ABUSE TRACKER

[VIDEO]

New allegations of sexual abuse have been raised against a former South Burlington priest. The alleged abuse took place in the 1960s, and the priest in question has since died.

The claims are against Father Roger Carlin who practiced at St John Vianney Church. The victim was a nine-year-old altar boy at the time, who lawyers say was repeatedly molested at church.

“I was fired for helping sexual abuse survivors,” said Bob Hoatson. “Especially of clergy”

Bob Hoatson spent decades as a religious brother and priest, before starting the nonprofit Roads to Recovery in New Jersey. Wednesday, Hoatson was in Burlington to publicly name Father Carlin as a sexual abuser and demand the diocese release all related files. The victim is now in his sixties and is remaining anonymous.

“He could not stand the pressure any longer of carrying around this weight of clergy sexual abuse,” said attorney Mitchell…

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IRON MOUNTAIN — A former Upper Peninsula priest convicted of sexually abusing teenagers in the 1980s will serve at least eight years in prison.

Gary Jacobs, 75, was sentenced Tuesday in Dickinson County Circuit Court for second-degree criminal sexual conduct and could spend as many as 15 years in prison, the maximum for the felony offense.

Jacobs pleaded guilty to the charge in May in addition to four counts of criminal sexual conduct in Ontonagon County in April. The pleas were part of an agreement spanning both counties.

Jacobs previously had been sentenced to eight to 15 years in prison Ontonagon County in May and will serve his sentences concurrently.

Additionally, Jacobs will be subject to lifetime sex offender registration and be electronically monitored the remainder of his life.

Jacobs was arrested January 2020 in Albuquerque, N.M., after an investigation by the Michigan Attorney General’s Clergy Abuse Investigation team. The…

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A plaintiff in a Child Victims Act lawsuit says he attended his 1990 confirmation ceremony in a Genesee County church planning to tell Buffalo Auxiliary Bishop Edward Grosz he was being abused by another priest.

Instead, the plaintiff says, Grosz made comments about his good looks and repeatedly groped him.

Attorneys for the alleged victim stood outside the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo headquarters Tuesday and revealed new details of the abuse allegation against Grosz, the former second-in-command of the Buffalo Diocese who was responsible for handling sexual abuse allegations against priests.

“[The victim] was raised Catholic, he was well aware of the impact of naming a bishop, but this is his truth,” said attorney Steve Boyd.

Boyd and other attorneys filed a lawsuit Monday in New York State Supreme Court, alleging their client, who is unnamed in court papers, was abused as a teenager by Grosz and another…

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Grosz is alleged to have abused a boy at his confirmation in 1990

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Former Auxiliary Bishop Edward M. Grosz became the highest-ranking cleric in the Diocese of Buffalo to be accused of child sexual abuse Monday.

The alleged victim, who is identified in the lawsuit with a “John Doe” pseudonym, filed a lawsuit in New York State Supreme Court alleging abuse by Bishop Grosz and Fr. Richard Keppeler.

In allegations first reported by The Buffalo News, Grosz is accused of abusing the 15-year-old boy in 1990 at his confirmation at St. Brigid Church in Genesee County.

AB 393 DOE v. ST. BRIGID, e… [LINK TO COMPLAINT THAT NAMES GROSZ]

At a Tuesday news conference, attorney Steve Boyd said as the boy approached the altar for his confirmation, Grosz was heard making a remark to Keppeler.

“Bishop Grosz was heard to say to Keppeler, ‘Oh Dick, you…

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BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – Former auxiliary Bishop Edward M. Grosz is stepping away from active ministry amid an investigation into an abuse allegation against him.

An individual has alleged that he was abused by Grosz in 1990. In a lawsuit that was discussed by attorneys Jeff Anderson and Steve Boyd on Tuesday morning, both Grosz and Fr. Richard Keppeler were identified as alleged sexual abusers.

Bishop Grosz, 76, retired in March 2020, but was still performing limited sacramental ministires.

According to a statement from the Buffalo Diocese, Grosz has “voluntarily agreed to step aside from active ministry and not to exercise any priestly or episcopal functions pending a thorough investigation”.

“Bishop Grosz has denied ever having abused an individual, either an adult or a minor,” the statement adds.

Buffalo Bishop Michael W. Fisher has notified the Metropolitan Archbishop, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, and is in the process…

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Retired Auxiliary Bishop Edward M. Grosz, who for many years played a key role in the handling of sex abuse complaints against priests in the Buffalo Diocese, is accused in a lawsuit of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy after a confirmation service in 1990.

A Genesee County man told The News on Monday that Grosz repeatedly groped him at a gathering in a church hall following the confirmation ceremony inside St. Brigid Church in Bergen.

Grosz is the highest-ranking clergyman in the Buffalo Diocese to be accused of child sex abuse.

Grosz did not respond Monday to a voicemail left on his cellphone. Buffalo Diocese spokesman Greg Tucker put out a statement moments after the voicemail saying that Grosz has “voluntarily agreed to step aside from active ministry and not to exercise any priestly or episcopal functions pending a thorough investigation.”

“Bishop Grosz has denied ever having abused an individual,…

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The Diocese of Buffalo has been notified of a pending action brought pursuant to the Child Victims Act by an individual who alleges that he was abused as a child in 1990 by then- Auxiliary Bishop Edward M. Grosz. Bishop Grosz (76), who is retired and performs limited sacramental ministries, has voluntarily agreed to step aside from active ministry and not to exercise any priestly or episcopal functions pending a thorough investigation. Bishop Grosz has denied ever having abused an individual, either an adult or a minor.

Bishop Michael W. Fisher has notified the Metropolitan Archbishop, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, and is in the process of notifying appropriate Congregations of the Holy See, as required under Vos Estis Lux Mundi, the Apostolic Letter promulgated by Pope Francis in May of 2019 governing investigations into abuse complaints against bishops. Bishop Fisher has also notified the Papal Nuncio in Washington,…

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The Diocese of Lansing has deemed as credible two allegations of sexual abuse leveled against the late Bishop James Sullivan (1929 – 2006). Bishop Sullivan was Auxiliary Bishop of the Diocese of Lansing from 1972 to 1985 before becoming Bishop of Fargo in North Dakota from 1985 to 2002. Both accusations stem from the mid-1960’s when then-Father Sullivan was living in residence at a parish in Lansing. Both victims were boys who were subject to sexual grooming and inappropriate contact by Sullivan.

“Following investigation and review, the Diocese of Lansing has found two allegations against the late Bishop James Sullivan to be credible,” said David Kerr, spokesman for the Diocese of Lansing, July 2, 2021. 

“Bishop Sullivan’s actions were gravely immoral, deeply scandalous and betrayed both the trust of the Catholic community within the Diocese of Lansing and, more significantly, the faith placed in him by the victims and their…

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Eight to 15 years in prison, that’s the sentence given to Gary Jacobs a former Upper Peninsula Priest, facing criminal sexual conduct charges. Jacobs appeared in Dickinson County court Tuesday afternoon for sentencing.

His attorney stated Jacobs wrestled with his sexuality as a gay man and alcohol abuse when he committed the criminal sexual conduct. In May, the 75-year-old Jacobs pleaded guilty to one count of second degree CSC in Dickinson County.

The Judge in the case, Christopher S. Ninomiya, said there were letters supporting Jacobs and letters from Jacob’s victims however, Ninomiya said Jacobs took advantage of his position as a Catholic Priest.

“You have completely and utterly breached the faith and trust that was placed in you, you have groomed and preyed upon innocent victims in our community and used your status to accomplish your evil deeds, in my view, for what you have done, the court cannont…

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[Includes video]

Website provides confidential place to submit reports, find victim support

Wisconsin’s attorney general is encouraging survivors of clergy or faith leader abuse to report it to the state’s Department of Justice.

Attorney General Josh Kaul says the state’s victim services specialists can help survivors in a safe and confidential way.

“We want to get to the bottom of this, both so we can connect survivors to services, but also so we can help get some measure of accountability,” Kaul says. “Hopefully by working with the dioceses to update their lists of credibly accused priests as the facts dictate …  we can work to prevent this from ever happening again.”

Survivors can either make a phone call or submit an online report.

Those who make a report can choose how much information they want to share.

To report abuse, you can contact the DOJ at (877) 222-2620.

You can…

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Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) President Ed Litton has appointed a seven-member task force to oversee a third-party review into the handling of sexual abuse claims by the SBC Executive Committee (EC).

Calling formation of the task force his “first priority,” Litton said the seven members of the task force “represent pastors, as well as professionals in law, counseling and abuse advocacy.” According to a July 9 news release, the task force will be chaired by Bruce Frank, lead pastor of Biltmore Baptist Church of Arden, N.C. The vice chairman is Marshall Blalock, pastor of First Baptist Church of Charleston, S.C.

“I believe the members of this team are men and women who genuinely pursue God and seek the truth and desire for survivor voices to be heard,” Litton said in a statement. “I am grateful for their willingness to serve our Convention in this important role.”

Additionally, Litton announced two advisors to the…

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A wave of activists across countries and denominations is calling for the end to non-disclosure and confidentiality clauses.

A growing number of ministers, missionaries, Christian workers, abuse victims, and victims’ advocates are publicly objecting to the non-disclosure agreements and confidentiality clauses used by major religious organizations. They say the legal tools that were designed to protect tech industry “trade secrets” are widely misused to conceal abuse, preserve secrets, and protect powerful reputations without regard for the human cost.

On Wednesday, an international group of them launched a campaign to end “the misuse of non-disclosure agreements,” called NDAs, with a website and the hashtag #NDAfree.

“It’s time to set people free,” said Lee Furney, one of the organizers of #NDAfree and a British expat who lives in Malawi and works to support churches there. Furney played a key role in exposing…

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Though it has attracted very little public attention, a Catholic religious order has posted a list of its ‘credibly accused’ child molesting clerics. At least eight of them were in New Jersey and three of them are still alive.

Why is this relevant now? Because most people who were abused in New Jersey at any time only have until December 2021 to sue those responsible for the crimes and cover ups.

The Chicago-based Divine Word Missionaries put their ‘credibly accused’ list on their website in late May.

[See Chicago Sun-Times article.]

Those who spent time in New Jersey include:

–Fr. Jefferson Pool who worked in Bordentown between 1998-2020 and now lives in East Troy WI.

–Br. Gary Craanen who worked in Bordentown between 1973-1977 and now lives in Wisconsin.

–Br. Rogers (Charles) Hannan who worked in Asbury Park in 1987 and whose current whereabouts are unknown.

–Br. Deogratias Aguilar…

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A defrocked Catholic priest accused of systematic child abuse in East Timor has been reported to police for allegedly threatening to kill the human rights lawyer representing the victims.

The claim against American-born Richard Daschbach was made in a statement released on Tuesday night by law firm JUS Juridico Social Consultoria.

“At around 11.15am [on Tuesday] inside the Oecusse District Court, the accused of the case of 14 counts of sexual abuse against children, one count of child pornography and domestic violence, ex-priest Mr Richard Daschbach threatened to kill Ms Barbara Oliveira, partner of JU,S Juridico Social,” the firm said in the statement.

“This threat was made inside the court building, directly witnessed by one member of the national police. While Ms Oliveira was sitting and working in the waiting area of the court waiting for the conclusion of the hearing, Mr Daschbach left the defendant waiting room to go…

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[With video]

A Virginia priest could be removed from priesthood. He continued to blog about the Catholic Church sex abuse scandals even after the Catholic Diocese of Richmond Bishop ordered him to keep quiet.

8News first began digging into this story back in early 2020. Father Mark White at first obeyed an order to stop blogging. However, he restarted the online conversation once COVID hit and in-person church services halted. That has now prompted Bishop Barry Knestout to take their battle to Pope Francis.

The dispute heated up when in a surprise move, Bishop Knestout suddenly showed up at St. Francis of Assisi in Rocky Mount and took over mass. Father Mark White was the pastor at the Church. He also served as Pastor at St. Joseph’s in Rocky Mount.

During the televised service Bishop Knestout told viewers, “Father White and I are at odds.” In the video shared with 8News, you see Pastor…

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A Catholic priest has been found guilty of numerous historical abuse charges including three counts of having homosexual sex with young boys.

Anthony William Peter Caruana, 79, was convicted of 25 charges relating to 12 victims after jurors in his Sydney trial were deliberating for nearly 10 days.

They will return to the NSW District Court on Wednesday to continue deciding on a majority verdict for the remaining two counts.

The former boarding housemaster is accused of abusing male students while he was a school teacher, rugby coach, and conductor at Chevalier College, south of Sydney in the 1980s.

Over a six-week trial, the jury heard evidence that one of his 14-year-old victims was attacked while in the band storage room cleaning instruments.

The teacher grabbed his hand and forced it down his pants, another time saying words to the effect of “God will love you if you do what…

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Allegations of homophobic priest Tony Anatrella sexually abusing men have been around for decades. 

A French Catholic priest, Tony Anatrella, who once served as a Vatican adviser regarding sexuality, is facing a church trial over alleged sexual relationships with his male clients.

The priest, 80, has a history of supporting anti-LGBTQ+ rights initiatives including authoring an article that supported a ban on queer people serving in the priesthood, according to Queerty. The website also reported that he claimed gay men raised violent children.

Anatrella has had a history of sexual assault allegations as well, according to The National Catholic Reporter. The outlet reported that allegations have been circulating for almost 20 years. French dioceses sent seminarians thought to be gay to Anatrella who said he could suppress their sexual orientation. He has denied the allegations against him.

He was banned from ministering in 2018.

There have been three complaints made…

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An alleged victim, in a complaint under the Child Victims Act, claimed she was abused as a child in the 1980s at what the complaint names as St. Matthew parish.

After diocesan officials discovered an unreported allegation of abuse, Bishop Michael Fisher of Buffalo has placed on leave an 88-year-old retired priest, Monsignor Leo McCarthy, who denies the accusation.

“Bishop Fisher wishes to emphasize that the decision to restrict Msgr. McCarthy’s priestly faculties at this time is in no way intended to indicate his guilt or is it a determination about the truth or falsity of the complaints,” the Diocese of Buffalo said.

An alleged victim, in a complaint under the Child Victims Act, claimed she was abused as a child in the 1980s at what the complaint names as St. Matthew parish. The diocese was not served the complaint but officials found the claim in a search of publicly…

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[Includes videos]

Now for a Western Mass News exclusive.

New details Monday night surrounding a defrocked priest who authorities said was responsible for the murder of altar boy Danny Croteau nearly 50 years ago.

Western Mass News learned of new allegations against former priest Richard Lavigne, who died days before the Hampden DA could bring murder charges against him.

Danny Croteau is one of those names that never left the heart of the western Mass. community.

The 13-year-old’s murder went unsolved by the law for nearly 50 years.

In the eyes of some in the community, however, Priest Richard Lavigne was always seen as guilty.

“They all would think that he did it. That was always the rumor.”

The priest was convicted of child sex abuse involving different children in 1992, defrocked in the early 2000s, and died in May of 2021, just as the Hampden District Attorney planned to…

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Providence High School, a private Catholic school in Burbank, was sued by a former student who alleges her track and field coach sexually molested her as a minor in 2019, and then warned her not to tell anyone what he’d done.

The lawsuit, brought Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, identifies 27-year-old Mohamed Haddada as the former coach. The now 18-year-old plaintiff is listed only as Jane Doe.

According to court documents, Doe was 16-years-old and in 10th grade when Haddada was assigned as her track and field coach. The suit alleges that the then coach began manipulating Doe’s emotions to take advantage of her age in order to ultimately sexually abuse her.

Haddada is said to have had adult-oriented conversations with the teenage girl, shared personal information about his private life and paid special attention to her.

In 2019, the Providence High track-and-field program continued into the summer, with…

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The Diocese of Buffalo announced Friday that a retired priest who continues to assist in the ministry of St. Matthew’s parish in Buffalo has been placed on administrative leave in the wake of a child abuse complaint against him.

A statement released by the diocese said it recently became aware of an action brought pursuant to the Child Victims Act by a woman who alleges she was abused as a child in the early 1980s by Monsignor Leo McCarthy, 88.

The complaint was not served on the diocese but was discovered during a search of publicly filed complaints, diocesan officials said.

The diocese notified the Erie County District Attorney’s Office, reached out to the attorney for the plaintiff and approached McCarthy, who denied committing any acts of abuse.

The diocese reported the matter to the Independent Review Board, which, it said, will be responsible for appointing an independent investigator.

Since the woman…

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Child sexual abuse sometimes takes place under the blankets while a child sits with their abuser on the sofa, watching TV in a room full of people.

“It’s a wicked problem that happens in the shadows,” said Ginger Kadlec, executive director of the Traverse Bay Children’s Advocacy Center, which recently added 2,200 square feet of space to deal with the rise in reports of sexual and physical abuse.

The added space nearly doubles the CAC’s size, allowing the center to now conduct two simultaneous forensic interviews, Kadlec said.

The number of child forensic interviews done at the CAC has increased by about 10 percent each year for the past several years, said Kadlec, who took over as director of the center in August. In May, 52 interviews were conducted, up from 38 in 2019.

“We’re anticipating that trend to continue upward,” Kadlec said. “We kind of hope that it does,…

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The story is all too familiar. A child is sexually assaulted and the perpetrator either goes unpunished or gets a short prison sentence, even community service.

Activists describe a vicious cycle in which victims and their families have such low expectations of the Israeli justice system’s response that victims do not even report incidents — creating a public sense that child sexual abuse is not much of a problem.

But the Office of the State Attorney and groups dedicated to addressing the problem estimate that there are in fact tens of thousands of child sexual abuse cases in the country annually, many of them difficult to prosecute because there are no eyewitnesses and because the victims are young and traumatized.

After a series of particularly egregious cases resulting in limited consequences, advocates intensified public campaigns this spring and notched several small victories that they hope are harbingers for a broader…

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The Salt Lake County District Attorney’s office hopes to give kids a place to just be kids.

Children and parents alike are always nervous at the drop off to summer sleepaway camp.

One grandmother was no exception when she dropped off her grandson June 28 to stay at a camp in the Uinta mountains, where just an hour from the city, children could see streams run through rocky waterways and lambs guided by sheepdogs alongside winding ridge roads.

“This first time he’s going to camp — he’s so excited he’s just bouncing,” she said. “He’s already got his stories ready for the campfire.”

But for her grandson, it was more than just a trip to camp, it was a chance for healing. For five days, in a picturesque corner of the Uintas overlooking a mountain meadow, 62 children who were all victims of crime got to bond, make friends and…

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This spring, Eve Tushnet wrote an article about the conversion therapy in Catholic spaces. The article, included in the June 2021 issue of America Magazine, cited anecdotal evidence from interviews Tushnet conducted during her research. CNA responded to the article with a different perspective on welcoming LGBT members of the Church, supported by our own research and interviews. 

Over the last several weeks, Tushnet and our staff engaged in a charitable discourse about our respective points of view. We invited Tushnet to share her thoughts in an interview with CNA:

Tell us a little bit about yourself and your approach to ministry. How did you acquire your position with America? What prompted you to write your book?

I was born in 1978 and raised in Washington, D.C., more or less secular or Reform Jewish. When I was 12 or 13, I began to realize that the way other girls were talking…

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[Includes video with additional content, including statements by Senator Brad Hoylman and survivor Tom Andriola, further comments by survivor Marissa Hoechstetter, and the text of the proposed law.]

The Adult Survivors Act unanimously passed the New York State Senate during this year’s legislative session, but its future in the Assembly remains unclear.

New York’s legislative session ended nearly one month ago, but not without criticism from advocacy groups.

The Adult Survivors Act would create a one-year look back window for cases of adult sexual abuse. That’s similar to the Child Victims Act, legislation passed in 2019 targeted at victims of child sex abuse.

While the Senate passed the Adult Survivors Act unanimously, the Assembly didn’t bring it to the floor for a vote.

Assembly member Linda Rosenthal, a Democrat from Manhattan who sponsors the bill, said that even she doesn’t completely understand why it wasn’t voted on.

“Some of it…

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Running away didn’t help.

Neither did telling a social worker about the abuse he contends he suffered in his Staten Island foster home.

A young boy could have been spared the pain and agony of being sexually abused by an older foster child had the city and a child-care agency acted on his complaints of molestation, a lawsuit alleges.

“If minimal foster care services had been provided to plaintiff with reasonable care, the sexual assaults of plaintiff could have been thus prevented,” alleges a civil complaint against the city and Seamen’s Society for Children and Families.

As a result of the defendants’ negligence, the plaintiff has suffered “severe and permanent psychological, emotional and physical injuries, shame, humiliation and the inability to lead a normal life,” contends the complaint.

A New Jersey resident, the man is now in his late 30s, his court filings indicate.

…

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Senate Bill 88 is the first opportunity for victims who were abused by employees of public institutions to pursue restitution.

On Tuesday, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed into law Senate Bill 88, which allows victims of sexual abuse to file for restitution from public and private entities in civil court.

The law adopted July 6 permits victims of abuse from 1960 to January 2022 retroactively to collect restitution from employers who knew about or who should have known about the abuse taking place, as long as claims are filed by January 2025. 

“For decades, the Catholic Church in Colorado has recognized a need for restorative justice for victims of sexual abuse, no matter how long ago the abuse occurred,” said the Colorado Catholic Conference in a statement. “It is important to acknowledge that this new law could provide opportunities for victims of childhood sexual abuse from other institutions who have…

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A private Catholic high school in Burbank is being sued by a former student who alleges she was sexually molested as a minor in 2019 by a track-and-field coach who warned her not to tell anyone what he had done to her.

The plaintiff is identified only as Jane Doe in the Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit brought against Providence High School and the now-18-year-old plaintiff’s former coach, Mohamed Haddada, who is 27 and awaiting trial on charges of sexual abuse, according to her court papers.

The suit’s allegations include sexual abuse of a minor, sexual harassment, intentional infliction of emotional distress and negligent hiring, supervision and retention. Doe seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages.

A Providence High School representative could not be immediately reached.

At the outset of the 2018-19 school year, Doe was 16 years old and in the 10th grade, the suit states. He was assigned as…

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A notoriously anti-gay priest in Paris will face trial within the Catholic Church over his self-professed attempts to “cure” homosexuality. His method: have sex with men.

Msgr. Tony Anatrella has a long history of campaigning against LGBTQ rights initiatives inside and outside the church. In 2005, he authored an article supporting a ban on LGBTQ people from serving in the priesthood. The following year, he claimed gay men raise “violent” children, and further supported a ban on same-sex marriage equality. He further described homosexuality as a “confusion of sex and feelings leads to a confusion of the realities and an impasse.”

Anatrella’s stance on homosexuality boggles the mind considering his decades-long history of sexual assault of other men. The National Catholic Reporter reports that allegations against Anatrella have circulated for more than 20 years. In 2006, a former seminarian named Daniel Lamarca claimed Anatrella sexually assaulted him during therapy…

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A former Catholic ministry leader at Western Carolina University in the North Carolina mountains sexually abused a student for years in the 1980s, according to a lawsuit the former student filed on Tuesday against his alleged abuser and the Charlotte Catholic Diocese.

On Friday, the diocese issued a statement that it “has zero tolerance for child sexual abuse, and we continue to encourage anyone who has been the victim of abuse to seek help and report to authorities.”

Al Behm is named in the lawsuit as the man who allegedly sexually abused the student at WCU in Cullowhee. The student said he had known Behm since he was a boy in Connecticut.

Behm was an ordained Catholic brother of the Ohio-based Glenmary Home Missioners religious order, according to the lawsuit filed Tuesday in Mecklenburg County Civil Superior Court.

From about 1980 to 1984, the diocese and…

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THERE ARE growing calls for Pope Francis to officially apologise on behalf of the Catholic Church for the church’s role in Canada’s residential schools, set up to forcibly assimilate First Nations children.

Over the past several months, the bodies of over 1,000 children have been discovered at three former residential schools run by the Catholic Church; neither the Pope or the Church have issued a formal apology, leading to huge anger in Canada.

Now elected officials and authorities have called on the Church to formally apologise, with Ontario MPs and Mayor Walter Sendzik writing an open letter to the bishop of St Catharines, their local town, asking that he demands Pope Francis apologise.

In the letter, the officials acknowledge that “The residential school sustem was an attempt by the Government of Canada and Canadian churches to erase Indigenous culture from Canada.”

While some other Canadian Christian churches have apologised for…

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Antonette Acupinpin was 7 when the sexual abuse started.

She had already endured years of beating and physical violence from her mother and stepfather, she said — but then he took it a step further.

He would put a long knife near her face during the abuse, and threaten to kill her mother and brother if she reported him, she said. Terrified and ashamed, she didn’t tell anyone for a year and a half — until a school teacher saw her with a black eye and notified the police.

“I felt hopeless,” said Acupinpin, now 23. “It felt like I had nowhere to go because it’s my family who was hurting me. I didn’t know anyone who could really help me.”

She’s not alone. Child sexual abuse is rampant in the Philippines, which activists say is partly driven by the country’s ​law regarding the age at which ​girls can legally…

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CBC compiled Catholic projects announced since promising ‘best efforts’ to survivors, paying them under $4M

Catholic officials said in 2015 they could only fundraise a total of $3.9 million for residential school survivors, but efforts for Catholic cathedrals and other buildings across Canada reached nearly $300 million since November 2005, according to data gathered by CBC News.

The actual number may be higher. The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops declined a CBC News request this week to ask its member bishops for the information. The figure of $292 million resulted from searches of individual dioceses’ websites and other public sources.

These include a $128-million renovation of St. Michael’s Cathedral Basilica in Toronto. The 2016 gala opening — complete with a brass band — was held one year after Canadian church groups went to court to say there was no more fundraising money for survivors.

Critics say these figures throw into question the church’s legal claim it gave “best efforts” to…

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88-year-old Reverend Monsignor Leo McCarthy, a retired Buffalo Catholic priest, has been placed on administrative leave after a complaint of alleged abuse was discovered by the diocese.

The alleged abuse came to light through a Child Victims Act complaint, claiming this individual was abused as a child in the early 1980s at St. Matthew parish. The Buffalo Catholic Diocese came across the complaint during a search of publicly filed complaints. The diocese was not directly served the claim.

The diocese notified the Erie County District Attorney’s office and contacted the plaintiff’s attorney after learning of the complaint. The matter has also been reported to their Independent Review Board — responsible for appointing an independent investigator. 

The plaintiff is unwilling to cooperate in the investigation.

McCarthy was placed on leave by Bishop Michael Fisher. The 88-year-old, who assists in parish ministry, denies committing any abuse.

“As a result, Bishop Fisher has decided…

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An East Timorese NGO has called for more respect and support for victims of sexual abuse in the country, calling for a speedy trial of a defrocked priest accused of sexually abusing several children over a period of years.

“Sexual violations against women and girls are serious crimes, and everyone must unite to oppose these acts. Activists, journalists, the state, human rights institutions and our entire population need to act more purposefully to fight for the physical safety, privacy and freedom of women and girls,” said La’o Hamutuk, a Timorese non-governmental organisation (NGO).

In a statement sent to Lusa La’o Hamutuk welcomes the fact that Daschbach’s trial is finally taking place, expressing concern over repeated postponements in the process and by “political pressure from important people and comments on social media that could increase the psychological suffering of the victims”.

“These trends can set a bad example for other victims in the future, or make victims afraid to…

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Catholics of a certain age and outlook, like many of NCR’s readers, will find in James Carroll’s latest book, The Truth at the Heart of the Lie: How the Catholic Church Lost Its Soul — A Memoir of Faith, a useful framing of our relationship with the church.

I’m thinking, especially, of Catholics encouraged by the inclusiveness and compassion exhibited by Pope Francis but confounded by a church that remains bogged down by clericalism and resistant to reforms already too long delayed.

Put aside, for the moment, the impassioned critiques and defenses ignited by Carroll’s 2019 article, “Abolish the Priesthood,” that preceded the book.

Consider, instead, the most interesting argument in the book:

The paradox of the Francis pontificate lies in its setting the ‘not yet’ against the ‘no longer tolerable,’ and it presents Catholics who long for the…

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From the Pulpit to the Pew

I thought about a billboard, but there’s little wiggle in an unemployed budget.

About a postcard, but that would be a bit brief.

A homily, but an ellipsis is not an endpoint.

So I waited. I waited for a question from friend or family. I waited for my long, quiet journey to be caught up to by the reckoning with a sudden announcement. I waited even for this blog, an invitation out-of-the-blue and right-on-time.

I waited to explain why I left the priesthood.

As I sit in a creaky, lonely church pew—I made Mass Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday this week, good for a gold star on my bulletin and a compulsive disorder referral in my inbox—my mind often goes to James Joyce. To call him an “Irish author” is as incomplete as to call him a “complicated Catholic.” But like any good Irish lad…

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After recognizing that sin and evil aren’t outside threats, families are doing more to promote abuse awareness.

Josh Duggar was slated to stand trial this month on charges of downloading and possessing material that depicted the sexual abuse of minors. Instead, his court date has been delayed until the fall. His family’s series Counting On has been cancelled by TLC.

In the months to come, Duggar’s case will be covered as the saga of a former reality TV star, making headlines in celebrity magazines as did every courtship, wedding, pregnancy, and birth announcement from the famously fruitful Duggar brood.

But for some who come from Christian circles like the Duggars’—conservative Christian churches, tight-knit homeschool networks, big-family “quiverfull” movements—this case isn’t just about Josh Duggar. It represents a larger concern over how their communities teach about sexual abuse and, sadly, have missed opportunities…

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[Via KAKE NBC, Wichita KS]

Here is a look at the life of Pope Francis, the current pope and first non-European pontiff of the modern era.

Personal

Birth date: December 17, 1936

Birth place: Buenos Aires, Argentina

Birth name: Jorge Mario Bergoglio

Father: Mario Bergoglio

Mother: Regina (Sivori) Bergoglio

Religion: Roman Catholic

Other Facts

The first Jesuit pope.

The first Latin American pope and the first from the Americas.

The first non-European pope in more than 1,000 years.

Reportedly received the second most votes in the 2005 papal election.

As archbishop of Buenos Aires, Bergoglio took the bus to work and cooked his own meals.

Part of one lung was removed when he was a young man, but he is in good health, according to the Vatican spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi.

Timeline

December 13, 1969 – Is ordained as a priest.

1973-1979 – Serves as provincial for Argentina.

1980-1986 – Rector of the Philosophical and Theological Faculty…

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A Fresno County woman has filed a lawsuit against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fresno over what she says was an abusive relationship with a religious leader called the “Party Priest” who brandished a gun.

The court filing from Wednesday says the Rev. Guadalupe Rios and the woman identified only as Jane Doe were romantically involved for about four years, and that Rios was physically and emotionally abusive.

Rios was head priest at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Selma from 2014 to 2020. He also served at a church with the same name in Los Banos before that, according to the lawsuit.

The woman worked as a cook and housekeeper for the church’s rectory, which was Rios’ living quarters.

The diocese does not comment on pending litigation, according to Cheryl Sarkisian, chancellor for the Diocese of Fresno. She said in November that Rios was placed on administrative…

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A trial before the Vatican’s criminal tribunal begins this month, those charged include four former Vatican officials and Cardinal Angelo Becciu

Oh dear. It was Jesus himself who advised: “No one can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” Despite which, and repeatedly, some dealing with Vatican finances appear to have fallen for the undoubted charms of mammon.

The latest episode remains to be proven. Previous ones show up Dan Brown and his Da Vinci Code for its lack of imagination as well as the sad limitations of fiction.

Last Saturday the Vatican announced that 10 people, including a cardinal, were to face charges which include fraud, embezzlement, abuse of office, appropriation of funds, money laundering, self-laundering, corruption, extortion, publication of documents under the cover of secrecy, false documentation, falsified internal agreements….

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[Photo above: RCMP said in a release that officers were called to the blaze at St. John Baptiste Parish in Morinville, about 40 kilometres north of Edmonton, just after 3 a.m. on June 30, 2021. — TRACY DALZELL-HEISE/THE CANADIAN PRESS]

Just days after al-Qaeda terrorists flew passenger planes into the Twin Towers and the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001, a mosque all the way over in Montreal was firebombed. Another mosque was then vandalized in Hamilton, where a rather confused assailant also set a Hindu temple ablaze. A few weeks later, two Ontario mosques – one in Burlington and one in Mississauga – were firebombed in the same weekend. In the U.S., a bullet flew through the window of the only mosque in Hernando County, Fla. The Islamic Center of Tallahassee was broken into and trashed. A man rammed his car into a mosque in Evansville, Ind.

Indeed, hundreds of…

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Działając na podstawie przepisów Kodeksu Prawa Kanonicznego i motu proprio Papieża Franciszka Vos estis lux mundi, Stolica Apostolska – w następstwie zgłoszenia dokonanego przez abp. Wiktora Skworca – przeprowadziła postępowanie w celu zbadania sygnalizowanych zaniedbań dokonanych przez niego, jako biskupa tarnowskiego, w sprawach wykorzystania seksualnego popełnionego wobec osób małoletnich przez dwóch kapłanów tej diecezji.

Po zakończeniu powyższego dochodzenia i w związku ze swoimi wcześniejszymi oświadczeniami, abp Wiktor Skworc:

1. złożył rezygnację z członkostwa w Radzie Stałej Konferencji Episkopatu Polski;
2. złożył rezygnację z funkcji przewodniczącego Komisji ds. Duszpasterstwa Konferencji Episkopatu Polski;
3. zobowiązał się wesprzeć finansowo – z prywatnych środków – wydatki diecezji tarnowskiej związane ze sprawami wykorzystania seksualnego;
4. poprosił o wyznaczenie Arcybiskupa Koadiutora.

Kraków, dnia 9 lipca 2021 r.

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The inquiry was conducted according to the provisions of the Code of Canon Law and Pope Francis’ 2019 motu proprio Vos estis lux mundi.

KRAKOW, Poland — A Polish Catholic archbishop has asked for a coadjutor following a Vatican probe into his handling of clerical abuse cases.

The archdiocese of Kraków announced on July 9 the conclusions of the investigation into the actions of Archbishop Wiktor Skworc of Katowice, southern Poland.

In a statement, Kraków archdiocese said that the Vatican had investigated claims that Skworc behaved negligently concerning abuse cases involving two priests of the Diocese of Tarnów, which Skworc led from 1998 to 2011.

Tarnów, in southeastern Poland, is a suffragan diocese of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Kraków.

The inquiry was conducted according to the provisions of the Code of Canon Law and Pope Francis’ 2019 motu proprio Vos estis lux mundi.

The Kraków archdiocese statement said that Archbishop Skworc…

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An archbishop from the archdiocese of Katowice has resigned from the Permanent Council of the Polish Bishops’ Conference owing to negligence when dealing with cases of child sex abuse committed by members of the clergy.

The announcement, concerning resignation of Archbishop Wiktor Skworc from the archdiocese was published on the website of the Archdiocese of Krakow.

The high-profile resignation of a senior member of Poland’s Catholic Church will further tarnish its reputation. In recent years, the Church has faced numerous allegations that it failed to act on reports of sexual abuse my its clerics.

In its statement, the Krakow archdiocese said that acting under new procedural norms to combat sexual abuse and ensure that bishops are held accountable for their actions, “the Holy See… conducted proceedings to investigate the reported negligence by him, while he was the bishop of Tarnow, in cases of sexual abuse committed against minors by two…

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SURVIVORS of abuse in Church of England contexts have said that the Interim Support Scheme, set up last year, is failing them.

One survivor, Sophie Whiting, said this week that the scheme had compounded the original abuse; she has put in an additional claim for compensation for “stress, anxiety” caused by the administration of the scheme.

Another, Teresa Cooper, complained that, although the scheme was set up to meet “urgent and immediate needs”, she has had to wait for a panel decision on the cost of a week’s home help so that she can have a Covid vaccination. Ms Cooper suffers from a rare and severe disease traced back to her time in Kendall House, in the early 1980s. Kendall House was a Church of England-run home in Gravesend, Kent, in which teenage girls were routinely sedated, straitjacketed, abused, and given experimental drugs (News, 15 July 2016).

Ms Cooper cannot have…

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A group of abuse victims, whistleblowers, ministry workers and activists have launched a campaign against the use of non-disclosure agreements by major Christian organizations.

On Wednesday, the #NDAFree campaign was launched by an international group of Christians aimed at ending “the misuse of non-disclosure agreements,” or NDAs by Christian groups and organizations. The group launched a website that features stories of survivors who felt like they were silenced in their abuse because an NDA prohibited them from speaking out.

“In some ways, an NDA can look reasonable,” Lee Furney, one of the group’s organizers and an advocate for abuse survivors, told Christianity Today. “But find for me the perfect NDA, and it’s still not perfect. There’s no transparency. No accountability. You can’t track them or how they’re used. And they’re binding the conscience for the future, saying I can’t change my mind, regardless of the situation.”

He added, “It’s time…

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Southern Baptist Convention President Ed Litton has announced the formation of a task force to review the SBC Executive Committee’s handling of sexual abuse allegations.

The announcement was made on the website of Litton’s church, Redemption Church, Saraland.

The statement reads: “At the 2021 Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) annual meeting in Nashville, TN, the messengers passed a motion calling for the appointment of a task force to conduct a third-party review into the handling of abuse disclosures and the treatment of survivors of abuse by the Executive Committee of the SBC.

“The Convention directed that this task force be comprised of members of Baptist churches cooperating with this Convention as well as experts on sexual abuse and the handling of sexual abuse-related dynamics. My first priority has been to form a task force that is independent of the Executive Committee to oversee the third party.

Task force members

The…

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** WARNING: This story contains graphic and disturbing details about sexual abuse. **

A pastor and former West Chester Christian School teacher has been charged with sexually abusing a first grade student during the 2007-08 school year, the Chester County DA’s Office said Friday.

Last month, a 20-year-old man apparently told his mom he was sexually assaulted at the West Chester Christian School on Paoli Pike by Randy Boston, according to an affidavit. Boston, 63, currently works as a pastor at the Bible Baptist Church in Shickshinny, ADVERTISING

A Childline Report of Suspected Child Abuse and Neglect was filed with the West Goshen Township Police Department on June 1.

The victim told police on June 2 that Boston performed oral sex on him and made him perform oral sex on him, as well, the affidavit said.

The victim said he remembered this happening three times, but could only remember the details of…

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CATHOLIC priest Stannis Tipong Jr, 35, was committed by the Madang District Court to stand trial in the National Court for allegedly sexually harassing and raping four girls aged between 14 and 16.

Senior Magistrate Fredolin Kambibel on Monday found that there was sufficient evidence to commit Tipong, from Bogia’s Aidibal village, to stand trial in the National Court for the alleged charges.

The court heard that between Dec 31, 2018, and July 31, 2019, Tipong, who served in Halopa Catholic Mission as a priest, allegedly sexually harassed and raped the four girls on numerous occasions in his house.

After going through the police file and submissions from Police Prosecutor First Const Eugine Vinai, Tipong was committed to stand trial in the National Court.

According to a police brief, Tipong had allegedly been using force to rape the girls when he invited them to his house to do dishes or cook for him.

According to…

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According to your report (News from Britain and Ireland, 3 July), those seriously abused at Mirfield in the 1960s and 1970s by the Comboni Missionaries had to wait until 2014 for compensation. Although the missionaries hold huge investments the compensation was pitiful.

Archbishop Scicluna explained that “the only person who could order the Comboni Missionaries to apologise would be Pope Francis himself” and the archbishop appears to be seeking to arrange this, albeit belatedly.

Surely no less important than apologies is decent compensation. The Comboni case exposes the near-total autonomy of such orders and that of dioceses too. Has the time not come for Mgr Scicluna, who has pledged to protect minors “at all costs”, to set up a formal conduit for such injustices to be brought directly to the Pope’s attention?

Keith Porteous Wood
President, National Secular Society, London WC1

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The papal nuncio to Great Britain has met survivors of child sexual abuse and promised to raise their treatment by the Catholic Church directly with Pope Francis. After a lengthy meeting during which Archbishop Claudio Gugerotti listened to three survivors tell their stories, he apologised for how they had been treated and said he would give an account of their situation when he meets Francis in Rome in September.

The meeting marked a major breakthrough in the way the Church has handled abuse cases in this country and follows criticism by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) of the Vatican’s handling of abuse.

Survivors wrote on several occasions to the nuncio asking to meet him; after delays caused by Covid lockdowns, talks finally went ahead on Saturday when Archbishop Gugerotti travelled to Birmingham to meet several survivors in person at Archbishop’s House. For an hour and three-quarters, he…

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More than 50 years after they were abused by predatory priests at a school run by the Verona Fathers, a brave and resolute group of survivors have finally received a full apology from the Church. Yet their painful story is far from over

In October 2014, The Observer ran a two-page story by the Scottish journalist and writer Catherine Deveney about the experiences of a group of survivors of sexual abuse by priests when at Mirfield Junior Seminary in West Yorkshire in the 1960s and 1970s. St Peter Claver College was in the care of the Verona Fathers (now known as the Comboni Missionaries).

At that time, Pope Francis’ direction to ­bishops and the leaders of religious orders was to meet survivors and victims of abuse directly, listen to their stories, apologise unreservedly and offer them support. I found the statement by the provincial of the order quoted in Deveney’s article…

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[VIDEO]

A man who claims his minister took advantage of his family’s faith and his vulnerability by grooming — then abusing him — for years, has filed a civil lawsuit in Charlotte.

But Channel 9 anchor Allison Latos learned the law allowing him to sue is now at the center of its own court battle.

Allison has covered cases of abuse involving former clergy members in the Charlotte Diocese for years, and this lawsuit, filed Tuesday, follows the same pattern of many of those cases.

It accuses the church of moving accused ministers to different churches or parishes instead of reporting them to police.

The latest lawsuit says Al Behm was credibly accused of sexual abuse in Kentucky, and then moved to a new position as campus clergy at Western Carolina University, where he was in charge of ministering to the spiritual needs of all Catholic students.

During that time,…

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Those highlighting the cost of Cardinal Pell’s defence are not giving the public the context or the whole truth about what he was up against.

Cardinal George Pell’s legal defence cost $3 million; so ran the article in The Australian last weekend.

The legal fees which – according to the report – have still not been paid in full, were borne by the Cardinal himself as well as friends, family and others who were willing to chip in to help his cause.

While a legal bill of several million dollars might seem extravagant to non-lawyers, those among us who are or were once lawyers were a lot less scandalised, given our knowledge of the often-exorbitant expenses of legal representation – especially top legal representation.

At the tail end of the story, abuse specialist lawyer Peter Kelso is quoted as saying that celebrities and the wealthy had a better opportunity to…

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An Ohio priest will plead guilty to federal child pornography and child exploitation charges, his attorney said in a court filing last week. The priest was arrested after using hookup apps and social media to meet and pay a male minor victim for sex, and to acquire pornographic selfies from minors through manipulation and extortion. 

The priest’s crimes raise concerns about the digital front of the Church’s child protection efforts, and the emerging challenge of ensuring technology accountability among clerics and other Church leaders.

Fr. Robert McWilliams, 40, was arrested in December 2019 from the Strongsville, Ohio, parish where he had been a parochial vicar since his 2017 ordination. At the time of his arrest, police found child pornography on his computer, cell phone, and iPad.

The priest allegedly used social media and location-based hookup apps to meet and coerce young male victims.

In some cases, McWilliams allegedly pretended to…

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ROCHESTER, N.Y. —A proposed settlement deal between the Diocese of Rochester and several insurance agencies has drawn criticism from a group of abuse victims, whose lawyer says the settlement would not cover enough of the lawsuits that the diocese faces.

The Rochester diocese, which filed for bankruptcy in September 2019, has been negotiating with victims of sex abuse during the bankruptcy proceedings on a judge’s orders. More than 475 abuse claims have been filed against the diocese.

A proposed settlement, which the diocese announced June 11, involves a $35 million agreement with the major insurers involved in the bankruptcy case. 

The settlement would cover “only a portion” of the abuse claims against the diocese, with the rest coming from a yet-to-be-established “Survivors Fund,” the diocese said. 

“We believe this settlement, if approved, is a significant step forward in our goal of achieving a fair and equitable Reorganization Plan – the…

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It goes without saying at this point that children are “persons” under the Fourteenth Amendment. That is to say, they have constitutional rights. They are no longer property of their parents as they were for centuries; on that we can all agree. Yet the contours of the rights are emerging incrementally. The United States actually had a society for the prevention of cruelty to animals before it had one for children, so this is no mean feat! Of course, the rest of the world has already gone down this road with their ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, as I discussed here in the context of the crisis of family separation at our border. The development of a children’s civil rights has been painstaking, with stops and starts. We saw both during the 2020 Term.

Children’s rights were implicated in six cases this last Term, as you…

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In response to a late June announcement, the United States will be conducting an investigation of former federally funded boarding schools to search for graves of Native American children, a spokesperson for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said June 28 the bishops will “look for ways to be of assistance.”

“It is important to understand what might have occurred here in the United States,” said the statement from Chieko Noguchi, who added the bishops will be “following closely” the investigation announced June 22 by Interior Secretary Deb Haaland.

Haaland, who is a member of the Laguna Pueblo in New Mexico and is Catholic, announced this upcoming review, called the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative, during her remarks at the virtual conference of the National Congress of American Indians.

“I know that this process will be long and difficult. I know that this process will be painful. It won’t undo…

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A spokeswoman for the U.S. bishops conference said it is looking to help with a new federal investigation of the history of boarding schools for Native American children in the United States. 

Following the recent discovery of unmarked graves outside former Canadian residential schools, the U.S. government recently promised a comprehensive report on its involvement with the boarding schools for Native Americans.

U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, who is Catholic, announced the investigation on June 22 at a conference for Native American leaders. “[W]e must shed light on the unspoken traumas of the past, no matter how hard it will be,” Haaland said. The investigation will focus on the loss of life at the schools, as well as the consequences and legacy of the federal policy of sending Indigenous children to the schools.

In a June 28 statement, a spokesperson for the U.S. bishops’ conference said the bishops will “look…

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EDMONTON — Outrage directed at the Catholic Church for its role in Canada’s residential school system continues, with more churches allegedly set ablaze and faithful followers questioning their loyalty to the institution.

While some continue to call for a Papal apology, others have renounced the church altogether, unable to come to terms with the atrocities carried out by religious leaders.

“I’ve struggled with my feelings for the church and its position on many issues, including Indigenous rights, and I felt I’d reached this moment where I couldn’t take it anymore,” writer Bernadette Hardaker told CTV National News from her home in Orangeville, Ont.

In a recent editorial published by the Globe and Mail, Hardaker – who now describes herself as a former Catholic – said she was ashamed that she “upheld an institution that dodges and waves instead of taking responsibility.”

What started as an urge to write the Pope…

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It’s possible a special prosecutor could be appointed before trial for the four women charged in connection with alleged child abuse at the First United Methodist Church day care.

Former day care director Abby Leach appeared in Christian Circuit Court Wednesday with attorney Ben Fletcher and Commonwealth’s Attorney Rick Boling said the Attorney General’s Office is presently considering whether there should be a special prosecutor.

Trial is set for November 15 for Leach, former day care employees Nina Morgan and Allison Simpson and former pastor Paige Williams.

Superseding indictments for eight counts each of complicity to criminal child abuse against children under the age 12 were returned in April against Williams and Leach.

The indictments allege they “breached their legal duty to protect the minor children by failing to prevent Simpson and Morgan from intentionally abusing children. In each count, the victim is described as being under the age of…

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Warning: The information and material here may trigger unpleasant feelings or thoughts of past abuse. Please contact the 24-hour Residential School Crisis Line at 1-866-925-4419 if you require emotional support.

An elder told me a story. It goes like this.

It was long ago and late summer in a remote northern village. A Cree village. Everyone still lived in tents. One day priests visited. They announced that the next time they came, they would take the children. It would be for the best, they explained. The children would go to school. The priests left, and some short time later — maybe a week, maybe two — they returned. This time, the Mounties came with them. The Mounties wore red coats, black boots and each Mountie wore a belt with a gun. The priests did as they’d promised. With the help of the Mounties, they piled the children into boats and…

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Warning: The information and material here may trigger unpleasant feelings or thoughts of past abuse. Please contact the 24-hour Residential School Crisis Line at 1-866-925-4419 if you require emotional support.

This is the second in a two-part series. Read Part 1 here.

If reconciliation has a birthplace, it is in the mostly beige West Block room numbered 371. On Feb. 17, 2005, a dozen members of Parliament shuffled into their seats, under sterile fluorescent lights, carrying mugs of tea and coffee.

Canadians may think that reconciliation was born of altruism. That the government gifted reconciliation to survivors in an act of contrition. But that’s not true. Every battle the survivors ever won — from the time they were children until they grew into elders — they fought hard for.

That February meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on Aboriginal Affairs was the backdrop to one of those battles. It is where three…

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Clerical abuse and its damaging legacy

The Church in Germany is at a tipping point that is reminding many of events of 500 years ago, when a storm of protest was unleashed that was to change the face of Catholicism for ever

In the bright, stuccoed glory of Munich’s Theatine Church, soloists and ensemble reflect mournfully on the Catholic Church’s darkest disgrace. Oratio is a musical work of harrowing beauty by composer Mathias Rehfeldt that adapts Jeremiah’s Lamentations on the fall of Jerusalem (“They shamelessly abused us … the crown has fallen”) to the abuse crisis in the global Catholic Church. As the crisis reaches a scale beyond rational understanding, the searing music of Oratio, paired with an ancient lament of mourning and salvation, opens the ear – and the soul – to a space no words can reach. “We wanted to send a signal that wasn’t just a one-off…

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In November of 2019, the Report on Clerical Sexual Abuse made 31 recommendations for preventing and investigating sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Vancouver. In particular, recommendation #25 called for “…the immediate establishment of a leadership team comprised of lay, religious and clergy to prayerfully explore the development of an Archdiocese-wide plan” to combat “the inherent evil of clericalism” within both the laity and clergy of the Archdiocese.

This recommendation requires the development of “…a strategy for developing and maintaining a Church which more fully reflects the spirit of Vatican II (Lumen gentium and Apostolicam actuositatem, for example)” as individuals, communities, and as an institution.

Archbishop J. Michael Miller, CSB, created a committee to study the problem of clericalism. The new committee’s task is to study this recommendation and propose practical measures to reduce clericalism in our archdiocese. The committee includes lay, religious, and clergy. This membership includes two members of the Case Review Committee that…

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The new law takes effect January 2022 and covers the years of 1960 to 2022

Individuals who were abused as children in Colorado can sue the institutions that hid abuse or did nothing to stop it starting in January.

Gov. Jared Polis signed SB21-088 into law Tuesday, giving survivors another avenue to pursue claims against government entities, schools and private institutions that have youth programs like the Boy Scouts or the Catholic Church. The law caps how much victims can get from the lawsuits — up to $1 million from private entities and up to $387,000 from governmental entities.

“The bill provides an opportunity for survivors to seek damages for terrible and sometimes institutionalized abuses that occurred when they were children,” Polis spokesman Conor Cahill said.

In April, the governor signed SB21-073, which removes the statute of limitations for child sex abuse lawsuits, but it doesn’t apply retroactively.

Previously, survivors had only six…

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As Australian Catholics prepare for an historic plenary council assembly in October, a leading churchman says there’s “unprecedented momentum for deep reform”. 

The Bishop of Parramatta, Vincent Long, a Vietnamese-born former boat refugee and a survivor of clergy sexual abuse, has called for the elimination of clericalism and for more women to be given roles in church governance and decision-making.

“For the Church to flourish, it is crucial that we come to terms with the flaws of clericalism and move beyond its patriarchal and monarchical matrix,” Bishop Long said, delivering the prestigious Dom Helder Camara Lectureat the Univeristy of Melbourne’s Newman College.

“There is a sense in which the Church must change into a more Christ-like pattern of humility, simplicity and powerlessness as opposed to worldly triumphalism, splendour, dominance and power.

“What is urgent is that we need to find fresh ways of being Church and fresh ways of ministry and…

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Man was trainee priest when he abused the child on six occasions, court told

Former priest Tony Walsh has been jailed for two years for repeatedly indecently assaulting a child 45 years ago.

Walsh (67) was a trainee priest when he sexually abused the child victim on six occasions inside a church in the 1970s.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that Walsh has 39 previous convictions, 34 of which are for previous offences of indecent assault.

The court heard he was most recently sentenced for indecent assault in 2018 to a term of imprisonment of five years with the final 18 months suspended. Prior to sentencing on Wednesday, Walsh had a release date of July 9th, 2021.

Walsh was convicted by a jury following a trial in May 2021 of six counts of indecent assault at a church in Dublin on unknown dates between September 1st, 1973 and July 1st, 1977. He…

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A Catholic priest who formerly pastored churches in Rocky Mount and Martinsville still wears his clerical collar but without a church to serve and apparently grim prospects for being assigned a new one.

On April 2 the Rev. Mark White received a document written in Latin from the Apostolic Signatura, the Supreme Court of the Vatican.

“I struggled to translate it, but it reaffirmed the decision rendered by the Congregation of the Clergy in June 2020, that is: My appeal of the bishop’s decision to remove me as pastor of Rocky Mount and Martinsville did not come from the right source, a procurator,” White said. “Since then the clock has run out.”

White’s case before the court was dismissed the first time on a technicality, for White’s failing to refer to his canon lawyer as a “procurator,” the second time because the Vatican’s imposed statute of limitations had expired.

White’s…

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The Archdiocese of Newark has sold the Hunterdon County retirement home of former Archbishop John J. Myers for almost $1 million, unloading a property whose lavish renovations sparked controversy seven years ago. 

The five-bedroom, five-bath house, secluded on eight wooded acres in Pittstown, sold for $910,000 on June 8, the archdiocese said in a statement. Myers had moved out as of early 2020 to be near family in Illinois as his health deteriorated. The 79-year-old died in September. 

Myers, who led the archdiocese for 16 years, held on to the home despite criticism over a $500,000 expansion in 2014 that added a 3,000-square-foot wing with three fireplaces and an indoor exercise pool. More than 17,000 people signed a petition that year urging that the home be sold. 

The property was purchased in 2002 for $678,000, county records show, so this year’s sale represents a loss…

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Vatican financial scandals have repeatedly tarnished the image of the church. It is time for the Vatican to get its act together. Ironically, that will mean more bad news as crimes are uncovered and prosecuted.

The Catholic faithful are rightly outraged by news of financial crimes in the Vatican, especially since the latest alleged crimes involve Peter’s Pence, the collection for the pope’s charities. But last week’s announcement of indictments by Vatican prosecutors is not a scandal but a sign of progress.

Indicted by the Vatican are six former Vatican officials, including the cardinal who was behind a real estate investment in London involving hundreds of millions of dollars. Also indicted are Italian businessmen who worked with the Vatican on the investment, as well as a woman accused of buying luxury goods with Vatican funds intended for ransoming Catholic hostages.

The charges include embezzlement, corruption, extortion, money…

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CINCINNATI — An upscale Cincinnati neighborhood known for its inclusiveness is fighting against a Catholic religious order’s proposal to establish a monastery in North Avondale.

The Legionaries of Christ has requested a conditional use permit to establish a residence for seven to 10 “Catholic missionary priests” at 3980 Rose Hill Avenue.

The city’s zoning staff has recommended approval of the permit in advance of a hearing scheduled for July 7. More than three dozen neighbors have blanketed the city with letters of opposition, citing concerns about parking constraints, the zoning process, housing values and clergy sexual abuse.

“I implore you to simply Google this particular order of priests,” wrote Jason Rich, who lives six doors down from 3980 Rose Hill. “As a lifelong Catholic and father of a 6-year-old, there is simply no way this order should be allowed in a residential community of single-family homes.”

The Legionaries of Christ…

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Bernadette Hardaker is a writer living in Orangeville, Ont. Between 1985 and 1988, she covered “Native affairs,” as it was called then, for CBC Radio.

In my six decades, I have been many kinds of Catholic: a cradle Catholic, a confirmed Catholic, a convenient Catholic, a lapsed Catholic, a renewed Catholic and a conflicted one. Now I am nothing but ashamed.

Ashamed that I have upheld an institution that dodges and weaves instead of taking responsibility. Ashamed that it has required the reported discovery of the remains of 966 children to push the church into possible action when it has had decades to do the right thing. Ashamed that Canadian Catholics can raise tens of millions of dollars for cathedrals, churches and other capital projects across the country, but can’t offer enough to keep a $25-million promise to compensate the survivors of the cruelty the church inflicted.

This is more…

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Teen was forced to watch priests having sex, court documents say

Note: The contents of this story are graphic and may be disturbing to some readers. 

A dead former B.C. Roman Catholic bishop convicted in 1997 of rape and indecent assault against residential school students has again been named in new allegations of sexual assault.

The now-dead Bishop Hubert O’Connor is one of three priests named in the lawsuit.

In 1997, O’Connor was convicted of rape and indecent assault of female students at schools. He was later acquitted of indecent assault in a 1999 appeal and a new trial was ordered for the rape charge but the Crown decided not to pursue the case after O’Connor apologized.

Now, Ronald Wayne Petruk, 76, has filed suit against The Roman Catholic Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Vancouver, a Corporation Sole and the Oblates of Mary Immaculate.

In the suit, Petruk describes multiple…

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[Note from BishopAccountability: On 6/28/2021, the Polish bishops’ conference published on its website a brief abuse report in Polish, English and Italian. Here is the English version.]

In the period from July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2020, 368 declarations of sexual abuse against minors under and over 15 were received by dioceses and men’s orders in Poland. The reports concern the acts committed in the years 1958-2020. 292 priests and religious were accused of sexual crimes against minors during that period. These are the data of the latest report prepared by the Institute of Statistics of the Catholic Church in cooperation with the Office of the Delegate for the Protection of Children and Youth of the Polish Bishops’ Conference. The research was financed by the Saint Joseph Foundation of the Polish Episcopate.

From mid-2018 to the end of 2020, 300 declarations of sexual abuse against minors were made in…

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[Note from BishopAccountability: On 6/28/2021, the Polish bishops’ conference published on its website a brief abuse report in Polish, English and Italian. Here is the Polish version.]

Na konferencji prasowej, która odbyła się w siedzibie Katolickiej Agencji Informacyjnej, zaprezentowano dzisiaj raport dotyczący wykorzystania seksualnego małoletnich w Kościele w latach 1958-2020, przygotowany przez Instytut Statystyki Kościoła Katolickiego we współpracy z Biurem Delegata KEP ds. ochrony dzieci i młodzieży. Zgłoszenia dotyczą czynów z lat 1958-2020. W okresie od 1 lipca 2018 r. do 31 grudnia 2020 wpłynęło do diecezji oraz zakonów męskich w Polsce 368 zgłoszeń dotyczących wykorzystywania seksualnego osób małoletnich poniżej oraz powyżej 15 roku życia. O przestępstwa seksualne wobec małoletnich, które miały być popełnione w tym czasie, oskarżonych zostało 292 księży oraz zakonników. Badania zostały sfinansowane przez Fundację Świętego Józefa KEP.

Od połowy 2018 r. do końca 2020 r. dokonano 300 zgłoszeń wykorzystania seksualnego osób małoletnich w diecezjach oraz 68 w zakonach….

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(RNS) — The Catholic bishop of Syracuse, New York, is speaking out against the Doctrine of Discovery and revealing plans to ask Pope Francis to repudiate theological teachings used for centuries to justify the subjugation of Indigenous peoples.

In an interview with Religion News Service on Wednesday (June 30), Bishop Douglas J. Lucia explained he is exploring a possible meeting with the Holy See to discuss a series of 15th-century papal bulls, or decrees, used by European Christians to rationalize colonizing Indigenous people and their land.

“Since they were papal bulls in the beginning,” Lucia said, there should be “a public acknowledgment from the Holy Father of the harm these bulls have done to the Indigenous population” as well as some kind of statement “to repudiate” the Doctrine of Discovery.

The Doctrine of Discovery draws from a series of papal documents that date back to Pope Nicholas V, whose 1452…

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A Roman Catholic priest serving several midcoast churches but who has worked throughout Maine is on temporary administrative leave while the diocese investigates a decades-old abuse allegation, officials said Monday.

According to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland, the Rev. Robert Vaillancourt has been accused of sexually abusing an underage girl in the 1980s. He has been placed on administrative leave while the diocese’s Office of Professional Responsibility conducts an internal investigation, consistent with the diocese’s protocol for such allegations.

Vaillancourt currently serves as pastor of St. Brendan the Navigator Parish, which is composed of Our Lady of Good Hope Church in Camden, St. Bernard Church in Rockland, St. Francis of Assisi Church in Belfast, and St. Mary of the Isles Churches on Islesboro, Vinalhaven and North Haven. He was also recently appointed as hospital chaplain of Maine Medical Center in Portland.

“Fr. Vaillancourt has denied any wrongdoing and indicated…

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As the two-year mark in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester’s bankruptcy draws nigh, a $35 million settlement proposed between the diocese and a handful of its insurers is not sitting well with the bankruptcy’s official creditors committee.

How the court comes down on the proposed Rochester diocese settlement could set the tone, not just for the Rochester case, but also for Chapter 11 bankruptcies of three other New York Catholic dioceses that asked for court protection months after the Rochester diocese’s September 2019 filing. 

“I believe that the settlement of $35 million is within the range of reasonableness and should be approved by the Court,” wrote diocese special insurance counsel James Murray in a June 24 brief supporting the proposal. Murray is a Washington, D.C.-based partner with Blank Rome LLP. He heads the firm’s policyholder-only insurance recovery group.

“We hope for the Court’s approval and we pray this settlement will be…

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