinity Baptist Church of Jacksonville pastor was charged with two counts of capital sexual battery after two of his alleged victims reported they were only 6 years old when Gray abused them.
Two women, currently in their 30s, told police Gray molested them in his office at Trinity Christian School on the Westside. They claimed Gray would then offer them money and candy.
"These charges are based on acts that happened a number of years ago, but a capital sexual battery has no statute of limitations," said Libby Senterfitt of the State Attorney's Office. "Such a charge can be brought anytime."
JACKSONVILLE (FL)
News4Jax
POSTED: 6:46 pm EDT May 23, 2006
UPDATED: 8:08 pm EDT May 23, 2006
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- A woman who said she has been quietly suffering for six excruciating decades with memories of being molested by a former Jacksonville pastor breaks her silence after others come forward.
Dr. Robert Gray, 80, the former Trinity Baptist Church of Jacksonville pastor was arrested Friday and charged with two counts of capital sexual battery after two of his alleged victims reported they were only 6 years old when Gray abused them.
Two women, currently in their 30s, told police Gray molested them in his office at Trinity Christian School on the Westside. They claimed Gray would then offer them money and candy.
After seeing a story on TV about Gray, Mary Lou Hall, 67, called Channel 4 and said she was also a victim of the pastor.
SANTA ROSA (CA)
CBS 5
(BCN) SANTA ROSA The Catholic Diocese of Santa Rosa announced Monday that the Rev. Xavier Ochoa, assistant pastor at St. Francis Solano Parish in Sonoma, was removed from the ministry after he voluntarily admitted a recent incident of sexual misconduct with a minor.
In a written statement Bishop Daniel Walsh said, "Consistent with diocesan policy, I have removed him from his duties as parochial vicar and have also removed his canonical faculties which exclude him from all public and private exercise of his priestly ministry."
Walsh said the incident was promptly reported to civil authorities and the diocese will cooperate with the investigation. The Sonoma County Sheriff's Department is investigating Ochoa's admission.
Sgt. Dennis O'Leary said the investigation started the last week in April when the diocese contacted authorities. Ochoa has not been arrested. O'Leary said the case is unusual because the sheriff's department doesn't normally acknowledge an investigation is under way, but the diocese informed parishioners about Ochoa's admission.
TOLEDO (OH)
Toledo Blade
BLADE STAFF
A priest who spearheaded a $60 million capital campaign for the Toledo Catholic Diocese in 2001 has been barred from ministry over allegations of child sexual abuse.
The Rev. Robert J. Yeager, 68, is accused of molesting a boy nearly 30 years ago, the diocese announced.
The diocese said the allegations first surfaced in 2004, but that it took until now to obtain specific information for its review board to conclude that the allegations are credible.
Father Yeager, who led the diocese's "One Faith ... Many Blessings"
fund-raising campaign in 2001 and 2002, worked as a "planned giving consultant" for the diocese from 1997 until his retirement in July, 2005.
BURBANK (IL)
Chicago Sun-Times
May 23, 2006
BY ASSOCIATED PRESS
A suburban priest who had planned to celebrate his 25th anniversary in the ministry last week has voluntarily stepped down amid allegations of decades-old sexual misconduct.
The allegations involve abuse of minors more than 20 years ago and an investigation has just begun, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago confirmed Tuesday.
The Rev. Robert Stepek has "has voluntarily and temporarily absented himself" from St. Albert the Great Parish in Burbank, archdiocese spokesman Jim Dwyer said. More than one allegation has been reported, Dwyer said, but he would not specify how many.
"The action is not a judgment nor is it a removal from ministry," Dwyer said. "Father Stepek has agreed to live in a private setting away from the parish until these allegations are resolved."
STAMFORD (CT)
WFSB
STAMFORD, Conn. -- A priest hired to replace a pastor accused of using church money to pay for a lavish lifestyle with another man has resigned, admitting he was the one who hired a private investigator to look into the pastor.
Bishop William Lori said he agreed to the request Tuesday by the Rev. Michael Madden to resign as acting administrator of St. John Church in Darien. Madden was appointed last week to replace the Rev. Michael Jude Fay in response to suspicions of financial wrongdoing. Fay resigned last week.
Vito Colucci Jr., an investigator based in Stamford, said he documented at least $200,000 in church money Fay spent on limousine rides, dinners at famous restaurants, cruises and gifts. Local and federal authorities are investigating Fay, who has not been charged.
Madden admitted Tuesday that he and the parish bookkeeper hired the private investigator with their own money even while working with the diocese in connection with its own probe of Fay.
MICHIGAN
WXYZ
By Mary Conway
Web produced by Sarah Morgan
May 23, 2006
A once prominent member of a local church was arraigned, Tuesday, after being accused of molesting a young relative.
The 68-year-old former elder of Community of Christ Church in Ann Arbor was accused of sexually abusing a relative when the child was between 7 and 11-years-old.
Police have been investigating for the past two months after the victim, who is now 15-years-old, came forward.
OHIO
WTVG
WTVG-- May 23, 2006 - Lebanon maximum security prison holds about 1,000 inmates
It looks like the retired Toledo priest charged with killing a nun back in 1980 will be kept in a prison just north of Cincinnati. Father Gerald Robinson, 68, is now being held at the Warren Correctional Institution. That's a maxium security facility with over 1,000 inmates.
The prison's website lists that Robinson is being held for the murder of Sister Margaret Ann Pahl with a minimum of 15 years behind bars. It shows his first chance at parole will be in March of 2021. There has been talk about an appeal in Robinson's case, but no word on that yet. He's also the focus of a civil suit involving sexual abuse.
NEW YORK
Virtue Online
WBNG, Inc.
May 22, 2006
Another man has come forward, talking only with Action News, claiming he too was abused by an Episcopal priest.
Last week we told you 79-year-old Ralph Johnson resigned from the priesthood. It followed a five month investigation into allegations he sexually abused a boy in the 1970s.
After watching our report, another man says he was also abused by Johnson years ago.
"Memories came flooding back. I had tried to put this out of my mind for years," said the Montrose man, who does not want to be identified.
CANADA
The Gulf News
NATALIE MUSSEAU
The Gulf News
By the end of the month, Catholic properties along the southwest coast will once again be safe under the ownership of St. George’s Diocese.
Bishop Douglas Crosby said the diocese has raised enough money through donations from across the country — about $5 million — to buy back the properties at their fair market value.
It’s the news that parishioners like Marlene Augustus of Ramea and Madonna Hynes of the Codroy Valley have been waiting for.
And still are.
Both Mrs. Augustus and Ms. Hynes say they haven’t received confirmation from the diocese that the church properties are safe. ...
The next court-ordered payment of $3.75 million to the sexual abuse victims of former priest Kevin Bennett is due in July. They were awarded a $13 million settlement after the priest was convicted of molesting boys in various churches.
About $5 million of the total amount has been paid to date.The final two payments come due in July 2007 and January 2008.
YPSYLANTI TOWNSHIP (MI)
ClickOnDetroit
POSTED: 12:04 pm EDT May 23, 2006
A leader of a local community church is in trouble with the law after events that occurred in his Ypsilanti Township home.
Police said the man, whose name is not being released, was either a layman or a pastor for the Community of Christ Church of Ann Arbor. He resigned his position after the investigation against him began.
The man took his granddaughter in when she was 7 years old after her mother died, and is now accused of sexually abusing her, Local 4 reported.
The events involving his granddaughter occurred over a four-year span, and police believe they ended about four-years ago.
CINCINNATI (OH)
WCPO
Reported by: 9News/Enquirer
Web produced by: Mark Sickmiller
Photographed by: 9News
First posted: 5/23/2006 9:24:54 AM
Following an I Team report on the issue, Cincinnati Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk is admitting that hiring a convicted felon to conduct background checks for the Archdiocese was a mistake.
In a letter sent to priests, Pilarczyk wrote, "I deeply regret the serious lapse in judgment," referring to the hiring of Alex Henties. The rest of the letter is below.
Vincent Frasher, the man who directly hired Henties, remains under investigation and on administrative leave.
Henties claimed Frasher sexually abused him when he was a child.
BOSTON (MA)
Boston Globe
By Walter V. Robinson and Liz Kowalczyk, Globe Staff | May 23, 2006
More than 10 women have come forward since Sunday with fresh allegations of sexual harassment by Dr. Robert M. Haddad, the embattled president of the Caritas Christi Health Care System, prompting Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley yesterday to call a new meeting of the Caritas governing board.
The cardinal had privately reprimanded Haddad last week for allegedly sexually harassing four other female employees, and the Caritas board on Thursday endorsed the cardinal's action, despite a recommendation from the system's top human resources official, Helen G. Drinan, that Haddad be fired.
O'Malley set the meeting for tomorrow at 7 p.m., amid evidence that support on the board for Haddad has ebbed sharply since the Globe disclosed on Sunday the reprimand and the initial four cases. Those women complained that Haddad had hugged and kissed them, both in public and in private.
Karen Schwartzman, a spokeswoman for Drinan, the senior vice president for human resources at Caritas, said that after the Globe story, more than 10 additional female employees contacted Drinan to report that they too had experienced sexually-harassing conduct similar to that of the four initial victims. Schwartzman said that Drinan and her aides are interviewing the women.
CINCINNATI (OH)
Cincinnati Enquirer
BY DAN HORN | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER
Cincinnati Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk admitted Monday that church officials made a mistake by hiring a felon to help check the backgrounds of church employees.
"I deeply regret the serious lapse in judgment," Pilarczyk said in a letter sent Monday to priests. He said the archdiocese never should have hired Alex Henties, who had a theft conviction, to supervise the background-check program. Henties, now in prison on theft-related charges, was fired last year.
Church officials previously said they hired Henties because they thought he deserved a second chance.
Pilarczyk's letter came just days after church officials suspended with pay Vince Frasher, the archdiocese's personnel director, pending the outcome of an investigation into Henties' claims that Frasher abused him when he was a child.
BELLEVILLE (IL)
Belleville News-Democrat
BY GEORGE PAWLACZYK
News-Democrat
BELLEVILLE - The head of a Catholic religious order said Monday a plan to supervise a priest who admits he sexually abused boys consists solely of having him sign out whenever he leaves a Belleville retirement home.
Using a sign-out sheet to safeguard children from potential attack by the Rev. Real Bourque, an admitted child molester, drew sharp criticism Monday from the executive director of a national group that monitors how the Catholic Church hierarchy deals with abusive priests.
"What do they expect? That if he's going to molest a child he'll write down on the sign-out sheet, 'Going to molest a child.'?" said David Clohessy, executive director of the St. Louis-based Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests. "Belleville citizens should be outraged. This isn't supervision," Clohessy said. "Bourque clearly can do ... whatever he wants."
The Rev. Allen Maes, local head of Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate of which Bourque is a member, said the Oblates agreed to supervise Bourque. He said the supervision consists of a sign-out sheet.
IRELAND
Irish Independent
ABUSE victims reacted with fury last night to claims by the Christian Brothers that former inmates of an industrial school conspired with lawyers to claim compensation.
The startling assertion was made at the Child Abuse Inquiry by Brother David Gibson, the Provincial of St Mary's Province.
He said claims against former members of the congregation at Letterfrack, Co Galway, had spiralled after groups of solicitors spread the word that inmates could be due financial redress.
In dramatic evidence, Brother Gibson told the inquiry that claims mushroomed from an initial three after the Order apologised to former students in 1998; to 449 after Taoiseach Bertie Ahern made their apology known and announced the Redress Board a year later.
Brother Gibson said: "Evidence has come to our attention that some of the complaints may be motivated by the setting up of the Redress Board.
BOSTON (MA)
Boston Globe
May 23, 2006
DR. ROBERT HADDAD should resign from his position as president of the Caritas Christi Health Care system. The recent finding that he sexually harassed four women, inappropriately hugging and kissing them, indicates that he lacks the judgment to be the top administrator of the six-hospital system.
An independent lawyer found that Haddad had violated state and federal sexual harassment laws as well as Caritas Christi policies. A statement from the archdiocese said the lawyer concluded that, ``Dr. Haddad's conduct while clearly improper was not of an exceptionally egregious nature."
After consulting other lawyers, Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley and Caritas Christi's board agreed that Haddad should receive a stern reprimand and undergo sexual harassment training.
One person who called for Haddad's dismissal was Helen Drinan, vice president of human resources at Caritas Christi. In a May 8 letter to O'Malley, Drinan wrote, ``I implore you to accept the recommendation to terminate Dr. Haddad immediately, and remove him from the workplace. I further ask that you take whatever actions necessary to offer support and assistance to his victims."
PASCAGOULA (MS)
The Mississippi Press
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
PASCAGOULA -- Former church youth minister Paul H. Valentine will serve 20 years in prison after pleading guilty Monday to two counts of sexual battery and touching a teenager for lustful purposes by a person in a position of trust.
Valentine, 36, of Ocean Springs, was ac-cused of having oral sex on two separate occasions in September 2004 and touching the girl in incidents that occurred around the Labor Day holiday the same year.
He was arrested in September 2005 and indicted shortly afterward.
The girl, who attended St. Paul United Methodist Church in Ocean Springs while Valentine was her youth minister, was 15 at the time of the crimes, District Attorney Tony Lawrence said.
One of the crimes was committed while Valentine stayed at the victim's family's home after Hurricane Ivan damaged Valentine's home, Lawrence added.
JACKSONVILLE (FL)
First Coast News
By Jeannie Blaylock
First Coast News
JACKSONVILLE, FL -- Jacksonville Sex Crimes Detective Lt. Annie Smith once again confirmed a number we first broke Friday night on First Coast News.
At least 15 women have now come forward and alleged Dr. Bob Gray molested them when they were young girls.
Dr. Gray, arrested Friday afternoon, was pastor at Trinity Baptist Church for 38 years.
Since we talked with Lt. Smith two more women have contacted us about their alleged sexual abuse. As of 5:45 Monday evening the total is 17.
MAINE
Portland Press Herald
By TREVOR MAXWELL, Portland Press Herald Writer
The leader of Maine's 235,000 Roman Catholics is recovering at home after emergency surgery on Sunday morning.
Bishop Richard Malone underwent gall bladder surgery at Mercy Hospital in Portland, said Sue Bernard, spokeswoman for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland. ...
As bishop, Malone has been front and center during the sexual abuse scandal, which exploded nationwide in 2002 and continues to divide some of the state's Catholics. Malone also has led the reorganization of Maine's 135 parishes, as the number of priests dwindles. His plan consolidates the parishes into 27 clusters, and allows for more power and responsibility among lay ministers.
CANADA
London Free Press
By JOE BELANGER, FREE PRESS REPORTER
Tired of "suffering in silence," male survivors of sexual abuse are demanding government fund services and treatment for victims.
A London group calling itself The Brotherhood of Friends will meet at 3 p.m. Friday at Interfaith, 144 Dundas St., along with a group of therapists and counsellors, to develop a strategy to push for services that now are almost non-existent. ...
Berube said that's because many men choose to "suffer in silence" because they're ashamed, feel guilt, blame themselves or fear no one will believe them.
"They're hidden, the silent victims," said Berube, 51, a former school principal who is now on disability after suffering years of depression.
He was abused by a priest as a child in the northern Ontario town of Warren, east of Sudbury, where he was raised.
POLAND
Gulf Times
Published: Tuesday, 23 May, 2006, 09:36 AM Doha Time
WARSAW: A Polish court Monday sentenced a Catholic priest to five years in jail for repeated sexual abuse of a 10-year-old girl in his presbytery.
The 38-year-old priest, named only as Miroslaw W, abused the girl in 2003 and 2004, said the court in the eastern city of Lublin, cited by the PAP news agency.
The priest had pleaded guilty.
Los Angeles Times
May 23, 2006
EVEN SOME OF HIS MOST heartfelt admirers acknowledge that the late Pope John Paul II was slow to comprehend the magnitude of the harm caused by priests who sexually abused young people. The same cannot be said of Pope Benedict XVI after the pontiff's disciplining of a Mexican priest favored by John Paul.
On Friday, the Vatican announced that 86-year-old Father Marcial Maciel Degollado, the founder of a conservative order known as the Legion of Christ, had been ordered to renounce any public ministry and devote himself to "prayer and penance" after an investigation of allegations that he had molested several seminarians. A papal spokesman said Maciel would be spared a church tribunal because of his advanced age and delicate health.
The Vatican statement falls short of the clear-cut condemnation that some victims' advocates would have preferred. That allowed the Legion to declare on its website that, while Maciel accepted the discipline with "faith, complete serenity and tranquillity of conscience," he had "declared his innocence and, following the example of Jesus Christ, decided not to defend himself in any way."
Still, for all its circumlocution, the Vatican statement leaves no doubt that church investigators found merit in the allegations. It thus contrasts dramatically with the way accusations of abuse against another prominent cleric were handled under John Paul.
VERMONT
Times Argus
May 23, 2006
Vermont's Catholic Church last week announced it hopes to put certain assets out reach of plaintiffs in sexual abuse lawsuits by placing them into charitable trusts.
In a letter to his 118,000 members, Bishop Salvatore Matano said he felt it necessary to "do everything possible to protect our parishes and the interests of the faithful from unbridled, unjust and terribly unreasonable assault." That statement, he later explained, was not intended to be critical of people who had filed lawsuits against the Church alleging sexual abuse, but rather a reference to "a legal system that sometimes places us in a position where we can't really reach out in justice to all parties."
Frankly, we think the Bishop's explanation is as unsatisfactory as his actions. Coming on the heels of the Church's attempt to remove the presiding judge in the first priest misconduct trial from hearing any of the 19 new lawsuits that have been filed, the attempt to shield its assets does it no credit.
Bishop Matano is rightly concerned about the possible impact of jury awards on the Church's finances and the stability — or even the existence — of Vermont's 128 parishes. It is an understandable impulse to want to protect them. And it is understandable that the Church would take steps through the court system to ensure it receives a fair hearing in the lawsuits.
BURLINGTON (VT)
Burlington Free Press
Published: Tuesday, May 23, 2006
By Sam Hemingway
Free Press Staff Writer
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington has structural assets in Vermont worth more than $405 million, according to an insurance appraisal of church-owned buildings performed for the diocese.
The appraisal indicates that 52 of the 128 diocesan parishes in the state have church facilities valued at more than $1 million apiece. Burlington, the home base of the diocese, has church-owned buildings worth $62.8 million.
A copy of the appraisal was obtained by The Burlington Free Press from court records collected in anticipation of the trial in the first of 19 cases pending in Chittenden Superior Court involving claims by alleged victims of priest sexual abuse.
The appraisal was conducted in 2004 by Gallagher Bassett Services Inc. of Itasca, Ill. The appraisal was conducted to determine the replacement cost of each of the 610 buildings the church owns in the state. The figures do not include the value of the land on which the buildings sit.
ARIZONA
The Arizona Republic
Jim Walsh
The Arizona Republic
May. 23, 2006 12:00 AM
Former Maricopa County Attorney Rick Romley testified Monday that he didn't bring felony charges against suspended Monsignor Dale Fushek four years ago because there was no evidence that the Mesa priest had touched anyone sexually.
But Romley also testified that shortly before he left office Jan. 1, 2005, he authorized the investigation that led to the seven misdemeanor sex counts against Fushek. He is scheduled to stand trial June 2.
Fushek was placed on administrative leave from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix in December 2004, when he was accused in a civil suit of watching as another priest sexually abused a teenage boy. advertisement
Romley testified that in 2002, he relied on the advice of Deputy County Attorney Cindi Nannetti, the former head of the sex-crimes unit, in weighing charges against Fushek.
IOWA
Courier
IOWA CITY (AP) --- The Roman Catholic Diocese of Davenport was presented Monday with 14 new cases of alleged sexual abuse by priests, including seven new claims against the former bishop of the Sioux City diocese.
The claims accuse four priests who served in parishes throughout eastern Iowa dating back to the 1950s.
Each of the claims were filed by men and have been submitted to the diocese for mediation, said Craig Levien, an attorney representing the victims.
"The motivation behind many victims who come forward is they want the truth to come out about an abusive priest," Levien told The Associated Press. "And they feel the only way to get answers is to make a claim and seek the information from the diocese."
BOSTON (MA)
Times Leader
MARK JEWELL
Associated Press
BOSTON - The head of eastern Massachusetts' Roman Catholic hospital system faced new allegations of sexual harassment Monday after he was reprimanded but not fired by the Archdiocese of Boston amid reports of unwanted hugging and kissing of female employees - complaints he says are rooted in cultural misunderstanding.
In response, Cardinal Sean O'Malley asked the governing board of Caritas Christi Health Care to meet again Wednesday to reconsider its response to the allegations against Dr. Robert M. Haddad, president and chief executive of the network of six hospitals and 12,000 employees.
In a statement, the archdiocese said, "New complaints of misconduct involving Dr. Robert Haddad have been received and are being investigated."
Haddad, who is of Lebanese descent, said Monday a cultural misunderstanding was at issue.
MALTA
Malta Today
Matthew Vella
The Church’s investigations into sexual abuse by priests are destined to gather dust in the curial secret archives unless civil authorities intervene to unlock the information on cases of sexual abuse which were never reported to the police.
Police will not act upon “rumours or public information” with respect to investigations by the Curia Response Team on priests accused of sexual abuse, unless victims take their case straight to the police.
A spokesperson for the ministry of justice and home affairs told MaltaToday the police are empowered to act on “reports, information and complaints”. The ministry did not answer as to whether the police have ever demanded information from the Curia on its investigations into sex abuse by priests.
But despite media reports on the Curia Response Team’s handling of sex abuse cases in the church, the police will still not take action on anonymous reports or information unless these are flagrant offences.
In January 2006, a Nadur priest fled from Gozo to the United States after complaints of alleged child sex abuse by the priest were referred to the Curia for investigation. Nadur archpriest Mgr Salvu Muscat had confirmed he referred complaints to the Curia from parents whose children they claimed had been sexually abused by the priest.
MARYLAND
JTA
A Maryland rabbi was indicted on charges relating to sexual overtures toward a minor.
Rabbi David Kaye, 56, is scheduled to be arraigned June 9 by a U.S. district court on charges of “coercion and enticement” and “travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual contact with a minor.”
The charges stem from a “Dateline NBC” investigation last fall of alleged Internet predators. Kaye resigned his position as vice president of programs for the Rockville, Md.-based Panim: The Institute for Jewish Leadership and Values days before the “Dateline” episode aired.
JACKSONVILLE (FL)
WAWS
Last Update: 5/22/2006 3:40:48 PM
A former Jacksonville pastor has been charged with molesting his young parishioners several decades ago. Now, police believe more victims could be out there.
Dr. Robert Gray, founder of Trinity Christian Academy, remains in jail without bond after investigators say he spent decades keeping a dirty little secret.
"Right now, he is being charged with two counts of capital sexual battery and there are two different victims," says Lt. Annie Smith with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office sex crimes unit.
So far, investigators say 15 women who attended his church or school have come forward claiming Dr. Gray molested them when they were children. Sources close to the case say the alleged victims broke their silence after learning that Gray was returning to Jacksonville after serving as a missionary in Germany.
ST. PETERS (MO)
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Amanda C. Tinnin
Of the Suburban Journals
St. Peters Journal
05/21/2006
ST. PETERS
A Florida inmate has filed a lawsuit alleging a St. Peters priest sexually abused him when he was a student at All Saints Catholic School.
Michael K. Orf, 42, filed the lawsuit Tuesday in St. Charles County Circuit Court. In the suit, Orf names the Archdiocese of St. Louis and Pastor Louis Kertz as defendants.
Kertz died of cancer in 1985. He was 62.
Orf is serving a five-year prison sentence at Tomoka Correctional Institute in Daytona Beach, Fla. He was convicted in 2003 for committing sex acts with a teenage girl.
Orf's release date is in September 2007.
CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Sun-Times
May 22, 2006
FROM STNG WIRE REPORTS Advertisement
A West Side priest already facing several sex abuse-related charges was formally indicted on two counts of sexual abuse on Monday.
The Rev. Daniel McCormack was indicted on two counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, according to Cook County State’s Attorney’s office spokeswoman Marcy Jensen.
Authorities filed the charges earlier this month, but McCormack was formally indicted on those counts Monday, Jensen said.
In the latest charges, McCormack is accused of fondling an 11-year-old boy who was a student at Presentation School, 3900 W. Lexington Ave., Chicago, on a regular basis, according to an assistant state's attorney. He also is accused of fondling a 10-year-old boy on one occasion at St. Agatha Church, 3147 W. Douglas Blvd., Chicago, the assistant state's attorney said.
The priest already has been charged with abusing three boys, and the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services was investigating reports that "at least five" youths alleged they were abused, DCFS Director Bryan Samuels said in February.
By ROBERT THARP / The Dallas Morning News
A 26-year-old pastor of a Grand Prairie church was sentenced to 45 years in prison Friday after he was convicted of sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl in his congregation. Jurors deliberated less than 30 minutes before convicting Jerry Castle of two charges of aggravated sexual assault.
UNITED KINGDOM
Oxford Mail
By Chris Buratta
An Oxfordshire priest who has helped raise thousands of pounds for a South African hostel for homeless teenagers is facing child sex charges in the country.
Father Tony Hogg, of St James the Great Church in West Hanney, near Wantage, was arrested and charged with the indecent assault of a 10-year-old during a recent charity trip.
Since 1997, he has encouraged parishioners to raise more than £50,000 for the Don Bosco street project in Cape Town.
Hogg has denied the allegations and his lawyers claim he is the victim of a blackmail attempt.
LAKE HIGHLANDS (TX)
The Dallas Morning News
11:49 PM CDT on Sunday, May 21, 2006
By JON NIELSEN / The Dallas Morning News
The pastor of St. Patrick Church in Lake Highlands has been suspended, the Dallas Diocese said Sunday, pending an investigation of improper conduct with a minor more than 20 years ago.
The Rev. Monsignor Richard E. Johnson, 76, has been relieved from his pastoral duties at the church, according to a story on the Web site of Texas Catholic, the official diocesan newspaper. It said Dallas Bishop Charles V. Grahmann reported the allegation to authorities and called for the convening of a diocesan review board.
James C. Beakey Sr., a member of St. Patrick since 1968, said he couldn't believe the allegations against the church's pastor of 22 years.
"He has done a wonderful job for our parish; I will support him 110 percent," Mr. Beakey said. "I'm extremely surprised and will fight it with all my might."
ISRAEL
YNet News
Eitan Amit
Rabbi Mordechai Gafni, who escaped Israel after three women accused of him sexually abusing them, is either Colorado or Massachusetts, according to the New York Post.
The newspaper reported that Gafni, 46, who was born Marc Winiarz, sexually exploited young Jews in New York as well. In the 1980s, Gafni was an adviser for educational programs in Jewish public schools, but he offered female students more than spiritual advise, the paper said.
Two American women provided the Post with details on how they were sexually exploited by the rabbi 20 years ago, when they were 16 and 13.
"Judy, whose last name is being withheld by The Post, said she was 16 and suffering in a "tumultuous" home environment, including ailing parents, when Gafni invited her to stay at his Flatbush home, where he lived with his second wife, to 'escape,'" the Post reported.
IRELAND
Mirror
Adapted By Helen Carroll
BEATEN cruelly by her father and raped on the eve of her first communion, Kathy O'Beirne silently endured a hellish childhood.
She emerged from a mental institution, only to be sent to one of the infamous Irish Magdalene laundries, where the torture and torment continued. Here, Kathy, now in her 40s and from Clondalkin, Dublin, tells how she is fighting for justice for herself and her fellow Magdalene girls.
'AFTER a day in the furnace-like atmosphere of the laundry I I would collapse into bed, exhausted. The nuns considered the Maggies, as we were known, to be the scum of the earth - sinners who would never earn redemption and fallen women heading straight for the burning fires of hell.
The Devil himself could not have dreamed up a better hell than the Magdalene laundry.
VERMONT
Rutland Herald
May 21, 2006
Darren M. Allen
Vermont Catholic Bishop Salvatore Matano says he is in a "no-win situation" because he is trying to balance the interests of the church with those who were abused by it.
In a rare interview, Matano told my colleague Kevin O'Connor that his decision to begin sheltering the assets of parish churches and schools was just and proper.
"I want to reach out to victims," he said. "But I also have to be conscious of the people in the pews. It's certainly just to ask the church to be accountable, but is it just to destroy parishes, schools and other agencies of care to do so?"
Those are fair questions, and the answers will have sweeping consequences for the 118,000 Vermonters who are "in the pews." But they come too late, and they have the patina of pity the church wants from its adherents and critics alike.
Perhaps the bishop – and his predecessors and those in the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church – should continue their soul search and continue to question why a culture of sexual abuse at the hands of priests was not only covered-up for decades but allowed to flourish.
BOSTON (MA)
Boston Globe
By Walter V. Robinson and Maria Cramer, Globe Staff | May 22, 2006
Dr. Robert M. Haddad, the Caritas Christi Health Care system president who was reprimanded last week for sexually harassing four women, admitted to an investigator for the Boston Archdiocese that he had engaged in hugging and kissing with others as well, one of the archdiocese's lawyers said yesterday. He also said witnesses had supplied still more names of women they had seen Haddad hugging and kissing.
David M. Mandel, an employment law specialist working for the archdiocese, said in an interview that the archdiocese is launching a further investigation of Haddad following reports that he ''leered and winked" at one of the four victims on May 10, after the archdiocesan investigation was all but concluded. If the inquiry establishes that the incident happened, Mandel said, then the Caritas board of governors that agreed to the ''stern reprimand" would have to consider possible further sanctions.
Mandel said the board was told Thursday that there were more than the four women involved before they endorsed Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley's recommendation that Haddad be reprimanded and receive instruction in sexual harassment guidelines.
Many women, and several employment law specialists, expressed surprise and dismay that Haddad had not been fired for repeated instances of hugging, kissing, and other touching with the four women, but the archdiocese said he would be dismissed if there were any further incident or any retaliation by Haddad.
JACKSONVILLE (FL)
First Coast News
By Angela Williams
First Coast News
JACKSONVILLE, FL -- Some say it's a safe haven of worship, and now the ministry of Trinity Baptist Church assures their members they are just that.
During evening service, which is broadcast on the church's website, the church's General Counsel, Attorney David Gibbs III, spoke to the congregation about the latest allegations surrounding former pastor, Dr. Robert Gray.
"With the criminal allegations that have been made against Dr. Gray, the pastor and the deacons want to assure you that they take these allegations very seriously," says Gibbs.
Captial Sexual Battery charges were brought forth by women accusing Dr. Gray of molesting them when they were young.
Gray is credited with founding Trinity Baptist College in 1974, but the progress of the ministry at the college was delayed when he retired.
JACKSONVILLE (FL)
News4Jax
POSTED: 11:19 pm EDT May 21, 2006
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- A retired Baptist minister remained in jail without bond Sunday as his former congregation attended services that made no mention of his arrest or the accusations that he sexually molested children decades ago.
Robert Gray was arrested Friday night and charged with capital sexual battery on two 6-year-old girls -- now women in their 30s -- when they were students at Trinity Baptist Church's school.
According to his arrest report, several other women also allege abuse by Gray.
Gray, 80, resigned in 1992 after nearly 40 years as pastor of Trinity Baptist on Hammond Boulevard and president of an affiliated college he founded.
A woman identifying herself as one of Gray's victims told Channel 4's Nancy Rubin on Sunday that the number of complaints will continue to rise as word of his arrest gets out.
CANADA
London Free Press
Mon, May 22, 2006
By CP
TORONTO -- A bespectacled Rick Brazeau barely resembles the enlarged black and white photo of himself as a pre-teen about 40 years ago.
Just eight months after the snapshot was taken in January 1963, Brazeau said his life was forever changed when he was sexually abused by his parish priest.
"I wasn't the one who was abused. It was this 11-year-old child who didn't know what to say, didn't know what to do, didn't know how to speak out about it," he said.
Brazeau joined nearly 100 people yesterday who took to the streets of Toronto for the inaugural Walk to Stop the Silence -- Stop Child Sexual Abuse, a fundraiser to encourage other abused children to speak out.
VERMONT
Bennington Banner
The Associated Press
Monday, May 22
BURLINGTON (AP) — A South Burlington man who was abused by a Catholic priest as a boy is harshly criticizing a comment by Bishop Salvatore Matano, who said victims' lawsuits are an "unbridled, unjust and terribly unreasonable assault" on the church.
"Those were just horrible words," said Michael Gay, 38, in response to the comments by the head of the Catholic Diocese for Vermont. "How does anyone dare to say it was us, the victims, who assaulted them?
"How dare they do what they did to all of us kids and now they are trying to push us all back in a corner?" he asked. "That was a slap in our faces."
Gay, who settled his suit against the diocese last month for $965,000, also said he was angry about court papers filed by the church's lawyers last week that brought up information about Gay's sexual history and marital issues.
The diocese was seeking to have the judge in that case, Ben Joseph, removed from future cases involving sexual abuse by priests.
Told of Gay's comments, Matano said he was very sorry if his comments had hurt Gay or other victims of sexual abuse by priests. He said that applied as well to the 19 who have filed suit against the diocese in Chittenden Superior Court.
DARIEN (CT)
Stamford Advocate
By Vesna Jaksic
Staff Writer
Published May 22 2006
DARIEN -- Bishop William Lori yesterday apologized to parishioners of St. John Roman Catholic Church for a scandal involving their priest and vowed that the Bridgeport Diocese will investigate the church's finances.
The Rev. Michael Jude Fay, pastor of the Post Road church since 1991, accepted Lori's request to resign Wednesday after the diocese discovered that he had stolen church money, officials said.
Lori and other diocesan officials said yesterday Deloitte & Touche has been hired to conduct a full forensic investigation of St. John's finances.
During a 10 a.m. Mass, Lori told the standing-room-only crowd that he wanted to be with them in their difficult time.
"It is precisely in these moments of tension, disappointment, anger and sadness that the quality and capacity of our love is tested," he said. "I'm deeply sorry this parish is going through such a severe test and came in person to apologize."
According to published reports, a Stamford private investigator, Vito Colucci Jr., documented that Fay used at least $200,000 of church money to pay for trips, dinners and limousine rides as part of a relationship with another man.
UNITED STATES
Crisis Magazine
By Francis X. Maier
“We got a new law passed in California that opens up the statute of limitations for all victims of sexual abuse. It’s something we’ve been trying to do in several states for years. And I’m not waiting for it to click in. I’m suing the sh–t out of [the Catholic Church] everywhere: in Sacramento, in Santa Clara, in Santa Rosa, in San Francisco, in Oakland, in L.A., and everyplace else.”
—Jeffrey Anderson, plaintiffs’ attorney
April 2003 interview
My wife and I were watching the news one evening last summer when the camera cut away to an attorney on the steps of Colorado’s state capitol. He announced to a cluster of reporters that he was suing the Archdiocese of Denver for $10 million for each of the various sexual abuse victims he now represented.
The attorney was Florida’s Jeff Herman. Herman is one of several high-profile litigators—along with Minnesota’s Jeffrey Anderson—who has made a business of suing the Catholic Church over the past decade. Under Colorado law, plaintiffs’ attorneys may not name the damages they seek to recover in civil suits. That’s a matter reserved for courts and juries.
Herman may or may not have known this. In either case, he couldn’t resist a photo op and sound bite. Ten million dollars has a nice ring to it. In Colorado, as elsewhere, the guerrilla theater of sex-abuse litigation has some very practical goals: shocking the public, frightening Catholics, polluting jury pools, and influencing judges and lawmakers.
NEW HAVEN (CT)
San Francisco Chronicle
By JOHN CHRISTOFFERSEN, Associated Press Writer
Saturday, May 20, 2006
(05-20) 12:31 PDT New Haven, Conn. (AP) --
As founder of the Legionaries of Christ, the Rev. Marcial Maciel is a central figure for the thousands of followers in the Roman Catholic order. Students study his life, portray him in skits to celebrate his birthday and follow his instructions on everything from table manners to how to wear their hair.
But the controversial order likely will face dramatic changes with the conclusion of a Vatican investigation into allegations that Maciel sexually abused seminarians decades ago. Pope Benedict XVI requested Friday that Maciel no longer celebrate public Masses, and that he should live a life of "prayer and penance."
The church did not say if the allegations were true, but experts say the Vatican would not have imposed a severe penalty without finding at least some validity to the complaints.
"It would be like teaching the Franciscans they shouldn't talk about St. Francis," said the Rev. James Martin, associate editor of the Jesuit magazine America. "I think the order will survive, but it will be a very difficult few years for them."
JOLIET (IL)
Daily Southtown
Sunday, May 21, 2006
By Ted Slowik
Special to the Daily Southtown
From day one, Bishop Joseph Imesch has preached forgiveness.
On Aug. 28, 1979, Joseph Leopold Imesch was installed as the third bishop of the Joliet Diocese by the late John Cardinal Cody, archbishop of Chicago.
During the ceremony, Imesch relayed a message from his predecessor, the ailing Bishop Romeo Blanchette.
"He asked me to tell you of his great love and admiration for all," Imesch told the audience of dignitaries gathered in St. Raymond Cathedral in Joliet. "He thanks you as a shepherd and a priest. He asked to be forgiven for any wrongs he may have inflicted on any of you. And finally, he asks that you pray for him as he prays for you."
Of late, Imesch has sought forgiveness himself, from people who were sexually abused by Joliet priests when they were children.
He's also appealed to faithful parishioners who felt betrayed by his response to reports of sordid sexual escapades.
ISRAEL
The Jerusalem Post
By MATTHEW WAGNER
Rabbi Mordechai Gafni, a charismatic but controversial leader of the Jewish renewal movement, was dismissed last week from his position as spiritual leader and lecturer at Bayit Hadash, a Tel Aviv-based prayer and study community, amid allegations of sexual misconduct and exploitation of employee-employer relations.
With the help of sympathetic rabbis, Gafni, co-founder of Bayit Hadash, has been dodging accusations and rumors of sexual wrongdoings both here and in the US for two decades.
But even Gafni's most ardent supporters were forced to backtrack when, on May 9, three women filed a police complaint against him and provided attorney Eitan Maimoni with a sworn statement of his misconduct, and a fourth women, from an institution where Gafni previously worked, gave similar testimony before Bayit Hadash heads.
Jacob Ner-David, a co-founder of Bayit Hadash, who has known Gafni for 24 years, told The Jerusalem Post that he felt betrayed by him.
YNet
Andrew Friedman
In 2002, U.S. Rabbi Baruch Lanner was convicted of aggravated sexual contact and sexual contact, and of endangering the welfare of two teenage girls by touching their breasts while serving as principal of the Hillel Yeshiva in Ocean Township, New Jersey. The girls testified that Lanner also telephoned them at home, made lewd and sexually suggestive comments, and promised one that he would marry her.
But the real tragedy of the story is that Lanner had been accused for years of sexual impropriety, inconsistent and occasionally violent behavior, but students' calls for help were routinely ignored by Lanner's superiors, both at school and at the Orthodox Union, the parent group of theAbuse Tracker Conference of Synagogue Youth group that Lanner headed. It took a media expose by the New York Jewish Week to finally force the rabbi to resign both posts and Orthodox Union officials to admit they had allowed a dangerous situation to fester by ignoring warning signs that Lanner posed a danger to his students.
Years of accusations
Israel now finds itself in a similar position with regard to Mordechai Gafni , the charismatic but troubled former leader of the Bayit Chadash community in Jaffa who now stands accused of rape and sexual misconduct. Like Lanner, Gafni is a talented speaker with a magnetic personality. And also like Lanner, he has been dogged by accusations of impropriety (sexual and non-sexual) for years. And, again like Lanner, Gafni has managed to avoid prosecution and punishment for his accused actions for years.
JACKSONVILLE (FL)
WAWS
Last Update: 5/21/2006 6:39:49 AM
Members of The Trinity Christian Church are expected to discuss sex abuse charges against a former pastor during services today. The Academy issued a statement Saturday announcing the staff will hire independent attorneys to investigate allegations that a former school administrator molested students several decades ago.
Robert Gray is being held in jail without bond. He waived his right to a first court appearance Saturday. The well known former pastor and school administrator was arrested Friday after two women filed police reports, alleging he sexually molested them when they were in elementary school. They alleged he was able to keep them quiet at the time by giving them candy and money.
According to a report we obtained from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, at least 6 other adult women came forward recently as well, making similar claims about their childhood relationships with Gray.
JACKSONVILLE (FL)
WAWS
Last Update: 5/20/2006 9:32:21 PM
A local pastor is accused of molesting children. Pastor Robert Gray of Trinity Christian Academy was arrested Friday night for a crime that happened about 30 years ago.
Police say back then, he brought at least two six year olds into his office where he molested them. Since Gray’s arrest, police say six other people have come forward with similar stories of inappropriate behavior.
We went to Trinity Christian Academy but no one could answer our questions . We checked the web and his picture has been taken down and his name is no longer in their phone directory.
JACKSONVILLE (FL)
WAWS
Last Update: 5/20/2006 9:31:41 PM
The Trinity Christian Academy will hire independent attorneys to investigate allegations that a former school administrator molested 6 year old students several decades ago.
Former Pastor Robert Gray was arrested Friday, charged with molesting two people who were former students. Since the arrest, a report on file at the Jacksonville Sheriff’s office says at least six other women have made similar claims against Gray.
Tonight Trinity Christian Academy released this statement:
“Yesterday, the former pastor of Trinity Baptist Church was arrested on criminal allegations. The church has taken further steps to address this issue. At this time, the Pastor, Deacons, and General Counsel have hired independent attorneys to investigate this matter further and make recommendations to the church. These attorneys have special expertise in the legal issues involved and are fully informed of the spiritual mission of Trinity Baptist Church.
JACKSONVILLE (FL)
First Coast News
By Victor Blackwell
First Coast News
JACKSONVILLE, FL -- For nearly 40 years, Dr. Robert Gray clasped his hands to lead members of Trinity Baptist Church in prayer. Now those same hands are cuffed as he's being arrested.
Dr. Gray faces Capital Sexual Battery charges.
At least six women say Dr. Gray molested them when they were just girls and he was an administrator at Trinity Christian Academy
"It finally came out,” said a man who says he’s been a member of Trinity Baptist Church for more than 30 years. We’ll call him John.
"Some of the deacons knew, the pastor knew," said John. "I've know it for years, but it was just kind of covered up, swept under the rug by everybody in charge,” he added.
John remembers a Wednesday night service back in the late eighties. He says pastor at the time, stood in front the congregation and told hundreds of members about those allegations.
"Then, Brother Gray mentioned that he categorically denied all charges,” said John.
ROCKVILLE (MD)
WJZ
A rabbi was charged with traveling across state lines to engage in sex acts with a 13-year-old boy after being caught in a nationally televised sting operation.
David Kaye, 56, of Rockville, Md., made an initial appearance Friday in U.S. District Court on charges of coercion and enticement and travel with intent to engage in illegal sexual contact with a minor. He was detained pending a detention hearing Monday.
Kaye did not speak during Friday's hearing and his lawyer declined comment.
Kaye resigned from his position as vice president of Rockville-based PANIM: the Institute for Jewish Leaders and Values, in the wake of the sting.
In November, NBC's "Dateline" program ran a sting operation in northern Virginia in conjunction with an Internet watchdog group called Perverted Justice. Kaye was one of 19 people who showed up at a Herndon, Va., home after chatting online with individuals they believed to be underage boys and girls.
ALEXANDRIA (VA)
WTOP
May 20th - 6:37am
ALEXANDRIA, Va. - A rabbi has been charged with traveling across state lines to engage in sex acts with a 13-year-old boy after being caught in a nationally televised sting operation.
Fifty-six-year-old David Kaye of Rockville appeared in U.S. District Court in Alexandria.
He's being held pending a detention hearing Monday.
Kaye resigned from his position as vice president of the Rockville-based Institute for Jewish Leaders and Values in the wake of the sting.
In November, NBC's "Dateline" program ran a sting operation in northern Virginia with an Internet watchdog group called Perverted Justice.
NEW YORK
New York Post
By ANGELA MONTEFINISE
May 21, 2006 -- A popular New Age rabbi accused of sexually abusing three co-workers in Israel has fled to the United States - to the horror of several New York women who say he molested them as children and walked away scot-free.
Rabbi Mordechai Gafni - born Marc Winiarz - was fired this month from the Israeli spiritual center he founded after three women filed complaints of sexual misconduct with Israeli police. He is believed to now be in Massachusetts or Colorado.
Gafni, 46, worked in New York in the 1980s as a rabbi for the now-defunct Jewish Public School Youth program. But he was offering young girls more than spiritual counseling, his alleged victims claim.
Judy, whose last name is being withheld by The Post, said she was 16 and suffering in a "tumultuous" home environment, including ailing parents, when Gafni invited her to stay at his Flatbush home, where he lived with his second wife, to "escape."
One night 20 years ago this month, Judy said Gafni came into her room, told her he knew what she wanted and took off her clothes. He climbed on top of her as if preparing for intercourse, then asked her when she last had her period.
WASHINGTON
Herald
By Julie Muhlstein
Herald Columnist
Pretend you're in the refectory of the Dominican convent at Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan. You stand before the real thing, Leonardo Da Vinci's "The Last Supper."
Step closer, if it's allowed. Is the figure to Jesus' right really Mary Magdalene, not the apostle John?
Oh wait, that's fiction, convincingly created by novelist Dan Brown in his mega-bestseller "The Da Vinci Code." I read it, couldn't put it down. The wild plot debunks Christianity top to bottom. In Brown's scenario, Jesus wasn't divine, he married Mary Magdalene, and their descendants survive to this day.
"The Da Vinci Code" movie, which opened Friday, is said to be less compelling. Even so, Catholic leaders the world over see a need to vocally discredit what's essentially a potboiler of a murder mystery. ..
Now a spiritual counselor with Group Health Cooperative of Puget Sound, Waldie described one devastating encounter.
"It wasn't even direct abuse, but the fallout," she said. "I was working with a man in his 90s who was dying slowly at a nursing home run by the Sisters of Providence, a good nursing home, in Issaquah.
"This poor man was so angry, and the root of that anger was that his church had betrayed him," Waldie said. Disillusioned by revelations of abuse, and having financially supported the church and attended Mass all his life, "he didn't know if he could even believe in God," Waldie said. "It was heart-breaking."
"Nobody has a right to take that away from people, particularly not priests and bishops," she said. "Always, the church does a tremendous amount of good. Its job is to be a light to the world. The church is supposed to work at being holy and pure."
When I told Waldie I found it odd the Catholic Church is so intent on bashing fiction, she said, "I think 'The Da Vinci Code' is the perfect foil. It's great timing, a perfect distraction. It's something they can control. It makes them look good, and people can speak on it with authority."
IRELAND
The Sunday Times
Enda Leahy and Nicola Tallant
A Health Service Executive (HSE) employee who has pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography was being funded by the state body to do a masters degree in child psychology at the same time as undergoing a treatment programme for paedophiles.
Seamus Fennelly, 48, who worked as an administrator in the HSE offices in Kilkenny, had access to sensitive information on children in care. Earlier this month he pleaded guilty to serious child pornography charges at Kilkenny district court and he is due to be sentenced tomorrow.
The former Capuchin brother was sent by the HSE to the Granada Institute in Dublin, one of the few Irish clinics to specialise in the treatment of sexual offenders. The agency paid for his treatment, which costs €2,400 for an assessment and €90 per session afterwards.
ROME
Taipei Times
THE GUARDIAN , ROME
Sunday, May 21, 2006,Page 6
Advertising Pope Benedict threw his authority behind a new and uncompromising approach to sex abuse in the Roman Catholic Church on Friday when he ordered one of its most influential figures, who faces multiple allegations, to give up his ministry and retire to a life of "prayer and repentance."
A statement issued by the Vatican said 86-year-old Father Marcial Maciel, the founder of the ultra-orthodox Legion of Christ, had only escaped a full trial in an ecclesiastical court because of his "advanced age [and] frail health."
Father Maciel's case had been repeatedly shelved by Church leaders over a period of 30 years.
The statement made a point of noting that the sanctions against the priest had been personally endorsed by the pontiff.
His landmark ruling astonished and delighted campaigners for the victims of abuse. It represented a clear departure from the timorous policy of John Paul II, and appeared to be a first step toward fulfilling the new pontiff's vow to sweep "filth" from the Church.
BELLEVILLE (IL)
WQAD
BELLEVILLE, Ill. A spokesman for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Belleville says a defrocked priest who has admitted to molesting children and lives in a religious order's retirement home is not the responsibility of the bishop of Belleville.
The diocesan vicar general, the Reverend Jack McEvilly, says that despite a priest sexual abuse policy of zero tolerance, religious orders are not bound by the agreement.
Apparently without the knowledge of then-Bishop Wilton Gregory, the Reverend Real Bourque (RAY'-al BORK), was transferred four years ago to the St. Henry Oblate Retirement Home in Belleville.
Hartford Courtant
May 21, 2006
By GERALD RENNER, Special to The Courant
They finally feel vindicated by the Vatican's imposing of sanctions on the high church leader who they say sexually abused them when they were young boys and teenagers.
For years they tried futilely to call to the attention of church authorities the indignities they suffered in seminaries under the man they called "Nuestro Padre," Our Father, the Rev. Marcial Maciel Degollado.
The former members of Maciel's Legionaries of Christ are now old men who have made a success of their lives after leaving the legion.
But burning in their souls has been a desire to seek justice and a recognition by the Vatican of the wrongs done them in seminaries in Spain and Italy in the 1950s and '60s.
That recognition came Friday when the Vatican announced, after a year's investigation, that Maciel, 86, had been asked to give up appearing in public as a priest and to live "a reserved life of penitence and prayer."
BOSTON (MA)
Boston Globe
By Walter V. Robinson, Globe Staff | May 21, 2006
Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley last week decided to privately reprimand Caritas Christi Health Care System's president, Dr. Robert M. Haddad, for multiple instances of kissing and other physical touching involving four women employees, despite an investigation by senior Caritas Christi officials that concluded that Haddad should be fired, according to internal documents and e-mails obtained by the Globe.
In response to questions from the Globe, the Catholic Archdiocese of Boston late yesterday acknowledged taking the internal action. It said the cardinal decided on a ''stern reprimand" against Haddad after hiring outside counsel to investigate the allegations and after the governing board of the church's sprawling healthcare system voted unanimously, with one abstention, to endorse the sanction.
The statement described Haddad's actions as ''hugging or kissing of hospital employees . . . in public and private," and said Haddad had personally promised O'Malley he would never offend in that way again and would enroll in a sexual harassment sensitivity training program. A repeat occurrence or any retaliatory action will result in his dismissal, the statement said.
Those were the first such allegations received by the church about Haddad, the statement added.
BOSTON (MA)
Casper Star Tribune
Sunday, May 21, 2006
BOSTON - Cardinal Sean O'Malley has reprimanded the president of an archdiocese-run hospital system who is accused of kissing and touching four employees, according to a published report.
An investigation, however, determined that Robert M. Haddad, president of Caritas Christi Health Care System, should have been fired, The Boston Sunday Globe reported. Haddad is accused of sexually harassing four women in the second-largest health care system in New England.
The Boston Archdiocese acknowledged that O'Malley last week gave Haddad a "stern reprimand," a move endorsed by the health care system's board.
"Cardinal Sean took these allegations extremely seriously and sought to resolve them as expeditiously as possible, in a manner that is fair to all involved parities," the archdiocese said in a written statement to the newspaper.
JACKSONVILLE (FL)
First Coast News
By First Coast News Staff
JACKSONVILLE, FL -- A man who spent 38 years as pastor at a well-known church on the First Coast is under arrest, accused of molesting two girls decades ago.
Exclusive First Coast News video shows detectives arresting Bob Gray at his home Friday evening and walking him into JSO headquarters a short time later.
Gray is being held on capital sexual battery charges.
The young girls are now adults in their thirties and forties, and they're aren't the only ones saying Gray molested them.
A First Coast News investigation has learned at least fifteen women say Gray molested them as young girls.
First Coast News has been working alongside sex crimes investigators and the State Attorney's office in putting the pieces of this case together.
JACKSONVILLE (FL)
WJXT
WJXT-TV
7:49 a.m. EDT May 20, 2006
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A retired pastor and college president was arrested Friday evening, accused of molesting two girls in his church office decades ago. Robert Gray is being held on capital sexual battery charges after two women came forward and told investigators he molested them when they were children. The women are now in their 30s and 40s.
The Rev. Bob Gray spent years as pastor of Trinity Baptist Church on Hammond Boulevard on the Westside. He founded Trinity Baptist College in 1974 and was president of the school for nearly 20 years.
Gray is still active in Bible conferences around the country and is well known around the country for his long involvement in Baptist organizations.
According to the arrest report, the two women said Gray touched them inappropriately inside his church office when they were of early elementary-school age.
MOUNT KISCO (NY)
The Journal News
By SEAN GORMAN
THE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: May 21, 2006)
MOUNT KISCO — When the Rev. Molly Blythe Teichert speaks about becoming pastor of the Mount Kisco Presbyterian Church, she says the congregation is in a period of "resurrection" following the turmoil three years ago when sexual misconduct allegations engulfed former minister Jack Miller.
"Everything is new here now," said Teichert, 41. "This church, while it is in a period of resurrection and rebirth, has not forgotten the past ... There is not an ignoring or sweeping the past under the rug."
Teichert, who has served as pastor since December, will be formally installed in a ceremony today. For 11 years, she was pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Port Jefferson on Long Island, where a previous pastor also faced sex-abuse allegations.
"Churches can recover. Churches do recover," Teichert said. "To have walked that path with one church, I think, enables me to have the confidence to hold one hand on God and one hand on them (the congregation) and just say 'We're going to walk through this.' "
VERMONT
Burlington Free Press
Published: Sunday, May 21, 2006
By Sam Hemingway
Free Press Staff Writer
Michael Gay thought the waves of emotion rippling inside him would subside after he accepted $965,000 to settle his priest sex abuse lawsuit with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington last month.
He now knows he was wrong.
"I thought I would feel better, but I don't," he said in an interview last week. "I feel the same feelings I had before, the anger and hate and humiliation. I want to go on with my life, but I can't. Money can't heal the pains of the heart."
For that, in large measure, he blames Bishop Salvatore Matano.
Gay, 38, said any hope he had of getting past his pain were dashed when he read Matano's letter to Catholics released last weekend.
He said he was particularly offended by a remark in the bishop's letter about putting the church's parishes into individual charitable trusts to protect them from "unbridled, unjust and terribly unreasonable assault."
LAS VEGAS (CA)
Pahrump Valley Times
LAS VEGAS (AP) - A civil lawsuit stemming from allegations that a priest abused teenage boys at his Henderson parish is heading for binding arbitration, lawyers in the case said.
Al Massi, attorney for at least six boys who claim they were abused, and Philip Hymanson, attorney for the Catholic Diocese of Las Vegas, said an arbitrator will hear evidence in the case and decide if the plaintiffs are due monetary damages.
``It will be presented just like a nonjury trial,'' Massi said.
Hymanson declined to discuss specifics but said arbitration was in the best interest of the diocese.
VATICAN CITY
Zenit
VATICAN CITY, MAY 19, 2006 (Zenit.org).- The Holy See won't continue with a canonical investigation into accusations against Father Marcial Maciel, founder of the Legionaries of Christ, and has invited him to renounce all public ministry.
A communiqué issued today by the Vatican press office said that "since 1998, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has received accusations, which were already made public in part," against Father Maciel, 86, "for offenses reserved to the exclusive competency of the dicastery."
"In 2002, Father Maciel published a statement to deny the accusations and to express his disgust for the offenses against him by former Legionaries of Christ," the statement said. "In 2005, for reasons of advanced age, Reverend Maciel retired from the office of superior general of the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ."
"After submitting the results of the investigation to careful study," continued the statement, "the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, under the guidance of the new prefect, His Eminence Cardinal William Levada, has decided -- taking into account both the advanced age of Father Maciel as well as his poor health -- to drop the canonical process and invite him to a reserved life of prayer and penance, renouncing all public ministry. The Holy Father has approved these decisions."
VATICAN CITY
Spirit Daily
Vatican Information Service
VATICAN CITY, MAY 19, 2006 (VIS) - With reference to recent news concerning the person of Fr. Marcial Maciel Degollado, founder of the Legionaries of Christ, the Holy See Press Office released the following communique:
"Beginning in 1998, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith received accusations, already partly made public, against Fr. Marcial Maciel Degollado, founder of the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ, for crimes that fall under the exclusive competence of the congregation. In 2002, Fr. Maciel published a declaration denying the accusations and expressing his displeasure at the offence done him by certain former Legionaries of Christ. In 2005, by reason of his advanced age, Fr. Maciel retired from the office of superior general of the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ.
"All these elements have been subject to a mature examination by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and - in accordance with the Motu Proprio 'Sacramentorum sanctitatis tutela,' promulgated on April 30 2001 by Servant of God John Paul II - the then prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, authorized an investigation into the accusations. In the meantime, Pope John II died and Cardinal Ratzinger was elected as the new Pontiff.
MEXICO
The Age
By Alistair Bell, Mexico City
May 21, 2006
THE founder of a powerful Catholic order disciplined by the Pope is a charismatic charmer who sexually abused trainee priests to get "revenge on God" for having been abused himself as a child, a victim has said.
Jose Barba (pictured above), now a Mexican university professor, said he was abused by Marcial Maciel in the early 1950s when, aged 16, he was studying for the priesthood in Rome.
"He asked me to give him a massage but it was masturbation. He said the Pope gave permission for that kind of thing," Professor Barba, 68, said. Other abuses followed, he said.
The censure of Maciel was Pope Benedict's first major decision involving sexual abuse charges since his election last year, and raised eyebrows because the conservative order had found favour under the late Pope John Paul.
Begun by Maciel in 1941, the Legionaries of Christ has about 600 priests and 2500 seminarians in more than 20 countries. It also runs a major pontifical university in Rome.
MEXICO
IPS
Diego Cevallos
MEXICO CITY, May 19 (IPS) - It took the Catholic Church more than half a century to acknowledge the numerous allegations of sexual abuse against the leader of a conservative order founded in Mexico, the Legionaries of Christ. But the Vatican, which has frequently praised Father Marcial Maciel over the years, finally decided to punish him.
However, he will not be brought to justice by the courts.
Maciel, who for decades has denied charges that he molested former students for the priesthood in the seminaries run by the order, "deserves criminal punishment, rather than this mild decision by the Church," Joaquín Aguilar, Mexico director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), told IPS.
On Friday, the Vatican reported that it had "invited" the 86-year-old Maciel to "a life reserved to prayer and penitence, renouncing any public ministry." The decision, which was approved by Pope Benedict, was taken after a Church carried out a probe into the accusations voiced by a number of former seminarians.
Although Maciel will not undergo a church trial, he can no longer celebrate mass or give speeches or interviews.
MIDDLETON (MA)
Tri-Town Transcript
By Nadine Wandzilak/ tri-town@cnc.com
Friday, May 19, 2006
Archbishop Cardinal Sean O'Malley will visit Middleton next Saturday, May 27, to a offer Mass at St. Agnes Church. The appearance is part of a "pilgrimage of repentance and hope: a novena to the Holy Spirit" in nine communities that experienced "an especially painful history of sexual abuse of children by priests and, at one parish, a lay youth worker."
Christopher Reardon, who ran the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine program and the youth ministry at St. Agnes parish, pleaded guilty in 2001 to 75 counts including rape, indecent assault and battery on a child and disseminating pornography and was sentenced to 40 to 50 years in prison.
"The services will include a public acknowledgement of the sins and crimes committed," according to the Archdiocese, "and an act of reparation that will enable the Cardinal and clergy to join in an expression of repentance for priests and bishops whose actions and inactions gravely harmed the lives of children and young people entrusted to their care."
A person who was assaulted will speak at the service, according to archdiocese spokesperson Betsy Kelly.
UNITED STATES
The Tidings
By Patrick J. Schiltz
Twenty-third in a series; first of three parts.
I am often invited to present the "other side" of the clergy sexual-abuse "story." I receive these invitations because, as first a practicing attorney and then a law professor, I have advised every major Christian denomination in connection with more than 500 clergy sexual-abuse cases in almost all 50 states. My clients have included Catholic dioceses, orders, bishops and priests, and thus people assume that, if there is another side of this story to be told, I will be able to tell it.
There is, in fact, much about this story that has been ignored or distorted by the media. Before I elaborate, though, I must be clear about the following: Hundreds of pastors --- Catholic and non-Catholic --- did indeed sexually abuse thousands of children and vulnerable adults. Many bishops and other church leaders did indeed learn of abusive pastors, cover up abuse, and do little to protect children and vulnerable adults. The acts of these pastors and bishops did indeed cause incalculable harm.
All of this is true, and not one word of this article is meant to excuse any of it. I have spent hundreds of hours talking with victims of clergy sexual abuse --- some who were suing my clients, some who were helping my clients to rid themselves of abusive pastors, and some who just wanted to help me to advise my clients better. Listening to victims describe their pain can be unbearable. I cannot imagine how much worse it must be to experience that pain. I take a back seat to no one in my loathing of clergy sexual abuse.
That said, it also frustrates me that the media have distorted many aspects of the abuse crisis and left the public terribly misinformed. My purpose in this article is to examine the conduct of the media as carefully as the media have examined the conduct of bishops and priests. The most remarkable thing about the news coverage of the recent past is that almost nothing covered has been new.
Renew America
Matt C. Abbott
May 19, 2006
The Vatican issued the following statement on May 19, 2006:
Beginning in 1998, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith received accusations, already partly made public, against Fr. Marcial Maciel Degollado, founder of the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ, for crimes that fall under the exclusive competence of the congregation. In 2002, Fr. Maciel published a declaration denying the accusations and expressing his displeasure at the offence done him by certain former Legionaries of Christ. In 2005, by reason of his advanced age, Fr. Maciel retired from the office of superior general of the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ.
All these elements have been subject to a mature examination by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith a