Guam Catholics Seek Action on Pope's Message
By Haidee V Eugenio
Some Guam Catholics want action instead of words from Pope Francis after his renewed call for bishops to observe zero tolerance for child abuse, now that at least 15 former altar boys have come forward alleging they were sexually abused or raped by priests on Guam. "I am hopeful that Pope Francis and church leaders are addressing what has been covered up for too long. In some cases, the bishops in certain dioceses covered up the terrible abuse by clergy and allowed further abuse to occur," Concerned Catholics of Guam Vice President Andrew Camacho said. The Vatican released on Jan. 2 the text of a Dec. 28 letter the pope sent to bishops about the atrocities toward children, including wars, slave labor, malnutrition, lack of education, and sexual exploitation, including abuses by priests. “It is a sin that shames us. Persons responsible for the protection of those children destroyed their dignity. We regret this deeply and we beg for forgiveness. We join in the pain of the victims and weep for this sin,” the pope said. On Guam, former priest Louis Brouillard admitted he sexually abused 20 or more altar boys when he was on Guam, from the late 1940s to 1981. Brouillard also admitted publicly that fellow priests, including then-Bishop Apollinaris Baumgartner, were aware of his sex abuses of minors but that he was only asked to say more prayers rather than being defrocked. With Brouillard still allowed to serve as a priest after his own bishop knew of his sex abuses of minors on Guam, Brouillard went on to serve in Minnesota, where he was later included on the Diocese of Duluth's list of priests with credible allegations of sex abuse of minors. Camacho said bishops covering up child sex abuses "is particularly painful as it is a tragedy we are living through in the Archdiocese of Agana." "The pain and suffering described by the victims and survivors of child sex abuse are truly heart-wrenching," Camacho said. "The people in Concerned Catholics of Guam are committed to doing all we can to help survivors seek justice, healing and peace. There is a long road ahead and much work to do. We pray for guidance and strength as we move forward and help in the difficult work of fixing our broken church." Guam’s archbishop, Anthony S. Apuron, is undergoing a canonical trial at the Vatican, according to church officials, over multiple allegations that he sexually abused and raped altar boys in Agat in the 1970s. Blogger and church critic Tim Rohr said Tuesday it appears Pope Francis has “Apuron on the brain.” Rohr posted his comments a day later on his own blog, JungleWatch. “The letter is addressed to bishops and right now, there is only one bishop who is at the center of the Catholic world's attention in matters related to the sex abuse of children, there is only one bishop who is on trial in the Vatican, and there is only one bishop who the pope has asked twice now to resign and still he refuses. That's Apuron,” Rohr said. Others accused of abusing other altar boys on Guam, from at least the 1950s to the 1980s, include former priest Raymond Cepeda, Father David Anderson and the late Father Antonio Cruz. Rohr said while he welcomes the pope’s renewed call for zero tolerance, he is appealing for help from the very people most responsible for the scandal. “While most of the abuse was committed by ‘priests gone wild,' we now know what an integral and secret role the bishops themselves have played in permitting, covering for, and perhaps even cultivating the abuse,” Rohr said. “Apuron's refusal to resign in the face of the pope's twice request is an example of just how powerless the pope really is when it comes to exercising administrative authority over bishops. Thus, the power to hold bishops to account falls to the people, the laity, the parents whose children and grandchildren were ravaged and wounded by by the very men they entrusted them to.” The Concerned Catholics of Guam, the Laity Forward Movement and Silent No More have led efforts to expose priest sex abuses of former altar boys on Guam. They called on the church to defrock Apuron, along with other priests who abused children. Silent No More, backed by the two other groups and other lay people, pushed for the passage of a bill that allows individuals who were sexually abused when they were children to sue their perpetrators and the institutions they associate long after the statute of limitations expired. The bill, which Gov. Eddie Calvo signed into law on Sept. 23, 2016, paved the way for 15 former altar boys to sue for sexual abuse. Pope Francis, in his Dec. 28 message to bishops, expressed the church’s regret and denounced the ‘‘sin of what happened, the sin of failing to help, the sin of covering up and denial, the sin of the abuse of power.’’ The pope asked bishops for ‘‘complete commitment to ensuring that these atrocities will no longer take place in our midst.’’ “Let us find the courage needed to take all necessary measures and to protect in every way the lives of our children, so that such crimes may never be repeated. In this area, let us adhere, clearly and faithfully, to zero tolerance,” the pope said. The pope placed Apuron on temporary leave on June 6, 2016 and named Apuron’s successor, Coadjutor Archbishop Michael Jude Byrnes. Contact: heugenio@guampdn.com
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