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  Protesters Rally As Archbishop Leads Final Mass in S.F.

By Julie Sevrens Lyons
Mercury News [San Francisco CA]
August 8, 2005

Just 10 minutes before Archbishop William J. Levada gave his farewell Mass in San Francisco on Sunday, about 3,000 supporters loaded their cameras with film and eagerly filled up every one of the more than 200 pews in St. Mary's Cathedral.

Outside, his detractors staged a silent vigil, and one helped serve the embattled church head with a subpoena -- ordering him to appear in a Hayward law office on Friday to discuss his handling of sex abuse cases involving clergy members while he was the archbishop of Portland, Ore.

The end of Levada's 10-year reign as the leader of the San Francisco Archdiocese did nothing to end the controversy that has swirled around the man who goes to Rome later this month to fill the highest Vatican position ever held by an American.

In a symbolic sermon in which he thanked members of the congregation for their support and prayers, Levada reminded his audience that people are always subject to mistakes while on Earth, and they should take the time to focus on a greater vision.

He said he hopes he has done good things over the past decade to help "God's people," and added "Only God knows the answer to that question."

Levada will hold the powerful role of the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith at the Vatican -- the position held by then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger before he was elected pope earlier this year. Levada will be entrusted with overseeing the enforcement of Catholic doctrine.

Outside the cathedral Sunday, tour buses and police cars flanked the sidewalk. Protesters held signs saying "Levada protect children not pedophiles" and wearing T-shirts that read "It's a sin. Stop the coverup."

And during the processional hymn, while most in audience were singing the words to "All Creatures of Our God and King," one woman was softly singing "All the victims."

"I'm glad to see him go," said Joe Piscitelli, who claims he was molested when he was 14 by a priest who is now in San Francisco.

Piscitelli believes Levada has done little to bring any transparency to the church's secret dealings with clergy members accused of molestation. The archbishop has been criticized for not revealing the identities of more than a dozen clergy members living in San Francisco who have been accused of sexually abusing children.

But Sunday, even as protesters denounced Levada and the church for the sex abuse scandal, thousands of curious and star-struck churchgoers crowded into the cathedral. A handful gave Levada a standing ovation after his sermon.

Many snapped up souvenirs from the cathedral's gift shop and waited in line after the services for a chance to shake Levada's hand and receive a card bearing the archbishop's likeness.

"Maybe one day he'll be the next pope. Who knows?" said Loivinus Nwihim, a San Francisco cashier who brought his camera.

"We have a lot of faith in him," said Vicky Liu, who said she doesn't regularly attend Mass at the cathedral but couldn't miss Levada's farewell. "It's very honorable for San Francisco."

"Honorable" was not a word that everyone who attended used to describe Levada or the modern-day Catholic Church. Some said they have grown disenchanted by the sex abuse scandal, which continues to haunt the church. Just last week, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland announced a $56 million settlement with 56 survivors of sexual abuse, settling all claims of sexual misconduct in which it has been named as a defendant.

Levada remains embroiled in the deeply divisive issue himself, and on Friday he will be forced to testify about the handling of clergy sex abuse cases while he was archbishop of Portland from 1986 to 1995. Last year, the Portland Archdiocese filed for bankruptcy after being beleaguered by lawsuits from church members who said they were molested by priests during their childhood.

The archbishop has also drawn scorn recently for a legal filing more than a decade ago which may run counter to church doctrine.

The Los Angeles Times reported that in 1994, when asked why the Archdiocese of Portland shouldn't be responsible for child support for a baby fathered by a seminarian there, the church said the child's mother engaged "in unprotected intercourse" and "should have known that could result in pregnancy." The statement, made in Levada's name, seemed to suggest the woman should have protected herself from pregnancy with birth control, even though the church considers contraceptives intrinsically evil.

San Francisco Supervisor Jake McGoldrick, who attended Levada's last Mass, said the controversies will remain part of his legacy.

"He stood up against the death penalty, against war in Iraq," McGoldrick said. But what many people will simply remember is "the terrible bump in the road -- the pedophilia."