Groups speculate on outcome of Apuron church trial

By Haidee V Eugenio
Pacific Daily News
September 17, 2017

http://www.guampdn.com/story/news/2017/09/17/groups-speculate-outcome-apuron-church-trial/627418001/

Joelle Casteix

Concerned Catholics of Guam is hopeful Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron will not only be removed as archbishop but also be stripped of his priestly faculties after his Vatican canonical trial.

But the world's largest network of priest abuse survivors is doubtful Apuron will be laicized, or removed from the priesthood, even if the church concludes he sexually abused minors.

Apuron in June 2016 was temporarily stripped of his authority to run the Catholic Church on Guam after being publicly accused of sexually abusing former Agat altar boys when he was parish priest in the late 1970s. Three former altar boys and the family of a deceased former altar boy accused Apuron and later sued him and the church. The Vatican started a secretive canonical trial for Apuron as a result. No findings or conclusions have been announced.

Concerned Catholics and the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, agree the Vatican is unlikely to send Apuron back to Guam.

“He’s damaged goods, so to speak, and to reassign him would just cause bad publicity,” said Joelle Casteix, volunteer western regional director for the St. Louis-based SNAP.

Casteix said sending Apuron to a life of prayer or penance is more consistent with the Catholic Church’s position of mercy and compassion for its priests and bishops.

“It’s a shame that compassion has never spread to victims,” Casteix said.

David Sablan, president of Concerned Catholics, said while the specific charges against Apuron still aren't known publicly, the group is hopeful the tribunal got the evidence it needs to find Apuron guilty.

"We believe, and we are hoping, that he would be removed as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Agana, and that he would be defrocked not only for sexually abusing children but also because of his egregious and disastrous administration of the affairs of the archdiocese," Sablan said.

Sablan said that includes Apuron giving away a church-owned former hotel in Yona to a seminary operated by the Neocatechumenal Way. Coadjutor Archbishop Michael Byrnes, who now runs the local church and was named as Apuron's eventual successor, signed documents to regain control of the seminary property for the archdiocese.

"(Apuron) also brought in and elevated the Neocatechumenal Way above Catholics on Guam, making them a favored and privileged group," Sablan said. "Apuron as archbishop committed serious violations of the canon law."

The Neocatechumenal Way is a movement within the Catholic church whose practices often are at odds with the island's traditional Catholics, including how Mass is conducted.

Tony Diaz, Archdiocese of Agana director of communication,  said the archdiocese will inform the media once it receives word of a decision from the Vatican about Apuron.

Even if the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith finds Apuron should be laicized, Pope Francis could overturn the decision, Casteix, said, noting the pope has done so in the past.

Italian priest Mauro Inzoli was defrocked after he was accused of pedophilia, but Pope Francis in 2014 reduced his punishment by instead ordering the priest to stay away from minors and retire to a life of prayer and humble discretion, Casteix said.

"I find it doubtful that Apuron will be laicized," Casteix said.

Casteix said Guam’s Catholics and the public are under the assumption that Apuron’s Vatican trial is for child sexual abuse.

“The Vatican and Apuron’s lawyers, I believe, are taking that assumption and running with it,” Casteix said. "Byrnes admitted that he has no idea what the charges against Apuron are. He is the highest ranking cleric in the Archdiocese of Agaña, Guam. He was the man hand-picked to replace Apuron. And he says has no idea what the charges are.”

Byrnes, when asked by reporters in July, said he doesn't know the specific charges against Apuron, but said it would be a disaster if Apuron were to return to Guam, citing the extent of the loss of trust among the faithful including widespread disarray.