NEW YORK
LI Herald
By Rossana Weitekamp
The statistics on sexual misconduct allegations in the Catholic church are daunting. According to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, over 16,000 people in the U.S. alone have claimed that they were abused by priests as children between 1950 and 2012. That year, the USCCB said it had spent $2.6 billion in settlements, attorneys, therapy and other costs.
Statistics that very often go unreported, however, reflect the toll on innocent priests — those who were accused but exonerated, or who were the victims of unsubstantiated claims. Between 2006 and 2012, the USCCB has said in past media reports, 490 of the 4,291 sexual abuse allegations that were made in the U.S. Catholic church — a little over 11 percent — were unsubstantiated or false.
Parishioners of Our Lady of Lourdes are waiting for word on the Rev. Frank Parisi, who left the church two weeks ago in the wake of allegations of sexual misconduct with a minor 20 years ago. Many parishioners who know Parisi and believe he is innocent have expressed their confidence in him online.
For them, and for many others in the parish, the situation raises the question, what happens next?
“The way the system is set up, it’s very difficult for a priest to prove his innocence,” said Phil Lawler, editor of Catholic Culture magazine. “He will be relieved of his duty, he will be suspended from ministry and the diocese will investigate. If there’s any lingering doubt, the priest is unlikely to get back to ministry. It’s really unfair for the priest.”
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