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  Abuse Victims Dismiss Apology
Pope's Words Mean Little without Action, Say Church Scandal Activists

By Robert Gavin
Albany Times Union
April 17, 2008

http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=681502&category=REGION&newsdate=4/17/2008

ALBANY — At 12, Mark Furnish joined a Catholic priest on camping trips to the Thousand Islands and Canada. So did other altar boys.

The parents in their Rochester suburb were "thrilled that a priest was paying attention to us," recalled Furnish, now 37, of Scotia.

They didn't realize that the clergyman, now deceased, was plying the boys with booze, showing them pornography and molesting them repeatedly, Furnish said.

This week, 2 decades later, Pope Benedict XVI focused the world's attention on victims like Furnish. The 81-year-old pontiff said he was "deeply ashamed" of the church's sexual abuse scandal — his strongest condemnation to date.

For Furnish, now an Episcopalian and a married father of a baby boy, the Pope's apology comes "a little too little, too late."

Furnish, who is the longtime counsel to state Sen. Thomas Duane, D-Manhattan, is the former coordinator of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. Both he and his successor, Mark Lyman of Stillwater, see the Pope's statement as political pandering to a heated issue.

Lyman questioned why Benedict XVI made no mention of rooting out abusers still within the clergy.

"We believe that actions speak louder than words," said Lyman, 43. 'Will he do something? As of yet, he hasn't really done much."

As he flew to America for a six-day journey, the Pope told reporters on Tuesday the church would exclude pedophiles from the ministry, saying, "We will do everything possible to heal this wound."

Between settlements and costs, the scandal has cost American dioceses more than $2 billion since 1950. About 5,400 priests have been accused and more than 13,000 victims have alleged abuse.

In 2005, the Times Union reported that in the prior 54 years, 145 individuals who claimed they were sexually abused as minors raised allegations against 76 Albany Diocesan priests.

Told of Lyman's remarks, local church officials said they have taken important steps in recent years to address clergy abuse, including creating a review board and checking employees' backgrounds. The diocese has removed about 20 priests since 2002, said spokesman Ken Goldfarb. He said Bishop Howard Hubbard has repeatedly expressed the same sentiment as the Pope.

The Rev. Michael A. Farano, vicar general of the Albany Diocese, said anyone with knowledge of abusers in the church should come forward.

"There is no one presently in ministry, in this diocese, who has had a credible allegation against him," he said.

Farano, 65, the pastor of St. Pius X parish in Loudonville, worked with victims under the Independent Mediation Assistance Program. IMAP, begun in 2004 with $5 million, was set up to assist victims of clergy abuse — financially and with counseling. As of November, IMAP had paid out about $2.5 million to 38 people.

"This is a very sad chapter in the history of the clergy in the United States," Farano said. "It brings sadness to everybody, most especially it's a tragedy for the victims because they have to live with this for the rest of their lives."

Lyman, a Troy native who said he'd been abused in the 1970s and 1980s, asserted that while IMAP may have helped some victims, he knows of dozens who were either precluded from joining the program or not allowed to complete it, even after providing information about their cases.

"I can't say it's a success and I can't say it's a failure," he said.

Tim Sawicki, 49, of Schenectady continues to allege he was abused in the 1970s by the Rev. Alan Jupin in Schenectady, who was cleared by the church. Asked about the Pope's remarks, Sawicki was unmoved.

"When he talked about feeling shame, I almost laughed," Sawicki said. "We're the ones dealing with shame."

For Furnish, the Pope's comments also stirred emotions.

"It was triggering, for one, because it brings up all the past again," he said, "and it made me angry."

Farano said the past won't be forgotten.

"I think this is one of those wounds where, yes, you continue to live — but you live with the wound," the priest said. "I think we will always have to deal with this issue. ... When you forget the past, you're going to be doomed to repeat it. We can never let down our guard again."

Robert Gavin can be reached at 434-2403 or by e-mail at rgavin@timesunion.com

 
 

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