HARRISBURG (PA)
Harrisburg Patriot News
October 5, 2018
By Mark E. GiaQuinta
Now that the abuse allegation against Bishop Kevin Rhoades has been investigated and refuted by law enforcement, it is time to debunk the misleading stories of his alleged attempts to cover up actual incidents of abuse laid out in the Pennsylvania grand jury report.
As one who disagrees with the bishop on many social and religious policies, I hope this explanation of his misinterpreted statements is helpful to those unsure of his role in the Pennsylvania tragedies.
Bishop Rhoades has been repeatedly quoted from his letters citing the likelihood of “public scandal” should reports of sexual abuse by two Harrisburg priests be made public.
Without further explanation, one might conclude he was advocating for the church to maintain its decades-long conspiracy of silence that allowed abusive clerics to repeat their crimes. This is unfair to Rhoades. His letters encouraged just the opposite.
Rhoades’ use of the term “public scandal” has to be understood within the context of canon law.
My introduction to the different meaning of the word occurred two decades ago as president of the St. Joe Medical Center Board of Directors.
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