Catholics Say They're Being Punished for Sexual Abuse by Priests
TheBostonChannel
April 13, 2008
http://www.thebostonchannel.com/news/15870765/detail.html
[with video]
BOSTON -- Pope Benedict will travel to New York City this week.
NewsCenter 5's Lynn Jolicoeur reported Catholic parishioners in the Boston area, where more than 60 churches have been shut down in the last few years, called on the Pope to save their churches.
"We believe we are the hope and future of the Catholic Church in Boston, the U.S., and the world. We only hope Pope Benedict will recognize this fact," said St. Jeremiah's parishioner Mary Beth Carmody.
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| Parishioners Call On Pope To Address Church Closings |
They said the crime started as sexual abuse by priests, and that the church is now paying for it by abusing parishioners in shutting down their faith communities.
Members of Boston-area churches designated for closure called on the Pope to reverse those decisions, and start by acknowledging they stem from the sex abuse.
"The elephant in the room is their personnel mismanagement, their finance mismanagement, and the sexual abuse crisis that brought us to this point today," said Suzanne Hurley, a St. James the Great parishioner.
Parishioners claimed the archdiocese is shutting down many vibrant churches, as opposed to only struggling ones, in order to seize their property and cash reserves. They said that violates Canon law.
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"A bishop is prohibited from using parish assets to address the debts of the diocese," said attorney Warren Hutchinson.
"Our motto has always been 'keep your faith, change the management.' The same management that has caused this never-ending crisis in the Catholic Church," said Jon Rogers, from St. Frances Cabrini.
Despite their plea, some of the parishioners said they don't think the Pope will acknowledge the church closures during his time in the U.S.
"We're pretty much used to being ignored. I think he's not coming to Boston because it's a bigger issue here than other areas," said Nancy Connor of St. James the Great.
They said they hope the Pope gets the message that any attempt to close parishes will be met with resistance.
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