ABUSE TRACKER

UNITED STATES
Religion News Service – Spiritual Politics

Mark Silk | Sep 28, 2015

On his first trip to the United States, Pope Francis communicated a vision of politics and pluralism that is rapidly becoming the signature social philosophy of his papacy.

In his address to Congress, Francis emphasized the importance of politics as a countervailing force to economic power (just as he had in his encyclical Laudato Si’):

If politics must truly be at the service of the human person, it follows that it cannot be a slave to the economy and finance. Politics is, instead, an expression of our compelling need to live as one, in order to build as one the greatest common good: that of a community which sacrifices particular interests in order to share, in justice and peace, its goods, its interests, its social life. I do not underestimate the difficulty that this involves, but I encourage you in this effort.

Similarly, at the United Nations, he stressed that in a world “marked by our technical ability to overcome distances and frontiers and, apparently, to overcome all natural limits to the exercise of power,” the juridical and political capacity of the U.N. is “an essential response, inasmuch as technological power, in the hands of nationalistic or falsely universalist ideologies, is capable of perpetrating tremendous atrocities.”

Francis’ valorization of politics doubtless derives from his experience living under a repressive military regime in a continent where all too often repressive military regimes have exploited the populace for the benefit of domestic elites and foreign economic interests. It is important to recognize that his concern is not about the relative power of government vis-a-vis the private sector so much as about how humanity makes decisions.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
USA Today

Gregg Zoroya, USA TODAY September 28, 2015

Pope Francis said there are bishops who covered up child sex abuse and who will be held accountable. His remarks were to reporters on his flight home after leaving the United States Sunday.

Moving to erase any doubt about the how serious he views crimes against children in the church, the pontiff said he wanted to make clear that his words of consolation toward bishops made earlier Sunday after he visited with five sexual assault victims not be taken out of context.

“I felt the need to express compassion because something really terrible happened,” Francis said of those earlier comments on child abuse, “and many of them (bishops) suffered who did not know of this.”

But those bishops who were aware and who did not report them will be held accountable, he said. “Those who have covered up these things are guilty,” the pope said, according to a Newsday report. “And some bishops covered this up, and it is a very ugly thing.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
NBC News

timeline grpahic

By Asher Klein, Jessica Glazer and Vince Lattanzio

Pope Francis made a surprise announcement on the last day of his U.S. visit, revealing that he’d met with people who have been sexually abused by clergymen. The move brought renewed focus on the issue, which has rocked the Roman Catholic church for more than a decade.

Francis isn’t the first pope to apologize to victims of abuse, nor is he the first to meet with them – that would be Benedict XVI, seven years ago.

What makes Francis’ remarks especially notable is where he made them – in Philadelphia, where the first U.S. clergyman was convicted for not acting to stop abuse in the city’s archdiocese. Click through the timeline to see more events from the 30 year history of public abuse.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
Fox News Latino

By Johnny Vega
Published September 28, 2015
Fox News Latino

When I heard that the pope was coming to the United States, and specifically, to the New York area, I felt anxious. I am a survivor of clergy abuse. A priest and deacon at our neighborhood church abused me and other youths when I was just 9 years old — until I was 16.

I felt confused about my mixed feelings about Pope Francis.

I liked his humble ways, I felt his sincerity toward those who were abused by clergy, but I still couldn’t trust completely. Is he true to his heart and words? Is he a man of God who really cares about children abused by priests, and does he really want to put a stop to it?

I think, I hope, yes.

I feel confident and trusting about Pope Francis because never once did he ignore this issue of sexual abuse by priests in parishes around the world.

Some of his statements, to be sure, fall a little short of the truth when he speaks of bishops having “courage” for confronting this issue and selling church property to settle lawsuits to bring closure to victims — that is so far from the truth.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

ROME
The Guardian

Stephanie Kirchgaessner in Rome
Monday 28 September 2015

Pope Francis has said he understands why some victims of clerical sex abuse and their families could not forgive the church for the suffering they faced, saying such abuse was “almost a sacrilege”.

In remarks during a 47-minute press conference on his flight back to Rome after a tour of the US, the pope also sought to clarify controversial remarks he made to American bishops, when he congratulated them on their “courageous” handling of the sex abuse crisis.

He said he wanted to “express my compassion to them because a terrible thing happened and many of them have suffered because they did not know and when it came out they suffered a great deal.

“It’s a terrible thing and the words of comfort were not to say: ‘Don’t worry that was nothing’ … no, no, no. But it was so bad that I imagine that you cried hard … that was the sense of what I meant,” he said, according to a transcript.

The pope also suggested a Kentucky clerk’s recent refusal on religious grounds to issue marriage licences to gay couples was a question of religious freedom, saying conscientious objection was a “human right”. Kim Davis’s act of defiance became national news, with some conservatives comparing her act to civil disobedience endorsed by Martin Luther King in the civil rights era.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
Washington Post

By Brian Murphy September 28

Pope Francis broadened his warnings over the church’s sex abuse scandals Monday, saying that clergy and others who helped cover up wrongdoing are also guilty in the eyes of the Vatican.

The pope also indirectly added his voice to U.S. religious showdowns — only hours after wrapping up his three-city visit — by expressing strong backing for those who take a stand for their spiritual views.

The pope made no specific references, but it is certain to be perceived as a reference to current battles over refusals to obey laws permitting same-sex marriage.

In wide-ranging comments by the pontiff during his flight back to Rome, Francis shifted from the serious to the sublime: shrugging off his celebrity, raising interest in a possible groundbreaking trip to China and reflecting on the huge outpouring during his first visit to the United States.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

VATICAN CITY
Headlines from the Catholic World

Vatican City, Sep 28, 2015 / 05:14 am (CNA/EWTN News).- In his wide-ranging press briefing en route from the United States to Rome, Pope Francis spoke on the difficult subject of forgiving priests who have molested minors, saying that the strength to forgive, and to be forgiven, can only come from God.

Francis also told journalists that while he is willing to forgive clergy who have abused children and young people, he understands why there are some who find this difficult.

“We must forgive, because we were all forgiven,” the Pope said. However, “it is another thing to receive that forgiveness.”

Pope Francis told journalists on board the papal plane he is not judgmental of victims or the families of molested children who struggle to forgive the abuser.

He illustrated this point by recalling a meeting he once had with a victim of molestation, who told him that her mother had “lost her faith and died an atheist” on account of the abuse.

“I understand that woman,” the Pope said, “and God who is even better than me understands her.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

VATICAN CITY
Vatican Information Service

Vatican City, 28 September 2015 (VIS) – Following Holy Mass at Benjamin Franklin Parkway, the Pope travelled by car to the airport in Philadelphia where he embarked on his return flight to Rome. He was welcomed at the airport by five hundred people, mostly members of the Organising Committee and volunteers and benefactors of the World Meeting of Families, as well as the vice president of the United States, Joe Biden. The Holy Father expressed his gratitude to them and to the families who had shared their witness during the Meeting.

“It is not so easy to speak openly of one’s life journey! But their honesty and humility before the Lord and each of us showed the beauty of family life in all its richness and diversity. I pray that our days of prayer and reflection on the importance of the family for a healthy society will inspire families to continue to strive for holiness and to see the Church as their constant companion, whatever the challenges they may face”.

The Pope thanked all those who had prepared for his stay in the archdioceses of Washington, New York and Philadelphia. “It was particularly moving for me to canonise St. Junipero Serra, who reminds us all of our call to be missionary disciples, and I was also very moved to stand with my brothers and sisters of other religions at Ground Zero, that place which speaks so powerfully of the mystery of evil. Yet we know with certainty that evil never has the last word, and that, in God’s merciful plan, love and peace triumph over all”.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

VATICAN CITY
Vatican Information Service

Vatican City, 28 September 2015 (VIS) – Hundreds of thousands of people attended the concluding Mass of the Eighth World Meeting of Families celebrated by Pope Francis in Philadelphia’s Benjamin Franklin Parkway yesterday at 4 p.m. local time (10 p.m. in Rome). During the event, Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, president of the Pontifical Council for the Family, announced that the next Meeting will be held in Dublin, Ireland in 2018.

In his homily, Pope Francis commented on the two readings of the day’s liturgy, which present the scandal of the people before the miracles and the unexpected prophecies. In the first reading, Joshua tells Moses that two members of the people are prophesying, speaking God’s word, without a mandate. In the Gospel, John tells Jesus that the disciples had stopped someone from casting out evil spirits in the name of Jesus. “Here is the surprise”, remarked the Pope. “Moses and Jesus both rebuke those closest to them for being so narrow! Would that all could be prophets of God’s word! Would that everyone could work miracles in the Lord’s name!”

Jesus encountered “hostility from people who did not accept what He said and did. For them, His openness to the honest and sincere faith of many men and women who were not part of God’s chosen people seemed intolerable. The disciples, for their part, acted in good faith. But the temptation to be scandalised by the freedom of God, Who sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous alike, bypassing bureaucracy, officialdom and inner circles, threatens the authenticity of faith. Hence it must be vigorously rejected. Once we realise this, we can understand why Jesus’ words about causing ‘scandal’ are so harsh. For Jesus, the truly ‘intolerable’ scandal consists in everything that breaks down and destroys our trust in the working of the Spirit”.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

VATICAN CITY
Vatican Information Service

Vatican City, 28 September 2015 (VIS) – Shortly after his meeting with a group of victims, the Holy Father returned to the issue of sexual abuse at the beginning of his address to the three hundred bishops attending the World Meeting of Families, held in the great Chapel of the St. Charles Borromeo Seminary.

“I am deeply pained by the stories, the sufferings and the pain of minors who were sexually abused by priests. I continue to be ashamed that persons charged with the tender care of those little ones abused them and caused them grave harm. I deeply regret this. God weeps. The crimes and sins of sexual abuse of minors may no longer be kept secret; I commit myself to ensuring that the Church makes every effort to protect minors and I promise that those responsible will be held to account. Survivors of abuse have become true heralds of hope and ministers of mercy; humbly we owe our gratitude to each of them and to their families for their great courage in shedding the light of Christ on the evil sexual abuse of minors. I say this because I have just met with a group of persons abused as children, who are helped and accompanied here in Philadelphia with particular care by Archbishop Chaput, and we felt that I should communicate this to you”.

Moving on to the issue of the family, he pronounced a discourse, at times improvised, in which he focused on the characteristics of families in today’s society and the mission of bishops, reiterating that as pastors they must not be afraid to stay in the midst of families, with all their problems and their capacities, as “ A Christianity which does little in practice, while incessantly explaining its teachings, is dangerously unbalanced”.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

VATICAN CITY
Vatican Information Service

Vatican City, 28 September 2015 (VIS) – The final day of the Pope’s apostolic trip began yesterday with his meeting at the St. Charles Borromeo Seminary with victims of sexual abuse perpetrated when they were minors by members of the clergy, or members of their families or teachers. The group was composed of five adults – 3 women and 2 men – accompanied by Cardinal Sean Patrick O’Malley, archbishop of Boston and president of the Commission for the Protection of Minors, instituted by the Pope, Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia, and Bishop Michael Joseph Fitzgerald, head of the diocesan office for the protection of minors in the same diocese.

During the meeting, which lasted half an hour, Francis listened to their accounts of their experiences, addressed them as a group and then greeted each one individually. He prayed with them and manifested his participation in their suffering, his pain and his shame for the harm caused by members of the clergy or ecclesiastical collaborators.

“Thank you for corning here today”, he said. “Words cannot fully express my sorrow for the abuse you suffered. You are precious children of God who should always expect our protection, our care and our love. I am profoundly sorry that your innocence was violated by those who you trusted. In some cases the trust was betrayed by members of your own family, in other cases by priests who carry a sacred responsibility for the care of soul. In all circumstances, the betrayal was a terrible violation of human dignity.

“For those who were abused by a member of the clergy, I am deeply sorry for the times when you or your family spoke out, to report the abuse, but you were not heard or believed. Please know that the Holy Father hears you and believes you. I deeply regret that some bishops failed in their responsibility to protect children. It is very disturbing to know that in some cases bishops even were abusers. I pledge to you that we will follow the path of truth wherever it may lead. Clergy and bishops will be held accountable when they abuse or fail to protect children.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

Crux

By John L. Allen Jr.
Associate editor September 28, 2015

ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE — Pope Francis started his final day in the United States on Sunday by meeting sexual abuse victims and ended it by acknowledging that the problem is not just that Catholic priests have committed abuse, but that bishops have covered it up.

“Also those who have covered up these things are guilty,” he said, referring to the sexual exploitation of children.

“Some bishops covered this up, which is a very ugly thing,” the pope said.

During a 45-minute session with the media aboard the American Airlines flight that carried Francis back to Rome after his nine-day visit to Cuba and the United States, the pontiff also indirectly lent his support to US Christians who are refusing to provide services to same-sex couples.

The most celebrated case is that of a Kentucky county clerk who spent five days in jail for refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay couples.

Conscientious objection, the pope said, is a “human right,” including for government officials.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
Canonical Consultation

09/27/2015

Jennifer Haselberger

As you have likely heard by now, this morning Pope Francis met with five survivors of sexual abuse. As the New York Times has reported, not all five were victims of sexual abuse by clergy, supposedly to demonstrate that the church is taking a broader view of the problem of sexual abuse.

The meeting, while not unexpected, will likely do little to calm those upset by Pope Francis’s praise for American bishops’ handling of the sexual abuse crisis, which he articulated at his prayer service with them in Washington DC. Ironically, our own Emeritus Archbishop, John Nienstedt, was present to hear the praise, but apparently not Pope Francis’s statement that he ‘deeply regret[s] that some bishops failed in their responsibility to protect children’.

You can find the full text of the Pope’s remarks to victims here.

While I feel a certain skepticism about the meeting, I wholeheartedly concur with the Holy Father’s final plea: ‘ I humbly beg you and all survivors of abuse to stay with us, to stay with the Church, and that together, as pilgrims on the journey of faith, we might find our way to the Father.’

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

AUSTRALIA
SBS

AAP

A key network for people brought up in orphanages and other institutions has called on Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to establish as a “matter of urgency” a national redress scheme for abuse survivors.

The new prime minister is a parliamentary patron of Care Leavers Australia Network (CLAN), which wants the federal government to back the $4.37 billion scheme recommended by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.

The recommendations were published on September 14.

CLAN executive officer Leonie Sheedy says Mr Turnbull now has the opportunity to deliver fair and equitable compensation for the many thousands of people who were abused in Australia’s orphanages, children’s homes, foster care and mental institutions.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

AUSTRALIA
Geelong Advertiser

NICOLE MILLS GEELONG ADVERTISER SEPTEMBER 28, 2015

A GEELONG woman leading the fight for compensation for those who were neglected and abused in orphanages, children’s homes, foster care and mental institutions has called on new Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to take action.

Leonie Sheedy, who heads the Care Leavers Australia Network, has called on Mr Turnbull to deliver a national compensation scheme for the many thousands of people who suffered all forms of abuse ­during their childhood in care.

She said Mr Turnbull, a parliamentary patron of CLAN, now had the opportunity to ­expand a recommendation from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse to provide compensation to victims of other types of abuse.

“The royal commission has recommended a national ­redress scheme for victims of child sexual abuse be established by the Federal Government and largely funded by the institutions in which the abuse occurred,” Ms Sheedy said.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

ROME
Chiesa

The last exchange of fire before the opening of the work. The uncertainty about the procedure. The appeals to the pope. Why in the end it will be he alone who will draw the conclusions

by Sandro Magister

ROME, September 28, 2015 – Back in Rome after his journey to Cuba and the United States, culminating with the world meeting of families in Philadelphia, Pope Francis is now facing the much more exacting challenge of the synod that will open on October 4, the Sunday of the liturgical year on which – as if by a jest of providence – Catholic churches all around the world will resound with these words of Jesus: “Therefore what God has joined together, no human being must separate.”

The synod will last for three weeks, and the procedures that will be adopted have not yet been made known, despite having a big influence on the outcome of the work.

What is certain is that there will not be a final message, no commission having been set up to write one.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Washington Blade

PHILADELPHIA — A Vatican spokesperson on Sunday declined to comment on the controversy surrounding the two Chilean cardinals who conspired to block a gay man’s nomination to a sex abuse commission that Pope Francis created.

“I have no intention to enter the discussion that has taken place in Chile,” Rev. Federico Lombardi told the Washington Blade during his daily press briefing at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia.

El Mostrador, a Chilean newspaper, on Sept. 9 published a series of private emails between Cardinal Ricardo Ezzati, the archbishop of Santiago, and his predecessor, Cardinal Francisco Javier Errázuriz, in which they discussed Juan Carlos Cruz’s nomination to the commission and their efforts to block it.

The emails indicate the cardinals, among other things, described Cruz as a “serpent.” Ezzati and Errázuriz, one of eight cardinals who advises Francis on reforming the Curia that oversees the church, also sought to prevent Cruz from speaking about sex abuse to a group of English-speaking bishops in Rome.

Cruz is among the hundreds of people who Rev. Fernando Karadima sexually abused in his parish in the Chilean capital over more than three decades.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

WASHINGTON (DC)
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Pope’s promise to “end secrecy” means prelates must act, group says
SNAP: Pontiff’s ‘accountability’ pledge means “enablers” must be punished
Self help organization wants two —three recent local abuse cases to be “re-examined”

What:
Holding signs and childhood photos, clergy sex abuse victims will urge all US Catholic bishops – including DC’s archbishop – to honor and act on the promises Pope Francis made yesterday. Specifically, the victims will urge America’s bishops and DC Archbishop Donald Wuerl to

— disclose names of church staff who CONCEALED child sex crimes,
— disclose (and post on church websites) names of clerics who COMMITTED child sex crimes, and
— publicly “defrock, demote or at least discipline” the “enablers.’

They will also prod Wuerl to disclose more about and “re-visit” three recent clergy sex abuse cases.

When:
Monday, Sept. 28 at 1:00 p.m.

Where:
Outside the US Conference of Catholic Bishops headquarters, 3211 4th Street NE, Washington DC

Who:
Three-four members of an international support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org)

Why:
On Sunday, Pope Francis made strong promises, including that “abuse cannot be kept secret any longer,” “all responsible will be held accountable,” and that church officials will provide “careful oversight to ensure that youth are protected.”

In light of these pledges and others, SNAP is challenging US and DC church officials and members to “take tangible steps” to act on these “noble sentiments”.

Regarding secrecy, the group wants All US bishops and DC Archbishop Donald Wuerl to “disclose the names of clerics who concealed – not just those who committed – clergy sex crimes.”

Regarding accountability, the group wants US bishops and Wuerl to “reveal and punish priests who protected accused predator priests, to deter such future wrongdoing.”

“With almost 6,500 child molesting clerics (and almost 30 publicly accused in the District), bishops (including Wuerl) know which church staff have hidden or ignored clergy sex crimes, but they won’t punish them,” said SNAP’s Becky Ianni of Burke VA. “He’s breaking the pope’s repeated accountability promises. So Wuerl should publicly demote at least one church staffer now.”

Francis said “never again” should clergy sex crimes happen. Toward this end, SNAP is urging all US bishops to post on church websites the names, photos, whereabouts and work histories of “proven, admitted and credibly accused predator priests in their dioceses.” Under pressure, about 15% of US bishops have done this. It’s “the absolute bare minimum” church officials can do “to protect the vulnerable and warn unsuspecting families about child molesters quietly living in their midst,” SNAP says.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

USA
kath.net

«Die Verbrechen, die Sünden des sexuellen Missbrauchs von Minderjährigen dürfen nicht länger geheimgehalten werden.» Er bleibe «überwältigt von Scham» über solche Fälle, sagte der Papst bei einem Treffen mit 300 Bischöfen. «Gott weint!»

Philadelphia/Vatikanstadt (kath.net/KNA) Papst Franziskus hat so deutlich wie nie zuvor öffentlich eingestanden, dass auch Bischöfe Minderjährige sexuell missbraucht oder derartige Fälle vertuscht haben. «Ich beklage zutiefst, dass einige Bischöfe nicht ihrer Verantwortung nachkamen, Minderjährige zu schützen», sagte er am Sonntag bei einem Treffen mit fünf Missbrauchsopfern in Philadelphia.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

USA
Frankfurter Allgemeine

Papst Franziskus hat so deutlich wie nie zuvor öffentlich eingestanden, dass auch Bischöfe Minderjährige sexuell missbraucht oder derartige Fälle vertuscht haben. „Ich beklage zutiefst, dass einige Bischöfe nicht ihrer Verantwortung nachkamen, Minderjährige zu schützen“, sagte er am Sonntag bei einem Treffen mit fünf Missbrauchsopfern in Philadelphia. Es sei „sehr beunruhigend zu wissen, dass in einigen Fällen auch Bischöfe selbst Missbrauchstäter“ gewesen seien, erklärte der Papst laut einer vom Vatikan veröffentlichten Mitteilung.

Zugleich versprach Franziskus, dass Priester und Bischöfe für diese Taten zur Rechenschaft gezogen würden. Bei einem Treffen mit 300 Bischöfen aus aller Welt sagte Franziskus anschließend: „Die Verbrechen, die Sünden des sexuellen Missbrauchs von Minderjährigen dürfen nicht länger geheim gehalten werden.“ Er bleibe „überwältigt von Scham“ über solche Fälle, so der Papst und erklärte: „Gott weint!“

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Radio Vaticana

[Father Lombardi: The church has at heart the protection of children in the world.]

La sollecitudine della Chiesa per tutti i bambini del mondo e per la loro protezione nell’incontro del Papa con le vittime di abusi non solo ad opera di membri della Chiesa, ma di famigliari e persone loro vicine. A sottolineare questo aspetto è il direttore della Sala Stampa vaticana padre Federico Lombardi commentando il fuori programma di ieri a Philadelphia. E poi l’attenzione dei detenuti e la centralità del tema della famiglia, lungo l’intero viaggio del Papa negli Stati Uniti. Ma sentiamo padre Lombardi al microfono di Massimiliano Menichetti:

R. – Quello che è stato caratteristico dell’incontro di questa mattina è che non è stato solo con vittime di violenze compiute dal clero o in istituzioni cattoliche, ma più ampiamente. Noi sappiamo che la massima parte degli abusi sessuali, o degli abusi nei confronti dei minori, non avviene da parte di preti né in istituzioni cattoliche, ma in altri luoghi. Allora, il Papa ha allargato la prospettiva: le persone che ha incontrato quest’oggi rappresentavano in qualche modo anche le altre situazioni.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

USA
Domradio

Am letzten Tag seiner USA-Reise ist Papst Franziskus mit Opfern sexuellen Missbrauchs zusammengetroffen. Zudem besuchte er ein Gefängnis und kritisierte den Strafvollzug. Den Abschluss der Reise bildet ein großer Familien-Gottesdienst.

Nach der Begegnung mit drei Männern und zwei Frauen, die als Minderjährige von katholischen Geistlichen missbraucht worden waren, zeigte sich das Kirchenoberhaupt betroffen. “Gott weint”, sagte Franziskus am Sonntag. Als Papst trage er Sorge, dass die Verantwortlichen zur Rechenschaft gezogen und junge Menschen künftig geschützt werden.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Crux

By John L. Allen Jr.
Associate editor September 27, 2015

PHILADELPHIA – Now that Pope Francis has confirmed that he met with victims of sexual abuse Sunday morning, the question will be asked: Do these sessions make a difference?

This is the seventh time a pope has met victims. Pope Benedict XVI held five such sessions, with the first coming during his own 2008 visit to the United States. Pope Francis held his first meeting with victims in July 2014 in Rome, and he has appointed two victims to his own Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors.

As a matter of practice, the Vatican does not release much information beyond confirming that the meeting happened. There’s no video or still photos, because organizers don’t want it to look like a publicity stunt. They insist that these are private, pastoral meetings, while leaving the victims free to make their own decisions about what they choose to reveal.

Each time these encounters happen, victims usually come away grateful that they’ve been heard. They often talk about how visibly moved the pope seemed as they told their stories, and they express hope that the Church will take their suffering to heart as it attempts to learn the lessons of the abuse scandals.

Over time, however, opinions about what these meetings accomplish often differ.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
Reuters

By Philip Pullella September 28, 2015

Pope Francis dove into some of the United States’ thorniest political debates during his historic visit by urging the world’s wealthiest nation to welcome immigrants, to end homelessness and do more to address climate change.

Sometimes his political messages were blunt, like when he pleaded before the U.S. Congress for Americans to end “hostility” toward immigrants. Other times, they were more subtle, like the climate-conscious pope’s decision to ride around in a tiny Fiat rather than a gas-guzzling SUV.

While Vatican officials said the pope was only re-stating Church social teachings and not making political statements in his first U.S. visit ever, many in the public and across the political landscape saw it differently.

Among them, 42-year-old Gabriela Muñoz of Brooklyn, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico, who said the pope’s comments on immigration had given her “a lot of hope and faith.

“Even if it’s a small thing, it has to have touched the heart of congressmen,” she said.

But in an acutely polarized Congress, it was unclear if lawmakers’ minds were changed by Francis’ words in Washington or at the United Nations, where he condemned the “boundless thirst” for wealth and power.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
News 12

PHILADELPHIA – While many appreciated the pope’s recognition of clergy abuse Sunday, victims say that the pontiff’s words were not enough.

Pope Francis met with clergy sex abuse victims in Philadelphia on Sunday, and promised to hold those responsible accountable.

Robert Hoatson, former priest with the Archdiocese of Newark who now counsels victims of abuse, says victims want the pope to hold bishops accountable for allowing priests who have abused to stay in ministry.

“Are you going to fire them because you haven’t fired anybody yet?” Hoatson said. “Are you going to tell the bishops to stop blocking legislation in the United States that will give victim survivors their day in court?”

In June, Pope Francis set up a tribunal to examine bishops of wrongdoing.

Hoatson’s group offered the names Archbishop John Meyers of Newark, former Cardinal Justin Rigali of Philadelphia, and Cardinal Raymond Burke.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
National Survivor Advocates Coalition

by Kristine Ward, September 28, 2015

So far, it is a thin tissue that Pope Francis and the Roman Catholic Church have handed to God as a comfort to weeping over the sexual abuse victims.

Pope Francis said on Sunday morning in his unscripted remarks to bishops and seminarians at the Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary in Philadelphia following his meeting with five victims of sexual abuse that “God weeps” because of the sexual abuse.

Even to get the tissue, the Church had to be driven to the store by massive media reporting, grand jury investigations by civil authorities and lawsuits brought by survivors.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
Portland Press Herald

BY MARC FISHER
THE WASHINGTON POST

With a generous spirit and palpable affection for American values, Pope Francis won the nation’s heart during his six-day visit that ended Sunday. With his commitment to unchanging church doctrine, he disappointed some who yearn for reform.

His message was pastoral, a series of dramatic reminders of man’s obligations toward the needy, the stranger, the other. His gestures were powerful – his tiny Fiat that knocked the papacy down to a human level, his loving embrace of a disabled child, his decision to dine with the homeless directly after addressing Congress.

But as he delivered moving messages of humanity, the Argentine prelate, making his first trip to the United States at age 78, avoided engaging in America’s polarizing culture wars.

The result for many Catholics, liberal and conservative, was a sense of possibility and renewal, tempered by questions about whether welcoming rhetoric is enough to bridge serious divisions as a traditional church struggles to find its place in a fast-paced, disillusioned society.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

By Peter Smith / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

PHILADELPHIA — Pope Francis pledged to sexual-abuse survivors Sunday that bishops who fail to protect children from abusive priests, and not just the abusers themselves, “will be held accountable.”

The pontiff did not say what that accountability would entail in his prepared remarks for the private, long-anticipated meeting with five survivors of sexual abuse by priests or family members. He listened to the victims’ stories, prayed with them and pledged “we will follow the path of truth wherever it may lead.”

His spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said those details are being worked out but noted that the pope did form a commission to address such cases.

The meeting took place with three women and two men Sunday morning at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, where grand jury reports in 2005 and 2011 contained explosive revelations of systematic cover-ups of abusive priests by past archbishops and their staffs. A former archdiocesan official is currently incarcerated for his role in the cover-up.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

AUSTRALIA
Herald Sun

SHANNON DEERY HERALD SUN SEPTEMBER 28, 2015

A FORMER priest accused of molesting a string of young children is facing fresh allegations after two new victims recently made complaints to police.

Robert Claffey is due to stand trial on 14 counts of indecent assault, one count of committing an indecent act on a child under the age of 16, and one count of buggery on a girl.

But the County Court heard today Mr Claffey would face more charges after two new victims had made statements to police.

He is accused of molesting children while stationed in parishes in the Ballarat Diocese in the 1980s.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

Time

Elizabeth Dias / Papal Plane @elizabethjdias

The Pontiff touched on sexual abuse, women priests and peace in Colombia

Pope Francis offered his first review of the U.S. at 39,000 feet late Sunday night. Less than an hour after departing Philadelphia, he concluded his nine-day trip to Cuba and the U.S. with a wide-ranging, in-flight press conference that touched on everything from religious liberty debates in the U.S. to the popularity of the American nuns to his own increasing stardom. He addressed journalists for nearly 60 minutes in Italian and Spanish.

Each U.S. city was different, the pontiff said, but the warmth of the country made an impression during his first-ever visit. Washington was very welcoming, but “more formal.” New York, was “stralimitate,” an Italian-Spanish mash-up that evokes overwhelming, exuberant, beyond the limits. Philadelphia was “very demonstrative.” Overall, Pope Francis said he was struck by the piety of the American people. “The church’s challenge is staying close to the people … not being a detached church,” he said. “This is something that the church in America has understood and understood well.”

Pope Francis also underscored that conscientious objection is a human right. He was asked if he supported individuals — including government officials — who say they cannot in good conscience abide by some laws or discharge their duties, for example when issuing marriage licenses to same sex couples. “I can’t have in mind all cases that can exist about conscience objection but yes, I can say [that] conscientious objection is a right that is a part of every human right,” he said. “If a person does not allow others to be a conscientious objector, he denies a right. … Conscientious objection must enter into every judicial structure … Otherwise we would end up in a situation where we select what is a right, saying ‘this right that has merit, this one does not.’”

One of the most poignant moments came when Pope Francis spoke about a mother who cannot forgive her daughter’s sexual abuser. The Lord still welcomes her, Francis said, even if she cannot forgive. “I understand that woman,” he said. “And God who is even better than me understands her. And I’m sure that that woman has been received by God. … I don’t judge someone who can’t forgive.”

He also directly acknowledged that the ugliness of the priestly cover-up of sexual abuse, in addition to the ugliness of the abuse itself. “Those who covered this up are guilty. Even some bishops who covered this up,” he said. “It is a terrible thing.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

Huffington Post

ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE, Sept 28 (Reuters) – Pope Francis said on Monday government officials have a “human right” to refuse to discharge a duty, such as issuing marriage licenses to homosexuals, if they feel it violates their conscience.

Speaking to reporters as he returned home from a 10-day trip to the United States and Cuba, Francis also repeated his condemnation of priests who had sexually abused children, saying the victims had been “crushed by evil.”

Although the Argentine-born pontiff delved into some of the United States’ thorniest political debates during his visit, he never specifically referred to a controversy over same-sex marriages, which the Church firmly opposes.

On the flight back to Rome, he was asked if he supported individuals, including government officials, who refuse to abide by some laws, such as issuing marriage licenses to gays.

“Conscientious objection must enter into every juridical structure because it is a right,” Francis said.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
GlobalPost

By Scott Malone and Philip Pullella

PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) – Pope Francis confronted the sexual abuse of children by Roman Catholic clergy on the final day of his first U.S. visit on Sunday, meeting with five adults abused as children and vowing to hold accountable those involved in the crimes and cover-ups.

The pope left the United States on Sunday night, departing from Philadelphia International Airport on an American Airlines flight to Rome. He was seen off by a number of dignitaries, including Vice President Joe Biden.

Wrapping up the six-day U.S. trip, the 78-year-old Argentine pope celebrated Mass outside the Philadelphia Museum of Art, a neoclassical edifice astride a rocky hill overlooking the Schuylkill River, before the largest crowd of his visit. Philadelphia Archbishop Charles Chaput said the crowd numbered more than a million.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

The New York Times

By JIM YARDLEY
SEPT. 28, 2015

ABOARD THE PAPAL AIRPLANE — Hours after meeting with sexual abuse victims in Philadelphia, Pope Francis on Sunday night again strongly condemned priests who molested children as “sacrilegious” and publicly acknowledged that bishops had covered up abuse cases.

“When a priest abuses, it is very grave because the vocation of the priest is to make that boy, that girl grow toward the love of God,” Francis said. “For this reason, the church is strong on this and one must not cover these things up. Those who covered this up are guilty. Even some bishops who covered this up.”

Francis spoke during a wide-ranging news conference aboard the papal airliner after his trip to Cuba and the United States. He remarked on a variety of topics, including the issue of conscientious objection, the peace talks in Colombia, the so-called Roman Catholic divorce, the construction of border walls to block migrants in Europe — and he also tossed in a grinning endorsement of New York.

After a trip in which huge crowds turned out to see him, Francis on Sunday tried to salve the one major contentious point that erupted during his time in the United States: his comments on sexual abuse. Many victims were infuriated after Francis praised and comforted American bishops in Washington for their handling of the crisis before he met with any victims.

The controversy stewed until Sunday morning in Philadelphia, when Francis met with a group of abuse victims and their family members. Later that morning, Francis condemned the sexual abuse crisis during a meeting with global bishops. On the plane, Francis was asked why he had felt the need to offer bishops comfort and consolation even as feelings about the crisis remained raw in cities like Philadelphia.

“I felt the need to express compassion because something really terrible happened,” the pope replied. “And many of them suffered who did not know of this.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

National Catholic Reporter

Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service | Sep. 28, 2015

ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT FROM PHILADELPHIA
As the American Airlines plane taking him to Rome from Philadelphia took off, Pope Francis said he pictured the faces of all the people he met, and he prayed for them.

At the end of his first-ever visit to the United States, the pope told reporters he “was surprised by the warmth of the people” and how they were “so loving. It was beautiful.”

Spending close to 50 minutes with members of the media flying back to Rome with him Sept. 27, the pope said he also was struck by the sincere piety of people at his Masses and prayer services.

Shortly after takeoff, Pope Francis responded to a dozen questions, including why he spoke with such compassion to U.S. bishops in Washington about what they went through in the aftermath of the clerical sex abuse crisis.

“I felt a need to express compassion because what happened was horrible, and many of them suffered a lot,” the pope said. For “men of prayer, good pastors” the crisis was truly a “tribulation.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

Athen Banner-Herald

By NICOLE WINFIELD
ASSOCIATED PRESS – published Monday, September 28, 20150

ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE | Pope Francis has defended his words of consolation to U.S. bishops over the priest sex abuse scandal but says — for the first time — that those who covered up for abusers are guilty of wrongdoing.

In a wide-ranging press conference en route to Rome from his first-ever visit to the United States, Francis also declared conscience objection a “human right,” explained his love affair with American nuns and discussed his own star-power, which was fully on display during his six-day, three-city tour.

He also invented a new Italian word to describe the exuberant reception he received in New York City: “stralimitata” — roughly, “beyond all limits.”

On his last day in the U.S., Francis on Sunday met with five survivors of sexual abuse and issued a warning to bishops that they would be held accountable if they failed to protect their flocks.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

AUSTRALIA
MuMBRELLA

An editorial published in the Hamilton Spectator suggesting the sentencing of an octogenarian paedophile priest “seemed pointless” has been ruled by the Australian Press Council to be offensive.

The editorial fin the weekly ‘The Spec ‘Blog’ section commented on the case of a former priest who had lost an appeal against a prison sentence for the indecent assault of a nine year old girl and case involving a former Hamilton teacher who was sentenced to imprisonment for 18 months.

The piece, which was published on April 25, opined that the suspended sentence for an 83 year old infirm priest living in a nursing home “seemed pointless” and that he was “obviously not going to re-offend”. The former teacher was said to have “got 18 months gaol for merely touching an U16 girl’s breast and genitals”.

At the time the editorial attracted national criticism, with ABC Media Watch questioning the views expressed by the newspaper’s owner Richard Beks.

In its defence after a complaint to the press council the local South West Victoria paper argued the editorial’s intention was to consider the wide range of impacts that such abuse can have, adding the editorial repeated what a judge had said and it had done all it could to rectify any misunderstandings.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
Rome Reports

READ FULL SPEECH:

Mr. Vice-President,
Distinguished Authorities,
My Brother Bishops,
Dear Friends,

My days with you have been brief. But they have been days of great grace for me and, I pray, for you too. Please know that as I prepare to leave, I do so with a heart full of gratitude and hope.

I am grateful to all of you and to the many others who worked so hard to make my visit possible and to prepare for the World Meeting of Families. In a particular way I thank Archbishop Chaput and the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, the civil authorities, the organizers, and all the many volunteers and benefactors who assisted in ways large and small.

I also thank the families who shared their witness during the Meeting. It is not so easy to speak openly of one’s life journey! But their honesty and humility before the Lord and each of us showed the beauty of family life in all its richness and diversity. I pray that our days of prayer and reflection on the importance of the family for a healthy society will inspire families to continue to strive for holiness and to see the Church as their constant companion, whatever the challenges they may face.

At the end of my visit, I would also like to thank all those who prepared for my stay in the Archdioceses of Washington and New York. It was particularly moving for me to canonize Saint Junípero Serra, who reminds us all of our call to be missionary disciples, and I was also very moved to stand with my brothers and sisters of other religions at Ground Zero, that place which speaks so powerfully of the mystery of evil. Yet we know with certainty that evil never has the last word, and that, in God’s merciful plan, love and peace triumph over all.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
The Dallas Morning News

PHILADELPHIA — At the start of an otherwise joyous and well-received trip to the United States, Pope Francis hit one seriously sour note: He praised U.S. bishops for their handling of the sexual abuse scandal and told priests he felt their pain — leaving abuse victims stunned and infuriated, asking why he neglected to even acknowledge their anguish.

On the last day of his journey, Francis stepped to a lectern here before hundreds of seminarians and bishops from around the world and tried to salve the open wound. He said that he had met in private with a group of victims and pledged that “all responsible will be held accountable.”

“God weeps” at the sexual abuse of children, he said in an early translation from Spanish of his remarks added to the start of a scripted address in the chapel at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary here on Sunday. “I commit to the careful oversight to ensure that youth are protected.”

His remarks and the meeting, anticipated for weeks and carefully choreographed, were greeted with varying degrees of skepticism by abuse victims who have now seen two popes on U.S. trips meet with victims and make sweeping promises to protect children. They would like to believe that Francis’ words are sincere and pledges are real, but they continue to have serious doubts, in part because of his comments earlier this week, and because of how Sunday’s gathering came together.

Some of the victims who met with the pope had been abused by relatives or educators — not all by Catholic clergy.

The Rev. Federico Lombardi, a Vatican spokesman, said this was done intentionally to show that the church is taking a “larger perspective” on the problem of sexual abuse. He added that the pope waited to make these remarks until Sunday, when he was scheduled to address an international group of bishops because, “we know the problem is a universal problem, in the universal church, and also in society.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

CHICAGO (IL)
CBS Chicago

Nancy Harty

(CBS) — Pope Francis’ pledge to protect children from sexual abuse by priests and to hold accountable those responsible did not win over the head of a local survivors group.

The pope talking with sex abuse victims is nothing new, Barbara Blaine says.

The president of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests says the pontiff has held such meetings seven or eight times before and other than providing comfort to those in attendance, it doesn’t do much.

Blaine called the meeting a “photo op” and referred to his comments to U.S. bishops as “timid.”
The pontiff said he commits to careful oversight to ensure that youth are protected and all those responsible will be held accountable.

Blaine says “lofty words” from Pope Francis won’t protect children and he should stop acting like the abuse is over and take steps to prevent it.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

NEW YORK
Road to Recovery

Neal E. Gumpel is a clergy sexual abuse victim of Fr. Roy Alan Drake, SJ, a deceased former professor at Fordham University, Bronx, NY, and Maine Maritime Academy in Castine, Maine, where Fr. Roy Alan Drake, SJ, sexually abused Neal Gumpel when he was a minor child

Fordham University and the Northeast Province of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), who staff Fordham University and were responsible for Fr. Roy Alan Drake, SJ, for decades until his death, refuse to acknowledge and bear responsibility for the allegations of sexual abuse against Fr. Roy Alan Drake, SJ, in Maine and give any assistance to Neal E. Gumpel, settle and validate his claim, and help him heal

What
A press conference and leafleting alerting the media, Fordham University students and community, and the general public that the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and Fordham University refuse to assist a clergy sexual abuse victim of one of its priests, Fr. Roy Alan Drake, SJ

When
Monday, September 28, 2015 from 11:00 am until 1:00 pm

Where
Outside the gates of Fordham University on Southern Boulevard near the Bronx Botanical Gardens, Bronx, NY

Who

Neal E. Gumpel; his wife, Helen; survivor and advocate Kevin Waldrip; and Robert M. Hoatson, Ph.D., co-founder and President of Road to Recovery, Inc., a non-profit charity based in New Jersey; other supporters

Why
Neal E. Gumpel is a sexual abuse survivor of Jesuit priest Rev. Roy Alan Drake, SJ when he was a teenager. The sexual abuse occurred at Maine Maritime Academy, in Castine, Maine, where Fr. Roy Alan Drake, SJ was teaching and acting as a priest at all times. Fordham University and the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) have refused to validate Neal E. Gumpel’s allegation, despite the fact that other allegations against Fr. Roy Alan Drake, SJ have been found credible and settled. Demonstrators will call on Fordham University and the Society of Jesus to do the right thing, validate and settle the claim of Neal E. Gumpel, and help him heal.

Contacts
Robert M. Hoatson, Ph.D., Road to Recovery, Inc. – 862-368-2800

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Pope’s promise to “end secrecy” means Chaput must act, group says
SNAP: Pontiff’s ‘accountability’ pledge means “enablers” must be punished
Self-help organization wants three recent local abuse cases to be “re-examined”

What:
Holding signs and childhood photos, after Pope Francis has ended his historic US visit, clergy sex abuse victims will urge Philly area Catholics and their church officials to honor and act on the promises he made. Specifically, the victims will urge Archbishop Charles Chaput to
— discipline even a few priests who hid or ignored child sex crimes, and
— disclose more about and “re-visit” three recent clergy sex abuse cases.

When:
Monday, Sept. 28 at 1:30 p.m.

Where:
Outside the Philadelphia Catholic archdiocesan headquarters, 222 North 17th Street (corner of Race) in Philadelphia, PA

Who:
Three-four members of an international support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org), including a Missouri woman who is the organization’s long time outreach director

Why:
On Sunday, Pope Francis made strong promises, including that “abuse cannot be kept secret any longer,” “all responsible will be held accountable,” and that church officials will provide “careful oversight to ensure that youth are protected.”

In light of these pledges and others, SNAP is challenging Philly church officials and members to “take tangible steps” to act on these “noble sentiments”.

Regarding secrecy, the group wants Archbishop Charles Chaput to “disclose more about those who concealed – not just those who committed – clergy sex crimes.”

Regarding accountability, the group wants Chaput to “punish priests who protected Philly’s 136 publicly accused predator priests.”

“With almost 140 child molesting clerics, and three detailed grand jury reports, Chaput knows which church staff have hidden or ignored clergy sex crimes, but he won’t punish them,” said SNAP’s Karen Polesir of Ambler.

“He’s breaking the pope’s repeated accountability promises. So Chaput should publicly demote at least one church staffer now.”

SNAP also wants Chaput to revisit and reveal more about three recent “troubling” local abuse cases.

–A year ago, with little explanation, Chaput put Msgr. Joseph Logrip back on the job in a parish. Catholic officials admit he faced allegations of sexually violating “minors.” (Notice the plural.) He is also accused, according to the Philly Inquirer, of knowing of an “attack” on a child by a priest but doing “nothing.”

[BishopAccountability.org]

(Regarding the abuse charges, Chaput only says they are “unsubstantiated.”)

–Last year, Chaput also kept secret for months about child sex abuse reports involving Fr. John P. Paul. Fr. Paul resigned claiming he was “considering a serious road trip for ‘renewal’ purposes.” Chaput let this lie go unchallenged. When Chaput finally did announce that abuse complaints led to Fr. Paul’s suspension, he notified only one parish. (Eventually, Philly church officials told the public and the rest of their flock.)

–In 2012, Chaput “recklessly” put Fr. Joseph DiGregorio back on the job even though the priest “violated behavioral standards.” Chaput justified his decision by claiming that a “clinical evaluation” supposedly says the priest is no threat to children and because “no other complaints were reported.” The church’s 2002 national abuse policy, however, says nothing about a priest being kept in a parish if a therapist says he’s no threat. (Before 2002, dozens of bishops used this same rationale when, with disastrous results, they put hundreds of accused predators back around kids.)

Given Francis’ professed commitment to end secrecy and “always be vigilant to protect children,” SNAP wants Chaput and his abuse review board to “look again at these cases, be more forthcoming and err on the side of caution.

“At best, Chaput does the absolute bare minimum required of him under the church’s vague, weak, decade-old abuse policy. Surely, he’ll do more in light of Francis’ latest promises,” said David Clohessy, director of SNAP. “At worst, Chaput violates that policy by putting accused predators back on the job, by letting suspended predators live unsupervised, and by being secretive in ways that continue to put kids at risk. That too, we’d expect to change, given the pontiff’s clear pledges.”

Contact:
Barbara Dorris (314 503 0003, bdorris@SNAPnetwork.org), David Clohessy (314 566 9790, davidgclohessy@gmail.com), Becky Ianni (703 801 6044,SNAPvirginia@cox.net

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
BishopAccountability.org

By Terence McKiernan
President
BishopAccountability.org
September 27, 2015

After the Pope’s remarks regarding bishops and priests, and his meeting with clergy abuse survivors and other abuse survivors together, it’s sadly no surprise that Pope Francis somehow preached on the Gospel passage most relevant to clergy abuse without confronting that issue.

“Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.”

The Gospel reading on the millstone has been embraced by survivors of clergy abuse. Pope Francis could have acknowledged those survivors by preaching at the closing of the World Meeting of Families on that crucial aspect of today’s Gospel, and by confronting the issue of clergy abuse squarely in his homily. This would have salvaged a visit otherwise tone-deaf on this terrible problem, and would also have corrected the failure of the World Meeting of Families to include clergy abuse on its agenda.

How the Pope might have addressed this difficult Gospel today may be seen in the “shadow homily” that I posted a week ago.

Pope Francis also referred several times in his homily to scandal, a concept with an egregious history in clergy abuse and its discourse. He used the word because in the Gospel passage, the English “causes … to sin” renders the Greek verb skandalizein, which literally means “to cause to trip or err.” Again, Pope Francis failed to confront a crucial aspect of the Gospel reading.

The Pope missed an important opportunity to address clergy abuse at the closing of the World Meeting of Families, and failed to acknowledge obvious links between today’s Gospel and the plight of clergy abuse survivors in the United States and around the world.

Terence McKiernan
President
BishopAccountability.org
508-479-9304 :: cell
@TerryMcKiernan1 :: twitter
Introduction to the Archives

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MASSACHUSETTS
WCVB

BOSTON —Some victims of clergy sex abuse feel the Pope’s word fell short.

Pope Francis met with survivors and members related to survivors of clerical sex abuse and has promised to hold accountable those responsible.

The Rev. Federico Lombardi says the three women and two men met with the pope for a half hour at the St. Charles Borromeo seminary Sunday. Cardinal Sean O’Malley, Archbishop of Boston, accompanied the group.

Lombardi says the pope prayed with the survivors, listened to their stories and expressed his closeness in their suffering and his “pain and shame” in the case of those abused by priests.

But some survivors believe the Pope is not fully addressing the issue.

“When a child is abused by a priest, it ruins their spirituality,” said Phil Saviano, a victim’s advocate of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests (SNAP). Saviano was abused by a priest when he was 12 years old.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
New York Times

Alan Rappeport

Pope Francis met in private on Sunday morning with a group of victims of the sexual abuse scandal that rocked the Roman Catholic Church.

But while he expressed sorrow for the incidents and promised more oversight, for some it was not enough.

“I truly hope that those victims find healing from meeting with him, but what about the rest of the victims?” said Becky Ianni, an abuse victim and spokeswoman for Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests.

Speaking to CNN, Ms. Ianni said that the pope’s remarks were expected, but that he has the power to take additional steps to hold bishops accountable for their actions and to create transparency within the church.

“What we really need is for him to do something to protect children,” she said after Francis’ remarks.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
New York Times

Vivian Yee

The five victims of child sexual abuse who met with Pope Francis on Sunday morning included some who had been abused by relatives or educators, not Roman Catholic clergy — a deliberate decision made to show that the church is taking a “larger perspective” on the problem of sexual abuse, said the Rev. Federico Lombardi, a Vatican spokesman.

Victims of clergy sex abuse and their advocates saw something less benign at work: a subtle but unmistakable effort by the Vatican to shift the terms of the debate, to show “that it’s not always the church’s fault,” as Marci A. Hamilton, a law professor at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University who has represented hundreds of victims of clerical sexual abuse, put it.

Church officials have argued that sexual abuse of children is not confined to the Catholic Church, pointing out that it infects other institutions and other religions as well. The pope may not have explicitly said the same, the advocates said, but the meeting’s inclusion of people abused by teachers and relatives as well as priests spoke volumes.

“He almost seems to be trying to deflect attention somewhere else,” said Barbara Blaine, the president of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, the country’s most prominent support and advocacy group for victims of clergy sexual abuse. “Of course those who are sexually violated suffer horribly, regardless of who the perpetrator is. But the problem that we see is that we think Pope Francis has both the authority and the responsibility to stop the sexual violence in the church, and he’s failing to do that.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
Questions from a Ewe

My last night in China, I stayed up well past bedtime to watch Pope Francis address the U.S. Congress. I noted both what he said and what he didn’t say. He explicitly called for a global end to the death penalty and arms sales. He explicitly called for welcoming immigrants, tending the environment and caring for the poor. He explicitly spoke of the perils of child abuse. He never uttered the words, “abortion,” “birth control,” “Obamacare,” “Planned Parenthood,” or “gay marriage.”

I had to settle for reading the transcript of his homily to U.S. bishops in D.C. in which he congratulated and thanked the bishops for their actions around the clergy sex abuse scandals without offering any encouragement to abuse survivors. Yet, most abuse survivors and many lay people find the bishops’ individual and collective actions on this topic to span between cowardly and dastardly…not even close to the “courageous” description ascribed by Francis.

It seemed the connection between Francis’ child abuse comments to Congress and the lifelong wounds arising from clergy-inflicted child sexual abuse eluded Francis. In declaring the bishops’ response “courageous” and speaking of the issue as though concluded while so many abuse survivors still constantly battle abuse ramifications, Francis displayed appalling insensitivity. He evaded institutional responsibility to walk in healing restitution with survivors every day, every step of their lives.

While reading that homily I was also struck by Francis’ seeming assumption that the bishops and clergy are penultimate experts on and purveyors of gospel messages – and that they just tirelessly need to be gentle until the (clueless, sad, miserable) sheep finally catch on to their wonderful messages. This, would bring about healing in the church, he seemed to say. That and the clergy abuse comments made me wonder about Francis’ institutional self-awareness.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
ABC 27

The following transcript is from Pope Francis’s meeting with sex abuse victims at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Philadelphia, as provided by the Vatican:

My dearest brothers and sisters in Christ, I am grateful for this opportunity to meet you, I am blessed by your presence. Thank you for coming here today.

Words cannot fully express my sorrow for the abuse you suffered. You are precious children of God who should always expect our protection, our care and our love. I am profoundly sorry that your innocence was violated by those who you trusted. In some cases the trust was betrayed by members of your own family, in other cases by priests who carry a sacred responsibility for the care of soul. In all circumstances, the betrayal was a terrible violation of human dignity.

For those who were abused by a member of the clergy, I am deeply sorry for the times when you or your family spoke out, to report the abuse, but you were not heard or believed. Please know that the Holy Father hears you and believes you. I deeply regret that some bishops failed in their responsibility to protect children. It is very disturbing to know that in some cases bishops even were abusers. I pledge to you that we will follow the path of truth wherever it may lead. Clergy and bishops will be held accountable when they abuse or fail to protect children.

We are gathered here in Philadelphia to celebrate God’s gift of family life. Within our family of faith and our human families, the sins and crimes of sexual abuse of children must no longer be held in secret and in shame. As we anticipate the Jubilee Year of Mercy, your presence, so generously given despite the anger and pain you have experienced, reveals the merciful heart of Christ. Your stories of survival, each unique and compelling, are powerful signs of the hope that comes from the Lord’s promise to be with us always.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
USA Today

[with video]

John Bacon and Aamer Madhani September 27, 2015

PHILADELPHIA — A much-anticipated pronouncement from Pope Francis on Sunday that clergy responsible for sex abuse will be “held accountable” drew disdain from victims advocacy groups but positive reviews from Vatican experts.

At a meeting with about 300 international bishops, Francis said he met privately Sunday with five adults who experienced sexual abuse by clergy, family members or teachers when they were minors. The pontiff promised “zealous vigilance” in protecting young people in the future.

“I remain overwhelmed with shame that men entrusted with the tender care of children violated these little ones and caused grievous harm,” he added. “I am profoundly sorry. God weeps.”

David Clohessy, director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, said that years ago the church pretended that abuse and coverups were not happening. The church narrative now, he said, is to express regret for past behavior and pretend abuse is not still happening.

“Is a child anywhere on Earth safer now that a pope, for maybe the seventh or eighth time or ninth time, has briefly chatted with abuse victims? No,” Clohessy said after Francis remarks Sunday. “A smart public relations move. That’s what this meeting is. Nothing more.” …

John Thavis, a former Catholic News Service reporter and author of The Vatican Diaries, also said he was encouraged by the pope’s statement.

“The pope promises accountability, which has been the missing element in the Vatican’s approach to sexual abuse,” Thavis said. “He is delivering on this issue, too, having announced the establishment of a tribunal at the Vatican that will judge bishops who have failed to protect children.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

AUSTRALIA
The Australian

KATHERINE TOWERS
THE AUSTRALIAN
SEPTEMBER 28, 2015

Members of the ultra-orthodox Adass Israel School board face a possible criminal investigation for helping secrete former headmistress and serial sex offender Malka Leifer out of Australia to avoid detection, after a major backflip by Victoria Police.

The Australian revealed last week that board members had potentially breached Victoria’s Crimes Act by arranging for Leifer to flee Australia in the dead of the night in 2008 when they were aware she was facing allegations of sexually abusing more than eight girls.

Despite last Thursday emphatically ruling out a criminal investigation into the actions of individual board members, Victoria Police yesterday changed their stand and revealed it was now under consideration.

“Police will be looking at this as a broader part of the investi­gation to determine whether an offence has been committed,’’ a police spokeswoman said.

Leifer is under house arrest in Israel facing extradition to Australia on dozens of child abuse charges relating to her time at the strictly devout Adass Israel School.

In awarding a former student and abuse victim of Leifer more than $1.2 million compensation earlier this month, Supreme Court judge Jack Rush was scathing of the behaviour of board members in helping the mother of eight flee Australia’s criminal jurisdiction by arranging for her to fly out after she had been sacked.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Sojourners

By David Gibson, Religion News Service 09-27-2015

Pope Francis began the final day of his U.S. visit by meeting privately with five adults abused as children by clergy, teachers, or family members, telling them they should expect the church to look after them and vowing “the zealous vigilance of the church to protect children and the promise of accountability for all,” including bishops.

“For those who were abused by a member of the clergy, I am deeply sorry for the times when you or your family spoke out, to report the abuse, but you were not heard or believed. Please know that the Holy Father hears and believes you,” he told the three women and two men — who he called “survivors” — at the private meeting at a seminary here on Sept. 27.

A leading victims’ advocacy group in the U.S. quickly dismissed the meeting as another “feel good, do nothing” papal meeting with survivors. This is the second time Francis has met with victims; the first was in the Vatican in July last year.

According to the Vatican’s account of the meeting, Francis expressed “deep regret” that some bishops shielded abusive priests, and added: “I pledge to you that we will follow the path of truth wherever it may lead. Clergy and bishops will be held accountable when they abuse or fail to protect children.”

The pope praised the witness of the victims, who were not identified, and said their presence was “so generously given despite the anger and pain you have experienced.”

In later remarks to a group of bishops, he called the victims “heralds of hope and ministers of mercy” — mercy being a key theme of Francis’ efforts to make the church more open and inclusive. …

David Clohessy, director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, had been critical of the proposed meeting and what he heard of Sunday morning’s encounter did not change his mind.

“Is a child anywhere on earth safer now that a pope, for maybe the seventh or eighth time or ninth time, has briefly chatted with abuse victims? No,” Clohessy said in a statement.

“A smart public relations move. That’s what this meeting is. Nothing more.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
The Record

BY MARINA VILLENEUVE
STAFF WRITER | THE RECORD

Minutes after apologizing to survivors of priest sexual abuse survivors on Sunday morning, Pope Francis veered off script and promised a crowd of Catholic bishops and seminarians that he would hold accountable clergy members who sexually abuse children.

“I hold the stories and the suffering and the sorrow of children who were sexually abused by priests deep in my heart,” the pontiff said in Spanish to an audience of bishops, seminarians and seminary staff in St. Martin’s Chapel at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary outside Philadelphia.

“The crimes and sins of the sexual abuse of children must no longer be held in secret,” the pope said. “I pledge the zealous vigilance of the church to protect children and the promise of accountability for all.”

The pope’s words about the sex-abuse scandal that continues to haunt the Church on the last day of his first visit to the United States, where he has spoken about global inequality, immigration and the importance of family to Congress, the United Nations and hundreds of thousands of people at masses and gatherings in New York, Washington D.C. and Philadelphia. After his remarks at the seminary, he was headed for Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility to meet with inmates, their families and staff and later the capstone of his visit, an outdoor mass on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.

Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi SJ said that for an hour Sunday morning, Pope Francis met with five adults — three women, two men — who were sexually abused as children by members of clergy, family members or teachers.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
New York Times

Vivian Yee

Before Pope Francis touched down in the United States, Kenneth M. O’Renick, 72, who was six when he was abused by a priest at his parish school in Kansas City, was brimming with optimism about the pope. Then he heard what Francis had said to American bishops in Washington about their courage and generosity in the face of the sexual abuse crisis.

“It just turned us off,” he said on Sunday, after the pope announced that he had met with a group of abuse victims in Philadelphia. “As much good as this pope has done, what he said, we were very disappointed, very disappointed in that. That was a big step back. That was something that hit us right between the eyes.”

His praise for the bishops, Mr. O’Renick said, made his promises to protect youth and hold abusers accountable on Sunday “ring hollow, very hollow, to me.”

Before Francis’ arrival, Mr. O’Renick took the removal of Bishop Robert W. Finn as head of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph as proof that Francis was taking decisive steps toward accountability. By Sunday, he had lost his certainty: “He has not even come close to what needs to be done, in my opinion,” he said. “I hope that it gets better, but I’m certainly not as hopeful as I was in anticipation of him coming.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Washington Post

By Sarah Pulliam Bailey, Abby Ohlheiser and Terrence McCoy

PHILADELPHIA – Pope Francis told U.S. bishops and seminarians on Sunday that he had met with sex abuse survivors. “God weeps,” he said in remarks ahead of a prepared speech on the family.

Five adults who were abused as minors – three women and two men – were at the meeting along with their families, according to the Vatican’s press office. The survivors were abused by clergy, family members, or their teachers. …

“As with all things related to the Catholic Church, you have to listen to the words and then you have to watch what they do,” said John Salveson, a clergy sex abuse survivor, prominent activist and president of The Foundation to Abolish Child Sex Abuse.

Salveson said the Vatican has been aware of possible solutions “for years, if not decades.” They include releasing the identity of priests who have been defrocked for abusing children; involving civil authorities when there is abuse, particularly in other countries, and extending the statute of limitations on clergy sex abuse, he said.

“The reason this all continued is that these priests don’t get prosecuted and the bishops who hide them don’t get prosecuted because they are protected by the statute of limitations,” he said.

The pope’s outreach is useful to the extent it eases victims’ suffering, said Marie Collins, a member of an advisory commission the pope set up to help him improve the church’s response to abuse.

“If it’s going to help their healing, then it’s a positive experience for them. It’s a very positive experience for them,” said Collins, a clergy abuse survivor from Ireland. But, Collins added, the meeting “really is not connected [to the] work for the future of child protection.”

Instead, she said, the pope’s decision to set up a papal commission advising him on how to handle the issue going forward was “the most positive change to happen” so far.

Robert Hoatson, who held signs in support of victims of abuse in front of Philadelphia’s basilica over the weekend, said on Sunday that he felt the pope’s comments brushed too quickly over the serious issue. “This is getting more bizarre,” said Hoatson, who works with victims. ” It’s going to cause more distress, more traumatization, re-abuse,” he said, “because it seemed like a side note.”

“It was as if he added this to his talk without telling the bishops what he is going to do, including removing some of [the bishops],” Hoatson said.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Katholisch

Papst Franziskus ist in den USA mit Missbrauchsopfern zusammengetroffen. Das teilte er bei einer Begegnung mit rund 300 Bischöfen in Philadelphia am Sonntag mit.

Dabei kündigte er auch an, dafür zu sorgen, dass “alle Verantwortlichen zur Rechenschaft gezogen werden”. Im Juni hatte Franziskus ein eigenes vatikanisches Gericht für Bischöfe eingerichtet, die sexuellen Missbrauch von Mitarbeitern vertuschen.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Die Presse

Papst Franziskus hat während seiner USA-Reise in Philadelphia Missbrauchsopfer getroffen und eine harte Strafe für die Schuldigen angekündigt. “Ich verspreche, dass alle Verantwortlichen für sexuellen Missbrauch von Kindern bestraft werden”, sagte der Pontifex am Sonntag bei einem Treffen mit Bischöfen zum Abschluss seiner USA-Reise.

Zuvor hatte Franziskus fünf Missbrauchsopfer empfangen, drei Frauen und zwei Männer, wie der Vatikan mitteilte. Die Opfer berichteten in dem etwa 30 Minuten langen Treffen von ihren Erfahrungen, Franziskus richtete einige Worte an sie, begrüßte dann jeden einzeln und betete mit ihnen. Der Papst sagte anschließend vor den Bischöfen aus aller Welt, er empfinde “tiefe Scham”, dass den Kindern Gewalt angetan worden sei und schwere Leiden verursacht worden seien. “Diese Verbrechen können nicht länger geheim gehalten werden”, sagte er. “Gott weint” angesichts dieser Taten.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Zeit

Philadelphia (AFP) Papst Franziskus ist bei seinem Besuch in den USA mit Opfern von Kindesmissbrauch durch Angehörige der katholischen Kirche zusammengetroffen. “Gott weint über diejenigen, die angegriffen wurden”, sagte er am Sonntag, als er vor Bischöfen in Philadelphia von seinen Begegnungen berichtete. Die Leidtragenden seien “wirkliche Helden der Barmherzigkeit”, fügte er hinzu. Die Täter würden zur Rechenschaft gezogen.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
kath.ch

Philadelphia, 27.9.15 (kath.ch) Papst Franziskus ist bei seiner USA-Reise mit Missbrauchsopfern zusammengetroffen. Nach Angaben von Vatikansprecher Federico Lombardi sprach und betete der Papst bei dem ausserplanmässigen Treffen am Sonntag, 27. September, in Philadelphia mit drei Frauen und zwei Männern, die als Minderjährige von Geistlichen und Kirchenmitarbeitern missbraucht worden waren.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Radio Vatican

Papst Franziskus hat in Philadelphia Überlebende von sexuellem Missbrauch getroffen. Er trage die Lebensgeschichten und das Leiden dieser Minderjährigen im Herzen, sagte der Papst zum Beginn seiner Begegnung mit Bischöfen, die am Weltfamilientreffen teilnehmen. Er empfinde „tiefe Scham, dass Personen, denen diese Kleinen anvertraut waren, ihnen Gewalt antaten“ und schweres Leid verursachten. „Gott weint“ angesichts dieser Verbrechen, sagte Franziskus den Bischöfen aus aller Welt und schärfte ihnen ein: „Die Verbrechen des sexuellen Missbrauchs an Minderjährigen dürfen nicht länger geheim gehalten werden. Ich verspreche, dass alle Verantwortlichen dafür Rechenschaft ablegen werden.“

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Crux

By John L. Allen Jr.
Associate editor September 27, 2015

PHILADELPHIA – Now that Pope Francis has confirmed that he met with victims of sexual abuse Sunday morning, the question will be asked: Do these sessions make a difference?

This is the seventh time a pope has met victims. Pope Benedict XVI held five such sessions, with the first coming during his own 2008 visit to the United States. Pope Francis held his first meeting with victims in July 2014 in Rome, and he has appointed two victims to his own Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors.

As a matter of practice, the Vatican does not release much information beyond confirming that the meeting happened. There’s no video or still photos, because organizers don’t want it to look like a publicity stunt. They insist that these are private, pastoral meetings, while leaving the victims free to make their own decisions about what they choose to reveal.

Each time these encounters happen, victims usually come away grateful that they’ve been heard. They often talk about how visibly moved the pope seemed as they told their stories, and they express hope that the Church will take their suffering to heart as it attempts to learn the lessons of the abuse scandals.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
NBC News

[with video]

by HASANI GITTENS

Once again, not enough!

That’s the message from the Survivor Network of those Abused by Priests, known as SNAP, following Pope Francis’ message Sunday morning that he had met with some victims of clergy sex abuse.

“Is a child anywhere on earth safer now that a pope, for maybe the seventh or eighth time or ninth time, has briefly chatted with abuse victims? No,” said SNAP Director David Clohessy, in a statement.

The comments came after Francis in Philadelphia Sunday morning said he had met with survivors of clerical sex abuse.

The pope said he promised to “zealously” protect young people and that “all those responsible are held accountable.”

But SNAP just dismissed the meeting as a “smart public relations move.”

“To give some perspective, let’s assume that roughly the same percentage of priests molest the same percentage of kids across the globe. In the U.S., in 2012, two church experts estimate 100,000 kids in the U.S.” wrote Clohessy. “The US is about 6 percent of the world’s population. If you do the math, that means there are more than 1.5 million men and women on this planet who have been raped, sodomized or molested by Catholic priests.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

AUSTRALIA
BBC News

By Marie McInerney
Melbourne, Victoria

For decades, Peter Blenkiron remained silent about the abuse he had suffered at age 11 at the hands of his Catholic Christian Brother teacher.

Earlier this year, Mr Blenkiron relived the horror of his school days, telling an inquiry into child abuse about how he would be pressed against the wall at the back of the classroom while his teacher physically and sexually abused him, with the other students ordered to look away.

“If there was no sexual abuse after the belting, then you knew you’d had a good day,” the 53-year-old told a hearing of Australia’s landmark Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.

Giving testimony from his hometown Ballarat, in regional Victoria, and hearing harrowing stories from other survivors of child abuse brought back the pain, Mr Blenkiron told the BBC.

“I was a mess for about two months,” he says.

But he was determined to shine a light on the abuse that has claimed the lives of many of his peers, through suicide and substance abuse, and that turned him into “a ticking time bomb”.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
National Catholic Reporter

Joshua J. McElwee | Sep. 27, 2015

PHILADELPHIA
For only the second time in his two-and-a-half year papacy, Pope Francis has met with survivors of clergy sexual abuse during his trip to the U.S. and has told them he is “profoundly sorry” for their suffering.

The Vatican announced the meeting in a brief press bulletin Sunday, saying Francis had met with five survivors of abuse that morning while staying at the St. Charles Borromeo seminary in Philadelphia.

The pontiff met with the survivors as a group and then one-by-one, praying with them and promising a renewed commitment to prevent abuse and provide accountability for those who covered up crimes, the Vatican said.

“Words cannot express my sorrow for the abuse you suffered,” the pope told the survivors, according a text of his remarks for the meeting released by the U.S. bishops’ conference.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Sunday, Sept. 27

Statement by Becky Ianni of Virginia, SNAP Virginia State leader (703-801-6044 cell, SNAPVirginia@cox.net)

The AP reports that including incest victims in the papal meeting today is an effort to “redirect the discussion.”

[US News]

We hope that’s not true. If true, that’s incredibly cynical. It’s pathetic when wrongdoers claim “someone else is even worse.” It was hurtful to victims and Catholics alike when Francis said this in 2010.

[BishopAccountability.org]

It’s hurtful every time a Catholic official makes this self-serving dodge. Almost always, bishops mention incest to shift the focus onto predators and away from their own continuing complicity.

Regardless, however of church officials’ intent, we feel that every victim needs and deserves all the support and validation possible. Our hearts ache for them.

Sadly, by opposing secular reforms of child safety laws, Catholic officials hurt both clergy abuse victims AND incest victims, denying all of us the chance to protect kids by exposing predators in court.

Finally, this morning in Philadelphia, Francis said “I commit to a careful oversight to ensure that youth are protected and that all responsible will be held accountable.” We are sick and tired of these promises by Catholic officials. We’re heard them literally tens of thousands of times.

From 1969 until 1992, Francis was a priest.

From 1992 until 2001, he was a bishop.

From 2001 until 2013, he was a cardinal.

Is there a single shred of evidence that he took even a single step to protect a single child?

And from 2013 until now, he’s talked, promised and gestured but refuses to take simple, proven steps to protect kids, expose predators, punish enablers and deter wrongdoing.

He set up a church study panel. He says he’ll set up a church tribunal. But he continues to keep secret every file about every predator and every enabler. His bishops across the world are hiding even more evidence. These hundreds of thousands of pages about crimes should be in the hands of law enforcement. But under Francis, as best we can tell, not one page has been voluntarily provided to one police officer or prosecutor or government official anywhere.

Francis continues to conceal thousands of names of proven, admitted and credibly accused predator priests. He continues to tolerate thousands of complicit church officials. And he continues to promote dozens of complicit bishops (like Barros in Chile).

We hope the next time Francis talks about this crisis, it’s to announce tangible prevention steps. And we hope he calls it a continuing crisis, not “difficult moments.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PENNSYLVANIA
The Morning Call

Pope Francis met with victims of child sexual abuse Sunday on the final day of his U.S. visit and promised to hold accountable those responsible for the scandal in the church, delivering a powerful warning to American bishops accused of covering up for pedophile priests instead of reporting them to police.

In a gesture of reconciliation just hours before he was to return to Rome, the pontiff praised the victims as “true heralds of mercy” who deserve the church’s gratitude for helping to bring the truth to light.

“God weeps, for the sexual abuse of children cannot be maintained in secret, and I commit to a careful oversight to ensure that youth are protected and that all responsible will be held accountable,” Francis said in Spanish while in the City of Brotherly Love for a big festival on the Catholic family.

It was Francis’ second such meeting: He met with sexual abuse victims at the Vatican in July 2014.

But in a move that signaled a new effort by the church to reshape the discussion, the Vatican said not all five of the victims at Sunday’s meeting were abused by members of the clergy; some of the three women and two men had been victimized by family members or educators.

“I was so touched by his statement to the survivors,” said Allentown Bishop John O. Barres, who attended the pope’s visit to St. Charles Borromeo Seminary on Sunday morning and was among the concelebrants of Sunday afternoon’s Mass in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
6 ABC

PHILADELPHIA — Read the full text of Pope Francis’ remarks to Bishops taking part in the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Angelus – The Tidings

PHILADELPHIA (CNS) — Pope Francis met with a group of victims of sexual abuse Sept. 27 and later told bishops that he was overwhelmed by a sense of embarrassment and was committed to holding accountable those who harmed children.

In a meeting with cardinals, bishops, priests and seminarians at St. Charles Borromeo, the pope prefaced his address on the importance of the family by saying that he had met with the group as arranged by Philadelphia Archbishop Charles J. Chaput. The Vatican said the 30-minute meeting, with three women and two men abused by members of the clergy or their families or their teachers, was held at the seminary shortly before the pope addressed the bishops.

“It is engraved in my heart, the stories, suffering and pain of the children abused by priests,” the pope said. “I continue to feel an overwhelming sense of embarrassment because of those who had in their care the little ones and caused them great harm.

“I am deeply sorry. God cries,” he said.

He said that “the crimes and sin of sexual abuse of children can no longer remain secret” and that he “committed the close vigilance of the church to protect the children, and I promise that all responsible will be held accountable.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Foundation to Abolish Child Sex Abuse (FACSA)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 27, 2015
Contact: John Salveson at 215-870-0680 salveson@abolishsexabuse.org

BRYN MAWR, PA – John Salveson, President of FACSA, (Foundation to Abolish Child Sex Abuse) released the following statement regarding Pope Francis’ comments in a speech to a group of bishops in Philadelphia today regarding the ongoing clergy sex abuse crisis in the Roman Catholic Church.

“This morning Pope Francis committed to ‘careful oversight to ensure that youth are protected and that all responsible will be held accountable’ when addressing the clergy sex abuse crisis.

The truth is that the survivor community has been asking the church to take several simple steps to protect children and hold perpetrators and enablers accountable for years, but the Church has refused to take these actions. If Pope Francis wishes to take effective action to back up his words he could take these steps immediately:

• Require that every diocese in the world immediately report all past and present allegations of clergy sex abuse to civil authorities when it is suspected or discovered. Today, only the Church in the United States of America has been given this direction.
• Require that every diocese in the world immediately disclose the identities of those who have been accused of child sex abuse so that children can be protected from them.
• Instruct the Vatican to immediately disclose the identities of the hundreds of priests who have been defrocked because of their sexual abuse of children so that children can be protected from them.
• Instruct every diocese and Catholic advocacy organization, such as the Catholic Conferences of every state in America, to immediately drop their relentless lobbying against the reform of criminal and civil statutes of limitations in place today, which protect abusers and enablers at the expense of children.

Most importantly, we implore the U.S. Department of Justice and the Attorneys General of each state in America to investigate the criminal behavior of the Roman Catholic Church in America and take the steps necessary to hold them accountable for their despicable actions.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
CBS Philly

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — While speaking to bishops and archbishops at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, Pope Francis touched on a number of topics, including sex abuse within the Catholic Church.

He said, “In my heart, the suffering of those youth that were sexually abused, and it continues to be on my mind. The people who had the responsibility to take care of these tender ones violated that trust and caused them great pain.”

Pope Francis continued, “God weeps for the sexual abuse of children. These cannot be maintained in secret. I commit to a careful oversight to ensure that youth are protected and that all responsible will be held accountable.”

“Those that have survived this abuse have become true heralds of mercy. Humbly, we owe each of them our gratitude for their great value, as they have had to suffer with terrible abuse, sexual abuse, of minors. I say this, I would like to express my gratitude to the archbishop, and I felt it very important that I share this with you today. And I am very happy to share these moments of pastoral reflection with you amid the joyful celebration of this World Meeting of Families.”

“For the church, the family, is not first and foremost a cause for concern, but rather a … of god’s blessing upon the masterpiece of creation. Every day, all over the world, the church can rejoice in the Lord’s gift of so many families, who even amid difficult trials, maintain faithful to their promise and keep the faith.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
The Daily Beast

Barbie Latza Nadeau

Evidently moved by his meeting with abuse survivors on Sunday, the pope departed from his official script to excoriate American bishops for their failures.

ROME—On the last day of his historic visit to the United States, Pope Francis excoriated American bishops and cardinals with him in Philadelphia for their handling of child sex abuse by clergy, one of the most damaging issues the American Catholic Church has ever faced.

Earlier Sunday morning, Francis had gone to St. Charles Borromeo seminary, where he received five adult survivors—three women and two men—who were sexually abused as minors, and his unscripted remarks to the bishops were fraught with emotion.

“I have in my heart these stories of suffering of those youth who were sexually abused,” he said. “And it continues to be on my mind. The people who had the responsibility to take care of these tender ones violated that trust and caused them great pain. God weeps for the sexual abuse of children.”

While the television cameras did not focus on the faces of any of the bishops in the audience, there were several there, including Cardinal Justin Rigali the retired archbishop of Philadelphia, who retired in 2011 amid accusations about his mishandling of known pedophile priests in his parishes. Also in attendance was Cardinal Roger Mahony, the former archbishop of Los Angeles, who was stripped of his duties in 2013 for his role covering up abuse allegations.

Francis was absolutely steadfast in his criticism of the American clerical crimes. “For the sexual abuse of children,” he said, “these cannot be maintained in secret. And I commit to a careful oversight to ensure that youth are protected and all responsible will be held accountable,” he said. “Those who have survived this abuse have become true heralds of mercy…. we owe each of them our gratitude for their great value.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PENNSYLVANIA
Huffington Post

As released by the Vatican.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Thank you for receiving me and giving me the opportunity to be here with you and to share this time in your lives. It is a difficult time, one full of struggles. I know it is a painful time not only for you, but also for your families and for all of society. Any society, any family, which cannot share or take seriously the pain of its children, and views that pain as something normal or to be expected, is a society “condemned” to remain a hostage to itself, prey to the very things which cause that pain. I am here as a pastor, but above all as a brother, to share your situation and to make it my own. I have come so that we can pray together and offer our God everything that causes us pain, but also everything that gives us hope, so that we can receive from him the power of the resurrection.

I think of the Gospel scene where Jesus washes the feet of his disciples at the Last Supper. This was something his disciples found hard to accept. Even Peter refused, and told him: “You will never wash my feet” (Jn 13:8).

In those days, it was the custom to wash someone’s feet when they came to your home. That was how they welcomed people. The roads were not paved, they were covered with dust, and little stones would get stuck in your sandals. Everyone walked those roads, which left their feet dusty, bruised or cut from those stones. That is why we see Jesus washing feet, our feet, the feet of his disciples, then and now.

Life is a journey, along different roads, different paths, which leave their mark on us.

We know in faith that Jesus seeks us out. He wants to heal our wounds, to soothe our feet which hurt from travelling alone, to wash each of us clean of the dust from our journey. He doesn’t ask us where we have been, he doesn’t question us what about we have done. Rather, he tells us: “Unless I wash your feet, you have no share with me” (Jn 13:8). Unless I wash your feet, I will not be able to give you the life which the Father always dreamed of, the life for which he created you. Jesus comes to meet us, so that he can restore our dignity as children of God. He wants to help us to set out again, to resume our journey, to recover our hope, to restore our faith and trust. He wants us to keep walking along the paths of life, to realize that we have a mission, and that confinement is not the same thing as exclusion

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Washington Post

By Emma Brown and Frances Stead Sellers September 27

PHILADELPHIA — On the final day of his visit to the United States, Pope Francis met Sunday morning with five victims of clergy sexual abuse at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary — a much anticipated event in a city still scarred by the scandal.

“God weeps,” Francis told a gathering of bishops afterwards, departing from his prepared speech. “I commit to a careful oversight of the church to ensure that youth are protected, and I promise that all those responsible will be held accountable.”

Pope Francis met later Sunday morning with about 100 inmates at the largest of Philadelphia’s six prisons, telling them “all of us need to be cleansed, to be washed.” He waded into the audience of prisoners clad in light blue uniforms, grasping their hands and touching their heads and hugging at least one.

The two meetings served as a reminder of the great tension that surrounds the U.S. Catholic Church: Its handling of sexual abuse remains one of its most profound failings, but its message of redemption and forgiveness displays its enduring moral power.

“I am profoundly sorry that your innocence was violated by those who you trusted,” Francis told the sex abuse victims, according to his prepared remarks that were released by the Vatican. “We promise to support your continued healing and to always be vigilant to protect the children of today and tomorrow.” …

Kevin Waldrip, 64, who was abused on his 13th birthday by “a priest who was one of the first to be convicted,” was unmoved by the pope’s meeting and by his statement afterwards.

“God may weep,” he said, “but [the pope] certainly doesn’t and the church doesn’t. They’ve proven it again and again.”

The pope’s meeting with sexual abuse victims came hours before he is scheduled to celebrate an outdoor Mass before a crowd that could swell into the hundreds of thousands.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADLEPHIA (PA)
Washington Post

By Sarah Pulliam Bailey, Abby Ohlheiser and Terrence McCoy September 27

PHILADELPHIA – Pope Francis told U.S. bishops and seminarians on Sunday that he had met with sex abuse survivors. “God weeps,” he said in remarks ahead of a prepared speech on the family.

Five adults who were abused as minors – three women and two men – were at the meeting along with their families, according to the Vatican’s press office. The survivors were abused by clergy, family members, or their teachers.

“I have in my heart, the stories of suffering and pain of the minors who were sexually abused by priests. And, it continues to overwhelm me with shame that the people who were charged with taking care of these tender ones violated that trust and caused them a profound pain. God weeps.” Pope Francis said at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, according to a translation of the Spanish remarks by The Washington Post.

“The crimes and sins of sexual abuse of minors cannot be kept in secret any longer.” he continued.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Wall Street Journal

By DEBORAH BALL and SCOTT CALVERT
Sept. 27, 2015

PHILADELPHIA—The pope met with victims of sex abuse by priests on Sunday morning, expressing his “solidarity” for their suffering and assuring them the guilty will be punished.

The Vatican confirmed that the pope met at 8 a.m. Sunday morning at the St. Charles Borromeo Seminary with five adults—three women and two men—who suffered abuse by priests as minors. The group was accompanied by Boston Cardinal Seán Patrick O’Malley, who is the chair of a papal committee for the protection of minors and has been leading the effort at the Vatican to establish new ways of dealing with the problem.

During a speech to bishops following the meeting, the pope said “God weeps” for abuse victims.

“I hold the stories and the suffering and the sorrow of children who were sexually abused by priests deep in my heart,” he said. “I remain overwhelmed with shame that men entrusted with the tender care of children violated these little ones and caused grievous harm. I am profoundly sorry…. The crimes and sins of the sexual abuse of children must no longer be held in secret. I pledge the zealous vigilance of the church to protect children and the promise of accountability for all.”

The Vatican said the pope listened to each of the victim’s stories, prayed with them and “expressed his solidarity” for their suffering. The pope also expressed “his own pain and shame especially in the case of injury caused them by clergy or church workers,” said a Vatican statement. The meeting lasted about 30 minutes.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
The Atlantic

MARINA KOREN

Pope Francis addressed the Catholic Church’s sex abuse scandal on Sunday.

“I hold the stories and the suffering and the sorry of children who were sexually abused by priests deep in my heart. I remain overwhelmed with shame that men entrusted with the tender care of children violated these little ones and caused grievous harm,” he said in unscripted remarks before a speech in Philadelphia. “I am profoundly sorry. God weeps.”

Francis said that “the crimes and sins of the sexual abuse of children must no longer be held in secret,” according to a transcript provided by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

“I pledge the zealous vigilance of the church to protect children and the promise of accountability for all,” he said.

This weekend, Francis met privately with three women and two men who suffered sex abuse as minors, according to the Vatican’s English language press representative. They were accompanied by several clergy members, including Cardinal Seán Patrick O’Malley, whom Francis named to a Vatican anti-abuse commission last spring. More on the meeting from the representative:

The Pope spoke with visitors, listening to their stories and offering them a few words together as a group and later listening to each one individually. He then prayed with them and expressed his solidarity in sharing their suffering, as well as his own pain and shame in especially in the case of injury caused them by clergy or church workers.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Star Tribune

By NICOLE WINFIELD and RACHEL ZOLL Associated Press
SEPTEMBER 27, 2015

PHILADELPHIA — Pope Francis met with victims of child sexual abuse Sunday on the final day of his U.S. visit and promised to hold accountable those responsible for the scandal in the church, delivering a powerful warning to American bishops accused of covering up for pedophile priests instead of reporting them to police.

In a gesture of reconciliation just hours before he was to return to Rome, the pontiff praised the victims as “true heralds of mercy” who deserve the church’s gratitude for helping to bring the truth to light.

“God weeps, for the sexual abuse of children cannot be maintained in secret, and I commit to a careful oversight to ensure that youth are protected and that all responsible will be held accountable,” Francis said in Spanish while in the City of Brotherly Love for a big festival on the Catholic family.

It was Francis’ second such meeting: He met with sexual abuse victims at the Vatican in July 2014.

But in a move that signaled a new effort by the church to reshape the discussion, the Vatican said not all five of the victims at Sunday’s meeting were abused by members of the clergy; some of the three women and two men had been victimized by family members or educators.

Later Sunday, Francis visited a Philadelphia jail to give hope and encouragement to about 100 inmates, included suspected killers, rapists and mobsters. He greeted the men one by one, along with their families, telling them to spend their time behind bars getting their lives back on track. …

But in an apparent effort by the church to reshape the discussion, the Vatican said not all five of the victims on Sunday were abused by members of the clergy; some of the three women and two men had been victimized by relatives or educators.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Newsweek

Updated | PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) – Pope Francis met on Sunday with five adults who were abused by Catholic clergy when they were children and vowed to hold responsible all involved in the crime or cover-ups.

While the pope has met with victims of sexual abuse in Rome, this was his first meeting with them on a foreign tour. Philadelphia has been the most publicly scarred in the U.S. Church abuse scandal out of any of the cities visited by Francis, who ends his six-day U.S. tour later in the day.

“I have in my heart these stories of suffering of those youth that were sexually abused,” Francis told bishops.

“The people who had the responsibility to take care of these tender ones violated that trust and caused them great pain. God weeps for the sexual abuse of children.”

Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi said that at the morning meeting in Philadelphia’s seminary the pope “expressed participation in their suffering and pain and shame.”

“He renewed the Church’s commitment to listen to victims and treat them with justice, to punish the guilty and that crimes of abuse would be fought with an effective program of prevention in the Church and in society,” the spokesman said.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
NPR

Updated at 11:40 a.m. ET

Pope Francis, in a previously unannounced stop, met with victims of clergy sex abuse in Philadelphia, as the pontiff is wrapping up a six-day visit to the U.S. that will culminate with a huge Mass this afternoon.

Meeting with 300 bishops, Francis said he had met with the sex abuse survivor group Sunday morning.

“It continues to be on my mind that the people who had the responsibility to take care of these tender ones, violated that trust and caused them great pain,” he said, adding “God weeps.”

The pope added that the abuse “cannot be maintained in secret. And I commit to a careful oversight to ensure that youth are protected.”

The Vatican, in a statement, says Francis met with three women and two men who had been abused as children. It said that each was accompanied by a family member or someone close and that the pope listened and expressed solidarity in sharing in their suffering.

“He renewed the commitment of the Church to the effort that all victims are heard and treated with justice, that the guilty be punished and that the crimes of abuse be combated with an effective prevention activity in the Church and in society,” the statement said.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Sunday, Sept. 27

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those abused by Priests (314 566 9790, davidgclohessy@gmail.com)

Is a child anywhere on earth safer now that a pope, for maybe the seventh or eighth time or ninth time, has briefly chatted with abuse victims? No.

A smart public relations move. That’s what this meeting is. Nothing more.

It fits church officials’ carefully-crafted narrative. Years ago, prelates pretended the abuse and cover up weren’t happening. That no longer works. So now they pretend it’s not happening NOW, that it’s all “in the past” and only healing remains to be done. They know, however, this is deceptive and dangerous.

To give some perspective, let’s assume that roughly the same percentage of priests molest the same percentage of kids across the globe. In the US, in 2012, two church experts estimate 100,000 kids in the US.

[National Catholic Reporter]

The US is about 6% of the world’s population. If you do the math, that means there are more than 1.5 million men and women on this planet who have been raped, sodomized or molested by Catholic priests.

(And remember, we’re basing this on estimates from church officials which are, of course, notoriously low. More than 20 years ago, sociologist and author Fr. Andrew Greeley made the same estimate – 100,000 US victims of predator priests – in the Jesuit magazine America.)

[BishopAccountability.org]

And literally countless kids are now vulnerable to abuse by clerics today. That’s where Francis should focus: stopping abuse and cover up now and in the future, not conveniently implying that only healing is needed now. He could meet with a thousand victims. But that wouldn’t safeguard a single child.

A doctor’s first rule is to do no harm. That should be a pope’s first rule too. Stop current sexual violence and cover ups now. Prevent future ones. Then worry about ‘healing.’ Symbolic gestures can come years down the road.

We noted before that Bernie McDaid of Boston, a survivor who met with Pope Benedict, now feels deeply disappointed and betrayed. calling the meeting “self-serving.” (see below)

Yesterday, we heard from an abuse survivor who met with Francis last year, Mark Vincent Healy of Ireland. He told us, in an email, that “since my meeting with Francis last July 2014, nothing has been delivered on in any substantive program in response to the life-long suffering and enormous distress which is inflicted mentally, physically, socially and economically.”

The first time Francis met with survivors, his top spokesman, Fr. Federico Lombardi said “The most important thing the Pope hopes to come out of this occasion, is that the victims themselves felt welcomed and listened to.” Francis is a charming man and superb communicator. He’ll accomplish this in the US too. But let us not forget that by doing so, he helps no children at all.

[CNN]

In Argentina, over the years, some brave victims have stepped forward. They are the ones Francis could have helped most. But he rebuffed them. (As best we can tell, and based on research from BishopAccountability.org, he refused to meet with victims during the entire time he headed the Buenos Aires archdiocese.)

[BishopAccountability.org]

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Washington Post

By Emma Brown,, Julie Zauzmer and Pam Constable September 27

PHILADELPHIA — On the final day of his visit to the United States, Pope Francis told a gathering of bishops that he has met with victims of clergy sexual abuse.

“God weeps for sexual abuse of children,” Francis said. “I commit to a careful oversight to ensure that youth are protected and that all responsible will be held accountable.”

His remarks came Sunday morning at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, hours before he is scheduled to celebrate an outdoor Mass before a crowd that could swell into the hundreds of thousands.

The afternoon Mass is the climax of a historic six-day journey to Washington, New York and Philadelphia that has riveted Americans’ attention, giving Francis a broad audience for his messages about serving the poor, bolstering families, caring for the environment and welcoming newcomers to the country.

“Viva, Papa!” jubilant crowds have shouted everywhere the Argentine pope has gone. “Pray for me” has been his frequent refrain.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Today

PHILADELPHIA – Pope Francis told bishops in Philadelphia that he had met with victims of clerical sexual abuse, adding that “God weeps” for them.

“God weeps for sexual abuse of children,” the 78-year-old pontiff said. “Youth are protected and … all responsible will be held accountable.”

The reports of abuse and the cover-up first became big news in 2002. Victims’ groups say the church has not done enough. As many as 100,000 U.S. children may have been the victims of clerical sex abuse, insurance experts said in a paper presented at a Vatican conference in 2012. REUTERS

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PENNSYLVANIA
New York Times

By LAURIE GOODSTEIN and DANIEL J. WAKIN
SEPT. 27, 2015

PHILADELPHIA — Speaking to hundreds of bishops and seminarians, Pope Francis on Sunday said he met in private with a group of victims of sexual abuse and he pledged that “all responsible will be held accountable.”

“God weeps,” he said.

The pope, speaking on the last day of his trip to the United States, delivered his words before his prepared speech. He said abuse survivors “have become true heralds of mercy. Humbly, we owe each of them our gratitude for their value as they have had to suffer terrible abuse.”

His first reference to the scandal, at a prayer service with bishops in Washington on Wednesday, drew criticism from advocates for survivors of abuse for not going far enough. He told the bishops he was “conscious of courage with which you have faced difficult moments in the recent history of the Church in this country without fear of self-criticism and at the cost of mortification and great sacrifice.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PENNSYLVANIA
Lancaster Online

WYNNEWOOD, Pa. (AP) — Latest developments in Pope Francis’ visit to the United States. All times local:

9:15 a.m.

Pope Francis has met with survivors of clerical sex abuse and has promised to hold accountable those responsible.

Francis announced that he had met with a group Sunday, his final day in the United States.

Speaking to U.S. bishops, Francis said sexual abuse can no longer be kept a secret. He says he promised to “zealously” protect young people and that “all those responsible are held accuontable.”

Francis has decided to create a new Vatican tribunal to prosecute bishops who failed to protect their flock by covering up for pedophile priests rather than reporting them to police.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis held a private meeting with victims of clerical sex abuse in Philadelphia on Sunday (27th September) and told bishops afterwards that such crimes “must no longer be held in secret” and promised on behalf of the Church “the accountability of all.” The Pope said he remained “overwhelmed with shame that men entrusted with the tender care of children violated these little ones and caused grievous harm. I am profoundly sorry. God weeps.” He thanked the bishops for all they have down to “shine the light of Christ” on the “evil” of the sexual abuse of children. The Pope’s remarks came during an address with bishops attending the World Meeting of Families on the final day of his pastoral visit to the U.S.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
NBC New York

[with video]

By David Chang, Jim Iovino and Vince Lattanzio

Pope Francis met with victims of clergy sex abuse Sunday morning and vowed “careful oversight” of the sex abuse scandal in the Catholic Church to ensure “all responsible will be held accountable.”

Francis held a private meeting with survivors of clergy sexual abuse shortly before speaking candidly with hundreds of bishops and seminarians about the issue that has rocked the Catholic Church.

Officials say the meeting happened at the pope’s request and was held on the seminary grounds where he is staying.

“God weeps for the sexual abuse of children,” he said during his speech to about 300 bishops at a Philadelphia-area seminary. “This cannot be maintained in secret, and I commit to a careful oversight to ensure that youth are protected and all responsible will be held accountable.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
The Guardian (UK)

This was already a packed speech – Francis was expected to speak about the importance of family and the church’s view on marriage – instead, he met with victims of sex abuse this morning and came into the chapel with a message of justice for victims of sex abuse at the hands of priests, and has gone on to speak about the problems with young people putting off marriage.

He’s still going off script and we’re trying to keep up!

21m ago
09:22
Pope Francis appears to have met with victims of sexual abuse this morning.

Father Thomas Rosica, above, is the English-language spokesperson for the Holy See’s press office.

This is a surprise – Vatican spokesperson Father Federico Lombardi said yesterday he could not confirm whether the Holy Father would meet with the victims of abuse, because he said it could not be a “media” event.

27m ago
09:16
Pope Francis in off-script child sex abuse remarks: “God weeps.”

Pope Francis just went off script unexpectedly to address child sex abuse in the church:

[It] continues to be on my mind that people who had the responsibility to take care of these tender ones [children] violated that trust and caused them great pain.

God weeps for the sexual abuse of children. These cannot be maintained in secret, and I commit to a careful oversight to ensure that youth are protected and all responsible will be held accountable.

Those who have survived this abuse have become true heralds of mercy – humbly, we owe each of them our gratitude for their great value as they have had to suffer this terrible abuse sexual abuse of minors.
…

I would like to express my gratitude to the archbishop, and I felt it very important that I shared this message with you today, and I am very happy to be able to share these moments of pastoral reflection with you amid the joyful celebrations of this World Meeting of Families.”

Francis said these remarks before a prepared speech to bishops at the St Charles Borromeo seminary. He went off script in Spanish, this is the translation of the interpreter for the official papal live stream.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

VATICAN CITY
Vatican Information Service

Vatican City, 27 September 2015 (VIS) – The Holy Father has accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of Kaga-Bandoro, Central African Republic, presented by Bishop Albert Vanbuel, S.D.B., upon reaching the age limit.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
WPTZ

(CNN) — Pope Francis will meet with victims of clergy sexual abuse Sunday, according to two American Catholic leaders.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

DEUTSCHLAND
Wochenblatt

[A week before the family synod begins in Rome, reformed-minded people from Europe, the Americas, Africa and Australia have appealed to Catholic ardinals and bishops for changed in doctrines and pastoral approaches to sexuality. One of the biggest opponents is Gerhard Ludwig Mueller, former bishop of Regensburg.]

Eine Woche vor Beginn der Familiensynode in Rom richten Reforminitiativen aus Europa, Nord- und Südamerika, Afrika und Australien einen Appell an die katholischen Kardinäle und Bischöfe und rufen zu Änderungen der Sexuallehre und Pastoral auf. Einer der größten Gegner ist der frühere Regensburger Bischof Gerhard Ludwig Müller.

In Rom trifft sich ab 4. Oktober die Weltkirche zur außerordentlichen Familiensynode. Für die deutsche Kirche ist beispielsweise der Münchner Kardinal Reinhard Marx mit dabei, der ein Verfechter für eine Öffnung der Kirche in Fragen der strengen Moral ist. Bereits im letzten Jahr hatten sich die Synodenväter getroffen, damals kam es sogar zu einer Kampfabstimmung zwischen Konservativen und Liberalen. Jetzt heißt es im Vorfeld der Synode, die Konservativen hätten den Schock vom letzten Jahr verdaut, den man bekommen hatte, als plötzlich klar war, dass auch Lockerungen etwa im Umgang mit homosexuellen Paaren oder wiederverheirateten Geschiedenen mehrheitsfähig sein könnten.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

DEUTSCHLAND
All-In

[A worldwide network of Catholic lay movements, including the German reform initiative We Are Church has called on the participants of the forthcoming Vatican Synod to liberalize the Church’s sexual teaching.]

Ein weltweites Netzwerk katholischer Laienbewegungen um die deutsche Reforminitiative “Wir sind Kirche” hat die Teilnehmer der bevorstehenden Vatikansynode zu einer Liberalisierung der kirchlichen Sexuallehre aufgerufen.

“Wir sind in großer Sorge über die ständig wachsende Diskrepanz zwischen Glaube und Gewissen bei der großen Mehrheit der Mitglieder der katholischen Kirche einerseits und in der Doktrin und der pastoralen Praxis des kirchlichen Lehramts andererseits”, heißt es in dem internationalen “Appell an die Synodenbischöfe”, der in der kommenden Woche veröffentlicht werden soll. Dem Appell schlossen sich unter anderem die “Wir sind Kirche”-Gruppen aus Deutschland, den USA, Irland, Italien, Schweden, Chile, Südafrika und Großbritannien an. Am 4. Oktober treffen sich rund 400 Kardinäle, Bischöfe, Ordensleute und Laien in Rom, um unter der Leitung von Papst Franziskus über die katholische Familienethik zu beraten. Die Zeit sei reif “für eine stärkere Rückbindung der kirchlichen Lehre an das Evangelium”, schreiben die Verfasser des Appells.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

WASHINGTON (DC)
New York Times

Maureen Dowd

Washington — AFTER attending a canonization Mass at Catholic University with the pope who rails against the excesses of capitalism, I walked off campus to a festival of capitalism.

Vendors were hawking pope bracelets, buttons and T-shirts.

Excited by seeing the humble black Fiat in person and infused with Papa’s warning against the numbing effects of the “culture of prosperity,” I resisted all sales pitches. Until I got to the last guy.

He was selling blue-and-white T-shirts for $10 with the declaration “Coolest Pope Ever.”

Francis is undeniably cool. He once worked as a nightclub bouncer in Buenos Aires. He got a serenade to “Frank, baby,” from his fan Stephen Colbert. He spurred nuns to have a tailgating party at Catholic U. before his Mass, inspired the Internet to erupt in photos of dogs sporting miters and persuaded a blubbering John Boehner that he would never have a day that good again. …

Pope Francis would be the perfect pontiff — if he lived in the 19th century. But how, in 2015, can he continue to condone the idea that women should have no voice in church decisions?

In a scandal that cascaded for decades with abuses and cover-ups, the church was revealed to be monstrously warped in its attitudes about sex and its sense of right and wrong.

Yet shortly after he was elected, Francis flatly rejected the idea that the institution could benefit from opening itself to the hearts and minds of women. Asked about the issue of female priests, he replied, “The church has spoken and says no,” adding, “That door is closed.”

Francis preaches against the elites while keeping the church an elite boys’ club.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
John Thavis

Well, that was interesting.

At the official “religious freedom” event during his U.S. visit, Pope Francis never mentioned the U.S. bishops’ “Fortnight for Freedom” campaigns, nor their battles over alleged religious discrimination on Obamacare provisions and conscience protection issues.

The bishops have certainly made this a priority. Here was Archbishop William E. Lori last June asking the faithful to support their efforts:

“Religious institutions in the United States are in danger of losing their freedom to hire for mission and their freedom to defend the family…. Endangered is the freedom of church ministries to provide employee benefits and to provide adoptions and refugee services in accord with the church’s teaching on faith and morals. It is one thing for others to disagree with the church’s teaching but quite another to discriminate against the rights of believers to practice our faith, not just in word but in the way we conduct our daily life, ministry and business.”

Perhaps a detailed analysis of these matters was never in the cards for Pope Francis. At the White House the other day, he did offer generic backing for the bishops, encouraging the defense of religious freedom from “everything that would threaten or compromise it.” And he made a brief, symbolic stop at the Little Sisters of the Poor, a religious order that is suing over the Obamacare provisions on contraception coverage.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Catholic Philly

Homily of Pope Francis at Mass with Bishops, Clergy and Religious, Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul, Philadelphia

Saturday, Sept. 26, 2015

This morning I learned something about the history of this beautiful Cathedral: the story behind its high walls and windows. I would like to think, though, that the history of the Church in this city and state is really a story not about building walls, but about breaking them down. It is a story about generation after generation of committed Catholics going out to the peripheries, and building communities of worship, education, charity and service to the larger society.

That story is seen in the many shrines which dot this city, and the many parish churches whose towers and steeples speak of God’s presence in the midst of our communities. It is seen in the efforts of all those dedicated priests, religious and laity who for over two centuries have ministered to the spiritual needs of the poor, the immigrant, the sick and those in prison. And it is seen in the hundreds of schools where religious brothers and sisters trained children to read and write, to love God and neighbor, and to contribute as good citizens to the life of American society. All of this is a great legacy which you have received, and which you have been called to enrich and pass on.

Most of you know the story of Saint Katharine Drexel, one of the great saints raised up by this local Church. When she spoke to Pope Leo XIII of the needs of the missions, the Pope – he was a very wise Pope! – asked her pointedly: “What about you? What are you going to do?”. Those words changed Katharine’s life, because they reminded her that, in the end, every Christian man and woman, by virtue of baptism, has received a mission. Each one of us has to respond, as best we can, to the Lord’s call to build up his Body, the Church.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
America Magazine

John A. Coleman

A Still and Quiet Conscience
John A. McCoy
Orbis Books. 288p $26

John McCoy, an excellent writer, tells an insider’s account of the public humiliation of Archbishop Raymond Hunthausen of Seattle. I met Hunthausen on a number of occasions. I always came away with the image of a humble, deeply pastoral and collegial bishop. He was one of my heroes. Bishop William McManus of Fort Wayne told Seattle’s Msgr. Michael Ryan: “Stay with this man and continue to back him. The American hierarchy has produced very few great men. He is one of them!”

McCoy, a former reporter for The Seattle Post-Intelligencer and director of public affairs for the Archdiocese of Seattle (in Hunthausen’s last years and also under Hunthausen’s successor), gathered copious interviews and notes on Hunthausen’s pastoral presence as bishop and on the Roman investigation under Cardinal Ratzinger and Archbishop Pio Laghi, the Vatican’s ambassador to the United States. He then let his proposed book on Hunthausen lie fallow in reams of notes on his computer for many years.

Finally, the person of Pope Francis led him to complete his biography. As he says of Francis: “He reminds me in many ways of Hunthausen. He’s humble, kind, compassionate, plain-spoken and unpretentious. He has a Vatican II vision of the church, of a church that is inclusive, loving, transformative, of a church with a heart for the poor and the oppressed.” The Vatican seemed unimpressed that, under Hunthausen’s leadership, Seattle exceeded the national average on Mass attendance, adult conversions to the church and monetary contributions by some 20 percent.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
New York Times

By DANIEL J. WAKIN
SEPT. 27, 2015

The American marathon is nearing its end.

Pope Francis on Sunday has one day left on a journey that began in Cuba on Sept. 19 and took him to Washington, New York and Philadelphia, his 10th foreign trip as pontiff and the first to this country. He will spend it with bishops, prison inmates and hundreds of thousands of followers attending a final Mass.

The trip has been rich with weighty speeches, encounters with world leaders, and kissed babies — a hallmark of this pontiff, who readily receives little ones passed to his open-sided popemobile by security officials.

In the morning, Francis will stop by St. Charles Borromeo Seminary to meet with bishops who had come to the city for the World Meeting of Families, a Vatican-sponsored festival that drew 18,000 people, organizers said. His comments are likely to focus on the nature of family in a modern secular society — a frequent theme of the visit, along with immigration, religious freedom and social justice.

He will then head to the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility, mainly an intake jail, which has roughly 2,800 inmates and is one of six jails in Philadelphia’s system. Some of the inmates have made Francis a hand-carved chair.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
Pope Francis CON-artist & Vicar of Plutocrats

Paris Arrow

Never accept or believe what Pope Francis says at face-value because there are always some conniving ulterior motives beneath his sugar-coated papal speeches and charismatic papal appearances. Pope Francis is the greatest Jesuit Master of Deceits and with his Vatican Opus Dei Beast PR Deceits Team, Vatican paid mainstream media Pied Pipers, and shrewd Catholic blabbermouth bullies like Bill Donohue in Catholic League, they are all first-class pathological liars. Their conniving manipulation and the-end-justify-the- means Catholic Luciferian means – including the Eucharist – everything they do always lead to one final end, to satiate the Vatican Mammon Evil Beast.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

WASHINGTON (DC)
YouTube

Published on Sep 22, 2015

A man has spent 17 years outside the Vatican’s U.S. embassy protesting the sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

SCOTLAND
Scotsman

DANI GARAVELLI
Sunday 27 September 2015

POLICE Scotland’s new national child sex abuse unit has been involved in 65 investigations across the country since it began work in January, it has been revealed.

Its 48 specialist officers, based in Livingston, Inverness, Aberdeen and Dalmarnock, have lent their expertise to inquiries involving abuse carried out in institutions and elsewhere, as well as to operations into child sexual exploitation (CSE). Their work has spanned both historical and recent allegations.

The child sex abuse unit was set up after the report into failings in the investigation of CSE in Rotherham found 1,400 children had been abused between 1997 and 2013.

Its officers – who have specialist training in areas such as interviewing vulnerable witnesses, crime scene management and digital technology – are drafted in to give short-term support to divisional officers involved in complex, protracted or cross-border investigations or those which involve people who are well-known or in positions of trust. Twelve of the 65 inquiries were led by senior investigating officers from the unit.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

IRELAND
Irish Mirror

27 SEP 2015
BY JAMES WARD

A Magdalene survivor whose mother is buried in a mass grave had the door slammed in her face on a visit to the Department of Justice.

In July, we revealed Mary Collins’ Traveller mum Angela was snatched from the side of the road and forced into the hated laundries for 27 years, only to die after not receiving proper medical treatment.

She was buried in a mass grave alongside 72 other women, where she remains today.

In her ongoing campaign for justice, Mary arranged for a meeting with the Justice Department to deliver a letter about her family’s plight, only for the doors to be locked upon her arrival.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
Los Angeles Times

By ALAN ZAREMBO AND MATT PEARCE

Pope Francis in his first trip to the United States has spoken boldly about the need for change — in the way we treat the environment, immigrants and the poorest among us.

With messages that resonated beyond those of his faith, he seemed well aware that the future of Roman Catholicism may depend less on bringing people to church than on bringing the church to the people.

Societal values in the U.S. and elsewhere are changing rapidly. Public opinion on same-sex marriage, for example, now affirmed in this country as a constitutional right, increasingly splits along generational lines.

Polls indicate that more than half of the 72 million Americans who identify as Catholic now reject church views on same-sex marriage and abortion. The ban on divorce is routinely violated.

The pope’s response has not been to change the rules of the church but to change its focus, embracing a standard more human than saintly. …

Andrea Leon-Grossmann was watching the news one day when a story came on about yet another priest accused of molesting a boy.

The case stood out for her: She recognized this priest. She had taken communion from him.

And the alleged victim was in the Los Angeles juvenile detention center where she volunteered as a mentor.

It was not the only time her faith in church leadership would waver.

Leon-Grossmann was born into Catholicism, with two nuns and a priest in her family tree. Growing up in Mexico City, she hewed closely to its teachings. Even after she moved to Los Angeles in 1993 to study art, she attended church each Sunday.

Her religion’s focus on service spoke to her most forcefully. She started volunteering at the jail and joined demonstrations supporting undocumented immigrants.

Yet she was painfully aware of the ways the church seemed to function in opposition to her vision of Catholicism.

During Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign, she said, the Catholic fraternal organization Knights of Columbus came to her church to urge congregants to vote against him — and support Proposition 8, the ballot measure to ban same-sex marriage.

“I couldn’t stand it,” Leon-Grossmann said. “In my faith, God tells me that I need to love everyone.”

She stopped attending church regularly and threw herself into activism.

In 2013, she and other activists brought a petition with more than 10,000 signatures to the residence of Roger Mahony, the L.A. cardinal who had helped conceal sexual abuse by priests. They urged him not to go to Rome to help choose the next pope.

Mahony went. But Leon-Grossmann, a 42-year-old art director, was encouraged by the papal enclave’s outcome.

“Something the pope said that resonated deeply with me this morning: ‘A good Catholic meddles in politics,'” Leon-Grossmann said Thursday. “I completely agree.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.