ABUSE TRACKER

A digest of links to media coverage of clergy abuse. For recent coverage listed in this blog, read the full article in the newspaper or other media source by clicking “Read original article.” For earlier coverage, click the title to read the original article.

July 10, 2020

Priest abuse: Local student journalist’s story helps right a wrong at St. Bonaventure

ROCHESTER (NY)
Democrat & Chronicle

July 9, 2020

St. Bonaventure NY – St. Bonaventure University is pulling the name of a deceased priest off one of its buildings thanks to an article written by a Brockport High graduate and local television journalist.

Msgr. James Hopkins, the Catholic Diocese of Erie said in July 2018, was the subject of an abuse report in 1993, long after his 1957 death. His name was among those included in a grand jury’s report in August 2018 on sexual abuse in six Pennsylvania dioceses including Erie.

Hopkins attended seminary at St. Bonaventure in the late 1890s and received an honorary degree in 1950, the university said. He was pastor at St. Titus Church in Titusville, and the sex abuse allegations stemmed from his time there.

Hopkins Hall has been the name of the university’s administration building. The sign in front of the building has been removed and it will be known as the Administration Building until renaming discussions start at an undetermined time.

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.

Ex-Latter-day Saint bishop pleads guilty to child pornography charge

SALT LAKE CITY (UT)
Deseret News

July 9, 2020

By Dennis Romboy

A former Latter-day Saint bishop admitted in federal court Thursday to having child pornography on his cellphone.

Timothy James Hallows, 62, of Kaysville, pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography in an agreement with federal prosecutors. He admitted to having images of prepubescent children being sexually assaulted by adults on his cellphone and sending them to a woman in the Philippines last November.

Hallows faces up to 20 years in prison. A sentencing hearing has not been scheduled.

Hallows was bishop of the Wellington Ward in the Kaysville Utah Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints when he was arrested in October and later charged with eight counts of sexual exploitation of a minor in 2nd District Court in Davis County.

The state charges were dismissed June 29 after the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Davis County Attorney’s Office decided to pursue the case in federal court.

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.

July 9, 2020

La Iglesia archivó una denuncia de abuso sexual contra el ex cura Walter Avanzini

(ARGENTINA)
La Voz de Misiones [Posadas, Argentina]

July 9, 2020

By Unknown

Read original article

La víctima de abuso eclesiástico fue notificada el jueves por el Arzobispado de Córdoba.


CÓRDOBA-VATICANO. A más de un año de la denuncia mediática que Daniel Vera hizo contra el ex cura cordobés Walter Eduardo Avanzini por presuntos abusos sexuales en 1986, la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe, con sede en Roma, archivó la causa.

El jueves 2 de julio Daniel Vera fue notificado por el Arzobispado de Córdoba, a través de un escrito con fecha del 29 de abril, que la denuncia fue desestimada porque “los hechos referidos en la denuncia no reúnen los extremos previstos por la ley canónica vigentes en el año 1986”. Además, porque Walter Eduardo Avanzini “ya no posee estado clerical”.

Asimismo, instaron a que Vera siga con su denuncia en la justicia ordinaria: “Visto que la ley canónica no sustituye las leyes penales del Estado argentino, le ruego haga llegar, en homenaje a la verdad y la justicia, la denuncia ante las autoridades penales del estado”. La mencionada carta está firmada por el obispo Adolfo Uriona, de la diócesis de Río Cuarto.

Tras ser notificado, el cordobés manifestó a La Voz del Interior que irá “con todo por la parte penal” para que Avanzini sea juzgado por los abusos que padeció cuando era menor de edad.

El caso

Daniel Vera conoció al cura Walter Eduardo Avanzini (quien también era médico) en 1985cuando iba a visitar en el Seminario Mayor en Río Cuarto a su hermano, el ahora también ex sacerdote Raúl Vera. “Cuando lo conocí, me pareció un dios. Era un tipo supercarismático. Yo quería ser como él”, recuerda Vera. Según la denuncia del cordobés, sufrió abusos por parte del cura cuando tenía 17 años, en 1986, en Arias, una localidad a 360 kilómetros al sudeste de Córdoba Capital.

La denuncia de Vera no es la única que involucra a Avanzini. En 1983, un seminarista lo denunció por un intento de abuso. Pese a eso, fue ordenado cura a los meses por la diócesis de Río Cuarto. Y en 1998, cuando ya llevaba 13 años en el ejercicio del ministerio sacerdotal fue grabado en un programa de televisión mientras pagaba para tener sexo con un menor en la plaza de Córdoba Capital.

Luego de ese escándalo, el religioso no fue expulsado de la Iglesia Católica, sino enviado a un retiro espiritual en San Fernando, provincia de Buenos Aires. No hubo investigación judicial ni canónica.

Después de abandonar el sacerdocio, Avanzini ingresó como docente y secretario escolar cerca de Villa Carlos Paz. En 2009, entró como empleado del Ministerio de Educación provincial. En 2011 pasó a cumplir funciones a una inspección zonal dependiente de la Dirección General de Institutos Privados de Enseñanza de la Provincia de Córdoba (Dipe).

De 2014 a la actualidad, el ex cura estudió y sumó a su curriculum un profesorado, una licenciatura y una maestría. Esta última la rindió en 2016 cuyo tema de su tesis fue “Acoso entre pares desde la mirada de los actores educativos adultos”.

La Voz del Interior/Cosecha Roja/LVM

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.

Former Philadelphia priest pleads guilty to decades-old sex assaults of altar boys in Bucks County

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philadelphia Inquirer

July 8, 2020

By Vinny Vella

After years of dodging allegations of abusing children, a former Catholic priest pleaded guilty Wednesday to molesting two altar boys in Bucks County decades ago.

Francis Trauger, 74, admitted his guilt to two counts of indecent assault of a minor, and Bucks County Judge Jeffrey L. Finley sentenced him to 18 to 36 months in a state prison and seven years’ probation.

Trauger did not speak during the hour-long hearing, which played out in a mostly empty courtroom, with only a few onlookers and a huddle of journalists.

His attorney, Brian McVann, said that the defrocked priest’s conduct “cannot be defended” and that Trauger felt compelled to admit his guilt and take responsibility for his actions.

“He has done great good in his life,” McVann said. “Unfortunately, it has been lost in this case.”

Finley, in handing down the sentence, told Trauger that any good he had done during his decades-long tenure with the church had been “torn down” and destroyed by these actions.

“I don’t know that you truly understood that,” the judge said. “Or at least that you truly didn’t understand that until you were arrested.”

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.

Bucks County, Pennsylvania priest sentenced in sex abuse case

PHILADELPHIA (PA)
WPVI 6 ABC

July 8, 2020

Tullytown PA – A former Catholic priest pleaded guilty Wednesday afternoon to sexually abusing two altar boys in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.

Father Francis Trauger was sentenced to 18 to 36 months in a state prison in addition to seven years probation.

Trauger served at St. Michael the Archangel in Tullytown between 1993 and 2003, when the assaults happened.

Michael McDonnell, of Bristol, was molested by Trauger in 1981. He says this is a step towards closure.

Trauger was removed from the priesthood in 2003 and two years later was named in the Philadelphia Grand Jury Report about predator 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.

Delbarton sex abuse lawsuits may be first of a wave, raise new questions about abusers

NEWTON (NJ)
New Jersey Herald

July 8, 2020

By Abbott Koloff

A new round of lawsuits filed against the order that runs the Delbarton School in Morris Township underscores questions about how allegedly abusive monks are being dealt with even now — with one still having voicemail at a residence on school grounds after being the subject of another lawsuit settled two years ago.

Attorneys filed six lawsuits Tuesday that contain new accusations of sexual abuse allegedly committed by five men who have been monks of St. Mary’s Abbey and the Order of St. Benedict and one former Delbarton lay teacher. This was the first wave, the attorneys said, of what is expected to be more than 20 such complaints.

The accused clerics are Timothy Brennan, Justin Capato, Donal Fox, Benedict Michael Worry and Malachy Robert Flavin. Also accused is a former teacher, Giacomo Pagano. All six men have been the subjects of prior sex abuse settlements made by the order.

Capato, Fox and Worry were accused in a 2015 civil complaint settled in 2018. Last year, a Catholic directory still listed all three as priests assigned to St. Mary’s Abbey. Worry has a phone extension at the abbey.

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.

‘Difficult decisions’ loom as Catholic Charities misses fundraising goal

BUFFALO (NY)
Buffalo News

July 8, 2020

By Jay Tokasz

When Catholic Charities of Buffalo officials announced in January they would seek to raise $10 million in the 2020 appeal, the big question was how much an anticipated Buffalo Diocese bankruptcy filing might hurt the human services agency’s fundraising.

But the agency faced an even bigger obstacle than the diocese’s February bankruptcy filing when the global coronavirus pandemic shut down parish life and Masses in 161 Catholic churches across Western New York for three months during the heart of the appeal effort.

Despite the pandemic, Catholic Charities ended up raising $8.4 million through the appeal, which ended June 30. It was $1.6 million short of the goal, but Deacon Steve Schumer, president and chief executive officer of the nonprofit, said he was very happy with the results, especially under the extraordinary circumstances of the past few months.

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.

Deadline Set for St. Cloud Diocese Clergy Sex Abuse Claims

ST. CLOUD (MN)
KNSI

July 7, 2020

By Jenifer Lewerenz

The Diocese of St. Cloud has announced a deadline for claims for victims and survivors of clergy sex abuse.

The United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Minnesota issued an order Tuesday saying anyone making a claim against the Diocese for sex abuse must make a claim with the bankruptcy court no later than 5:00 p.m. October 21, 2020. This is to ensure the claim is considered for compensation if the person believes the Diocese of St. Cloud is responsible for any injury or other damages to them because they claim that they were sexually abused by a priest, a clergyman, a worker, a volunteer, an employee, or other person or entity associated with the Diocese.

If you would like to get additional information, or make a claim, click here. You can also call 520-770-8712.

The deadline is part of the $22.5 million settlement framework agreed to by clergy sex abuse survivors, attorneys, and the Diocese.

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Bishop Admits Recycling Predator Priests

FERNDALE (MI)
Church Militant

July 8, 2020

By Bradley Eli

Rochester diocese discredits testimony

Rochester NY – Testimony from Rochester’s former bishop is confirming he routinely reassigned to ministry priests accused of pedophilia.

In testimony released on Monday, Rochester’s Bp. Emeritus Matthew Clark admits under oath that he was aware of sexual abuse allegations against priests, who he nonetheless returned to active ministry after sending them to rehabilitation centers. Mitchell Garabedian, an attorney representing 94 sexual abuse victims suing the diocese of Rochester, says Clark’s deposition, given in March, indicates Clark did shelter known pedophile priests.

“The testimony by Bp. Matthew Clark under oath in his deposition of March 3, 2020 indicates that Bp. Clark hid pedophilia from the public for decades just as clergy sexual abuse victims had suspected,” Garabedian commented.

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Firms file 20 Child Victims Act lawsuits against diocese

PLATSBURGH (NY)
Press-Republican

July 2, 2020

By Cara Chapman

Twenty new lawsuits were filed against the Diocese of Ogdensburg under the New York Child Victims Act Tuesday.

The suits collectively named 14 priests.

“The Diocese of Ogdensburg takes all allegations of abuse seriously, and these new allegations will be investigated,” Diocese of Ogdensburg Communications Director Darcy Fargo said.

“We hope and pray that victims of abuse are able to find healing and reconciliation, and that justice is served in these cases.”

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Statute of limitations runs out on assault allegation

ELLSWORTH (ME)
Ellsworth American

July 8, 2020

By Jennifer Osborn

The statute of limitations for reporting sexual assaults will prevent a potential case involving a priest or pastor from being prosecuted, according to District Attorney Matt Foster.

“I tried to see if the United States Attorney’s Office would be able to prosecute, but they didn’t think they could prosecute the case either,” Foster said.

Hancock County Sheriff’s Det. Stephen McFarland last week took a complaint from a New Jersey man who reported sexual assaults were committed against him between 1978 and 1980 in Dedham.

The statute of limitations is “complex,” the detective said. “It depends on the charge, the age of victim at the time, the date of offense and laws in effect at the time.”

Foster said “basically we cannot prosecute a late report that is alleged to have occurred prior to Oct. 9, 1980 for GSA [gross sexual assault] of a child under 16.”

Whether the accused has been out of state for any period of time during the statute of limitations is another factor, Foster said. For example, any time a defendant spent out of state after the alleged crime, can be added to the statute of limitation to extend it up to an additional five years.

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.

Former Norfolk Catholic teacher given 3 years for sexually abusing student in 1970s

PORTSMOUTH (VA)
WAVY

July 2, 2020

By Sarah Fearing

Norfolk VA – A former teacher at Norfolk Catholic High School has been sentenced to five years in prison with two years suspended in connection with sexual abuse of a student that happened in the late 1970s.

Daniel Wolfe was arrested in March 2019 after the victim came forward alleging sexual abuse between 1978 and 1979, when Wolfe was employed as a teacher at Norfolk Catholic High School.

Wolfe pleaded guilty to one charge of crimes against nature in October 2019 in connection with the allegations.

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.

Two Catholic priests who worked in Fort Worth were accused of molesting kids elsewhere

FORT WORTH (TX)
Star-Telegram

July 8, 2020

By Domingo Ramirez Jr.

Two Marianist religious order priests accused of molesting children in the United States worked in the Diocese of Fort Worth. But they aren’t on a list of clergy accused of sexual abuse of minors in the Fort Worth area because the alleged abuse didn’t occur here, according to a statement from the diocese.

The Roman Catholic religious order based in St. Louis recently released the names of its members found to have sexually abused a minor since 1950 in the United States.

That list included Father John N. Schlund and Father Daniel A. Triulzi, who both worked in the Diocese of Fort Worth at one time. Triulzi was removed from the ministry in 2006 and Schlund in 2004. Triulzi died in 2017, according to the religious order, the Marianist Province of the United States.

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Sarasota County man sues priest, alleging sexual abuse

SARASOTA (FL)
Sarasota Herald-Tribune

July 8, 2020

By Frank Fernandez

The 33-year-old man said sexual abuse took place when he was a teenager about 20 years ago.

A 33-year-old man has filed a lawsuit against a retired Catholic priest who lives in Ormond Beach, accusing the priest of sexually molesting him two decades ago when the man was a teenager being held in a juvenile detention facility.

Louis Reed, the accuser who has filed the lawsuit, agreed to have his name published for this story.

Reed’s suit is filed in Polk County Circuit Court against the Rev. Fred Ruse. An attorney for the former priest said his client did not want to discuss the lawsuit and denied the allegations in a phone interview, citing Reed’s criminal history to question his credibility.

“I already had mental health issues and someone gained my trust as a vulnerable teenager and took advantage of me,” Reed said in a phone interview.

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Name of diocesan priest removed from St. Bonaventure administration building

ST. BONAVENTURE (NY)
St. Bonaventure University

July 8, 2020

St. Bonaventure University has removed the name from Hopkins Hall, the university’s administration building.

Some investigative reporting this spring by Sean Mickey, a reporter for The Bona Venture student newspaper, revealed that the building was named after Msgr. James Hopkins, a diocesan priest who was credibly accused of sexual abuse.

“We didn’t realize that Hopkins was on a list of priests accused of sexual abuse, but when Sean inquired about it when he saw his name, I confirmed with the Diocese of Erie that Hopkins was on the list, and that he had more than one abuse claim,” said Tom Missel, chief communications officer. “Kudos to Sean for bringing it to the university’s attention.”

Dr. Dennis DePerro, university president, authored a resolution to have Hopkins’ name removed from the building. The university’s Board of Trustees approved the resolution at its annual summer board meeting.

“It’s reprehensible what’s been uncovered and heartbreaking for the families who’ve been victimized,” DePerro said. “It doesn’t matter that the abuses in this case might have happened a century ago. Anytime a story surfaces like this, anyone who’s been a victim of sexual abuse feels the pain.”

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.

Late Erie diocese priest’s name removed from university building

ERIE (PA)
Erie Times-News

July 9, 2020

[See also SBU to consider renaming building after claim of sexual abuse, by Sean Mickey, Bona Venture, March 12, 2020; and the description of the Hopkins case in the Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report, August 14, 2018.]

St. Bonaventure NY – The name of a deceased priest who is on the Catholic Diocese of Erie’s list of credibly accused has been removed from a building on the St. Bonaventure University campus.

Msgr. James Hopkins, the Erie diocese said in July 2018, was the subject of an abuse report in 1993, long after his death in 1957. His name was among those included in a grand jury’s report in August 2018 on abuse in six Pennsylvania dioceses including Erie.

Hopkins attended seminary at St. Bonaventure in the late 1890s and received an honorary degree in 1950, the university said. He was pastor at St. Titus Church in Titusville, and the allegations of abuse stemmed from his time there.

Hopkins Hall has been the name of the university’s administration building. The sign in front of the building has been removed and it will be known as the Administration Building until renaming discussions start at an undetermined time.

University President Dennis DePerro drafted a resolution to have Hopkins’ name removed from the building. The Board of Trustees approved the resolution at its annual summer meeting.

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Survivors react to former bishop’s testimony of secret files, shuffling of accused priests

ROCHESTER (NY)
WHAM

July 7, 2020

By Jane Flasch

For 32 years, Matthew Clark led the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester.

The former bishop now admits publicly that the diocese kept secret archives and priests accused of sexual abuse were allowed to continue to serve, sometimes moving from parish to parish.

The statements are contained in a three-hour deposition given in March as part of bankruptcy proceedings. The legal transcript was released to the public Monday.

“I just want to see the truth come out,” said Carol Dupre, who has filed a sexual abuse lawsuit.

She says she was just a teenager when she was first molested by her parish priest back in 1962. During his deposition Bishop Clark said he didn’t recall allegations about Rev. Stuart Hogan or some of the other 50 priests he was asked about.

In other cases, his memory was clear.

For example, he said Rev. Eugene Emo was sent away for treatment, then reassigned to a Livingston County parish – but with no restrictions on access to 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.

Albany Diocese adds deceased Capital Region priest to list of offenders

ALBANY (NY)
Times-Union

July 7, 2020

By Cayla Harris

Rev. Alan Jupin, who died in 2019, allegedly molested five minors in ’70s, ’80s, ’90s

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany on Tuesday added Rev. Alan Jupin – who spent most of his tenure as a priest at Our Lady of Fatima, now St. Kateri Tekakwitha, in Schenectady – to its list of priests and clergy “credibly accused” of sexually abusing children.

Jupin, who died in January 2019, is accused of molesting five children in Schenectady and Albany in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. He is the latest, and the first 2020 addition, to a list of nearly 50 priests and clergy who have substantive complaints of molestation filed against them, as determined by a diocesan review panel.

Jupin’s name was added to the list after the review board hired an investigator last year to probe a new allegation against the reverend, as well as past accusations that the panel had previously decided were unsubstantiated. Jupin had been placed on administrative leave twice – in 2003 and 2011 – for allegations of sexually abusing children, but the review board at those times found those accusations to have “no reasonable cause for action.”

The 2019 investigation, instead, did find reasonable cause to add Jupin’s name to the list, according to a release from the Albany Diocese. The review board meets privately to determine whether sexual abuse allegations are credible and typically relies on information from private investigators; ultimately, the bishop is responsible for any action against priests.

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Retired Pope Benedict follows his brother’s funeral virtually

WASHINGTON (DC)
Catholic News Service via Crux

July 8, 2020

Regensburg, Germany – Retired Pope Benedict XVI followed the funeral of his brother, Georg Ratzinger, via live streaming, reported the German Catholic news agency KNA.

Bishop Rudolf Voderholzer of Regensburg said Pope Benedict, 93, was connected to the Mass taking place for his older brother July 8 in the Regensburg Cathedral. Msgr. Georg Ratzinger died on July 1 at age 96.

During the Mass, the Regensburg bishop recalled the surprise June 18-22 visit Benedict paid to the sickbed of his dying brother.

“This sign of humanity touched many people. So all the more do we share in your mourning,” he said in words addressed to the retired pope.

KNA reported that alongside Voderholzer at the altar was Benedict’s private secretary, Archbishop Georg Ganswein, and the papal ambassador to Germany, Archbishop Nikola Eterovic. Among other participants were the former Regensburg bishop, Cardinal Gerhard Muller, and Munich Cardinal Reinhard Marx.

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July 8, 2020

Suit against Scranton Diocese alleges abuse, cover-up by repeat-offender priest

WILKES-BARRE (PA)
Times Leader

July 7, 2020

By Patrick Kernan

Rev. Robert Caparelli had predatory history, served time

A Berks County man filed a lawsuit against the Diocese of Scranton on Tuesday, claiming the diocese conspired to cover up evidence of abuse in order to protect the alleged abuser.

The Times Leader does not identify the victims of sexual abuse, but the suit was filed through the man’s attorney, Daniel F. Monahan. According to the suit, the man was abused by the late Rev. Robert Caparelli while the plaintiff was between the ages of 10 and 13.

Caparelli was a priest at various churches throughout the Diocese for decades, until he was arrested in the early 1990s, dying while serving prison time in 1994. The plaintiff in this case claims he was abused by Caparelli during his time at Sacred Heart Church, now the site of Holy Family Parish, in Luzerne Borough.

According to the suit, Caparelli’s abuse of the plaintiff began roughly around 1974, while he was an altar server at the church and Caparelli worked as a priest. The suit says Caparelli abused the plaintiff on numerous occasions, telling the boy that “his actions were acceptable because he liked him and he was ‘special.’”

The suit says the abuse occurred in the sacristy of the church.

The suit claims the Diocese of Scranton, including its former leaders J. Carroll McCormick and Bishop John O’Connor “were familiar with Caparelli’s sexual interest in male children as early as Aug. 14, 1968, and continued to be aware through direct confirmation of that sexual interest thereafter.”

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Polish Church faces reckoning over sex abuse

WARSAW (POLAND)
Agence France-Presse

July 8, 2020

Jakub Pankowiak’s story of sexual abuse by a local priest is shaking up Poland’s Catholic hierarchy, amplifying calls for full transparency after decades of cover-ups in the former communist country.

Pankowiak, an organist’s son and a young boy at the time, recalls that Father Arkadiusz Hajdasz was “friendly, open, smiley” when he arrived in the town of Pleszew.

“It started with tea and cookies… until one day he sat down and just started kissing and fondling me,” Pankowiak told AFP in a phone interview.

“I was speechless to the point of no reaction. I just waited for it to end,” said the 35-year-old who still recalls the priest’s bad breath and pimply ruddy cheeks.

Pankowiak, now a musician and lecturer, said Hajdasz molested him hundreds of times, as well as his younger brother Bartlomiej and others.

The siblings tell their story in a documentary called “Hide and Seek” by Marek and Tomasz Sekielski.

Viewed seven million times on YouTube since its May release, it has ignited debate on the issue of clerical sex abuse in Poland.

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SNAP Asks Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth to Add Names to List of Accused Priests

FORT WORTH (TX)
KXAS 5 NBC DFW

July 8, 2020

Fr. John N. Schlund and Fr. Daniel A. Triulzi were named as abusers on the list released by the Marianist

Members of SNAP, the Survivors Network, are requesting that the names of two clerics be added to the rosters of abusive priests in the Diocese of Fort Worth and explain why they were omitted.

Fr. John N. Schlund and Fr. Daniel A. Triulzi were named as abusers on the list released by the Marianist order in late June.

According to the Marianists, Schlund worked in “Campus Ministry” in Denton, and Triulzi worked at Nolan Catholic High School in Fort Worth and at St. Mark’s in Denton.

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Rochester Catholic Church Abuse Victim Speaks on Release of Deposition

ROCHESTER (NY)
Spectrum News

July 7, 2020

By Jonathan Hunter

Former Rochester Catholic Bishop Matthew Clark admitted that he allowed priests who were sexually abusing children to continue to work. The deposition was just released to the public. This comes after he was questioned in March as part of a bankruptcy hearing for the Diocese of Rochester.

“If someone was working for a big company, he’d be fired on the spot when he was caught,” said Carol Dupré, a victim.

Dupré is just one of many victims who say they were abused by priests in the Rochester region. She says her abuse took place in the 1960s at a church in Wayne County.

“Without going into any details about it, I finally told my mother what was going on and she reported it to the dioceses and they did nothing,” said Dupré

In the 140-page deposition, Bishop Clark admitted he knew there were priests who were sexually abusing children. He says he sent them to treatment and reassigned them when they returned. Mitchell Garabedian is an attorney who represents clients who were sexually abused by clergy members.

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Judge declines to dismiss sex abuse case against ex-youth symphony director

SALT LAKE CITY (UT)
Deseret News

July 7, 2020

By Annie Knox

Charges have tested victim’s memory in alleged crime and the reach of statutes of limitation

West Jordan – A judge has declined to dismiss a set of criminal charges against a former youth symphony orchestra director accused of decades-old sexual misconduct with teenage boys.

Third District Judge Kristine Johnson ruled late Monday that prosecutors in Salt Lake County have met their burden of proof, a preponderance of the evidence, at the early stage in the case against Brent E. Taylor, a former longtime director of the Utah Valley Youth Symphony.

Attorneys have focused their attention on the nitty-gritty of Utah’s statutes of limitation and whether they provide Taylor a defense to allegations from a former teenage employee who worked for him in the 1980s.

No one disputes that the charges will hold up only if the boy was legally a child — age 13 or younger — at the time the alleged sexual abuse began. While the defense says the evidence fails to prove his age, prosecutors contend it strongly suggests he was not yet 14 years old.

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Bishop: North Carolina priest kept on leave on abuse claims

CHARLOTTE (NC)
Associated Press

July 2, 2020

A Catholic priest in North Carolina will remain on administrative leave after allegations of sexual abuse against him were revealed last year, the Charlotte diocese’s bishop said.

Bishop Peter Jugis made the announcement to St. Matthew parishioners in a letter Wednesday, writing that he had accepted the recommendation of the diocese’s Lay Review Board to keep the Rev. Patrick Hoare out of ministry, The Charlotte Observer reported.

Hoare was originally put on administrative leave in December after the diocese received “an allegation against him of child sexual abuse that was said to have occurred in Pennsylvania more than 25 years ago, before Father Hoare entered ministry” the Charlotte Observer quoted Jugis as writing.

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Albany Diocese adds deceased priest to list of offenders following investigation

SCHENECTADY (NY)
Daily Gazette

July 7, 20200

By Brenton Blanchet

Rev. Alan Jupin died in 2019; investigation finds “reasonable cause” to accept allegations of sexual abuse against minors credible
|
Albany – The Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany announced Tuesday that it’s adding Rev. Alan Jupin, who died in 2019, to its “List of Offenders” after an investigation found “reasonable cause” related to allegations of sexual abuse against minors.

The findings followed 2019 allegations which the Diocesan Review Board hired an investigator to examine.

Jupin has been accused of sexually abusing a total of five minors in Schenectady and Albany in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. Previously, he was on administrative leave between 2003 and 2011, before the Diocesan Review Board found the allegations he was on leave for had “no reasonable cause for action.”

Last year, Timothy Sawicki of Schenectady joined a multi-plaintiff lawsuit, filed by the Marsh Law Firm in White Plains, and alleged Jupin groomed and sexually abused him when he was 16 and 17 years old from 1975 to 1977. Jupin worked at St. John the Baptist in Schenectady at the time and Sawicki claimed Jupin introduced him to other priests who also sexually abused him.

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Red Sox dogged by claims of racism, sexual abuse

NEW YORK (NY)
Associated Press

July 7, 2020

By Michael Rezendes

Last month, when former Major League All-star Torii Hunter said he’d been called the N-word “a hundred times” at Boston’s storied Fenway Park, the Red Sox were quick to back him up with a promise to fight racism.

“Torii Hunter’s experience is real,” the team said in a June 10 Twitter post, adding that there were at least seven incidents as recently as last year where fans used racial slurs. The team promised to do a better job dealing with racism: “As we identify how we can do better, please know we are listening.”

But those words rang hollow for more than a dozen Black men who have spent the last several years trying to get the Red Sox to listen to their claims that they were sexually abused by a former Red Sox clubhouse manager who died in 2005.

The former clubhouse manager, Donald “Fitzy” Fitzpatrick, pleaded guilty to criminal charges of attempted sexual battery in 2002, admitting that he used Red Sox team memorabilia to lure young, Black clubhouse workers into secluded areas of the team’s Florida spring training facility, where he abused them. Fitzpatrick did not admit to abusing young boys in other ballparks.

Since then, a growing number of men have stepped forward to allege that they, too, were abused by Fitzpatrick at Fenway Park and at major league stadiums in Baltimore and Kansas City, when the Red Sox were playing on the road. Because their claims date to the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, they are too old to be included in civil lawsuits, and the men say their requests for out-of-court settlements have fallen on deaf ears.

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Prestigious N.J. Catholic school hit with more lawsuits alleging students were sexually abused

WOODBRIDGE (NJ)
NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

July 8, 2020

By Joe Atmonavage

Six lawsuits alleging former employees at a prestigious Morris County Catholic school sexually abused minors were filed Tuesday and more than a dozen additional lawsuits will be added in the coming weeks, an attorney representing the victims said.

The lawsuits, filed against Delbarton School, an all-boys school in Morristown, St. Mary’s Abbey and the order that runs the school, St. Benedicts of New Jersey, allege that minors dating back to the 1960s were sexually abused by former employees of the school. The suits were filed in state Superior Court in Morris County.

Greg Gianforcaro, one of the attorneys representing the plaintiffs in the new cases, said he expects additional lawsuits to be filed “soon.”

The Delbarton School has been the subject of a number of lawsuits in recent years by former students who allege they were sexually abused by clerics at the school. Gianforcaro said he has settled at least 15 cases on behalf of sexual abuse survivors against the Delbarton School since 2004.

“This institution cared more about their reputation than they did about the students in the school,” Gianforcaro said about the number of cases filed against the school.

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Patristics scholar appointed new papal ambassador

LONDON (ENGLAND)
The Tablet

July 4, 2020

By Christopher Lamb

Pope Francis has chosen Archbishop Claudio Gugerotti to be his next ambassador to Great Britain.

The 64-year-old Italian diplomat will move to London from Ukraine, where he has served as papal representative, known as an apostolic nuncio, since the end of 2015.

*

Born in Verona, Archbishop Gugerotti is a patristics scholar and expert on the Eastern churches who has taught at the Pontifical Oriental Institute and worked at the Congregation for Eastern Churches.

He is not a career diplomat, but in 2001 Pope John Paul II named him the papal representative to Georgia, Armenia and Arzebaijan.

The archbishop’s appointment to the complex, and delicate posting of Ukraine signalled his diplomatic expertise. He also took over that position from Archbishop Timothy Gullickson, who had been openly critical of Pope Francis.

*
As nuncio, the archbishop’s role will see him draw up shortlists for crucial leadership positions in the Church in England and Wales. Whenever a diocese needs a new bishop, the papal nuncio is responsible for drawing up a shortlist of three candidates along with a detailed report into the local church.

Later this year the Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, will reach the retirement age of 75, while in 2021 the Archbishop of Cardiff, George Stack, also turns 75.

Archbishop Gugerotti is also facing the outcomes of the independent inquiry into child sexual abuse. His predecessor, Archbishop Adams, was criticised for not giving evidence to the inquiry.

As a Holy See ambassador he had diplomatic immunity and could not be compelled to give evidence. The inquiry wanted information about the apostolic nunciature’s handling of abuse at Ealing Abbey and St Benedict’s school, particularly on the case of Laurence Soper, the former abbot who skipped bail while under suspicion for abuse.

It later emerged that the Vatican financial authorities provided crucial information which led to the arrest and conviction for Soper for child abuse offences.

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Pittsburgh Diocese announces job cuts, move of administrative office

PITTSBURGH (PA)
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

July 7, 2020

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh will eliminate 11 jobs, reduce the hours for two others, and relocate its administrative offices as it tries to reduce costs while responding to the “ongoing challenges presented by the global COVID-19 pandemic,” the diocese announced Tuesday.

The reorganization plan will move diocesan headquarters from the Boulevard of the Allies in Downtown to the St. Paul Seminary campus in East Carnegie, where some of its offices are already located. The Downtown building would likely be put up for sale.

The plan was announced to staff and clergy Tuesday during two online conference calls.

In the release, the diocese did not specify which jobs were eliminated.

The diocese said a long-term decline in Mass attendance and donations “has been exacerbated by the ripple effect of COVID-19. Decreased donations to parishes directly impacts Parish Share giving, which is the primary source of funding for the diocesan budget.”

The cuts were originally expected to be higher, but the diocese was able to reduce the cuts, in part due to a $2.5 million loan through the federal Payroll Protection Program, which the diocese says helped prevent further layoffs and furloughs.

“Having to let one person go is sad enough, but we have 11,” Bishop David Zubik said. “We just try to be very responsible about using the money the best way we can.”

The cuts come on top of a previous round of cuts last year in which the diocese eliminated about 32 positions.

Long-term declines in attendance and donations have been exacerbated in the past two years, first by some parishioners upset over parish mergers and the grand jury report into sexual abuse by priests, and more recently by the pandemic. Churches were closed for several weeks, and the usual required attendance remains waived even with their reopening. Donations have been down 20% since the pandemic started.

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July 7, 2020

Dan último adiós al padre Vicente Condado

XALAPA (MEXICO)
Diario de Xalapa [Xalapa, Veracrúz, Mexico]

July 7, 2020

By Miguel Salazar

Read original article

Impulsó la construcción de la Basílica Menor de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, en El Dique

Xalapa, Ver.- El arzobispo Hipólito Reyes Larios ofició una misa para pedir por el eterno descanso del padre Vicente Condado Sánchez, quien falleció el pasado domingo en esta capital a la edad de 84 años, por motivos de salud.

En compañía de sacerdotes de la Diócesis de Xalapa y de un grupo limitado de fieles en la Catedral, a causa de la cuarentena por coronavirus, le dieron el último adiós a quien fue impulsor de la construcción de la Basílica Menor de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, ubicada en el barrio de El Dique. 

Al término de la ceremonia de cuerpo presente y que se llevó a cabo las 12 horas de ayer, los restos del sacerdote fueron trasladados a las catacumbas de la catedral, para su eterno descanso. El padre Vicente Condado Sánchez nació en la ciudad de Xalapa el día 6 de abril de 1936.

Fue hijo de Celerino Condado y Esther Sánchez. Tuvo el privilegio de recibir la Ordenación Sacerdotal el 22 de agosto de 1968, en Bogotá, Colombia, de manos del entonces papa Paulo VI. 

El 4 de enero de 1990 fue trasladado a la parroquia y Santuario de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe en Xalapa, donde permaneció hasta el 13 de octubre de 2009, además de que le tocó estar al frente de la construcción la Basílica de Guadalupe y llevó el proyecto hasta un 80% de avance. El 19 de septiembre de 1985 fue nombrado vicario Parroquial y en 1987 se convirtió en párroco.

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PADRE VICENTE CONDADO

XALAPA (MEXICO)
Golpe Político [Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico]

July 7, 2020

By Alfredo Quezada Hernández

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La mañana del pasado 5 de julio, a la edad de 84 años y luego de varios padecimientos de salud,

falleció el padre Vicente Condado Sánchez.

El ministro religioso es recordado como una persona muy tratable, culta, carismática, atenta y servicial; era

un gran conocedor de la liturgia y el arte sagrado; gozaba de la admiración y la estima de muchas personas.

Una de sus grandes aportaciones a esta ciudad capital es que a él le tocó construir el santuario de la actual

Basílica de Guadalupe, en la zona de Los Lagos.

Fue el encargado de llevar el proyecto de construcción hasta un 80%.

El 4 de enero de 1990 fue trasladado a la parroquia y Santuario de Nuestra Sra. de Guadalupe en Xalapa

donde permaneció hasta el 13 de octubre del 2009.

Tenía grandes capacidades de oratoria y se distinguía por su calidad humana y evangélica.

Condado Sánchez nació en esta ciudad de Xalapa, Ver., un 6 de abril de 1936. Fue hijo de Sr. Celerino

Condado y Esther Sánchez.

Tuvo el privilegio de recibir la Ordenación Sacerdotal el día 22 de agosto de 1968, en la ciudad de Bogotá,

Colombia, de manos de S.S. el Papa Paulo VI. Cursó sus estudios de Humanidades en el Seminario de

Xalapa, así como sus estudios de Filosofía y Teología. En el año de 1969 fue enviado a la ciudad de Roma

para hacer estudios superiores, se especializó en Psicología y Pedagogía en la Universidad Pontificia

Salesiana de Roma.

Descanse en Paz.

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Abusos: la Iglesia archivó la denuncia de Daniel Vera contra el excura cordobés Walter Avanzini

(ARGENTINA)
La Voz [Córdoba, Argentina]

July 7, 2020

By Lisandro Tosello

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El hombre fue notificado el jueves por el Arzobispado de Córdoba. La denuncia mediática la hizo en junio de 2019. “Ahora iré con todo por la parte penal”, manifestó.

más de un año de la denuncia mediática que Daniel Vera hizo contra el excura cordobés Walter Eduardo Avanzini por presuntos abusos sexuales en 1986, la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe, con sede en Roma, archivó la causa.

A más de un año de la denuncia mediática que Daniel Vera hizo contra el excura cordobés Walter Eduardo Avanzini por presuntos abusos sexuales en 1986, la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe, con sede en Roma, archivó la causa.

El jueves 2 de julio, el denunciante fue notificado por el Arzobispado de Córdoba. Por medio de un escrito, con fecha del 29 de abril, se le informó que la denuncia fue desestimada porque “los hechos referidos en la denuncia no reúnen los extremos previstos por la ley canónica vigentes en el año 1986”. Además, porque Avanzini “ya no posee estado clerical”.

Por último, instaron a que Vera siga con su denuncia en la justicia ordinaria.

“Visto que la ley canónica no sustituye las leyes penales del Estado argentino, le ruego haga llegar, en homenaje a la verdad y la justicia, la denuncia ante las autoridades penales del estado”.

La carta está firmada por el obispo Adolfo Uriona, de la diócesis de Río Cuarto.

“Iré con todo por la parte penal”

Tras ser notificado, Vera manifestó a La Voz que irá “con todo por la parte penal” para que Avanzini sea juzgado en los tribunales.

En estos 13 meses de la exposición de su caso, el hombre se fortaleció y se puso en contacto con Lisandro Gómez, su letrado e integrante del Instituto Laico de Estudios Contemporáneos de Argentina (Ilec), para formular la denuncia, la cual será presentada cuando se flexibilicen las actividades pospandemia por coronavirus.

La historia

Daniel Vera conoció al cura Walter Eduardo Avanzini en 1985 por intermedio de su hermano, el ahora también exsacerdote Raúl Vera. Avanzini, luego de su etapa de formación en el Seminario Mayor de Córdoba y de su ordenación en la diócesis de Río Cuarto, había sido enviado a su destino pastoral en Arias.

Daniel, quien viene de una familia muy católica, vivía con su madre y su padre a 53 kilómetros, en la localidad de Canals. Los domingos viajaba a Río Cuarto para visitar a su hermano en el Seminario Mayor. Allí conoció a Avanzini, quien además de sacerdote era médico y oriundo de una localidad cercana, Sampacho.

“Cuando lo conocí, me pareció un dios. Era un tipo supercarismático. Yo quería ser como él”, recuerda Vera.

En 1985, Daniel cursaba cuarto año en el Instituto Belisario Roldán de Canals y soñaba con ser cura y misionero en África. Para sus padres, que se habían conocido dando catequesis, tener dos hijos religiosos no podía ser un regalo mejor.

Avanzini se convirtió en su referente. Al vivir en localidades vecinas, Daniel empezó a visitarlo en la parroquia. “A veces, la Iglesia organizaba encuentros pastorales de jóvenes”, recuerda. “Como él sabía que yo quería seguir sus pasos, me invitaba y yo viajaba. Me quedaba a dormir con él, en otra habitación”.

Daniel asegura que a veces, cuando se duchaba en la casa parroquial, Avanzini irrumpía en el baño para llevarle una toalla y lo veía desnudo. Y que en ese contexto el sacerdote le hizo una observación íntima sobre su órgano sexual, aunque siempre dando la impresión de que se trataba de una preocupación médica.

“Me preguntó si tenía problemas, porque me vio el prepucio largo”, dice Vera. Y añade: “Como él era médico, no me hizo ruido en ese momento. Pensé que era una observación profesional”.

En 1986, Daniel transitaba su último año en el secundario y su vocación por lo social crecía. Ya había decidido ser religioso y misionero. Su vínculo con Avanzini continuaba, y su familia también se había encariñado con el sacerdote.

En diciembre de ese año, Avanzini lo invitó a un nuevo encuentro pastoral con estudiantes de Río Cuarto y de Buenos Aires.

Firme en su decisión de ser sacerdote, viajó a Arias ilusionado por compartir con otros adolescentes un nuevo encuentro pastoral, sin saber que ese diciembre, según sus palabras, le quedaría “marcado a fuego” para siempre.

Recuerda que una noche de mucho calor, Avanzini lo llamó a su habitación. Quería hablar sobre cómo le estaba yendo con el resto de los estudiantes que estaban en la misión. Daniel asegura que entró a la habitación del cura y lo encontró en calzoncillos. Esa noche, relata, ocurrió el abuso sexual.

Según su testimonio, el sacerdote lo hizo sentar en la cama y empezaron a conversar. Luego de unos minutos, Avanzini lo abrazó y lo besó.

“Me quedé paralizado. Me empezó a manosear los genitales y a decirme cosas subidas de tono”. Luego, contó, “me dijo que lo penetrara, pero yo no le hice nada”. Vera recuerda que Avanzini estaba muy excitado, pese a que él no lo correspondió.

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Deposition of Bishop Matthew Harvey Clark

ROCHESTER (NY)
U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Western District of New York

Released July 6, 2020; taken March 3, 2020

Examination by William Gordon of the Law Offices of Mitchell Garabedian for the Creditors Committee

[Excerpt from pages 53-54.]

Q. So Father Emo had admitted to you, correct me if I’m wrong, that he had sexually abused a minor. Is that correct?

A. Uh-huh.

Q. You sent him away to treatment to some facility, correct?

A. Yes.

Q. And after he came back, you reassigned him to a position at a parish?

A. Yes.

Q. Was he assigned as a pastor or assistant pastor?

A. Assistant.

Q. And was it your understanding that as an assistant pastor, Father Emo would have access to minors?

A. Yes.

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New information revealed from bishop’s deposition in Rochester Diocese bankruptcy case

ROCHESTER (NY)
WROC

July 6, 2020

A transcript of the March deposition of former bishop Matthew Clark of the Rochester Diocese was released Monday.

The Diocese filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September of last year, less than one month after a flurry of lawsuits were filed against the Catholic organization related to the Child Victims Act.

Clark, who suffers from Alzheimer’s, answered questions about what he knew about dozens of priests and if he knew about prior allegations against them.

He did admit to knowing about prior sexual misconduct allegations against some priests. He said that some accused priests returned to the ministry after either going to get rehabilitation or seeing a psychologist.

*
Mitchell Garabedian, the attorney representing 94 sexual abuse victims in the Diocese of Rochester also released a statement concerning the deposition:

“The testimony by Bishop Matthew Clark under oath in his deposition of March 3, 2020 indicates that Bishop Clark hid pedophilia from the public for decades just as clergy sexual abuse victims had suspected. By hiding pedophilia, Bishop Clark was part of the horrible problem and not part of the solution. Given his testimony under oath, Bishop Clark had an utter disregard for the safety and well- being of children.”

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Statement regarding deposition of Bishop Emeritus Matthew H. Clark

ROCHESTER (NY)
Diocese of Rochester

July 6, 2020

The Diocese of Rochester appreciates Bishop Emeritus Clark’s cooperation in undergoing approximately three hours of questioning in his deposition of March 2020. While any individual would have difficulty providing accurate memory of events that occurred over a period of more than 33 years, Bishop Clark was further hindered by his struggle with early Alzheimer’s Disease.

In a January 13, 2020 letter filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in early February, prior to the deposition, Bishop Clark’s physician had forewarned of potential issues by stating that Bishop Clark’s “memory impairment limits his ability to assimilate and recall information presented in lengthy and complex questions and his ability to recall past events. His language impairment limits his ability to form clear, cogent and reliable responses to such questions.” As a result of these limitations, the deposition is in many instances imprecise and inaccurate and thus calls into question whether it is a credible addition to the bankruptcy case record.

We continue to pray for the victims of sexual abuse, that they might find the hope and healing they deserve. We pray for Bishop Clark and for all those who suffer from this debilitating and tragic disease, and for the dedicated health professionals and caregivers working to assuage the difficult challenges of Alzheimer’s Disease.

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Deposition of Bishop Matthew Clark reveals information on child sex abuse

ROCHESTER (NY)
WHEC 10 NBC

July 6, 2020

By Jennifer Lewke

What did he know and when did he know it?

That’s what attorneys for the victims of priest sex abuse were trying to find out from former Bishop of the Rochester Diocese, Matthew Clark during a recent deposition.

The transcript of that deposition was just filed.

News10NBC Investigative Reporter Jennifer Lewke has been reading through it.

The transcript is 145 pages long and the deposition lasted three hours. Bishop Clark was in frail health while providing it.

His doctor was there with him to monitor his condition as he answered questions as part of the diocese’s bankruptcy filing.

Bishop Clark was asked about dozens of priests by name and whether he was aware of sexual misconduct allegations against them.

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Priests accused of sex abuse remained in ministry, former bishop admits

ROCHESTER (NY)
WHAM 13 ABC

July 6, 2020

By Ginny Ryan

For the first time, and under oath, Bishop Emeritus Matthew Clark has admitted priests accused of sex abuse continued to serve in ministry.

The bishop’s testimony came as part of bankruptcy proceedings for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester.

In his own words, he offers a rare look into how priests accused of sex abuse were handled.

“In times past, there was no accountability,” according to Jeff Anderson, an attorney for sex abuse survivors. “There was not an opportunity to take this kind of deposition and ask a broad range of questions.”

During a three-hour deposition, Bishop Clark was questioned about more than 50 priests accused of abuse. Some, he said, he did not remember.

But there are many he did, including Rev. Eugene Emo.

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A survivor of abuse by an Opus Dei priest condemned by the Vatican tells poignant story

MADRID (SPAIN)
Religión Digital / Kairos News

July 5, 2020

Santiago, Chile – The survivor is a young man who lives today in Santiago, Chile, who agreed to an exclusive interview with Kairós News.

He says that he decided to come forward when he heard the case of Barros and Karadima, while Pope Francis was in Chile. That he would like Opus to learn from what has happened in our country.

“Cociña always talks about massages. I couldn’t tell anyone, because nobody was going to believe me”

“What is Opus playing at? That sentence has sixteen pages and the sentence … five years is nothing. He has not been expelled from Opus Dei”

“Canon Law is very bad, because we are not the same as we denounce each other. Rather, it is the Catholic Church that denounces one of its own, which in this case is Manuel Cociña” [Google translation]

El sobreviviente de los abusos del cura del Opus Dei condenado por el Vaticano cuenta su conmovedora historia

El sobreviviente es un joven que vive hoy en Santiago de Chile, quien accedió a una entrevista exclusiva con Kairós News

Dice que se decidió a denunciar cuando conoció el caso de Barros y Karadima, estando el papa Francisco en Chile. Que le gustaría que el Opus aprendiera de lo que ha pasado en nuestro país.

“Cociña siempre habla de los masajes. Yo no podía decírselo a nadie, porque nadie me iba a creer”

“¿A qué está jugando el Opus? Esa sentencia tiene dieciséis páginas y la condena… cinco años es nada. No se le ha expulsado del Opus Dei”

“El Derecho Canónico está muy mal, porque no somos iguales que nos denunciamos uno al otro. Sino que es la Iglesia Católica quien denuncia a uno de los suyos, que en este caso es Manuel Cociña”

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Covid delays Riverside clergy-abuse suit v. LA archdiocese and San Bernardino diocese

LOS ANGELES (CA)
Los Angeles Daily News / City News Service

July 6, 2020

Citing the coronavirus, a judge said Monday that trial of a case brought against an archdiocese and a diocese by plaintiffs who allege they were sexually abused by a priest more than 25 years ago will not go forward as scheduled in October and instead be delayed for five months.

“Our world is a different place than it was when we last spoke,” Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David Sotelo told attorneys in reference to the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused all but a few civil case matters to be put on hold from early March until June 22.

Sotelo, presiding over a status conference, rescheduled the trial from Oct. 6 to March 2, 2021. By the time a jury is impaneled, the lawsuit may no longer include the accused priest, the Rev. Carlos Rene Rodriguez, as a defendant.

Plaintiffs’ attorney Anthony M. De Marco stated in a report to the court that he has been unable to locate the clergyman and that the defendant likely has little or no money, so De Marco has decided to drop him from the case.

De Marco stated in his court papers that the decision is “without prejudice,” meaning it could be reversed later if circumstances warrant.

The two plaintiffs are identified only as John R.R. Doe and John R.F. Doe. In February 2018, they sued the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and Diocese of San Bernardino, as well as the Congregation of the Mission Western Province, which conducts religious education and activities.

The plaintiffs allege they were abused by Rodriguez when he was assigned to a Riverside parish that was part of the San Bernardino diocese, which is formally known as the Roman Catholic Bishop of San Bernardino. The parish is not identified in their suit.

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Abuse victims ask court to dismiss New Orleans Archdiocese bankruptcy

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
WWL 4 CBS

July 6, 2020

By David Hammer

The victims say the Archdiocese filed for bankruptcy to block lawsuits rather than because they are having severe money issues.

Victims of alleged child sex abuse by priests are asking a federal judge to throw out the Archdiocese of New Orleans’ bankruptcy case, saying the Church filed for the legal protection in “bad faith” as a way to block their lawsuits rather than for a legitimate financial need.

At least 34 abuse lawsuits have been halted by the local Church’s decision to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection May 1. Another half dozen cases filed since then are also on hold pending the bankruptcy.

Last week, the Archdiocese filed a motion in the bankruptcy case asking the court to bar any new abuse claims starting Sept. 29. A committee of attorneys representing the Church’s unsecured creditors, mostly the alleged abuse victims, came right back with a motion late Friday to dismiss the Archdiocese’s bankruptcy case completely, a move that would help pending abuse claims move forward.

In their motion to dismiss, the creditors said the bankruptcy was filed as a “litigation tactic” just as many abuse victims had asked the courts to release internal Church documents and force top archdiocesan officials to testify under oath.

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Attorney Blog: Three More Catholic Priests Accused of Child Sexual Abuse Under NY Child Victims Act

PINELLAS PARK (FL)
Legal Examiner – Saunders & Walker

July 6, 2020

By Joseph H. Saunders

Three former priests with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse have been accused of sexually abusing a young boy in a graphically detailed lawsuit, according to Press Connects. The alleged abuse began when the victim, now 61, was in fifth grade and continued through his high school years.

The lawsuit was filed under New York’s Child Victims Act, which allows survivors of childhood sexual abuse to file claims against their abusers and any institutions that knowingly obscured or failed to prevent the abuse, regardless of how much time has passed. The Syracuse Diocese, which is now facing over 100 sexual abuse lawsuits, filed for bankruptcy on June 19.

The diocese had previously identified the three priests — Robert Kloster, David Pichette and Thomas Zedar — as having been “credibly accused” of child sexual abuse. All three were permanently removed from ministry, but not in time to stop them from abusing this plaintiff.

In the lawsuit, Kloster, Pichette and Zedar are accused of methodically grooming the young boy for the purpose of sexually abusing him. It argues the boy “felt trapped over the years by feelings of helplessness and shame,” and that each former priest committed abusive acts that “ultimately ruined his life.”

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Megachurch pastor John Ortberg kept a family member’s attraction to children secret. Then his son blew the whistle.

COLUMBIA (MO)
Religion News Service

July 6, 2020

By Bob Smietana

Megachurch pastor John Ortberg kept a family member’s attraction to children secret. Then his son blew the whistle.

In the summer of 2018, a volunteer at Menlo Church came to the Rev. John Ortberg seeking help.

The congregation member, who volunteered with youth and children at the Bay area megachurch and in the community, had been experiencing “an unwanted thought pattern of attraction to minors” and needed the pastor’s support.

After hearing this admission, Ortberg asked if the volunteer had ever acted on that attraction.

The volunteer said no.

Once Ortberg was convinced the volunteer was telling the truth and was not a danger to others, he prayed for the person and offered a referral for counseling and then allowed the volunteer to continue working with children.

In what Menlo Church’s elders would later call “poor judgment” and a betrayal of trust, the megachurch pastor did not notify the church’s staff of the volunteer’s admitted attraction to minors.

He did not notify the church’s elder board.

He did not suggest the volunteer stop working with children – in fact, the pastor and his family encouraged the volunteer in his work as a coach of an Ultimate Frisbee team for high school students.

Instead, Ortberg, the lead pastor of Menlo, kept what he had learned about the volunteer secret from his congregation.

Especially the volunteer’s name: John “Johnny” Ortberg III, the pastor’s youngest son.

But nothing in a church or in a family stays hidden forever.

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July 6, 2020

Primate of Poland: Church must rebuild trust amid abuse crisis

Denver (CO)
Catholic News Agency

July 6, 2020

The Catholic Church can only rebuild trust in its handling of clerical abuse by “taking responsibility for clarifying all crimes and omissions,” the Primate of Poland said Monday.

In a statement issued July 6, Archbishop Wojciech Polak noted the steps that the Polish bishops have taken in response to a burgeoning abuse crisis in the country.

“I am convinced that only by standing in truth and taking responsibility for clarifying all crimes and omissions, we will rebuild our credibility and trust in the Church in Poland,” he said.

Polak is the Polish bishops’ delegate for the protection of children and youth. As the metropolitan archbishop of Gniezno, the Polish primatial see, he is the Primate of Poland.

His comments came a week after more than 600 people took out a full-page advertisement in the Italian daily newspaper La Repubblica urging the pope to intervene in the growing abuse crisis in the country.

A Vatican spokesman said that Pope Francis had been informed of the appeal and was praying for those who sent it.

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English Catholic bishop: parishes see ‘dramatic fall’ in income following lockdown

DENVER (CO)
Catholic News Agency

July 6, 2020

An English bishop has said that parishes have seen “dramatic fall” in income as a result of the coronavirus lockdown.

Bishop Mark Davies of Shrewsbury urged the government to step in to help dioceses struggling financially as a result of the pandemic.

“The weeks of the national lockdown saw a dramatic fall of about a third in parish income. This is having a serious impact on the operation of parishes,” he told CNA.

Mike Kane, a local Member of Parliament, raised the financial plight of the Diocese of Shrewsbury, in western England, in the House of Commons last month.

He noted June 25 that the diocese’s income was down by a third since the government announced a nationwide lockdown March 23. He said that this loss of around $875,000 would have a long-term impact on the diocese’s ability to maintain its buildings.

Kane, the Labour MP for Wythenshawe and Sale East, urged the government to consider introducing an “enhanced gift aid scheme” to shore up diocesan finances.

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Accused clergymen worked at Catholic high schools in Belleville, East St. Louis

BELLEVILLE (IL)
Belleville News-Democrat

July 6, 2020

By Teri Maddox

Allegations against five clergymen who worked at metro-east Catholic high schools decades ago had been made public well before June, when the Society of Mary order put them on a list of 46 priests, brothers and aspirants “found to have sexually abused a minor.”

But all of the publicity occurred in other states over the past 20 years.

“For the first time, parishioners and the public in this area are likely being made aware of these allegations and the fact that these five were in the Belleville diocese,” said David Clohessy, co-founder of the St. Louis chapter of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. “(The allegations) are now publicly and clearly deemed credible.”

The five clergymen had assignments at Cathedral Central Catholic High School in Belleville and Central Catholic High School and Assumption Catholic High School in East St. Louis, which are all closed. It’s unknown if abuse occurred at these schools.

Four of the clergymen are known to be deceased, according to the order.

The one with the most assignments was the late Eugene T. Fitzsimmons, a brother who professed his vows in 1947 and taught at Assumption, which closed in 1989. He had nine other assignments in Texas, Wisconsin, Missouri, Hawaii and California before leaving ministry in 2000. He died in 2011.

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What Has Stalled Progress in Uprooting the Vatican’s Financial Corruption?

IRONDALE (AL)
National Catholic Register

July 2, 2020

By Edward Pentin

A range of sources agree that profound change is required to correct the flawed underlying mentality that continues to give rise to problems, and has allowed senior officials to escape taking responsibility.

Vatican City – Cardinal George Pell, the former prefect of the Vatican’s Secretariat for the Economy which Pope Francis created six years ago to monitor and reform Vatican finances, delivered a pointed message on June 30 about the threat that financial corruption poses to the Church’s mission.

“Undoubtedly, money is one of God’s gifts, it is also a source of temptation,” Pell said in a video message delivered June 30 to the Global Institute of Church Management at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome. “To say that the Church is not a business provides no justification for us to be inefficient much less for us to be corrupt.”

He recalled being surprised to learn that St. Teresa of Calcutta had said “for the clergy there are two great challenges: one touches on sexuality and another touched on money. And she thought that the danger from money was greater and stronger than that from errant sexuality.”

Cardinal Pell’s remarks were conspicuously well-timed, coming in the wake of the arrest last month of Italian financier Gianluigi Torzi on charges of “extortion, embezzlement, aggravated fraud and money laundering,” relating to a London property deal carried out by Vatican Secretariat of State officials that went sour.

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Weigel’s ‘The Next Pope’ has a crimped, Americanist vision of papacy

KANSAS CITY (MO)
National Catholic Reporter

July 6, 2020

By Michael Sean Winters

George Weigel’s latest book, The Next Pope: The Office of Peter and a Church in Mission, is a thin one at only 141 pages. But it is thin, too, in the sense that what it communicates is either a repeat of Weigel’s earlier themes or a recantation of ideas — some of which are true but banal and others are misleading and given to caricature. The only real novelty is the degree to which he casts aspersions on the current pope with catty insinuations without sufficient courage to say plainly where he thinks Pope Francis has erred.

Does anyone argue against this claim of Weigel’s when he writes, early in the book: “Jesus Christ and his Gospel are the reason the Church is. And because of that, the proclamation of that Gospel and that Christ must be at the center of what the Catholic Church does.” Yes, of course this is true. Does anyone doubt it?

Weigel almost immediately descends into caricatures of the various approaches to evangelization. He writes, “At this moment in Catholic history, in which some deny that God’s revelation judges history and suggest that the flow of history and our present experience judge the truths of revelation, it is important to remember how robust the Second Vatican Council’s defense of the reality and the truth of divine revelation was.”

Who thinks history stands in judgment of revelation? To frame the contemporary debates within the church this way is not an instance of putting one’s finger on the scale, it is a misframing of the debates.

After a beautiful quote from Vatican II’s Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation, Dei Verbum, Weigel writes, “The next pope must understand this and teach it to the entire world Church.” Is there any chance he won’t?

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July 5, 2020

Reverend on hunger strike in response to Church’s silence on her case

CAPE TOWN (SOUTH AFRICA)
Cape Town Etc.

July 5, 2020

South Africa continues to be one of the most dangerous places for women to exist. Having extremely high numbers of gender-based violence and rape cases, women are living in fear every day. Now, a survivor is speaking out in the form of a protest.

Reverend June Major, an Anglican priest from the Cape Town Diocese, has gone on a hunger strike, as she continues to fight for justice for herself and other victims of rape and gender-based violence (GBV). The hunger strike began on July 1.

Major was allegedly raped by a fellow priest in 2002 at Grahamstown Seminary. Despite reporting the rape to the SAPS and to the Church authorities her rapist continues to minister to congregations and justice has not been served, according to a press release.

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Founder of German Schoenstatt Movement accused of abuses

VATICAN CITY
Associated Press

July 2, 2020

By Nicole Winfield

Another founder of a 20th century lay Catholic movement has been accused of abusing his power, including sexually and spiritually, with nuns in his care.

A German researcher says she found evidence in newly released Vatican archives that the Holy See investigated the Rev. Josef Kentenich during the 1950s and because of his abuses ordered the German priest exiled from the Schoenstatt Movement.

Church historian Alexandra Von Teuffenbach said she wanted to reveal the truth about Kentenich and “demolish the many proposed reconstructions of alternative truths” since the process to get him beatified is making its way to the Vatican after more than 45 years.

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Former senior PSNI officer to lead working group on clerical child abuse

BELFAST(NORTHERN IRELAND)
Belfast Telegraph

July 5, 2020

By Michael McHugh, PA

Judith Gillespie has been appointed independent chairwoman.

A former senior PSNI officer is to lead a Stormont-ordered investigation into clerical child abuse and mother and baby homes.

Judith Gillespie has been appointed independent chairwoman of the group tasked with the work.

Academics from Queen’s University in Belfast and Ulster University have been examining the operation of institutions such as the Magdalene Laundries between 1922 and 1999.

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Children’s Home seeks dismissal of lawsuit alleging that house parents sexually abused Winston-Salem boy in the 1970s

NORTH CAROLINA
News & Record

July 5, 2020

By Michael Hewlett

The attorney for the Children’s Home is asking a judge to dismiss a lawsuit alleging that a couple acting as house parents sexually abused a Winston-Salem boy in the 1970s and the agency did nothing to stop it.

In court papers filed late last month, the attorney, G. Gray Wilson, says that a state law making it easier for accusers in child sexual abuse cases to file claims in civil court is unconstitutional and denies the Children’s Home due process.

A 59-year-old man filed the lawsuit in Mecklenburg Superior Court in April against the Children’s Home, which is now known as Crossnore School & Children’s Home, and the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church, which ran the Children’s Home at the time of the alleged abuse.

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Abuse victims seek apology from Kurn Hattin

VERMONT
Brattleboro Reformer

July 5, 2020

By Bob Audette

WESTMINSTER — A group of seven men who were sexually assaulted during the 1980s while at Kurn Hattin Homes for Children want to have their stories heard — and they want an apology.

“No client every comes to us and says this about money,” said Nate Foote, of Andreozzi and Foote in Harrisburg, Penn. In this case, Foote said, they want the school to acknowledge what happened to them at the hands of Mark W. Davis, who pleaded no contest in 1990 to charges of lewd and lascivious behavior with students at the residential school.

“They want the school, through words and actions, to say ‘We are sorry. We brought you here to make your lives better and it turned out the opposite,'” Foote said.

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Louise O’Keeffe calls on Government to honour pledges on school sex-abuse redress

IRELAND
Irish Times

July 5, 2020

By Barry Roche

Both Micheál Martin and Leo Varadkar promised to deliver on pledge

Children’s rights campaigner Louise O’Keeffe has called on both Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Tánaiste Leo Varadkar to deliver on promises to compensate children sexually abused while attending schools.

Ms O’Keeffe has called on both men to honour commitments they gave in the Dáil last July that they would re-open an ex-gratia payment scheme for those sexually abused while attending Irish primary and secondary schools pre-1992.

“Both Micheál Martin and Leo Varadkar must honour commitments they made in Dáil Éireann a year ago that they would ensure the victims of child sex abuse in Irish schools were no longer wronged,” Ms O’Keeffe told The Irish Times.

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Monument’s days numbered at disgraced bishop’s resting place

SPRINGFIELD (MA)
Berkshire Eagle

July 4, 2020

By Caroline White

[PHOTO: The Springfield diocese plans to move the gravesite of the late Most Rev. Christopher J. Weldon, after an independent inquiry found cause to believe that Weldon, who oversaw the diocese from 1950 to 1977 and died in 1982, sexually abused an altar boy in Chicopee.]

Upon entering the Gate of Heaven Cemetery, visitors find themselves face-to-face with Jesus.

The religious figure’s nearly human-sized granite figure sits atop a 15-foot stone pillar above a sloping grass landscape, the dominant presence amid hundreds of gravestones in the Springfield cemetery.

Soon, that figure will disappear from its vaunted position at the cemetery, along with the remains of the man who lies below.

The monument was erected to honor the Most Rev. Christopher J. Weldon after his death in 1982. Late last month, a report commissioned by the diocese found that child sex abuse allegations against Weldon to be “unequivocally credible.”

Following the report, the current Springfield bishop, the Most Rev. Mitchell T. Rozanski, ordered the monument to be taken down and Weldon’s remains to be moved and “marked with a simple gravestone.”

Diocese spokesperson Mark Dupont said that given the findings detailed in the report by former Springfield Superior Court Judge Peter A. Velis, it was no longer appropriate for Weldon’s remains to be placed in “a high profile area that gives honor to him.” Velis was hired last July to prepare “an independent and outside” probe, with help from a chief investigator, Dennis O’Connor.

That step came years after the victim first reported his abuse, which occurred in the early 1960s, and after a former church insider claimed the diocese was attempted to cover up the assaults to protect Weldon’s reputation. The church did not list Weldon as “credibly accused” even though the diocese’s internal review board told the man it found his claim believable.

The Velis report confirmed that the diocese mishandled the allegations, leading former Berkshire Superior Court Judge Daniel A. Ford, who now leads a task force on the issue, to conclude that the incidents examined by Velis “were nothing short of disgraceful.”

“Those who have failed to live up to their obligations or to carry out their responsibilities properly have been named, exposed and shamed,” Ford said.

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[Opinion] Philippa Martyr: Barking up the wrong pulpit

AUSTRALIA
The Catholic Weekly

July 5, 2020

By Dr Philippa Martyr

Francis Sullivan’s passion is undoubted. His grasp of the real issues facing the Church isn’t.

Francis Sullivan recently expressed concerns in the US National Catholic Reporter that fallout from the Pell case would derail the Plenary Council.

The Plenary Council has little authority to make changes

I suppose my first concern is that Francis believes the Plenary Council is important enough to make changes to the Church in Australia. Really it has very little authority, and its report has to go to Rome for final ratification. The suggestion that it could be derailed by an unrelated High Court decision seems over-dramatic.

Much more interesting is that it’s currently rumoured that the Plenary Council is costing the Church in Australia millions of dollars.

I’m surprised that Francis hasn’t demanded instead that the Plenary Council’s full financials be published and asked why this largely cosmetic exercise is absorbing money that could be used to compensate clergy abuse survivors.

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Fallece el sacerdote Vicente Condado Sánchez, informa Arquidiócesis de Xalapa

XALAPA (MEXICO)
XEU Noticias [Veracruz, Mexico]

July 5, 2020

Read original article

A través de un comunicado el vocero de la Arquidiócesis de Xalapa, el padre José Manuel Suazo informó sobre el fallecimiento del padre Vicente Condado Sánchez.

A continuación el comunicado: 

“La mañana de este día 5 de julio de 2020, a la edad de 84 años y luego de varios padecimientos de salud,  falleció el P. Vicente Condado Sánchez. Es recordado como una persona muy tratable, culta, carismática, atenta y servicial; era un gran conocedor de la liturgia y el arte sagrado; gozaba de la admiración y la estima de muchas personas. 

El P. Condado tenía grandes capacidades de oratoria y se distinguía por su calidad humana y evangélica. Una de sus grandes aportaciones a esta ciudad de Xalapa es que a él le tocó construir el santuario de  la actual Basílica de Guadalupe, en la zona de los lagos. 

La arquidiócesis de Xalapa, admira, reconoce y agradece la labor de su hermana Lupita quien fue como su ángel de la guardia, velando hasta el final por la salud del P. Condado. Dios le pague su generosidad y su dedicación.  

El Padre Vicente Condado Sánchez nació en la ciudad de Xalapa, Ver., el día 6 de abril de 1936. Fue hijo de Sr. Celerino Condado y Esther Sánchez.

El P. Vicente, tuvo el privilegio de recibir la Ordenación Sacerdotal el día 22 de agosto de 1968, en la ciudad  de Bogotá, Colombia, de manos de S.S. el Papa Paulo VI.

El P. Vicente cursó sus estudios de Humanidades en el Seminario de Xalapa, así como sus estudios de Filosofía y Teología. En el año de 1969 fue enviado a la ciudad de Roma para hacer estudios superiores, se especializó en Psicología y Pedagogía en la Universidad Pontificia Salesiana de Roma.

El P. Vicente desempeño su ministerio sacerdotal de la siguiente manera. Fue nombrado director Espiritual del Seminario Menor el 31 Octubre 1968. El 15 de octubre de 1970 se desempeñó como colaborador del Equipo Promotor de Vocaciones. El 24 de octubre de 1970 fue nombrado Director Espiritual del Seminario. Más tarde, el 24 de agosto de 1974 recibió el nombramiento de Pro Secretario de la Mitra.

También se desempeñó Secretario del Seminario Mayor y Profesor. 

El P. Vicente Condado fue nombrado capellán de las Religiosas Agustinas Recoletas de Santa Mónica el 22 de febrero de 1972. El 22 de agosto de 1975 recibió el nombramiento de Vicario Auxiliar de la Parroquia de María Auxiliadora en Xalapa. A partir del 1 de diciembre de 1976 se convirtió en párroco de la misma comunidad. El 19 de septiembre de 1985 fue nombrado vicario Parroquial  en la catedral de Xalapa y luego, 2 años más tarde, el 9 de julio de 1987, se convirtió en párroco.

El 4 de enero de 1990 fue trasladado a la parroquia y Santuario de Nuestra Sra. de Guadalupe en Xalapa donde permaneció hasta el 13 de octubre del 2009. Al P. Vicente Condado le tocó construir la Basílica de Guadalupe llevando el proyecto de construcción hasta un 80%.

El P. Condado fue miembro de la Sociedad Mexicana de Liturgia. En el año 2000 colaboró como director de los cursos de SOMELIT en la región de Xalapa. Después de un tiempo breve como Capellán de las Madres Adoratrices de Xalapa, el P. Vicente Condado pasó los últimos años de su vida en su casa particular, atendiendo su estado de salud. 

La mañana de este 5 de julio fue llamado a la casa paterna. Damos gracias a Dios por su testimonio de vida sacerdotal y por sus múltiples servicios en las diferentes comunidades donde estuvo. 

Los restos humanos del P. Vicente Condado serán velados en la iglesia catedral a partir de las 19:00 hrs. Su misa exequial será el día 6 de julio de 2020 en la Catedral de Xalapa, a las 12:00 hrs. La misa será presidida por el arzobispo de Xalapa, Mons. Hipólito Reyes Larios.

“Que las almas de los fieles difuntos, especialmente la del P. Vicente Condado Sánchez, por la Misericordia de Dios, descansen en Paz”.

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‘How do you say no to a bishop?’: Hart accusers say they survived years of trauma and institutional failures

WYOMING
Casper Star Tribune

July 4, 2020

By Seth Klamann

Joseph Hart became a priest in 1955, and over his 46-year career in Kansas City and Wyoming, he developed a reputation for ingratiating himself with families in his flock, especially brothers.

Hart would walk into the Hunter family’s Kansas City home without ringing the doorbell. They never locked their doors — the whole neighborhood was like that. Hart, who in the late ‘50s was just starting out as a priest, was like family to the Hunters; his photo hung in the living room. Mrs. Hunter worked in the cafeteria of Guardian Angels, Hart’s first parish. Darrel, her son, worked at the church after school and over the summer.

John’s father died when he was young. His brother did housework around the Kansas City rectory where Hart lived in the 1960s, when Hart worked at the attached Catholic school. John remembers all the soda Hart had, so much that John would sneak Pepsi to his friends. His mother had Hart over for dinner, happy to have an adult male presence in the lives of her seven children.

The church gave Martin’s mother a job at a Cheyenne elementary school, one of three jobs she worked after his father abandoned the family. The church gave them food, and Martin and his brother did chores for Hart, who arrived in Wyoming in the mid-1970s to become bishop, the highest-ranking Catholic in the state. As such, he commanded significant authority and respect from the tens of thousands of Catholics in Wyoming.

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Ohio Catholic priest indicted on charges of juvenile sex trafficking, child porn, exploitation

OHIO
Christian Post

July 4, 2020

By Brandon Showalter

Former Ohio Catholic priest Robert McWilliams was indicted by a federal grand jury Thursday on several charges of child sexual abuse.

McWilliams, 40, a Strongsville priest and former seminarian at St. Helen’s Catholic Church in Newbury Township, allegedly pretended to be a woman on his social media accounts, including Grinder, to lure male victims into exploitation and has been charged with juvenile sex trafficking, sexual exploitation of children, and transportation of child porn, among other charges, according to a news release from the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.

“Posing as a female, McWilliams allegedly enticed the minor male victims to send sexually explicit photographs and videos, sometimes threatening to expose embarrassing information McWilliams already knew about the victims if they did not send such images,” the news release adds.

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Priest accused of raping a woman more than 30 years ago to stand trial

ENGLAND
Expressiveinfo.com

July 4, 2020

A priest, Rev. John Anthony Clohosey, accused of raping a woman more than 30 years ago will now stand trial next year according to reports.

Rev. Clohosey was priest at Our Lady Immaculate and St Cuthbert’s RC Church in Crook, County Durham until he was suspended last year when he was accused by a woman of raping her more than 30 years.

The 71-year-old priest is alleged to have sexually attacked the woman in Gateshead in 1986.

He did not appear before Newcastle Crown Court on Friday due to the coronavirus pandemic, but his lawyer indicated he would have pleaded not guilty if he had been at the hearing. His trial will now take place at Newcastle Crown Court on May 17, 2021.

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Obituary for Georg Ratzinger: God grant him

BERLIN (GERMANY)
Newsylist.com

July 5, 2020

The controversial pope brother Georg Ratzinger has died. For 30 years he was head of the Regensburger Domspatzen – and tolerated a system of violence.

There is a photo of Georg Ratzinger that has become almost historically relevant. It shows the later director of the world-famous Regensburger Domspatzen on June 29, 1951 in Freising Cathedral during the priestly ordination with his three years younger brother Joseph, later Pope Benedict XVI.

The two black-haired Bavarian men are festively dressed in baroque-style choir shirts and have stretched out their arms in blessing. The 27-year-old Georg, who survived the war as a Wehrmacht soldier, is beaming. His younger brother was only an anti-aircraft helper, he is concentrated and serious – and it is as if the future of the two Ratzingers is already hinted at in this black and white photo.

While Georg Ratzinger devoted his life to the cheerful muse and aspired to a musical career (in the seminary he was nicknamed “Organ Ratz”), Joseph Ratzinger became something of the deepest child prodigy of theology in Germany. After studying church music at the University of Music in Munich, Georg Ratzinger found his life’s work in 1964: he became “cathedral band master” and thus de facto head of the Regensburger Domspatzen for 30 years, which have a 1,000-year tradition.

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Erie diocese dropped from Buffalo suit against Trautman

ERIE (PA)
GoErie.com

July 5, 2020

By Ed Palattella

Retired Erie bishop still a defendant; all claims now over his tenure as a top official in Catholic Diocese of Buffalo.

A lawsuit in Buffalo against retired Erie Catholic Bishop Donald Trautman no longer includes the Catholic Diocese of Erie.

The lawyers in the case agreed to drop the Catholic Diocese of Erie as a defendant, as the diocese had requested.

The suit, filed at the start of the year, tried to connect the Catholic Diocese of Erie to claims that Trautman covered up clergy sex abuse of a minor when he was a top official in the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo in the 1980s.

The Erie diocese argued that Trautman was working for the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo at the time and that the claims relate only to the Buffalo diocese.

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Local Boy Scouts councils face new child abuse lawsuits

BUFFALO (NY)
Buffalo News

July 5, 2020

By Jay Tokasz

The Boy Scouts of America’s bankruptcy filing in February stopped hundreds of child sexual abuse lawsuits, including more than a dozen in Western New York, from moving forward as the national organization attempts to reach a settlement with victims.

But the bankruptcy doesn’t prevent regional Boy Scouts councils, which are separately incorporated, from being sued. In the past month, the Greater Niagara Frontier Council, which has 7,000 Scouts in Erie and Niagara counties, was named as a defendant in seven Child Victims Act cases filed in Erie County State Supreme Court.

In one of the new lawsuits, Scott Miller of Hamburg accused the council of allowing a Scout leader to repeatedly molest him from 1974 to 1977, starting when was Miller was 11 years old. The lawsuit identified Hal Wright as the leader, although it does not name Wright as a defendant.

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Two former Diocese of Jefferson City priests dismissed

JEFFERSON CITY (MO)
Fulton Sun

July 5, 2020

By Joe Gamm

Two men who are on the Diocese of Jefferson City’s list of priests who were credibly accused of clergy abuse have been laicized, or dismissed from being priests.

Robert Duesdieker was ordained in 1980 and Mel Lahr in 1972. The changes came at the conclusion of a canonical process that included an independent internal review of diocese files, consultation of the Diocesan Review Board and an appeal to the Holy See for a formal decision, Bishop W. Shawn McKnight said in a statement.

“These changes are the direct result of the responses to the initial publication of a list of credibly accused clergy in November 2018,” McKnight said. “Because of this transparency, survivors of clerical abuse and their families felt safe to come forward and share their pain, several for the first time in decades.”

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July 4, 2020

Pastor gets 5 life sentences for sexual abuse of girls

TEXAS
Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette

July 3, 2020

By Lynn Larowe

A Texarkana pastor was sentenced to five life sentences and 11 20-year terms by a Bowie County jury Thursday for the sexual abuse of three women he molested when they were children.

Presiding 202nd District Judge John Tidwell ordered that Logan Wesley III, 56, serve the terms consecutively for a total of five life sentences plus 220 years. The jury also assessed three $10,000 fines for a total of $30,000.

The three victims — now 38, 34 and 32 — testified that Wesley used his position as pastor of Trinity Temple Church of God In Christ on Washington Street in Texarkana, Ark., to prey on them and to conceal his misdeeds. One of the woman is a close relative of Wesley’s who came to live with him when she was 13. She said Wesley continued to sexually assault her until she was about 20.

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Schoenstatt Movement rejects accusations of sex abuse against founder

GERMANY
Catholic News Agency

July 2, 2020

The Schoenstatt Movement has rejected a researcher’s claims that its founder engaged in sexual abuse, saying that any past allegations against him would have already been considered in the Vatican’s review of his proposed beatification.

“We firmly reject the accusation that Joseph Kentenich was guilty of sexual abuse of members of the Institute of the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary,” Juan Pablo Catoggio, International President of the Schoenstatt Work, said in a July 2 statement.

“His behavior toward other persons – especially women – was always marked by a pronounced reverence and esteem, as well as by the principle of physical integrity, which he also impressed upon his communities.”

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Reporter Alexandra Hall On Her Documentary About A Fresno Priest Accused of Sexual Abuse

FRESNO (CA)
Valley Public Radio News

July 3, 2020

By Kathleen Schock

[AUDIO]

KQED’s Central Valley reporter Alexandra Hall spent more than a year investigating an Anglican priest in Fresno who some say is a miracle worker and others say is a sexual predator. The audio documentary that came from her reporting was produced for The California Report Magazine. Valley Edition Host Kathleen Schock spoke with Hall about how she gained the trust of the alleged victims, and the reaction from the congregation now that the report is out.

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Jehovah’s Witnesses Shun Australia’s Redress Program for Child Sex Abuse Victims

AUSTRALIA
Patheos

July 2, 2020

By Hemant Mehta

In 2013, the Australian government set up the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse to look into the very serious issue. Rabbis were implicated alongside Catholic priests. Secular organizations weren’t immune from wrongdoing.

One of the recommendations from that Commission was the creation of the National Redress Scheme, a formal way to literally pay back victims of child sex abuse for all they had suffered. It’s not a perfect system by any means — could anything be? — but the idea behind it is that victims can fill out paperwork explaining what they went through, officials will calculate what that trauma is worth, and victims will receive a check.

Among the many criticisms is that the NRS pushes a hierarchy of abuse; penetration is deemed more damaging than any other kind of abuse, for example. That’s a discussion for another thread.

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Three women allege abuse by pastor

TEXAS
Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette

July 4, 2020

By Lynn Larowe

They say sexual assaults spanned years, started when they were children

The child sex abuse trial of a local pastor resume Thursday in Bowie County.

Logan Wesley III is accused of using his position to prey on girls, including a family member.

Wesley reportedly founded the Trinity Temple Church of God in Christ in 1997 in Texarkana, Ark. “Elder Logan Wesley III — pastor” remains on the bottom of a sign affixed above the doors of the church, a modest building on Washington Street.

Three indictments, each related to a different girl, accuse Wesley of 18 felony child sex abuse charges, some of which are punishable by five to 99 years or life in prison.

The three girls, now women in their 30s, testified Monday and Tuesday that they were sexually abused by Wesley for years.

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MC Eastern Canada terminates retired pastor’s ministerial credentials

CANADA
Canadian Mennonite

July 3, 2020

By Aaron Epp

Evidence of Wilmer Martin’s misconduct ‘sufficiently compelling and credible,’ leadership finds

Mennonite Church Eastern Canada has terminated Waterloo resident Wilmer Martin’s ministerial credentials, citing ministerial misconduct and ministerial sexual misconduct. (Facebook photo)
Mennonite Church Eastern Canada has terminated a retired pastor’s ministerial credential after investigating him for ministerial misconduct and ministerial sexual misconduct. The regional church made the announcement about Wilmer Martin, 75, of Waterloo, Ont., on June 16.

Martin served pastorates at Tavistock (Ont.) Mennonite Church and Erb Street Mennonite Church in Waterloo from 1968 to 1991 before becoming the president and CEO of Habitat for Humanity Canada from 1991 to 2000. He was then president of TourMagination, a Mennonite-oriented travel company, from 2000 until his retirement in 2016.

The complaints against Martin stem from his tenure at Erb Street Mennonite. According to MC Eastern Canada policy, there is no statute of limitations for ministerial misconduct.

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Lawmaker muted victims of childhood sex abuse

COLORADO
Colorado Politics

July 3, 2020

By Kathryn Robb

If something doesn’t feel right, it likely isn’t. Kids know this. In the name of justice children raise their voices, often kicking and screaming. In fact, most will complain even when the imbalance is in their favor.

Cognitive scientists report that children have a sharp sense of fairness; the pleas from their internal scales of justice, balancing right and wrong, fair and unfair, are active at an early age. Every parent has heard he thunderous protest “that’s not fair!”

Unless the child is silenced.

As I was for years, every time my abuser slithered out my childhood bedroom in the dark of the night. Even at age 10, my sense of justice knew this was terribly, horribly — wrong. As it is for so many survivors, my fear and shame sucked the oxygen out of the room and swallowed my voice. As the walls closed in on me, the clamp tightened on the secret. Suffocating, that little girl folded inward, again and again, until she became so small that the only sound that could be heard was the silence of shame.

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Ohio priest indicted on federal child pornography charges

CLEVELAND (OH)
Associated Press

July 2, 2020

An Ohio Roman Catholic priest has been accused in a federal indictment of posing online as a female to persuade boys to send him sexually explicit photos and videos of themselves and threatening to tell their parents if they did not send more images, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Cleveland alleged Thursday.

Robert McWilliams, 40, followed through on his threats and sent some mothers images of their sons, prosecutors alleged. Some boys McWilliams targeted belonged to parishes where he served, prosecutors said.

McWilliams was indicted Wednesday on two counts of sex trafficking of a minor, three counts of sexual exploitation of children, one count of transportation of child pornography, one count of receiving and distributing depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct and one count of possession of child pornography.

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Priest accused of sending mothers explicit sex abuse pictures of children he had blackmailed online

UNITED STATES
Independent (U.K.)

July 4, 2020

By James Crump

US attorney’s office said that Robert D McWilliams knew some of his alleged victims through his work

An Ohio priest has been indicted on child pornography and juvenile sex trafficking charges for allegedly enticing young boys to send explicit images of themselves.

Reverend Robert D McWilliams, from Strongsville, a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio, was initially arrested in December 2019 for possession of child pornography, but was indicted by a Federal Grand Jury on Thursday on several different charges.

The 40-year-old is now facing two counts of sex trafficking of a minor, three counts of sexual exploitation of children and three counts of pornography offences involving children.

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Journalist’s book explores her mixed feelings on faith

IRELAND
The Independent

July 4, 2020

By Allison Bray

In her debut work of non-fiction, Irish Independent journalist Ellen Coyne (29) explores these issues in ‘Are You There God? It’s Me, Ellen’

Is it ok to be an à la carte Catholic?

That is the central theme in a new book by a young Irish Catholic journalist who explores her own misgivings about wanting to retain her faith amid darker aspects of the Church that have emerged over the years, including child-sex abuse within clergy and how it was handled by the Church, as well as its controversial stances on abortion and homosexuality.

In her debut work of non-fiction, Irish Independent journalist Ellen Coyne (29) explores these issues in ‘Are You There God? It’s Me, Ellen’.

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Documents reveal church stayed quiet on sexual misconduct allegations against Broome Bishop for almost a year

THE KIMBERLEY (AUSTRALIA)
Australian Broadcasting Corporation

July 4, 2020

By Erin Parke

Key points:
– Documents show the Catholic Church was told of sexual misconduct allegations against Broome Bishop Christopher Saunders as early as April 2019
– The Bishop voluntarily stood aside in March this year, with separate investigations by WA Police and the Vatican still ongoing
– The Bishop’s continued presence in the Kimberley has sparked a further complaint to Church authorities

The Catholic Church was told of sexual misconduct allegations against a Western Australian bishop nearly a year before it took action, according to new documents obtained by the ABC.

Bishop Christopher Saunders, who has overseen the vast Diocese of Broome for 25 years, remains voluntarily stood aside amidst an ongoing WA Police investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct.

No charges have been laid and Bishop Saunders has previously denied all accusations of inappropriate behaviour.

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Buffalo Diocese, parishes granted two-month pause on already-filed CVA lawsuits

BUFFALO (NY)
Buffalo News

July 4, 2020

By Jay Tokasz

Afederal bankruptcy judge is giving the Buffalo Diocese two months to sort out a tangled web of historical insurance coverage and determine how those policies might be affected by Child Victims Act lawsuits against the diocese and parishes, schools and other Catholic entities.

A Chapter 11 filing in February immediately stopped lawsuits in state courts against the diocese from advancing as it goes through a reorganization. That same protection does not apply to parishes, which are separately incorporated and not part of the bankruptcy.

But the diocese in May asked Chief Judge Carl Bucki of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Western District to shield parishes, schools and other entities that also have been named as defendants in Child Victims Act cases.

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Award-winning author accuses priest of abuse, detained after vandalizing parish property

JAKARTA (INDONESIA)
The Jakarta Post

July 4, 2020

By Hengky Ola Sura

Award winning author, Felix K. Nesi, was detained by the Insana Police in Timor Tengah Utara regency, East Nusa Tenggara, on Friday night after allegedly vandalizing a Catholic parish clergy house.

He admitted to The Jakarta Post on Saturday that he had damaged the property, claiming to have done so because he was angry that the parish had let a priest, whom he accused of “mistreating a woman”, to remain at the church.

Felix, who won a literary award from the Jakarta Arts Council in 2018, said on the phone that he had been released from detention on Saturday. He wrote in a public Facebook post that he had used his motorcycle helmet to damage the windows of the SMK Bitauni vocational school parish clergy house and had thrown chairs.

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July 3, 2020

More child abuse claims leveled against long-ago Jesuit High School janitor duo

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
NOLA.com

July 3, 2020

By Ramon Antonio Vargas

Another man has come forward and added to claims of child molestation decades ago by janitors at Jesuit High School’s Mid-City campus.

The plaintiff, under a pseudonym, filed a lawsuit Thursday at Civil District Court demanding damages from Jesuit and the religious order that runs the school over abuse that he claims to have suffered at the hands of Gary Sanchez and the late Peter Modica.

The case comes about five months after the school and the order reached financial settlements with two other plaintiffs, one who claimed abuse by Modica and the other who alleged that both Modica and Sanchez molested him.

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Archdiocese of New Orleans asks court for deadline for those seeking compensation

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
WVUE-TV, Channel 8

July 3, 2020

Attorneys for the Archdiocese of New Orleans filed new documents in their bankruptcy proceedings.

They are asking Judge Meredith Grabill for a September 29 bar date which would require anyone seeking compensation for clergy abuse to come forward by that date.

The Archdiocese of New Orleans filed for bankruptcy two months ago in the face of what it described as mounting church abuse litigation.

Attorneys for alleged sex abuse victims are expected to ask that the bar date be set later to allow claimants more time to come forward.

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Russian Orthodox Church defrocks rebel monk and raises questions about child abuse at monastery

MOSCOW (RUSSIA)
The Telegraph

The court chairman says they have received reports of child abuse at the monastery that need to be investigated

July 3, 2020

By Nataliya Vasilyeva

A religious court in Russia has defrocked a controversial monk who has sabotaged coronavirus lockdown restrictions, with the chairman of the court also saying it had reports of child abuse at his monastery.

Father Sergei Romanov, abbot of the Sredneuralsk monastery outside the city of Yekaterinburg in the Urals mountains, has for years been running what many scholars described a religious cult worshiping the family of Russia’s last czar Nicholas II who were killed by the Bolsheviks in 1918.

As the coronavirus epidemic struck Russia, Father Sergei, previously known for hate speech, publicly cursed those closing down the churches in line with lockdown orders and urged believers to disobey the restrictions….

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‘I thought God had presented this guy’: 20 years after reporting clergy abuse to the University, a Notre Dame survivor shares his story

SOUTH BEND (IN)
The Observer

July 3, 3030

By Natalie Weber and Mary Steurer

Mark Fuller, class of 1977, came forward with his experience of priest abuse in 2002. Notre Dame offered little more than an apology.

[Editor’s note: This story includes descriptions of sexual abuse and violence. A list of sexual assault reporting options and on-campus resources can be found on the Notre Dame, Saint Mary’s and Holy Cross websites.]

The first two times Mark Fuller visited Fr. William Presley, then rector of St. Edward’s Hall, they just talked.

It was 1974, and Fuller vividly remembers sitting in an orange lounge chair in the front of Presley’s rectory while the priest asked him questions about his classes, his family and his personal life. Fuller remembers Presley offering him a soda.

Then, in their third or fourth meeting, Fuller said, things changed. Presley told Fuller to wait while he went into the bedroom. When Presley called him in, he was in bed under the covers. He told Fuller to disrobe.

Fuller said this was the first time Presley raped him.

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Roman Catholic Church responds to rape allegations against former monk

TRINIDAD (WEST INDIES)
Loop News

July 3, 2020

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Port of Spain says it has noted with grave concern, videos recently published on social media in which two young women made allegations against a monk formerly associated with the Mount Saint Benedict Monastery and St Bede’s Vocational School.

In a statement, it said “the loss of innocence of any child through any form of abuse is a tragedy, a deep and lasting wound for the victim as well as a serious crime.”

The Church said its prayers and support go out to the young women and Mount Saint Benedict community at this time.

It said the allegations raised in the videos are under review by the Trustees of Mount Saint Benedict and the brother in question left the monastic life some years ago and is no longer a member of the community of Mount St Benedict.

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Media Statement: Missouri Priest Accused of Abuse Resigns After Allegation Deemed “Credible”

MISSOURI
SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests)

July 1, 2020

A Catholic priest accused of abuse in the Diocese of Jefferson City has resigned his position following a determination that the allegation was “credible” but not able to be corroborated. We are disturbed that diocesan officials are speaking out of both sides of their mouth in this situation and hope that others who may have knowledge in this case will come forward to police and prosecutors.

There are rarely witnesses or video evidence for sex crimes, so we are not surprised that the allegation against Fr. Mark Porterfield was not corroborated. But the fact that the claim was determined to be “credible” by Catholic officials is enough to demand action and we are glad that Fr. Porterfield is no longer leading a parish.

Victims of sexual abuse have long been disbelieved and marginalized, especially by the institutions they have accused, and we are disappointed that diocesan officials are playing both sides in this situation. Rather than continue to cast doubt on allegations by referring to them as “not corroborated,” Bishop Shawn McKnight should be using every resource at his disposal to encourage other victims and witnesses to come forward and make a report to police.

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First Nations day school students want new investigation of abuse claims, say RCMP probe marred by ‘bias’

CANADA
CBC News

July 2, 2020

By Jorge Barrera

The B.C. RCMP investigation into First Nations day school abuse allegations against John Furlong, the former 2010 Vancouver Olympics CEO, was tainted by “bias” and “discrimination,” according to a recent filing with the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal.

The filing by six members of the Lake Babine Nation itemized the failures of the RCMP investigation, ranging from limited questioning of alleged victims, to a failure to follow leads or to obtain additional information through production orders.

“The case demonstrates the inequality that Indigenous communities experience in accessing justice,” said the Complainant’s Statement of Particulars, submitted with the tribunal on Monday.

“It reveals the biased attitudes and systemic discrimination that exists in police investigative methods, and shows how Indigenous victims of abuse suffer adverse impacts, such as being disbelieved and/or dehumanized. Bias in favour of powerful non-Indigenous individuals, even if unconsciously held, results in harmful treatment to Indigenous complainants of abuse.”

All six Lake Babine Nation members attended the Catholic-run Immaculata elementary school when Furlong taught physical education there in 1969. The institution was a day school in the First Nation, about 220 kilometres northwest of Prince George, B.C. The school closed in the 1980s.

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Savio Rodrigues exposes sexual abuse cases and corruption in the Catholic Church of India in Jaipur Dialogues

NEW DELHI (INDIA)
Goa Chronicle

July 3, 2020

[VIDEO]

New Delhi: The Founder & Editor-in-Chief of GoaChronicle.com, Savio Rodrigues in a discussion with Sanjay Dixit on Jaipur Dialogues exposed the evil of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church in India, highlighted corruption cases in Christian institutions and mooted a need for an Indian Church without Vatican interference.

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Charlotte Priest Will Remain Away From Ministry

CHARLOTTE (NC)
WFAE TV

July 2, 2020

By Sarah Delia and Marshall Terry

The pastor of Charlotte’s St. Matthew Catholic Church will remain away from ministry following an investigation into a decades-old allegation of sexual abuse.

In a letter to St. Matthew parishioners this week, Bishop Peter Jugis, the head of the Charlotte Diocese, said he accepted the recommendation of the diocese’s independent Lay Review Board that Father Patrick Hoare remain away from active ministry at this time.

Hoare had been placed on administrative leave last December after someone told the diocese they’d been sexually abused by Hoare about 25 years ago in Pennsylvania.

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Catholic priest from Strongsville indicted on federal charges of child pornography, exploitation

CLEVELAND (OH)
Cleveland.com

July 2, 2020

By John Caniglia, The Plain Dealer

A Catholic priest was indicted Thursday on federal charges involving child pornography and the exploitation of children.

A grand jury charged the Rev. Robert McWilliams, 40, with two counts of sex trafficking of a minor, three counts of sexual exploitation of children and three counts of pornography-related charges involving children.

McWilliams had served at St. Joseph Catholic Church on Pearl Road in Strongsville at the time of his arrest Dec. 5. He is being held without bond.

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Alleged David Haas sexual assault victim speaks out

UNITED STATES
Catholic News Agency

July 2, 2020

By Jonah McKeown

In late May, allegations surfaced against contemporary Catholic musician and composer David Haas, which claimed that Haas had subjected multiple adult women to serial spiritual manipulation and sexual misconduct.

A former music and youth minister, who alleges that Haas aggressively kissed and groped her when she was 19, spoke to CNA this week about her experience. And one expert told CNA that the allegations against Haas point to the difficulties of ensuring that laity working in Church contexts are trustworthy, and beyond reproach.

Sidney

Sidney*, a California native, told CNA that she has worked in close proximity to the Church for more than 15 years, primarily in religious education, as a youth minister, and as a music minister.

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Altoona man who served at Lancaster County churches in the 1990s to 2003 charged with child sexual abuse

PENNSYLVANIA
Lancaster County Online

July 3, 2020

By Dan Nephin

A western Pennsylvania man who served at three Lancaster County churches in the 1990s and early 2000s has been charged with repeatedly sexually abusing a teenage girl and exposing himself to two other children where he now lives.

William J. Stonebraker, 50, of Altoona, was charged June 22 in Blair County with two counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and 96 counts each of unlawful contact with a minor, aggravated indecent assault, child endangerment and corruption of minors — all felonies. He’s also charged with 96 counts each of indecent exposure and indecent assault, which are misdemeanors.

Stonebraker’s attorney, Thomas M. Dickey, said Thursday that Stonebraker has pleaded not guilty to all charges and they’re awaiting details of the accusations.

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Texarkana pastor sentenced to five life sentences plus 220 years for sexual abuse of girls

TEXAS
TXKToday

July 2, 2020

By Field Walsh

A Texarkana pastor was sentenced Thursday to five life sentences plus 220 years for 16 counts of child sexual abuse.

Logan Wesley III, 56, was found guilty by a jury in Bowie County of five counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child and sentenced to life on each count. The jury also found Wesley guilty of nine counts of sexual assault of a child and two counts of indecency with a child by sexual contact and sentenced to the 20-year maximum on each count.

202nd District Judge John Tidwell ordered all of the sentences to run consecutively. The jury also ordered three $10,000 fines for a total of $30,000.

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Is this the beginning of the end for Scientology? Danny Masterson’s rape charges could be first nail in the coffin

UNITED STATES
NewsLagoon

July 2, 2020

Danny Masterson, who is best known for ‘The 70s Show’ has been charged with rape of three women. The allegations against him were filed on Tuesday (June 16) by three women who claimed that the actor had forcibly raped them. The incidents reportedly took place between 2001 and 2003. Masterson was arrested shortly after the charges were made public.

If convicted, he could face up to 45 years in prison, as reported by Yahoo Entertainment. While the news about Masterson becomes nationwide news, many people pointed out how the actor, a Scientologist, was previously accused of the same a couple of years ago but it was gagged by Scientology.

In a shocking article that was published by The Daily Beast in 2019, the media outlet had detailed how the Church of Scientology might be helping Masterson bury the crimes under the rug. The outlet stated that the church had received two letters from one of the victims asking the church to speak up on the matter. However, they had remained mum on the matter.

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July 2, 2020

Rubén Herrera fue separado de la Diócesis al conocerse presunto caso de abuso

LEóN (MEXICO)
Zona Franca [León, Guanajuato, Mexico]

July 2, 2020

By Laura Villafaña

Read original article

Irapuato, Gto. – Rubén Herrera Luna, presunto responsable del delito de violación en agravio a una menor de edad, ya no es sacerdote, sostuvo la Diócesis de Irapuato, tras reconocer que desde febrero pasado conocían del caso que fue denunciado a las autoridades.

Esto, luego de que se diera a conocer la detención del ex párroco, cuya audiencia nuevamente se pospuso, a petición aparentemente de los abogados de la defensa.

“Desde que se tuvo noticia de los presuntos ilícitos, en febrero de este año, inmediatamente la Diócesis avisó del asunto a las autoridades judiciales para lo correspondiente, y a la vez actuó conforme a los protocolos eclesiásticos, separándolo del ejercicio del ministerio”

La Diócesis pidió perdón a quienes se consideren ofendidos por el caso.

“Asumimos con pena y dolor este hecho, y de antemano pedimos perdón a quienes se puedan sentir ofendidos por este caso y manifestamos nuestra disponibilidad de asumir con responsabilidad los hechos que nos correspondan”, expone el documento.

Los representantes de la iglesia aseguraron que nunca se ha encubierto o se encubrirán actos que dañen a las personas.

Tal y como lo hicieron saber medios locales de Michoacán, la Diócesis de Irapuato confirmó que el ex sacerdote fue detenido el 29 de junio en su domicilio familiar en Morelia.

“Ahora está en manos de las instancias judiciales seguirlas investigaciones correspondientes para llegar a la verdad del caso”, agrega.

Asimismo, la Diócesis extiende su colaboración con las autoridades, en quienes confían actuarán con justicia y transparencia.

Extraoficialmente trascendió que los representantes de la Diócesis pidieron a los padres de la menor no denunciar, pues ellos se encargarían del asunto, que concluyo con la separación del Herrera Luna de sus funciones.

Incluso, su detención se habría dado a escasos días de que se cumplimentará la orden de aprehensión.

Posponen la audiencia.

Este miércoles se reanudó la audiencia, que nuevamente se pospuso para este sábado, pues los abogados de la defensa habrían solicitado prórroga constitucional.

Un juez de control, resolverá en dicha audiencia, si el ex párroco de San Felipe de Jesús, será vinculado, o no, a proceso.

La audiencia inicial se inició el martes, pero a petición de los abogados de la defensa y el Ministerio Público, fue privada.

Ese día también se suspendió la audiencia en dos ocasiones:  la primera cuando la defensa argumentó que ese mismo día recibieron la carpeta de investigación, por lo que requerían tiempo para estudiar el caso; pero una vez que se reanudó se registraron fallas de conectividad, por lo que se reprogramó para el miércoles,

Y es que cabe aclarar que en atención a las medidas sanitarias por Covid, la audiencia de ese día, se desarrolló mediante videollamada.

El ex clérigo es acusado de violación en agravio de una menor, delito que aparentemente habría cometido en el 2011 y se repitió en abril del 2019.

Cabe mencionar que también estuvo involucrado en el desfalcó de 18 millones de pesos de la Diócesis de Irapuato, que se registró entre 2012 y 2016, ingresos, que se obtuvieron de diezmos, rifas y donativos hechos por feligreses.

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New Orleans archdiocese seeks Sept. 29 deadline for abuse claims, survivors to fight for more time

NEW ORLEANS (LA)
NOLA.com

By Ramon Antonio Vargas

July 2, 2020

The Archdiocese of New Orleans asked a federal judge late Wednesday to require anyone with clergy abuse claims against the local church to come forward by Sept. 29, almost certainly setting up the next legal dispute in the church’s two-month-old bankruptcy case.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Meredith Grabill did not immediately rule on whether to make Sept. 29 the so-called “bar date,” which is expected to prompt many more remaining claimants to file complaints of abuse and demands for compensation. That date would also stand as the deadline for other entities to claim debts from the church that predate its May 1 filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections, except for government agencies, for whom the church requested a couple of extra months.

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In video, Cardinal Pell details his time in prison before being cleared in abuse case

VATICAN CITY
Sight

July 2, 2020

By CLAIRE GIANGRAVÉ

Cardinal George Pell, the former Vatican treasurer who was recently cleared of historic sex abuse charges in his native country of Australia, spoke about his experience in prison, Pope Francis’ financial reform and the need to avoid corruption in a video released on Tuesday.

“In jail, of course, I was there as a Christian, inspired by the teachings of Christ,” Pell said, adding that his time in prison offered plenty of opportunity to pray every day. “And that I did,” he said.

The cardinal was sentenced to six years in prison by the County Court of Victoria, Australia, in late 2018 for the sexual abuse of minors when he was bishop in Melbourne between 1996 and 1997. Pell had vehemently denied all charges against him and, in April, the highest court in Australia dropped all charges for lack of sufficient proof.

The newly released video is the cardinal’s first public appearance since he was acquitted. In it he said that though prison was “an adventure I would not have chosen,” he had “survived it.”

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Two new allegations added against Ascension priest once known as crusading priest-cop

LOUISIANA
The Advocate

July 1, 2020

By Jacqueline DeRobertis

A deceased Catholic priest formerly accused of abuse in Ascension Parish has two new credible allegations added in the latest Baton Rouge Diocese report.

The list now includes more information regarding The Rev. George Gensler, who is accused of abuse in the late 1970s and between 1984 and 1998, said Diocese of Baton Rouge Communications Secretary Dan Borné.

Reports of abuse were received in February 1994 and October 2018, but two new credible allegations were reported days apart in February 2020, he said.

Past abuse was reported at St. Anthony of Padua in Darrow, where Gensler served from 1979 to 1994; he was placed on administrative leave and permanently removed from ministry during his last year at the church.

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Columbus Diocese hires counselor to speak with victims, priest reassigned

COLUMBUS (OH)
Columbus Dispatch

July 2, 2020

By Danae King

The Columbus Diocese was one of three in the country that had a priest working with survivors of clergy sexual abuse to take their reports. On July 2, 2020, the diocese announced it had hired a counselor to take the reports.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Columbus has hired a licensed clinical counselor to work with victims of sexual abuse by priests, replacing the priest who has been in the position since 1997.

Laura Lewis, a local counselor, will begin work as the interim Victims’ Assistance Coordinator on July 15, replacing Monsignor Stephan Moloney, the diocese announced Thursday.

The change comes after The Dispatch reported in March 2019 that Moloney was one of three diocesan victims’ assistance coordinators in the country who were also priests. Victim advocates and survivors have said such an arrangement makes it harder for victims to come forward to report abuse, and can even retraumatize them.

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Top Vatican investigator on sex abuse says church must empower victims

VATICAN CITY
Religion News Service

July 2, 2020

By Claire Giangravé

It’s been more than a year since Pope Francis issued his historic document, “Vos Est Lux Mundi (You are the light of the world),” and ushered in a new wave of transparency and accountability for abuse cases in the Catholic Church.

But according to Archbishop Charles J. Scicluna, much more still needs to be done.

“We need to empower disclosure” of abuse cases by providing victims with avenues for safe communication, said Scicluna, adjunct secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith at the Vatican, during a webinar for “A Safer Church” on Tuesday (June 30).

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Former Norfolk Catholic school teacher sentenced for abusing student

NORFOLK (VA)
13NewsNow

July 2, 2020

Daniel Wolfe pleaded guilty to abusing a 15-year-old when he taught at Norfolk Catholic High School in the late 1970s.

A former Catholic school teacher will spend three years behind bars for sexually abusing a student.

A judge sentenced 70-year-old Daniel Wolfe on Thursday to five years in prison, with two suspended.

Wolfe pleaded guilty last year to abusing a 15-year-old when he taught at Norfolk Catholic High School.

The abuse happened in the late 1970s, and Wolfe hasn’t taught at the school since the 1980s.

The Catholic Diocese of Richmond maintains an updated list of clergy who have served there and have also had a proven allegation of sexual abuse involving a minor made against them.

Abuse allegations should be reported directly to local law enforcement, including Child Protective Services (CPS) at 1-800-552-7096 and by calling the Attorney General’s Clergy Abuse Hotline at 1-833-454-9064.

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Claims emerge that founder of Schoenstatt was abuser

VATICAN CITY
The Tablet

July 2, 2020

By Madoc Cairns

The founder of the Schoenstatt community, Fr Josef Kentenich, engaged in manipulative and abusive behaviour during his time leading the group, according to a German historian. The allegations against Kentenich, uncovered within the Vatican archives, include sexual abuse.

Alexandra von Teuffenbach, a theologian and church historian living in Germany, has claimed that recently opened sections of the Vatican archives include documents that portray Fr Kentenich as abusing his power within the community he founded. According to von Teuffenbach, after reports of abuse within the community were received by the Vatican in the early 1950s, an official visitation ensued. As a consequence, Kentenich was exiled to the United States for nearly 15 years, only returning to Germany in 1965, three years before his death.

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York man sues Diocese of Allentown, Hellertown school over alleged sex abuse

ALLENTOWN (PA)
WFMZ-TV

July 2, 2020

A man is suing the Diocese of Allentown and a Hellertown school and church over allegations that he was sexually assaulted by his teacher several decades ago.

Mark Beaky, who now lives in York, says he was 13 when Lawrence Haftle, his teacher at St. Theresa of the Child of Jesus Catholic School, abused him. Beaky attended the school from 1971-1975, and says the abuse occurred in 1974, when Haftle was his homeroom teacher.

It started with “off-campus car rides” during lunch, in which Haftle, who died in 2010, would offer Beaky marijuana, according to the lawsuit filed in Lehigh County court.

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