ABUSE TRACKER

AUSTRIA
National Catholic Reporter

Mon, 10/08/2012

by
Christa Pongratz-Lippitt

Vienna, Austria
The Vienna archdiocese, which is one of the largest in Europe and extends from the Czech frontier down to the southern Alps, will undergo radical parish reforms, reducing its 660 parishes to 150 in the next 10 years.

“This is the most comprehensive reorganization of the Vienna archdiocese since that of Austrian Emperor Joseph II [1765-1790] 200 years ago,” Cardinal Christoph Schönborn told journalists at a Sept. 19 media reception in the archbishop’s palace in Vienna.

The main reasons for these measures were the increasing shortage of priests and the steady decline in the number of Catholics, especially of those who regularly attended Mass and were involved in their local parishes, the cardinal explained.

“I am fully aware that these reforms denote a far-reaching change of perspective,” Schönborn said. “We must take leave of the traditional concept that the church is only present where there is a priest. That is a restricted view that has developed over time but which must now be corrected. Church is community, and leading offices in the church should in principle be carried out collaboratively, even if the parish priest has the final responsibility according to canon law.”

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VATIKAN
Nachrichten (Osterreich)

ROM. Papst Benedikt XVI. hat die deutsche Mystikerin, Äbtissin und Autorin Hildegard von Bingen am Sonntag zur Kirchenlehrerin ernannt. Sie habe als “bedeutende weibliche Gestalt des 12. Jahrhunderts” einen wertvollen Beitrag zur Entwicklung der Kirche ihrer Zeit geleistet.

Das sagte der Papst bei einem Gottesdienst auf dem Petersplatz in Rom. Hildegard habe sich als eine Frau von “lebhafter Intelligenz, tiefer Sensibilität und anerkannter geistlicher Autorität” erwiesen.Die Benediktinerin und Medizinerin (um 1098 bis 1179) wirkte als Visionärin, Mystikerin und Heilkundlerin. Sie wurde bald als Heilige verehrt, aber erst im Mai in den Heiligenkalender der katholischen Kirche aufgenommen. Zum Kirchenlehrer erhob der Papst auch den heiligen Johannes von Avila.

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DEUTSCHLAND
Der Tagesspiegel

Vor 50 Jahren begann in Rom das Zweite Vatikanische Konzil. Zum Feiern besteht aber kein Anlass, sagt der Theologe Hans Küng. Im Interview spricht er über den Zustand der katholischen Kirche, Papst Benedikt – und den Islam.

Am 11. Oktober feiert die katholische Kirche den Beginn des Zweiten Vatikanischen Konzils vor 50 Jahren. Feiern Sie mit?

Zum Feiern besteht meiner Ansicht nach kein Anlass, eher zu einem Bußgottesdienst oder einer Trauerandacht. Überall auf der Welt empfinden viele Katholiken eine tiefe Trauer über die Entwicklung unserer Kirche und nicht wenige haben deshalb der Kirche den Rücken gekehrt. Die Restaurationspäpste Johannes Paul II. und Benedikt XVI. haben das Konzil rückwärts interpretiert.

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SCHWEIZ
Kipa

Luzern, 7.10.12 (Kipa) Nach Luzern wollen auch die Kantone Uri und Nidwalden die Missbrauchsfälle in ihren Kinderheimen aufarbeiten lassen. Das schreibt die Neue Luzerner Zeitung (6. Oktober). Konkrete Missbrauchsfälle sind aber gemäss der Zeitung aus diesen Kantonen bisher nicht bekannt.

In Nidwalden gab es um 1930 sechs Kinderheime. Was dort geschah, soll im Rahmen der Erarbeitung einer Nidwaldner Kantonsgeschichte beleuchtet werden.

In Uri führten Ingenbohler Schwestern seit 1887 ein Kinderheim. Zunächst sollen mehr Informationen gesammelt werden dazu, ob es zu Missbrauch gekommen ist, bevor man allenfalls überlegt, ob eine ähnliche Studie wie in Luzern angebracht ist.

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BELGIEN
BRF

Bei der Aufarbeitung der Missbrauchsfälle kommt die katholische Kirche ihren Verpflichtungen nicht nach. Das schreibt heute die Zeitung De Standaard unter Berufung auf den sozialistischen Abgeordneten Renaat Landuyt, der Mitglied des zuständigen Parlamentsausschusses ist .

Die Kirche mache die Opfer sexuellen Missbrauchs mundtot, so der Vorwurf. Sie versuche alles, um Prozesse wegen Vertuschung und Amtsmissbrauch zu verhindern. Zwei Klauseln in der Vereinbarung zwischen den Missbrauchsopfern und der Kirche haben Renaat Landuyt aufhorchen lassen.

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IRELAND
Irish Independent

By Ed Carty

Monday October 08 2012

A BISHOP has rejected allegations that a paedophile priest confessed to him in jail to the continued abuse of children after a parish transfer.

Bishop of Clonfert John Kirby was forced to issue the denial following reports that he moved a known abuser from one parish to another in 1990 and that the convicted cleric went on to attack.

“I am not aware of an acknowledgement by ‘Priest A’ that he abused any child subsequent to October 1990, the date when I first learned of his sexual abuse of a child,” Bishop Kirby said.

The long-serving senior cleric, heavily criticised by the Catholic Church’s own watchdog for mishandling allegations in his diocese, insisted last month that he did not know if the priest went on to abuse after a parish transfer.

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SAN FRANCISCO (CA)
Virtue Online

By David W. Virtue & Mary Ann Mueller
www.virtueonline.org
October 8, 2012

Episcopal California Bishop Marc Andrus is livid. A few days ago, he gave the new San Francisco Roman Catholic archbishop a backhanded welcome to the neighborhood stressing the wonders of The Episcopal Church’s Millennium Development Goals. and Then he turned on the high level cleric for not showing appropriate pain for gays and his church’s alleged “oppression” of gays.

At the installation of the new Archbishop, Andrus showed up late and missed the procession of interfaith clergy who were to be seated up front. The enthronement was held at the Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption, a sweeping paraboloid geometric type structure with a saddle roof. It seats more than two thousand. Representatives from the Jewish community, the Buddhists, and the Mormons in addition to Orthodox and Protestant Christians were seated. Church staff said they were looking for an opportunity to bring the bishop in without disrupting the service, according to diocesan spokesperson George Wesolek. When they went to retrieve him, he had already left.

Andrus got into a snit and plastered the Internet with his own interpretation of events.

He issued multiple press releases about his poor treatment. The Episcopal press took to fainting in their couches. The archdiocesan communications director said, “He wants a fight.”

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IRELAND
Herald

Monday October 08 2012

A bishop has rejected allegations that a paedophile priest confessed to him in jail to the continued abuse of children after a parish transfer.

Bishop of Clonfert John Kirby was forced to issue the denial following reports that he moved a known abuser from one parish to another in 1990 and that the convicted cleric went on to attack.

“I am not aware of an acknowledgement by ‘Priest A’ that he abused any child subsequent to October 1990, the date when I first learned of his sexual abuse of a child,” Bishop Kirby said.

The long-serving senior cleric, heavily criticised by the Catholic Church’s own watchdog for mishandling allegations in his diocese, insisted last month that he did not know if the priest went on to abuse after a parish transfer.

Amid reports that the priest confessed in jail, the bishop said he had not received the information. “Again, contrary to what is claimed, I am not in receipt of any complaint and I have neither knowledge nor suspicion that ‘Priest A’ abused a child in either of the parishes of Kiltormer or Creagh subsequent to October 1990,” Bishop Kirby said.

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IRELAND
RTE news

Bishop of Clonfert John Kirby has denied an Irish Times report that he knew or suspected that a priest he moved following allegations of child abuse continued to abuse children.

Bishop Kirby said: “Contrary to what is stated in today’s Irish Times, I am not aware of an acknowledgement by ‘Priest A’ that he abused any child subsequent to October 1990, the date when I first learned of his sexual abuse of a child.”

The bishop said he had not received any complaints that ‘Priest A’ has abused a child in either of the parishes he was transferred to.

He said: “I have neither knowledge nor suspicion that ‘Priest A’ abused a child in either of the parishes of Kiltormer or Creagh subsequent to October 1990.”

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IRELAND
Galway News

October 8, 2012

The Bishop of Clonfert says a newspaper claim that he was aware a priest had abused children after he moved him to another parish is “incorrect”.

The Irish Times reported that John Kirby has been aware since the mid-1990s that a priest he moved following allegations of child sex abuse continued to abuse children in his new parish.

In a statement issued this afternoon Bishop Kirby says the claim that he had knowledge or suspicion that ‘Priest A’ continued to abuse children subsequent to his learning of his conduct in October 1990, is incorrect.

He adds that he was not aware of an acknowledgement by ‘Priest A’ that he abused any child subsequent to October 1990, the date when he first learned of his sexual abuse of a child.

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IRELAND
Irish Times

IRISH TIMES REPORTERS

Bishop of Clonfert John Kirby has denied being aware since the mid-1990s that a priest he moved following allegations of child sex abuse continued to abuse children in his new parish.

The Irish Times reported today that a priest, sentenced in 1994 to 10 years imprisonment for the sexual abuse of a boy, told Bishop Kirby in the mid-1990s that he had abused 17 children in the diocese.

Twice last month Bishop Kirby asserted that the priest in question did not abuse children in the parish to which he moved him.

In 1990, when the priest, known as Priest A, admitted to Bishop Kirby he had abused the boy concerned, he was moved to another parish where he abused more children.

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IRELAND
Enniscorthy Guardian

Monday October 08 2012

A bishop has rejected allegations that a paedophile priest confessed to him in jail to the continued abuse of children after a parish transfer.

Bishop of Clonfert John Kirby was forced to issue the denial following reports that he moved a known abuser from one parish to another in 1990 and that the convicted cleric went on to attack.

“I am not aware of an acknowledgement by ‘Priest A’ that he abused any child subsequent to October 1990, the date when I first learned of his sexual abuse of a child,” Bishop Kirby said.

The long-serving senior cleric, heavily criticised by the Catholic Church’s own watchdog for mishandling allegations in his diocese, insisted last month that he did not know if the priest went on to abuse after a parish transfer.

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IRELAND
Laois Nationalist

The Bishop of Clonfert has said a newspaper claim that he was aware a priest had abused children after he moved him to another parish is “incorrect”.

The Irish Times reported that John Kirby was told by the man known as “Priest A” of the further abuses when he visited him at Arbour Hill Prison where he was serving a jail term for sexual abuse.

In a statement this afternoon Bishop Kirby said the report is “incorrect” and regrets that it could serve to “exacerbate the hurt” which his earlier widely publicised remarks had caused to the victims of child sexual abuse and their families.

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IRELAND
The Association of Catholic Priests

The Association of Catholic Priests held a meeting entitled ‘Towards and Assembly for the West’ in the Clayton Hotel Galway on Saturday 6th Oct.

Four hundred people attended. The energy and enthusiasm of the gathering was equal to what we experienced at the Regency Hotel last May.

The speakers, both from the platform and the floor, spoke about their commitment to their faith and to the Church, but stressed over and over again that it is our Church; they want to belong, to be involved, and to be regarded as equals in the Church, as was envisioned by the Second Vatican Council.

Considerable disappointment was expressed at the absence of any bishop, even though all the bishops of the west had been invited. It was the strong feeling of the meeting that the bishops be asked to engage actively with the energy and enthusiasm that is being unleashed in the Church as a result of the regional gatherings being organised by the ACP, and the emergence of the Association of Catholics of Ireland (ACI)

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Vatican City, (VIS) – The Holy Father: …

– Appointed Msgr. Charles J. Scicluna of the clergy of Malta, Malta, promoter of justice at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, as auxiliary of the archdiocese of Malta (area 246, population 412,970, Catholics 388,970, priests 671, religious 1,291). The bishop-elect was born in Toronto, Canada in 1959 and ordained a priest in 1986. Having studied in Malta and in Rome, he worked as defender of the bond and promoter of justice at the metropolitan tribunal of Malta. He was also active in education and in the pastoral care of various parishes.

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VATICAN CITY
Vatican Information Service

Vatican City, (VIS) – The Tribunal of Vatican City State today delivered the following sentence in the trial of Paolo Gabriele, who is accused of aggravated theft.

The accused Paolo Gabriele is declared “guilty of the offence under article 404 paragraph 1/1 of the Criminal Code, for abusing the trust inherent in relationships deriving from his professional responsibilities, and stealing items which – by virtue of those relationships and on the basis of the trust placed in him – were left unattended and in full view.

“For this reason the Tribunal sentences him to prison for a period of three years.

“Pursuant to article 26 of the Law of 21 June 1969, in view of the accused’s lack of a criminal record, his record of service in the period prior to the facts in question, the subjective (though mistaken) belief identified by the accused as the motive for his conduct, as well as his own statement of his awareness of having betrayed the trust of the Holy Father, the Tribunal reduces the sentence to imprisonment for one (1) year and six (6) months, and orders the guilty party to defray the costs of the trial.

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VATICAN CITY
Vatican Information Service

Vatican City, (VIS) – Given below is the text of a communique released today by the Holy See Press Office in response to an article which appeared in the Italian daily “Il Messaggero”, concerning alleged irregularities in the Fabric of St. Peter’s, which administers the Vatican Basilica.

“Regarding an article which appeared in ‘Il Messaggero’ on 8 October 2012, entitled ‘The Fabric of St. Peter’s: combing through the accounts’, the Holy See Press Office having duly acquired the relevant information, states:

“(1) There is no pending dossier lying on the desk of the Secretary of State concerning the accounts of the Fabric of St. Peter’s.

“(2) All the accounts of the Fabric of St. Peter’s have been submitted for examination by the Prefecture for the Economic Affairs of the Holy See, and have always been approved by the Secretariat of State.

“(3) The article in question is entirely misinformed”.

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PENNSYLVANIA
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Statement by David Clohessy, SNAP Director
(314-566-9790 , SNAPclohessy@aol.com)

(NOTE: Clohessy will attend Sandusky’s sentencing Tuesday morning and will hold a news conference on the Centre County Courthouse steps on Monday at 2 p.m.)

Now is no time to be complacent. Yes, one child predator, Jerry Sandusky, is behind bars and will likely stay there for the rest of his life. But many more child predators still walk free. And there are still plenty of schools and institutions that still seem to value their own reputations over the safety of their students or members. There’s still a climate of denial in which adults often rally around accused child predators and disbelieve their victims.

Sandusky is imprisoned because of two factors: the courage of survivors, who broke their silence and reported their abuse, and the dedication of law enforcement officials, who pursued him. Both deserve our praise and our gratitude.

However, the full truth of exactly who ignored and concealed Sandusky’s crimes isn’t yet known. Other secrets must be uncovered. The Freeh report was just a start. Taxpayers, parents, alums, students, staff and – above all – Sandusky’s victims need and deserve to know as much as possible about those complicit individuals who chose to protect themselves, and their employer instead of protecting the kids and their families.

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SAN FRANCISCO (CA)
U.S. Catholic

Saturday, October 6, 2012

By Bryan Cones

Episcopal bishop of San Francisco, Marc Andrus, is reporting on his blog that he was disinvited from the installation of new Roman Catholic Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone last Thursday right as the service was beginning. According to archdiocesan spokesman George Wesolek, it was all a big misunderstanding caused by Andrus’ tardiness. From the Religion News Service story: “We had no intention of excluding [Andrus] at all,” Wesolek told The Associated Press. “If he felt like because of the wait that was insulting to him, we certainly will apologize.”

Andrus had written an open letter to his diocese about Cordileone’s appointment, noting that those who support gay marriage and the full inclusion of LGBT people in the life of the church should be welcomed in the Episcopal Church, leading some to suggest that the snub from the Roman Catholic archdiocese was deliberate. “Some Catholics may find themselves less at home with Salvatore Cordileone’s installation and they may come to The Episcopal Church,” Andrus wrote to San Fran Episcopalians. “We should welcome them as our sisters and brothers.”

Whatever the motivation for the diplomatic snafu, this is a pretty embarrassing situation; every episcopal installation I have ever been to included representatives from other local churches; indeed, their inclusion is a hallmark of the ecumenical movement. I hardly think one could even accuse Andrus of sheep-stealing, since his letter was addressed to Episcopalians, encouraging them to welcome newcomers. It hardly rises to Pope Benedict’s open invitation to Anglicans to swim the Tiber.

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IRELAND
Irish Independent

By John Fallon and Declan Rooney

Monday October 08 2012

CATHOLIC bishops have snubbed an offer to meet with a group of priests and lay people who want to reform the church.

Around 400 people attended an assembly in Galway at the weekend which was organised by the Association of Catholic Priests (ACP).

Organisers had extended an invitation to around half a dozen bishops in the west of Ireland to attend the gathering, however none showed up.

Fr Tony Flannery, one of the founders of the ACP and the chair of the assembly, said the laity and priests want to be able to meet bishops to discuss the future of the church in Ireland.

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VATICAN CITY
ABC News

By NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press

VATICAN CITY October 8, 2012 (AP)

The author of the book of Vatican secrets that earned the pope’s former butler an 18-month sentence for stealing private papal correspondence has set out to explain his source’s motives and appeal for clemency.

Several European newspapers published an op-ed piece by Gianluigi Nuzzi on Monday in which the Italian journalist defended the actions of Paolo Gabriele and sought to put them in a context he said hadn’t been fully explained during Gabriele’s trial. Nuzzi provided an advance copy to The Associated Press.

A Vatican tribunal on Saturday convicted Gabriele of aggravated theft for stealing the pope’s private correspondence and passing it onto Nuzzi in the gravest Vatican security breach in recent times. Gabriele was sentenced to an 18-month term, which he is serving under house arrest in his Vatican City apartment awaiting an expected papal pardon.

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NETHERLANDS
Dutch News

Monday 08 October 2012

The Samson committee, which investigates cases of abuse of children placed in council care, is sending 42 files on sexual abuse to the public prosecution department.

The Samson committee, led by former procurator general Rieke Samson, has spent two years investigating cases of sexual abuse among children in care since1945. So far, it has received 800 claims.

Presenting its report on Monday, the committee said the government, care homes and the foster care service did not do enough to protect children, originally because they did not know of the abuse. However, when they did know, they lacked the professionalism and courage to deal with abuse cases, the report said. …

The Samson committee was set up in the wake of another major investigation into child abuse by members of the Catholic church.

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EVERGREEN PARK (IL)
Chicago Sun-Times

BY HANNAH KOHUT Correspondent October 8, 2012

Before a packed St. Bernadette Catholic Church in Evergreen Park on Sunday, Cardinal Francis George celebrated mass — and a new beginning for the parish.

The cardinal was there to announce the church’s new pastor, who will take over for the former pastor, the Rev. Gary Miller. Miller resigned in June amid allegations of sexual abuse about 30 years ago, according to the Archdiocese of Chicago.

Cardinal George stressed to the estimated 500 people in attendance that the diocese does not take the allegations lightly.

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MICHIGAN
MyFoxDetroit

(myFOXDetroit.com) –
A senior priest from Farmington Hills has been placed on administrative leave while authorities investigate allegations he had sex with minors.

Father Loren O’Dea, 83, a senior (retired) priest of the Archdiocese of Detroit, was placed on an administrative leave of absence and restricted from any public ministry Friday.

The Detroit archdiocese consulted with the Archdiocesan Review Board after two allegations of sexual misconduct with minors. Both allegations involve O’Dea, and date back just prior to his ordination.

Information about the allegations, which was received in recent weeks, has been turned over to Oakland County Sheriffs.

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DELAWARE
The News Journal

Written by
Harry F. Themal

Pedophilia – the crime and illness of adults who prey on children – remains one of the most disturbing problems in our society. And it seems as if it has become an all-too-frequent story:

• Wilmington attorney Tom Neuberger has just released a jarring book about the more than 100 sexual abuse cases involving the priests of the Diocese of Delaware and Catholic orders.

• Last week the attorneys for the most sickening of Delaware’s pedophiles, pediatrician Earl Bradley, finally gave up their hopeless fight to overturn his 14-plus life sentences for raping his young patients. …

Delawareans might well think an epidemic has swept our state, considering what trials have revealed about the crimes of some Catholic priests and the Sussex County sexual ogre who dared call himself a doctor.

Many readers probably will cringe when they read Neuberger’s “When Priests Become Predators: Profiles of Childhood Sexual Abuse Survivors.” The actual testimony of 10 victims is so much more graphic, and therefore alarming, than the news accounts of trials that necessarily had to be toned down.

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MICHIGAN
Deadline Detroit

Here comes another black eye for the Catholic church.

The Archdiocese of Detroit announced in a press release that it had placed senior Priest Loren O’Dea on administrative leave Friday and restricted him from public ministry while authorities investigate allegations of sexual abuse involving minors.

O’Dea, 83, retired in 1997 from Our Lady of Sorrows Church in Farmington and has been an associate pastor there since 1993, the year of his ordination. Fox2 reported that the allegations had been turned over to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department.

“The Detroit archdiocese, after consultation with the Archdiocesan Review Board, deemed substantive two allegations of sexual misconduct with minors involving Fr. O’Dea which date back just prior to his ordination,” the archdiocese said in a press release. “Information about the allegations, which was received in recent weeks, was turned over to civil authorities.”

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MICHIGAN
The Detroit News

By Mike Martindale
The Detroit News

A retired priest has been put on administrative leave following allegations of sexual misconduct with minors dating back 19 years, the Archdiocese of Detroit confirmed Sunday.

The Rev. Loren O’Dea, 83, retired in 1997 from Our Lady of Sorrows Church in Farmington, where he had been an associate pastor since 1993 — the same year he was ordained, according to archdiocesan records.

The administrative action, which took place Friday, restricts O’Dea from performing any public ministry or presenting himself as a priest.

“It is always sad when anything like this happens,” said archdiocesan spokesman Ned McGrath. “We will keep everyone in our prayers.”

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MICHIGAN
CBS Detroit

DETROIT (WWJ) – The Archdiocese of Detroit has placed a retired priest on administrative leave, following accusations of sexual misconduct with minors.

A press release issued by the Archdiocese says the decision was made “after consultation with the Archdiocesan Review Board, deemed substantive two allegations of sexual misconduct with minors involving Fr. O’Dea which date back just prior to his ordination. Information about the allegations, which was received in recent weeks, was turned over to civil authorities.”

83-year-old Father Loren O’Dea was ordained in 1993 and previously served at Our Lady of Sorrows in Farmington. He was given senior — or retired — status as a priest in 1997.

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IRELAND
Irish Central

By
PATRICK COUNIHAN,
IrishCentral Staff Writer

Published Monday, October 8, 2012

A Catholic bishop has been accused of lying by the Irish Times over the case of a priest guilty of child sex abuse.

In a strongly worded story, the paper alleges that Bishop of Clonfert John Kirby was aware as far back as the mid-90s that a priest whom he moved following allegations of child sex abuse continued to abuse children in his parish.

This information, confirmed by the paper, is contrary to public statements from Bishop Kirby made just last month when he twice asserted that the priest in question did not abuse children in the parish to which he moved him.

The Irish Times reports that the priest, who was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment in 1994 for the sexual abuse of one child in Co Galway, told Bishop Kirby in the mid-1990s that he had abused 17 children in the diocese.

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MICHIGAN
The Oakland Press

Father Loren O’Dea, an 83-year-old retired priest, has been placed on administrative leave of absence by the Archdiocese of Detroit after allegations of sexual misconduct with minors.

O’Dea served as associate pastor at Our Lady of Sorrows in Farmington before retiring in 1997.

The archdiocese said O’Dea has been restricted from any public ministry. Its website notes the claims stem back prior to his ordination in 1993.

The archdiocese says it initiated an investigation which substantiated two claims against O’Dea. Information obtained in recent weeks has been turned over to the authorities, the archdiocese says.

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MICHIGAN
ClickOnDetroit

DETROIT –
Retired priest Loren O’Dea of the Archdiocese of Detroit has been put on an administrative leave of absence after allegations of sexual misconduct with minors surfaced.

The Detroit archdiocese deemed two allegations of sexual misconduct with minors substantial. The allegations involving the 83-year-old date back just before his ordination.

The allegations have been turned over to police.

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IRELAND
Irish Times

PATSY McGARRY, Religious Affairs Correspondent

BACKGROUND: More victims than the two reported by the cleric got compensation from his diocese

AFTER THE review of child protection practices in Clonfert diocese was published on September 5th, The Irish Times was informed by a well-placed source that the review was wrong in one of its main findings.

It had found there had been nine child abuse allegations made in the diocese. A more accurate figure would be 22, the source indicated.

The review was conducted by the Catholic Church’s child protection watchdog, its National Board for Safeguarding Children (NBSC). It found that nine child abuse allegations had been made against three priests in the diocese and another who provided holiday cover there. One of the four, referred to as Priest A, who was later laicised, was convicted in the courts.

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IRELAND
Irish Times

JOHN FALLON and DECLAN ROONEY

CATHOLIC BISHOPS declined to attend a conference at the weekend organised by priests who want reform of the church.

About 400 people attended the assembly in Galway on Saturday which was organised by the Association of Catholic Priests (ACP).

Fr Tony Flannery, one of the founding members of the ACP two years ago, which represents 800 priests in Ireland, was silenced earlier this year by the Vatican because of his liberal views.

Fr Flannery, a Redemptorist priest based at Esker in Co Galway, incurred the wrath of the church hierarchy when he publicly backed criticism of the Vatican by Taoiseach Enda Kenny.

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IRELAND
Irish Times

PATSY McGARRY, Religious Affairs Correspondent

BISHOP OF Clonfert John Kirby has been aware since the mid-1990s that a priest he moved following allegations of child sex abuse continued to abuse children in his new parish, contrary to statements by the bishop last month.

Twice last month Bishop Kirby asserted that the priest in question did not abuse children in the parish to which he moved him.

However, the priest, sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment in 1994 for the sexual abuse of one child in Co Galway, told Bishop Kirby in the mid-1990s he had abused 17 children in the diocese.

This emerged when Bishop Kirby visited the priest while he was serving his jail sentence at Arbour Hill between 1994 and 1998.

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MICHIGAN
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Oct 6, 2012 For more information contact:
Joe Kohn, Director of Public Relations
Kohn.Joseph@aod.org
313-237-5802

Effective Friday, October 5, 2012, Fr. Loren O’Dea, 83, a senior (retired) priest of the Archdiocese of Detroit, has been placed on an administrative leave of absence and restricted from any public ministry.

The Detroit archdiocese, after consultation with the Archdiocesan Review Board, deemed substantive two allegations of sexual misconduct with minors involving Fr. O’Dea which date back just prior to his ordination. Information about the allegations, which was received in recent weeks, was turned over to civil authorities.

The Archdiocese of Detroit commissioned an investigation that found the complaints to be of sufficient substance to require the placement of restrictions on Fr. O’Dea prohibiting him from performing any public ministry or presenting himself as a priest.

Information on archdiocesan policies and procedures regarding these matters is available on the Protecting Children page.To inform the archdiocese of complaints involving sexual abuse of minors by clergy or church personnel and/or to speak to the Victim Assistance Coordinator contact: 866-343-8055 .

Biographical information

Education:
Sacred Heart Seminary, Detroit
St. John Provincial Seminary, Plymouth
Wayne State University, Detroit
Sacred Heart Major Seminary, Detroit

1993 Ordained
1993 Associate Pastor, Our Lady of Sorrows, Farmington
1997 Senior (retired) status
2012 Administrative Leave of Absence

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MICHIGAN
WXYZ

FARMINGTON, Mich. (WXYZ) – The Archdiocese of Detroit has announced that it has placed senior priest Fr. Loren O’Dea on an administrative leave of absence.

The Archdioceses say the action comes because of two substantive allegations of sexual misconduct with minors. The Archdiocese says the incidents related to the allegation date from just prior to Fr. O’Dea’s ordination.

The 83-year-old Fr. O’Dea was ordained in 1993. He served as Associate Pastor at Our Lady of Sorrows in Farmington. He was awarded senior status in 1997. That is the equivalent of a retirement position.

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SPRINGFIELD (MA)
BishopAccountability.org – Assignment Record

Summary of Case: In February 2004 Dupre was accused by two men of sexually abusing them when they were children, in the mid- to late 1970s. One of the alleged victims, a refugee, was reportedly abused from ages 12 to 16, and the other from ages 15 to 20. Trips were taken out of state and to Canada, and abuse allegedly occurred on these trips. Dupre was also said to have plied the boys with alcohol, involved them in the purchase and use of pornography, and sometimes abused them together. During the time of the alleged abuse, Dupre became chancellor of the diocese. Before he was named auxiliary bishop in 1990, he reportedly called the victims to a meeting and said he would not accept the appointment unless they promised to be silent about the abuse. Dupre resigned in Feb. 2011, after he was confronted with the allegations. He went directly to a treatment facility, St. Luke’s Institute in Maryland, where he stayed for a number of years. He was last known to be living in a Washington D.C. retirement home.

Born: Nov. 10, 1933
Ordained: May 23, 1959
Resigned: Feb. 11, 2004

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VATICAN CITY
The Telegraph (United Kingdom)

Pope Benedict XVI opened a crucial meeting of bishops from around the world on Sunday, just 24 hours after his butler was given an 18 month prison sentence for stealing confidential papers from the Vatican.

By Nick Squires, Rome
6:55PM BST 07 Oct 2012

Many Vatican observers said it was no coincidence that the trial of Paolo Gabriele, one of the biggest scandals to hit the Holy See for years, was brought to a neat conclusion the day before the start of the three week long synod.

Senior Vatican figures were anxious that the trial, which consisted of just four hearings lasting less than 10 hours, be dealt with quickly so that the Pope can concentrate on the synod and the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council, which reformed key aspects of the Roman Catholic Church.

But the many lingering questions over the murky affair could yet tarnish the conference, in which Catholic leaders will discuss how to “re-evangelise” the West in the face of secularism and a sharp decline in church attendance.

One Italian newspaper, Corriere della Sera, published a list of 10 unanswered questions regarding the butler’s theft and leaking of compromising documents, including whether the butler had done a deal with the Vatican not to speak freely about the scandal in return for a lenient sentence.

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VATICAN CITY
Atlanta Journal-Constitution

By NICOLE WINFIELD
The Associated Press

VATICAN CITY —

Pope Benedict XVI urged the world’s bishops on Sunday to try to bring back Catholics who have left the church as he opened a three-week meeting to reinvigorate the church’s evangelization mission.

Some 262 cardinals, bishops and priests from around the world are in Rome for the meeting, or synod, called to give impetus to the pope’s efforts to re-evangelize parts of the world where Catholicism has fallen by the wayside. …

Benedict has long lamented that in Europe and the Americas, Catholics no longer practice their faith or pass it onto their children. That concern is reflected in the synod’s working document that will form the basis of discussion over the next three weeks.

“There is a clear link between the crisis in faith and the crisis in marriage,” the pope said.

The so-called “new evangelization” is a top priority for Benedict, who routinely laments how cultures in Europe and the West that were once profoundly Christian have become increasingly secular.

The church has been beset by competition from rival Protestant churches in Latin America, dissent from Catholics who oppose church teaching on homosexuality and desertions in the U.S. and Europe from Catholics fed up by years of sex abuse scandals.

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VATICAN CITY
National Catholic Reporter

Sun, 10/07/2012

by
John L. Allen Jr.

After a Vatican court on Saturday sentenced former papal butler Paolo Gabriele to 18 months of detention for being the mole at the heart of the Vatican leaks scandal, my friend and colleague Marco Ansaldo of La Repubblica asked me for some brief reactions which appeared in the Sunday edition of the paper.

The following is the English version of the four points I gave Andsaldo, which ran under the headline “The Battle for Transparency Stands Halfway.”

* * *
First, the Gabriele trial and the whole Vatileaks scandal is not comparable to the sexual abuse crisis or the Holocaust-denying bishop case in terms of public opinion, at least outside Italy. Frankly, most Americans have no idea what the scandal is about, they haven’t read Nuzzi’s book or followed the leaks closely, and they find the idea of the pope’s butler being under arrest more comical than alarming.

This is a unique scandal in that the damage is greater internally. Inside the Vatican itself, it created a crisis of trust that has not really been resolved by the trial or the verdict. Personnel are now more reluctant to share confidences, and bishops around the world are hesitant to put anything on paper or to discuss their problems with Vatican officials for fear that it might be leaked or misused. In other words, this is a scandal that strikes more at the inner workings of the Church than its public image.

Second, it seems clear that the trial has not answered all the questions surrounding the case. Those questions include not only whether others were involved in the leaks, but what exactly Gabriele meant by saying there is a climate of “widespread unease” inside the Vatican – what are people uneasy about, which people share those feelings, is the pope aware, and what does he plan to do about it? The core issue of whether the current regime around Benedict XVI is truly up to the challenge of administering a universal church in the 21st century have not been, and really could not be, resolved by the trial.

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NEW YORK
Staten Island Advance

By Frank Donnelly/Staten Island Advance

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A 64-year-old Willowbrook man turned a haven into a horror, molesting an 8-year-old boy 10 times over 20 months inside a Jewish center in Meiers Corners, prosecutors allege.

Claude Neufeld, a French native, abused the boy between Jan. 14, 2011, and Sept. 21 of this year inside the Chabad Lubavitch of Staten Island center, according to court papers.

Those documents said Neufeld touched the victim’s genitals over his clothes on 10 occasions.

A law enforcement source said the incidents occurred in an upstairs room in the two-story building at 289 Harold St.

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CHILE
La Segunda

Rodrigo Pino, quien acusa al obispo de Iquique Marco Antonio Ordenes de abuso sexual, entregó su testimonio, señalando que se enamoró del sacerdote.

El joven dijo que conoció al padre en 1997 cuando tenía 15 años y era acólito de la Catedral de Iquique.

“Empezó primero con tocaciones, con besos, caricias, más allá de una amistad. Él siempre me decía: ‘Yo soy como tu padre, yo te veo como un hijo, como un hermano, como un amante, como un amigo’. En un principio los abusos fueron obligados, pero después no lo fueron, porque me enamoré de él. Con él conocí el amor”, dijo a ADN Radio.

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CHILE
La Segunda

A partir de este miércoles la Brigada de Delitos Sexuales de la PDI realiza una serie de diligencias para establecer si existen “antecedentes relevantes” para perseguir penalmente al obispo de Iquique, Marco Antonio Ordenes.

Ello, luego de que se hiciera público que el Vaticano realiza una investigación en contra del purpurado, por supuestos abusos sexuales en contra de un ex acólito.

El fiscal jefe de Tarapacá, Manuel Guerra, confirmó a “La Segunda” que se identificarán a todas las personas que trabajan con el obispo “y especialmente si hay menores” en su entorno.

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CHILE
La Segunda

SANTIAGO.- “Yo no pido dinero en esto: pido justicia y sanidad mental para mí”, afirmó esta tarde Rodrigo Pino, quien dio a conocer las denuncias de presuntos abusos contra el obispo de Iquique, Marco Antonio Órdenes.

“Sólo quiero que lo saquen del sacerdocio, y a él le pido que reconozca, que asuma sus errores”, afirmó, en una entrevista al canal CNN Chile.

También aseguró que hoy miércoles había recibido “una respuesta muy positiva del Vaticano que nos alegró”, aunque no quiso detallar el detalle de dicha comunicación, relacionada con la denuncia interpuesta ante la Iglesia Católica.

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CHILE
La Segunda

Impacto ha generado el audio revelado entre Rodrigo Pino y el obispo de Iquique, monseñor Marco Ordenes, luego de dar su testimonio anoche en el programa “Mentiras Verdaderas” de Red Televisión.

El joven, visiblemente impactado por lo sucedido con el religioso hace unos años, mostró su grabación en el programa, donde se muestra al obispo Ordenes conversando con Pino, a quien le confiesa que experimentó el cariño y el querer con él, además de mencionar a otro joven involucrado en el affaire.

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CHILE
UPI

SANTIAGO, Chile, oct. 6 (UPI) — La Iglesia Católica chilena calificó de “dolorosos” los dichos del obispo de la norteña ciudad chilena de Iquique, Marco Antonio Ordenes Fernández, quien admitió haber cometido un “acto imprudente” con un joven.

“Para la Iglesia siempre es tremendamente doloroso que un ministro consagrado al servicio de Jesucristo y de la Iglesia reconozca su participación en conductas impropias, mucho más aún si se trata de un obispo”, afirmó el portavoz de la Conferencia Episcopal, Jaime Coiro.

El vocero se refirió al tema luego de que el obispo de Iquique, Marco Antonio Ordenes, reconociera en una entrevista publicada por el diario La Tercera, el “haber tenido un acto imprudente” con el joven iquiqueño que lo acusa de abuso sexual.

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VATICAN CITY
Chicago Tribune

Naomi O’Leary
Reuters

October 7, 2012

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – Pope Benedict launched a campaign to bring lapsed believers back to the Roman Catholic fold on Sunday, opening a major convention of bishops on what the Vatican has termed the “new evangelization” of the developed world.

The Church is battling losses to its practicing flock in former strongholds in Europe, North America and Latin America in the face of sex abuse scandals, increasing secularism, rival faiths and open dissent against Church teachings on homosexuality and its ban on a female priesthood.

The synod – a Church conference where hundreds of bishops meet to work out a common global strategy, iron out divisions and advise the pope – has the theme “the new evangelization”, the Vatican’s buzzword for its drive to woo back believers,

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NEW JERSEY
The Star-Ledger

Published: Sunday, September 30, 2012

By Tom Moran/ The Star-Ledger

I was born into a devout Catholic family, the fifth of nine children. And one of my earliest memories is learning the catechism from my father, a sales executive who was in the habit of going to church every day before work.

He read me stories about the adventures of a boy who was nicknamed “Raggie” because his family was too poor to buy new clothes. Each story had the same basic lesson — good Catholics look after those in need, just as Jesus did. And there is no shame in being poor.

Sign me up. I memorized the prayers, received the sacraments and felt ecstatically cleansed after monthly confessions. I was all in.

In the decades since, I have fled a million miles from the church, and have never found a new religious home. I am a spiritual refugee.

One in three American adults was raised in a Catholic family, but fewer than one in four identify as Catholic today. No other church has shed so many followers, according to surveys by the Pew Charitable Trusts. …

But my mother had no hesitation. Nor did she feel she was sinning by using birth control when she was knocked low by migraine headaches after bearing the nine of us. When she saw same-sex couples raising AIDS babies, she saw no threat to the moral order; she saw Christ’s love at work. She supported same-sex marriage before the New York Times did.

Her obedience to the church hierarchy was not blind, especially after it was exposed as complicit in the sexual abuse of so many children. She trusted her own compass, and in that way, she was a typical Catholic.

Most Catholics, like her, will never leave the church. They will sidestep the land mines and hope for change. They see the altar girls today and hope for female priests tomorrow.

In the meantime, though, men like Myers will drive millions more onto the refugee highway. He had his own small share of complicity in the sex abuse scandal, transferring a priest who had confessed to abuse to St. Michael’s Hospital in Newark without telling the staff. He refuses to release the names of priests who have been credibly accused, as some New Jersey dioceses do.

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NEW JERSEY
The Star-Ledger

By Tom Moran/ The Star-Ledger

Last Sunday, Star-Ledger editorial page editor Tom Moran wrote about his struggles with Catholicism, describing himself as a “refugee from the Catholic Church” as he began to disagree with Catholic leadership over issues such as gay marriage, reproductive rights and divorce.

That column prompted a surprisingly introspective outpouring from Star-Ledger readers, a great number of them with stories of similar personal struggles. …

Here is a selection of some of the stories submitted to us.

A painful time, over and over

I am a disillusioned Catholic. My mother died when I was 4 and my father was unable to care for us; as a result, we came under state care. My grandmother was a devout Irish Catholic and requested my siblings and me be sent to a Catholic convent rather than put into the New York child care system.

I spent close to five years at a Catholic convent. The physical and emotional abuse by nuns and priests left us physically and emotionally scarred. One would think this was enough to make a person turn away from the church.

However, my grandmother’s devotion to the Catholic church was absolute and I could not bring myself to turn away from my Catholicism. I felt this would be a repudiation of my grandmother, as well.

I went on to marry in the church and have two children, whom I even sent to Catholic school. My brother moved as far away as possible and my sister eventually committed suicide. When the priest abuse scandal started to become public, I was not surprised and my ambivalence with the church grew.

My final break came when I was diagnosed with colon cancer. One son was in public school, the other in Catholic school. During treatment and surgeries, I received many “get wells” and real assistance from the public schools. From the Catholic school, I received a bill for $500 assessment for not contributing “time” to the school. …

Three strikes, she’s out

My father, who recently passed away, studied to become a priest but never finished. We were always told that the reason was he “loved the ladies too much.” But as we discussed it at dinner one Christmas Eve, when he was in his late 70s, he began to cry, something we had never seen.

Through his years studying, he told us, he was raped by more than four priests. You can’t imagine the silence and tears throughout the rest of the meal.

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NEW JERSEY
The Star-Ledger

By Tom Moran/ The Star-Ledger

Last Sunday, Star-Ledger editorial page editor Tom Moran wrote about his struggles with Catholicism, describing himself as a “refugee from the Catholic Church.”

This week, the Star-Ledger is publishing letters from our readers about their own struggles. This is Part 2 of 3.

Letter was divisive, hurtful

Being a Catholic has always been part of my heritage and the center of my religious identity. Whenever I attend Mass I feel a spiritual connection with God and a sense of community with the congregation. I believed the rules of the Church should be followed and my conscience should be my moral compass.

And yet I find the views expressed in Archbishop Myers’ letter, and shared by much of the hierarchy to be divisive and hurtful. If I do not agree with all the proclamations in his letter does this negate my faith of the last eighty years and mean I should refrain from receiving Communion? I resent being told I should choose a presidential candidate based solely on his views on gay marriage and abortion , ignoring the social issues that affect everyday lives. There should be room in the Church for both liberals and conservatives. It is when the separation of church and state is ignored that religious freedom is threatened. …

Left church after daughter slighted

My wife and I were born into Catholic families, educated in Catholic and Jesuit schools, attended Mass with our three children weekly and assisted in our parish’s Youth Group during their high school years. Our youngest daughter was the first female altar server in the parish, an invitation she accepted from a sensitive, thoughtful Franciscan priest, ahead of his time.

On the day of her sister’s Confirmation, she was assigned altar server, a spiritual moment to be shared between them. Shortly after dropping our younger daughter off with her neatly pressed white robe, she run to her mother and me with tears in her eyes, explaining that “a priest said I could not be on the altar with the bishop.” Quite upset, we approached this man, the secretary to the bishop, who stated that only boys could be altar servers. I explained our history and involvement with the church and with youth. I let him know his position proved to my daughters, indeed all women, they were second class citizens in the church. I was told this was not the personal position of the bishop, but “he could not risk being photographed on the altar with a female,” and “he would certainly continue to represent the rights of females in the church.”

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NEW JERSEY
The Star-Ledger

By Tom Moran/ The Star-Ledger

Last Sunday, Star-Ledger editorial page editor Tom Moran wrote about his struggles with Catholicism, describing himself as a “refugee from the Catholic Church.”

This week, the Star-Ledger is publishing letters from our readers about their own struggles. This is Part 3 of 3.

It’s right to defer to church leaders on faith

I am a Catholic. Have been since birth. I have spent nine years as a Franciscan seminarian before deciding that neither religious life nor priesthood and I were suited for each other. I have often disagreed with church leaders on their interpretation or implementation of the Christian message. Yet Jesus knowingly placed the fate of the church into the hands of mere humans whom He promised to guide via the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. It is a testament to this guidance that, despite the errors of frail human leaders, the church and its fundamental message continues to exist—and I continue to believe in them.

I believe that people who equate the actions of human representatives of this, or any other institution, with the efficacy of its principles are either unaware of the distinction or else actively seeking rationale to excuse themselves from whichever of those principles seem a burden to them. I am aware of many who profess to be followers of a particular creed who are ignorant of the beliefs that are required in order to be a legitimate member of that community. …

Church has become too polarizing

I am a 60-year-old man who has stopped attending a Catholic church earlier this year.

The reasons for my departure include a church that has become more polarizing and exclusionary, more openly political on pro-life and personal choice issues, it’s shameful squandering of money on insignificant changes in its liturgy, the Vatican rebuke of the U.S. religious women for their social stances, its on-going failure to transparently deal with and accept its outrageous failure to deal in an appropriate manner with its abuse of children, its audacity to terminate the employment of an Indiana parochial school teacher for pursuing in-vitro fertilization and the Vatican bribery scandal.

I am curious how the Bishop of Newark, the Bishop of Trenton and the NYC Cardinal and others can be so openly vocal about current political and life choice issues yet have been so silent on the Church’s child abuse scandal and issues of global tragedy like genocide in Africa. I see the Catholic Church as concerned only with its image even at the expense of many of its most vulnerable members, children. There was a time that the message in church was, do unto others as you would have others do unto you, I sadly miss those days.

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MALTA
The Sunday Times

Sunday, October 7, 2012 by
Herman Grech

Mgr Charles Scicluna pledged he would be a good listener, as the Vatican yesterday formally nominated him as Malta’s new Auxiliary Bishop.

“I want to bring this great hope to my home country I love so much. We have so much good which is worth preserving and promoting,” the 53-year-old Rome-based monsignor told The Sunday Times shortly after Pope Benedict XVI made his nomination official.

Mgr Scicluna’s Episcopal ordination will be held on November 24 and as Auxiliary Bishop, Mgr Scicluna will be called to be the closest collaborator and adviser of Archbishop Paul Cremona with “leadership responsibilities in the Curia and in diocesan pastoral ministry,” a Malta Curia statement said.

He will assume the position vacated by the late Bishop Annetto Depasquale who passed away last November.

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MALTA
The Sunday Times

Noon church bells peal daily to announce the Angelus, summoning devotees to say a little prayer, but in Lija yesterday the bells pealed for almost an hour at midday, in joyous celebration.

Right after the Angelus yesterday, Pope Benedict XVI officially announced the appointment of Mgr Charles Scicluna as Malta’s new Auxiliary Bishop.

As the bells kept ringing, a crowd of Mgr Scicluna’s friends gathered on the church parvis, excited and eager to share their pride that a fellow Lija resident will hold such a position in the Maltese Church.

Mgr Scicluna’s long-time neighbour and friend, Mark Sciberras, 37, described Mgr Scicluna as a man “of great responsibility”, “outgoing” and having a “sense of humour”.

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MALTA
The Malta Independent

Pope Benedict XVI has officially appointed Mgr Charles J. Scicluna, the Vatican’s sex crimes prosecutor, as Auxiliary Bishop of Malta, the Archbishops Curia confirmed yesterday morning.

On his Episcopal ordination, scheduled for 24 November, Mgr Scicluna will become a member of the Maltese Episcopal Conference alongside the Archbishop and the Bishop of Gozo, Mgr Mario Grech. The appointment has led to speculation that Mgr Scicluna is poised to become Malta’s next archbishop, but the weight such speculation holds will remain to be seen.

The Pope has also nominated Mgr Scicluna as Titular Bishop of San Leone.

As Auxiliary Bishop, 53-year-old Mgr Scicluna will be called to be the closest collaborator and advisor of Archbishop Paul Cremona, with leadership responsibilities in the Curia and in diocesan pastoral ministry, the Curia said.

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MALTA
The Sunday Times

News of Mgr Charles Scicluna’s nomination as Malta’s new Auxiliary Bishop came as a bolt out of the blue for many outside and even inside Church circles. However, it is a strike that can only be highly commended.

Mgr Scicluna is not an ordinary priest, if indeed there is such a thing as an ordinary priest. He is one who knows the corridors of Rome probably better than he knows them in Floriana. He is an achiever, a doer and a highly accomplished speaker.

Very much as his soon-to-be-vacated role at the Vatican implies, he is also a promoter. In many senses.

Mgr Scicluna cannot be pigeonholed as conservative or liberal, because he is neither. He is simply staunchly committed to the Church. He promoted the cause of San Ġorġ Preca. Yet he has never been afraid to be critical of the institution if he believes it has not served its people.

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UNITED STATES
IrishCentral

By
PATRICK COUNIHAN,
IrishCentral Staff Writer

Published Sunday, October 7, 2012

Former Irish President Mary McAleese has opened up on a major diplomatic row with an American cardinal who was later disgraced for covering up child sex abuse.

Cardinal Bernard Francis Law was Archbishop of Boston when he clashed with President McAleese on a state visit to the US in 1998.

The Irish leader was publicly berated by Cardinal Law for her open support for the ordination of women priests.

The Catholic Bishop told McAleese that he was: “Sorry for Catholic Ireland to have you as President.”

The former President, now studying theology in Rome where she has published a book on canon law, told the Irish Independent that the Cardinal also attacked a junior minister who had accompanied her on the trip.

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VATICAN CITY
Herald Sun (Australia)

Dario Thuburn
From: AAP
October 07, 20122:00PM

STARTING with the victim – Pope Benedict XVI – there was nothing normal about the trial of Paolo Gabriele, the Vatican butler convicted of stealing secret papers from the papal palace.

The defendant said he was inspired by the Holy Spirit to rid the Vatican of “evil and corruption” and the main judge was from an aristocratic family that has served the papacy for generations who has been knighted by the Vatican.

Gabriele on Saturday was found guilty of aggravated theft and sentenced to 18 months in prison, although Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said a pardon from the Pope was “very likely” to come soon, before the sentence was actually implemented.

Adding to the unique nature of a trial in the world’s smallest state where the Pope has supreme powers, the sentence began: “In the name of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI, who reigns in glory, and invoking the Holy Trinity.”

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UNITED STATES
The Daily News

By Dr. Joseph Langen

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us.”

— Ralph Waldo Emerson

Soon after I started work at a mental health center in the 1970s, probation referred a sexual abuse case to me. Not having experience with such cases, I asked in our staff meeting how I should go about treating such a person. No one knew. There had never been such a referral before.

With all that has since been written about the matter, it is hard to imagine our blissful ignorance back then. Now it is a rare day in which at least one person is not identified in the newspaper as a perpetrator of sexual abuse. Courts have been tough on them. Treatment programs have arisen in our communities as well as in prison. An ongoing scandal arose over priests and other clergy abusing children and adults and church officials hiding rather than addressing the problem.

So what accounts for such behavior? In my practice as a psychologist and through research for my novel, “The Pastor’s Inferno,” I discovered a number of motivations. One is anger about something in the abuser’s life driving abusers’ actions when not able to deal with his or her (usually his) anger directly. Another is power or control over the victim in abusers who tend to feel powerless and seek a victim to dominate. A third is sadism or sexual arousal from causing pain to others. These motivate abusers of adults, adolescents and children. About a third of convicted sex offenders were themselves abused as children, but two thirds were not.

At one time it was thought that all sex offenders were hopelessly addicted to a life of abusing more victims every chance they got. Research has suggested that treatment can lead to good results with child molesters and exhibitionists. However there do not seem to be any clear positive results from treatment of rapists.

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MILWAUKEE (WI)
TMJ4

[with video]

MILWAUKEE- The controversy over the Catholic priest sex abuse scandal hits the big screen.

Not only that, but Friday night is the US premiere of the film. It’s called Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence In The House Of God — a documentary focused on the sexual assaults within the church right here in Milwaukee.

With bright lights, ticket lines, even a red carpet, the event had all the trimmings of a blockbuster premiere.

The film brought a message to the big screen. Telling the story of hundreds of young men abused by Father Lawrence Murphy, the headmaster at St. John’s School for the Deaf in St. Francis.

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NEW YORK
Times Herald-Record

By Steve Israel
Times Herald-Record

10/07/12

More than 25 years after the boys and their families were victims of sexual abuse by two local priests, an eternal flame of anger burns within them. It flares when they see another adult – such as former Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky – allowed to put himself in a position of authority and trust so he can feed his appetite for young boys.

“It brings back everything,” says Catherine Westfall of Port Jervis. Her son Patrick was sexually abused by Francis Stinner, a now defrocked priest who served at St. Mary’s Church in Port Jervis and taught at John S. Burke High School in Goshen in the 1980s and ’90s, where he also coached soccer.

Just days before Sandusky is scheduled to be sentenced for sexually abusing at least 10 boys, some local victims of sexual abuse by Stinner and Edward Pipala, another defrocked priest who served in Goshen and Monroe, say there isn’t a prison sentence severe enough to extinguish their rage.

“He (Pipala) got seven years. We got life,” says one victim of Pipala, who served his time in federal prison after he abused some 50 boys while serving at Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church in Monroe and St. John the Evangelist in Goshen in the ’80s and early ’90s. The victim first said that after Pipala was released from prison in 2000. He repeated it last week.

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VATICAN CITY
National Catholic Reporter

Sat, 10/06/2012

by
Cindy Wooden,
Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY — A three-judge panel of Vatican jurists found Paolo Gabriele, the papal butler, guilty of aggravated theft and sentenced him to 18 months in jail for his role in leaking private papal correspondence and other confidential documents.

The verdict was read Oct. 6 by Giuseppe Dalla Torre, president of the three-judge panel, just two hours after the fourth and final session of the trial.

Dalla Torre began reading the sentence with the formula, “In the name of His Holiness Benedict XVI, gloriously reigning, the tribunal, having invoked the Most Holy Trinity, pronounced the following sentence. …” …

Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, told reporters Pope Benedict was informed of the results of the trial immediately and was studying the matter. Father Lombardi said he believed it was likely the pope would pardon Gabriele, although he had no idea when that would occur.

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VATICAN CITY
BBC News

By David Willey
BBC News, Vatican City

The 18-month prison sentence handed down by the Vatican City criminal court on Pope Benedict’s former butler, Paolo Gabriele, may mark not the end but the beginning of a complex story of betrayal and discontent at the very heart of the Catholic Church.

Some of the hundreds of sensitive documents stolen from the Pope’s desk over an extended period found their way into the Italian mainstream media and into a bestselling book earlier this year.

Pope Benedict wanted closure on the Gabriele case and he got it, only hours before the start of the most important Vatican event of the year, which begins on Sunday.

He has called a three-week long Synod of Bishops from around the world to advise him on how to spearhead what the Vatican is optimistically calling “The New Evangelisation”.

This is code for a high-octane effort by the Catholic Church to counter the insidious spread of secularism within countries – particularly in Europe – that once confidently proclaimed themselves Catholic, but where Sunday mass attendance is now falling yearly to ever-lower levels.

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VATICAN CITY
AFP

By by Dario Thuburn (AFP)

VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI’s former butler Paolo Gabriele, sentenced on Saturday to 18 months in jail for leaking secret memos, said he was a loyal servant disgusted by “evil and corruption” in the Vatican.

A married father-of-three who lives inside the Vatican as one of the tiny state’s 594 citizens, Gabriele was born in Rome and started out as a cleaner in the Secretariat of State — the main administration of the Catholic Church.

Gabriele then worked as part of the domestic staff of late pope John Paul II before being promoted in 2006 to the prestigious post of butler to the pope — a position that gave him unique access for a layman to the pontiff himself. …

The butler expressed frustration with a culture of secrecy in the Vatican — from the mysterious disappearance of the daughter of a Vatican employee in 1983 to a quickly hushed-up double murder and suicide by a Swiss guard in 1998.

“There is a kind of omerta against the truth, not so much because of a power struggle but because of fear, because of caution,” Gabriele said in the interview, using the term for the code of silence of the Sicilian Mafia.

He told Nuzzi he was acting with “around 20 other people” in the Vatican, though he later denied others had been actively involved in helping him.

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MILWAUKEE (WI)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

By Annysa Johnson of the Journal Sentinel

Oct. 6, 2012

Dozens of clergy sex abuse survivors and their supporters turned out for Friday’s sold-out U.S. premiere of “Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God” at the Milwaukee Film Festival. But the leading victims advocacy group, the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, takes issue with how the film, which recounts the abuse of as many as 200 deaf boys by the Milwaukee Archdiocese’s late Father Lawrence Murphy, treats retired Milwaukee Archbishop Rembert Weakland.

Weakland, who is interviewed in the film, appears as a tragically flawed figure who fought the Vatican in an effort to defrock Murphy late in his life.

SNAP issued a statement on Weakland, saying, in part:

“The Pope might have been in Rome but it was Weakland who was in Milwaukee. During his entire tenure as archbishop, Weakland concealed and transferred child molesting clerics from one parish and school to another without alerting police or notifying the public. In fact, Weakland knew there were so many priests assaulting children under his supervision that, according to his 2008 deposition, he never informed parishes with offender priests assigned, or once assigned to them, because, as he put it, that would entail notifying ‘nearly all’ of the 300 parishes of the archdiocese and presumably, that’s the only job he would be doing. Exactly.”

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VATICAN CITY
Vatican Insider

Paolo Gabriele, who stated: “I don’t feel like a thief”, has been sentenced to 18 months in prison. The Pope will pardon him but now investigations are aiming to reconstruct the poison pen letter writer’s network of accomplices

VATICAN INSIDER STAFF
Vatican City

The “poison pen letter writer” has been given a mild sentence – he will only serve a jail term of one year and six months and will be pardoned – but investigations into potential accomplices continue. So Vatileaks is not over today: there are too many grey areas in an affair that has exposed a deep governance crisis in a Curia weakened by conflicts between opposing parties who are fighting to for power. Influential figures in the Curia still oppose the Pope, who is trying to enforce a strict line of purification, to the detriment of a deeply ingrained conspiracy of silence among sections of the Church hierarchy who are mixed up in the Vatican’s financial scandals.

Meanwhile, the former butler’s confidants, Curia representatives such as papal vicar Angelo Comastri, are ending up in the Vatileaks meat grinder when they actually have nothing to do with the whole affair. “I was dragged into the affair big time, even though I had nothing to do it,” Cardinal Comastri complained at the end of the Gendarmerie’s celebrations for the feast day of St. Francis on Friday. During the celebrations, Salvatore DeGiorgi, one of the cardinals who prepared the report on the Vatican document leak for the Pope, expressed regret about the sensationalist climate surrounding the search for the truth.

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UNITED STATES
Mercury News

By Sean Murphy
Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY — Nearly three dozen states have failed to meet conditions of a 2006 federal law that requires them to join a nationwide program to track sex offenders, including five states that have completely given up on the effort because of persistent doubts about how it works and how much it costs.

The states, including some of the nation’s largest, stand to lose millions of dollars in government grants for law enforcement, but some have concluded that honoring the law would be far more expensive than simply living without the money.

“The requirements would have been a huge expense,” said Doris Smith, who oversees grant programs at the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. Lawmakers weren’t willing to spend that much, even though the state will lose $226,000.

The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act, named after a boy kidnapped from a Florida mall and killed in 1981, was supposed to create a uniform system for registering and tracking sex offenders that would link all 50 states, plus U.S. territories and tribal lands. When President George W. Bush signed it into law, many states quickly realized they would have to overhaul their sex offender registration systems to comply.

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OREGON
KVAL

[with video]

EUGENE, Ore. — One of the 15 most wanted fugitives in the United States is suspected to be hiding in Eugene, the U.S. Marshals Service said Friday.

Frederick Cecil McLean is a fugitive child molester who fled the San Diego area in 2004-05. The USMS said he molested dozens of children over a 20 year period while in California, using his position in the Jehovah’s witness Church to find victims.

Investigators found evidence that 54-year-old McLean may be hiding in the Eugene area. U.S. Marshal Service spokesperson Thomas Maranda added that he might be living under an assumed identity.

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MALTA
Times of Malta

[with video]

Updated: Mgr Charles Scicluna, the new Auxiliary Bishop of Malta, said today that he looked forward to returning to Malta after 17 years of service in the Holy See.

“I look forward to returning to Malta, to assist and to learn from Archbishop Cremona and to listen to and serve the Maltese people,” he told timesofmalta.com.

The formal announcement of Mgr Scicluna’s nomination was made today, and it was welcomed by the Curia, with Archbishop Cremona describing it as ‘ a grace’.

At his hometime Lija, bells pealed when the official announcement was made today.

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VATICAN CITY
WGME

VATICAN CITY (AP) — The Vatican’s sex crimes prosecutor, who for a decade oversaw the Vatican’s response to cases of priests who sexually abuse children, is leaving the Vatican and returning to his native Malta to be an auxiliary bishop.

Monsignor Charles Scicluna is known for his tough line on abusive priests. He was brought into the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith from the Vatican’s high court in 2002 to handle the tsunami of cases into Rome after the Vatican in 2001 ordered bishops to send all their abuse cases to the Vatican for review.

As the so-called “promotor of justice,” Scicluna worked directly under then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI.

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EUROPE
Salem-News

Reverend Kevin Annett, M.A., M.Div. Salem-News.com

(BRUSSELS) – I’ve been traveling across Europe and North America since August, helping to establish our Common Law Court of Justice. This Court is something new and historic in the world, a grassroots movement of citizen-powered justice that on October 15 will begin to turn the tables on criminal bodies of church and state.

The Court is now functioning in seven countries, and will issue indictments and enforce its verdicts and sentences against those responsible for hideous crimes against children. More specific directions will be issued to all 58 of its citizen jurors before October 15.

Hundreds of people are on board now with the Court: citizen jurors, judges and prosecutors, and many eyewitnesses and plaintiffs. Summonses have been issued, including to the Pope himself and heads of state. And in response, a senior catholic Cardinal has shown a willingness to break from the Pope and negotiate some of our demands on behalf of a faction in the hierarchy.

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INDIA
What They Knew

In a story from the ‘now we have heard it all’ file comes the sad and enraging story of Sister Mary Florence from Trichy, India. The nun’s quest for justice began when she alleges that she was raped and impregnated by Jesuit priest Rathinam Rajarathnam SJ the President of St. Joseph’s College from 2006-2008. She’s been excommunicated and kicked out of her order, he is still listed as Director of St. Joseph’s College and is still a Jesuit.

Francis Mary or Florence Mary, 28, once a nun, had joined the college in Tiruchy in 2006 for pursuing her MA. During this time, she met Rajarathinam, principal of St Joseph’s College. One day in January 2006, when she went to meet him, Rajarathinam served her a cold drink laced with sedatives, she alleged in the complaint. She was raped, obscene pictures were taken on his cellphone camera, and she was threatened against telling anyone about it.

Fr. Rajarathinam took her to several places and abused her, she said, adding that this resulted in a pregnancy which was aborted at a private hospital in 2008. However, when the news about her pregnancy and abortion became public, the nun was excommunicated and removed from the order.

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VATICAN CITY
Irish Times

A Vatican court has found Pope Benedict’s former butler guilty of stealing sensitive documents and sentenced him to 18 months in prison.

The court delivered its verdict after a two-hour deliberation on the last day of the trial of Paolo Gabriele. The prosecution had asked for a three-year sentence.

The defence asked the court to reduce the charges from “aggravated theft” to “misappropriation” and for him to be freed.

Pope Benedict will “most likely” pardon Gabriele, a Vatican spokesman said today. Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi also told reporters the court reached its verdict in “full independence” without any interference from Vatican officials.

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SAN FRANCISCO (CA)
Pacific Church News

The Rt. Rev. Marc Andrus, Episcopal Bishop of California and an invited guest for the installation of Archbishop-designate Salvatore Cordileone, was not allowed to be seated. He was escorted to a basement room at St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Cathedral and detained by an usher until the time the service began, whereupon Bishop Andrus left the cathedral. More information will be forthcoming as it is available.

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SAN FRANCISCO (CA)
Bishop Marc

A post to clarify my experience at the installation of Archbishop Cordileone at St. Mary’s Cathedral, San Francisco.

I was dropped off at the cathedral at 1:30PM by my assistant. After making my way around protestors and showing my invitation to security guards, I was in the lower level area to which I was directed by 1:40.

The instructions the Archdiocese had given my assistant were that I should be at St. Mary’s by 1:45. The service was scheduled to begin at 2.

I identified myself to an assistant to the archbishop, who spoke to someone through a headset, saying, “Bishop Andrus is here.”

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SAN FRANCISCO (CA)
Washington Post

Episcopal bishop says he was denied entrance to Catholic archbishop’s installation Mass

By Kevin Eckstrom| Religion News Service, Published: October 5

What started off as a rocky relationship between the Episcopal and Roman Catholic bishops of San Francisco got even worse on Thursday (Oct. 4) when Episcopal Bishop Marc Andrus said he was denied entrance to the installation Mass of the new Roman Catholic archbishop.

Andrus said he arrived at St. Mary’s Cathedral 30 minutes before the installation Mass of Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone was scheduled to start, but was kept in a holding area with an employee of the Catholic archdiocese until after the service started.

After other local clergy had processed in for the 2 p.m. Mass, Andrus said the message was clear that he was unwelcome, even though he had been invited.

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SAN FRANCISCO (CA)
SFist

Marc Andrus, an Episcopal Bishop of California noteworthy for his public anti-Prop 8 stance, was not allowed to be seated at Thursday’s installation of Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone, even though he was an invited guest. Instead, he was “escorted to a basement room at St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Cathedral and detained by an usher until the time the service began.” As soon as the debut performance (if you will) began, Bishop Andrus left the cathedral.

In an article explaining his basement-shaming at the hands of St. Mary’s Cathedral, Andrus writes:

At this point no other guests remained in the downstairs area. The employee and I chatted while waiting. I began to wonder about the time holdup. I checked my phone; it was 1:50PM. I asked the employee standing with me if the service indeed started at 2, which she affirmed.

At 2PM, when the service was to begin, I said to the employee, “I think I understand, and feel I should leave.” Her response was, “Thank you for being understanding.” I quietly walked out the door. No one attempted to stop me. No attempt was ever made to explain the delay or any process for seating. I arrived early, before the time given my assistant, and waited to leave until after the service had begun.

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MALTA
Times of Malta

Mgr Charles Scicluna, a lead figure in the Vatican’s investigations into child abuse by clerics, has been appointed Malta’s Auxiliary Bishop.

An official announcement is expected to be made by the Roman Curia today according to Italian newspaper La Stampa, which broke the news yesterday taking some local Church officials by surprise.

The Vatican media office would not confirm the appointment, saying its policy was only to discuss official nominations. Similarly, a Malta Curia spokesman said he had no information on the nomination.

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MALTA
Times of Malta

The Curia in Malta confirmed today that Pope Benedict XVI has appointed Monsignor Charles J. Scicluna as Auxiliary Bishop of Malta. The news was revealed by Italian newspaper La Stampa yesterday. Mgr Scicluna will be Titular Bishop of San Leone.

The episcopal ordination will be held on November 24.

“As Auxiliary Bishop, His Lordship Monsignor Scicluna, 53, will be called to be the closest collaborator and advisor of His Grace Archbishop Paul Cremona O.P. with leadership responsibilities in the Curia and in diocesan pastoral ministry. On his Episcopal ordination on 24 November 2012, Monsignor Scicluna will become a member of the Maltese Episcopal Conference alongside the Archbishop and the Bishop of Gozo, His Lordship Monsignor Mario Grech,” the Curia said.

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MALTA
Malta Independent

by John Cordina

The man in charge of handling complaints of sexual abuse by Catholic Church personnel, Mgr Charles Scicluna, is to be made an auxiliary bishop in the archdiocese of Malta.

Mgr Scicluna has been the Promoter of Justice at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith – the present-day successor of the Holy Inquisition – since 2001.

In this role, he is effectively the chief prosecutor in the most serious cases concerning priests, including sexual abuse by minors, and has become known for his zero-tolerance policy towards such acts.

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UXBRIDGE (MA)
Telegram & Gazette

By Susan Spencer TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

UXBRIDGE — A pastor’s wife has won a year-long restraining order against her husband after claiming her husband abused her and had welcomed young women into her home for sex.

In an Uxbridge District Court hearing yesterday, in an affidavit filed by Beth Stanley, she accused her husband, Dennis H. Stanley, of making her sleep downstairs while he was with the female guests. A judge initially granted a temporary restraining order Monday but extended it Friday after hearing from Mrs. Stanley. The pastor of the non-denominational Church of the End Times was arrested after a standoff with police Monday.

In the affidavit Mrs. Stanley filed on Monday for the restraining order she said: “My husband invited ten girls to live in our house for the last week or more. He now sleeps upstairs with them in bed. My husband believes this is the love he needs and can get from them. … My husband and his girlfriends have locked me out of our house!” …

Dennis Stanley, reached by phone yesterday, said, “She’s (my wife) obviously trying to make me look like a moron.”

He said the groups of young women were just a gathering after church.

“There’s nothing sexual or whatever the accusations might be. It’s just friendships. Just friends.”

Dennis Stanley said that the women were invited to stay at the house because, “I own the house and I let whoever I want stay there.”

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CANADA
The Chronicle-Herald

As a nun and a pediatrician, Sister Nuala Kenny devoted much of her professional life to helping people feel better.

Her new book, Healing the Church, aims to apply balm to the Catholic Church. Subtitled Diagnosing and Treating the Clergy Sexual Abuse Crisis, the book is aimed at a particular audience.

“Ordinary lay people,” Kenny, semi-retired, said from the Halifax convent where she lives with three other sisters.

“It’s an attempt to find some way to get people to begin talking about what are the lessons that we have learned from this crisis, about who we are as a church, with specific attention to how we are when we relate as clergy and laity.”

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KANSAS CITY (MO)
The Kansas City Star

By JUDY L. THOMAS
The Kansas City Star

The legal arena has become a sort of second home to the Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese — but hardly a sanctuary.

Bishop Robert Finn’s criminal misdemeanor conviction this past summer for failing to report suspected child abuse involving the Rev. Shawn Ratigan, analysts say, could dramatically undercut the diocese’s defense against mounting civil lawsuits.

More than two dozen pending cases allege offenses ranging from sexual abuse by priests to wrongful death.

The Ratigan case triggered a new wave of litigation.

“Now that Bishop Finn has (been convicted), the diocese is at absolute risk,” said Patrick Wall, a canon lawyer and former Roman Catholic priest who has worked on behalf of clergy sexual abuse victims for a decade.

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MILWAUKEE (WI)
WTMJ

[with video]

By WTMJ News Team

CREATED Oct. 5, 2012

MILWAUKEE- The controversy over the Catholic priest sex abuse scandal hits the big screen.

Not only that, but Friday night is the US premiere of the film. It’s called Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence In The House Of God — a documentary focused on the sexual assaults within the church right here in Milwaukee.

With bright lights, ticket lines, even a red carpet, the event had all the trimmings of a blockbuster premiere.

The film brought a message to the big screen. Telling the story of hundreds of young men abused by Father Lawrence Murphy, the headmaster at St. John’s School for the Deaf in St. Francis.

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IRELAND
Toronto Star

Sandro Contenta
Feature Writer

DUBLIN, IRELAND—Rev. Seamus Ryan, a gentle Catholic priest on the verge of retirement, lives in a cluttered home next to St. Matthew’s Parish, where he ministers to a precipitously decreasing flock from the working-class neighbourhood of Ballyfermot.

On a September day that threatened rain, he sat with a cup of tea in a comfortable armchair, relaxing after having married a young couple. Baptisms, marriages and funerals still keep priests busy in Ireland. But Ryan takes little solace from a church reduced to what some call a “hatch, match and dispatch” service.

“People have lost contact with the church,” he says. “At the wedding today, they were no longer familiar with the responses. They’ve lost the language, even. There’s just a silence.” …

The backdrop to the battle is a Roman Catholic Church in crisis in Europe and North America. Vocations to the priesthood are drying up and sex abuse scandals reveal a hierarchy often more interested in protecting the institution than protecting children.

“The church is 200 years behind the times,” Cardinal Carlo Martini told an Italian journalist in comments he approved before his death in late August. “Why doesn’t it stir? Are we afraid?”

“Our culture has become old,” the highly respected cardinal added in his missive from the grave, “our churches and our religious houses are big and empty, the bureaucratic apparatus of the church grows, our rites and our dress are pompous.”

In this atmosphere of crisis, rebellious reform groups are multiplying. Hoban’s association began two years ago and already represents 1,000 of Ireland’s 4,500 priests. In Austria, a group called Preachers’ Initiative, which says it represents 10 per cent of the country’s Catholic priests, has issued a “Call to Disobedience” manifesto that demands the ordination of women and an end to priestly celibacy. Groups in Germany and the United States are making similar noises.

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VATICAN CITY
BBC News

Pope Benedict’s ex-butler Paolo Gabriele has been found guilty of stealing confidential papers and sentenced to 18 months in jail.

Prosecutors had called for a three-year sentence but it was reduced because of “mitigating circumstances”.

Speaking before the verdict, he said he acted out of love for the Church and did not see himself as a thief.

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VATICAN CITY
The Telegraph

The Pope’s butler was given an 18-month prison sentence today after being found guilty by a Vatican tribunal of stealing confidential documents from the desk of Benedict XVI.

By Nick Squires, Vatican City
11:33AM BST 06 Oct 2012

Judges in the “Vatileaks” case also ordered him to pay legal expenses for the trial.

Vatican prosecutors had asked for a three year prison sentence for Paolo Gabriele, 46, who amassed a huge collection of stolen papal documents in his grace-and-favour apartment within the walls of the city state.

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VATICAN CITY
KTVL

VATICAN CITY (AP) — The pope’s butler has insisted that he’s no thief and that he leaked the pope’s private correspondence to a journalist out of a “visceral love” for the Catholic Church and its pope.

Paolo Gabriele delivered a final statement to a Vatican tribunal today before its three judges began deliberating whether he is guilty of aggravated theft in the gravest Vatican security breach in memory.

Defense attorney Cristiana Arru insisted in closing arguments that only photocopies, not original documents, were taken from the Apostolic Palace, disputing testimony from the pope’s secretary that original letters were in the evidence seized from Gabriele’s home.

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VATICAN CITY
WTAQ

Saturday, October 06, 2012

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – A Vatican court on Saturday found Pope Benedict’s former butler guilty of stealing sensitive documents and sentenced him to a year and a half in prison.

The court delivered its verdict after a two-hour deliberation on the last day of the trial.

The prosecution had asked for a three-year sentence.

The defense asked the court to reduce the charges from “aggravated theft” to “misappropriation” and for him to be freed.

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VATICAN CITY
Gorey Guardian (Ireland)

Saturday October 06 2012

The pope’s butler has been convicted of stealing the pontiff’s private documents and leaking them to a journalist, and has been sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Judge Giuseppe Dalla Torre read the verdict aloud, one hour after the three-judge panel began deliberating Paolo Gabriele’s fate. He said the sentence was reduced to 18 months from three years because of a series of mitigating circumstances, including that Gabriele had no previous record.

In his final appeal to the court, Gabriele insisted “I don’t feel like a thief” and said he leaked the pope’s private correspondence to a journalist out of a “visceral love” for the church and the pope.

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PENNSYLVANIA
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Posted by David Clohessy on October 05, 2012

■Groups blast Altoona bishop over child sex crimes
■They want him to post the names of all predator priests
■At least 30 US Catholic prelates have taken “this simple safety step”
■SNAP: “At least 25 local clergy are proven, admitted or credibly accused abusers”
■Self help organization wants “outreach & warnings” about a just-accused local priest

WHAT
Holding signs and childhood photos at a sidewalk news conference, clergy sex abuse victims will urge Altoona Catholic bishop to
— seek out others who may have seen or suspected child sex crimes by a recently arrested priest,
— personally visit each parish where the accused predator worked, begging other victims to come forward, get help, and call police, and
— post the names of all current and former local child molesting clerics on the diocese website.

They will also prod people who were molested by clergy – of any denomination to “find the courage to speak up and start healing.”

WHEN
Monday, Oct. 8 at 11:00 a.m.

WHERE
Outside the Altoona Catholic diocesan headquarters (chancery office) at 927 South Logan Blvd. (corner of Hawthorne) in Hollidaysburg, PA ( 814-695-5579 )

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MASSACHUSETTS
Wisconsin Gazette

Written by Lisa Neff, Staff writer
Oct 5, 2012

James Fairbanks and Alain Beret saw potential in the property – 44 rooms, 26 acres and community zeal for preservation. The stately though deteriorated mansion in Northbridge, Mass., seemed an ideal location for an inn or a special events.

But despite an offer and a deposit, the seller – the Worcester Diocese of the Catholic Church – backed out of the deal.

The diocese says the deal-breaker was money. The couple claims it was discrimination.

The vacant property at the center of the controversy most recently hosted the Oakhurst Retreat and Conference Center, an office for the church’s youth ministry.

Before that, beginning in 1973, the mansion was the site of the House of Affirmation, a retreat for “troubled priests” founded by the Rev. Thomas A. Kane. In a notice in a church-affiliated newsletter from decades ago, Kane announced that the center was at “the service of all priests and religious who are not embarrassed to become a more fulfilled and healthier person.”

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UNITED STATES
Huffington Post

Julie Leininger Pycior

At present there is a standoff between the Vatican and the organization that represents 80 percent of American nuns, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious/LCWR. The hierarchy likely will break the stalemate right after the noisy election season, and they hold all the power (that is, unless the nuns simply rebel).

Or maybe not? God writes with straight but crooked lines, according to two people often characterized as Catholic activist icons, Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton.

The dividing line between the Vatican and the nuns does seem rigid. Rome scored the LCWR for “radical feminism” and placed a male prelate in charge of monitoring these 75,000 women (yes, even as the episcopate remains tainted by the pedophilia cover-up scandal). The monitor, Archbishop Peter Sartain of Seattle, is urging the Catholics in his archdiocese to vote in favor of a resolution, which he promoted, that would overturn a law recognizing gay marriage — this, in line with the Pope, who has stated that same-sex unions “threaten human dignity and the future of humanity itself.”

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SAN FRANCISCO (CA)
National Catholic Reporter

by
Monica Clark

Salvatore J. Cordileone chose the theme of “rebuilding” for his installation as the ninth archbishop of San Francisco on Thursday.

For his homily, Cordileone, whose appointment drew strong criticism because of his opposition to gay marriage, drew on the example of St. Francis of Assisi, the city’s patron whose feast was being celebrated. St. Francis, the archbishop said, “didn’t make a new church, he repaired the old one. He built upon it.”

About 200 demonstrators, some supporting the city’s new archbishop and others opposing his appointment, stood together on the sidewalk outside St. Mary’s Cathedral while 2,000 invited guests gathered inside to witness Cordileone’s installation.

Both groups held signs proclaiming their messages to those arriving for the 2 p.m. Mass and those driving along one of San Francisco’s busiest streets. …

In addition to divergent opinions marriage, there were posters abhorring the sexual abuse of children by priests and signs referring to Cordileone’s recent arrest for drunken driving. But there were no confrontations, and an atmosphere of respect, or at least tolerance, prevailed.

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UXBRIDGE (MA)
Telegram & Gazette

By Susan Spencer TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

UXBRIDGE — Beth Stanley, the wife of Dennis H. Stanley, the pastor who was arrested after a standoff with police Monday, received a one-year extension on a restraining order today. She accuses her husband of abusing her and bringing home young women while she was made to sleep downstairs.

A judge initially granted a temporary restraining order Monday and extended it today after hearing from Mrs. Stanley.

Mrs. Stanley, who said she and her husband of 22 years were high school sweethearts, has filed for divorce. The couple has three children ages 7, 10 and 13.

Dennis and his brother David H. Stanley, both of Uxbridge, were in Uxbridge District Court this morning on charges stemming from a one-hour standoff with police Monday night regarding a violation of a restraining order.

The Stanley brothers, who own Driveways Corp. paving company, founded the Church of the End Times in 2006 and serve as pastors of the nondenominational Christian church. Their videos on YouTube show “Pastor David” conducting exorcisms.

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DEUTSCHLAND
Sudwest Presse

50 Jahre nach dem Zweiten Vatikanischen Konzil hat der Tübinger Theologe Hans Küng erneut die katholische Kirche und Papst Benedikt XVI. scharf kritisiert. Seit Beginn der 80er Jahre lebe Joseph Ratzinger, der heutige Papst, in einer Scheinwelt,

sagte Küng der in Ulm erscheinenden “Südwest Presse”. “Verschärft hat er das noch, weil er nur Ja-Sager” als Berater berufen habe. Auf dem Petersplatz in Rom werde “Macht zelebriert, geführt von Jubel-Katholiken”, während die Kirche in den Gemeinden ausblute. Küng hofft auf “eine Reform von unten”. Küng war 1962 als Berater am Zweiten Vatikanischen Konzil beteiligt.

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DEUTSCHLAND
Mittelbayerische

Der Missbrauchsprozess gegen einen Olympia-Trainer des DSV ist ein weiteres Mal vertagt worden.

Der Missbrauchsprozess gegen einen Olympia-Trainer des Deutschen Schwimm-Verbandes (DSV) ist ein weiteres Mal vertagt worden. Nach kurzer Verhandlung am Freitag kündigte die Strafkammer des Amtsgerichtes Kiel die Fortsetzung für den 24. Oktober an. Dann sollen zwei Zeugen vernommen werden. Mit einem Urteil ist, so ein Gerichtssprecher auf SID-Nachfrage, aber auch am dann siebten Verhandlungstag nicht zu rechnen.

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DEUTSCHLAND
Express

Von JÜRGEN DREVES

Augsburg –
Erleichterung über das Rücktrittsgesuch von Bischof Walter Mixa (68): Selbst im Augsburger Bistum des der Lüge überführten Gottesmannes überwiegt die Zufriedenheit mit der Entscheidung.

Weihbischof Anton Losinger diagnostiziert einen schweren Image-Schaden für die katholische Kirche. „Unter den Gläubigen gibt es deutliche Kritik und Vertrauensverlust. Es gibt Kirchenaustrittszahlen, die uns bedrücken.“ Im Bistum Augsburg liegt die Zahl um 50 bis 70 Prozent höher als im Vorjahr.

Bischof Mixa hatte Vorwürfe, Heimkinder geschlagen zu haben, zunächst vehement bestritten. Später gab er dann zu, als Stadtpfarrer von Schrobenhausen Ohrfeigen ausgeteilt zu haben.

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SCHWEIZ
kipa

Zürich, 2.10.12 (Kipa) Unter dem Namen “Projekt Vaticanum III” wollen katholische Initiativgruppen auch in der Schweiz Konzilsdokumente in die heutige Zeit übersetzen. Die Dokumente sollen in drei Jahren dem Vatikan übergeben werden. Die Initiativgruppen hoffen, dass sie die Kirchenleitung in Rom von den Reformbestrebungen überzeugen und so dazu beitragen können, die “vorherrschende

Das Projekt ist eine Initiative der österreichischen Plattform “Wir sind Kirche”, der sich international viele Interessierte angeschlossen haben, heisst es in der Medienmitteilung. Auch eine Schweizer Gruppe arbeitet mit und hat sich vorgenommen, die Pastoralkonstitution “Gaudium et spes für unser Jahrhundert weiterzudenken” und in der gegenwärtigen Welt nach Zeichen von “Freude und Hoffnung” Umschau zu halten. An der Projektgruppe Schweiz arbeiten die Theologen Brigitte Durrer, Leo Karrer, Walter Kirchschläger, Erwin Koller und Helen Schüngel-Straumann mit.

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ITALY
Sudtirol

Nals – Im Bildungshaus Lichtenburg in Nals findet heute eine Tagung statt, in deren Rahmen man sich mit sexuellem Missbrauch in Kirche und Gesellschaft konstruktiv auseinandersetzen will. Die Tagung wurde von Bischof Ivo Muser eröffnet.

Im Jahr 2010 hat die Kurie eine Ombudsstelle eingerichtet, bei der sich 54 Personen gemeldet haben. In 31 Fällen war die Anlaufstelle zuständig und erzielte auch Erfolge.

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IRELAND
Galway News

October 5, 2012

The Irish Association of Catholic Priests will hold an assembly in Galway tomorrow aimed at promoting real dialogue on reform and renewal of the Church.

Up to 400 priests, religious and lay catholics are expected to attend ‘Towards an assembly for the West’ which takes place at the Clayton Hotel at Briarhill from 10am to 4pm.

The meeting, which is broken into three key sessions, will have a number of speakers outling a vision for the future, with contributions from the floor.

Admission is free but booking is advisable on the website
associationofcatholicpriests.com

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