ABUSE TRACKER

AUSTRALIA
Sky News

Children at a Salvation Army home in Queensland were fed food donated for animals, savagely beaten, sexually abused and locked in a cage, an inquiry has been told.

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, which is examining four homes run by the Salvos in NSW and Queensland from 1966-77, has been told that evidence to be given of corporal punishment and sexual abuse at the homes were some of the most disturbing the commission had heard.

It is at the ‘severe end of abuse’ examined by the commission, the opening of a two-week hearing in Sydney heard on Tuesday.

Simeon Beckett, counsel assisting the commission, said the hearing would hear many allegations about five identified officers, ‘Laurence Wilson, Russell Walker, Victor Bennett, John McIver and Donald Schultz’.

Mr Walker, Mr Schultz and Mr McIver are still alive and have been given notice of the hearing.

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AUSTRALIA
Crikey

by Cathy Alexander

Australia

They say they were sexually abused at boys’ homes run by the Salvation Army. And when they tried to run away, they were beaten or locked in cages on a veranda for up to nine days. When they were let out, some say they were raped again.

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse has today heard harrowing stories of the alleged victims of five men who worked for the Salvation Army. The commission is looking into what happened at four notorious boys’ homes in New South Wales and Queensland, focusing on the 1950s to the 1970s.

Simeon Beckett, counsel assisting the royal commission, started today’s hearing by running through some allegations of sexual abuse, which were intertwined with horrific allegations of violent punishments at the hands of Salvos’ staff.

Beckett said the five alleged perpetrators had worked together or succeeded each other in their posts; most were moved between the four boys’ homes. He said key questions for the commission included whether the homes’ managers had sought to frustrate claims of sexual abuse or impede investigations; whether the alleged perpetrators were transferred to new homes once allegations had been made; and whether the Salvos took claims of sexual abuse seriously.

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AUSTRALIA
Sydney Morning Herald

January 28, 2014

Paul Bibby
Court Reporter

Young boys were locked in a cage for days on end as part of a brutal regime of physical and sexual abuse meted out to dozens of youngsters at Salvation Army homes in the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s, a royal commission into child-sex abuse has heard.

And the Salvation Army’s leadership often failed to discipline or remove the perpetrators, but simply moved them to other homes where they frequently continued the abuse.

The revelations came during the first public hearing in Sydney by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse for 2014.

In his opening address, counsel assisting, Simeon Beckett, said the focus of the hearings would be on the “contemporaneous response by the Salvation Army and relevant government agencies to child sex abuse within the Alkira home for boys in Indroopilly, Queensland; the Riverview Training Farm, also in Queensland; Bexley Boys home in North Bexley; and the Gill Memorial Home in Goulburn”.
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“It will examine processes at the time to identify, investigate, discipline, remove, dismiss and/or transfer persons accused of or found to have engaged in child sexual abuse,” he said.

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AUSTRALIA
The Guardian (UK)

Australian Associated Press
theguardian.com, Sunday 26 January 2014

A national inquiry into the Salvation Army’s movement of staff linked to child sex abuse between children’s homes in two states will open this week.

The fifth case study by the royal commission into institutional responses to child sexual abuse will start in Sydney on Tuesday.

The focus of the public hearing will be the response of the Salvation Army to allegations of child sexual abuse within four homes: the Alkira Salvation Army Home for Boys at Indooroopilly; the Bexley Boys in New South Wales; Riverview Training Farm in Queensland; and the Gill Memorial Boys Home in Goulburn in NSW.

As well as the movement of officers and staff, the Salvation Army’s processes for dealing with allegations of abuse will be examined in the two-week hearing.

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MINNESOTA
St. Cloud Times

Written by
David Unze

The St. Cloud diocese and St. John’s Abbey have made public all of the names of priests and monks who have credible allegations against them of sexual misconduct with minors, according to the leaders of both institutions.

Abbot John Klassen and Bishop Donald Kettler said Monday that they are confident they know of all allegations made against members of their orders to date and that the names of those credibly accused have been released.

Klassen and Kettler met Monday with the St. Cloud Times Editorial Board, at the invitation of Executive Editor John Bodette, to discuss the ongoing clergy sex abuse scandal, their responses to it and their acknowledgment of a need to rebuild trust with parishioners.

“Should there be somebody who has been abused, and we haven’t been notified, please come and tell me,” Kettler said. “I want to know. But I feel confident that … we’ve revealed everything that I know about for anybody that’s likely abused.”

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AUSTRALIA
ABC News

[with audio]

The royal commission into child sexual abuse will today examine cases of abuse that took place at four Salvation Army boys’ homes in Queensland and New South Wales.

The two-week investigation will scrutinise how the prominent charity has dealt with instances of child sexual abuse, and how the Salvation Army dealt with offenders in its ranks.

The Salvation Army says the abuse, most of which took part in the 1960s and 70s, is a “failure of the greatest magnitude”.

Robert Conway was 13 when he was sent to one of the boys’ homes.

“First impressions… well I was molested the first night I was there by the major who ran the place,” he said

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ALASKA
BishopAccountability.org

Summary of Case: A Jesuit priest ordained in 1927, John P. Fox lived and worked for five decades in remote Alaskan villages. There is one known accusation of sexual abuse of a minor against him, as revealed in 2010 by the Fairbanks diocese’s bankruptcy reorganization documents. Fox died in 1983.

Ordained: 1927
Died: May 1983

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MINNESOTA
Star Tribune

[list of accused priests]

By Jean Hopfensperger  hopfen@startribune.com

The Catholic Diocese of Crookston has released the names of six priests credibly accused of sexual misconduct with minors. The action means all Minnesota dioceses have released lists of accused priests that have been kept secret for a decade.

Five of the six priests on Crookston’s list are dead. The sixth, the Rev. Joseph Jeyapaul, is facing extradition from his home in India to face charges that he sexually assaulted two teenage girls while he worked in the Crookston diocese between 2004 and 2005.

Bishop Michael Hoeppner oversees the diocese serving Catholics in 14 counties in northwestern Minnesota. He did not issue a statement about the list.

Advocates immediately urged the diocese to post the list prominently on its website and make it easily accessible to the public.

“We strongly suspect it’s an incomplete list,” said David Clohesey, national executive director of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP). “And we strongly suspect that Catholic officials took this step because they feared that a judge would soon order them to do so.”

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NORTHERN IRELAND
Belfast Telegraph

27 JANUARY 2014

Some children at residential homes run by Catholic nuns in Northern Ireland were made to eat their own vomit, a lawyer said.

Those who wet their beds were forced to put soiled sheets on their heads by members of a harsh regime which was devoid of love, the UK’s largest ever public inquiry into child abuse at residential homes was told.

Young people at Sisters of Nazareth properties in Londonderry were known by their numbers rather than names and many allegedly subjected to humiliation, threats and physical abuse, counsel to the Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry Christine Smith QC said.

Kathleen Forrest, a ministry of home affairs inspector, said in a 1953 report: “I find these homes utterly depressing and it appals me to think that these hundreds of children are being reared in bleak lovelessness.”

The treatment of children in church-run residential homes is a key concern of the investigation being held in Banbridge, Co Down. It is chaired by retired judge Sir Anthony Hart and is considering cases between 1922, the foundation of Northern Ireland, and 1995.

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MEXICO
Vanguardia

[Summary: It is reported that there are more than 100 victims of abuse by priests in the state of Coahuila.]

México, DF. Carlos Llamas Gómez aún recuerda con miedo e indignación el momento en que subía al altar cuando servía como monaguillo en una iglesia de Saltillo, Coahuila, a la edad de 14 años: “Lo ayudaba a ponerse la sotana. Se me acercaba, y veía su pene erecto. Eso significaba que después de la misa iba a tocarme, a manosearme. Es un trauma que me ha atormentado todo este tiempo”.

Ha esperado 15 años para romper el silencio. El domingo pasado escuchó al obispo Raúl Vera decir que en los 14 años que lleva al frente de su diócesis, solamente ha habido dos casos de sacerdotes que cometieron abusos sexuales contra menores: “Es mentira. No son dos, yo conozco a cinco, otros hablan de nueve sacerdotes aún en funciones. Son más de 100 casos en los que se abusó de menores”, dice en entrevista, luego de prestar declaración ante la Procuraduría General de Justicia de Coahuila.

¿Por qué hasta ahora? Porque cada quien tiene “su momento”, dice, y porque su decisión coincide también con la construcción de Casa Emaús, una “clínica” para la “rehabilitación” de sacerdotes pederastas ubicada entre los ejidos San Juan y El Tunal de Arteaga, Coahuila, según reconoció el propio vicario general de la diócesis de Saltillo, Gerardo Escareño.

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MASSACHUSETTS
Telegram & Gazette

By Gerald Russell TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

LANCASTER — The case of a Roman Catholic priest removed from his parish last week by the bishop is under investigation by the office of Worcester District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr.

Paul Jarvey, a spokesman for Mr. Early, said diocesan officials referred the matter to the district attorney last week.

Rev. Edward P. Lettic was placed on administrative leave because of what Bishop Robert J. McManus has described as a credible allegation of misconduct. Rev. Lettic has been pastor of Immaculate Conception Parish in Lancaster since 1993. The allegation is about sexual misconduct from 40 years ago. The allegation is also being investigated by the Diocesan Review Committee.

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MEXICO
Diocesis de Saltillo

[Summary: After more than three years of work, the first stone has been laid for what will be the Emmaus Project located on the campus of San Benito in the town of El Tunal in Arteaga, Coahuila. It will focus on rehabilitation of priests in situations or difficult moments ranging from the moral to the spiritual and psychological.]

Luego de más de tres años de trabajo en Monterrey, enfocados a la rehabilitación de sacerdotes en situaciones o momentos difíciles que van desde lo moral a lo espiritual y psicológico, se colocó la primera piedra para lo que será el Proyecto Emaús con sede en el Predio San Benito, ubicado en el poblado de El Tunal, en Arteaga, Coahuila.

El sacerdote Rodolfo Mora Becerra, religioso Misionero de Guadalupe además de Fundador y Director del Programa Emaús, explicó que el plan surgió del compromiso hecho con el Cardenal Adolfo Suárez Rivera, quien falleció hace dos años, y unos meses antes, le solicitó personalmente a nombre de la Provincia, iniciar un proyecto de atención a sacerdotes con problemáticas específicas.

“Desde ese momento Dios sembró en mi corazón esa semilla que más tarde vino germinando y ha dado inicio ahora aquí en la Diócesis de Saltillo. El proyecto se llama Emaús porque es el encuentro de los discípulos con el resucitado que los reanima a salir adelante”, expuso. La construcción del centro se tiene proyectada a terminar en un máximo de ocho meses y contará con los servicios de psicología, dirección espiritual, atención médica y la manutención de los internos en todos sus lineamientos; el programa con los sacerdotes tiene una duración mínima de tres meses y máxima de cinco.

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MEXICO
Vanguardia

[Summary: Priests accused of pedophilia can go into spiritual rehabilitation at Emmaus House which is nearly completion in Arteaga.]

POR: MARÍA EUGENIA ALVARADO viernes, 24 de enero del 2014

Sacerdotes que cometen pederastia sí podrían ir a parar al centro de rehabilitación espiritual Casa Emaús que se construye y está a punto de concluirse en Arteaga, aceptó el vicario general de la Diócesis de Saltillo, Gerardo Escareño.

VANGUARDIA dio a conocer que en la Sierra de Arteaga, entre los ejidos de San Juan y El Tunal, a unos 50 kilómetros de Saltillo, se erige el centro destinado a la rehabilitación espiritual de los sacerdotes que han perdido el camino o están en periodos de crisis.

Cuestionado al respecto, el Vicario General de la Diócesis dijo desconocer específicamente el programa de rehabilitación o de terapia que se implementará en dicho centro, pero al ser cuestionado si sacerdotes pederastas podrían llegar al lugar, señaló que:

“Si es posible, incluso que (dichos sacerdotes) hayan ya pasado por esa etapa no necesariamente en este centro, (pero) que hayan ya pasado por algún otro centro de los que hay en el país para atender a los sacerdotes”, expuso.

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OHIO
Canton Daily Ledger

By Bill Knight
Retired WIU Journalism Professor
Posted Jan. 27, 2014

In the New Testament, Jesus says, “Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.”

Nevertheless, it’s unclear whether Pope Francis will be able to directly hear from area Catholics about their thoughts on cohabitation, contraceptives, divorce and other questions that the Vatican has asked in preparation for an October Synod of Bishops, who’ll be discussing family topics. Unfortunately, Jan. 31 is the deadline for the survey data to be sent to Rome, so there are mere days to try to give your feedback to Rome.

This is despite a request by the Vatican official overseeing the process directing bishops to distribute the questionnaire “as widely as possible, to deaneries and parishes, so that input from local sources can be received.” Instead, the Diocese of Peoria says it sent the survey to parish priests, who were expected to confer with laypeople.

Timing was a problem, according to Monsignor James Kruse, a Vicar General with the Diocese. “It was a very tight timeline,” Father Kruse said. “It was sent to pastors before Thanksgiving, and they were to meet and discuss it. Admittedly, it was not widely disbursed.”

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AUSTRALIA
lewisblayse.net

Now that it is official that I will not be permitted, by the chairman of the Australian royal commission into institutional responses to child sexual abuse, Peter McClellan, to give evidence on my old Boys’ Home, “Alkira” – otherwise known as the Indooroopilly Salvation Army Home for Boys – it is time to explain some things. (The commission has stated that my case fell within its terms of reference, so that is not a point of dissention.):

1. It was the practice when I was in the Home for new boys to be put in the bunk next to mine, and I was to help them learn the Home routines, and help them feel a bit better (they usually cried most of the night for the first couple of days). In effect, I gave them “pastoral” care.

2. Because of the above, the boys had considerable trust in me, and possibly some affection. They confided in me about the abuses they experienced.

3. When it was known that I would be leaving the Boys’ Home to go to my own home, at least twenty boys asked me to get their story out to the public and authorities.

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IRELAND
Irish Independent

MAGGIE ARMSTRONG – 25 JANUARY 2014

Islam is Ireland’s fastest-growing religion, with the number of Muslims recorded in the 2011 Census – 48,130 – expected to reach 100,000 by 2020. In a country where only 34pc of approximately 3.8 million Catholics attend Mass, many people are drifting away from religion. But a small number are finding that Islamic beliefs and practices, which allow for a peaceful and community-oriented life, fit their spiritual needs.

It is estimated that up to 500 Irish people convert to Islam every year. There is no official register and no baptism – to convert you simply have to recite the testimony of creed in front of two Muslim witnesses.

While more women convert than men, and most conversions are for marriage, people can have very personal reasons for converting – or reverting as it is known in the Islamic faith, in which it is believed that everyone was born Muslim. …

Bridget Darby (68, retired hotel manager)

When I was 18 I went to England to study nursing. I met an Englishman in the Royal Air Force. I was at a very vulnerable time and I fell in love with him and we got engaged. He wasn’t a Catholic, so he and I had to have some religious instruction.

One day I showed up by myself and the priest asked me, “Have you got your dress?” He went from the dress to say, “Have you got new underwear?” I tried to answer as best I could, cringing on the edge of the seat. He then asked me: “Did you get a new girdle? I’ve never seen one, can you show me yours?” I was devastated. I got out of that office without having to show him my underwear or my girdle, but I was shaking.

I made myself a promise: that after we married I wouldn’t walk into a Catholic church again, and I never did. We got married, had a child and were stationed in Cyprus and Australia. We got divorced after about 15 years, and in 1985 I went to America. I still had no religion, but I was a good person – I believed in God.

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MEXICO
Vanguardia

[Summary: According to a newsletter on the Saltillo diocese website facilities are being provided for rehabilitation of priests in difficult times or situations ranging from the moral to the spiritual and psychological. The facilities are in the town of El Tunal, municipality of Arteaga. The building is part of an initiative called Emmaus Project. A source consulted by Vanguardia revealed that, if confirmed, this would be a concern because the Emmaus house would be a center of “refuge” for priests who have been involved in unlawful conduct in other regional of the world, including Europe.]

De acuerdo con un boletín contenido en la página web de la Diócesis de Saltillo, en el poblado de El Tunal, municipio de Arteaga, se construyen instalaciones para la “rehabilitación de sacerdotes en situaciones o momentos difíciles, que van desde lo moral a lo espiritual y psicológico”.

La edificación es parte de una iniciativa denominada “Proyecto Emaús”, que habría iniciado sus actividades en la Ciudad de Monterrey, Nuevo León, y buscaría ofrecer apoyo institucional, por parte de la misma Iglesia Católica, a miembros de su cuerpo de clérigos que registren “problemáticas específicas”.

A primera vista, la iniciativa podría ser clasificada en el apartado de las estrategias que cualquier gremio o agrupación de individuos realiza para ofrecer apoyo a los suyos.

Sin embargo, una fuente consultada por VANGUARDIA ha revelado datos que, de confirmarse, constituirían un motivo de preocupación para la comunidad: la casa “Emaús” estaría llamada a ser un centro de “refugio” para sacerdotes que habrían incurrido en conductas ilícitas en otras regiones del mundo, entre ellas Europa.

El dato resulta particularmente relevante en momentos en los cuales se discute en Saltillo sobre la presencia de dos presuntos sacerdotes pederastas cuya existencia fue revelada el fin de semana anterior por el Obispo Raúl Vera López.

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MEXICO
Vanguardia

Editorial

[Summary: The public agenda in recent days in Saltillo has been occupied mainly by themes of sex. Specifically it is for detection of illegal behaviors such as pedophilia and child pornography. In the first case came statements from Raul Vera Lopez, bishop of the Saltillo diocese, who revealed that he knew of at least two cases of alleged child abuse committed by Catholic priests. This statement followed by an avalanche of information that would place Coahuila as a kind of “paradise” of pedophiles to the extent tha tthere might be in-state facilities to “rehabilitate” European priests suspected of abusing children.]

La agenda pública de los últimos días en Saltillo fue ocupada fundamentalmente por temas de índole sexual. Específicamente por la detección de conductas que constituyen actos ilícitos, tales como la pederastia y la pornografía infantil.

En el primer caso, fueron las declaraciones del obispo de la Diócesis de Saltillo, Raúl Vera López, las que encendieron la polémica al revelar que conocía de al menos dos casos de presunta pederastia cometidos por sacerdotes católicos, uno de los cuales tendría su adscripción en la diócesis que él mismo encabeza.

A las declaraciones de Vera López le siguió un auténtico alud de información que colocaría a Coahuila como una suerte de “paraíso” de los pederastas, al grado de que en territorio estatal se estarían construyendo instalaciones para “rehabilitar” a sacerdotes europeos presuntamente responsables de conductas de abuso sexual en contra de niños.

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PERU
Metro

[Summary: Father Jose Colon Otero of St. Martin de Porres parish in the Arecibo diocese on Monday denied committing acts of sexual abuse against minors and of violating the sacramental seal. He said he received a decree from the Vatican but does not mean he has been defrocked. He said he has been a priest for 12 years and has never abused minors or violated the sacramental seal. On Monday it emerged that the Vatican issued a decree expelling Otero Colon from the priesthood for allegedly sexually abusing minors and violating the sacramental seal of confession.]

El padre José Colón Otero, de la Parroquia San Martín de Porres de la Diócesis de Arecibo, negó el lunes haber cometido actos de abuso sexual contra menores, que haya violado el sigilo sacramental y afirmó que un decreto que recibió del Vaticano no significa que haya sido expulsado del sacerdocio.

“Tengo 12 años de sacerdote. Yo jamás he violado el sigilo sacramental y jamás he abusado sexualmente de nadie. Lo dije en una conferencia de prensa hace unos meses atrás y lo repito ahora”, dijo Colón Otero en entrevista radial (Radio Isla).

El lunes trascendió que el Vaticano emitió un decreto que expulsa a Colón Otero del sacerdocio, quien en el pasado fue señalado por presunto abuso sexual contra menores. Además se informó sobre señalamientos contra el cura por supuesta violación del sigilo sacramental o secreto de confesión.

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MASSACHUSETTS
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Monday, Jan. 27

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 314 566 9790, SNAPclohessy@aol.com )

It’s troubling that Worcester Catholics seem to be the last to be told about credible child sex abuse allegations against a local priest.

[MassLive]

Catholic officials admit they’ve already told police and Vatican officials about accusations against Fr. Edward P. Lettic. But only yesterday did they tell parishioners at his Lancaster parish.

To distance themselves from heinous crimes by predator priests, bishops virtually always say when the crimes allegedly happened. But they virtually never say how long ago they allegedly got the report. That’s an important fact. Worcester police, prosecutors, parents and parishioners deserve to know whether Catholic officials took six days or six months to “investigate” the child sex abuse allegation against Fr. Lettic.

We call on Bishop McManus to disclose this fact. We also call on him to

–use his vast resources (church bulletins, diocesan publications, etc.) to prod anyone with knowledge or suspicions about Fr. Lettic’s crimes to call police immediately,
–post on the diocesan websites the names, photos, work histories and whereabouts of every current or former Worchester child molesting cleric (like 30 US bishops have done) and,
–personally visit every other place where Fr. Lettic worked – even for a short time – and beg those who may have seen, suspected or suffered his crimes to contact law enforcement.

Every delay is problematic. Every day the bishop refuses to aggressively do outreach gives Fr. Lettic and his church colleagues or supervisors more chances to destroy evidence, fabricate alibis, intimidate victims, threaten whistleblowers, discredit witnesses and perhaps even flee the country.

Finally, we commend the brave individual who reported Fr. Lettic’s crimes and call on others who may be suffering in silence, shame and self blame to step forward, get help, protect kids, expose wrongdoers and start healing.

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CHILE
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Preists

Chile– Victims blast Catholic Archbishop of Santiago Ricardo Ezzati, one of the newly appointed cardinals by Pope Francis

For immediate release Monday, January 27

Contact: David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 314 566 9790, SNAPclohessy@aol.com ) Juan Carlos Cruz, JCCruz1@aol.com

Victims blast Catholic Archbishop of Santiago Ricardo Ezzati, one of the newly appointed cardinals by Pope Francis
They criticize his “self-serving” plea

He claims those molested should “look forward and trust the Church”

They counter: “But kids are still being abused now and mostly the Chilean hierarchy continues to cover up and hide, protecting themselves and their own and have complete disregard for survivors”

And cover ups continue too, support group maintains

A support and advocacy group for clergy sex abuse victims is blasting a top Chilean Catholic official who has urged that those molested by priests “don’t look at the past, look forward and trust the Church”.”

Leaders of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, say that Archbishop of Santiago Ricardo Ezzati’s remarks are “self-serving, disingenuous and hurtful.”

“Kids are still being hurt, victims continue to be victimized by Church authorities like Ezzati and crimes are still being covered up,” said Juan Carlos Cruz, a survivor of Fr. Fernando Karadima’s abuse. “So actually, it’s irresponsible to ‘look forward’ and pretend that centuries old habits of secrecy and denial have suddenly and magically been reversed. That’s a huge disservice to children and vulnerable adults. This attitude by Ezzati and his colleagues not only hurt victims that have been outspoken and have been brave to speak about their terrible ordeal, but there are thousands who are quiet and anonymous and have to hear this rhetoric that keeps hurting them and their families”

Ezzati made his comments at the opening of a new Salesian Church this Saturday in the Chilean diocese of Linares where the current bishop, Tomislav Koljatic, also covered up sexual abuse as he directly witnessed the abuse that Fr. Fernando Karadima perpetrated on his victims. Yet, he is still there with no consequences.

“We believe many child molesting clerics remain on the job or hidden by church officials,” said David Clohessy, Executive Director of SNAP. “While some of those who commit clergy sex crimes are disciplined – only when bishops are forced to do so by external pressure – none of those who conceal clergy sex crimes are ever disciplined. We know that no church employee who is concealing child sex crimes has ever been disciplined in Chile. So this strongly suggests that little is changing and that kids are still at risk.”

The January 2014 results of the reputable survey from the “Centro de Estudios Públicos de Chile” (CERC) revealed that the confidence and trust in the Catholic Church and its hierarchy in Chile has fallen to its lowest levels of 34% from 75 % in 1990 and even much higher numbers 1990.

“There’s a reason for this dramatic decline in parishioners’ trust in Catholic officials,” added Clohessy. “It’s because those leaders are still denying, minimizing and concealing heinous crimes against innocent kids and vulnerable adults. Archbishop Ezzati, his predecessor Cardinal Errázuriz who covered dozens of crimes – now part of the Group of 8 that counsels Pope Francis – and many of their colleagues should realize that exhorting their flock to trust bishops won’t work. People will trust the church hierarchy when bishops remove all predators, punish all enablers, aggressively seek out and help victims, rather than attack and humiliate victims. That’s how trust will be restored, not through wishes and pleas and much less through covering up the past.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
Derry Journal

Children at Derry care homes run by the Sisters of Nazareth were made to eat their own vomit and were beaten for wetting the bed, a public inquiry has been told.

The Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry is investigating abuse claims against children’s residential institutions across the North from 1922 to 1995.

Among the institutions under the microscope are Nazareth House Children’s Home, Bishop Street, and St Joseph’s Home, Termonbacca, both in Derry, which were run by the Sisters of Nazareth.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
Irish Times

Dan Keenan

The Sisters of Nazareth who ran children’s residential accommodation in Derry have been sharply criticised by the inquiry investigating historical institutional abuse.

Senior Counsel Christine Smith told the inquiry that disclosure of documents by the order had been slow, haphazard and piecemeal. “There was a less than whole-hearted response,” to the inquiry’s requests, she alleged.

“Co-operation from the Sisters has not been as complete or as rapid as had been hoped,” she said. Requests for the documentation had led to a flow of “copious correspondence” with the order and this leading to additional work for inquiry staff.

“Material was not stored in a single, well-ordered archive,” Ms Smith told the inquiry in Banbridge which opened public sessions earlier this month.

“Information which has been received has been received in a haphazard and piecemeal fashion despite requests.” She said valuable time had been spent trying to get the material into order. This information “ought to and could have been provided much earlier”.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
Mirror

Jan 27, 2014 16:11 By Steve Robson

The largest ever public inquiry into child abuse at residential care homes in Northern Ireland has heard harrowing details of victim’s experiences

Children at residential homes run by Catholic nuns in Northern Ireland were made to eat their own vomit, a lawyer said.

Others who wet their beds were forced to put soiled sheets on their heads by members of a harsh regime devoid of love, the largest ever public inquiry into child abuse at residential homes was told.

Young people at Sisters of Nazareth properties in Londonderry were known by their numbers rather than names and many allegedly subjected to humiliation, threats and physical abuse, counsel to the Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry Christine Smith QC said.

Kathleen Forrest, a ministry of home affairs inspector, said in a 1953 report: “I find these homes utterly depressing and it appals me to think that these hundreds of children are being reared in bleak lovelessness.”

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NORTHERN IRELAND
Inishowen News

CHILDREN in the care of Nazareth nuns in Derry were sometimes brought across the border to the sisters’ home in Fahan, Buncrana, an inquiry has heard.

Former residents of two children’s homes in Derry are giving evidence today at the Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry.

And delays by the religious congregation in submitting evidence to Northern Ireland inquiry have caused “considerable difficulties”, a lawyer said.

Christine Smith QC for the inquiry said material given by the Nazareth order of nuns was not properly ordered and was still being received up to last week, RTE is reporting today.

Homes run by the Nazareth nuns included Bishop Street and Termonbacca in Derry city. This module of the inquiry is expected to last a number of weeks.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
UTV

Some children at residential homes run by Catholic nuns in Northern Ireland were made to eat their own vomit, a lawyer said.

Those who wet their beds were forced to put soiled sheets on their heads by members of a harsh regime which was devoid of love, the UK’s largest ever public inquiry into child abuse at residential homes was told on Monday.

It is tasked with looking into child abuse in 13 church and state run homes in Northern Ireland.

Christine Smith QC, Counsel to the Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry, said that young people at Sisters of Nazareth properties in Derry were known by their numbers rather than names and many were allegedly subjected to humiliation, threats and physical abuse.

Ms Smith outlined details of the alleged abuse, which included physical assaults using sticks, straps and kettle flexes.

Others involved:

* bathing in Jeyes fluid disinfectant, today more associated with outdoor cleaning jobs like clearing drains
* separation of brothers and sisters, not even telling them if they were in the same home
* locking in cupboards or threatening to send them to a hospital for those with learning disabilities at Muckamore Abbey in Antrim
* forced farm labouring or working in the laundry instead of going to school
*removal of Christmas presents and other personal items
* leaving youngsters hungry through inadequate food or alternately force feeding.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
The Guardian

Henry McDonald, Ireland correspondent
The Guardian, Monday 27 January 2014

Children were forced to eat their own vomit and bathe in disinfectant at residential care homes run by nuns, the UK’s largest public inquiry into institutional child abuse was told on Monday.

During evidence on the behaviour of nuns from the Sisters of Nazareth order at two Catholic church-run children’s homes in Derry, the inquiry heard that children were beaten for bedwetting and had soiled sheets placed on their heads to humiliate them.

Nazareth House children’s home and St Joseph’s Home, Termonbacca, were both run by the Sisters of Nazareth in Derry. Forty-nine ex-residents of the two homes gave evidence about their treatment in written and oral testimony to the historic institutional abuse inquiry sitting at Banbridge courthouse.

A total of 16 church- and state-run orphanages, care homes and other institutions in Northern Ireland are under scrutiny in a public inquiry expected to last until June 2015.

Young people at Sisters of Nazareth properties in Derry were known by numbers rather than their names, and many were allegedly subjected to humiliation, threats and physical abuse, said Christine Smith QC, senior counsel for the inquiry.

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UNITED STATES
Catholic League

Bill Donohue comments on a movie that has been nominated for four Oscars:

Owing to many false impressions about Catholicism that have been generated by the movie, “Philomena,” I decided to write an extensive review of the film, and the book upon which it is based.

The film and the book maintain that cruel Irish nuns stole Philomena’s baby in 1952 and sold him to “the highest bidder.” In reality, Philomena’s widowed father found the nuns—the only persons willing to accept the teenager’s out-of-wedlock baby—and they subsequently found a home for him in the United States; no fee was charged.

The film and the book also maintain that Philomena went to the United States to find her son, but this is patently untrue: she never set foot in America looking for him.

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MINNESOTA
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release: Monday, Jan. 27

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 314 566 9790, SNAPclohessy@aol.com )

Crookston Catholic officials made a shrewd move on Friday when they released a list of child molesting clerics.

[Grand Forks Herald]

We storngly suspect it’s an incomplete list. And we stronlgly suspete that Catholic officials took this step because they feared that a judge would soon order them to do so.

And shame on them for releasing the list on a Friday, which is when public relations consultants tell wrongdoers is the best time to disclose embarrassing news so it’s seen by the fewest people.

What now?

We call on Fargo Catholic officials to release their list, and stop hiding behind claims of confidentiality. (Those who sexually assault kids, we feel, have forfeited their right to secrecy.)

We call on Crookston Catholic officials to

–make this list more visible by putting it on the diocesan home page,
–keep it there permanently,
–post it in church bulletins periodically.
–disclose more about these child molesting clerics, especially their last known address,
–post their photos as well,
–personally visit every parish where they worked, begging victism, witnesses and whistleblowers to come forward to law enforcement
–investigate and punish any church empoloyee who ignored or concealed these clerics’ crimes.

We also urge them to use all of their resourcrse and political clout to help get Fr. Joseph Jeyapaul back to the US to face justice.

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MILWAUKEE (WI)
Catholic Culture

The Archdiocese of Milwaukee has filed suit against its former insurance company in an attempt to recover $2.6 million in legal fees related to allegations of clerical sexual abuse.

“OneBeacon has an obligation to pay for these costs under the insurance policies and … the archdiocese is committed to pursuing the monies it has coming to help pay the cost of the bankruptcy proceeding,” an archdiocesan spokesman said.

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CALIFORNIA
The Record

By Kevin Parrish
Record Staff Writer
January 27, 2014

STOCKTON – U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher M. Klein, no stranger to Stockton City Hall finances, is about to get familiar with the Catholic Diocese of Stockton.

Klein, already the city’s bankruptcy judge, also is handling the Jan. 15 bankruptcy filing by the diocese.

Klein indicated last week in Sacramento that the case’s first substantive hearing will be held in early February.

Last week, he held a hearing on several perfunctory motions that will allow the diocese to meet its payroll and keep its lights turned on.

Almost a dozen attorneys – representing sex-abuse victims, insurance companies and various Catholic organizations – were inside the federal courtroom for the hearing.

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MASSACHUSETTS
MassLive

By Megan Bard, MassLive.com
on January 27, 2014

The Rev. Edward P. Lettic has been put on administrative leave following an allegation of sexual abuse of a child, which is alleged to have occurred 40 years ago, according to The Diocese of Worcester.
The Diocese of Worcester

The Diocese of Worcester has placed a long-term priest on administrative leave after a 40-year-old “credible allegation of sexual misconduct” was lodged against him recently, according to the bishop.

During Mass on Sunday at the Immaculate Conception Parish in Lancaster, Worcester Bishop Robert J. McManus told parishioners that he has relieved Rev. Edward P. Lettic of his pastoral duties while the church investigates the allegations.

This is the first and only such allegation made against Lettic, McManus said in a news release.

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DEUTSCHLAND
netzwerkB

[Norbert Denef, a clergy abuse victim, has written to Pope Francis asking him to act on the child sexual abuse scandal in the church and offer help to the victims.]

Ein Betroffener sexueller Gewalt schreibt an Papst Franziskus

Sehr geehrter Heiliger Vater Papst Franziskus,

der Vatikan hat in der letzten Woche vor dem UN-Kinderrechtsausschuss in Genf erstmals zum Skandal des Missbrauchs Minderjähriger innerhalb der katholischen Kirche ausgesagt. Papst Benedikt XVI. versetzte 384 Priester wegen Missbrauchs in den Laienstand, im Jahr 2012 waren es etwa 100, im Jahr 2011 etwa 300. Danach forderten Sie Ihre Kirche zu mehr Schuldbewusstsein auf. Wir Betroffenen haben mit großer Freude zur Kenntnis genommen, dass Sie die Taten als »Schande der Kirche« geißeln.

Aber genügt das? Jahrzehntelang wurden die Täter von ihren Vorgesetzten geschützt. Anstatt die Verbrechen aufzuklären und den Opfern zu helfen, wurden die Täter stillschweigend in immer neue Gemeinden versetzt. Fast 400 Priester weltweit wurden wegen Missbrauchs in den Laienstand versetzt – aber was passiert mit den Amtsträgern, die die Täter jahrzehntelang schützten?

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DEUTSCHLAND
Spiegel

[Summary: German Catholics do not live according to teaching of their church. This is according to a survey conducted at behest of the Vatican.]

Die Katholiken in Deutschland leben nicht nach der Lehre ihrer Kirche. Das ist nach SPIEGEL-Informationen das Teilergebnis einer Umfrage, die der Vatikan in Auftrag gegeben hat. Laien-Vertreter appellieren an die Bischöfe, alle Zahlen offenzulegen.

Hamburg – Der Vatikan hat eine Umfrage zum Themenkomplex Familie und Sexualmoral durchführen lassen. Nun liegen Ergebnisse vor – nur was soll mit ihnen geschehen? Laien-Vertreter verlangen Transparenz von den deutschen Bischöfen. “Wir fordern die Bischöfe auf, die Ergebnisse der Umfrage ungeschminkt und ungeschönt nach Rom zu geben, aber auch in Deutschland zu veröffentlichen”, sagt der Bundesvorsitzende der Basis-Bewegung “Wir sind Kirche”, Christian Weisner, dem SPIEGEL – “so schwer es den Bischöfen auch fallen mag”. (Lesen Sie die ganze Geschichte hier im neuen SPIEGEL.)

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NORTHERN IRELAND
UTV

Delays by a Catholic congregation in submitting evidence to the Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry have caused considerable difficulties, a lawyer for the investigation has said.

Material given by the Catholic Sisters of Nazareth order of nuns was not properly ordered and was still being received up to last week, despite hearings being planned for many months, Christine Smith QC for the inquiry said.

Ms Smith said: “This less than whole-hearted and rapid response on the part of the congregation has caused considerable difficulties to the work of the inquiry.

“The congregation is not the only body whose approach has produced problems.

“We do appreciate that this is not always avoidable but we hoped that such late delivery could have been avoided, given the difficulties which it causes for the inquiry.”

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NORTHERN IRELAND
RTE News

NI inquiry hears about nuns
RELATED AUDIO & VIDEO

An inquiry in Northern Ireland has heard how young children from the Republic were sometimes transferred to homes run by nuns in Derry and in one case moved to Australia under a migrant scheme.

The Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry is hearing about two homes run by the Nazareth sisters at Termonbacca and at Bishop Street in Derry.

In the early years the homes, catering for boys and girls, received no state funding and relied entirely on voluntary contributions.

Small numbers of nuns were involved in caring for hundreds of children.

Staffing was supplemented by older children, volunteers and former residents.

The nuns also ran an orphanage over the border at Fahan in Co Donegal and children were sometimes transferred between the jurisdictions.

According to Christine Smith, a senior counsel for the inquiry, in one case a child born in the Republic was transferred to a home in Derry and later moved to Australia under a migrant scheme.

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MASSACHUSETTS
Boston Globe

By Zachary T. Sampson | GLOBE CORRESPONDENT JANUARY 27, 2014

A veteran priest in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Worcester has been placed on leave following an allegation that he engaged in sexual misconduct with a boy about 40 years ago, Bishop Robert J. McManus said in a statement Sunday.

Edward P. Lettic, now pastor at Immaculate Conception Parish in Lancaster, was ordained in 1973, about the time the alleged sexual misconduct occurred, according to the statement. Lettic was then an associate pastor at St. Joan of Arc Church in Worcester.

A diocesan review committee, made up of members of the clergy as well as several doctors and social workers, oversaw an investigation into the allegation and found it credible, McManus said in the statement. He said it is the only accusation officials have received against Lettic.

The diocese did not release any further information about the allegation on Sunday.

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MASSACHUSETTS
Sentinel & Enterprise

By Nick Mallard, nmallard@sentinelandenterprise.com
POSTED: 01/27/2014

LANCASTER — The pastor at Immaculate Conception Parish has been placed on administrative leave by the Worcester Diocese following allegations of sexual misconduct with a minor.

Bishop Robert J. McManus informed the parish that a “credible allegation” from a victim placed the Rev. Edward P. Lettic in the misconduct incident from 40 years ago.

“It is the first and only report of an allegation of misconduct which we have received involving Father Lettic,” McManus told parishioners. “Because of the serious nature of the allegation, and consistent with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, I must relieve Father Lettic of his duties as pastor of the parish and to remove his faculties as a priest.”

Ray Delisle, director of communications for the Dioceses, said that an initial investigation into the allegations was enough to put Lettic on leave.

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FORT WAYNE (IN)
Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Wayne

Subsequent to the publishing of the announcement regarding the receipt of a credible allegation of sexual abuse of a minor involving Fr. James Seculoff, the diocese has received additional allegations. Three more persons have separately come forward to report being sexually abused by Fr. Seculoff when they were children. The diocese, with great care and concern for all involved, initiated preliminary investigations. The results of those investigations were presented to the diocesan review board and to Bishop Rhoades.

The diocesan review board found these allegations, separately presented, to be highly credible and supported by substantial evidence, and so advised Bishop Rhoades. As required by Church law and procedures delineated in the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People (USCCB 2002, 2005, 2011), Bishop Rhoades directed that these allegations be forwarded to the Indiana civil authorities and the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

Bishop Rhoades asks everyone to please pray for all parties involved, especially for those that have come forward, as well as Fr. Seculoff, our priests, parishioners and all the faithful during these painful and difficult days.

If anyone has been the victim of sexual abuse by a member of the clergy, please contact the diocesan Victim Assistance Coordinator, Mary Glowaski at (260) 399-1458 or the Vicar General, Monsignor Robert Schulte at (260) 422-4611.

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INDIANA
News-Sentinel

News-Sentinel staff reports
Monday, January 27, 2014

Three more people have contacted the Catholic Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend to report they allegedly were sexually abused as minors by the Rev. James F. Seculoff, the diocese reported on its website, www.diocesefwsb.org.

The alleged victims all came forward separately after published reports in mid-January that Seculoff, a Fort Wayne native, had been removed from public ministry after the diocese received what it determined to be a credible report he abused a minor about 40 years ago, the diocesan website said.

The diocese conducted preliminary investigations of the new reports and provided the results to the diocesan review board and to Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades, the website said. No details were provided on whether the review board or Rhoades had reached any decisions or had taken any action.
The diocese followed the same process with the first allegation against Seculoff.

To protect the alleged victim in that case, who reported the abuse Dec. 16, the diocese declined to say if the person is male or female. The diocese also declined to say where within its boundaries the abuse allegedly took place.

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MINNESOTA
Bring Me The News

January 27, 2014 By Kevyn Burger

The Diocese of Crookston has become the latest in Minnesota to publicly release a list of the names of priests who have been credibly accused of the sexual abuse of minors.

The Grand Forks Herald reported that the list of the priests followed a request from the newspaper.

The newspaper said that five of the priests on the list are dead and that the abuse they are accused of happened decades ago. The sixth, the Rev. Joseph Jeyapaul, remains awaiting extradition from his home country of India. He faces charges from Roseau County, where he is accused in the sexual assault of two teenaged girls a decade ago. He worked in the diocese as a visiting priest for about three years. Details of the case are on the website of the Diocese of Crookston.

MPR News notes that the half dozen names on the list are already publicly known, through lawsuits and media reports.

The release represents a shift for the Crookston diocese. In October, an attorney for the diocese argued against litigation by St. Paul attorney Jeffrey Anderson, who was seeking a list, that there was no harm in keeping it private.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
UTV

An inquiry into alleged historical child abuse in Northern Ireland’s church and state-run homes will have its first formal hearing on Monday.

Earlier this month, former senior judge Sir Anthony Hart opened the Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry in Banbridge.

It will examine the extent of wrongdoing in a number of institutions including industrial schools, workhouses, and borstals.

It is the biggest inquiry of its kind in the UK and is tasked with looking into child abuse in 13 church and state run homes.

Many were run by religious orders which at the time evaded scrutiny.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
RTE News

Delays by a religious congregation in submitting evidence to Northern Ireland’s Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry have caused considerable difficulties, a lawyer said.

Christine Smith QC for the inquiry said material given by the Nazareth order of nuns was not properly ordered and was still being received up to last week.

Meanwhile, former residents of two children’s homes in Derry are due to give evidence at the inquiry today.

The homes were run by the Nazareth nuns at Bishop Street and in the Termonbacca area of Derry city.

This module of the inquiry is expected to last several weeks.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
The Guardian

Henry McDonald Ireland correspondent
theguardian.com, Monday 27 January 2014

The UK’s biggest ever child abuse inquiry will hear evidence on Monday from victims who were abused in two Derry homes run by Catholic nuns.

Based in Banbridge courthouse in Northern Ireland, the historical institutional abuse inquiry will focus on the maltreatment of children in Nazareth children’s home and Termonbacca, both run by the Sisters of Nazareth.

The order of nuns has already issued an apology to victims at the tribunal.

Christine Smith QC welcomed the apology the nuns made at the hearing earlier this month.

But the senior counsel for the inquiry added: “This less than wholehearted and rapid response on the part of the congregation has caused considerable difficulties to the work of the inquiry.

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NORTHERN IRELAND
BBC News

Sisters of Nazareth nuns have given their evidence to Northern Ireland’s Historical Abuse Inquiry in a “haphazard and piecemeal fashion”, the inquiry has been told.

The inquiry is investigating abuse claims against children’s residential institutions from 1922 to 1995.

On Monday morning it heard that some statements came as late as last Friday.

This was despite the initial request for documents being made in November 2012.

The inquiry’s senior barrister, Christine Smith QC, welcomed the apology the nuns made at the hearing earlier this month.

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NEW YORK
The Daily Beast

WRITTEN BY
Antonia Marrero
Adam Grannick

Hasidic Rabbi Nuchem Rosenberg has faced ostracism and violence to expose child molestation in his Brooklyn neighborhood.

The choice to expose a pedophile is a no-brainer, right? Mostly.

But if your community believes that ‘informing’ on other community members is unthinkable, pedophiles are left free to continue preying on kids. In fact, pedophiles flourish in insular communities.

And there are few communities more insular than Williamsburg’s rapidly-growing population of Hasidim, a branch of Orthodox Judaism whose name signifies piety.

Brooklyn’s neighborhood of Williamsburg is home to approximately 180,000 Hasidim. One of them is Rabbi Nuchem Rosenberg, and he’s on a mission.

“Boys used to come and tell me that they go the ritual bath—they’re being sodomized,” the rabbi said. “Girls used to tell me that their father sleeps with them.” Faced with mounting reports of child molestation, Rosenberg founded a free hotline to inform his community about sexual predators, as well as how to get the police involved.

Other rabbis denounced the open condemnation of community pedophiles, labeling Rosenberg an “informer” against the Jewish people. The smear has given apparent permission for violence against Rosenberg himself. Fellow Jews have hurled rocks at him. One particularly nasty street ambush included having bleach thrown in his face, disabling one of his eyes for a time. Of all the synagogues in Williamsburg, the rabbi can count on one hand how many will let him enter to pray.

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OSTERREICH
Nachrichten

SANKT PÖLTEN. Der gebürtige Oberösterreicher war 13 Jahre lang Diözesanbischof von St. Pölten – Seine Amtszeit war von Kontroversen geprägt.

Einer der eindrücklichsten, aber auch umstrittensten Repräsentanten der katholischen Kirche ist tot: Der St. Pöltener Altbischof Kurt Krenn verstarb am Samstag im 78. Lebensjahr nach langer Krankheit.

Der gebürtige Oberösterreicher Krenn war zwischen 1991 und 2004 Diözesanbischof von St. Pölten. Seine Amtszeit war gekennzeichnet von Kontroversen über seine Person, seinen Stil und viele seiner Aussagen. Von den Äbten der niederösterreichischen Klöster wurde Krenn abgelehnt, sein Konflikt mit dem Paudorfer Pfarrer Udo Fischer ging über Jahre.

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OOSTENRIJK
Kerknet

[Summary: Kurt Krenn, emeritus bishops of the Austrian diocese of St. Polten, died Saturday at age 77. Thus the Austrian Catholic Church loses one of its most prominent and controversial figures. He received fierce criticism for his authoritarian and often provocative statements. He stepped down from the job due to health reasons but the resignation was generally associated with revelations about sex scandals in a seminary in his diocese where tens of thousands of pornographic photos were found on computers.]

BRUSSEL (KerkNet/Kathpress) – Mgr. Kurt Krenn, de emeritus bisschop van het Oostenrijkse bisdom St. Pölten, is zaterdag op 77-jarige leeftijd overleden. Daarmee verliest de Oostenrijkse katholieke Kerk een van haar meest geprofileerde en omstreden figuren.

Kurt Krenn (1936-2014) werd in 1987 door paus Joannes Paulus II benoemd tot hulpbisschop van Wenen. In 1991 werd hij bisschop in St. Pölten. Daar kreeg hij felle kritiek wegens zijn autoritair optreden en zijn vaak provocerende uitspraken. In 2004 legde hij zijn taak neer wegens gezondheidsredenen. Dat terugtreden werd algemeen in verband gebracht met onthullingen over seksschandalen op het seminarie in zijn bisdom, waar tienduizenden pornografische afbeeldingen op computers werden aangetroffen. De rector en vice-rector, die affaires met priesterstudenten zouden hebben gehad, traden af.

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UNITED STATES
The Jewish Press

By: Harry Maryles Published: January 26th, 2014

There were new revelations recently about the scourge of sex abuse in the Catholic Church in Chicago. From a segment of the PBS Newshour broadcast on January 21st.

The Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago, the country’s third largest, shielded and protected priests who were accused of sexual abuse for decades. Newly released papers document the actions of 30 priests, nearly half of them deceased, the rest now out of ministry. Victims who had long pressed for more information talked about it at a press conference in Chicago today.

I could not help noticing that the reaction of the Church hierarchy in the person of Cardinal George was almost identical to the response of Orthodox Jewish institutional leaders. It goes something like this: These events happened at a time when things like this were handled differently. We understand the problems now and will handle them differently.

What virtually all of the leaders of these institutions are guilty of is not of the abuse itself. But of how badly they reacted to it. The primary concern has always been – and still is to some extent – to protect their institutions. In the past that often meant keeping things quiet (sweeping them under the rug) and discouraging victims from reporting the abuse to the authorities; to quietly dismiss those abusers from their positions and allowing them to find jobs at other locations that involved being around potential victims.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Tribune

By Manya Brachear Pashman
Tribune reporter
8:21 p.m. CST, January 26, 2014

Three deceased Archdiocese of Chicago priests accused of sexually abusing minors were the focus of anti-abuse activists’ scrutiny Sunday that also drew attention to protocols church officials used to withhold their identities until last week.

Abuse victims’ attorneys released thousands of pages of archdiocese files last Tuesday detailing allegations against 30 priests accused of sexually abusing minors. In the files, the archdiocese was for the first time identifying three of them: Kenneth Brigham, Emmanuel Pallikunnen and Thomas Kelly.

The three priests were the only ones in the files without church-substantiated allegations against them but were the subject of settlements paid out by the archdiocese.

Church officials cite a long-standing policy of not identifying priests accused of abuse after their death. Against the archdiocese’s wishes, Kelly’s name was reported in the Tribune in 2005. But the others remained secret. Kelly died in 1990.

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CONNECTICUT
The Republic

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
January 26, 2014

STRATFORD, Connecticut — A monsignor has told parishioners he was upset with a news report about accusations of sexual assault and harassment, but did not admit or deny the information.

The Connecticut Post reports (http://bit.ly/L97RIx ) that Monsignor Martin Ryan said at Sunday masses at Our Lady of Grace Parish in Stratford that there is “no question” he will continue as pastor.

Bridgeport Roman Catholic Bishop Frank Caggiano apologized last week to members of the parish for not speaking earlier about the allegations.

Diocesan officials removed Ryan as pastor of St. Edward the Confessor Church in New Fairfield in 2011 after they say he acknowledged sending inappropriate emails to a female parish employee.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MASSACHUSETTS
Telegram & Gazette

By George Barnes TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
gbarnes@telegram.com

WORCESTER — The pastor of a Lancaster parish for the last 20 years has been placed on leave by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Worcester after a 40-year-old allegation of sexual misconduct was made against him.

Bishop Robert J. McManus announced to parishioners Sunday that the Rev. Edward P. Lettic had been placed on administrative leave because of what the bishop described as a credible allegation of misconduct.

Rev. Lettic has been pastor of Immaculate Conception Church in Lancaster since 1993 and has served as a priest in the diocese since he was ordained in 1973. Bishop McManus said it is the first misconduct report made against Rev. Lettic in his 40 years with the diocese.

Before he became pastor at Immaculate Conception Church, he served as an associate pastor at St. Joan of Arc in Worcester, St. Denis in East Douglas and St. Joseph in Auburn. He was also chaplain at Westboro State Hospital.

Bishop McManus said a man recently came forward with the allegation against Rev. Lettic. The allegation is being investigated with oversight by the Diocesan Review Committee

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

CONNECTICUT
CT Post

Daniel Tepfer
Published 6:54 pm, Sunday, January 26, 2014

STRATFORD — With resounding applause from his congregation, Monsignor Martin Ryan apologized Sunday for the recent Connecticut Post story detailing sexual assault and harassment allegations against him.

“I’m very upset with the article and I’m sorry that you had to read it,” Ryan began each Mass from the altar at Our Lady of Grace Church.

While Ryan neither admitted nor denied the allegations, he said he continues to seek counseling and “spiritual direction,” and has the support of the bishop. Ryan was appointed pastor of the 60-year-old church on Second Hill Lane on Jan. 18.

“There is no question I will continue as pastor of the parish,” Ryan added to applause.

Parishioners who were questioned as they left the church overwhelmingly said they support Ryan as their pastor.

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CHICAGO (IL)
YouTube

[documents from the Chicago archdiocese]

Published on Jan 23, 2014

Sexual abuse survivors and their attorneys share and discuss the documents turned over January 15, 2014 by the Archdiocese as part several settlement agreements

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MASSACHUSETTS
CBS Boston

LANCASTER (CBS) — A priest at Immaculate Conception Parish has been placed on administrative leave over a child abuse charge, the Diocese of Worcester announced Sunday.

A prepared statement released by the diocese includes the text of an announcement made at Sunday Masses in the church by Robert McManus, bishop of Worcester.

“I come before you today with a saddened heart to announce that I have placed Father Edward P. Lettic on administrative leave due to a credible allegation of sexual misconduct with a minor which took place forty years ago,” McManus told parishioners. “Recently the victim came forward to the diocese with this allegation, which has been investigated with the oversight of the Diocesan Review Committee. It is the first and only report of an allegation of misconduct which we have received involving Father Lettic. Because of the serious nature of the allegation, and consistent with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, I must relieve Father Lettic of his duties as pastor of the parish and remove his faculties as a priest.”

The identity of the accuser was not released.

Lettic was ordained a priest at the Diocese of Worcester in 1973, according to the diocese. He has served as an associate pastor at St. Joan of Arc, Worcester; St. Denis, East Douglas; and St. Joseph in Auburn, as well as a chaplain at Westborough State Hospital before being named pastor of Immaculate Conception in Lancaster in 1993.

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LEBANON
The Daily Star

January 27, 2014
By Rayane Abou Jaoude
The Daily Star

BEIRUT: After years of silence, reports of sexual abuse at the hands of once-respected Lebanese priests and bishops have recently emerged, leaving a trail of unanswered questions and putting the Maronite and Orthodox churches in the limelight. Fresh reports of yet another scandal involving a bishop accused of sexually molesting a young boy at a Greek Orthodox monastery have raised further questions about how the Lebanese churches have been dealing with cases of sexual harassment in which clergy members are the suspected perpetrators.

Bishop Costantine Kayyal was implicated for allegedly sexually harassing a 10-year-old boy at the Mar Elias Monastery in the Metn town of Dhour Choueir, sources close to the case confirmed to The Daily Star, after local media outlets reported the story last week.

Kayyal’s is the third such case to emerge in Lebanon in a matter of months, but the church has so far been secretive about the case and has not revealed any details to the public.

Elya Haber, a lawyer and a sub-deacon at the Orthodox Church, told The Daily Star that the church adopts measures of “healing” over recrimination to deal with such cases.

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MASSACHUSETTS
WCVB

LANCASTER, Mass. —A longtime Lancaster pastor has been put on administrative leave following accusations of sexual misconduct with a minor 40 years ago, church officials said.

Edward P. Lettic, of the Immaculate Conception Parish, was placed on leave after a victim recently came forward with a “credible allegation,” the Worcester Diocese said in a statement.

It is the “first and only” allegation of misconduct involving Lettic that the diocese has received, according to the statement. Lettic has been a priest since 1973.

“Because of the serious nature of the allegation, and consistent with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, I must relieve Father Lettic of his duties as pastor of the parish and remove his faculties as a priest,” Rev. Robert J. McManus, bishop of Worcester, said at a mass at the parish.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MASSACHUSETTS
Sentinel & Enterprise

LANCASTER — The pastor of Immaculate Conception Parish in Lancaster has been removed from his post by the Worcester Diocese because of a “credible allegation” that he engaged in sexual misconduct with a minor 40 years ago, Bishop Robert J. McManus announced at the parish’s Masses this weekend.

The Rev. Edward P. Lettic, who has served as pastor at Immuclate Conception since 1993, was placed on leave after a victim came forward with the allegation, which was investigated by the Diocesan Review Committee.

“It is the first and only report of an allegation of misconduct which we have received involving Father Lettic,” McManus told parishioners. “Because of the serious nature of the allegation, and consistent with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, I must relieve Father Lettic of his duties as pastor of the parish and to remove his faculties as a priest.”

McManus said he will appoint a temporary administrator this week to oversee the parish until a new pastor is named.

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MASSACHUSETTS
My Fox Boston

LANCASTER, Mass. (MyFoxBoston.com) — A Catholic priest has been put on administrative leave after the Bishop of Worcester announced he had been accused of a “credible allegation of sexual misconduct.”

The alleged abuse between a minor and Fr. Edward P. Lettic happened 40 years ago, Most Rev. Robert J. McManus announced on Sunday.

The victim came forward recently, McManus said, and the allegation was investigated by a Worcester diocese review committee.

“It is the first and only report of an allegation of misconduct which we have received involving Fr. Lettic,” McManus announced at Mass on Sunday. Because of the serious nature of the allegation…I must relieve Father Lettic of his duties as pastor of the parish and remove his faculties as a priest.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MASSACHUSETTS
Roman Catholic Diocese of Worcester

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Ray Delisle, 508-791-5357

January 26, 2014, Worcester, MA – Most Rev. Robert J. McManus, Bishop of Worcester, shared the following announcement at all the Masses this weekend at Immaculate Conception Parish, Lancaster.

“I come before you today with a saddened heart to announce that I have placed Fr. Edward P. Lettic on administrative leave due to a credible allegation of sexual misconduct with a minor which took place forty years ago. Recently the victim came forward to the diocese with this allegation which has been investigated with the oversight of the Diocesan Review Committee. It is the first and only report of an allegation of misconduct which we have received involving Fr. Lettic. Because of the serious nature of the allegation, and consistent with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, I must relieve Father Lettic of his duties as pastor of the parish and remove his faculties as a priest.”

“I truly realize that this news is a shock for you as it has been for me. I ask that you join me in prayer for the parish community, as well as for those who have been hurt in any way by sexual misconduct. I also ask that you keep Fr. Lettic in your prayers.”

“The Catholic Church is often referred to as the family of God. As your bishop, I have a serious pastoral responsibility for the spiritual care and wellbeing of this family. That is why I have come to this parish personally to share this very troubling news. A family rejoices together in good times and also grieves together in times of hurt and sadness. My fervent hope and prayer is that, relying on each other’s support and on God’s grace, we will work together to continue to make Immaculate Conception Parish a strong and vibrant community of faith, hope and love. This week I will appoint a temporary administrator to oversee the pastoral life of the parish until a new pastor is named. After Mass, I will be here to meet with anyone who wishes to gather in the rectory along with Mrs. Frances Nugent, director of the Office of Healing and Prevention. I pray that God’s all powerful grace may bring you comfort and healing in the weeks and months ahead.”

In keeping with the Norms issued by the Holy See following adoption of the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, a canonical process has begun including a report of the allegation to the Congregation for Doctrine of the Faith in Rome. The result of that canonical process, if found guilty of the allegation, could include removal from the clerical state or a sanction such as a life of prayer and penance.

Fr. Lettic was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Worcester in 1973. He has served as an associate pastor at St. Joan of Arc, Worcester; St. Denis, East Douglas; and St. Joseph in Auburn, as well as a chaplain at Westborough State Hospital before being named pastor of Immaculate Conception in Lancaster in 1993.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MASSACHUSETTS
The Item

LANCASTER — Father Ed Lettic, longtime priest at the Immaculate Conception Church, was placed on leave after allegations of sexual misconduct were reported.

Rev. Robert J. McManus, bishop of Worcester, was at the church on Sunday to inform the congregation.

In a press release posted on the Diocese website Sunday, it stated that McManus made the following announcement to the congregation:

“I come before you today with a saddened heart to announce that I have placed Fr. Edward P. Lettic on administrative leave due to a credible allegation of sexual misconduct with a minor, which took place 40 years ago. Recently the victim came forward to the diocese with this allegation, which has been investigated with the oversight of the Diocesan Review Committee. It is the first and only report of an allegation of misconduct which we have received involving Fr. Lettic. Because of the serious nature of the allegation, and consistent with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, I must relieve Father Lettic of his duties as pastor of the parish and remove his faculties as a priest.”

“I truly realize that this news is a shock for you as it has been for me. I ask that you join me in prayer for the parish community, as well as for those who have been hurt in any way by sexual misconduct. I also ask that you keep Fr. Lettic in your prayers.”

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

AUSTRALIA
Telegraph

JANET FIFE-YEOMANS THE DAILY TELEGRAPH JANUARY 27, 2014

THE shocking cover-up by the Salvation Army of the sexual and physical abuse of children at its boys’ homes and orphanages will be investigated by the royal commission into child sex abuse starting tomorrow.

Orphans brought up in four of the organisation’s 35 homes in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s will give evidence of their brutal treatment as officers and staff were moved around between the homes to hide the abuse.

Care Leavers Australia Network’s Leonie Sheedy said yesterday that the organisation’s motto should be “Shame on the Salvos” instead of “Thank God for the Salvos”.

“People will be shocked and they need to be shocked,” Ms Sheedy, executive officer of CLAN, said. “This was an organisation that the government had said was suitable to look after children who had no one else because of war, death, poverty or their parents for other reasons could not look after them.

“But the boys, now adults, talk about them as hell holes.”

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AUSTRALIA
9 News

A national inquiry into the Salvation Army’s movement of staff linked to child sex abuse between children’s homes in NSW and Queensland will open this week.

The fifth case study by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse will start in Sydney on Tuesday.

The focus of the public hearing will be the response of the Salvation Army (Eastern Territory) to child sexual abuse within four homes: the Alkira Salvation Army Home for Boys, Indooroopilly, Queensland; the Bexley Boys Home, Bexley, NSW; Riverview Training Farm (also known as Endeavour Training Farm), Riverview, Queensland; and the Gill Memorial Boys Home, Goulburn, NSW.

As well as the movement of officers and staff, the Salvation Army’s processes for dealing with allegations of abuse will be examined in the two-week hearing.

At a child abuse inquiry in Victoria last year it was revealed that since 1997 the Salvation Army has received 474 abuse claims, 470 of which arose from its children’s homes, over 30 to 40 years.

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CHICAGO (IL)
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Victor Stewart
Kenneth Brigham
Emmanuel A. Pallikunnen

Victims focus on 3 predator priests
Two are new, “outed” for 1st time this week
Neither has attracted public attention in Chicago
One eventually went to India, the other to Las Vegas
The 3rd is the most prolific abuser: at least 35 victims
He worked mostly in African American neighborhoods

WHAT
As church-goers enter mass, clergy sex abuse victims and their supporters will hand out fliers highlighting three predator priests whose records were released this week.
Two of them were “outed” for the first time on Tuesday. The third is perhaps Chicago’s most prolific predator priest (with at least 35 victims).

The leaflets urge Chicago Catholics to
–help them track down where other suspected or defrocked pedophile priests are living or working now, so their unsuspecting neighbors might be warned that dangerous men are nearby,
–ask their loved ones if any of them were hurt by child molesting clerics, and
–insist that archdiocesan officials punish the “enablers” – the church staffers who ignored or hid evidence or warnings of clergy sex crimes, especially those clerics whose names appear in the soon-to-be-released records.

WHEN
Sunday, Jan. 26 at 11:45 a.m.

WHERE
On the sidewalk outside Holy Name Cathedral, North State St at Superior St, Chicago

WHO
Four-five adults who belong to a self-help group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAPnetwork.org). Some were molested as kids; others are concerned Catholics.

WHY
For weeks, Chicago Catholic officials (including a church attorney) suggested that there would be no new names of predator priests disclosed when 6,000 pages of long-secret archdiocesan clergy sex abuse and cover up files were made public. They were deceptive.

The documents released on Tuesday included records on two now-deceased pedophile priests who had never before been public accused: Fr. Kenneth Brigham and Fr. Emmanuel A. Pallikunnen.

The records also show that Fr. Vincent [Victor] Stewart is perhaps the most prolific Chicago predator priest, having at least 35 victims (nine of whom say another priest (whose name is redacted in the church files) observed, witnessed or knew about Stewart’s crimes. One victim reported to another priest about his abuse by Stewart and that priest told the victim “he would pray about it” but did not report it to police. In 2005, several victims filed a complaint accusing Chicago police of complicity in Stewart’s abuse by silencing some victims when they tried to tell in the 1990s.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Tribune

January 26, 2014|By Manya Brachear Pashman, Tribune reporter

At an anti-abortion rally last Sunday, Cardinal Francis George proclaimed to a downtown crowd of thousands that culture and societies can change.

“Because you tell the truth, the pro-life movement can come in from the cold,” said Chicago’s shivering archbishop, who later headed to Washington, D.C., for the 41st annual March for Life.

George was still in the nation’s capital Tuesday when the truth came out in Chicago about how he and his predecessors struggled to manage the clergy sex abuse crisis in the nation’s third-largest Roman Catholic archdiocese. That day, thousands of pages of secret church documents were released as part of a court settlement, showing how leaders of the local church for the past half-century failed to protect children from abusive priests.

As the cardinal left Sunday’s rally, he told the Tribune that the mistakes were in the past. But now George must face a painful present, with his flock stunned by the severity of his missteps and those of his predecessors Joseph Bernardin and John Cody.

“We’re disappointed and saddened,” said Ald. Tim Cullerton, 38th, a parishioner at Our Lady of Victory parish on the North Side.

Before last week’s document release, George admitted mishandling the case of convicted child molester Daniel McCormack, and those files remain sealed. But the newly-released documents chronicle how George and those under his leadership failed to take proper steps in the case of the Rev. Joseph Bennett, a priest accused of molesting two sisters from 1967 to 1973 at St. John de la Salle in Chicago. About a dozen more allegations have surfaced since.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

MINNESOTA
St. Cloud Times

John Bodette

Good morning, St. Cloud area.

Mark your calendars for 1 p.m. Monday to view the Times Editorial Board’s discussion with St. Cloud Bishop Donald Kettler and St. John’s Abbot John Klassen about the clergy sex abuse scandal and how the Catholic Church can move forward.

Board members spent time Wednesday discussing possible questions to ask two of the leaders of the Catholic Church in Central Minnesota. There are plenty of things the board wants to understand about how the clergy abuse issue was handled and what steps are being taken to prevent future abuse.

You can watch the session live on www.sctimes.com. We also plan to provide a news report of highlights from the session.

Thanks to the readers who answered my suggestion in a previous column and sent along their questions for consideration.

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PENNSYLVANIA
PennLive

By Charles Thompson | cthompson@pennlive.com
on January 24, 2014

It’s not that the young Ronald Gainer was considered most likely to become a bishop in his mid-1960s high school class.

Sure, the young Gainer was noticeably devout and serious about his faith, even for the 1,000-plus students at Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary High School in Pottsville, Schuylkill County.

It’s more like this, said Ed Tray, a former classmate and current teacher at the Catholic high school: “I think anybody who went to school with him would know he would be a success in whatever he tried to do.” …

At the height of the church’s sex abuse scandals at the time, Gainer succeeded J. Kendrick Williams, who resigned the previous June after being accused of sexually abusing three boys earlier in his career.

Gainer faces no trauma like that in the new succession; his immediate predecessor in Harrisburg, Bishop Joseph McFadden, died unexpectedly last summer during a Bishop’s meeting in Philadelphia.

His time in Lexington was not without controversy. He consistently took a conservative stance and early in his tenure called for pro-abortion politicians to voluntarily abstain from receiving holy Communion, according to the Lexington Herald-Leader.

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PENNSYLVANIA
Tribune-Democrat

Kathy Mellott
kmellott@tribdem.com

JOHNSTOWN — The Pennsylvania Superior Court’s order overturning the conviction of a Philadelphia Catholic Church official could profoundly impact any criminal prosecution of those who knew and failed to report the sexual abuse by Brother Stephen Baker, experts say.

The year 2007 is key, said Mitchell Garabedian, the Boston attorney representing a couple of dozen former students at Bishop McCort Catholic High School who allege Baker sexually molested them while carrying out his duties as part of the athletic department.

Garabedian and Altoona attorney Richard Serbin, along with others, are representing alleged Baker victims in civil lawsuits. The recent appeals court action stems from criminal prosecution of Monsignor William Lynn of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

“It appears it’s going to be difficult for the government to prosecute supervisors prior to 2007 if they didn’t have direct contact with the student,” Garabedian said Friday.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
Bilgrimage

William D. Lindsey

National Catholic Reporter Calls for Criminal Investigation of Legion of Christ–“An Agency of Almost Unimaginable Fraud”

National Catholic Reporter’s editorial calling for criminal investigation of the Legion of Christ minces no words. An editorial beginning with the following opening sentence is whatever the opposite of word-mincing might be called:

The Legion of Christ has been an agency of almost unimaginable fraud, and that reality alone should be reason for civil authorities to pursue a criminal investigation of its U.S. activities and for the church to proceed with extreme caution in considering allowing the group to continue.

And it only gets better from there. In the very next sentence, the editorial cuts off at the knees the claim of many apologists that the Legion of Christ is, after all, about Christ, no matter how off-course the religious community may have gotten in its development. And it can be rehabilitated, when its tarnished image is buffed up a bit and we see the original charism shining out under the tarnish. NCR’s rejoinder to that apologetic:

The Legion, which was of many things but certainly not of Christ, was built on the life of a man, Fr. Marcial Maciel Degollado, who trafficked in deception, lies and crimes against children.

And then the editorial adds, later,

For millennia, the church has absorbed religious movements and enthusiast groups of every sort. The Legion, however, is of another species entirely. It has no charism save for a fraud of a founder. Its relationship with the wider world and with the church is so tainted by corruption and lies that it is difficult to imagine justification for its continuation.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

UNITED STATES
Bilgrimage

[with video]

William D. Lindsey

Joyce Maynard on Relationship with J.D. Salinger: Carryovers for Discussion of Abuse Situation in Catholic Church?

Novelist Joyce Maynard, who says that J.D. Salinger sought her out for an intimate relationship when she was “a very young 18-year-old,” reiterates (in different words) in the video interview above with HuffPost Live points that she also made last year in a New York Times article:

People in positions of power — mentors, priests, employers or simply those assigned an elevated status — use their power to lure much younger people into sexual and (in the case of Salinger) emotional relationships. Most typically, those who do this are men. And when they are done with the person they’ve drawn toward them, it can take that person years or decades to recover.

• People in positions of power
• Use their power to lure much younger people into sexual relationships
• Most typically, those who do this are men
• It can take that person years or decades to recover

And, of course, as I listen to that interview and ready Maynard’s remarks, I cannot avoid thinking of the abuse situation in my Catholic church. What do you think: is Maynard’s commentary on her involvement with J.D. Salinger pertinent in any way to the abuse crisis?

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

DEUTSCHLAND
Berliner Morgenpost

[Summary: The world of the Catholic Church was shaken four years ago when the first cases were made public of abuse at Berlin’s Canisius College, a Jesuit high school. Subsequently numerous cases of sexual assault and violent acts by priests and other church employees came to light and the shock waves reach the Vatican. But there are still groups of victims who feel let down by the order. Matthias Katsch, spokesman for the Round Table group said the two main perpetrators at Canisius were hardly held accountable.]

Von Joachim Fahrun
Vier Jahre ist es her, dass die Welt der katholischen Kirche erschüttert wurde. Die Berliner Morgenpost berichtete als erstes Medium über Missbrauchsfälle am Berliner Jesuitengymnasium Canisius-Kolleg. In der Folge kamen zahlreiche weitere sexuelle Übergriffe und Gewalttaten von Priestern und anderen Kirchenmitarbeitern ans Licht. Die Schockwellen erreichten den Vatikan, aber auch viele andere Sektoren der Gesellschaft. Kinderheime, Sportvereine, Reformschulen – überall wurde den vorher allenfalls verschämt geäußerten Schilderungen der Tausenden Opfer mit einem Mal Glauben geschenkt.

Am Canisius-Kolleg waren schon lange vor jenem 28. Januar 2009 ehemalige Schüler in kleinen Gruppen dabei, sich des erlittenen Unrechts klar zu werden und sich darüber auszutauschen, was sie in den 70er- und 80er-Jahren als Schutzbefohlene der Patres Peter Riedel und Wolfgang Statt erlitten hatten. Als sie den Rektor Pater Klaus Mertes mit ihren Erlebnissen konfrontierten, geschah erstmals nicht das, was bisher immer dafür gesorgt hatte, solche Vorgänge aus der Öffentlichkeit zu halten.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

WISCONSIN
Duluth News Tribune

James Steel

The criminal case against a former Chicago-area priest and a Catholic grammar school principal both accused of repeatedly molesting a minor in Northwestern Wisconsin years ago could be reopened after newly unveiled documents were released by the Archdiocese of Chicago last week.

By: Robin Washington, Duluth News Tribune

The criminal case against a former Chicago-area priest and a Catholic grammar school principal both accused of repeatedly molesting a minor in Northwestern Wisconsin years ago could be reopened after newly unveiled documents were released by the Archdiocese of Chicago last week.

The file of former priest James Steel, among records of 30 clergymen released Tuesday by the archdiocese, contains allegations that Steel and Donald Ryniecki sexually abused a boy on trips to Long Lake in Washburn County in 1982 and 1983.

Steel, who was laicized in 2001, was at the time a priest at St. Joseph the Worker Parish in Wheeling, Ill., where Ryniecki was the school principal and where they also are alleged to have abused the boy.

The Archdiocese of Chicago found the allegations credible and paid an undisclosed settlement to accuser Robert Brancato five years ago. Yet while Washburn County and Wheeling law enforcement authorities investigated Steel and Ryniecki after Brancato filed a police report accusing them in late 2004, neither man was criminally charged.

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ARKANSAS
KATI

Posted by Jorge Quiquivix

PARAGOULD, AR (KAIT) – A Region 8 youth minister was acquitted of sexual assault charges after being accused back in 2012.

Corey Ray Weatherford, 27, was originally charged with three counts of first degree sexual assault. On Monday, a jury acquitted him of those charges.

Weatherford was a student minister at Reynolds Baptist Church in Paragould.

He was accused of engaging in sexual activity with two girls at a church camp with the age of 16 and 17.

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ARKANSAS
Paragould Daily Press

A Paragould youth minister was acquitted of charges of sexual assault Friday in Greene County.

Corey Ray Weatherford, former student minister at Reynolds Baptist Church in Paragould, was charged in 2012 with three counts of first-degree sexual assault involving two female minors.

Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.

ILLINOIS
Daily Herald

[link to documents]

By Jamie Sotonoff

For nearly 40 years, Carmen Severino hid the fact that she was sexually abused by her family parish’s priest between fifth grade and her senior year of high school.

Scared to tell her devout family, fearing they’d side with the church over her, Severino suppressed the memories and soldiered on with her life. She got married and had children. Divorced and remarried. Pursued successful careers as an actress and nutritionist.

Everything seemed fine on the outside, but the psychological wounds festered for decades. When she finally opened up about the abuse nine years ago, it took years of therapy to come to terms with her guilt and shame. Even today, at 59, something as simple as the sight of a priest wearing clerical robes can trigger thoughts of her painful past.

For Severino, of Naperville, and many other survivors of clergy sexual abuse, the trauma they suffered decades ago is something they still deal with in their daily lives. Yet most agree that the best thing they did to heal was to talk about it with someone, either a professional, a trusted friend or a fellow survivor.

“When I first came forward, I was the sinner. I was the shame,” she said. “It still is a journey … but the more it comes out, the better it will be for those suffering in silence. You have to shine the light in the corners of the kitchen to have the cockroaches come out.”

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WASHINGTON
Union-Bulletin

WALLA WALLA — The Archdiocese of Spokane is seeking information about a priest who briefly lived in Walla Walla in 1986 and has since been the subject of a substantiated claim of child sexual abuse in Minnesota.

According to the Inland Register, the newspaper for the Spokane archdiocese, the Rev. Clarence Vavra was hired as a chaplain at the Washington State Penitentiary in the fall of 1986, but resigned his position on Dec. 29, 1986, and left the state shortly afterward.

The newspaper reported the Archdiocese of St. Paul/Minneapolis has recently published that there is a substantiated claim of child sexual abuse against Vavra.

“Although Vavra’s known abuse did not take place in Washington state, it is the policy of the Diocese of Spokane to inform parishioners when it receives information about known perpetrators who have served within the boundaries of our diocese,” the article said.

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UNITED STATES
Christian Catholicism

Jerry Slevin

Many Catholics for a half century had been required to accept, whether they liked it or not, popes that included an indecisive Italian intellectual who condemned birth control, a self confident Polish actor who protected child abusers, and a firm German disciplinarian who lived in a bubble, all directed by Italian curial practitioners of Machiavellian “realpolitik”. Consequently, many of these Catholics are enjoying immensely so far their friendly pastoral Latino, Pope Francis. He seems to most of them to be trying his best to salvage a sinking Vatican. It remains to be seen if the salvage operation is intended to benefit mainly the world’s cardinals or the world’s Catholics, two groups often with different interests.

If the Vatican had only religious influence, Catholics could wait and give Francis unlimited time to act. But the Vatican, by conscious choice and long tradition. is also a geo-political player. Papal actions, and inaction, including lobbying on key political and social policies that impact adversely children and women especially, require a political response from the USA and other nations. These policies range from child protection and women’s reproductive rights to Middle East peace negotiations, especially regarding Syria. Hopefully, President Obama will give Pope Francis a pointed response on these matters when they meet in two months.

Pope Francis inherited, after ex-Pope Benedict quit, several difficult and pressing challenges, including an ineffective Vatican management, a lack of bishop accountability for failing to protect children, denials of women’s equality and reproductive rights and disrespect for gay persons and their rights, and violent international religious competition, especially in the Middle East.

Francis obviously had limited prior experience in managing an international political organization. Interestingly, even one of his loyal Jesuit confreres. Fr. Thomas Reese, S.J., has noted his recent mistake in appointing more Curial cardinals. Reese has a Ph.D. in Political Science from UC Berkeley and is a leading authority on Vatican management structures. See his:

[National Catholic Reporter]

Hopefully, more Catholic intellectuals will follow Reese’s bold lead and face up to honest and constructive assessments of Francis’ actions and inaction. The moral duties of “fraternal correction” and intellectual integrity require no less. The habits of “safe silence” under the last two pope’s inquisitorial regimes must now be disgarded, while the window for change remains open, however slightly.

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Huffington Post

Paul Brandeis Raushenbush

When Pope Francis posed his now-iconic question, “Who am I to judge?” in reference to gay people in the Catholic Church, he signaled a sea change in a deeply conservative religious institution reeling from decades of scandal and decline in Europe and the Americas.

The pope’s insistence on simple living, his radical statements about economic injustice, and the arresting photos of him embracing others have effectively transcended religion, at once reflecting and furthering what his champions celebrate as progressive social change.

But beneath the Pope’s headline-catching rhetoric, he has delivered key administrative decisions over the past year that indicate serious and substantial reforms are already underway within the Catholic church.

In an unprecedented move soon after his election, Francis appointed eight cardinals from around the globe to sit on a permanent advisory panel. This group, which is about to meet for the third time, aids Francis in his efforts to “shake-up” the bureaucracy in the Vatican. The panel will also be responsible for creating guidelines on how to address the church’s global priest sex abuse scandal, namely how to handle clergy who have been accused of abuse and how to prevent it.

Francis has also replaced the widely criticized Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone, whose tenure under Pope Benedict XVI was marked by a “Vatileaks” scandal that exposed alleged corruption, with Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin.

Additionally, he has targeted the scandal-prone and notoriously secretive Vatican Bank: He appointed a commission to investigate how it operates, hired secular financial firms to do a third-party investigation of its practices, and recently replaced almost all of the cardinals on its advisory council with a new group to oversee much-needed reforms. …

Church members also say Francis has yet to do enough to address the church’s sex abuse scandals, the greatest strain on the Catholic Church.

During a United Nations committee hearing in Geneva last week, the Vatican was accused of protecting priests and bishops and obstructing local investigations in the wake of sex abuse accusations. It also recently refused an extradition request from Poland for Archbishop Jozef Wesolowski, who is under investigation for sex abuse that allegedly occurred when he served in The Dominican Republic. The U.S. based Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) criticized the pope for appointing Archbishop Gerhard Ludwig Mueller as one of its new cardinals, saying he has a “dreadful” record on children’s safety. It also lamented the omission of Dublin Archbishop Diarmuid Martin, who has been an outspoken critic of the church’s handling of sex abuse scandals around the world.

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VATICAN CITY
National Catholic Reporter

Christa Pongratz-Lippitt | Jan. 25, 2014

VIENNA
Honduran Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga, coordinator of the Council of Cardinals, has high hopes that the council will bring the central administration of the church up to date.

“There is a lot of hope and high expectations of the commission I was appointed to lead. I am sure that Pope Francis is in favor of making the Curia more agile and easier to work with,” Rodriguez Maradiaga told KNA, the German Catholic news agency, on a visit to Germany in January.

The most important priority is to change the mentality of the Curia, Rodriguez Maradiaga said. The pope is against careerism, he said: Many priests who worked in the Curia had up to now automatically become bishops, archbishops, and even cardinals — “but that no longer corresponds to the mentality of the world church, and bishops from all over the world have voiced their displeasure. Working for the Curia is a service and not a career or a position of power,” the cardinal said.

Rodriguez Maradiaga said further important steps can be taken to make the Curia truly representative of the world church — that is, more international — and to give local bishops’ conferences greater decision-making powers. “There are many questions that do not need to be decided by the Roman Curia,” he said.

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MINNESOTA
Grand Forks Herald

[list of accused priests with biographical information]

By Stephen J. Lee on Jan 24, 2014

Five the priests are dead and their alleged abuse occurred decades ago.

The sixth, the Rev. Joseph Jeyapaul, remains awaiting extradition from his home country of India, to face charges in Roseau County he sexually assaulted two girls, 14 and 16, a decade ago while serving as a visiting priest to the diocese for about three years.

The release of the list came after a request from the Herald.

And it doesn’t contain new material, since the names have been available for several years in court documents and have been mentioned in news stories over the years.

It is a significant change in policy for the diocese. As recently as October, an attorney for the Crookston diocese argued against litigation by St. Paul attorney Jeffrey Anderson seeking such a list, that there was no harm in keeping private such a list of priests accused of sexual abuse.

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CHICAGO (IL)
dotCommonweal

Grant Gallicho January 24, 2014

On Tuesday, the Archdiocese of Chicago released six thousand pages of documents related to the cases of thirty priests credibly accused of sexual abuse. The files, made public as part of a settlement with victims’ attorneys, offer a predictably depressing view of archdiocesan failures over the past several decades. You know the dirge: priests quietly shuttled from parish to parish, civil authorities kept in the dark about some cases (and colluding with church officials to keep others from public scrutiny), laypeople and clergy failing to report allegations, bishops refusing to suspend dangerous priests.

For releasing these documents and for making public the names of known abuser-priests, Cardinal Francis George–archbishop of Chicago since 1997–takes some credit. “Publishing for all to read the actual records of these crimes,” he wrote in a letter warning Chicagoans about the document dump, “raises transparency to a new level.” Perhaps. But he didn’t volunteer these files. They wouldn’t have come out if it hadn’t been for victims who pressed for their release as part of a legal settlement. Still, it’s difficult to take seriously Cardinal George’s brief for transparency when he seems so intent on obfuscating his own role in the scandal.

That letter was repurposed as George’s latest column in the Catholic New World. It’s titled “Accountability and Transparency”–because, the cardinal says, the archdiocese is “committed” to both. “For more than twenty years,” he writes, “the archdiocese has reported all allegations of sexual abuse to civil authorities and to DCFS [Department of Child and Family Services].” He makes it sound like every allegation the archdiocese has received has been promptly reported to civil authorities. That’s not what happened.

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AUSTRALIA
Broken Rites

Police investigating historical sexual assaults on students at schools in Bathurst (in central-west New South Wales) arrested a former Catholic priest on 23 January 2014 at his residence in Newington in western Sydney. The man, now aged 71, was taken to Auburn police station, where he was charged with multiple counts of aggravated indecent assault of a male student between 1974 and 1977, when the accused man was a Catholic priest.

The priest was a member of a Catholic religious order which operates at several locations around Australia (that is, he did not belong to a particular local diocese). He eventually left his religious order.

A NSW Police media release on 23 January 2014 said that the man was conditionally bailed to appear at the Burwood Local Court in western Sydney later in 2014.

The arrest was made by detectives from Strike Force Belle, which was formed to investigate allegations of the sexual and indecent assaults of students by various offenders between 1960 and 1993 at two secondary boarding schools in Bathurst – St Stanislaus College (Catholic) and All Saints College (Anglican).

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AUSTRALIA
lewisblayse.net

You’ve got to hand it to Mr. McClellan (see previous postings) and Gail “Snow White” Furness (see previous postings) of the Australian royal commission into institutional responses to child sexual abuse. They certainly give the Catholic Church every opportunity to “clarify” previous evidence.

Originally, they gave them an extra bite at the cherry this Wednesday, to present new arguments on the actual hearings on “Towards Healing” (the process for dealing with victim complaints), held last year. Then they gave them Thursday. Now they have given them Friday, to correct a mistake from Thursday.

Michael Salmon (see previous posting), director of the Catholic Church’s NSW/ACT Professional Standards Office, said he wanted to submit a supplementary statement “to assist the commission”, so they let him do so today.

Mr Salmon facilitated the 2010 “Towards Healing” session with DK, who was sexually molested when he was a student at the St Augustine’s Marist College at Cairns in Queensland State. Evidence from Mr Salmon, on Wednesday and Thursday, suggested that the conversation DK had with former college principal, Brother Gerald Burns and another clergy member covered what they knew of inappropriate behaviour by Ross Murrin in relation to DK and other boys.

In his evidence on Thursday, Br Burns (the former principal of St, Augustine’s college, where DK was abused by a Br. Murrin who is currently in prison) told the commission DK never asked him about offences against other boys, but only about his own situation. Br Burns also said a file note from Mr Salmon written after the mediation session, which suggested otherwise, was inaccurate.

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GENEVA
UN Treaty Body Webcast

[Video – Click onto the site and scroll down to the seventh screen.]

Vatican officials meet with the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.

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DEUTSCHLAND
Diesseits

[Summary: The Vatican for the first time has had to answer questions from the UN Children’s Rights Committee. So far the church has refused to give details about the number and handling of thousands of cases of abuse by priests. Norbert Denef believes an act of reconciliation by the church is an urgent need. He has written a letter to Pope Francis urging him to act against the cover-up of sexual violence.]

Erstmalig mussten sich in der vergangenen Woche Vertreter des Vatikans den Fragen des UN-Kinderrechtskomitees stellen. Denn bislang hat sich die Kirche geweigert, genaue Angaben über die Zahl und den Umgang mit den Tausenden Fällen des Missbrauchs Minderjähriger durch katholische Geistliche zu machen. Kritik übten die Kinderrechtsexperten der Vereinten Nationen unter anderem daran, dass manche Geistliche bis heute nicht aus dem Kirchendienst entfernt worden seien.

Norbert Denef glaubt, dass es einen gemeinsamen Weg für die unzähligen Betroffenen und die katholische Kirche geben kann. In einem Brief an Franziskus hat der 64-Jährige das Kirchenoberhaupt dazu aufgefordert, sich an einer Stiftung gegen die Vertuschung von sexualisierter Gewalt zu beteiligen. „Ein Akt der Versöhnung ist dringend geboten, um über Brücken zu gehen, wo die Wege bisher versperrt sind“, schreibt er in seinem am Donnerstag in der ZEIT veröffentlichten Appell an den Papst.

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CANADA
The Globe and Mail

MICHAEL BABAD
The Globe and Mail
Published Friday, Jan. 24 2014

The Vatican is moving forcefully to repair its scandal-prone bank.

The Instituto per le Opere di Religione, commonly known as the Vatican bank, this week released a report that highlights a year of reforms, including bolstering measures to fight money laundering.

That came just a week after Pope Francis overhauled the bank’s oversight group, replacing many of its members with new faces, including the respected Cardinal Thomas Collins of Toronto.

The new pope isn’t making his mark solely on religious, social and economic inequality issues, but also on the Vatican’s wealthy bank, which posted a 2012 profit of almost €87-million and sits on billions in bonds, stocks, cash and equivalents, gold and real estate.

“As an Institute of the Church we have a particular responsibility to live up to the high standards that are rightly expected of us,” Vatican bank president Ernst von Freyberg, who was brought on board in 2013, said in this week’s report.

The bank’s supervisory board, which has been overhauling processes for a year now, said it received a status report on how things have been going, including an update on the reforms to “adopt best practice compliance risk management and to comply with current Vatican anti-money laundering legislation.”

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CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Sun-Times

BY JON SEIDEL Staff Reporter January 24, 2014

The retired Catholic bishop said he “took it for granted” that sexual abuse of a child at the hands of an adult was a crime.

And Raymond Goedert testified in his 2007 deposition that he “obviously” knew as much when he became the Archdiocese of Chicago’s vicar for priests in July 1987. He said that role essentially made him “pastor to the priests,” according to a transcript of that interview.

It was also his job, he said, to deal with allegations of sexual misconduct between minors and members of the clergy. Goedert testified that priests confronted at the time with such allegations “frequently, if not almost always, admitted” to it.

But he said he never called police. Goedert contended clergy at the time were not “mandated reporters” — required under Illinois law to report suspected child abuse to the authorities.

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MASSACHUSETTS
Boston Globe

Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests begins new self-help group in Boston area

By Lisa Wangsness | GLOBE STAFF JANUARY 25, 2014

The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, known widely by the acronym SNAP, is beginning a new confidential self-help group in the Boston area for survivors of sexual abuse. Sessions are scheduled to start Sunday and then convene every fourth Sunday of the month thereafter. This Sunday’s meeting will be from 3 to 5 p.m. at Newton-Wellesley Hospital, 2014 Washington St., Newton, near the Woodland stop on the MBTA’s Green Line (D train). SNAP’s groups are open to any sexual abuse victim who has been abused by an authority figure. Survivors and their supporters are welcome. Contact Dave O’Regan for details at worcestersnap@gmail.com or call 434-446-6769.

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UNITED STATES
Bilgrimage

Financial Transparency Emerges as Major Theme in St. Paul-Minneapolis Abuse Story: Outstanding MPR Report (and Nicole Sotelo on Knights of Columbus)

William D. Lindsey

To my mind, one of the strangest claims that apologists for the Catholic hierarchy who want to assist the hierarchy by bashing survivors of clerical sexual abuse make is that the Catholic church is and always has been transparent in its handling of finances. This claim is so obviously counterintuitive that I can’t quite fathom the reasons some apologists try to trot it out as a weapon against survivors and those who stand in solidarity with survivors.

For Minnesota Public Radio, Tom Scheck has just produced a first-rate, must-read article detailing how the archdiocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis has dealt with the donations of lay Catholics and with its other financial assets for some time now. The picture is far from pretty.

Using internal financial reports of the archdiocese detailing large transactions never disclosed to those outside certain secret internal loops, Scheck shows the archdiocese spending “nearly $11 million from 2002 to 2011 — about 3 percent of overall archdiocese revenues in those years — for costs tied to clergy misconduct under Flynn and his successor, Archbishop John Nienstedt.” As Scheck notes, these hidden financial reports “detail a stealth financial system that included payments to persuade priests to leave active ministry, financial support for children fathered by priests and money for legal settlements.”

As an example of how the system worked, Scheck points to the case of Father Stanley Kozlak, whom archdiocesan officials decided to pay off in secret after Kozlak fathered a child in 2000–to pay him off in secret as he was removed from ministry in a way designed to hide the reason for his removal. Scheck reports that

Archbishop Harry Flynn agreed in 2002 to pay the fallen priest $1,900 a month “disability” for life, plus $800 a month in rent for life, and $980 a month “to replace the social security payment until Father Kozlak reaches age 67 when he would receive his full social security.”

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CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Sun-Times

The Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago said “we’re sorry” one more time this month for decades of covered-up sexual abuse of children by priests.

But those conversant with Catholic theology will recognize the tenor and depth of the apology.

The church identifies two levels of apologies for sin. There’s the much-preferred “perfect act of contrition” in which the penitent is sorry because what was done offended God. That recognition advances the soul’s cleansing.

The second type — “the imperfect act of contrition” — acknowledges sorrow because failing to be sorry risks Hell. In essence, you’re sorry because failing to be sorry involves punishment down the road.

The 6,000 released pages of internal documents identifying the diocese’s role in hiding, moving and nurturing pedophiles constitutes the most “imperfect” apology because they were produced under duress. The diocese hid the documents, and came clean only as part of civil trial settlement that has taken eight years.

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HAWAII
KUTV

[with video]

[the lawsuit via Fox 13]

(KUTV) Two Utah men have filed suit against the LDS church claiming they were abused by one of their leaders.

The alleged sexual abuse happened decades ago on LDS property in Hawaii where young LDS boys were recruited to pick pineapples. The victims now in their 40’s are coming forward with a new statute of limitations in Hawaii that allows them to file suit against their alleged abuser.

Until this recent change the men were left with no way to file because so many years had gone by Jacob Hubbard of Utah County says he was just 15 at the time of the sex abuse. He says, “I kept it to myself and it happened over and over again. I knew it was horrible, but I was so embarrassed about it I felt like I couldn’t tell anybody.”

Hubbard was suffering alone, but was not the only one. Kyle Spray was 16 at the time when he says he was abused. He is now 42 and worries there are a lot more out there. As teens they left their families for an exciting adventure in Hawaii. Their destination was a pineapple farm run by the LDS church. It was a place where young men could earn money and work towards serving LDS missions. It was billed as a great spiritual environment safe for LDS young men. Looking back Spray says, “It was Hawaii who didn’t want to go to Hawaii? We’re talking playing on the beach and having a good time.” But, what they say happened from 1986-1988 was anything but.

A Civil lawsuit was filed January 22nd against Brian R. Picket of Idaho falls, the LDS church, Maui Land and Pineapple, and Youth Development Enterprises. The men are seeking justice for alleged sexual abuse that happened during their time at this LDS work camp.

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PENNSYLVANIA
PennLive

By Ivey DeJesus | idejesus@pennlive.com
on January 24, 2014

“It’s a painful message. The message is nothing has changed.” – David Clohessy, SNAP

The top official for a national group that advocates on behalf of people who have been abused by Catholic priests on Friday denounced the appointment of the new bishop of the Harrisburg Diocese.

David Clohessy, director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, called the appointment of Bishop Ronald Gainer a disappointing decision that signals the Vatican’s continued willingness to promote and advance clergy, he said, who shield predator priests.

Clohessy said the appointment of Gainer, announced Friday at the Harrisburg Diocese headquarters, may be Pope Francis’ most distressing promotion yet.

“It’s a painful message,” Clohessy said. “The message is nothing has changed. Church officials who continue putting kids in harms way continue getting promotions. It sounds cynical but appointments like this make us question why should we expect bishops to change when they are moved up the ladder despite clear wrongdoing.”

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CANADA
Daily Brew

By Steve Mertl | Daily Brew

The leader of Canada’s Russian Orthodox church got a dressing down from the Manitoba judge as he convicted the cleric of sexually assaulting an alter boy more than 30 years ago.

Archbishop Kenneth (Seraphim) Storheim had been accused of molesting twin 11-year-old boys while he was a parish priest at an Orthodox church in Winnipeg.

By the time charges were laid in 2011, Storheim had risen to become the most senior cleric in the church in Canada, holding the title of archbishop of Ottawa and Canada, the Winnipeg Free Press reported.

Storheim, 67, was convicted Friday by Queens Bench Justice Chris Mainella of sexually assaulting one of the two brothers. Mainella acquitted him of molesting the other brother, saying problems with the second victim, including mental illness, affected the quality of his evidence, the Free Press said.

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CANADA
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

For immediate release Friday, January 24, 2014

Statement by Melanie Jula Sakoda of Moraga, CA, Orthodox Director for SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests ( 925-708-6175 cell, melanie.sakoda@gmail.com )

We are extremely grateful that Archbishop Seraphim Storheim has been found guilty of child sex abuse today. We also understand how difficult it is to accuse a respected man of the cloth, so we would like to thank the two men who courageously testified about what they had suffered. Without their bravery, this conviction would not have been possible and kids would still be at risk.

Now that Storheim has been found guilty in a court of law, we hope that the Orthodox Church in America will act swiftly to remove him from the ranks of clergy. We also hope that the Archdiocese of Canada will examine its records to insure that the archbishop did not use his position to shield other predators or to discipline whistle blowers.

Finally, we recognize that pedophiles usually have many victims. We beg anyone who suffered, saw, or suspected Storheim’s crimes to report to the professionals in law enforcement and help protect kids.

The archbishop worked in the following locations:

5/30/1980-1/31/1981: Supply priest in Valamo Monastery, Finland

1/1981-10/1982: Missionary priest, Alberta, Canada

10/1982-12/15/1983: Missionary priest, Charlotte, North Carolina, United States of America

12/15/1983-12/1/1984: Missionary priest in London, Ontario, Canada

12/1/1984-6/13/1987: Rector of Holy Trinity Sobor, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

6/13/1987-6/29/1990: Bishop of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

10/28/1990-present: Ruling hierarch of the Archdiocese of Canada with his seat in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

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UNITED STATES
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests

Statement by David Clohessy, SNAP Executive Director

Today, a national Catholic newspaper is calling for police and prosecutors to investigate the scandal-ridden Legion of Christ which operates in Connecticut and across the world.

We agree.

[National Catholic Reporter]

There have been multiple and credible reports and allegations of child sex crimes, adult sexual misdeeds, financial corruption, cult-like behavior, extraordinary secrecy and cover ups of all this wrongdoing in this bizarre outfit, whose founder sexually violated boys and young men while fathering at least three children despite his vow of celibacy.

Legion officials claim they’re reforming. But we see no real evidence of that. They’re working harder at public relations, but haven’t voluntarily disclosed, much less disciplined, any of the legion officials who have ignored, hidden or enabled clergy sex crimes or helped Fr. Marcial Maciel Degollado l and others hide their lavish lifestyles.

Only independent secular authorities – like prosecutors – can really investigate the Legion and find out whether any of their wrongdoing can be criminally prosecuted. We hope Connecticut’s attorney general will do this soon.

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CHICAGO (IL)
The Daily Beast

Barbie Latza Nadeau

The Chicago diocese of the Catholic Church has released a trove of 6,000 documents that show terrible child abuse by priests—and a coordinated effort to shield the predators from victims’ families and the law.

For the victims of predatory priests and their families, there will never be enough transparency to counter the years of perceived lies and secrets at the hands of the Roman Catholic Church. But thanks to a legal settlement between the archdiocese of Chicago and the victims of 30 pedophilic priests, a cache of 6,000 secret documents has just been made public, proving what victims have always believed: that the Catholic Church knowingly covered up years of abuse.

Some of the documents released on Tuesday and published on the website of attorney Jeff Anderson, who brokered the deal in 2008, are deeply disturbing. Many show a terrible level of child abuse, including detailed allegations by young boys of sodomy, forced oral sex and, in one case, a young girl who recounted how a priest masturbated and ejaculated on top of her. One complaint details how a priest threatened his victim at gunpoint not to tell authorities about the ongoing rape. The documents also show how the hierarchy within the Chicago diocese willingly moved priests around and lied to the victims’ families, legal teams and even the local police. At one point, as many as 60 percent of the churches in the Chicago archdiocese had pedophile priests, according to a Voices of the Faithful study conducted in 2010.

Several documents also show that Chicago bishops petitioned the Holy See in Rome and asked for guidance, despite years of denials from Rome that these matters were dealt with on a purely local level. In the case of Father Daniel Mark Holihan—who, according to the documents, was referred to as “Happy Hands Holihan” by his Catechism students—a memorandum was submitted to the Chicago church by a representative from the Archdiocese of Chicago Office for Child Abuse Investigations and Review. “I referred this matter to the Holy See on 15 September 2003, receiving a reply on 16 June 2004 dispensing from canonical prescription and instructing me to conduct an administrative penal process,” the memorandum said.

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CHICAGO (IL)
WGN

Mary Ann Ahern, reporter for NBC Chicago, investigated priest sex scandals 20 years ago. These reports recently resurfaced as the files were released. Hear what Ahern believes should be done the information and how she discovered Mayor Richard M. Daley’s name in one file.

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WISCONSIN
The Northwestern

Written by
Michael Tarm
Associated Press

CHICAGO — A new lawsuit filed Thursday alleging sexual abuse of children in the 1960s and ‘70s focuses on Norbert J. Maday, a now-defrocked priest and registered sex offender who lives in Oshkosh and is referred to at length in documents released this week by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago.

Maday molested boys — sometimes in cars or motel swimming pools — when a priest at Chicago’s St. Leo Catholic Church and later at St. Louis de Montfort Catholic Church in Oak Lawn, according to the lawsuit.

The document, filed in Cook County Court on behalf of three plaintiffs, names Maday, the archdiocese, and another man, Thomas Hacker, who is serving two concurrent 50-year prison terms on a 1989 conviction for molesting three boys.

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CANADA
Huffington Post

By Steve Lambert, The Canadian Press

WINNIPEG – An Orthodox archbishop was convicted Friday of sexually assaulting an altar boy 29 years ago by a judge who ruled Seraphim Kenneth Storheim’s denials were “nonsensical.”

“I do not believe the testimony of the accused,” Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Christopher Mainella said in an oral decision that lasted for two hours.

“The accused was not credible about his behaviour. He … provided nonsensical answers and was not consistent in his version of events.”

Storheim, who became the top Canadian cleric for the Orthodox Church in America, was accused of sexually assaulting two brothers in the summer of 1985, when he was a priest in Winnipeg. The brothers, whose identities are protected by a publication ban, lived with Storheim for brief periods, on separate occasions, while they worked as altar boys.

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