LOS ANGELES (CA)
The New York Times
By JENNIFER MEDINA and IAN LOVETT
Published: February 3, 2013
LOS ANGELES — At Dolores Mission Church in Boyle Heights, there was no shrinking from the news reverberating through the pews. The Rev. Scott Santarosa spent time usually reserved for the homily talking instead about what he called “really painful stuff.”
After Mass, over menudo and pan dulce, parishioners tried to make sense of the events that cascaded at the end of last week. First, the release of thousands of documents detailing decades of sexual abuse and cover-ups, then the current archbishop reprimanding his predecessor, Cardinal Roger M. Mahony, who responded with an angry missive of his own.
Known for his outspoken views on immigrants’ rights, Cardinal Mahony was seen as a tireless ally here among Latinos, who make up about 70 percent of the four million Catholics in the country’s largest archdiocese. He could celebrate Mass in flawless Spanish, and was at times affectionately referred to as “Rogelio.”
But with the release of documents that make it increasingly clear that Cardinal Mahony shielded priests accused of child abuse from investigations by law enforcement officials, his legacy as a champion of immigrants may soon be overshadowed.
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