• Kauai rape suspect pleads not guilty
. [1976 Bukoski (Fathers of Sacred Hearts), 1996 Saulibio ] - RCC. Girl.
Honolulu Star-Bulletin, Star-Bulletin Staff, citydesk@starbulletin.com , ~ December 1, 2005
HAWAII -- An Oahu man who received an apology and court settlement from a Catholic priest who molested him 29 years ago pled not guilty today to a charge that he raped a girl nine years ago on Kauai.
Eugene Saulibio, 44, is charged with four counts of first-degree sexual assault.
He made his plea before Kauai Circuit judge George Masuoka.
On Nov. 8 the Rev. Joseph Bukoski III and his order, the Fathers of Sacred Hearts, apologized for Bukoski's sexual abuse of Saulibio in 1976.
Saulibio's attorney Victor Bakke said today that the rape charges came as a complete surprise to his client.
• Three More People Accuse Priest Of Sexual Abuse
. [Uhran, Page] - RCC. 8 survivors.
WFTV, UPDATED 6:15 pm EST, December 1, 2005
ORLANDO, Fla. -- There are new allegations of sexual abuse and new multi-million dollar lawsuits against the Orlando Diocese. Three more people said the same priest abused them when they were kids.
Father Vernon Uhran, who has now been accused of abuse by eight people, was removed from the priesthood in 1992. But one of the new lawsuits levels a disturbing accusation against another priest, who heads up a parish in the Melbourne area.
A man referred to as John Doe #6 accuses Father David Page, who has run Holy Name of Jesus Church for years, of doing nothing when catching Father Vernon Uhran in the act of sexually abusing him in a church rectory in the early 1970s.
One of the men said Father Uhran repeatedly sexually abused him in the 1970s, when he was a student at Bishop Moore High School in Orlando, where Father Uhran taught a course on "Love, Sex and Marriage."
• Sex abuse case could cost priest his Marin post
. [1986-87 Schwartz, Jesuit school] - RCC. Boy.Marin Independent Journal, by Nancy Isles Nation, ~ December 1, 2005
SAN FRANCISCO (CA) -- The Archdiocese of San Francisco is contemplating whether to let a Marin priest at the center of a settled sex abuse case keep his job.
A $4 million lawsuit filed Oct. 6 under the initials of J.T. to provide anonymity for the plaintiff claims that the Rev. John Schwartz sexually abused him in 1986 and 1987 when he was a student at the Jesuit High School in Beaverton, Ore.
Schwartz is on leave from his assignment at St. Anselm's Church on Shady Lane in Ross. St. Anselm's School, an affiliated elementary school, is around the corner on Belle Avenue in San Anselmo.
The settlement with Jesuit High School in Portland and the Oregon Province of the Society of Jesus, a Jesuit organization, awards $95,000 to the plaintiff. Details of the agreement are not publicly available.
• Pastor arrested on outstanding warrant
. [? 2000+ Jones] - Refuge Temple. Teenager.News 10 Now, http://news10 now.com/content/ all_news/?ArID= 54566&SecID=83 , Updated 7:23 AM, Dec/1/2005
SYRACUSE (NY) -- A Syracuse pastor was arrested again yesterday while out on bail for sex charges.
Syracuse Police say Jaree Jones was arrested on an outstanding warrant in Connecticut. It dates back to 2000 for sexual abuse in Waterbury. Jones already faces rape and criminal sexual act charges here in Syracuse.
Authorities say Jones, a pastor of the Refuge Temple, sexually attacked a teen several times following youth group sessions after church. #
• Wall was victim of a miscarriage of justice
. - Nora Wall freed; lady had been telling lies.
RTE News, 19:21, December 01, 2005
IRELAND -- The Court of Criminal Appeal has certified that the former nun Nora Wall, who was wrongly convicted of rape, has been the victim of a miscarriage of justice.
Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns said the court was satisfied that newly discovered facts showed that there had been a miscarriage in her case.
Earlier, it was revealed that a young woman was lying when she gave an eyewitness account under oath in 1999 of seeing Ms Wall rape a 10-year-old girl.
• Vatican document on homosexuals and the priesthood raises questions
. - RCC.
The Catholic Telegraph, ~ December 1, 2005
VATICAN CITY -- A long-awaited Vatican document drew a sharp line against priestly ordination of homosexuals, but in the process raised a series of delicate questions for church leaders and seminary officials.
The six-page instruction, prepared by the Congregation for Catholic Education, said the church cannot ordain men who are active homosexuals, who have "deeply rooted" homosexual tendencies or who support the "gay culture." Those who have overcome "transitory" homosexual tendencies, however, could be ordained, it said.
The document, expected to be released at the Vatican in late November, was published online Nov. 22 by an Italian news agency.
Cincinnati Archbishop Daniel E. Pilarczyk, who reviewed a copy of the document, said, "It contains no real surprises. Those who are engaged in homosexual behavior, those who are active in the homosexual sub-culture of our society, and those whose homosexual orientation is so deep seated as to prevent them from relating correctly to others (both men and women) should not be allowed to enter the seminary or be ordained.
• Vatican Consultant Defends New Document on Homosexuality
. - RCC.Christian Post, Posted: 7:38:36PM EST, Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2005
VATICAN -- The Vatican had always made it clear to bar homosexuals from the priesthood. However, the recent Instruction on homosexuality needed to be published, said a Vatican consultant, as the issue posed to be a greater problem of concern.
Msgr. Tony Anatrella, a French Jesuit who is a consultant to the Pontifical Council on the Family, drew attention to the question of accepting homosexual men into priesthood that had been repeatedly raised. Council decisions had always rejected admitting men who were homosexual. A 1961 Vatican document had also affirmed their being barred from the priesthood.
"Homosexuality has become an increasingly worrisome problem," Anatrella wrote in the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano. Accepting homosexuality could have a "destabling" effect on the lives of the individuals and on society, he added.
In an I Media interview, Msgr. Anatrella, who labeled homosexuality as a "tendency and not an identity," said homosexual men who become priests create complications even when chaste.
• Paedophile divides Northland community
. [1990s ?+ Leef (Marist trainee)] -- RCC. Boys.
New Zealand Herald, Dec.01.05
NEW ZEALAND -- A convicted paedophile is dividing the tiny Northland community of Panguru on the north side of the Hokianga Harbour.
Former teacher Kaperiere Leef, who is HIV positive, was convicted in 2001 of sexually assaulting boys at Auckland's Hato Petera College.
He has lived in Panguru since his release from prison in 2003.
Although he was welcomed onto Ngati Manawa Marae when he got out of jail, his actions since - including involvement in an ongoing Maori Land Court case - have caused ructions. ...
Mr Leef, who trained as a Marist Brother and priest but was never ordained, taught at Auckland's Hato Petera College from 1996.
• Former priest faces sex charges
. [Evans] - RCC. Child.
The Coloradoan, By SARA REED, SaraReed@coloradoan.com , December 1, 2005
COLORADO -- The sexual abuse scandal that has engulfed the Catholic Church has surfaced in Fort Collins, with a former priest facing charges of sexually assaulting children.
Former Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton parish priest Timothy Joseph Evans, 43, was advised Wednesday afternoon in Larimer County Court that he is charged with two counts of sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust and one count of contributing to the delinquency of minor, all felonies, according to court documents.
The Fort Collins police department and the Larimer County District Attorney's Office, citing a gag order placed on the case Wednesday by County Court Judge Peter Schoon, have declined to confirm that Evans is a former priest or discuss where he was arrested or the amount of his bond. A call to the Larimer County Detention Center revealed that Evans was not booked into the jail. District Court Judge Jolene Blair ordered the file sealed on Nov. 22, the day an arrest warrant for Evans was requested by police.
However, a public records search by the Fort Collins Coloradoan showed Evans lived in a residence owned by the church and that an investigation into the allegations began in 2004. Records also indicate that the alleged crimes would have been committed while Evans was serving at the church. However, it is not known if those allegations involve children from the church.
• The church's misguided policy on gays
. - RCC.NorthJersey.com , By MARY ELLEN SCHOONMAKER, Thursday, December 1, 2005
NEW JERSEY -- WHAT DO Catholics who disagree with the Vatican's new "instruction" on gays and the priesthood do now? The church is not a democracy, so we can't vote the pope out of office.
But we find it harder and harder to defend a church that shows such a cruel face to the outside world.
It's bad enough that the Vatican seems to think keeping gays out of the priesthood will solve the sex abuse scandal. It's worse that the church is reaffirming its bizarre definition of gays as "objectively disordered" and insisting that being a gay priest "gravely obstructs a right way of relating with men and women."
Translated into plain English, what exactly does that mean?
And since when do straight priests have a monopoly on wisdom and compassion?
Some American bishops are criticizing the directive. The bishop in Rochester, N.Y., has written that "the key to a life of celibacy is sexual maturity, not sexual orientation."
• Former employee pursues suit against diocese
. - RCC. Robert Fontana sues Yakima DioceseYakima Herald-Republic, By JANE GARGAS, ~ December 1, 2005
YAKIMA (WA) -- A former employee of the Catholic Diocese of Yakima is still waiting for a response to his lawsuit alleging he was wrongfully discharged from his job.
Robert Fontana filed suit in Yakima County Superior Court in August, about a week before he resigned from his position as director of evangelism for the diocese.
Gary Lofland, Fontana's attorney, returned to court Tuesday, arguing that the diocese was ignoring the suit, and requested a January court date.
"We're disheartened that the Catholic church and its spiritual leader, Bishop Carlos Sevilla, won't acknowledge that there is a strong public policy to protect children from sexual abuse," Lofland said in a telephone interview Tuesday.
Noting that the new motions are procedural in nature, Robert Boggs, attorney for the diocese, said Fontana's lawsuit will probably be answered next week.
He declined to comment further, saying he didn't have the authority to speak for the diocese.
Sevilla issued a news release Wednesday, saying the lawsuit, which he believes is without merit and not based on fact, will be defended against vigorously.
Lofland contends that Fontana was forced to leave his job because he was critical of how the diocese was applying its policy on clergy sexual misconduct with vulnerable people.
• Can Celibate Homosexuals Be Ordained - Yes Or No?
. - RCC.MichNews.com , By Barbara Kralis, Dec 1, 2005
UNITED STATES -- On November 29, as President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops [USCCB], Bishop Skylstad, Bishop of Spokane, WA, released a USCCB Press Statement regarding the Vatican's promulgation, on the same date, of a document entitled: "Instruction Concerning the Criteria for the discernment of vocations with Regard to Persons with Homosexual Tendencies in View of their Admission to the Seminary and to Holy Orders." After reading the Vatican document, Bishop Skylstad and others have still concluded that it is O.K. to ordain celibate homosexuals to the diaconate and the Priesthood (interview with the Washington Post on November 29, Bishop Skylstad). But is it?
This question must be answered clearly and absolutely by Catholic Bishops for the good of the Church in the United States. There are homosexual ears and heterosexual ears listening. No homosexual is going to enter a seminary if he knows for certain that he will be turned down in the end for ordination. Similarly, heterosexual healthy men will not enter a seminary if they know that people will judge them as being homosexual.
It is difficult enough to convince people that a celibate priest is not homosexual when people think that homosexuals cannot be ordained. However, it is far more difficult to convince them if they think that bishops are ordaining celibate homosexuals. The people then think that possibly this priest or seminarian is a homosexual.
Moreover, given the sex saturated culture in the United States, this possibly becomes a probably in the mind of these people.
The bishops must make it absolutely clear that they do not permit homosexuals to enter the seminary or be ordained to the diaconate or priesthood as a matter of justice to heterosexual priests, seminarians, and deacons!
• Vatican paper on gays reveals split
. - RCC.The Washington Times, By Julia Duin, December 1, 2005
UNITED STATES: A long-awaited Vatican document on homosexual priests, released Tuesday, shows a fault line running through the Catholic Church as to what levels of homosexuality are acceptable.
In some American dioceses, such as Los Angeles and Rochester, N.Y., bishops have indicated they will continue to ordain celibate homosexuals.
"To gay young men who are considering a vocation to priesthood: we try to treat all inquiries fairly," Rochester Bishop Matthew Clark wrote Nov. 12 in the Catholic Courier, his diocesan newspaper. "You will be no exception."
Others dioceses, such as Arlington, say a candidate must "not suffer from a disordered sexual orientation, i.e. not consider oneself to be homosexual."
• Something queer afoot in the Vatican
. - RCC.The Georgetown Voice, ~ December 1, 2005
The Roman Catholic Church has again made itself more irrelevant to its flock and the contemporary world. This week, the Church released a document reinforcing its ban on ordaining homosexual priests, whether practicing or not, and those who condone homosexuality.
The document revealed the Church's deep-seated ignorance of the nature of homosexuality and its refusal to face the reality of its world. If the Church is to be a force for good in the world, it must confront the facts without willful bigotry.
The Church continues to espouse a theory in the document that most rational people have left behind: that homosexuality is a choice. In reality, homosexual men and women can no more shed their attraction for the same sex than they could change their eye color or height.
Adherence to this theory of sexuality shows that the Church hasn't learned the lessons of Galileo: You can't fight--or squash--the truth.
Furthermore, the Church's document is bigoted, reinforcing the idea that homosexuality is some kind of overwhelming trait that prevents a person from leading a productive life (or a priest from being a productive minister). This belief perpetuates the erroneous idea that homosexuals are more likely to be sexual predators than heterosexuals.
While the Church may think this is an answer to the child molestation scandals of recent years, a better answer would be more transparency and harsher punishments for guilty priests, not a wild swipe at conscientious seminarians who happen to be gay.
• SUSAN AGER: Secrets reveal who we are
. - RCC.Detroit Free Press, BY SUSAN AGER, FREE PRESS COLUMNIST, December 1, 2005
DETROIT (MI) -- Tom O'Brien: gay and celibate Bravo to Tom O'Brien, a Jesuit priest.
He told Detroit a secret this week. He told us he is gay. He told us he has, however, led a celibate life.
He had guarded his secret for a lifetime, as if he were a murderer whose confession would put him in prison for life.
You wonder how a man like Tom O'Brien could be afraid.
In her front page account Tuesday, Free Press reporter Patricia Montemurri quoted O'Brien saying: "For some people, it won't make a dime of difference to them about me, and for others, they'll never hear a word I say again."
• Irish view of U.S. justice colors extradition decision
. - RCC.
Kentucky.com , BY NANCY BARTLEY, The Seattle Times, ~ December 1, 2005
SEATTLE (WA) - When Ireland's High Court weighs whether to allow the extradition of fugitive Fred Russell to stand trial for a 2001 crash that killed three Washington State University students, the decision could hinge on how the court views the U.S. criminal-justice system.
Some past extradition requests have been turned down by Irish authorities because of concerns over how prisoners were treated in the United States, or the length of time a defendant would be held in a U.S. jail before going to trial.
In July, one request was turned down because an Irish judge saw a news photo of Arizona inmates being paraded through town in pink, prison-issue underwear. The shocked judge called the act degrading and humiliating and turned down the extradition request. The defendant was released.
Other extradition attempts have been turned down because what's regarded as a crime in the United States is not considered a crime or an extraditable offense in Ireland - bail-jumping, for example, is not a crime there, said Whitman County, Wash., Chief Deputy Prosecutor Carol LaVerne.
• Local priests rebut Vatican's gay policy
. - RCC.
Inside Bay Area, By Angela Hill, ~ December 1, 2005
OAKLAND (CA) -- If a potential Roman Catholic priest is free from the sins of the flesh, it should not matter if the man is gay or straight, several East Bay Catholics said Wednesday in response to the Vatican's latest policy declaration on gays in the priesthood.
"It's a superfluous comment," said Cecilia McKee, 38, of Berkeley, referring to Tuesday's official statement from the Vatican that the church "cannot admit to the seminary ... those who practice homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the so-called 'gay culture.'"
"In my mind, priests are asexual anyway," she said. "You can't be gay, but you also can't be heterosexual. You're not supposed to be having sex. So it doesn't matter which way your desires go. The point is whether or not you act on them."
"It's clearly the church's knee-jerk reaction to the millions of dollars they've had to spend on pedophile priests, and all the years they hid those people and moved them from parish to parish," said Robert Saletta, a devout Catholic who works in Berkeley and attends Mass in San Francisco.
• Cross to Bare
. [Monsignor Fushek] - RCC.Phoenix New Times, By Robert Nelson, Published: Thursday, February 24, 2005
ARIZONA -- Monsignor Dale Fushek had long been the rock star of the Catholic Church in the United States.
He founded America's largest program for Catholic teenagers, Life Teen, at his parish in the East Valley in 1985. Today, about 100,000 high-school-age Catholics across the country attend his program each week.
As the flamboyant, charismatic leader of that program, Fushek reigned as the de facto spokesman for the country's Catholic youth. He is credited with bringing America's young Catholics back to the church by energizing, personalizing and modernizing church doctrine. He also is credited with bringing Pope John Paul II and Mother Teresa to the Valley.
During the pope's visits to Tempe in 1987 and to St. Louis in 1999, Fushek organized and led major youth events associated with the trips, essentially serving as the ambassador to John Paul II and the national media for America's next generation of Catholics.
Fushek, not long ago second in command to former bishop Thomas O'Brien, also was arguably the most powerful, popular and financially connected priest in Arizona.
He was so connected, for example, that he both successfully solicited massive donations from Charles Keating and later became close friends with the man credited with dismantling Keating's crooked savings-and-loan empire, local attorney Mike Manning.
But, for two decades, there also have been whispers.
Fellow priests used to joke that Fushek created Life Teen to "get teens."
A mounting number of former Life Teen members and church employees lately are saying that wasn't a joke.
New Times interviewed several former employees, co-workers, fellow priests and students of Fushek's, some in exclusive interviews within days of their giving sworn statements to investigators for the Maricopa County Attorney's Office regarding the monsignor.
• Father Harvey on Strengths of New Vatican Instruction
. - RCC.Zenit, Nov. 30, 2005
NEW YORK (NY), (Zenit.org).- The new Vatican instruction on the priesthood and those with homosexual tendencies was exactly the clarification the Church needed, says one expert in the treatment of same-sex attractions.
Father John Harvey, an Oblate of St. Francis de Sales, is director of Courage International, a support group for men and women with same-sex attractions who wish to live chastely according to Church teachings.
He shared his views of the new document with ZENIT.
Q: What is your impression of the new Vatican document on seminaries and those with homosexual tendencies?
Father Harvey: I think it is very good because it does not try to answer every question -- it tells you from the beginning that it will not. I think it is refreshing. It simply sets down norms for bishops, rectors and people in seminary work.
I think it is wise to put the responsibility on bishops and rectors to understand this issue and to make decisions about individual seminarians. I think this is a good thing instead of answering every question.
• Priest to serve child pornography sentence in Island jail
. [Fernandes] - RCC. 114 bad videos +.Martha's Vineyard Times, By Ezra Blair, December 1, 2005
MARTHA'S VINEYARD (MA) -- A week after a member of Saudi Arabia's extended royal family reached a plea deal to serve his jail time at the Dukes County House of Correction, a second off-Island prisoner was sentenced to the Edgartown facility.
On Monday, a Bristol Superior Court judge sentenced Rev. Stephen Fernandes, 55, to eight months at the Island's house of correction. Prosecutors had asked for a three-year sentence.
Mr. Fernandes, a Roman Catholic priest in New Bedford, was arrested last November and pleaded guilty on Sept. 26 to charges of possession and distribution of child pornography and posing a child in a state of nudity.
According to the Associated Press, investigators found more than 500 images of child pornography, including 114 video files, on Mr. Fernandes' computer after he sent his laptop to a computer servicing company.
Mr. Fernandes also allegedly pretended that he was a 19-year-old woman in a successful effort to coerce a boy to perform a sex act, which Mr. Fernandes recorded.
• Vatican: Gays need not apply
. - RCC.Berkshire Eagle, Editorial, Thursday, December 01, 2005
UNITED STATES: The Vatican document issued this week strongly reinforcing the church's ban on homosexual priests will further inflame an issue that has divided Catholics. More practically, the ban, apparently a misguided attempt to address the pedophile problem afflicting the priesthood, is likely to make considerably worse a shortage of priests that is felt throughout the Catholic community, including in the commonwealth.
The well-documented abuse of young boys by Catholic priests in America has cost the church millions of dollars in damages and perhaps even more significantly the trust and support of many Catholics. The scandal was magnified a thousand-fold by the decision of church leaders to protect pedophiles by shuffling them from parish to parish, where they could continue to prey on the young, in some cases for decades. When the Vatican belatedly acknowledged the problem it did nothing to discipline those who protected pedophiles beyond hauling Cardinal Bernard Law of the Boston Archdiocese to Rome before he found himself under indictment.
Rather than address the institutional problem of a relatively few pedophiles whose crimes are repeated under the protection of their superiors, the Vatican decided to equate homosexuality with pedophilia and close the door to the priesthood for all gays. Though the ban does not extend to currently ordained priests, it may cause the principled resignations of gay priests who have long served their parishes well. It also narrows the demographic of potential priests to heterosexual men who pledge to remain celibate, which is a poor way to deal with an alarming shortage of priests.
• Shurtleff to discuss polygamy in Canada
. - Polygamous group.
Daily Herald, by Jennifer Dobner, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, ~ December 1, 2005
SALT LAKE CITY (UT) -- Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff takes the polygamy issue north to British Columbia when he meets next week with his counterpart there and with women's groups concerned about the status of women living in communities practicing plural marriage.
Shurtleff will meet with Wally Oppal, the attorney general and minister responsible for multiculturalism on Dec. 8 in Vancouver.
Oppal, whose been in his job just five months, said he welcomes Shurtleff's visit, advice and the exchange of ideas.
As in Utah, polygamy in Canada has received spotty attention from political and law enforcement officials over the last 50 years. But Oppal said that climate is changing.
"I get a lot of letters from people wondering why we won't do anything about it," the minister said. "When I took office, I made the statement that I am prepared to prosecute."
Historically, however, police investigations have never netted any willing witnesses to testify against alleged perpetrators, he said. Currently the Royal Canadian Mountain Police is investigating allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse in Bountiful, a British Columbia town founded by members of a polygamous sect, he said. [Bolding added]
• Confronting gay presence
. - RCC.
The Courier-Journal, December 1, 2005
The Vatican's new policy on homosexual priests has set off intense debate among Roman Catholics, into which we wouldn't presume to intrude our views.
But the very openness of that debate and the terms in which it is being conducted are so striking that they should command the attention of non-Catholics, too.
First, and most obvious, is the frank acknowledgement that gays not only constitute a significant presence among seminarians, priests and even bishops but also have been fulfilling those roles successfully.
Second, the policy continues to allow some -- those who can persuade church authorities that their homosexuality was "only the expression of a transitory problem" -- to enter the priesthood.
Yet, third, by barring others "who present deep-seated homosexual tendencies" even though they are prepared to take the vow of chastity, the policy seems to concede that homosexuality is not simply an immoral choice of behaviors that can be unchosen at will.
And, finally, whatever the logic or illogic of these rules, the distinctions upon which they rest or the attempt to link them to preventing sexual abuse of children, at least some church authorities are discussing them with a degree of candor, complexity and humility that has been notably absent from much of the religious gay-bashing of recent years.
• My opinion -- Andrew M. Greeley: Vatican shows some sensitivity to homosexuals
. - RCC.Arizona Daily Star, Published: Dec.01.2005
TUCSON, Arizona -- A headline about the new Instruction from the Vatican read, "Vatican bans active gays from priesthood." One might add that it bans active straights from the priesthood, too.
Perhaps the celibacy rule will change. But as long as it applies, those who are in sexual relationships of either sort will not be ordained. That is not new, and indeed it is not news.
In fact, the new Instruction says merely that under some circumstances gays can become priests, and under other circumstances they cannot be ordained. It leaves local officials - bishops and seminary rectors - to decide in individual cases.
The document is a stinging defeat for those Catholic conservatives in Rome and in this country who have been blaming gays for the sexual abuse crisis and wanted to ban them completely from the priesthood.
The issue comes down to whether a homosexual orientation is something people choose or something they cannot change.
• Lincoln Diocese already in compliance with Vatican statement, leaders say
. - RCC.Lincoln Journal Star, BY BOB REEVES, ~ December 1, 2005
NEBRASKA -- A Vatican statement prohibiting homosexuals in the priesthood will not bring about any changes in the Lincoln Diocese, the rector of St. Gregory the Great Seminary near Seward said.
"We've basically been on the same page as the document" which was released Tuesday, said Father John Folda. "We've already pretty much been following that policy."
The document titled "Instruction for Vocational Discernment with Regard to Persons with Homosexual Tendencies in View of Their Admission to the Seminary and Holy Orders" says men should not be admitted to seminaries or ordained as priests if they practice homosexuality, have "deeply rooted homosexual tendencies" or "support so-called gay culture."
Those policies merely restate the long-standing position of the church, Folda said.
He said the seminary, which trains men in their first years of preparation for the priesthood, is careful in selection of students.
"When a man expresses interest in the seminary, we spend a lot of time trying to get to know him personally," Folda said. "If we see evidence of deep-seated homosexuality, we know that the life of a priest isn't what he's called to."
• Catholocism holds onto the past
. - RCC.Northern Star Online, by Adam Kotlarczyk, akotlarczyk@northernstar.info , ~ December 1, 2005
To be fair, the Catholic Church has a fine line to tread. To see just how fine, you need only to read over the recent statement from the Vatican, where the Congregation for Catholic Education issued an official "Instruction" banning homosexuals from entering the priesthood.
It reads, in part, men "who practice homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the so-called 'gay culture'" cannot be allowed to enter seminaries.
Let's start by dispelling the obvious. This isn't a response - let's hope - to the clergy sex abuse scandals that ripped through the United States in recent years. Although many would like to see the church do more to address those abuses, this does not.
Child molestation is a deviant sexual behavior. Even among those who, like some elements in the church, consider homosexuality to be an abnormal "problem" akin to pedophilia, it must be acknowledged there is a substantial difference between participating in a monogamous, adult homosexual relationship and molesting children.
• Priests, nun accused of abuse
. [1950s+ Goodman, Breuning, Bush, Perron, Condon] - RCC.Journal Star, By MICHAEL MILLER, Thursday, December 1, 2005
PEORIA (IL) - Nine civil lawsuits accusing five priests and one nun of sexual abuse were filed Wednesday, hours after alleged victims demanded more "transparency" by the Catholic Diocese of Peoria.
The lawsuits were filed against the diocese, the clergy members and the parishes where they worked. Some of the alleged incidents, dating as far back as the 1950s, occurred in Peoria and Tazewell counties.
Priests named in the lawsuits were the Revs. Norman Goodman, Walter Breuning, Edward Bush, Toussaint J. Perron and Louis Condon. All of them previously had been removed from public ministry by the diocese, in some cases because of allegations brought by some of those bringing the new lawsuits, diocesan officials said.
Criminal charges have only been brought against Perron, who served three years in prison in the 1990s for sexual assault. It was unclear whether that case involved the man now accusing him.
• Bishop faces new claims
. [? 1960s Bishop Soens] - RCC. 7 boys.Press-Citizen, The Associated Press, December 1, 2005
IOWA -- Seven men who claim they were sexually assaulted by a priest who later became the bishop in Sioux City say they want to settle their cases through mediation rather than the courts.
The seven cases, each naming former Sioux City Bishop Lawrence Soens, were turned over to attorneys for the Davenport Diocese and Soens last week, said Craig Levien, the attorney representing the alleged victims.
They are the latest allegations against Soens, who is already defending himself in state court against lawsuits filed by two other victims. Each accuses Soens of molesting them when they were students as Soens was priest and principal at Regina High School in Iowa City during the mid-1960s.
The seven new cases are similar with the victims claiming they were abused as students at Regina, with each alleging they were summoned to the principal's office by Soens under the pretense of being disciplined for bad behavior, Levien said.
• A clash of religion and sexuality
. - RCC doesn't rule on how to bar predators.Denver Post, By Cindy Rodriguez, Staff Columnist, ~ December 1, 2005
Once again, the Vatican is fending off accusations that it discriminates against many of the Roman Catholic Church's own members after releasing an instruction last week that essentially bars most gay men from becoming priests.
The Congregation for Catholic Education, which wrote the edict, said: "The Church, while profoundly respecting the persons in question, may not admit to the seminary and Holy Orders those who practice homosexuality, show profoundly deep-rooted homosexual tendencies, or support the so-called gay culture."
The writers never mentioned the clergy sexual-abuse scandals that have rocked the Catholic Church, costing millions in lawsuits and prompting countless followers to leave.
But it must have crossed their minds.
Meanwhile, we're still waiting for instruction for how to keep sexual predators from entering seminaries. The church has not been as open and forthcoming as it should be in handling the thousands of victims who have come forward.
• Vatican's new directive on gay priests sparks debate
. - RCC.Bay Area Reporter, ~ December 1, 2005
CALIFORNIA -- In contrast with LGBT Catholic and civil rights groups, gay and straight Bay Area theologians and ministers are lending a generous interpretation and calm response to a new Vatican instruction that seeks to ban gays from becoming priests.
Local Catholic clergy said the instruction mostly reiterates what the community already knows about priest criteria, and that some worst case scenarios and panic have resulted from reporters mistranslating the Italian document.
The instruction, approved by Pope Benedict XVI in August and signed by the Catholic Education Congregation Prefect Zenon Grocholewski on November 4, appeared on a Roman progressive Catholic Web site, headlined, "Ethical Cleansing" on Tuesday November 22. It was formally published by the Vatican Tuesday, November 29.
The Vatican said Tuesday that there would be no crackdown on gay priests, according to the Associated Press.
• Peoria diocese sued in sex abuse
. [Breuning, Goodman, Bush, Condon, Perron (Missionaries of Africa), Sr Mary Jane]Chicago Tribune, Published December 1, 2005
PEORIA (IL) -- Nine new sexual abuse lawsuits have been filed against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Peoria for incidents of abuse that allegedly took place up to five decades ago involving five priests and one Franciscan nun.
In the lawsuits, filed Wednesday in Peoria County Circuit Court, alleged victims accuse diocesan priests Revs. Walter Breuning, Norman Goodman, Edward Bush and Louis Condon of making unwanted sexual advances toward them when they were minors.
Rev. Toussaint J. Perron, a member of the Missionaries of Africa religious order, was also named in a suit, as well as a Franciscan nun, Sister Mary Jane. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 05:49 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker www.ncrnews.org/abuse , Thu December 01, 2005
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont119.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.ncrnews.org/abuse, Fri December 02, 2005 edition follows:-
• SNAP Leaders Head to Mexico City This Week to Offer Support
. [1996 Aguilar] - RCC. Boy.
PRNewswire, www.prnewswire. com/cgi-bin/stories. pl?ACCT=104 &STORY=/www/story/ 12-02-2005/ 0004226906 &EDATE= ; Dec. 2, 2005
MEXICO CITY, Mexico -- Clergy molestation victims are asking Mexican President Vicente Fox to investigate clergy sex abuse cases and take steps to protect children from a predatory priest who molested dozens of kids in California in Mexico and help heal those already wounded by the crimes.
Yesterday, leaders of a national support group called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, picketed and outside the Mexican consulate in Los Angeles and hand-delivered a letter to Mexican officials urging President Fox to investigate and explain why Fr. Nicolas Aguilar, has not been prosecuted, seek further evidence and explore addition legal approaches to prosecution, and publicly reach out to victims/witnesses and urge them to contact criminal authorities.
Last week, a young Mexico City man who was allegedly sexually abused by Aguilar, in 1996 contacted Los Angeles SNAP leaders seeking personal help and safeguards for kids in Mexico.
In response, SNAP leaders are going to Mexico City this week, Dec. 4-7, to offer support and reach out to others victims still suffering in guilt, shame and silence. A SNAP Mexico toll free phone number will soon be set-up for victims and witnesses to call for help and support (1-888-SNAP-SSOS or 1-888-762-7767). [Bolding added] [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:13 PM]
• The Vatican And Gay Problems
. - RCC.
Yahoo! News, http://news.yahoo com/s/ucwb/ 0051202/cm_ucwb/ thevaticanandgay problems;_ylt= A86.I1Kx3JBD FR0AhBH9wxIF; _ylu=X3oDMTBj MHVqMTQ4BH NlYwN5bnN1Y mNhdA-- ; By William F. Buckley Jr., 6:43 PM ET, Fri Dec 2, 2005
VATICAN CITY -- The Vatican ruling on homosexuals in the seminaries is interesting to other than gay-rights hawks. Catholics are at liberty to say that it is not the business of non-Catholics to probe such matters. But they will be speaking mostly to themselves, because the Vatican ruling touches on questions of universal concern.
The ruling against homosexuals in the seminaries isn't on the order of Catholics will not eat meat on Fridays. The ruling isn't limited to disciplinary matters that are indeed only for Catholics to concern themselves with. When one observer pointed out that seminarians also have rights, he invoked a cultural reality, which is that the practices of Catholic clerics cannot be ignored by pleading the isolation of the Catholic vocation. The question primarily addressed has to do with the predisposition to homosexuality, a subject in which everyone is interested.
The Vatican letter says that the church respects homosexuals, but that it "cannot admit to the seminary or to holy orders those who practice homosexuality, present deeply rooted homosexual tendencies, or support the so-called gay culture."
• To 'purify' the church
. - RCC.Toledo Blade, December 02, 2005
VATICAN CITY -- THE Vatican directive issued recently barring gays from the priesthood was an apparent attempt to address the scourge of the sexual abuse scandal that has shamed the church. But in many respects it was a cop-out.
If the document, begun years ago by Pope John Paul II, is held up as a way to "purify" the church, as Benedict XVI suggests, the focus of the church's "purification" efforts are misdirected.
The alleged and admitted sexual abuse by clerics at parishes throughout the country and around the world was perpetrated by pedophiles - not homosexuals - who preyed on trusting children. What made the abomination worse was the tendency of the church hierarchy to, in many cases, overlook the sins of the Fathers and allow them to continue in parish ministries.
• 'Bombshell' on gay seminary teachers
. - RCC.
San Francisco Chronicle, by Alan Cooperman, Washington Post, Friday, December 2, 2005
In a letter accompanying its directive against the ordination of men with "deep-seated homosexual tendencies," the Vatican has told bishops that gay priests should not teach in Roman Catholic seminaries.
The Rev. Donald Cozzens, a Catholic author and former seminary rector, called the letter a "bombshell" because it affects current priests, not just future ones.
Some experts on church law said Thursday that the letter was nonbinding and could simply be ignored by bishops. But others predicted it would usher in a gradual purge of gays from leadership positions in the church, even if they kept their vows of celibacy.
Because priests who teach in seminaries are frequently transferred to serve in parishes and vice versa, "it could be implemented gradually, without anybody knowing" for certain why a clergyman was moved, said Sister Katarina Schuth, a professor at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota who is a leading researcher on Catholic seminaries.
• Fight against sexual abuse merits award
. - Serrano honoured.
Observer-Tribune, By MARIA VOGEL-SHORT, Dec/01/2005
MENDHAM (NJ) -- Virginia resident Mark Serrano, a former graduate of Mendham High School, said Monday there is a public safety crisis for abused children who must come out of the darkness into the light.
Serrano is a survivor of child sexual abuse who has become nationally known for his advocacy of abuse prevention.
He received the Voice of Courage award on Tuesday, Nov. 22, for speaking out. He was one of seven recipients who were honored for having spoken out about their own abuse.
The award was given by the South Carolina-based Darkness to Light organization, which is dedicated to protecting children and preventing abuse.
"Parents have to take it upon themselves to prevent abuse," said Serrano, a former resident of Mendham. "This award validates the importance of speaking out and encourages others who have been abused to come and go forward, because it's the right thing to do."
Serrano, 41, broke a confidentiality agreement with the Paterson Diocese and the Catholic Church in 2002 when he publicly talked about how he had been sexually abused by James T. Hanley, a former priest at St. Joseph Church in Mendham.
After settling a civil lawsuit against James T. Hanley, Serrano spoke on national television about the abuse he received from the priest that began when he was 9 years old.
• Wheels of justice are agony for alleged victim
. [American Boychoir School] - RCC.The Times, By KRYSTAL KNAPP, Friday, December 02, 2005
TRENTON (NJ) - John Hardwicke goes to bed every night wondering whether the next morning will bring with it "the decision."
Whenever his phone rings, he picks up the receiver thinking maybe the caller is one of his lawyers bringing him the good or bad news.
It was a year ago this week that Hardwicke's lawyers argued his case against the American Boychoir School in front of the state Supreme Court.
But so far no decision has been announced, making Hardwicke v. the American Boychoir School the oldest case on which the court has yet to rule after hearing oral arguments, according to court records.
Hardwicke, 48, a former Boychoir student who alleges he was repeatedly molested at the school, has been fighting for the right to sue the school the past five years. ...
The New Jersey Catholic Conference (NJCC), the lobbying arm of the state's Catholic bishops, initially tried to kill the bill altogether.
But after seeing the overwhelming support in the Senate, the NJCC changed its position and urged lawmakers instead to set time limits on how far back the legislation would apply retroactively.
Under an NJCC proposal, the church and other nonprofit institutions would still be shielded from civil lawsuits for acts of child sex abuse committed by their employees before Sept. 24, 1992, the date New Jersey's Child Sex Abuse Act went into effect.
• Slanderous and Hypocritical
. [211 + 26 Los Angeles Archdiocese clergy] - RCC.Los Angeles Lay Catholic Mission, BY CHRISTOPHER ZEHNDER, ~ December 02, 2005
LOS ANGELES (CA) -- The Los Angeles archdiocese has called it "full disclosure and transparency," but critics call it kicking up more dust.
On October 11, as part of settlement talks with lawyers of alleged victims of sexual molestation by priests, the archdiocese released an "Addendum to the Report to the People of God." The first "Report," issued in 2004, contained the names of 211 archdiocesan, religious, or visiting priests that have been accused of sexual molestation of minors.
The "Addendum" adds to that number 26 priests that "have come to our attention" since the report was filed. Both the "Report" and the "Addendum" do not list about 30 priests who have been accused but against whom no one has filed suit; the archdiocese, too, says it has not found the accusations against these priests credible.
But the archdiocese's alleged dust kicking is not so much the release of the 26 new names but the addendum's offering of details from the personnel files of 126 priests and lay employees who are the subjects of lawsuits currently filed against the archdiocese. These offerings are really nothing more than sketch-like summaries of information from the files.
Mary Grant of Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests is among the critics of what she calls a "public relations ploy" on the part of Cardinal Roger Mahony and the archdiocese. "It's a very watered down, sanitized version of what is in the priests' personnel files," she told me in late October, "and some of the most important information -- which church officials were receiving the reports and what they did with them -- is covered up in this report."
• Children of BU prof. file complaint of abuse
. [1978+ Richard] - RCC. 1980 pregnancy aborted, 1984 pregnancy yielded twins.The Daily Free Press, By Matt Negrin, Published: Friday, December 2, 2005
BOSTON (MA) -- A pair of 20-year old twins are suing their father, Boston University professor Rev. Lucien Richard, for not acknowledging them as his children, negligence and sexual abuse, physically and emotionally, according to the complaint.
The defendant works in the University Professors Program and also serves as a priest in the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate in Lowell.
The lawsuit was filed in the Middlesex Superior Court Nov.14, the daughters' attorney Alan Cantor said.
Cantor said the expected end date for the case is Jan. 8, 2007.
"This is known as a one-year case under our time standards order," he said. "Some cases are one-year cases. Some cases are three-year cases. This is generally a one-year case."
According to the complaint filed by the daughters, "in or about 1978, defendant Rev. Richard initiated a sexual affair with Paulette Peterson," which resulted in an aborted pregnancy in 1980 and another pregnancy in 1984 in which Peterson gave birth to twin girls.
• Summary of bishops' survey of abuse victims made public; Full report not yet available
. - RCC.National Catholic Reporter, By Joe Feuerherd, December 02, 2005
A 245-page study meant to help diocesan leaders respond to victims of clergy sex abuse has not been made publicly available, and it was unclear at press time how many bishops have seen it, though the report was provided by the author to the bishops' Washington-based Office of Child and Youth Protection in early August.
An executive summary of the study was finally posted in plain view on the bishops' Web site Nov. 30, a day after NCR first inquired about the status of the report.
• Goodman named in new abuse suits
. [1975-79 Monsignor Norman Goodman, 1958-74 Fr. Condon ] - RCC. Boys, girl.Lincoln Courier, FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS, ~ December 02, 2005
PEORIA (IL) - Defrocked monsignor Norman Goodman and the Rev. Louis Condon - who served Catholic ministries in Lincoln - are two of five priests and a nun in the Peoria Catholic Diocese accused of sexual abuse in nine civil lawsuits filed Wednesday.
Goodman is accused by Daniel Williams and Donald Schroyer, both 40, for alleged assaults between 1975 and 1979 when they were 10 to 15 years old and members of Holy Family Catholic Church, 316 S. Logan St.
The lawsuit also alleges Goodman and Condon sexually assaulted Mary Krusz, now 55.
Krusz alleges she was assaulted by Condon between 1958 and 1960 when she was 6 to 9 years old and a student at St. Mary's Catholic School in Lincoln. Krusz also claims Goodman continued the assaults from 1961 to 1974 while she was a member of St. Patrick's Catholic Church, which later changed its name to Holy Family.
• Allegation against Casey was made years ago
. [Bishop Casey] - RCC.
Galway Advertiser, BY UNA SINNOTT, ~ December 02, 2005
IRELAND -- An allegation levelled against former bishop of Galway Dr Eamon Casey this week was originally made several years ago, it has emerged.
Dr Casey, who is understood to be preparing to travel to Ireland to contest the allegation, withdrew from public ministry last weekend after the allegation came to light and a brief statement was read out on Sunday in the Our Lady of Fatima Church in Staplefield, West Sussex, where he has been serving as a priest for the past seven years.
According to Fr Stuart Geary, communications officer for the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton, the allegation dated back many years and originated from a Catholic child protection officer in Ireland.
However it is unclear whether the allegation was made in Galway, where Dr Casey served as bishop from 1976 until his sensational departure in 1992, or in another part of the country. [Bolding added.]
• Witness 'made up evidence to get back at former nun'
. - Nora Wall cleared.
The Kerryman, ~ December 02, 2005
IRELAND - The Court of Criminal Appeal has heard that a witness deliberately gave false evidence in the rape trial of Nora Wall because she "wanted to get back at" the former nun.
Ms Wall is currently seeking to have her case declared a miscarriage of justice.
The 56-year-old was sentenced to life in prison in 1999 after being convicted of helping a homeless man to rape a nine-year-old girl who was under her care 10 years previously.
The former administrator at St Michael's Child Care Centre in Cappoquin, Co Waterford, later had her conviction overturned due to errors in the trial and the fact that certain evidence had not been disclosed.
• 'Rape witness' admits lying to get back at nun
. - Nora Wall cleared.IOL, 14:50:21, Dec/01/2005
IRELAND -- A young woman gave false evidence against a former nun because she hated her and wanted to get back at her, a court heard today.
Nora Wall, 57, is seeking a certificate declaring a miscarriage of justice after she was wrongfully convicted of the rape of a young girl in 1999.
At the Court of Criminal Appeal, senior counsel, John Rogers, said that there had been a significant amount of new material discovered since that trial, particularly the statement made to garda in April 2001 by Patricia Phelan.
This 32-year-old woman had lived at the St Michael's child care centre in Capp, County Watford, with Regina Walsh, the young woman who complained to gardaí that she had been held down there on an unknown date in 1987 or 1988 by Sister Dominic (Nora Wall) and raped by a homeless man, Pablo McCabe.
• Nun's vindication - Grave wrong has been put right
. - Nora Wall cleared.Irish Examiner, ~ December 02, 2005
IRELAND - THE vindication of a former nun, wrongly sentenced to life imprisonment for the rape of a young girl that never happened, deserves to be loudly applauded.
Unfortunately, while certain members of religious orders were undoubtedly guilty of abusing those entrusted to their care, the majority were tarred unfairly with the same brush even though many were completely innocent of such charges.
Thankfully, the 1999 conviction of Nora Wall on false evidence for attacking a girl at St Michael's Childcare Centre in Cappoquin, Co Waterford, in the late 1980s, was quashed within days after it emerged a witness at the trial had been called contrary to a direction from the DPP.
After enduring untold suffering, Ms Wall will derive deep solace from yesterday's ruling of Justice Nicholas Kearns, who found the rape conviction was a miscarriage of justice.
• Former nun in 'miscarriage of justice' hearing
. - Nora Wall cleared.Waterford News & Star, By Jennifer Long, ~ December 02, 2005
IRELAND - FORMER nun Nora Wall is to apply to the Court of Criminal Appeal this Thursday for a certificate declaring she was the victim of a miscarriage of justice in relation to her conviction for rape six years ago.
If the certificate is approved, it will pave the way for the former Cappoquin-based ex-Mercy sister to sue the State in relation to the incident.
Nora Wall sensationally became the first woman in the history of the State to be found guilty of rape and the first person generally to receive a life sentence for the offence.
However, after just four days the convictions was quashed when it emerged that a key prosecution witness had given evidence despite clear instruction from the Director of Public Prosecutions that she did not do so. A number of other errors also emerged. The DPP did not seek a retrial.
• Miscarriage of justice verdict for former nun
. - Nora Wall cleared.Belfast Telegraph, By Michael Brennan, December 02, 2005
IRELAND -- A former nun who was sentenced to life imprisonment for the rape of a young girl was yesterday declared the victim of a miscarriage of justice.
Nora Wall (57) was convicted in 1999 along with a homeless man of the attack on the girl at St Michael's Childcare Centre in Cappoquin, Co Waterford on an unknown date in 1987 or 1988.
But the conviction was quashed days after the verdict after it emerged that a witness at the trial had been called contrary to the Director of Public Prosecution's direction.
At the Court of Criminal Appeal yesterday, Justice Nicholas Kearns, presiding, said Ms Wall should not have to wait a minute longer for the verdict.
"The court is quite satisfied there are newly discovered facts which show there has been a miscarriage of justice in this case," he said.
• Conviction of nun for rape a miscarriage of justice
. - Nora Wall cleared.Irish Independent, by Ann O Loughlin, ~ December 02, 2005
IRELAND - FORMER nun Nora Wall, who was wrongfully convicted of raping a 10-year old girl, was the victim of a miscarriage of justice.
The Court of Criminal Appeal yesterday certified that there had been a miscarriage of justice in the case of Ms Wall, formerly Sr Dominic, who was sentenced to life imprisonment six years ago.
Mr Justice Nicky Kearns, presiding, after hearing the four-hour-long application, said the three-judge court believed Ms Wall "should not have to wait a moment longer than necessary" to hear the court's decision.
Crucial
The judge said newly discovered facts in the case included a crucial trial witness, Ms Patricia Phelan, who admitted to gardai and another nun that she had lied about having witnessed Ms Wall hold down a young girl while a man raped her.
Immediately after the court's decision, Ms Wall, with her hand outstretched, approached Ms Phelan. A tearful Ms Phelan threw her arms around Ms Wall and hugged her.
Earlier the court heard that the DPP accepted that, had he been aware, prior to the arrest and prosecution in the late 1990s of Ms Wall and the late Paul (Pablo) McCabe, of significant information which had since come to light, the prosecution could and would never have been brought.
• Victims: Gay priest ban won't halt abuse
. [Boston Archdiocese] - RCC. Female survivors.
Boston Herald, http://news. bostonherald. com/local Regional/ view.bg? articleid= 115120 , By Marie Szaniszlo, Updated 12:32 AM EST, Friday, December 2, 2005
BOSTON (MA) -- Women who had been abused by priests as children demonstrated outside the Archdiocese of Boston's headquarters yesterday, saying the Vatican's new policy barring gay men from the seminary will do nothing to prevent the kind of abuse they endured.
"Perhaps the public . . . would like to think that priests abused altar boys and somehow their daughters were safe," said Ann Hagan Webb, a psychologist who was abused by a priest from the time she was in kindergarten through seventh grade. "We were not safe. And the sexual orientation of our abusers had nothing to do with it."
Webb was referring to a document the Vatican released earlier this week saying men "who practice homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the so-called 'gay culture' " cannot be admitted to seminaries. The policy had been in the works for years, but came to light in 2002 at the height of the clergy sex abuse scandal.
Kathleen M. Dwyer, who was abused by a priest from the ages of 5 to 8, accused church leaders of scapegoating gays to avoid taking responsibility for the scandal and to further the church's agenda of banning same-sex marriages. Dwyer was among more than a dozen women at the demonstration.
[COMMENT: Of course the women demonstrators are right. To select clergy on the basis that they don't see the love of a woman is the most important earthly pleasure, and duty, they could have, is asking for a ragbag of troubled people. Well might she say "We were not safe." The fixation on sex and associated matters of many of such leaders can be seen in their continued refusal to admit that their practices are contrary to those of the people who united around Jesus of Nazareth. ENDS.]
• Ex-teacher registers as sex offender
. [2000s Ms Geisel (Christian Brothers Academy)] - RCC. Boy/s.Troy Record, by Robert Cristo, Dec/02/2005
ALBANY (NY) - Former Christian Brothers Academy teacher Beth Geisel registered as a sex offender Thursday after recently pleading guilty to having numerous sexual encounters with an underage boy.
Geisel, 42, was back in Albany County Court to register as a level 1 sex offender, which is a category given to defendants considered the least likely to re-offend.
She was sentenced to six months behind bars last month, despite the judge in the case stating her underage male victim wasn't totally innocent in the salacious scandal that drew national attention.
• Vagary of the Vatican's instruction
. - RCC.The Tablet, Editorial, ~ December 02, 2005
IT IS NOT EASY to understand how the Vatican could issue an Instruction on homosexuality and the priesthood, long in preparation and much discussed and revised, that is still open to widely differing interpretations.
The key passage declares that "the Church, while profoundly respecting the persons in question, cannot admit to the seminary or to Holy Orders those who practise homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies, or support the so-called 'gay culture'."
Most people would read the key phrase "deep-seated homosexual tendencies" - which also appears in the Catholic Catechism - as another way of saying "homosexual orientation".
This seems to be borne out by such semi-official commentaries as have emerged from Rome. Yet Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor of Westminster promptly issued a statement that insisted: "The Instruction is not saying that men of homosexual orientation are not welcome in the priesthood."
There is little room for disagreement with the Vatican document's assertion that those who engage in homosexual acts are disqualified from the priesthood, though it might have been better to make it clear that for a celibate priesthood this applies to heterosexual acts as well.
Equally uncontentious is its opposition to what Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor describes as "an eroticised gay culture" inside seminaries.
But what of candidates for the priesthood who are proving successful in their embrace of celibacy, but who know themselves to be gay?
Indeed, what of priests perhaps years into a productive and holy ministry, who also know that about themselves?
It is hard to escape the conclusion that the Vatican document must have been profoundly wounding to them - nor that the cardinal has done his best to mitigate that deep hurt.
• Current Sexual Abuse Charges - A Sad Scandal
. - RCC.
Response Source, www.response source.com/ releases/rel_ display.php? relid=23546 &hilite= , ~ December 02, 2005
LONDON, England, UK: In the season of Advent and in the run up to Christmas, the Catholic Action Group (C.A.G.) in response to the growing number of proven sexual abuse charges being landed against clergy under the control of the Hierarchy of the Catholic Church in the United Kingdom and abroad wishes to offer its prayers to the victims of this abuse and also its heartfelt apology from its lay membership for the actions of some of its own unaccountable clergy and Hierarchy whom C.A.G acknowledges have in the past objectively and seriously let down and undermined the one true faith over the past number of decades on this and other doctrinal issues.
C.A.G. wishes to remind people that just because some Catholics behave in such an abhorrent manner by their sinful actions in scandalising the young, this in no way changes the fact that the Church established by Jesus Christ, does teach truth, forbids child sexual abuse as a crime that screams to heaven for vengeance, but simply just like Judas, some members do not live up to this truth and are ultimately like us all, accountable to Christ for their actions.
C.A.G would also like to point out, whilst every incident of child sexual abuse is wicked, that it is not just in the Catholic Church where this type of abuse occurs, but in many other environments where contact with children can be established. This is very much underplayed by the media. Statistics from the United States indicate that the Catholic Church is no better or worse for this type of crime than many other similar institutions.
[RECAP: "... Catholic Church is no better or worse for this type of crime ..." ENDS.]
[COMMENT: Is this the same One, HOLY, Catholic and Apostolic Church about a billion people belong to? Isn't it supposed to lead the way in holiness? COMMENT ENDS.]
• Church ashamed of abusive teacher
. [1970s-80s Stevenson (Marist)] - Boys.
Newstalk, 10:16:05, Dec/2/2005
NEW ZEALAND -- A retired Catholic teacher's admission that he sexually abused young boys at a school in Feilding has brought shame on the Catholic Church.
John Stevenson has pleaded guilty to seven charges relating to sexual attacks on boys at Hato Paora School in the late 70s and early 80s.
His victims were aged between 14 and 16 at the time.
Father Philip Cody from the Society of Mary says any such offending is wrong and treated very seriously. He says it is sad and shameful that the offending has occurred and illustrates a real breakdown of trust.
• Catholic order takes blame for sex abuse
. [1976-81 Stevenson (Marist)] - 5 boys.Stuff, By ANNA WALLIS and NZPA, December 02, 2005
NEW ZEALAND -- A Catholic order is taking the blame for the sexual abuse of students in its care at the Feilding boarding school it founded.
A spokesman for the Society of Mary (Marist) Phil Cody said members "feel shame, sorrow and sadness" after the conviction yesterday of a former teacher at Hato Paora College for the sexual assault of five boys.
John Louis Stevenson, 66, of Wellington, admitted abusing the boys, aged between 14 and 16, between 1976 and 1981 at Hato Paora where he was known as Brother Bernard.
• Former coach jailed for sexual abuse of boys
. [1970s Goldsmith] - RCC (Marist). 20 boys.
ABC,
AUSTRALIA - A man who sexually abused 20 teenage boys has been sent to jail for six-and-a-half years.
Paul Ronald Goldsmith, 60, committed 42 sex offences 30 years ago.
Goldsmith targeted boys aged between 13 and 16.
He befriended them through his work as an athletics coach at Marist College in Burnie in northern Tasmania, his association with church youth groups and golf clubs, as well as through friendships with their parents.
He took the victims on camping trips and invited them to his home for prayer meetings, frequently plying them with alcohol and giving them cigarettes.
• Church assets to fund victims' payout
. - RCC. 23 settlements and €3.8m so far.
Irish Examiner, By Neans McSweeney, South-East Correspondent, ~ December 02, 2005
IRELAND -- CHURCH assets will be sold if necessary to meet the costs of compensating victims of clerical sex abuse, the Auxiliary Bishop of Ferns Eamonn Walsh has confirmed.
Speaking at a closed financial meeting in the diocese, Bishop Walsh said that 23 settlements have been reached with victims and a number of other cases are outstanding. He again apologised to the victims of clerical sexual abuse.
Despite all the controversy, he said churchgoers in the diocese are digging deeper and parish contributions in Ferns increased by €6,000 last year. But the Church's finances are coming under strain, Bishop Walsh said.
"Regarding settlements and the finances of the diocese, there have been 23 settlements in the diocese and the total cost to date has been €3,826,350," he said.
The diocese is currently involved in litigation proceedings with 13 people, some of which will be resolved through mediation.
• 3 allege abuse by Orlando priest
. [1960s Uhran] - RCC. Girl, 2 boys.
Sun-Sentinel, by Mark I. Pinsky, Posted December 2 2005
ORLANDO (FL) -- A woman and two men who say a priest molested them nearly four decades ago sued the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orlando on Thursday.
The actions bring to eight the number of suits that have accused the Rev. Vernon Uhran of sexual abuse of young people while he was assigned to St. Mary Magdalen parish in Altamonte Springs.
Thursday's filings, each seeking more than $5 million in damages, charge that Uhran, who was removed from the ministry in 1992, engaged in a variety of abusive acts with the minors. One suit accuses him of molesting a 7-year-old girl while she was sleeping on her living-room floor in 1967.
• Who was the real target of Senate Bill 1779?
.The Tidings, (Third in a series), ~ December 02, 2005
Editor's note: In 2002, the California Legislature passed legislation written by personal injury attorneys interested in suing the Catholic Church. The legislation, known as Senate Bill 1779, allowed for the revival of claims of sexual abuse that previously had been barred by a statute of limitations. The result was an avalanche of lawsuits filed against the Church, the majority of which were for claims of abuse stretching back 30 to 70 years.
UNITED STATES -- The media reminds us that there are more than 550 claims pending against the Archdiocese alleging sexual abuse of minors by clergy. What the media does not clarify is that Senate Bill 1779 singled out the Catholic Church as a target for these claims and other claims dating all the way back to the early 1930s.
That any priest, teacher or any other adult would abuse his or her trust by sexually exploiting a child is as heinous to the Catholic Church as it is to the public at large. Cardinal Mahony has expressed his personal sadness regarding past allegations of abuse by clergy, and has instituted many steps to create safe environments for all so that the future will not resemble the past.
• Vatican 'Instruction': A sharp line, and delicate questions
. - RCC.
The Tidings, By John Thavis, ~ December 02, 2005
A long-awaited Vatican document drew a sharp line against priestly ordination of homosexuals, but in the process raised a series of delicate questions for church leaders and seminary officials.
The nine-page instruction, prepared by the Congregation for Catholic Education, said the church cannot ordain men who are active homosexuals, who have "deep-seated" homosexual tendencies or who support the "gay culture." Those who have overcome "transitory" homosexual tendencies, however, could be ordained, it said.
The document was officially released by the Vatican Nov. 29 after years of preparation. Its full title was "Instruction Concerning the Criteria for the Discernment of Vocations With Regard to Persons With Homosexual Tendencies in View of Their Admission to the Seminary and to Sacred Orders."
• In Letter, the Vatican Expands Gay Controls
. - RCC.
The New York Times, By NEELA BANERJEE, Published: December 2, 2005
WASHINGTON (DC) , Dec. 1 - A cover letter attached to a Vatican directive that would bar most gay men from entering seminaries also prohibits priests with "homosexual tendencies" from teaching or running seminaries.
The letter, first reported by Catholic News Service, was dated Nov. 4 and sent to Roman Catholic bishops and signed by Cardinal Zenon Grocholewski, prefect of the Vatican's congregation on education, which devised the directive. A copy of the letter was provided to The New York Times by Origins, a unit of the news service that publishes church documents.
The directive "does not call into question the validity of the ordination" of priests "with homosexual tendencies," the letter noted. But the letter said that "because of the particular responsibility of those charged with the formation of future priests, they are not to be appointed as rectors or educators in seminaries." The letter and the directive do not define "homosexual tendency."
• Column: The Prada punditry
. - RCC.Daily Illini, By John Bambenek, Published: Friday, December 2, 2005
It appears that some pundits believe the only acceptable response to the Catholic sex abuse crisis would be for the Pope to say, "You know, 2000 years has been a good run. We're out. Peace!" Then he would close the doors of the Catholic Church forever. This mentality can be seen by those who think the recent Vatican statement on homosexuals in the priesthood is somehow metaphysically about the sex abuse crisis.
The new rules basically say that active homosexuals or those supportive of gay culture (such as advocating gay marriage) cannot be ordained. In short, priesthood candidates need to live the doctrine of celibacy and be prepared to accept Catholic moral teaching. Current priests who are gay are unaffected, contrary to news reports that couldn't manage to find a quote from anyone in support of the new rules. There may be two sides of every story, but only one side apparently has enough merit to warrant quotes.
Eric Naing seems to think the new rules are about the sex abuse crisis. He also has found people to be homosexuals in almost every column this year based on inane details. It is no wonder Eric is worried about the difficulty of defining homosexual tendencies when he seems to think footwear choice is a matter of sexual orientation.
Pope John Paul II called for a study on the question of whether to admit homosexuals into the priesthood in 1994. The year 1994 is also known for being approximately eight years before the sex abuse crisis.
• France Childsex Case Collapses
. - RC priest among those falsely accused.
SBS (Australia), 17:48:31, Dec.2.2005 <
FRANCE -- A court in Paris has overturned the child sex convictions against six people, including a priest, after one of France's most embarrassing judicial fiascos.
The acquittal in the Paris appeals court clears the way for hefty compensation claims by the accused, and comes a day after an unprecedented apology by a leading state prosecutor who told the six their trial had been a "veritable catastrophe".
An official inquiry has been called into how the case was mishandled by Justice Minister Pascal Clement, who apologised over what he described as a "disaster".
• Sex Suspect Faces Kauai Judge
. [1996 Saulibio] - RCC.
KGMB, by Lisa Kubota - lkubota@kgmb9.com , ~ December 02, 2005
HAWAII -- An Oahu man who settled a high-profile sex abuse case against a Catholic priest is now accused of raping a teenage girl on Kauai nine years ago. Eugene Saulibio was in a Lihue courtroom Thursday morning, this time as the alleged abuser. Police began their investigation back in April.
"Eugene is deeply distressed. He was a member of this community for a long time," said Saulibio's attorney, Victor Bakke. "People know him, they respect him and it's very unfortunate that he's here today."
Officers arrested the 44-year-old on Oahu for allegedly raping a 14-year-old girl during a two-month period in 1996. Police said she was a family friend on vacation staying at his former home on Kauai. Bakke believes the timing is suspicious, since his client settled a sex abuse case involving Father Joseph Bukoski three weeks ago.
"It just happened to come out about the same time Eugene came into some money with a settlement that we believe the complaining witness is aware of," said Bakke.
• Catholic priest surrenders on molesting charge
. [2005 Selvaraj] - RCC. Girl.
The Times (USA), By LINDA STEIN, Friday, December 02, 2005
NEW JERSEY -- A Roman Catholic priest accused of molesting an 11-year-old girl turned himself in yesterday and, after a brief appearance before a Superior Court judge, was released on his own recognizance.
The Rev. James Selvaraj, 46, the adjunct priest of St. Raphael-Holy Angels Parish in Hamilton, is charged with one count of endangering the welfare of a child for an alleged incident Sept. 28 on the church grounds, said Assistant Prosecutor Robin Scheiner, head of the sexual assault and child abuse unit.
Scheiner told Judge Maria Sypek that she had discussed the case with Selvaraj's defense lawyer, Mark Fliedner, and they agreed that Selvaraj would not be required to post bail but must submit to a series of conditions.
Selvaraj must have no contact with the victim or her family; no contact with any children under the age of 18, either supervised or unsupervised; must turn in his passport and remain in the United States and in New Jersey unless a judge allows him to travel.
• Vatican policy sparks outrage among U.S. Catholics
. - RCC.
Southern Voice, By ELIZABETH WEILL-GREENBERG, Friday, December 02, 2005
UNITED STATES -- The long awaited Vatican document banning gay men and those who "support gay culture" from the priesthood was released this week, sparking outrage among some clergy and gay and lesbian rights groups.
For months, snippets of the document have been leaked to the media, generating speculation as to how sweeping the ban would be and whether it would officially have the pope's support. But the final document was clear in its position on homosexuality.
The statement claims that gay men and lesbians are "objectively disordered" and the church "cannot admit to the seminary or to holy orders those who practice homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies, or support the so-called 'gay culture.'"
The bishops, Episcopal Conferences and Superior Generals are charged with enforcing this ban. Spiritual directors, who have a sacrosanct relationship with their seminarians, according to theologian Mary Hunt, are ordered to discourage gays from seeking ordination.
• 3 allege abuse by Orlando priest
. [1967+ Uhran, 1970 Page] - RCC. Girl, 2 boys.Orlando Sentinel, by Mark I. Pinsky, Posted December 2, 2005
ORLANDO (FL) -- A woman and two men who say a priest molested them nearly four decades ago sued the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orlando on Thursday.
The actions bring to eight the number of suits that have accused the Rev. Vernon Uhran of sexual abuse of young people while he was assigned to St. Mary Magdalen parish in Altamonte Springs.
Thursday's filings, each seeking more than $5 million in damages, charge that Uhran, who was removed from the ministry in 1992, engaged in a variety of abusive acts with the minors. One suit accuses him of molesting a 7-year-old girl while she was sleeping on her living-room floor in 1967.
Another suit, by a former altar boy now living in Houston, charged that Uhran began abusing him when he was a freshman at Bishop Moore High School in 1970. The alleged abuse continued for three years, according to the suit.
The suit alleges that another priest, the Rev. David Page, walked in while Uhran was fondling the teen at the St. Mary Magdalen rectory. "Father Page quickly exited the room and shut the door," the suit says.
• Aiea man pleads not guilty to charges of rape in 1996
. [1996 Saulibio] - Girl.
Honolulu Star-Bulletin, By Tom Finnegan, tfinnegan@starbulletin.com
LIHUE, Hawaii -- Eugene Saulibio, the Aiea man who received a settlement from a Catholic priest who sexually assaulted him, pleaded not guilty to his own rape charges yesterday in Circuit Court.
Saulibio, a 44-year-old father of three, had little to say both in court and afterward, relying on his Honolulu attorney, Victor Bakke, to answer questions from the judge and the throng of media outside the courtroom.
Bakke entered a not-guilty plea for the four first-degree sexual assault charges filed against his client, and received a Feb. 27 trial date.
His lawyer also said that the $80,000 bail Saulibio posted was a hardship on his family and requested a reduction. Judge George Masuoka ordered a bail study.
• Fort Collins Priest Denies Sexual Abuse Charges
. [1998+ Evans] - RCC. Boy.
TheDenverChannel.com ~ December 02, 2005
FORT COLLINS, Colo. -- The lawyer for a former Roman Catholic priest accused of sexual abuse said Thursday that the 43-year-old man denies the charges.
Erik Fischer told The Denver Post that a man in his 20s brought the allegations against his client, the Rev. Timothy Joseph Evans.
Evans was advised Wednesday in Larimer County Court of the felony counts against him, including two counts of sexual abuse on a child by a person in a position of trust, a pattern of abuse and contributing to a delinquency of a minor.
It was not clear if he entered a plea at the hearing -- few details are available about the case because the court file has been sealed and a gag order was issued. Evans is scheduled to appear in court next on Dec. 20.
According to Fischer, the claims against Evans go back to 1998, the first year he served at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton parish, which has more than 2,000 members. Evans was removed from his position as pastor three years ago.
• Maine diocese defends priest sued in Southboro sex case
. [Nadeau; Portland (Maine) Diocese] - RCC. Male.Telegram & Gazette , By Kathleen A. Shaw, kshaw@telegram.com , ~ December 02, 2005
WORCESTER (MA) -- The national Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests and a Maine activist with Voice of the Faithful yesterday questioned why a Maine priest accused of sexually abusing a Southboro man several years ago is still in active ministry in Maine.
Michael Stuart, then of Southboro, filed suit here in U.S. District Court in late 1995 alleging incidents of sexual abuse by the Rev. Real Nadeau. Rev. Nadeau is a pastor in the Portland, Maine, Diocese. The suit was settled in 1996 for an undisclosed amount of money.
In a letter to Bishop Richard Malone of the Portland Diocese, Barbara Blaine of Chicago, president of SNAP; David Clohessy of St. Louis, executive director of SNAP; and Paul Kendrick of Portland, who is with the Voice of the Faithful-Maine Ignatius Group, asked for more information about the Worcester lawsuit, which named the Portland Diocese.
Sue Bernard, communications director for the Portland Diocese, said yesterday the allegations were investigated by the diocese at the time of the suit and no evidence surfaced that would show the events described in the suit actually happened. She said Rev. Nadeau has always denied the allegations. Mr. Stuart was 26 at the time of the alleged incidents and was an adult, she said.
"There are no plans to remove Father Nadeau at this time because there is no reason to do it," she said.
Ms. Bernard said the lawsuit was settled without admission of guilt but terms were confidential. She said payment of some money was involved.
The lawsuit said Rev. Nadeau was "a sexually active homosexual" who "solicited" Mr. Stuart to engage in homosexual sex for money.
"All we know of this case is what we've seen in these court documents," Ms. Blaine said.
"We haven't spoken to either the victim or his attorney. But if Father Nadeau hurt Stuart or anyone else, we want them to know they can call us for help," she said.
The SNAP officials and Mr. Kendrick have asked the bishop to reveal terms of the settlement, divulge the age of Mr. Stuart when he met Rev. Nadeau, and disclose whether other allegations have been made against the priest.
The Maine diocese alleged in its answer to the suit that Mr. Stuart admitted to "a history of dysfunctional sexual behavior." The diocese said he worked as a stripper and male prostitute "and has had sexual relationships with adults other than Father Nadeau."
The diocese maintained the lawsuit was part of "a scheme to go from diocese of diocese" seeking money. They said past court actions involved the Worcester diocese, the Hartford diocese and the Manchester, N.H., Diocese.
"We strongly doubt that all of this is true," Mr. Kendrick said. "Even if part of it is true, that doesn't mean Nadeau didn't abuse Stuart. After being terribly betrayed and abused, some victims do end up becoming promiscuous and self-destructive," he said. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 07:44 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Fri December 02, 2005
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont119.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.ncrnews.org/abuse, Sat December 03, 2005 edition follows:-
• Euless pastor charged after allegedly molesting younger man
. [? 2005 Finley] - Methodist. Man.
KVUE, www.kvue.com/ news/state/ stories/120305 cckkKVUEpastor. 39d0d4c4.html , Associated Press, 03:06 PM CST on Saturday, December 3, 2005
EULESS, Texas -- Police say a 68-year-old pastor has been arrested for allegedly molesting a 21-year-old man.
The Reverend James Leonard Finley, senior pastor of First United Methodist Church of Euless, was arrested Thursday. Authorities say he fondled the alleged victim against the man's wishes while he was home alone.
Police say the man was left crying in the apartment he shares with his mother. He immediately called police.
Authorities later recorded Finley offering to perform sex acts on the man.
Euless Detective Kimberly Althouse says Finley had previously given money to the alleged victim's family to help them with bills. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 08:53 PM]
• Profile: Eamon Casey: The bishop still seeking sanctuary from his past
. [Bishop Casey, Fr. Cleary] - RCC. Both fathered children.
The Sunday Times (Britain), ~ December 03, 2005
IRELAND -- "Young people of Ireland, I love you," called out Pope John Paul II to the hundreds of thousands who had gathered in Galway in October 1979. The crowd at Ballybrit racecourse responded effusively, singing and cheering. It was a glorious moment for the man who had made it all happen: Bishop Eamon Casey.
Standing in the rain for hours waiting for the Pope's helicopter to appear through the clouds, the young people had been entertained by two of the country's best-known clerics. The ebullient Casey, bishop of Galway, and Fr Michael Cleary, the singing priest, whipped the crowd up into an ecumenical frenzy with jubilant song and prayer.
On that October day, Casey and Cleary were only the support act, but in the early 1990s they would upstage and eclipse the entire Catholic Church in Ireland. The revelation that both had fathered children precipitated a crisis in the church from which it has never fully recovered.
In 1992, after Annie Murphy, an American divorcee, revealed the details of her affair with Casey and the existence of their son, Peter, the bishop resigned from his post and fled Ireland. Although he has returned intermittently, the church seems happier for him to stay away. It is his very ebullience, which proved so invaluable on that wet October day, that it fears.
• Comment: Brenda Power: Pope's instruction is perversion of truth
. - RCC.
The Times (Britain), ~ December 03, 2005
Imagine the Pioneer Total Abstinence Association announcing that, from now on, it would only be accepting members who didn't drink wine. Those who didn't drink spirits, on the other hand, would not be welcome. And those would-be pioneers who mostly didn't drink wine but occasionally didn't drink spirits would have to prove it had been three years since they'd even thought about not drinking a Bacardi Breezer.
This, in effect, is what the Vatican has said about homosexuals and the priesthood. All priests are required to be celibate. So why is the Pope issuing instructions about the precise nature of the intimate relations from which potential clergymen must undertake to abstain?
Either they're willing to pack it all in or they're not, and if they are, then it shouldn't matter what their practices or tendencies or preferences used to be.
If they're not, then their being homosexual is no greater threat to the integrity of the Catholic church than if they were perfectly mature heterosexual sadomasochists.
In fact, it would probably be less so, since the evidence from several residential institutions suggests that the worst sex abusers appeared to take particular pleasure in inflicting pain and humiliation on their helpless victims.
All homosexuals are not paedophiles and all paedophiles are not homosexuals.
• Catholic priest surrenders on molesting charge
. [2005 Selvaraj] - RCC. Girl.
The Times (USA), By LINDA STEIN, Friday, December 02, 2005
NEW JERSEY -- A Roman Catholic priest accused of molesting an 11-year-old girl turned himself in yesterday and, after a brief appearance before a Superior Court judge, was released on his own recognizance.
The Rev. James Selvaraj, 46, the adjunct priest of St. Raphael-Holy Angels Parish in Hamilton, is charged with one count of endangering the welfare of a child for an alleged incident Sept. 28 on the church grounds, said Assistant Prosecutor Robin Scheiner, head of the sexual assault and child abuse unit.
Scheiner told Judge Maria Sypek that she had discussed the case with Selvaraj's defense lawyer, Mark Fliedner, and they agreed that Selvaraj would not be required to post bail but must submit to a series of conditions.
• Hamilton Township Priest Accused Of Molesting 11-Year-Old
. [2005 Selvaraj] - RCC. Girl.NBC 10, www.nbc10.com/news/5454042/detail.html , UPDATED: 7:27 pm EST, December 2, 2005
HAMILTON TOWNSHIP, N.J. -- A Roman Catholic priest in New Jersey was arrested Thursday and accused of molesting an 11-year-old girl in his parish.
The Mercer County prosecutor's office said that the Rev. James Selvaraj, 46, an adjunct priest of St. Raphael-Holy Angels Parish, has been charged with one count of endangering the welfare of a child in connection with an incident on Sept. 28.
Selvaraj is a priest of the Diocese of Tuticorin, India, and has been working for the Diocese of Trenton since 1998. He had been at St. Raphael's for more than one year.
"It's scary. My wife's starting to get really upset," said Bob Adams, a Hamilton Township resident who has children in the church's school. "(My wife) doesn't want to take (our children) out because it is only one incident, one priest."
Prosecutors would not go into specifics about the allegations.
"I really, deep down, believe it's a misinterpretation, miscommunication, perception -- whatever you want to call it -- but it just doesn't sound like Father James," said John Celinski, of Hamilton Township.
• Priest charged with endangering welfare of child
. [2005 Selvaraj] - RCC. Girl.The Trentonian, By PETE DALY, Dec/02/2005
TRENTON (NJ) -- A 46-year-old priest from India who had ministered at St. Raphael-Holy Angels Parish was charged with endangering the welfare of a child yesterday.
Rev. James Selvaraj was barely audible as he entered a not guilty plea before Mercer County Superior Court Judge Maria Sypek and said he understood the single count against him.
Selvaraj engaged in conduct "which impaired or debauched the morals of an 11-year-old female" at the Hamilton Township parish on Sept. 28 of this year, according to the prosecutor's office.
The priest was released on his own recognizance after the hearing, but Sypek ordered he surrender his passport and said he could not leave the state without a court order.
Selvaraj, who served as a priest in the Diocese of Tuticorin, India before arriving in Trenton, was also removed from his duties by the Diocese of Trenton yesterday. [Emphasis added]
• Dismissed priest's woes far from over
. [1990s Sayasaya] - RCC. 2 boys.
The Manila Times, ~ December 03, 2005
FARGO, North Dakota: The Cass County prosecutor said he will continue to seek the return of a man dismissed from the priesthood after leaving the country.
Fernando Sayasaya, believed to be in the Philippines, is accused of fondling two boys in the mid 1990s, when he served parishes in Fargo and West Fargo. He is charged with gross sexual imposition in Cass County.
The Fargo Roman Catholic Diocese said Thursday that the Vatican recently dismissed Sayasaya as a priest. The Fargo diocese had relieved him of his duties in August 1998, when the allegations involving juveniles first surfaced.
Cass County State's Attorney Birch Burdick said authorities are still working to return Sayasaya to North Dakota to face charges. He said he had been notified of the church's action. [Emphasis added]
• Innocent religious should not be victims of a rush to judgement
. [Bishop Casey, and others in history] - RCC.
Irish Examiner, ~ December 03, 2005
IRELAND -- Our government didn't give a damn, but Eamon Casey made a name for himself, as a young priest, helping those people. This was forgotten, however, because of his human failings.
Sure, as the saying goes, it could happen to a bishop. One pope died in bed with his mistress, and another not only had a son, but also arranged for the son to succeed him. In more recent times, Cardinal Cody of Chicago died while under criminal indictment as a result of his long-term involvement with a woman, and Cardinal Jean Danielou died on the stairs of a Paris brothel as he was going to visit a young prostitute.
Some of those who knew the cardinal argued that the visit was just part of his priestly duties. "The press aired all the expected innuendoes," according to the British Dominican Timothy Radcliffe. "But, as far as I could see, he was a holy man being a good priest. In a way it was the perfect place for a cardinal to die."
Wow!
In many respects the Casey affair opened this country up to a healthy scepticism and ultimately helped to undermine the temporal power of the Church here. Only a few years earlier, for instance, the Catholic hierarchy had played a leading role in persuading people to reject constitutional change that would have provided for divorce.
• Vatican makes being gay itself a sin
. - RCC.
Centre Daily, BY ELLEN GOODMAN, ellengoodman@globe.com , ~ December 03, 2005
Somewhere along the way, the dividing line over gay issues picked up and moved. It's no longer between red and blue states, or left and right wings, but between nature and nurture. Or to be more precise, between those who believe that homosexuality is a choice and those who believe that homosexuality is innate.
Remember the moment in the 2004 debate when CBS' Bob Schieffer asked President Bush and Sen. John Kerry whether they thought that homosexuality was a choice? The president answered, "I don't know," and the senator replied, "We're all God's children."
Well, it turns out that the more you believe homosexuality is innate, the more accepting you are of gay rights. A full 79 percent of people who think that human beings are born with a sexual orientation support gay rights, including civil unions or marriage equality.
But only 22 percent of those who believe homosexuality is a choice agree. ...
Thirty years ago the Catholic Church accepted the view that some were definitively gay. Church teachings said that "they do not choose their homosexual condition." Nevertheless, the new document doesn't just ban gays who "practice" homosexuality, breaking the vows of celibacy. It bans all those with homosexual "tendencies."
In the strange new backsliding language of the Vatican, homosexuality is a "tendency." The church doesn't define tendency, nor does it say whether such a tendency is biological. Voluntary or not, it marks a man permanently. As Matt Foreman, a gay activist raised Catholic, says, "Doesn't matter what you do or believe or practice. If you are gay, there is no making that better in the eyes of the church."
• Moore Arrested For Another Allegation Of Sexual Assault
. [? 2000s Moore] - Dogwood City Chapel. Children.Tyler Morning Telegraph, By KENNETH DEAN, Dec/02/2005
DOGWOOD CITY (TX) -- The former Dogwood City day care owner indicted earlier this year on two counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child charges was arrested Friday morning after another victim came forward.
Jefferson Marion Moore, 57, was taken into police custody after a lengthy investigation into allegations of sexual abuse of another child in the center's care.
Lt. Larry Wiginton, Smith County Sheriff's Department, said Moore was arrested Friday morning on another charge of aggravated sexual assault of a child.
Moore is listed as the owner of the Dogwood City Preschool and Daycare, 22284 Texas Highway 155 South, which has been closed since the investigation began last December. ...
As part of his conditions of the May bond, Moore was to have no contact with children and was forced to shut down his church in July because youngsters attended. He requested that he be allowed to resume his duties as the sole pastor of the church, which has no Sunday school classes or nursery.
Judge Kerry Russell of the 7th District Court modified the conditions of his release in August, allowing Moore to continue as pastor of the Dogwood City Chapel as long as he has no contact with children unless two other adults are present.
• Wineke: Leaders create crisis for church
. - RCC. "Set apart" doctrine assailed.Wisconsin State Journal, Columnist Bill Wineke, Dec/03/05
UNITED STATES -- There is a crisis in the Roman Catholic Church, but it's not a crisis caused by homosexuals or, even, by pedophiles.
The crisis stems from a central tenet of the faith, that there is a sacred priesthood, one called by God and set apart from other mere mortals.
This week, in order to explicate its definition of Holy Orders, the church issued a statement limiting ordination of gay men to those who do not have "deep-seated homosexual tendencies."
Although the statement was portrayed around the world as a means of dealing the with sexual-abuse crisis in the church, the Vatican statement makes clear that its problem with gay priests is that they do not adequately reflect the perfection of Christ.
• Not-guilty plea in sex-assault case
. [1996 Saulibio (Fathers of the Sacred Hearts)] - RCC. Girl.
The Garden Island, www.kauaiworld.com/articles/2005/12/02/news/news01.txt , by Cynthia Kaneshiro, December 2, 2005
LIHU'E, Hawaii -- Members of the media from around the state converged on the new Kaua'i courthouse facility to cover the arraignment of former Kalaheo resident Eugene Saulibio, charged with four counts of sexual assault involving a young girl at Saulibio's Kalaheo home in 1996.
He pleaded not guilty.
Saulibio, 44, now living in 'Aiea on O'ahu, appeared yesterday before Fifth Circuit Court Chief Judge George Masuoka, to be arraigned on the felony offenses.
Saulibio's attorney, Victor J. Bakke, requested that bail be reduced from $80,000 to $40,000.
Bakke said the present bail is a hardship on his client.
Masuoka ordered a bail study be conducted, to see if Saulibio's bail could be lowered. He remains free on bail. A jury trial is scheduled for Feb. 27. [...]
According to court records, Saulibio was indicted by members of a Kaua'i grand jury on four counts of first-degree sexual assault. The alleged offenses took place between July 1, 1996 and Aug. 31, 1996. If convicted on all four counts, Saulibio could be sent to prison for up to 80 years. The two-page indictment was filed Nov. 21.
The indictment was filed after Saulibio recently settled a court case on O'ahu where he was the victim of sexual assault. In that case, he claimed that he was sexually assaulted when he was 15 years old by the Rev. Joseph Bukoski III in 1976.
Bukoski is a Koloa native now living on O'ahu.
On Nov. 8, a settlement was reached between Saulibio, Bukoski and leaders of Bukoski's Catholic church order, the Fathers of the Sacred Hearts. A jury trial was scheduled to begin the day before.
According to court records, Bukoski will pay $50 a month for the next 10 years to Saulibio, or to members of his family if Saulibio dies before the 10 years are up.
Bukoski will also not be allowed to work with children, according to court records.
Additionally, according to court records, the Fathers of the Sacred Hearts will publicly apologize to Saulibio by running that apology in the Hawaii Catholic Herald, a weekly Catholic newspaper.
Bukoski also apologized for what he did to Saulibio in the summer of 1976. In a letter, Bukoski wrote, "I am truly sorry for all you have gone through and suffered as a result of my actions. I should have apologized sooner." [...]
• Scandal fallout
. - RCC.
Mercury News, By Alan Cooperman, Washington Post, ~ December 03, 2005
During his long reign, Pope John Paul II apologized to Muslims for the Crusades, to Jews for anti-Semitism, to Orthodox Christians for the sacking of Constantinople, to Italians for the Vatican's associations with the Mafia and to scientists for the persecution of Galileo.
He apologized so often, in fact, that an Italian journalist compiled a book of more than 90 papal statements of contrition.
Yet the pope never apologized for the most shocking behavior that came to light on his watch: sexual abuse of children by priests and the church's attempts to hush it up. To some victims, that is a puzzling omission and a deep stain on his legacy.
[COMMENT: Did JP II apologise when he had the US cardinals come to the Vatican specially? Even if he did, his lack of action before and after that are his main failures. COMMENT ENDS.]
• Dismissal won't stop criminal case
. [1990s Sayasaya] - RCC. 2 boys.
Grand Forks Herald, ~ December 03, 2005
FARGO (ND) -- The Cass County prosecutor says he will continue to seek the return of a man dismissed from the priesthood after leaving the country.
Fernando Sayasaya, believed to be in the Philippines, is accused of fondling two boys in the mid 1990s, when he served parishes in Fargo and West Fargo. He is charged with gross sexual imposition in Cass County.
The Fargo Roman Catholic Diocese said Thursday the Vatican recently dismissed Sayasaya as a priest. The Fargo diocese had relieved him of his duties in August 1998, when the allegations involving juveniles first surfaced.
Cass County State's Attorney Birch Burdick said authorities are still working to return Sayasaya to North Dakota to face charges. He said he had been notified of the church's action.
• Closed Doors
. - RCC.
Fort Worth Star-Telegram, By KEVIN ECKSTROM, Religion News Service, ~ December 03, 2005
EMMITSBURG, Md. -- When Joe Yokum considered a call to the Catholic priesthood five years ago, the first thing a seminary official asked him was not his understanding of the Trinity or salvation, or even why he wanted to be a priest.
"Do you consider yourself to be a homosexual man?" recalled Yokum, now 27 and a third-year seminarian at Mount St. Mary's Seminary here. Jarred by the question, Yokum answered no.
"He wanted to know right away," Yokum said of the questioner.
If Yokum had answered yes, he probably would have been denied admission -- even before Tuesday's release of new Vatican rules that are designed to keep men with "deep-seated homosexual tendencies" from becoming priests.
• Charges against ex-priest rattle church
. [2002 Evans] - RCC. Girl.The Coloradoan, By SARA REED, SaraReed@coloradoan.com , December 03, 2005
COLORADO -- A former parishioner of a priest accused of sexual assault says she observed him behaving inappropriately with a preteen girl on Christmas Eve 2002.
The Rev. Timothy Joseph Evans, 43, faces two counts of sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust, one count of sexual assault on a child - pattern of abuse and one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, all felonies. Evans was a priest at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, 5450 S. Lemay Ave., from 1998 to 2002.
"Jokingly, he sat her on her lap, put his arm around her and asked 'How's it going, sexy?' " said Diane Brennan, who left the church in May. "It was not overt abuse but covert, inappropriate behavior."
The incident raised a red flag, Brennan said, but she did not report it to the Rev. Larry Christensen until several months later when another parishioner mentioned witnessing a similar incident. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 07:41 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker www.ncrnews.org/abuse , Sat December 03, 2005
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont119.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.ncrnews.org/abuse, Sun December 04, 2005 edition follows:-
• Priest sex abuse victims get hearing on church ownership claims
. [Portland (Oregon) Archdiocese] - RCC.
Seattle Post-Intelligencer, http://seattlepi. nwsource.com/ local/6420AP_ OR_Archdiocese_ Bankruptcy.html , By WILLIAM McCALL, AP BUSINESS WRITER, ~ December 04, 2005
PORTLAND, Ore. -- The first bankruptcy in the nation declared by a Roman Catholic diocese has raised a thorny question whose answer may have an enormous impact on any future claims by victims of alleged priest sex abuse - who owns the churches and the property they are standing on?
Lawyers for the victims say it's the diocese. Attorneys for the Archdiocese of Portland say it is the individual parishes and Catholic schools.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Elizabeth Perris will ultimately decide who owns church property - and on Tuesday she will hear the arguments of both sides.
The case could set a precedent over whether federal law trumps Catholic doctrine when it comes to church property, according to legal scholars and some of the attorneys involved in the case. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 03:38 PM]
• Lawyers want to see girl's therapy records
. [? 2004 Nash] - Episcopalian. Girl.Concord Monitor, By LAUREN R. DORGAN, November 30, 2005
NEW HAMPSHIRE -- Attorneys for a 46-year-old Northfield man accused of sexually assaulting a 4-year-old girl are arguing that they should be able to privately review records of the girl's counseling sessions.
Scott Nash, a former lay leader at Tilton's Trinity Episcopal Church, is charged with digitally raping the girl and forcing her to touch him while he babysat for her. She is now 5 years old.
In court papers, Public Defender Abigail Albee argues that the girl's accounts of the alleged abuse have differed in several particulars. Any accounts she gave to her counselor may contain inconsistencies and could even prove Nash's innocence, Albee says. The possibility of the information being useful to the defense trumps the importance of doctor-patient privilege, she argues.
A hearing was held on Monday, but Judge Kathleen McGuire made no decision on the defense's motion. Another hearing is scheduled for Friday.
• Man pleads guilty to molesting 4-year-old girl
. [? 2004 Nash] - Episcopalian. < $US 1000 stolen. Girl.The Boston Globe, December 3, 2005
CONCORD, N.H. --A former youth minister at a Tilton church has pleaded guilty to molesting a 4-year-old girl and stealing nearly $1,000 from a church-sponsored food pantry.
Scott Nash, 46, will serve two to five years in prison on a sexual assault charge. He initially faced more serious crimes, but those charges were dropped as part of a deal to spare the girl from having to testify.
• Kennebunk pastor will step aside amid probe
. [1999 Laplante] - RCC. Girl.Portland Press Herald, By TESS NACELEWICZ, ~ December 04, 2005
KENNEBUNK (ME) -- The pastor of St. Martha's Roman Catholic Church is stepping aside while the Diocese of Portland investigates an allegation that he improperly touched a 9-year-old girl six years ago. Bishop Richard Malone made the announcement regarding the Rev. Laurent Laplante to parishioners at Saturday afternoon Mass at the church off Route 1.
Malone said the 74-year-old priest has denied any wrongdoing, according to a statement released by the diocese. However, Laplante has agreed to "step aside temporarily" and cooperate with the diocese as it looks into the matter, Malone said.
He said the Rev. Maurice Lebel, a retired priest in the diocese, will fill in for Laplante, who has been with the parish for 10 years.
Laplante allegedly touched the girl in 1999, but she only recently reported it, according to the diocese's statement. The allegation was that "Fr. Laplante touched her pants on the knee and inner thigh," Malone said.
The diocese said it immediately reported the allegation to public authorities. Malone has also spoken to the family of the girl, now a high school student, and the diocese has offered her support and counseling, the diocese said.
• Downtown congregation welcomes new pastor
. [McCaffrey] - RCC.
Fairbanks News-Miner, By MARY BETH SMETZER, ~ December 04, 2005
FAIRBANKS (AK) -- An undercurrent of excitement ran high Saturday at Immaculate Conception Church as Bishop Donald Kettler installed its new pastor, the Rev. Mirek Woznica, in a simple, straightforward ceremony at the 5:30 p.m. Mass.
"Pray that God will bless you and your new pastor in a very special way," Kettler said at the opening of the installation service.
Incense and music, packed pews and a standing-room-only crowd combined for a celebratory atmosphere. From time to time joyful applause and laughter broke through the solemnity of the ceremony in the century-old church on the banks of the Chena River.
Heads nodded, and smiles widened when Kettler formally introduced the Polish priest to church deacons, staff members, the parish council, Stephen ministers and the congregation. ...
Just six months ago, Kettler told this same congregation that its pastor, the Rev. Richard McCaffrey, had been suspended from his pastoral duties while an inquiry was conducted, a requisite part of the procedure when a cleric is accused of abuse.
Three months later he read a letter to a silent congregation that McCaffrey was relieved from all priestly duties in the diocese following a diocesan investigation.
• Church fights plan to ease sex-suit filing
. - RCC.
Philadelphia Inquirer, By Craig R. McCoy and Angela Couloumbis, ~ December 04, 2005
PENNSYLVANIA -- The Catholic Church in Pennsylvania is lobbying against a proposal that would allow sexual-abuse victims from decades ago to file lawsuits, saying it could cause financial ruin for the church.
Some Harrisburg lawmakers want the state to create a one-year "window" to allow victims to sue, regardless of when they were abused. This would relax a strict statute of limitations that has kept virtually all of those cases out of the courts.
Pushing for the change are victims' groups and the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office, which issued a scathing report on clergy sexual abuse in September.
On Friday afternoon, after being questioned by The Inquirer, the Philadelphia Archdiocese issued a statement supporting some proposed reforms and explaining its opposition to any change that would permit old allegations to enter the courts.
• The Vatican's real scandal
. - RCC.Los Angeles Times, December 04, 2005
LOS ANGELES -- IF ITS PURPOSE IS TO UNDERLINE the church's stance that homosexuality is immoral, then the Vatican's policy barring many gays from the priesthood counts as a success. But if its aims also are to stem sexual abuse and make priests more effective chaplains, as it implies, then the directive is both illogical and ill-informed.
Most of the molestation cases in the Roman Catholic Church have involved male victims. But that's a far cry from indicating that most gay priests are potential molesters.
Beyond that, the new church instructions create artificial definitions of homosexuality. The ban on gay priests extends only to those with "deep-seated" homosexual tendencies or those who support a "gay culture" in the form of movies or books. There are no such tidy lines in the world of sexuality. Even if there were, they wouldn't necessarily say anything about a man's chastity or empathy.
Focused on homosexuality rather than on sexual behavior, the instructions leave plenty of room for criticism that they are inconsistent about sexual morality. Heterosexual intercourse outside of marriage is also frowned upon by church doctrine. But there are no explicit requirements that straight men must not support the widespread culture of movies or literature that depict such behavior.
The church will also now require men with a history of gay sexual relations to show that they can obey the strictures of priesthood by remaining celibate for three years. But it does not formally outline the same requirement for straight men. (The Archdiocese of Los Angeles has had a more consistent two-year celibacy rule for both.) The document implies that gay priests cannot make good counselors because they are less able to form "correct relationships" with men and women. That's a slur to the many gay priests who have offered heartfelt help to their parishioners.
• Vatican order won't hurt S.C. diocese
. - RCC.Myrtle Beach Sun, By Christina Lee Knauss, Knight Ridder, ~ December 04, 2005
COLUMBIA (SC) - Officials of the Catholic Diocese of Charleston say last week's Vatican statement banning gay men from the priesthood will not hurt the local church's ability to attract new priests or fill shortages.
The new Vatican instruction bans most gay men from joining the Roman Catholic priesthood or leading the seminaries that train future Catholic priests.
Steven Gajdosik, spokesman for the Diocese of Charleston, said the church has seen growth in the priesthood.
"Across the board, in this country, vocations are on the upswing since 2003, making up for the declining numbers that we saw during the '70s and '80s," he said.
Gajdosik acknowledged the slight increases are not enough to offset the number of older priests who die or retire each year in the United States. But, he said, it's a start.
• What about girl victims?
. - RCC.The Boston Globe, By Eileen McNamara, Globe Columnist | December 4, 2005
BOSTON (MA) -- Where is the long-awaited Vatican policy that would protect women and girls from priests who cannot control their "heterosexual tendencies?"
Where is the plan to evaluate every heterosexual seminarian to "assure that the candidate does not have sexual disorders that are incompatible with priesthood?"
Where is the National Conference of Bishops' Un-Holy Activities Committee to ensure that no man is ordained a Roman Catholic priest who has not "clearly overcome" anything more than a "transitory" sexual interest in the opposite sex?
Where, in short, are the witch hunters for the girls' team?
The Vatican directive issued last week that would ban most gay men from the priesthood has been widely interpreted as Rome's response to the worldwide clergy sex abuse scandal that has left especially deep scars on the Archdiocese of Boston. Can that be right?
• Local priests react to Vatican
. - RCC.Inside Bay Area, By Angela Hill and Lea Blevins, ~ December 04, 2005
CALIFORNIA If a potential Catholic priest is free from the sins of the flesh, it shouldn't matter if the man is gay or straight, several East Bay Catholics said in response to the Vatican's latest policy declaration on gays in the priesthood.
"It's a superfluous comment," said Cecilia McKee, 38, of Berkeley, referring to Tuesday's official statement from the Vatican that the church "cannot admit to the seminary ... those who practice homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the so-called 'gay culture'."
"In my mind, priests are asexual anyway," she said. "You can't be gay, but you also can't be heterosexual. You're not supposed to be having sex. So it doesn't matter which way your desires go. The point is whether or not you act on them."
Those in the Valley are expressing similar reactions. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 07:45 AM
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Sun December 04, 2005
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont119.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.ncrnews.org/abuse, Mon December 05, 2005 edition follows:-
• Bill to end blanket charity immunity is stuck in Trenton
. [Mons. Cheplic] - RCC.
Jersey Journal, www.nj.com/ news/jjournal/ index.ssf?/ base/news- 0/113377747 5218870.xml& coll=3 , By JASON DEL REY, Monday, December 05, 2005
NEW JERSEY -- Even if the allegations of sexual misconduct against him are true, Monsignor Peter Cheplic can't be sued by his victims, according to a New Jersey state law that prohibits the "beneficiary" of a nonprofit organization - such as a member of a church - from suing it in court.
Such blanket immunity exists only in New Jersey, Tennessee and Alabama, and six other states have limited immunity, according to Fix The Law, a non-profit organization founded by former Bayonne resident Mark Crawford, who says he is a clergy abuse survivor.
New Jersey's law was adopted in 1958, when lawmakers rushed to enact it after the state Supreme Court abolished the centuries-old doctrine of charitable immunity. The state's Charitable Immunity Act was drafted within a week of the court decision and was enacted within three months.
In recent years, the state's Catholic bishops have defended the law, saying money donated by parishioners for charitable purposes should not be diverted to pay for lawsuits. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 09:28 PM]
• High court asked to reconsider ruling on settlement documents
. [2005 Bridgeport Diocese] - RCC. Secrecy.Newsday, By JOHN CHRISTOFFERSEN, Associated Press Writer, 6:34 PM EST, December 5, 2005,
STAMFORD, Conn. -- In a case that could have implications for New York Cardinal Edward Egan, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport asked the Connecticut Supreme Court on Monday to reconsider its ruling that newspapers can ask for documents related to its settlement of priest abuse cases.
The 3-2 ruling by the high court last month left it up to a lower court to decide whether to release the records. The diocese wants a full panel of seven justices or judges to consider the case.
Church officials argue the high court's decision wrongly concluded that a lower court judge agreed to allow the newspapers to intervene in the case. They say the trial court judge abused his discretion and want a new hearing on whether the papers have a right to intervene.
"The decision is, therefore, inconsistent with fundamental fairness and violates the defendants' right to due process," attorney John Farley wrote for the diocese.
Church officials also said the high court's ruling leaves intact a decision by a trial court judge who "demonstrated palpable hostility" to the church and courts by alleging they were part of an effort to cover up the abuse scandal.
• Statute Change Cost Catholic Church Significantly
. - RCC. Millions paid.KDKA, Don Cannon Reporting, ~ December 05, 2005
PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania, (KDKA) -- The Roman Catholic church in the United States has paid out more than $200 million to settle lawsuits for abuse by priests.
The figure could skyrocket if Pennsylvania and other states change the statute of limitations for filing those lawsuits.
Some lawmakers in Harrisburg are considering a one-year window in which victims could file a lawsuit regardless of when the abuse occurred.
"It was embarrassment, ridicule, your own self-guilt," said Paul Dorsch, an alleged sex abuse victim.
"He would wake up from nightmares and couldn't sleep," said Lisa Dorsch, Paul's ex-wife. "He would break out in sweats."
Many victims opted for silence until several years ago when Dorsch, supported by his former classmates at Quigley Catholic High School, spoke out about allegedly being sexually abused by former Quigley headmaster, Jack Hoehl.
[COMMENT: The RCC in the USA has been ordered to, or agreed to, pay $US 1000 million so far, it is stated by other news media. COMMENT ENDS.]
• Two more accuse Colorado priest
. [1960s-70s White] - RCC. Boys.Rocky Mountain News, The Associated Press, December 5, 2005
COLORADO -- Two more men said today they were sexually abused by a Colorado priest at least 25 years ago and they accused the Archdiocese of Denver of not doing enough to protect them.
John Koldeway of Anchorage, Alaska, and a Colorado man identified only as John Doe 1A planned to file lawsuits in Denver District Court against the archdiocese, according to drafts of the lawsuits distributed by the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests.
At least one of them also planned to name the former priest as a defendant.
The lawsuits would bring to at least 25 the number of such cases filed in Colorado this year by people alleging they were sexually assaulted by former priests or a Catholic school teacher when they were children.
The draft lawsuits allege that Harold Robert White abused them in the 1960s and 1970s.
• Homosexual Priests Turn Heterosexuals Away
. - RCC.MichNews, www.michnews. com/artman/ publish/article_ 10636.shtml , By J. Grant Swank, Jr., Dec 5, 2005
Recent reactions to the Vatican prohibition of active homosexuals permitted in the priesthood have prompted some Catholic laity and clergy to state publicly that homosexual "cultures" in certain orders and seminaries are keeping heterosexuals from entering the ministry.
The conclusion is that there are heterosexual Catholic men who sense the divine call into the priesthood but refrain from even starting religious studies via the seminaries because they are aware that there are many active homosexuals in the seminaries or that there is an allowance for them there.
Further, there are some Catholic orders that are not growing because it is known that these orders welcome practicing homosexuals as priests. Consequently, heterosexuals stay away from those orders because of the over influence of homosexual "culture" in them.
Catholic leadership in tune with the recent Vatican statement regarding homosexuality in the priesthood is asking for there to be a hard line on the Vatican position. In other words, there can be no tolerance at all for active homosexuals in the priestly ministry.
The studies also have shown that 81 percent of sex scandals involving Catholic priests and males within the parish relate to homosexual priests. Therefore, in order to cut through such future scandals, there has to be the moral line drawn in the sand. That line has to be honored not only by Vatican officialdom but also by diocesan leadership and local priests. It is not enough for the Vatican to make the declaration; there has to be a backing of like conviction at the grassroots.
• Gay pride, Catholic prejudice
. - RCC.
Malta Today, ~ December 05, 2005
The Holy See has put its foot down on gay men in the seminary but its complex instruction does not explain whether it is sexual orientation or sexual immaturity it is concerned about. Can the Vatican get over its badly-handled investigations of the US child abuse scandals?
How grave a mission is it for the Church to fish out the gay men in the clergy?
A nonchalant wave, a campy drawl, or maybe cassocked queens unhappy with their hems?
The Vatican's recent 1,300-word instruction on the "active discernment" of candidates to the priesthood who might be gay, has presented a new dimension to the identity of the Vatican -- evidently torn between its universal message of love and manifest homophobia. [...]
Critics claim the instruction is misguided, a smokescreen on the real problem in the Church when it comes to sexual abuse and paedophilia.
But now it seems the Church is bent on affirming time and again the heterosexuality and maleness of its shepherds, slamming its brawny arms onto the barroom table, drinking beer, talking football: not only does it want it to be an all-male changing room - it wants to keep the cissies out.
• St. Thomas dean said to be on court list
.
Minneapolis Star-Tribune, By Pam Louwagie and Rob Hotakainen, Last update 11:40 PM, November 17, 2005
MINNESOTA -- A University of St. Thomas law professor who once clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia is the president's probable pick for a federal judgeship in Minnesota, according to a source familiar with the nomination process.
Patrick J. Schiltz, a Harvard Law School graduate, is going through FBI background checks before his name is nominated to the Senate for confirmation, the source said. A separate source on Capitol Hill said that the FBI has contacted his office to make inquiries about Schiltz and that no inquiries were made about other candidates.
Schiltz declined to comment Thursday. A spokesman for Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn., said the senator's office doesn't comment on such matters. Senators of the same political party as the president typically recommend appointments for federal judgeships.
It is unclear when the background checks would be completed. The judgeship opened after U.S. District Judge Richard Kyle took senior status last spring. ...
He represented religious organizations in more than 500 clergy sex abuse cases.
He wrote articles that, while condemning clergy abuse, said recent media attention was misdirected because most cases were more than 10 years old and most Catholic dioceses had cleaned up their acts by the early 1990s.
In an article in the national Catholic weekly America, he wrote that the church had a moral obligation to compensate victims of clergy abuse fairly, but suggested it be done in an alternative system to the courtroom. When the church pays, he wrote in another article, the people who pay are the people in the pews or those whom the church serves.
• Abuse survivors finally to receive compensation
. - 3 Churches. < $CAN 2b. ~ 86,000 survivors.
Indian Country Today, ~ December 05, 2005
OTTAWA, Canada - Almost $2 billion in Canadian funds will be paid to aboriginal survivors of the Canadian residential school system.
The settlement was announced Nov. 23, one day before the First Ministers Meeting with national aboriginal leaders convened in Kelowna, British Columbia.
Following six months of negotiations between the Assembly of First Nations and the federal government, an agreement-in-principle was signed that has resulted in the largest and most comprehensive settlement package in Canadian history.
About 86,000 First Nations, Metis and Inuit are eligible to collect these payments, many of whom are more than 60 years old.
• 2005, your grades are in
. - RCC.
The Massachusetts Daily Collegian, By Chris Eckel, Collegian columnist, December 05, 2005
MASSACHUSETTS -- For us here at UMass, final exams are coming up pretty soon. But never fear, to get you ready for reading your grades on SPIRE, I'm going to release my grades for the big movers and shakers this year. Let's hope nothing changes in the next month, or else Professor Eckel might have to re-evaluate.
Religions - D
So the Catholic Church is leading the charge here. They've grossly misplayed the sexual abuse scandal. Instead of cleaning out their closet, they are more concerned with making priests who come out of the closet disappear.
Parishioners (those who still have parishes left, at least) are becoming disgruntled, and if the Vatican continues to push away priests and parishes, then they might be able to do what 2,000 years of religious warfare couldn't: extinguish the Catholic faith.
• Some brave new 'Miranda' rights
. [1990s teacher] - ? RCC. 3 children.Philadelphia Daily News, www.philly.com/ mld/dailynews/ news/opinion/ 13330089.htm , By MADELEINE DEAN, a parent, lawyer and an assistant professor at La Salle University, ~ December 05, 2005
O, wonder!...
O brave new world,
That has such people in't!
- Miranda, in Shakespeare's "The Tempest"
PHILADELPHIA (PA) -- PHILADELPHIA and other cities are in the midst of a tempest - a sad storm of sexual abuse of children by adults who children have a right to trust.
Two weeks ago, parents of children at St. Joseph's Preparatory School learned of the abrupt resignation of a longtime teacher.
On Nov. 9, a teacher of 29 years quit in the middle of fourth period. The students were all surprised by the teacher's midday dash - some were under the impression that he walked out in protest over disciplinary treatment of a student. But that was just a rumor.
Instead, a few days later, parents received a letter from the Prep that began: "It is with concern and sadness that I am writing to you today. Last week, Church officials received inquires concerning... incidents of alleged inappropriate [behavior by the teacher] with three students in the mid-1990s."
I make no judgment about the teacher; the facts are few and thin. And it is not for me to judge. It will be up to others to make a clear, full and truthful determination - for us and for our children.
But it is not too early to judge the actions of those in charge at St. Joe's Prep - both now and in the past. In a real way, we parents must judge them, since we employ them for our children's benefit.
St. Joe's has known of allegations against this teacher for at least nine years. In 1996, the Prep found complaints against this teacher serious and credible enough to place him on a probationary status, limiting his employment. Some of the conditions of his employment were mandatory psychological counseling and evaluation, loss of his private office and limited out-of-class interaction with students. The teacher was told, in effect, one more time and you're out. [...]
Until I opened my "Dear Parents" letter, I did not know this history. There was no disclosure, no transparency, no evidence of the school's worries.
And it was not the administration who asked the teacher to leave now. The teacher abruptly resigned because the archdiocese began investigating. In nine years, the Prep did not figure this out - one way or another. [...]
But there was nothing new at the point of this teacher's resignation, nor did the Prep do something. That's the problem: The Prep did not act, and this inaction hurts everybody involved.
At a swiftly called parents meeting at the Prep, among other sad things that occurred to me was the loss of trust and confidence in any administration that hides such things.
A HIDDEN ONE-more-time-and-you're-out is not the policy my husband and I agreed to when we sent our son to the school. How could the Prep - or any school - secretly assume such risks for our children? [... ]
• Church in Pa. Says Allowing Suits Unfair
. [RCC]The Ledger, The Associated Press, ~ December 05, 2005
PHILADELPHIA (PA) -- Roman Catholic Church officials in Pennsylvania say a proposal to let sexual-abuse victims file lawsuits decades after they were abused would be "fundamentally unfair" and could financially ruin dioceses across the state.
Pennsylvania has a strict statute of limitations that has kept most sexual abuse cases out of the courts, but some lawmakers are now recommending a one-year window in which victims could file lawsuits regardless of when the abuse occurred.
The proposal followed a scathing report issued in September by the Philadelphia district attorney's office that documented how two cardinals and top aides hid decades of abuse allegations involving the Philadelphia Archdiocese.
In a statement Friday, the archdiocese said that permitting old allegations to enter the courts would likely expose the church and other institutions to huge damages, causing an "incalculable financial impact ... felt in every corner of Pennsylvania."
• Diocese removes accused pastor
. [1999 Laplante] - RCC. Child.The Boston Globe, Associated Press | December 5, 2005
PORTLAND, Maine -- The Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland announced that the pastor of a church in Kennebunk is stepping down, pending an investigation into an allegation that he had improper contact with a minor six years ago.
The diocese said Saturday that the Rev. Laurent Laplante's "temporary removal from public ministry" was for "the purpose of preserving the integrity of the process, to give potential witnesses the greatest freedom, and to fulfill the church's commitment to protect children."
Laplante, 74, has been pastor of St. Martha's Parish in Kennebunk since 1995.
The diocese said a high school girl recently reported that when she was 9 Laplante touched her pants on the knee and inner thigh. Laplante has denied any wrongdoing and has indicated he will cooperate with the diocese in its investigation, according to the church statement.
• The basilica of denial
. [RCC, Cardinal Bernard Law] - New Instruction is 2nd signal.The Boston Globe, www.boston.com/ news/globe/edit orial_opinion/ oped/articles/ 2005/12/05/ the_basilica_ of_denial ; By James Carroll | December 5, 2005
LAST WEEK'S Vatican "instruction" restricting admission to the priesthood to heterosexuals was an exploitation of prejudice about homosexuality aimed at drawing attention away from the real crisis facing the Catholic Church.
If any one group "caused" the priest sex-abuse scandal, it was not gays, but rather the bishops themselves, who now scapegoat gays. The truly scandalous fact remains that, while a small percentage of priests abused children, the overwhelming majority of bishops knowingly protected the abusers instead of the abused.
And as periodic news reports demonstrate, this pattern continues, with the uncovered secrets of deal-making, plea-bargaining, asset-protection -- and the vengeful punishing of priests who dared to challenge bishops on the issue.
What the scandal reveals is the moral bankruptcy of the entire Catholic clerical culture, but in order to deal with that, basic questions about celibacy, women's ordination, the role of the laity, and repressive authority would have to be asked. Obviously, those are questions the Vatican is desperate to deflect, and that is the purpose of this new ruling.
The instruction is the second large signal that the Vatican has no real interest in reckoning with the priest-abuse catastrophe. The first signal was in the Vatican's own reiteration of the preference of abuser over abused when it appointed Cardinal Bernard Law to the prestigious position of archpriest of Rome's Basilica of St. Mary Major.
Cardinal Law, recall, not only sponsored some of the most lecherous abusers, repeatedly sending them out among the defenseless young, but he betrayed the church's own most sacred traditions when, for example, he tried to use the seal of confession as a way of protecting the secret of abuse.
• Catholics split on Vatican gay ban
. - RCC.San Gabriel Valley Tribune, By Marshall Allen, ~ December 05, 2005
PASADENA (CA) - A Vatican document that says men with "deep-rooted homosexual tendencies" should be discouraged from the priesthood is causing mixed reactions among Catholic leaders.
The official church instruction was released Tuesday to provide bishops and leaders of spiritual orders and seminaries with criteria for discerning whether homosexuals should be admitted into the priesthood. It underscores the church teaching that same-sex acts are "grave sins," and says men with homosexual tendencies are to be carefully considered before being admitted to the priesthood.
Liberal Catholic groups condemned the document, titled "Instruction on the Criteria for Vocational Discernment With Regard to Persons With Homosexual Tendencies in View of Their Admission to the Seminary and to Holy Orders."
Liberals say it stigmatizes gays and wrongly links them to the church's sex abuse crisis. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 04:12 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Mon December 05, 2005
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont119.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.
• 4%, 10% or higher, not the 1%, 2% of the apologists
- RCC.Faith Purification Programme (Perth, W. Australia), letter to Priest in charge, and/or Rev Fr. Richard Neville, SJ, TV Mass / Mass for You at Home, Rear 400 Albert St, East Melbourne Vic 3002, Australia; December 5, 2005
AUSTRALIA: During November a minister celebrating a television Mass for You at Home during the homily said that the proportion of child-abusing priests was about 2 per cent.
Please arrange to have this percentage updated. It is probably at least double. It horrifies people brought up in the penny catechism era (the Church's holiness was, the teachers said then, notable throughout the world because of its consecrated virgins of both genders). In spite of the teachings then that even masturbation was a mortal sin (i.e., would send one to hell), according to some scholars nowadays like A. W. Richard Sipe (The Sipe Report, ~ 1996, http://www. thelinkup. com/ sipe.html ), at least 50 per cent of the Latin-rite clergy are partaking in sexual activity of one sort or another (based on surveys and interviews).
The facts of the Church leaders' statements about the percentage of clergy sex abusers is about as sad as the crimes themselves, plus the "enabling", transfers and even promotions of serial child predators and their "enablers" by Church leaders at all levels.
In 2002 the then-Cardinal Ratzinger (in 2005 to become Pope Benedict XVI) said the percentage was less than 1 per cent. -- see Reuters, "Catholic Priests Abused 10,600 Children -- Study," http://www. reuters.com/ newsArticle. jhtml?type= domesticNews& storyID=4457831 , by Deborah Zabarenko, Feb 27, 2004.
The same newsitem reported that the John Jay study of those elements of the Catholic Church in the United States that had agreed to take part (which omitted the sizeable religious orders clergy) had a 4 per cent criminal rate (4,392 priests), with complaints from 10,667 children. The Archdiocese of Boston announced it had 7% of its clergy accused.
A 2003 news report includes: "Although church officials' early predictions suggested that only 1 or 2 percent of Michigan priests would be caught in the scandal, a tally by the Free Press shows that about 5 percent of active diocesan priests statewide were removed from their jobs since January 2002." -- Detroit Free Press, "Few priests face expulsion; Dioceses withhold full punishment for sex abuse," www.freep.com/ news/mich/cath 14_20030414.htm , By Patricia Montemurri, montemurri@freepress.com , Apr 14, 2003. The same issue listed the names of the 38 priests removed in the period stated.
In 2005 the Republic of Ireland held an inquiry into the Ferns Diocese. Ten per cent, i.e., 21 priests, had been committing sexual sins with children. -- L'express, "High noon for Catholic church," http://www. lexpress.mu/ display_article_ sup.php?news_ id=53741 , ~ November 08, 2005
I urge you to read this report or even obtain a copy of the original. Might I add that this has been exposed in a country where the prime minister has been criticised for discussing government proposals with Church leaders before they are made public. In other words, it is NOT an anti-clerical, pro-Communist, or pro-Masonic government.
Some extracts are: "Another five cases did not figure in the inquiry because their late inclusion prevented in depth scrutiny. The Ferns Report, named after the diocese, ran 271 pages long, detailing the extent of sexual cruelty and exploitation suffered by children between 1962 and 2002." [...] "And when the bishops became aware of the allegations, they stood idly by."
The Irish Government will hold an inquiry into the Archdiocese of Dublin, and has been urged to extend it nation-wide.
Contrast these results with the outline of bishops' responsibilities and status in the Vatican II documents and the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and you will see that there is more wind than holy spirit.
Threats of excommunication if the secrecy code is broken about sex-abuse carried out in conjunction with the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and the denials and tampering with the facts about Crime of Solicitation, Crimen Sollicitationis, 1962, can be accessed from: http://www.multiline. com.au/~johnm/ ethics/crimine extracts.htm .
Yours faithfully, [Signed]
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont119.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.ncrnews.org/abuse, Tue December 06, 2005 edition follows:-
• Supreme Court Delays Hearing On Sexual Abuse Case
. [1970s Rapp] - RCC. 2 boys.
KUTV, http://kutv.com/ topstories/ local_story_ 340143951.html , ~ December 06, 2005
UTAH -- A Utah Supreme Court has postponed a hearing on a lawsuit filed by two Salt Lake City men who allege they were sexually abused by a former priest.
Ralph and Charles Colosimo sued the Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City and former officials from Judge Memorial Catholic High School in February 2003. They claim leaders knew Reverend James F. Rapp, a one-time teacher, was a pedophile but did nothing to stop him from abusing the brothers in the 1970s.
The Colosimo's multimillion dollar lawsuit was dismissed by both a judge and the Court of Appeals on the grounds they waited too long to file. However, the men argued they did not become aware of Rapp's history of molestation until they saw a May 2002 article about him in The Washington Post.
• Who owns Catholic Church?
[Portland (Oregon) Archdiocese] - RCC.The Cincinnati Post, http://news. cincypost.com/ apps/pbcs.dll/ article?AID=/ 20051206/ NEWS01/ 512060343 ; From staff and wire reports, December 06, 2005
PORTLAND, Ore. - The Archdiocese of Portland, the first in the country to file for bankruptcy because of abuse settlements, is at the heart of a debate that could affect future claims by alleged victims of priest sexual abuse.
Attorneys are fighting over who, exactly, owns the churches and the land they're built on.
A hearing was scheduled for today on whether the individual parishes and Catholic schools own their assets, as the archdiocese argues, or whether those assets belong to the archdiocese itself, as the plaintiffs claim.
Dan Andriacco, spokesman for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, said Canon Law - the law of the church - is very clear on the matter.
"Canon 1256 states the right of ownership over goods under the supreme authority of the Roman Pontiff belongs to that juridic person which has lawfully acquired them," said Andriacco. "A parish is its own juridic person."
[COMMENT: Every priest takes an oath of obedience to whoever his bishop or other superior will be. For centuries there were no parish councils in the Roman Catholic Church, so for practical purposes each parish was controlled by its Pastor / Parish Priest / Priest in Charge. After Vatican II parish councils were established, but they cannot overrule the priest or the "Ordinary", generally a bishop, abbot, patriarch, or suchlike. Because each priest is under obedience to his bishop, the assets in each parish are under the orders of the bishop.
The bishops and religious order superiors have been exposed in countries like the United States, Canada, Malta, Austria, the Philippines, Australia, and Ireland of having moved predator child-seducers from place to place, even from country to country, and run seminaries that were schools of vice.
The mask of deceit having been torn down since Boston in early 2002, courts and governments are, in various ways, requiring the established Church authorities, i.e., the dioceses and religious orders, to use their assets to recompense those who were sexually or otherwise misused and abused, whether as children or later in life.
Sex and other abuse is also being exposed in other religions, including the Anglican / Episcopalian / Church of England, the Orthodox, the Uniting / United, Baptists, the Mormons, the Jehovah's Witnesses, and non-Christian faiths too.
What Portland Archdiocese is doing is wasting time, and the money donated by the Faithful, on legal manoeuvres designed to frustrate or even cheat sex-abuse victims out of the compensation that has been ordered by court decision and/or court-sanctioned settlement. COMMENT ENDS.]
• Victims, church battle over bill
. - RCC versus survivors.National Catholic Reporter, By BILL FROGAMENI, Columbus, Ohio, ~ December 06, 2005
COLUMBUS (OH) -- Members of the Ohio legislature heard deeply disturbing tales Nov. 22 from alleged victims testifying in favor of a state bill that would dramatically increase the statute of limitations for sexual abuse of minors. The new law, opposed by the Catholic Conference of Ohio, could have a significant effect on potential cases involving priests.
The current law allows allegations into civil court two years after the age of 18. Senate Bill 17, currently in front of the judicial committee in the Ohio House, extends the time from two years to 20. More important, say victims' advocates, is how SB 17 creates a one-year "look back" period allowing complaints to be filed for allegations up to 35 years old. SB 17 would also strengthen mandatory reporting laws for bishops, priests, counselors, teachers and others who suspect child sexual abuse.
The bill passed the Ohio Senate unanimously last March, but has been stalled in the House judiciary committee over spirited negotiations between victims' advocates and the Catholic Conference of Ohio (run by Ohio's bishops), which opposes the bill.
• Experts on sex offenders have news for Vatican
. - RCC. 64% abused only males.National Catholic Reporter, http://ncronline. org/NCR_Online/ archives2/2005d/ 120905/120 905i.htm , By MARY GAIL FRAWLEY-O'DEA, ~ December 06, 2005
UNITED STATES -- Both the John Jay College of Criminal Justice report on the clergy sexual abuse crisis and the 2005 Report on the Implementation of the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People stated that Roman Catholic priests abused mostly males.
The John Jay study, for example, found that 64 percent of the accused priests abused only males; 22.6 percent abused only females; 3.6 percent abused both girls and boys, and in 10 percent of the cases, the gender was unknown. Statistics were similar in the 2005 study.
Not only were most reported victims male, they also were pubescent; 60 percent were first abused between the ages of 10-14. These are not, however, biologically or psychosexually fully developed males and cannot be construed as homosexual partners for any adult.
Still, the gender and age of so many victims created space for Vatican officials such as Cardinal Jorge Arturo Medina Estévez and Fr. Andrew Baker, conservative journalist Deal Hudson and others to link the sexual abuse of young people to homosexual priests. Now it appears that the Vatican, holding back on a full ban on gays in the priesthood, wants to hold homosexual priests responsible for the sexual abuse crisis.
The attack on gays by some Catholic spokesmen has drawn criticism from experts on sex offenders. Robert Geffner, psychologist and editor of the Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, stated that research indicates that homosexuals are no more likely than heterosexuals to violate minors sexually.
David Finkelhor, director of Crimes Against Children Research Center at the University of New Hampshire, views sexual attraction to minors as a separate sexual attraction, an opinion also espoused by John Bancroft, physician and director of the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction.
Sexual offender researchers Nicholas Groth and Frank Oliveri studied more than 3,000 sex offenders and did not find even one homosexual man who shifted from an attraction to adult men to a desire for minors. Conversely, they found that men who were nonexclusively fixated on children, or who regressed from an attraction to adults to an interest in children, all described themselves as heterosexual and, in addition, usually were homophobic.
Similarly, Minneapolis psychologist Peter Dimock concluded that most minor boys are abused by heterosexual men, some of whom are indifferent to the gender of their victims, choosing either girls or boys based on the minor's availability and vulnerability. Perhaps more sexual predators abuse boys than once was thought but are reluctant to say so and be perceived as homosexuals.
[COMMENT: Has anyone told these experts that many bad people who want to have illicit warm-body sex find boys more suitable, because they are easier than girls to become involved in taking up masturbation, and thus become willing accomplices if also suborned by suitable affection, small bribes, or privileges? ENDS.]
• For what it's worth, our condolences
. - RCC.
National Catholic Reporter, ~ December 06, 2005
ROME -- To all those in positions of leadership in the Roman Catholic church who also happen to be homosexual, we offer our commiseration and sorrow that once again you have been forced to hear your sexuality, an element intrinsic to your humanity, described as an objective disorder.
This time the phrase appears in the document with the ridiculously unwieldy title: "Instruction concerning the criteria of vocational discernment regarding persons with homosexual tendencies, considering their admission to seminary and to Holy Orders." In other words, the document on gays and seminaries.
The description is repugnant, of course, to all those in the church, gay and straight, who understand that homosexuality is, in the overwhelming number of cases, not a chosen orientation but as essential a part of one's nature as heterosexuality is for others.
• Ban on gays subject to seminary practice
. - RCC.National Catholic Reporter, By JOHN L. ALLEN JR., Rome, ~ December 06, 2005
ROME -- With publication of the Vatican's long-awaited document on gay seminarians and the subsequent torrent of reaction, two questions now seem to loom as paramount: What does the document mean? How will it be enforced?
While the document has already been a media sensation, how much long-term difference it actually makes in the day-to-day practice of seminaries and religious communities may largely turn on how -- and whether -- these questions are officially resolved, for that could determine whether the ban on gays is absolute or applied on a case-by-case basis.
At the heart of the new document, officially released Nov. 29 but leaked to the Italian press agency Adista the previous week following distribution to the Italian bishops, is that men who are "actively homosexual, have deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the so-called gay culture" cannot be ordained as priests.
• Church rebuked over Ferns
. [Ferns Diocese, Vatican] - RCC.
One in Four, www.oneinfour. org/news/news 2005/rebuked1 , ~ December 06, 2005
IRELAND -- How is it that a Catholic Church which could find time to declare that Harry Potter is a threat to children has yet to acknowledged the existence of the Ferns report was a question posed to a meeting at All Hallows College in Dublin last night.
Organised by the Voice of the Faithful group, it was addressed by Colm O'Gorman of the One in Four charity.
"In a week that has seen the Vatican launch a detailed report on homosexuality in the priesthood," he said, "I am again left somewhat bewildered by the continuing failure of the Vatican to even comment upon the Ferns report.
"Rome has thus far failed to even acknowledge the existence of the Ferns report, the first ever internationally to find the Vatican in part responsible for clerical sexual abuse." [Bolding added.]
• Primate stresses efforts to stop abuse
. - RCC.One in Four, ~ December 06, 2005
IRELAND -- Catholic primate Archbishop Seán Brady has said he was "appalled, very disheartened and discouraged" on reading the Ferns inquiry report. Ruadhán Mac Cormaic reports.
Speaking to The Irish Times yesterday, he said the report gave him "a new awareness of what can happen and what shouldn't have happened, and a new awareness of our duty to do our best to make sure that nothing like that should ever happen again".
Archbishop Brady was speaking at St Patrick's College in Maynooth after he presented certificates to the first group of child protection trainers to complete a course in child protection and welfare under the auspices of the Catholic Church.
The course is part of the Irish Bishops' Conference national training strategy, which was established in 2003.
• Protection policy tops Catholic agenda
. - RCC.Irish Independent, by David Quinn, Religious Affairs Correspondent, ~ December 06, 2005
IRELAND -- THE Church's new child protection policy is topping the agenda at the latest meeting of the Catholic hierarchy in Maynooth.
The bishops are still awaiting final recognition from Rome of the policy, called Our Children Our Church and will discuss progress in gaining the required recognition.
They are also hoping to announce the name of the director of the new, revamped child protection office before the end of the month. The section of the policy still waiting for the Vatican's recognition, or 'recognitio', focuses in particular on the management of priests who have been accused of child abuse.
This does not affect the requirement to inform the civil authorities whenever such an allegation is made known. Other aspects of the policy are already being rolled out, and training in how to implement the policy is currently taking place.
• Vatican timing of gay priests ruling unhelpful, says bishop
. - RCC. Bishop Walsh criticises.One in Four, ~ December 06, 2005
IRELAND -- The Catholic Bishop of Killaloe, Dr Willie Walsh, has described the timing of the Vatican's ruling on homosexuality in the priesthood as "unhelpful".
He also said an allegation against the former bishop of Galway, Eamon Casey, appeared to be "without any reasonable foundation".
Speaking at the launch of a new website for couples preparing to marry in the Catholic Church, gettingmarried.ie, Dr Walsh said he acknowledged the hurt felt at times in the gay community in Ireland.
"Given, if you like, the dark winter of the church in Ireland that we have experienced, I suppose for us the timing of it wasn't very helpful." He said he would have preferred if the document was an overall paper "relating to canvassing for priesthood". In most respects, Dr Walsh said, the Vatican document was not demanding anything more from people of homosexual orientation than from those of heterosexual orientation.
• Casey allegation 'lacks foundation'
. - RCC.Irish Independent, by David Quinn, Religious Affairs Correspondent, ~ December 06, 2005
IRELAND -- THE allegation against Bishop Eamon Casey "looks to be without reasonable foundation", and if this turns out to be so he should not have had to stand aside from ministry, according to Bishop Willie Walsh.
He was speaking yesterday at the launch of a website for the Church marriage advisory body, Accord.
Dr Walsh said: "I would have thought the allegation against Bishop Casey looks to be without reasonable foundation. Asking him to stand down under these circumstances looks to be against natural justice."
• "Twist of Faith" Plays at Catholic Church
. - RCC.
ABC 13, December 6, 2005
The Oscar-nominated documentary plays for the third time in the Toledo-area in an unlikely place.
OHIO -- Monday night, parishioners gathered at Our Lady of Perpetual Help to view the documentary "Twist of Faith." The film profiles Tony Comes, a Toledo firefighter who says as a child, he was molested by a priest. Comes believes the venue was a great place for him to trace back his religious roots. "This was the foundation of my faith right here," he said.
• Accused priest to shun any plea deal
. [Mons. Fushek] - RCC.East Valley Tribune, By Lawn Griffiths, December 6, 2005
PHOENIX (AZ) -- Monsignor Dale Fushek expects to face his seven accusers in separate trials and will not plea bargain any of the 10 sexual misconduct charges against him, his attorney said Monday.
"He will not plead guilty to anything," attorney Michael Manning said. "He can't afford to do a plea agreement, even with all sorts of assurances of no time and no fines. No priest can afford to plea bargain anything like this where they feel they are innocent because, if they do, their careers are ruined."
"We'll beat them," Manning said. "Yes, the trials will be ugly, but there is no choice. We have to try each one of them."
• Limerick diocese to deal with Bishop Casey probe
. [Bishop Casey] - RCC.
Irish Independent, by David Quinn, Religious Affairs Correspondent, ~ December 06, 2005
IRELAND -- THE allegation against former Bishop of Galway Dr Eamonn Casey, that came to light last week, has been passed on to the diocese of Limerick for investigation.
The diocese of Arundel and Brighton in the south of England, where Dr Casey is based, confirmed last night that the Limerick diocese has been informed of the allegation.
In accordance with Church child protection guidelines, the diocese, which is led by Bishop Donal Murray, must pass on the allegation to the relevant civil authorities including the Gardai and the local health authority.
Rev Stuart Geary, spokesman for Arundel and Brighton told The Irish Independent that the allegation was originally made to the child protection office of the Bishops of England and Wales, and was then passed onto the child protection office of his diocese.
• The Psychology Behind Homosexual Tendencies (Part 1)
.
Zenit, DEC. 5, 2005
WEST CONSHOHOCKEN, Pennsylvania, (Zenit.org).-- The new Vatican document on the priesthood and homosexual tendencies mentions a range of conditions, from deep-seated homosexual tendencies to transitory same-sex attractions.
To learn more about the nuances of the range of homosexual tendencies and their treatment, ZENIT turned to Dr. Richard Fitzgibbons, a psychiatrist, author and contributor to the Catholic Medical Association's document "Homosexuality and Hope."
Part 2 of this interview will appear Tuesday.
Q: How would you distinguish between someone with same-sex attractions and someone with deep-seated homosexual tendencies?
Fitzgibbons: Those with deep-seated homosexual tendencies identify themselves as homosexual persons and are usually unwilling to examine their emotional conflicts that caused this tendency. Strong physical attraction is present to other men's bodies and to the masculinity of others due to profound weakness in male confidence.
• Priest expected to face accusers in separate trials
. [Mons. Fushek] - RCC. 7 accusers.KVOA, ~ December 06, 2005
PHOENIX (AZ) -- The attorney for Monsignor Dale Fushek (FYOO'-shek) says he expects his client to face his seven accusers in separate trials.
Attorney Michael Manning says he will not plea bargain any of the ten sexual misconduct charges against Fushek.
Manning tells the Tribune the trials "will be ugly," but there is no choice.
The 53-year-old Fushek is accused of using his "relationship of trust" to perform criminal acts against vulnerable minor and adult victims.
• PA Lawmakers Examine Sex Abuse in Catholic Church
. - RCC.WFMZ, Story posted 18:52:00, Dec-05-2005
PENNSYLVANIA -- Some local legislators are worried tonight that more cases of sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic church are on the horizon.
Instead of waiting for them to surface, some lawmakers want to face them now.
Carl Madonna reports.
The Roman Catholic Church in Pennsylvania may be claiming bankruptcy.
That's only if lawmakers open up a one year window for victims of sexual abuse to file suit.
The Pennsylvania Catholic conference says a one year window would force an avalanche of lawsuits.
• Correction: Archdiocese Bankruptcy story
. [Portland Archdiocese] - RCC.KGW, Associated Press, Dec/06/2005
PORTLAND (OR) In a Dec. 4 story about the Archdiocese of Portland's bankruptcy case, The Associated Press erroneously reported that a federal court in Spokane, Wash., was one of two federal courts that had sidestepped the issue of whether the diocese or parishes own properties.
In fact, the federal bankruptcy judge in the Spokane case ruled that parish and school property can be sold to pay victims of sexual abuse by priests. The ruling has been appealed.
• Alleged victims fault diocese
.The Republican, By BILL ZAJAC, wzajac@repub.com , Tuesday, December 06, 2005
SPRINGFIELD (MA) - Two brothers with clergy sexual abuse suits pending against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield said the bishop told them recently that he was unaware that alleged victims such as themselves had not been invited to settle suits when the diocese settled with 45 others for $7.7 million in August 2004.
The Most Rev. Timothy A. McDonnell, the bishop of the diocese, denied the brothers' claim, saying he simply was confused by the men's change in legal counsel, according to his spokesman.
The 2004 settlement was limited to clients of Greenfield lawyer John J. Stobierski. The outstanding suits from other lawyers' clients, new suits filed by Stobierski and claims by those not represented by lawyers are now part of complicated litigation that includes a legal fight between the diocese and its insurance carriers to determine the insurers' financial responsibility in the abuse cases.
• Don't make John Paul saint - dissident theologians
. - RCC.
Reuters UK, http://today. reuters.co.uk/ news/newsArticle. aspx?type=world News&storyID= 2005-12-06T134246Z_ 01_SPI649132_ RTRUKOC_0_UK- POPE- SAINTHOOD.xml &archived=False ; By Philip Pullella, 1:43 PM GMT, Tue Dec 6, 2005
VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Dissident theologians opposed to the beatification of Pope John Paul have issued an appeal urging Catholics critical of the late pope to tell the Vatican if they also think he should not be made a saint.
The 11 Catholic theologians said Church officials who are reviewing John Paul's life and pontificate should also consider the "negative evaluation" liberal critics have of the nearly 27-year-old papacy that ended when John Paul died in April.
The Rome diocese has opened a beatification cause for the Pope. Church officials have asked all Catholics to come forward with personal experiences or evidence of possible miracles that could support a reputation for holiness.
In their appeal, which received wide play in major Italian newspapers on Tuesday, the theologians from Italy, Spain, Austria and Latin America said those judging the case should also take into account "negative" aspects of John Paul's papacy. [...]
While the theologians acknowledged John Paul's papacy had "positive aspects", their seven-point appeal included criticism of his rigidly conservative stand on issues such as contraception, limitations on the role of women, and of scandals in the Church.
It included the sexual abuse scandal that swept the United States in 2002, when it was discovered that priests who had molested children were moved from parish to parish instead of being defrocked or turned over to authorities.
The appeal criticised what it called a lack of control over some of the Vatican's "murky financial manoeuvres", specifically naming the Holy See's relations with Italy's Banco Ambrosiano, which went bankrupt in 1982.
Italian magistrates at the time said the Vatican Bank, which had a small stake in the Ambrosiano, bore some responsibility for the $1.3 billion in bad debts. The Vatican denied wrongdoing but paid $250 million to creditors in what it called a goodwill gesture.
The theologians said the Church's saint makers should also consider the "repression and alienation" inflicted on some theologians by John Paul, a reference to his moves to discipline promoters of Latin America's "Liberation Theology," which he felt was too close to Marxist social analysis as a way of helping the continent's poor. [...]
• National group to ask local diocese to oust priest
. [2004] - RCC. Woman.
Wichita Eagle, www.kansas.com/mld/kansas/news/local/13336669.htm , ~ December 06, 2005
WICHITA (KS) -- A national advocacy group for victims of clergy sexual abuse plans to urge the Catholic Diocese of Wichita to remove a priest from his parish, accusing him of sexually assaulting a woman from a west Wichita parish last year.
Janet Patterson of Conway Springs, a national board member of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, has scheduled a 1:15 p.m. press conference today in front of diocesan headquarters at 424 N. Broadway.
• Sex and the church
. - RCC. "God is love, sex a conduit."Denver Post, By Keith Swain, Guest Commentary, ~ December 06, 2005
DENVER (CO) -- As a therapist, there's no one I have more respect for than a client who understands a problem, deals with it and takes responsibility.
Sadly, it seems the Catholic Church doesn't have the same strength of character. In a weak attempt to address the problem of child sexual abuse by the clergy, the Vatican last week issued a dictum. Was it a call to action against sexual abuse of children?
No. The church has decided to blame someone else for its problem, namely gay men. The truth is the Catholic Church does not have a problem with gay men. It has a problem with sex - in particular, with pedophilia and chastity.
Sadly, sex has been a delicate subject in Catholicism, no matter that it is essential to mankind. Sex is love and excitement, soul- searching and soul-defining. It is love, literally embodied.
If God is love, then sex is a conduit to the Supreme, a joining of two souls. It is as natural as breathing, as innate as a child seeking its mother's milk, and as essential to our well-being as food and water. God created sex, and saw that it was good.
• Court delays hearing in sexual abuse case
. [1970s Rapp] - RCC. 2 boys.The Salt Lake Tribune, ~ December 06, 2005
UTAH -- A Utah Supreme Court hearing on a lawsuit filed by two Salt Lake City men who allege they were sexually abused by a former priest has been postponed until Feb. 1.
Ralph and Charles Colosimo, now in their 50s and 40s respectively, sued the Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City and former officials from Judge Memorial Catholic High School in February 2003.
They claimed leaders knew the Rev. James F. Rapp, a one-time teacher, was a pedophile but did nothing to stop him from abusing the brothers in the 1970s.
The suit is believed to be the first such filed in Utah after the sex abuse scandal hit the U.S. Catholic Church in 2002.
Both the 3rd District Court and the state Court of Appeals dismissed the multimillion-dollar lawsuit on the grounds that the Colosimos had waited too long to file, and had failed to prove that their case should be an exception to those time limitations.
• Church hit with 2 more sex abuse suits
. [1960s-70s White] - RCC. 13 complainants now.Rocky Mountain News, By David Montero, December 6, 2005
DENVER (CO) -- Two more lawsuits involving allegations of sex abuse by a former priest are hitting the Archdiocese of Denver, bringing the total against Harold Robert White to 13.
The lawsuits, announced Monday by attorneys for the two men, are the 24th and 25th filed against the Catholic Church in Colorado. One of the new lawsuits involves John Koldeway, the older brother of Tom Koldeway. Both brothers accuse White of molesting them in the 1960s and early 1970s. Tom Koldeway filed his lawsuit in August.
Koldeway's mother and father - along with a cousin - gathered Monday in a downtown Denver law office to talk about their anger toward the church and how the alleged abuses damaged their family and faith.
"The bitterness stays and stays and stays," said Arthur Koldeway, the boys' father.
• Hearing set today on priest sex abuse
. [Portland Archdiocese] - RCC. Claims it does not own its assets.Statesman Journal, BY WILLIAM McCALL, The Associated Press, December 6, 2005
PORTLAND (OR) -- The Archdiocese of Portland, the first in the country to file for bankruptcy because of abuse settlements, is at the heart of a debate that could affect future claims by alleged victims of priest sex abuse.
Attorneys are fighting about who owns the churches and the property they stand on.
A hearing is scheduled today about whether the individual parishes and Catholic schools own their assets, as the archdiocese argues, or whether those assets belong to the archdiocese, as the plaintiffs say.
The case before U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Elizabeth Perris could set a precedent on whether federal law trumps Roman Catholic doctrine when it comes to church property.
If the alleged victims win their argument, the property could be made directly available to help pay for any settlements. If they lose, it could force them to go after the individual parishes, delaying and complicating the process while likely increasing the legal costs.
• Balance financial concerns of churches with justice for sexual abuse victims
. [Philadelphia Archdiocese] - RCC. > 100 victims testified.The Morning Call, ~ December 06, 2005
PENNSYLVANIA -- A three-year investigation by the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office revealed how two cardinals and top aides hid decades of sexual abuse in the Philadelphia Archdiocese. As in a number of other places in the United States, the district attorney's report in September showed diocese leaders put more emphasis on protecting accused priests than they did in seeking help for victims and preventing further abuse.
Victims, with guidance from the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, have sought criminal and civil recourse with varying degrees of success, depending on state statutes. But there are other invisible victims of civil suits filed against a Catholic diocese: the vast majority of priests who are innocent, their parishioners, and parochial schools and social services for the needy.
The ripple effect of large monetary settlements can be enormous, yet, an offending parish or diocese must be held accountable and victims compensated. That's why a behind-the-scenes effort to reach a compromise in Harrisburg is commendable: A bill to allow a one-year window to file suits for crimes outside the statute of limitations would not go forward. In return, the state's Catholic dioceses would put up millions of dollars for a victim compensation fund for the more than 100 victims who testified before the grand jury in Philadelphia.
• Why are priests still running schools in Ireland?
. [Grennan] - RCC. 10 girls.
Anarkismo, Cover Story - WSM - Workers Solidarity, 11:58am, Tuesday, Dec 6, 2005,
IRELAND -- It's taken decades for the mask of evil to finally be fully exposed. The report by the inquiry into child sexual abuse by pervert priests in the Ferns diocese has at last exposed the suffering endured by huge numbers for people. Now all across the country the truth is finally being told.
One of the principal reasons why priests were able to get away with their rape and abuse of children for so long was because the state abdicated its responsibility to protect children. This is most obvious in relation to control of education.
Again and again in the Ferns report it emerges that priests were able to use their position on management authorities of primary schools to gain access to the children they abused. For example, in Monageer Fr. James Grennan abused 10 young girls during confirmation classes. Local gardai 'lost' the investigation files and this evil predator was allowed to continue to abuse children. And he was able to use his position as chair of the management board of the local primary school to gain access to his victims.
Up to 95% of primary schools in the 26-Counties are directly under the control of the Catholic church. This means that the local bishop is the patron and has an effective veto over membership of the management board. In the vast majority of cases, it means that the local parish priest is chairperson of the Board of Management.
• Controversial US Priest Hits Out At Stewardship Fund
. - RCC. Fr Tom Doyle speaks out again.Derry Journal, Tuesday, December 6, 2005
IRELAND -- A priest, who controversially spoke out about the Catholic Church sex abuse scandals in the US, addressed a Derry audience on Sunday evening in the city's Tower Hotel.
Fr. Tom Doyle spoke about the recurring sex scandals that have rocked the Church in recent years, and claimed that Derry parishioners shouldn't have to pay for the sins of their priests through the controversial Stewardship Fund.
He believes that responsibility for the abuse scandal went right to the core of the Catholic Church.
Fr. Doyle said Ireland's Stewardship Fund was "something that the bishops should be responsible for, not these good people here" and that many people believe it should be the bishops who pay the levy, not the parishioners, because they had not handled the situation correctly. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 07:35 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Tue December 06, 2005
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont119.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.ncrnews.org/abuse, Wed December 07, 2005 edition follows:-
• Take the time to look deeper
. [Various Church and government live-in schools] - Indigenous children.
Parry Sound North Star, www.parrysound northstar.com/ 1133985145 , by Grand Council Chief John Beaucage, Wednesday, December 7, 2005
CANADA -- John Macfie saves his most important statement for last in his November 30 assessment of Indian Residential Schools.
"I never experienced the system from the inside," he admits, after devoting several hundred words to offer his opinion to North Star readers that the church-operated and government-mandated schools were not "the hellholes they are now made out to be."
That opinion is apparently based on his personal acquaintance over a brief period with a handful of survivors--we don't call them students--of just one of the notorious networks of over 100 residential schools. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 05:42 PM]
• Priest who admitted to grand larceny still receives pay from Brooklyn diocese
. [2000s Thompson] - RCC. <$US 100,000. But "whistleblower" was put out of work. Sex. Woman.
Newsday, BY CAROL EISENBERG, December 7, 2005
NEW YORK -- An Ozone Park pastor who pleaded guilty three years ago to stealing nearly $100,000 from his working-class parish to pay for trips to a gay resort, a time share in Mexico and a luxury car, still gets a monthly stipend from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn.
The Rev. John Thompson, who pled guilty to a felony charge of grand larceny in September 2002, said in a deposition last month that he continues to receive a check of about $1,700 a month from the church, although he's barred from presenting himself as a priest or celebrating Mass.
Thompson gave the deposition last month in connection with a $5 million lawsuit brought by Barbara Samide, the former principal of St. Elizabeth's School, who lost her job three years ago after she accused him of stealing from the parish and sexually abusing her. Samide sued Thompson, as well as the diocese, saying it failed to protect her. A judge later ordered the diocese to pay her for the duration of her contract, through August 2003.
"To me it's absolutely outrageous that he's getting paid," said Michael Dowd of Manhattan, Samide's attorney. "This is a guy who stole money from a poor parish. Barbara Samide didn't get any money when she reported him. The diocese put her on unpaid leave, and we were trying to raise money for her to feed her family." [Bolding added]
• Alleged cult molester surrenders
. [2000 Kirkland, Muratore] - Tridentine Church. Boy.
King County Journal, by Noel S. Brady, Nov-30-2005
SEATTLE (WA) -- One of two young men wanted by police for allegedly molesting a young boy while living with an Eastside group known to many as a cult has surrendered to authorities.
Justin Kirkland, 20, a member of the Tridentine Latin Rite Church, was being held Tuesday night held in lieu of $75,000 bail after being booked at the King County Jail in Seattle on Monday morning, nearly a year after he was charged with two counts of first-degree rape of a child.
Police are still looking for Michael W. Muratore, 21, a third member of the church who was charged Nov. 18 with first-degree child molestation for crimes against the same victim.
The mother of the now-13-year-old boy, whom Kirkland and two other young men are accused of molesting over three years beginning when the boy was 8, said she believes recent media converge about the church pressured its leaders to send Kirkland to authorities. She is not being named to protect the privacy of her son.
• Victims Abuse Deadline Nears
. [Church and government] - 5000 claimants so far.Irish Voice, By Georgina Brennan, December 07, 2005
UNITED STATES -- The deadline for victims of abuse in Irish child care institutions to file claims for redress is December 15, 2005. Once that deadline passes anyone who suffered cruel and harrowing abuse at those institutions between 1920 and 1970 will continue to suffer in silence without any compensation.
The new executive director of the Coalition of Irish Immigration Centers, Sheila Gleeson, has issued a fresh appeal for U.S.-based victims to come forward before it's too late.
"Late applications will not be accepted and so it is important to start the application process immediately," Gleeson told the Irish Voice.
An estimated 12,000 victims who were denied a proper upbringing, barely learned to read and write and suffered physical, sexual and emotional abuse while resident in Irish industrial schools, reformatories, orphanages and other institutions have not come forward. Many are thought to be residing in the U.S. ...
Five thousand claimants have already launched claims connected to the abuse, starvation and cruelty in the Church-managed institutions. Awards that have been made by the Redress Board vary between €50,000 and €300,000.
• Gardai probe allegation against priest
. [Priest] - RCC. Adult.
One in Four, ~ December 07, 2005
IRELAND -- A priest in the Kerry diocese has stood aside while a single complaint of "inappropriate behaviour" towards an adult is investigated by the gardai.
The Bishop of Kerry, Dr Bill Murphy, last night confirmed the complaint. The allegation against the priest dates back more than 20 years, according to a statement issued by Kerry diocesan spokesman Fr Rory O'Sullivan. The Health Service Executive (HSE) had also been informed of the complaint, understood to involve a male.
Fr O'Sullivan said the priest had been active in ministry until the complaint was received. No statement was read out at weekend masses in his parish, but Bishop Murphy had met key people in the parish and informed them of the situation. Fr O'Sullivan said these people were asked to pass on the information to parishioners.
Following publication of the Ferns Report in October, Bishop Murphy said no priest in active ministry in his diocese was currently under investigation. Fr O'Sullivan said the latest complaint was made in recent weeks.
• Priest in 80s seeks to prevent trial
. [1974-81 Priest] - RCC. 3 children.One in Four, ~ December 07, 2005
IRELAND -- A retired schoolteacher and priest in his 80s has brought High Court proceedings aimed at preventing his trial on 37 charges of indecent assault of three former pupils.
Neither the man nor the school can be named for legal reasons. The DPP is opposing the application.
Deirdre Murphy SC, for the applicant, said the alleged assaults were said to have occurred between 1974 and 1981. She submitted that the delay between the alleged assaults, the making of the complaints and her client's prosecution would prejudice his right to a fair trial and had breached his right to a trial with reasonable expedition.
• Euless pastor suspended following lewdness charge
. [? 2005 Finley] - Methodist. Man.
The Dallas Morning News, By DEBRA DENNIS / Tuesday, December 6, 2005
EULESS (TX) -- The senior pastor of the First United Methodist Church in Euless was suspended Tuesday for 90 days following allegations he fondled a man.
The Rev. James Leonard Finley, 68, was suspended by Bishop Ben R. Chamness, who oversees more than 300 churches as part of the Central Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church. Mr. Finley was relieved of all pastoral duties, said Carolyn Stephens, a spokeswoman for the conference.
The 1,400-member church will be headed by Charles McClure, a retired minister, Ms. Stephens said.
Mr. Finley was arrested last week and charged with public lewdness, a misdemeanor. He is accused of fondling a 21-year-old man at his home.
• Ex-pastor pleads no contest in sex case
. [? 2005 Harris] - Lutheran. Internet "boy".Pensacola News Journal, by Kristen Rasmussen, December 07, 2005
PENSACOLA (FL) -- A former local pastor faces up to five years in prison after pleading no contest to charges that he solicited sex over the Internet from a sheriff's deputy posing as a teenage boy.
Michael Anthony Harris, 43, is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 28 on the third-degree felony charges of attempted lewd or lascivious battery and using a computer to solicit the sexual conduct of a crime, according to court documents.
Harris served as pastor at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Pensacola until he resigned shortly after his arrest on April 13.
Ron Sedlacek, a longtime member of St. Paul's, said the congregation is being led by an interim pastor and has "healed very well" in the months since Harris was arrested and resigned.
"We have a lot of good people in the church, and we have some good plans," Sedlacek said. "We recognize that things happen to all people, but it's not something to get mired down in. We need to move ahead.
• Couple pleads guilty to rape charges
. [1975-87 Mr & Mrs Melton] - Baptist. Daughter and son.Shelby County Reporter, By PATRICK CROTTY / Tuesday, December 6, 2005
ALABAMA - A former Shelby County pastor and his wife pled guilty last week to raping and sodomizing their two children almost 18 years ago.
Ralph Randall Melton and his wife, Cathy G. Melton, of Jemison, pled guilty to first-degree rape and sodomy in Chilton County District Court. The couple is awaiting sentencing.
Melton was arrested in April 2004 after his daughter filed charges with the Chilton County Sheriff's Office.
Investigators said Melton and his wife raped his then-15-year-old daughter repeatedly between 1975 and 1987.
Investigators began collecting evidence after the victim filed a complaint against her father in November 2003. The couple's son also filed charges after his sister stepped forward, and the wife was also arrested.
Melton was the pastor of Prospect Baptist Church in Wilsonville at the time of his arrest. He also served as pastor of New Salem Baptist Church in Thorsby and Big Springs Baptist Church in Vida.
• Sentencing set for Pensacola pastor charged with soliciting sex
. [2005 Harris] - Lutheran. Internet "boy".The Ledger, The Associated Press, December 07, 2005
PENSACOLA, Fla. -- A former minister charged with soliciting sex on the Internet from an investigator posing as a teenager will be sentenced Dec. 28.
Michael Anthony Harris, 43, has pleaded no contest to attempted lewd or lascivious battery and using a computer to solicit the sexual conduct of a crime, according to court documents.
At the time of the incident, Harris was pastor at St. Paul Lutheran Church.
He was arrested April 13 after going to a soccer field to meet with a 14-year-old boy who was actually an undercover officer.
• Accused pastor placed on 90-day suspension
. [? 2005 Finley] - Methodist. Man.Fort Worth Star-Telegram, By CAREN M. PENLAND, SPECIAL TO THE STAR-TELEGRAM, ~ December 07, 2005
EULESS (TX) -- Methodist church officials placed a pastor accused of molesting a 21-year-old man on a 90-day suspension Tuesday, pending the outcome of an internal investigation.
Bishop Ben Chamness has called for a special meeting Dec. 14 of top officials of the 28-county Central Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church to discuss further disciplinary action against the Rev. James L. Finley, 68.
They will determine then whether to permanently relieve Finley of his post as senior pastor of First United Methodist Church of Euless, conference spokeswoman Carolyn Stephens said.
"What happens at that meeting depends on pastor Finley," Stephens said. "He has not indicated that he wishes to resign, though he has met with the bishop to discuss the situation."
• Euless pastor suspended after lewdness charge
. [? 2005 Finley] - Methodist. Man.KRIS, ~ December 07, 2005
EULESS, Texas -- The senior pastor of the First United Methodist Church in the Fort Worth suburb of Euless has been suspended for 90 days.
That's after the Reverend James Leonard Finley was accused of fondling a man.
The 68-year-old minister was suspended yesterday by Bishop Ben R. Chamness, who oversees more than 300 churches as part of the Central Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church.
A conference spokeswoman says Finley's been relieved of all pastoral duties and that the 14-hundred-member church will be headed by a retired minister.
• Lawmaker: Assembly to consider change in law shielding nonprofits in child sex cases
.Newsday, By ANGELA DELLI SANTI, Associated Press Writer, 8:32 PM EST, December 6, 2005
TRENTON, N.J. -- A year and a half after the state Senate voted to change the law shielding charities from liability in child sex assault cases, the state Assembly appears poised to finally consider the legislation next week.
The bill would grant new powers to child sex abuse victims in New Jersey, where the law now protects schools, churches and other nonprofits from being held liable for criminal actions of their employees.
New Jersey is one of only three states in the country with charitable immunity laws still on the books. The others are Alabama and Tennessee.
The bill would allow sex abuse victims to pursue lawsuits and collect damages from an organization if they can show that it acted negligently by hiring or employing sexual predators. Those abused as children could file lawsuits years later as adults.
"I've had discussions with the speaker and the majority leader; they've agreed to put it up for a vote," said Assemblyman Neil Cohen, D-Union, a sponsor of the legislation. "Everyone is now very excited."
• The Psychology Behind Homosexual Tendencies (Part 2)
. - RCC.Zenit, December 06, 2005
WEST CONSHOHOCKEN, Pennsylvania, (Zenit.org).- Many priests grow in holiness and happiness in their ministry as a result of the healing of their childhood and adolescent male insecurity, loneliness and anger and, subsequently, their same-sex attractions.
So says Dr. Richard Fitzgibbons, a psychiatrist, author and contributor to the Catholic Medical Association's document "Homosexuality and Hope."
Fitzgibbons shared with ZENIT how some seminarians, candidates for the seminary, and priests can make strides in resolving their homosexual tendencies, and what bishops and religious superiors can do to help them.
Part 1 of this interview appeared Monday.
Q: How can spiritual directors help seminarians or priests who have same-sex attractions?
Fitzgibbons: Spiritual directors can help seminarians and priests by understanding that same-sex attractions are treatable and are not genetically determined. They can encourage seminarians and priests to face their emotional pain with the Lord's help, particularly their loneliness.
• U.S. group demands Mexican president take action against priests accused of abuse
. [Aguilar] - RCC. 19 charges.
Union-Tribune, By E. Eduardo Castillo, ASSOCIATED PRESS, 1:32 p.m., December 6, 2005
MEXICO CITY -- A U.S. group representing people allegedly sexually abused by Catholic priests demanded Tuesday that President Vicente Fox do more to bring accused Mexican clergy to justice.
Leaders of the Chicago-based Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, known as SNAP, are visiting Mexico this week to pressure the government.
The group wrote to Fox a year ago, urging him to step up efforts to prosecute accused priests, among them the Rev. Nicolas Aguilar, who has been charged in California with 19 felony counts of committing lewd acts on a child.
Aguilar worked in Los Angeles in 1987 and later served as a priest in Mexico. He disappeared after similar accusations arose against him in this country. The group, which held a news conference Tuesday, said Fox never responded to its letter. [Bolding added]
• Tom Ferrick Jr. | Forget the money; give them justice
. - RCC.
Philadelphia Inquirer, By Tom Ferrick Jr., Inquirer Columnist, December 07, 2005
PHILADELPHIA (PA) -- Here is a case to ponder over your coffee and bagel.
In a nearby community, folks are outraged over a scandal involving a baseball coach accused of sexually abusing a boy on one of his teams.
The incident happened years ago but came to light only recently because the victim - now in his 30s - stepped forward to confront the man, known as Coach Brad.
After the case is publicized, other victims come forward. Investigators find a half-dozen credible cases of sexual abuse but cannot prosecute - the statute of limitations has run out.
Denied their day in criminal court, the victims file a civil suit, seeking damages from Coach Brad. They say the incidents - involving fondling and oral and anal sex - profoundly harmed them. Some took to drugs, some to alcohol; some suffer from mental illness.
At the trial, the coach's elderly father shows up to make a personal plea. The father, a wealthy man, is beloved in the community because of his generosity.
He tells the judge that his son's assets are tied to a family trust. If the jury awards the victims a large settlement, the trust will have to be used to pay it.
The father tells the judge that if the trust is depleted, its many charities will suffer: agencies that aid the elderly and the homeless, the poor and needy children in the community.
It's your call
Don't create a second set of victims, the father tells the judge. Please dismiss this suit.
If you were the judge, what would you decide?
This is a hypothetical case, but if it sounds familiar, there's a reason.
Change the name from Coach Brad to Father Brad. Make the number of known perps 63; have the victims number in the hundreds. Substitute Cardinal Justin Rigali for the father and - voila! - you have the Philadelphia clergy-abuse scandal.
• House wrestles with how to help church abuse victims
.The Philadelphia Inquirer, By MARTHA RAFFAELE, Associated Press, ~ December 07, 2005
HARRISBURG, Pa. - Several reforms recommended by a grand jury that investigated alleged sexual abuse by Catholic priests in Philadelphia have emerged in bills introduced recently in the state Legislature.
The House Judiciary Committee discussed but did not vote Tuesday on any of the six bills introduced the day before, including measures that would lift the statute of limitations on criminal charges of sexual assault against children - currently a victim's 30th birthday - and allow unincorporated associations to be subject to criminal prosecution just as corporations are.
Rep. Dennis O'Brien, R-Philadelphia, the committee's chairman, said he hoped the bills would be sent to the full House in time for a vote before the Christmas break.
The grand jury report released in September documented assaults on minors by more than 60 priests since 1967 and alleged that church leaders covered up the abuse. However, the panel said it could not bring criminal charges against the church or its priests, citing constraints in state law.
• Judge ponders who owns church property
. [Portland Archdiocese] - RCC.The Oregonian, By STEVE WOODWARD, Wednesday, December 07, 2005
OREGON After hearing more than three hours of sometimes heated debate Tuesday, a U.S. bankruptcy judge will now decide who owns the pews that Catholics in Western Oregon sit in each Sunday.
The issue before Judge Elizabeth Perris is whether parish property belongs to individual parishes or to the Archdiocese of Portland, which encompasses 124 parishes, three high schools and about 400,000 parishioners. The ruling could determine whether the parishes' estimated $500 million in real estate, cash and investments is available to pay millions of dollars in child sexual-abuse claims.
Perris has set no timetable, although she is expected to rule within the next several weeks. It's also possible that she will skip a ruling and order a trial instead. A trial would enable her to consider factual evidence, in addition to the purely legal arguments that lawyers have presented so far.
• Time for a Catholic Stonewall
. - RCC.The Advocate, By Mary E. Hunt, An Advocate.com exclusive, posted December 6, 2005
The Vatican has released a document banning priests "who are actively homosexual, have deep-seated homosexual tendencies, or support the so-called 'gay culture.'" Rome has been floating trial balloons for some time about this document to see what level of antigay rhetoric it can get away with. After months of document leaks, the Vatican had already made its point: Local bishops and religious superiors will be expected to scrutinize seminaries lest they become hideaways of gay culture. At this point the actual text of the document is irrelevant; dictatorships always rely more on self-censorship through fear and intimidation than actual punishment to accomplish their goals.
The galling fact is that this document, while purporting to "clarify" church teaching or "purify" the priesthood, is really nothing more than an effort to link the criminal activity of pedophile priests with homosexuality and to distract from the reprehensible behavior of bishops who covered up their misconduct. This is an absurd gambit on the part of the Vatican. Homosexuality has no relationship to child sexual abuse. This scandal has made transparent an untenable "kyriarchal" system--a model of church that locates power, both sacramental and temporal, in the hands of a few men who literally lord over the laity, speaking and acting in the name of all believers when in fact they are but a tiny percentage of the community.
It is time for a Stonewall moment.
• Fourth plaintiff added to lawsuit against Anchorage priest
. [< 1985, 1980s-90s Murphy (Jamesian)] - RCC. 4 males.
WPRI, ~ December 07, 2005
ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- A fourth man has joined a lawsuit accusing a former Anchorage, Alaska Catholic priest of sexual assault.
The updated lawsuit names the Reverend Francis Murphy, the Anchorage Archdiocese, the Boston Archdiocese and the Missionary Society of St. James the Apostle as defendants.
Murphy -- now in his 70s -- left Alaska in 1985 for alcohol treatment and resumed ministerial duties under the Boston Archdiocese.
After another sexual abuse allegation surfaced, he retired in 1995 and moved to New Mexico, working as a priest until previous allegations came to light.
• US group demands action against priests
. [Aguilar] - RCC. 19 charges.
The Daily Journal, ~ December 07, 2005
MEXICO CITY (AP) -- Mexico is not doing enough to bring clergy accused of sexual abuse to justice, a U.S. group representing people allegedly abused by Catholic priests said on Tuesday.
Leaders of the Chicago-based Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, known as SNAP, are visiting Mexico this week to pressure President Vicente Fox to take action.
"We want President Fox to assure us there will be justice and that any case against a priest will be treated the same as any case against a person who abuses children," said Eric Barragán, the group's spokesman.
The group wrote to President Vicente Fox a year ago, urging him to step up efforts to prosecute accused priests, among them the Rev. Nicolás Aguilar, who has been charged in California with 19 felony counts of committing lewd acts on a child.
Aguilar worked in Los Angeles in 1987 and later served as a priest in Mexico. He disappeared after similar accusations arose against him in Mexico. The group told a news conference Tuesday that Fox never responded to its letter.
• Handling the Ruling on Homosexual Priests
. - RCC.
The Trumpet, www.thetrumpet. com/index.php ?page=article &id=1896 , Wednesday, December 7, 2005
A Vatican pronouncement on homosexuals in the priesthood has many Catholics parsing the language, looking for loopholes.
On November 29, the Vatican published its policy on homosexuality in the Roman Catholic priesthood. The document specifically forbids three groups--"those who practice homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the so-called 'gay culture'"--while permitting those with a "transitory problem" to serve as priests if they have overcome the tendency for three years.
In a church with a billion believers, led by a priesthood of voluntarily celibate men, this "instruction," as it was officially called, affects a lot of people--including homosexual Catholic priests. Many prominent Catholics were thus quick to explain how the document did in fact permit homosexuality in the priesthood.
Bishop William S. Skylstad, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, issued a statement acknowledging that the document raised the question "whether a homosexually inclined man can be a good priest." He said yes--as long as they are dedicated servants who preach against homosexual acts. He added that "bishops and major superiors should be available to speak directly with brother priests and seminarians who personally face the problem of homosexual inclinations." In other words, priests and seminarians with homosexual inclinations shouldn't be expunged.
• Vatican taking look at U.S. seminaries
.Courier & Press, By PHILIP ELLIOTT, 461-0783 or elliottp@courierpress.com , December 7, 2005
INDIANA -- The Vatican has begun its inspection of 220 U.S. seminaries for "evidence of homosexuality," and the president-rector of St. Meinrad (Ind.) School of Theology is among those doing the looking.
"It's not a witch hunt," said the Rev. Mark O'Keefe, one of the 117 Vatican-approved inspectors. "We're not supposed to go into these seminaries for a witch hunt," said O'Keefe.
He is also among the nation's senior rectors.
"The visitations," he said, "are looking at institutions, not at individuals. It's not an evaluation of any one person."
Inspectors will interview every seminarian and three years of alumni. They also will consider whether "there is a clear process for removing" dissident faculty and whether seminarians know how to use alcohol, the Internet and television "with prudence and moderation."
• Woman accuses priest of abuse
. [2004 priest] - RCC. Woman.Bradenton Herald, BY STAN FINGER, The Wichita Eagle, ~ December 07, 2005
WICHITA (KS) -- A Wichita woman and a national advocacy group for victims of clergy sexual abuse on Tuesday delivered a letter urging the bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Wichita to remove a priest from ministry.
Peggy Warren wants the priest removed from the pulpit because, she said, he sexually assaulted her last year while he was stationed at her west Wichita parish, and she is afraid he will assault women at the two rural parishes he is now serving.
"I would not want any family to go through the hell my family has been through," Warren said outside diocesan headquarters near Central and Broadway.
In a move that leaders of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests called unprecedented, Bishop Michael Jackels held a press conference and acknowledged that Warren and the priest had been involved in an "inappropriate" relationship.
• Judge hears arguments over church property ownership
.Corvallis Gazette-Times, By WILLIAM McCALL, Associated press writer, ~ December 07, 2005
PORTLAND (OR) -- Attorneys for priest sex abuse victims argued in a federal court Tuesday it's absurd for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Portland to claim that federal bankruptcy law can be trumped by church law.
The victims are asking U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Elizabeth Perris to rule that church buildings, land and schools could be sold by the archdiocese to settle millions of dollars in sex abuse claims, if necessary.
But the archdiocese insists that property belongs to individual parishes, and selling off churches or schools would be an unfair burden and violate church law.
Albert Kennedy, representing the victims, said the archdiocese is trying to limit its liability by raising issues of religious freedom after filing for bankruptcy protection.
"This was a voluntary act for the purely secular purpose of avoiding jury trials and avoiding liability for child sex abuse by priests," Kennedy told Perris at a hearing on motions to declare the property can be used to pay bankruptcy claims.
• Don't forget female victims of priest sexual abuse
. - RCC. 20% female.Cincinnati Enquirer, By Gerard J. Ahrens, ~ December 07, 2005
CINCINNATI (OH) -- Much has been made of the Vatican's seminary investigation and pronouncement apparently designed to purge the priesthood of homosexuals ("Catholics still conflicted over gays," Nov. 28). The stated purpose of these actions appears to be an attempt to address the horrendous scandal of sexual abuse of minors by priests.
Even if church leaders are again successful, as they have been many times throughout history, in convincing the faithful to disregard scientific truth - i.e., in this case that pedophilia and homosexuality are not necessarily related concepts - the undeniable fact will remain that this purported remedy for this abuse crisis completely ignores the fact that about 20 percent of the victims of clergy sexual molestation are female.
How can the all-male Catholic hierarchy once again so blatantly devalue and disregard the experience of women?
Perhaps a better question would be: How could we expect anything different? Even if we give the originators of this absurd "final solution" the benefit of the doubt and we do not conclude that their obliviousness to female victims simply manifests their ancient prejudicial notion of woman as blameworthy temptress, we are still left with the question: How, by any stretch of the imagination, could the elimination of homosexuals from the priesthood protect females from clergy sexual abuse? [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 07:32 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Wed December 07, 2005
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont119.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.
• Teacher jailed for sex crimes
[1970s Toomey] - RCC. 10 boys.
Herald Sun (Melbourne), www.heraldsun. news.com.au/ common/story_ page/0,5478,174 85615%255 E2862,00.html , by Christine Caulfield, December 07, 2005
MELBOURNE: A CHRISTIAN Brother was jailed yesterday for molesting 10 students at a Catholic high school more than three decades ago.
Peter John Toomey, 56, molested young charges at Brunswick's Trinity Regional College in the 1970s.
The County Court heard Toomey preyed on boys aged 11 and 12, fondling them while they sat on his knee during classes.
Judge Meryl Sexton convicted Toomey on 10 counts of indecent assault and sentenced him to 2 1/4 years' jail. She said his abuse had had a devastating impact on his victims.
Toomey, who taught years 7 and 8, admitted spying on pupils undressing in change rooms and making students line up naked for inspection.
Judge Sexton said Toomey, then in his early 20s, took advantage of vulnerable victims. Toomey volunteered for treatment in 2000 and no longer has contact with children.
He will be placed on the sex offenders registry and must serve six months; the rest of his term will be suspended for three years.
[COMMENT: By courtesy of Broken Rites, Australia. They state that the case is also reported in the same day's The Age, hard copy, page 5. COMMENT ENDS.] [Dec 07, 05]
• [Portland tells court 124 parishes each own their own lands and churches, not the archdiocese]
[2005 Portland Archdiocese] - RCC.
The West Australian, "Schools, churches up for grabs in abuse case," p 33, Wednesday, December 7, 2005
LOS ANGELES: As a US Catholic Archdiocese files for bankruptcy because of sex abuse settlements, lawyers are fighting over who owns the churches and the land they are standing on.
They are asking a court to decide if individual parishes and Catholic schools own their assets, as the Archdiocese of Portland, Oregon, argues, or whether those assets belong to the archdiocese itself, as the alleged victims say.
The case before US bankruptcy judge Elizabeth Perris could set a precedent on whether Federal law trumps Catholic doctrine when it comes to Church property, experts say.
If the alleged victims win their argument, the property could be made directly available to help pay for any settlements. If they lose, it could force them to go after the individual parishes, delaying and complicating the process and increasing legal costs.
The Portland archdiocese is responsible for 124 Catholic parishes and more than 50 schools.
David Skeel, a bankruptcy law expert, said the case seemed destined for the US Supreme Court.
[COMMENT: These lawyers are giving opposite arguments to those of another U.S. diocese. The legal fees, and the scandal to parishioners and people wanting to believe in Catholicism, will be enormous. COMMENT ENDS.] [Dec 7, 05]
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.ncrnews.org/abuse, Thu December 08, 2005 edition follows:-
• Priests accused of misconduct barred from priestly duties
. [Kelly, Szott] - RCC. Boy. Porn.
Mlive.com , www.mlive.com/ newsflash/mich igan/index.ssf?/ base/news-30/1134 05244326480.xml &storylist=news michigan ; The Associated Press, 9:28 a.m. ET, Dec/8/2005
DETROIT (MI), (AP) -- The Vatican has concurred with the Archdiocese of Detroit's decision to remove two priests from their ministry due to sex-related misconduct allegations.
C. Richard Kelly, 62, former pastor of St. Thomas a'Becket Catholic Church in Wayne County's Canton Township, was removed from his post in 2004 after an allegation of sexual misconduct with a boy early in his ministry.
In 2003, the diocese also removed Timothy Szott, 58, former pastor of St. Lawrence Catholic Church in Utica, when child pornography was found on his computer. He later pleaded no contest to pornography charges and was sentenced to probation. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:17 PM]
• For area Catholics, Vatican's policy on gay priests creates controversy
. - RCC.Buffalo News, By JAY TOKASZ, Dec/8/2005
NEW YORK -- On at least one point, most Catholics agree: The American church needs more priests.
But the latest directive from the Vatican regarding whether gay men are eligible for that role is creating little unanimity.
Some Catholics are concerned that the document scapegoats gay priests for the church's clergy sex-abuse scandal and ultimately will shut out highly qualified gay men from the priesthood.
Others applaud the Vatican instruction as a long-overdue crackdown on a permissive "gay subculture" in seminaries. They think the directive will spur new vocations, especially among heterosexual men put off by the gay subculture.
"I pray to God that this will go a long way toward correcting the situation," said Raymond Duggan, a Hamburg resident and parishioner of SS. Peter & Paul Church. "I hope it works. I think it's badly needed."
• Bayou priest accused of sexual abuse placed on leave
. [Evans] - RCC. Substance and sex abuse. Minors.Al.com , The Associated Press, 11:49 a.m. CT, Dec/8/2005
MOBILE, Ala. (AP) -- A Roman Catholic priest, the Rev. Timothy Wayne Evans, has been placed on administrative leave following allegations of sexual and substance abuse involving minors, Archbishop Oscar H. Lipscomb said in a statement Thursday.
The Mobile County district attorney has been notified of the allegations.
Lipscomb placed Evans on leave Monday after interviewing him. No further details were released. Evans could not be reached for comment.
Evans was serving as pastor of St. Margaret's Catholic Church in Bayou La Batre when the archdiocese received the complaint Dec. 2.
A church representative, the Rev. James J. Cink, immediately contacted the family making the complaint and apologized, according to the statement.
• Labour seeks wider remit for child abuse redress board
.
IOL, 10:47:04, Dec/08/2005
IRELAND -- The Labour Party is demanding an extension to the remit of the Residential Institutions Redress Board.
The party said the current remit was too narrow and should be extended to cover further institutions and care homes.
• Toward a Holy Order
.
National Review, By Father Raymond J. de Souza, December 08, 2005
In the week since the Vatican released its new "Instruction" on the admission of men with homosexual tendencies to seminaries or to Holy Orders, there has been an impressive amount of commentary on what exactly it means. While the release of a Vatican document is always accompanied by commentators who argue mightily that it does not mean what it in fact plainly says, this time there is some genuine uncertainty about how best to interpret the Instruction -- and from quarters which are by no means lacking in fidelity to Church teaching.
The key passage says that "those who practice homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the so-called "gay culture" should not be admitted to seminaries or ordained priests.
The first and third categories seem clear enough. A man who is sexually active with others -- men or women -- clearly cannot be admitted to the seminary unless and until he has learned to live chastely. As for the "gay culture," it seems obvious that a potential priest cannot support initiatives which encourage homosexual acts, or even the affirmation of the homosexual orientation as something good in itself.
• Women abuse survivors challenge Rome, O'Malley
. - RCC.In Newsweekly, by Chuck Colbert, December 07, 2005
BOSTON (MA) -- Unconvinced the Vatican's new criteria banning gay seminarians address root causes of clerical abuse, women who were abused by priests demonstrated on Thurs., Dec. 1, outside chancery offices of the Boston Archdiocese.
While taking aim at a new Vatican document released earlier last week, which says men "who practice homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the so-called 'gay culture'" are not suitable for priestly ordination, the female survivors also took issue with Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley's recent letter on homosexuality, which local media widely considered a positive outreach effort.
"Perhaps the public would like to continue to think that priests abused altar boys and somehow their daughters are safe," said Ann Hagan Webb, New England coordinator for Survivors Network for those Abused by Priests, or SNAP. "We are here to dispel that myth," she added. "We were not safe. And homosexual orientation in our abusers had nothing to do with it."
Hagan Webb, a psychologist, who alleges her abuse by a monsignor from kindergarten through the seventh grade, took issue specifically with church officials and reports that suggest 80 percent to 90 percent of sex abuse victims were boys.
• Ex-Pastor's Web Sex Sentencing Set
. [2005 Harris] - Lutheran. Internet "boy".The Ledger, December 08, 2005
PENSACOLA (FL) - A former minister charged with soliciting sex on the Internet from an investigator posing as a teenager will be sentenced Dec. 28.
Michael Anthony Harris, 43, has pleaded no contest to attempted lewd or lascivious battery and using a computer to solicit the sexual conduct of a crime, according to court documents.
At the time of the incident, Harris was pastor at St. Paul Lutheran Church.
• Sex stories about fired therapist revealed
. [Bliss] - RCC. Female.Canton Repository, By PAUL E. KOSTYU COPLEY COLUMBUS BUREAU CHIEF, ~ December 08, 2005
COLUMBUS (OH) - Graphic details about sex, fear and violations of state code filled a 10-hour hearing that will determine whether fired counselor Dennis Bliss will keep his license.
Part of that hearing included listening to a 13-minute recording between Bliss and a former client about having sex in her bedroom.
A second day of testimony, which is expected to include 13 witnesses, begins this morning.
The Plain Township man was fired by Nova Behavioral Health Services after he was accused of inappropriate behavior and relationships with his clients. ...
Bliss, a suspended Catholic priest, has been out of work for 10 months, according to his attorney, Donald Hicks of Akron. Bliss also is accused of using his home as a church attended by Nova clients.
• Harshbarger quits as head of prison reform panel in Mass.
.Foster's Daily Democrat, ~ December 08, 2005
BOSTON (MA), (AP) -- Former Attorney General Scott Harshbarger has resigned in frustration as head of the panel appointed by Gov. Mitt Romney to reform the state's prison system, saying the governor has neglected the issue as he contemplates a run for president.
Harshbarger said too little has been done since the death behind bars of convicted pedophile and former priest John Geoghan in August 2003, allegedly at the hands of a convicted murderer.
The death led to widespread calls for a top-to-bottom prison review, including inmate assignment policies, after it was disclosed that low-risk offenders are sometimes housed alongside the state's most hardened criminals.
"I can feel it this fall: There has not been a sense of urgency," Harshbarger told The Boston Globe. "I don' see it in the executive. I don't see it in the Legislature. I don't see it in the agencies. I don't see the focus." [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 07:16 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker www.ncrnews.org/abuse , Thu December 08, 2005
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont119.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.
• [Prosecutors to appeal against sex offender's suspended sentence]
[Cairns] - No religion link reported. Girls, boys.
The West Australian, "DPP to appeal against sex offender's sentence," By LUKE ELIOT, p 11, Thursday, December 8, 2005
PERTH, W. Australia: Prosecutors will appeal against a nine-month suspended jail sentence given to a convicted child molester who admitted to attacking a teenage girl as she walked to school.
Victims advocates were outraged by the non-custodial sentence given to 26-year-old Simon Delmege Cairns, who admitted to overpowering and molesting the teenager as she walked to Rossmoyne Senior High School in December 2003.
The sentence was imposed last month by District Court Judge Bill Groves -- who in 2002 sparked a public outcry when he gave Stephen Ray Hough a two-year suspended sentence for sexually abusing three boys during a five-year period.
Hough was found guilty or pleaded guilty to 15 counts of sexual penetration of a child or children under the age of 13 and two counts of indecent dealing with a child under 13.
The Court of Criminal Appeal overturned the non-custodial sentence and jailed Hough for eight years.
Yesterday, Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions senior prosecutor Ken Bates said Cairns' sentence would be appealed against on the grounds that it was "manifestly inadequate".
He said the appeal had not been launched at the request of the girl's family. The DPP had a standard policy of reviewing all sentences to decide if an appeal would be lodged. [Dec 8, 05]
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont119.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.ncrnews.org/abuse, Fri December 09, 2005 edition follows:-
• Mahony Wins Delay of Priest Files' Release
. [2 priests; 2002-05 Cardinal Mahony] - RCC. Disobedience to grand jury.
Los Angeles Times, www.latimes.com/ features/religion/ la-me-briefs9.3 dec09,1,653273. story?coll=la-news- religion&ctrack= 1&cset=true ; From Times Staff and Wire Reports, December 09, 2005
LOS ANGELES (CA) -- The state Court of Appeal on Thursday gave Cardinal Roger M. Mahony at least 30 days to persuade higher courts to stall the court-ordered disclosure of internal files on two priests accused of molestation.
The court denied a request by Mahony's lawyers for more time to try to persuade the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn state court rulings demanding that the files be turned over to investigating authorities.
A Los Angeles County grand jury subpoenaed the documents three years ago. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 08:09 PM]
• Prep school apologizes for faculty abuse of students
. [St Paul's School] - ? Episcopalian. - Students.The Boston Globe, www.boston.com/ news/local/new_ hampshire/articles/ 2005/12/09/prep_ school_apologizes_ for_faculty_abuse_ of_students ; December 9, 2005
CONCORD, N.H. -- Prestigious St. Paul's School has apologized for faculty abuse of students years ago and asked any victims who have not come forward to do so now.
"To the alumni who came forward, and to any others who may have been harmed, I want to apologize on behalf of the school," interim Rector William Matthews wrote in the school newsletter and a guest newspaper column this week.
Matthews also reached out to other victims.
"These stories, as difficult as they are to tell and to hear, are necessary steps in order to help individual and institutional healing, and further to help ensure what happened does not happen again," Matthews wrote Thursday in the Concord Monitor.
The article appeared a few days after early copies of an article in Vanity Fair's January edition began circulating. The article, by St. Paul's graduate Alex Shoumatoff, says a woman attending her 25th reunion in 2000 told classmates that a popular faculty member tried to sexually assault her when she was a senior. She said she fled. [...]
The classmates, ... went to the administration that fall with allegations of abuse ranging from unwanted advances to sexual assault by 29 teachers during a half-century extending into the early 1990s, Shoumatoff wrote. A delegation presented the findings, which included firsthand, signed allegations, to then-Rector Craig Anderson and the trustees.
"They said, 'This is ancient history. It could never happen now'," Ursula Holloman, '75, told the magazine.
Holloman, a screenwriter in Los Angeles, said the administration showed interest in only one man, a retired teacher who was then still active in school affairs.
"The dead and long-departed teachers they didn't care about. They never asked for the list," Holloman said. [...]
Two years ago, The Wall Street Journal disclosed that Anderson, an Episcopal bishop, had salary and benefits totaling $524,000 a year, which shocked many parents and graduates.
The disclosure prompted an Internal Revenue Service review, which continues, and a decision by the charitable division of the New Hampshire Attorney General's office to review the school's finances until 2008. Anderson and the vice rector also took 10 percent pay cuts. [...]
• Former priest sentenced to nine years on child porn charge
. [Malsch] - RCC. 1993 Enticement. 2003 Child pornography.Duluth News Tribune, By JIM SALTER, Associated Press, ~ December 09, 2005
ST. LOUIS (MO) - A former Roman Catholic priest from Wisconsin who was previously convicted of a sex crime involving a child was sentenced Friday to nine years in federal prison for possessing child pornography.
David Malsch, 66, was also fined $12,500. He pleaded guilty in February in federal court in St. Louis to one felony count of receipt of child pornography.
Malsch was previously convicted of child enticement in 1993 in Wisconsin, and in 2001 was sent to the Wounded Brothers Recon Facility, a home for troubled priests in the eastern Missouri town Robertsville. That's where 28 images of child porn were discovered in his room by federal investigators in 2003.
• Philly priest sentenced to 12 years of probation in sex-abuse case
. [1970s Behan] - RCC. Boy.Philadelphia Inquirer, By Stephan Salisbury, ~ December 09, 2005
PHILADELPHIA (PA) - A Common Pleas Court Judge, dabbing tears from her eyes, sentenced a Roman Catholic priest to 12 years probation yesterday in the only criminal case arising from the church sex-abuse scandal in Philadelphia.
The Rev. James Behan, 61, pleaded guilty in February to repeatedly sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy, a student at North Catholic High School in the late 1970s.
Judge Pamela Dembe's court, packed with Behan supporters who traveled by bus from Wilmington, N.C., home of Behan's last parish, echoed with sighs of relief. Supporters hugged each other, many saying, "Thank God, it's over."
Gene Donohoe, whose younger brother, Martin, was the victim, said the family was surprised at the light sentence.
• Crying judge gives probation to priest who abused teen in 1970s
. [1970s Behan] - RCC. Boy.WCNC, By JOANN LOVIGLIO / Associated Press / Dec/09/2005
PENNSYLVANIA - A judge broke down in tears Friday as she gave probation to a priest who had a sexual relationship with a student in the late 1970s.
"I've worried about this case for months now and I can't pretend to any one of you that I know what the right thing to do is," Judge Pamela Dembe tearfully said. "Where I get stuck is I don't know how to balance one very terrible violation against the 30 years that followed."
The Rev. James J. Behan is the only priest charged in Philadelphia since the church abuse scandal broke in 2002.
Behan, an Oblate priest, performed oral sex on the teenager dozens of times from 1978 to 1980 when he taught at Northeast Catholic High School for Boys, prosecutors said.
• Editorial: Sexual abuse cases against adults hinge on accuser's testimony
. [Graham] - Religion not named.St. Louis Post-Dispatch, www.stltoday. com/stltoday/ neighborhoods/ stories.nsf/ columns/story/ 163E751C490E82 01862570CF00 701968?Open Document&high light=2%2C%22 jennifer%22+ AND+%22 joyce%22 ; Oakville-Mehlville Journal, Dec/07/2005
MISSOURI - In Kevin Madden's recent editorial, he poses the question "Is a priest guilty until proven innocent?" He then raises many questions that provide an opportunity for me to educate him and the public on the complexity of sexual abuse cases against children.
A jury of Father Graham's peers heard all of the evidence presented during his trial. Twelve jurors unanimously found Graham guilty of sodomy beyond a reasonable doubt. This was an unbiased jury with no connections to either Thomas Graham or the victim.
This same jury, after hearing during the sentencing phase of the trial that other victims have come forward with similar details of the abuse they suffered at the hands of Graham, unanimously found that Graham deserved 20 years imprisonment for committing this heinous offense. [...]
Also, Madden is incorrect to state that I attended a Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) meeting during the trial. What I did attend after the verdict was rendered, was a panel discussion held by the Voices of the Faithful, in which SNAP members were present as were dozens of others from throughout the community.
Finally, the trial against Thomas Graham was not about money, religion, the St. Louis Archdiocese, or SNAP. The trial against Thomas Graham was about the sexual abuse of a child who was the real victim. We can't lose sight of that.
Jennifer M. Joyce is the circuit attorney for the City of St. Louis
• Nora Wall can now sue for damages
. - Patricia Phelan said that she had lied.
Waterford News & Star, Friday, December 09, 2005
IRELAND - FORMER Mercy nun Nora Wall can now sue the State for damages after the Court of Criminal Appeal declared that her wrongful conviction for the rape of a 10 year-old girl at a Cappoquin child care home was a miscarriage of justice.
The 57 year-old woman's nine-year ordeal ended last Thursday when the court made its declaration. Outlining the court's decision, Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns said he was satisfied based on newly discovered facts in the case that a miscarriage of justice had taken place.
Key among these new facts was the admission by Patricia Phelan, a crucial witness at Ms Wall's trial six years ago, to gardai and a nun, Sr. Mona Killeen, that she lied about seeing Ms Wall hold down a young girl while a man raped her at St. Michael's Child Care Centre in Cappoquin.
• Church pays out £150,000 to abuse victims
. [Robinson, Clonan] - RCC. £150,000. 3 boys.
Ic Coventry, By Martin Smith, Dec 8 2005
UNITED KINGDOM - THE Roman Catholic Church has paid out more than £150,000 between three men who claim they were abused as children by former Coventry priests.
Two men - who both come from Coventry but one now lives in Birmingham - were awarded more than £20,000 each in separate out-of-court settlements after claiming they were abused by Fr James Robinson.
A third man, from Coventry, won a much larger sum in damages after claiming he was a victim of abuse by Fr Christopher Clonan, who was assistant parish priest at Christ the King Church in Coundon for 20 years until 1992.
The two men who claim they were Fr James Robinson's victims had been set to sue the Birmingham Archdiocese in the High Court, claiming negligence in its duty of care to them.
• Molesting priest breached trust
. [1970s Klep (Salesian)] - RCC. 10 boys.
ABC, ~ December 09, 2005
AUSTRALIA - A Melbourne court has been told a priest who molested 10 school students committed the most profound breach of trust imaginable.
Catholic priest Frank Klepp, 62, has pleaded guilty to 13 counts of indecent assault.
The Victorian County Court heard he molested 10 students on numerous occasions at Sunbury's Salesian College, north-west of Melbourne, in the 1970s.
The court heard all the boys were sick and confined to the boarding school's infirmary at the time.
Klepp's lawyer has told the court her client is remorseful but conceded that it is hard to imagine a more profound breach of trust.
• Prosecutors demand priest spends 20 years behind bars for serial rape
. [2001-04 Kin] - Seishin Chuo Church. 7 girls.
Mainichi Daily News, December 09, 2005
KYOTO, Japan -- Prosecutors on Friday demanded that a court sentence a priest to 20 years in prison for more than 20 cases of raping teenage girls.
Tamotsu Kin, 62, founder of the Seishin Chuo Church in Yawata, Kyoto Prefecture, raped or attempted to rape seven girls, aged 12 to 16 years old, at his church on 22 occasions from March 2001 to September 2004, according to prosecutors.
He often told the girls that if they resisted him, they would suffer in hell in an attempt to force them to accept his attacks.
"Taking advantage of his religious status, he treated young followers as playthings. The cases mentioned in the indictment are probably only the tip of the iceberg," a prosecutor told the Kyoto District Court. "The victims suffered incurable mental anguish. He only said he didn't deny the allegations, but he hasn't stated any facts."
• Mid Kerry priest steps aside following sex allegation
. [1980s priest] - RCC. Adult.
The Kerryman, ~ December 09, 2005
IRELAND - A PRIEST in a mid Kerry parish has stepped aside from his ministry pending an investigation into an allegation of inappropriate sexual behaviour.
A spokesman for the Diocese of Kerry revealed this week that the Diocese has informed the gardaí and the Health Services Executive of the allegation and an investigation is currently underway.
The priest at the centre of the allegation is aged in his 60s and has stepped aside from his ministry following a complaint made in recent weeks relating to an incident that is alleged to have occurred during the 1980s.
The complaint was made directly to the diocese by a person who was adult at the time of the alleged incident.
The priest at the centre of the investigation has been in the same parish for the last number of years. The complaint relates to his time in another parish in Kerry.
• Priest preyed on ill pupils
. [1970s Klep (Salesian)] - RCC. 10 boys.
The Age, By Daniella Miletic, County Court Reporter, for December 10, 2005
AUSTRALIA -- A CATHOLIC priest who taught at a Melbourne college in the 1970s preyed on 10 sick teenagers while they recovered in the school infirmary, a court has heard.
Frank Gerard Klep has pleaded guilty in the County Court to 13 charges of unlawful and indecent assault. He was a teacher at the Salesian order's Rupertswood College in Sunbury when he sexually abused the boys, aged between 12 and 17.
Crown prosecutor Carolyn Burnside told yesterday's plea hearing that Klep's victims were boarders and that he assaulted them while they were in the infirmary. He was then in charge of students in the infirmary.
One victim, 15, said he was fondled by Klep and that Klep gave him oral sex, then told him he would get into trouble if he told anyone.
Another boy, 16, was trying to sleep when he felt his pants being pulled down. Kelp then used a sponge to clean his penis.
The court heard that one 12-year-old who was in the infirmary because he had measles, remembered Klep staring at his penis, telling him he was "looking for spots".
• Rejection of gays is a backward move
. - RCC.
Philadelphia Inquirer, by Tom Teepen, columnist for Cox News Service, ~ December 09, 2005
If you are of a mischievous mind, you could have good sport with parts of the recently leaked Vatican policy on homosexuality and the priesthood.
The policy is still officially only pending but, by common account, it apparently is settled and inevitable, along the lines of a recently leaked document.
To no one's surprise - key points had been publicly bandied about at least for months - the Roman Catholic Church will forbid ordination to all but the small number of putatively gay applicants who can convince church authorities that any homosexual occasion in their life was at least three years in the past and only a muddled, fleeting attraction and that the candidate can live a celibate life henceforth indifferent, if not outright antagonistic, to "gay culture," whatever that may be.
Together, these points build a very high bar indeed, as plainly was meant to be the case. In erecting that bar, the church effectively buys into the hoary canard - discredited in experience and in research - that links homosexuality and pedophilia.
• Geisel Out
. [2005 Ms Geisel of Christian Brothers' Academy] - RCC. Boy/s.North Country Gazette, December 08, 2005
LATHAM (NY) -- Her "out" date is next week.
One of the most closely watched cases in the country will essentially conclude next Thursday, Dec. 15 when the former English teacher at Christian Brothers Academy who pleaded guilty to statutory rape will be released from Albany County jail after having served her sentence of six months.
Sandra "Beth" Geisel admitted to having sex in May with a 16-year-old male student at the Catholic school. She has registered as a Level I sex offender and will have to enter a residential rehab center for drugs and alcohol. She will also be on probation for 10 years.
• Conn. High Court Asked to Rule on Catholic Church Abuse Documents
. [2005 Bridgeport Diocese] - RCC. Hiding facts.Insurance Journal, December 9, 2005
CONNECTICUT - In a case that could have implications for New York Cardinal Edward Egan, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport asked the Connecticut Supreme Court to reconsider its ruling that newspapers can ask for documents related to its settlement of priest abuse cases.
The 3-2 ruling by the high court last month left it up to a lower court to decide whether to release the records. The diocese wants a full panel of seven justices or judges to consider the case.
Church officials argue the high court's decision wrongly concluded that a lower court judge agreed to allow the newspapers to intervene in the case. They say the trial court judge abused his discretion and want a new hearing on whether the papers have a right to intervene.
"The decision is, therefore, inconsistent with fundamental fairness and violates the defendants' right to due process," attorney John Farley wrote for the diocese.
• Walsh criticises false allegations against priests
. [? 1990s Bishop Casey] - RCC. Nonmarital child.
Irish Independent, December 9, 2005
IRELAND - The Bishop of Killaloe has criticised false abuse allegations made against Catholic priests, saying they are becoming far too commonplace and are damaging people's good reputations.
Willie Walsh made the comment after confirming that the former Bishop of Galway, Eamon Casey, is contesting an undisclosed allegation made against him.
Bishop Walsh confirmed today that he had received a phonecall from Dr Casey yesterday in which he proclaimed his innocence.
Dr Casey, who left Galway in 1992 after it emerged that he had fathered a son with an American woman, stood down from his ministry in Britain last week after the new allegation came to light. [Emphasis added]
• Catholic bishop to testify before Ohio legislators
. - RCC.
Toledo Blade, By JIM PROVANCE, BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU, December 9, 2005
COLUMBUS (OH) - In an unprecedented move, a Catholic bishop will testify next week before an Ohio legislative panel, a sign of how strongly the church wants to stop a bill allowing lawsuits alleging sexual abuse as long as 35 years ago.
"It's important they hear from the shepherd of the flock, that he explain what the church has committed itself to doing," said Tim Luckhaupt, executive head of Catholic Conference of Ohio. "We know people have been harmed, and we want to show what we are trying to do is help those people and make sure it doesn't happen again."
He said no final decision has been made as to which bishop will appear next Thursday. Ohio bishops have already taken the highly unusual step of personally meeting behind closed doors with legislative leaders on the controversial issue.
The House Judiciary Committee is considering a bill opening a one-time, one-year window for victims of child sexual abuse as long ago as 1970 to file lawsuits against their abusers as well as those they contend shielded them.
The Senate passed the bill unanimously last spring.
• Church, organist sued over sexual abuse
. [2000-04 Nelson] - Episcopalian. Porn videos and sex. 2 girls.WTNH, 5:30 PM, Dec. 8, 2005
WATERBURY (CT), (AP) -- Two girls have sued a former church organist and a church in Derby over sexual abuse charges.
The girls, who were not identified in legal papers filed in Waterbury Superior Court, said Robert Nelson showed pornographic videos and photos and engaged in sex with the girls for about four years beginning in 2000.
Lawyers for the girls say the 51-year-old Nelson pleaded guilty in October to sexual assault.
Immanuel St. James Episcopal Church also was sued. The lawsuit accuses the church of negligent hiring.
• Civil action targets Derby church, former organist
. [2000-04 Nelson] - Episcopalians. Prior convictions 1989, 1990. 2 girls.Republican-American, BY KATHY HALLORAN and WILL SISS, Friday, December 9, 2005
WATERBURY(CT) -- A civil suit has been filed in Superior Court on behalf of two underage Oxford girls against Immanuel St. James Episcopal Church in Derby and the church's former organist, Robert Nelson.
The girls' attorneys, Martin J. Minnella and Timothy C. Moynahan, of Waterbury filed the suit Thursday. The defendants are seeking more than $15,000 in damages as a result of years of sexual abuse at the hands of Nelson, Moynahan said.
The suit alleges the girls -- who are identified in the suit as Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2 -- were sexually assaulted over a period of years by Nelson and that the church failed to properly check Nelson's background before hiring him.
Nelson, 51, formerly of Naugatuck, has prior convictions for risk of injury to a minor from incidents in 1989 and 1990 in Newtown and Trumbull.
He recently pleaded guilty to sexual assault on the two girls in the first degree, second degree and fourth degree, and could serve 15 years. He is currently incarcerated in the Cheshire Correctional Institution.
• Abuse trial of pastor begins
. [Connell] - Baptist. Boy.Star-Telegram, By BEN TINSLEY, ~ December 09, 2005
FORT WORTH (TX) - The pastor and principal of a Haltom City Baptist church and school is on trial this week, accused of sexually molesting a boy he mentored after the child's father died several years ago.
Jay Preston Connell, 53, of Landmark Baptist Church and Landmark Christian Academy is charged with four counts of indecency with a child by contact and one count of indecent exposure to a child. Prosecutors say the boy, who last attended Connell's school in April 2004, had been mentored by Connell since age 7 and molested over at least five years. The boy is now 16.
"The child's father was elderly and passed away at some point during their seven-year relationship," prosecutor Steve Jumes said. "That's how the defendant was able to step into the kid's life. The mother trusted him and relied on him to be a father."
Defense attorney Walt Cleveland said that's exactly what his client did: mentor the child. Connell did nothing illegal, Cleveland said.
"He didn't do anything that the child's mother didn't ask him to, and there was no sexual intent involved in anything Dr. Connell did," Cleveland said. "It's our contention the state took something quite innocent and caring toward the child and imposed its own mindset, making it into something lewd and malicious. And that's not right."
• Victims Speak At Clergy Sex Abuse Hearing
.NBC 4i, UPDATED: 6:42 pm EST December 8, 2005
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Emotional testimony was heard Thursday at the Statehouse, where supporters of a bill that deals with sex abuse and clergy voiced their opinions.
Anna Marie Martinez, of Germantown, Md., claims to be the victim of sexual abuse at the hands of a Catholic priest.
She appeared at the Ohio Statehouse to urge house lawmakers to pass Senate Bill 17, NBC 4's John Ivanic reported.
"When I was young, when I was abused, there was nowhere to go," Martinez said. "There were no sexual assault units in the police department."
• Voice members to protest Vatican policy on gay priests
. - RCC.The Standard-Times, By JACK SPILLANE, ~ December 09, 2005
MASSACHUSETTS - An organization of lay Catholics will hold a candlelight vigil Sunday at Bishop George W. Coleman's office to protest the Vatican's near-ban on homosexual seminarians.
The local Voice of the Faithful group, which has been prohibited from meeting in Fall River Diocese facilities, expects about 25 people to attend, said George Lee, a parishioner at St. Patrick's in Somerset and a Voice member.
Its participants are not worried about getting in trouble with the Fall River bishop, he said.
"This is about supporting priests," he said.
Voice of the Faithful SouthCoast is the local chapter of a national group that has criticized church hierarchy in the wake of the sexual abuse crisis
The group is now inviting its members to show support for Catholic priests regardless of their sexual orientation. Besides Fall River, vigils will take place in Boston, Springfield, Los Angeles, Chicago and Philadelphia.
• Priest on leave after abuse allegations
. [Evans] - RCC.Montgomery Advertiser, ~ December 09, 2005
MOBILE (AL) -- A Roman Catholic priest, the Rev. Timothy Wayne Evans, has been placed on administrative leave following allegations of sexual and substance abuse involving minors, Archbishop Oscar H. Lipscomb said in a statement Thursday.
The Mobile County district attorney has been notified of the allegations.
Lipscomb placed Evans on leave Monday after interviewing him. No further details were released. Evans could not be reached for comment.
Evans was serving as pastor of St. Margaret's Catholic Church in Bayou La Batre when the archdiocese received the complaint Dec. 2.
• Sex abuse lawsuit against priest heads to trial
. [1989-93 Estrada] - RCC. Man.Midland Reporter-Telegram, by Bob Campbell, Dec/09/2005
TEXAS -- District Judge George Gilles has set arguments for 10 a.m. Dec. 16 on pre-trial motions in a sexual abuse lawsuit against former Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church Rev. Domingo Gonzalez Estrada, the Catholic Diocese and bishop of San Angelo.
Filed in 142nd District Court by Dallas attorney Lori Watson, the lawsuit alleges the now 64-year-old priest molested a now 22-year-old Midland man genitally and anally six times from 1989-93. Unspecified damages are sought.
Estrada, who is still a priest in the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate order and living in the San Antonio area, was tried on six felony charges and acquitted on all counts Dec. 2, 2004, by a 238th District Court jury.
"The judge will be hearing two motions for summary judgment and a motion to complete the interrogatory," Watson's legal assistant told the Reporter-Telegram Thursday afternoon. "We will also get a scheduling order."
She explained that a scheduling order will outline the steps leading to a trial.
When asked if Estrada's criminal acquittals will make a civil settlement more difficult to win, Watson's spokeswoman said Watson, a partner in the Windle Turley Law Offices firm, will not comment on that issue before trial.
• Dozens speak in support of Ohio's priest-abuse bill
. - RCC.Cleveland Plain Dealer, by Julie Carr Smyth, Plain Dealer Bureau, Columbus, Friday, December 09, 2005
COLUMBUS (OH) -- Robert Riestenberg said his principal at a Catholic high school in Cincinnati sexually molested him the day after his father died of cancer.
Mary Kessler said she was mourning the death of her young brother in a car accident when she was raped by the priest who had taken her grieving family under his wing.
Joelle Casteix was 15 when, bruised and bloody, she went to the office of her Catholic high school to report being abused by her choir director.
"They told me, 'Isn't it nice to be in love?' " said Casteix, 35, on a cross-country trip from California to support an Ohio bill aimed at cracking down on sexual abuse by priests and other religious leaders.
Riestenberg, Kessler, Casteix and dozens of others who say they are abuse victims testified Thursday in the second marathon hearing in a month on the proposal, sponsored by Sen. Bob Spada, Republican of North Royalton. It would mandate that church officials report known abuse, and it would open a one-year window for abuse victims to file civil lawsuits against the church.
• Priest accused of sexual abuse of teenage boy
. [Evans] - RCC.Mobile Register, By ANDY NETZEL, Friday, December 09, 2005
ALABAMA - A Roman Catholic priest has been accused of sexually abusing a teenage boy while serving in Bayou La Batre, Coden, Daphne or Monroeville, according to church and law enforcement officials. His tenure as a priest includes 17 months as the head of youth ministry for the Archdiocese of Mobile.
The Rev. Timothy Wayne Evans, 39, has been put on administrative leave from his duties as the pastor of St. Margaret's Catholic Church in Bayou La Batre and St. Michael's in Coden. Evans is under investigation by the Mobile County district attorney's office, but no charges have been filed, officials with that office said Thursday. Officials declined to state where and exactly when the alleged abuse occurred.
"We regret this, of course," said the Rev. Jim Cink, director of the Mobile Archdiocesan Office of Child Protection. "We want to say we're sorry to this family, and we have. We want to care for the family, and we will care for them."
• Vatican to gays: Grow up!
. - RCC.Southern Voice, Friday, December 09, 2005
THE VATICAN FINALLY issued its "instruction" on gay seminarians last month, and it has profound practical, political and theological implications.
Practically, the Vatican has taken a definitive stand: no gay seminarians!
So, our gay men will stop entering the seminary. Only gay men who don't know themselves or who are lying will be ordained. Pious platitudes will cover over all sexuality.
The Roman Catholic priesthood will remain a hideaway for sexually immature men of every stripe. And the sexual abuse that this new policy is supposed to address will go on, business as usual.
[RE-READ the last sentence. Wise words! New Testament devotees could then look up the texts advising and encouraging marriage such as "... every man should have his own wife ..." and the quotes about the disciples' wives. ENDS.]
• Diocese raises count of priest abuse claims by 6
. - RCC. 6 more complaints.The Journal Gazette, By Rebecca S. Green, ~ December 09, 2005
INDIANA -- The Fort Wayne-South Bend Catholic Diocese issued an update on sexual abuse allegations within the diocese Thursday in the aftermath of the national clergy abuse scandal, and the number of priests accused of abuse within the local diocese since 1950 remains at 16.
That is the same number of accused priests announced by Bishop John M. D'Arcy in December 2003. But since the end of 2003, an additional five allegations were leveled against those 16 priests. Another credible allegation of sexual abuse, occurring more than 60 years ago, was made against a priest who could not be identified, according to the diocese, which brings the number of allegations since the end of 2003 to six.
Diocesan officials conducted an extensive investigation into the identity of the accused priest, who is believed to be a priest from a religious order or community, but were unable to identify him, the diocese said.
All of the allegations against the 16 priests are alleged to have occurred 20 or more years ago, according to the diocese.
• Clergy receive VOTF support
. - RCC.Telegram & Gazette (Worcester), By Kathleen A. Shaw, kshaw@telegram.com , December 09, 2005
MASSACHUSETTS -- This is the time of year when Christians, and many in this area are Catholics, are busy wrapping Christmas gifts.
Voice of the Faithful, an organization of Catholic lay people and priests, is asking Catholics to do something a little different this weekend.
The request is to snip off a piece of green ribbon and wear it to weekend Masses in honor of the good priests, regardless of sexual orientation, as a way of showing them support at a time when many are demoralized by the sexual abuse scandal that has engulfed the Catholic church and a recent instruction from the Vatican stating that homosexual men are not welcome in seminaries. The green ribbon should be worn so that it is visible, VOTF said.
Raymond Joyce, VOTF executive director, said yesterday that bishops may say differently, but VOTF members know that many good priests feel demoralized. He added that VOTF believes that what the organization calls priests of integrity, whether gay or not, are living by their promise of celibacy.
VOTF leadership said excluding homosexuals from the priesthood is not a solution to the clergy sexual abuse crisis.
"This show of support for priests is for all Catholics, and not just members of Voice of the Faithful," he said.
"We are told in Acts of the Apostles that the early Christian community was recognized when observers would say of them, 'See how they love one another.' What better time to live that message?" he said.
The organization chose green because it is a liturgical color worn by priests during Masses at certain times of the year, green ribbon is readily available this time of the year because of Christmas gift wrapping, and it is not associated with any other worthy causes.
Mary Keville of St. Theresa's parish, Harvard, said members of her parish unit of Voice of the Faithful will wear green ribbons at all Masses this weekend and will continue through the rest of the month. She was instrumental in bringing Voice of the Faithful to the Diocese of Worcester after the national organization was founded in Boston in 2002 as a response to the sexual abuse crisis. The organization now has chapters abroad and claims more than 30,000 members.
In the Worcester diocese, VOTF has given support to clergy abuse survivors. The organization's goal also is to support those they call "priests of integrity."
The green ribbon campaign is being organized throughout the country and began through e-mails to its 30,000 members throughout the United States.
In addition to ribbons, VOTF affiliates will hold prayer candlelight vigils across the country, including Cathedral of Our Lady of Angels in Los Angeles; the Chicago chancery office; Cathedral of the Holy Cross, Boston; the Fall River chancery office; St. Michael's Cathedral, Springfield; Sts. Peter & Paul Cathedral, Philadelphia.
"We invite you to join a national gesture of our conviction that a vocation to the priesthood is not and should not be restricted by one's sexuality. As was quoted in The Tablet by Fr. Timothy Radcliffe, 'We should be more attentive to whom our seminarians may be inclined to hate than whom they love. Racialism, misogyny and homophobia would all be signs that someone could not be a good model of Christ," the organization said in e-mails to members. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 07:16 AM]
[DOCTRINAL DISCUSSION: But as well as the "'See how they love one another" text, there are some anti-homosexual strictures in the Christian Scriptures -- Romans 1:24-27 and 32; Jude verse 7; and 1 Corinthians 6:9-10. For more on these, click Religion / Same Sex. Of course, the United Kingdom RC bishops said (reported Oct 6, 2005) that not all the Bible was accurate. I wonder!?
But what about the Didache, said to be the oldest existing commentary on the gospels, early second century, commanding at 2.2: "Thou shalt not seduce young boys."
The earliest Church council after the Council of Jerusalem for which records exist took place at Elvira in 309 A.D. This council proposed irrevocable exclusion for those who sexually abuse boys. (Canon 71) That is, they were not to receive the Sacrament of Communion even at the point of death. (Based on Religious Life Without Integrity, page 27, Barry Coldrey, 2001, P & B Press, Como. See www.thelinkup. com/integrity- toc.html )
If these are legitimate "Traditions" (that the RCC says overrides other teachings), why are clergy and brothers turned loose on different parishes, orphanages, and schools whenever their sins came to light?
It is hoped that the Voice of the Faithful will stop flirting with speakers who support women clergy (which the Vatican would not adopt in 1000 years), and keep up the pressure on returning the clergy to the status of the early Church, that is, selected from respectable married family men. ENDS.]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Fri December 09, 2005
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont119.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.ncrnews.org/abuse, Sat December 10, 2005 edition follows:-
• Lawyer drops repressed memory bid in suit against Boys Town
. [Girls and Boys Town] - RCC.
Pioneer Press, www.twincities. com/mld/twin cities/news/ state/minnesota/ 13378622.htm , Associated Press, ~ December 10, 2005
OMAHA, Neb. - Weeks after a judge declared that repressed memories are not reliable enough for filing claims of sexual abuse, a lawyer said he will not use the claim in a similar case against Boys Town.
Minnesota attorney Patrick Noaker said he made the move this past week, dropping the repressed memory argument in James Duffy's federal lawsuit against Girls and Boys Town, based in Omaha.
Noaker's bid to use the claim in another case was thrown out by Douglas County District Court Judge Sandra Dougherty in late November. She ruled that expert testimony claiming Todd Rivers of Omaha had repressed memories of abuse at Boys Town could not be presented at trial. Rivers' expert, Dougherty said, did not prove that such a diagnosis is scientifically valid.
Noaker, of St. Paul, Minn., said he withdrew the claim because he expected the same result from a similar hearing for Duffy's case scheduled for later this month. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 05:26 PM]
• Tape of priest charged in nun's death sought
. [1980 Robinson] - RCC. Nun dead.Toledo Blade, By MARK REITER, December 10, 2005
TOLEDO (OH) - An audio-taped interview that Toledo police conducted with the Rev. Gerald Robinson nearly 25 years ago in investigating the slaying of a local nun are among the records being sought by attorneys for the priest.
Father Robinson is accused of fatally stabbing Sister Margaret Ann Pahl in the chapel of Mercy Hospital near downtown Toledo. A trial is scheduled to begin April 17 in Lucas County Common Pleas Court.
Attorneys yesterday asked Judge Thomas Osowik to compel prosecutors to provide them with recordings of the police interview with Father Robinson that was made after Sister Margaret Ann's death on April 5, 1980.
The motion filed by the attorneys also asks the court to provide the affidavit for a search warrant that they believe police served in 1981 at the home of a man who was questioned in connection with the case.
• Accused priest seeks year to ready defense
. [Mons. Fushek] - RCC. 7 males.East Valley Tribune, By Lawn Griffiths, December 8, 2005
MESA (AZ) Saying he faces "complicated trials with potentially (a) large number of witnesses," Monsignor Dale Fushek is asking for a year to prepare his defense against 10 sexual misconduct charges.
Fushek, former pastor of St. Timothy's Catholic Community in Mesa, was arrested Nov. 21 on accusations he molested seven men and boys on church property between 1984 and 1994. He has pleaded innocent to the misdemeanor charges.
His attorney, Michael Manning, filed a letter with Justice of the Peace Samuel Goodman of the South Mesa/ Gilbert Justice Court this week spelling out the requests.
Manning asked the judge to "sever" the complaints and order separate trials involving each male accuser so that Fushek would not suffer "copycat allegations."
• Two more lawsuits name priest
. [1960-81 White] - RCC. Now it is12 boys.Journal-Advocate, By Bruce Schuknecht, ~ December 10, 2005
DENVER (CO) - Copies of two new lawsuits alleging child molestation against a former local church priest were revealed Friday.
The fresh complaints against the Archdiocese of Denver, filed this week in Denver District Court, seek unspecified money damages. They also name Harold R. White, a former St. Anthony's priest of Sterling, as a co-defendant. They accuse him of molesting at least 12 boys during his 33-year church career.
Similar lawsuits say he left the priesthood two years ago.
Office staff for Denver attorney Thomas Roberts, who filed the suits Monday, could not say where the former priest now resides. An Associated Press article this week mentioned White has an unlisted phone number.
The newest complaints listed John Koldeway, now of Alaska, as one plaintiff. The other names John Doe 1A of Colorado as the second plaintiff. Both men accuse the diocese of negligence in supervising White, and also fraud for allegedly hiding the boys' complaints. Their documents describe a serial abuser of young boys between 1960 and 1981.
• A Guy In A Priest Suit Walks Into A Church With A Big Box Of Condoms.
. - RCC.Forever a Square Peg, ~ December 10, 2005
PHILADELPHIA (PA) -- Sounds like the beginning of a bad joke doesn't it? Well, according to Dmac, it's not.
A man, dressed as a priest will be distributing condoms to mass-goers at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul this Sunday morning. Here's an excerpt from the press release:
"The lay-Catholic stance of 'we love our faith, but we disapprove of our bishops' actions' is untenable at best…Every time parishioners go to worship in a Catholic Church or give money, they are supporting the bishops' ability to shelter pedophiles, play legal hardball against survivors, and bash homosexuals. They need to realize this, and the sooner the better."
• Condomania at the church!
. - RCC.Philadelphia Will Do, ~ December 10, 2005
PHILADELPHIA (PA) - With a last name like "McQuade," it's no surprise that I'm really excited about a coming event I got a press release for today. David Lynn, the webmaster of FreePoliticalSpeech.com, is dressing as a priest and handing out condoms at the Basilica on Sunday morning.
"In addition, the grand jury's report makes clear that even priests are not always honest about their sex lives," Lynn was quoted in the press release. "People who might have sex with their priests need to understand this, and practice safe sex with their clergy -- you never know where their hands have been."
Eh, you know, there's nothing like a good publicity stunt. And there's really nothing like a good publicity stunt that will piss off a bunch of old Catholics minding their own business and going to church. (I've seen a lot of angry old Catholics in my life, and it's a fun sight.) But calling for safe priest-lay people relations? Now there's one I haven't heard before.
Oh, and kiddies: sadly, this free condom hand out is for adults only. But Lynn doesn't specify if you have to be Catholic! (Or if you have to be looking for a relationship with a priest.) So if you're a human adult and looking to get your groove on, hey, here's a chance for some free protection.
Full release after the jump.
For Immediate Release: December 8, 2005 Contact: David Lynn, Webmaster, FreePoliticalSpeech.Com Email: Webmaster@FreePoliticalSpeech.Com Condoms To Be Distributed At Cathedral Basilica Of St. Peter And St. Paul Before High Mass
Condoms will be distributed to adult parishioners of the Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul in Philadelphia, PA before High Mass on December 11, 2005, it was announced today.
David Lynn, Webmaster, FreePoliticalSpeech.Com, will distribute condoms to adult parishioners at Sister Cities Park, across the street from the Cathedral. Lynn, who will be dressed as a priest, will be distributing condoms in order to spotlight the recent child abuse scandal in the Catholic Church.
• Priest convicted of sexual abuse gets new trial
. [1970s Olszewski] - RCC. Boy.The Detroit News, By David Eggert / Associated Press, December 10, 2005
LANSING (MI) -- The Michigan Supreme Court has ordered a new trial for a Roman Catholic priest convicted of sexual misconduct with a boy at a Detroit rectory, ruling the priest was deprived of an impartial jury.
The Rev. Edward Olszewski, 72, was convicted in 2002 of indecent liberties with an 11-year-old boy at St. Cecilia's in Detroit. His accuser said the misconduct took place in the early 1970s.
In an order released Friday, the high court agreed with Olszewski's argument that a woman who was molested as a young child should not have been allowed on the jury. Wayne County Circuit Judge Diane Hathaway had previously ruled that the juror acted fairly and based her decision on the evidence.
Olszewski's attorney said her client was ecstatic.
"He has maintained his innocence all along," Elizabeth Jacobs said. "The Michigan Supreme Court has given him a very nice Christmas present. This really means a lot to him. He had to give up being a priest." [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 07:14 AM]
• Diocese shielding priest, 4 men say
. [Monsignor Reilly + 6 others] - 4 boys.Star-Telegram, By DARREN BARBEE, ~ December 10, 2005
FORT WORTH (TX) -- Four men on Friday accused leaders of the Fort Worth Roman Catholic Diocese of protecting an Arlington priest who they say sexually abused them and later keeping them in the dark about other victims, including one another.
The accusations were made in court documents that also seek to gain access to the sealed files of Monsignor James Reilly, who died in 1999, and six other priests accused of sexual misconduct with children. The four men, who are not identified in the documents, are seeking an unspecified amount of money from the church.
Three of the men reported their accusations to the diocese, and each was told that he was Reilly's only victim, according to the documents and the men's attorney. It is unclear from the suit when each man came forward to report the allegations. The fourth man said Friday that he never went to the diocese. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 07:12 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker www.ncrnews.org/abuse , Sat December 10, 2005
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont119.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.ncrnews.org/abuse, Sun December 11, 2005 edition follows:-
• Clergy's Call Still Strong for Young Vietnamese
. - RCC.
The New York Times, www.nytimes.com/ 2005/12/11/national/ 11priests.html , By NEELA BANERJEE, Published: December 11, 2005
WASHINGTON (DC), Dec. 8 - When the Rev. Augustine Tran went to Vietnamese-American parishes as a seminarian a couple of years ago, pastors and worshipers would hand him money to help him with school, though they had little of their own. When he goes to the Vietnamese enclaves of suburban Virginia, where he now works, Roman Catholics often greet him like a celebrity, his siblings said.
At a time when fewer American Catholics are expressing interest in the priesthood, Vietnamese-American men are an anomaly. They are now the second-largest minority ethnic group in seminaries, only slightly behind Hispanics, who account for a far larger percentage of the general population.
While church experts and priests say that some Catholics frown upon their sons' joining the priesthood and are even embarrassed by it in the wake of the sex abuse scandals among members of the clergy, Vietnamese Catholics continue to hold the priesthood in high regard. They say that the sex scandal marred individual clergymen but not the vocation itself. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 02:32 PM]
• Groundbreaking comedian Richard Pryor dies
. [? 1950 Unnamed priest] - RCC. Boy.
CTV.ca , www.ctv.ca/ servlet/Article News/story/CTVNews/ 20051210/richard_ pryor_051210/2005 1211?hub=Top Stories ; News Staff , December 11, 2005
LOS ANGELES (CA) - Trailblazing comedian Richard Pryor, whose unflinching commentary on race relations and his own shortcomings transformed the entertainment industry, died after a heart attack Saturday. He was 65.
"He was my treasure," said his wife Jennifer Pryor, whom he remarried in 2001, in a telephone interview with CNN. ...
According to the biography on his official website, Pryor was raped by a teenaged neighbour at the age of six and molested by a Catholic priest during catechism.
• Suit reaches new heights: the Vatican
. [The Papacy] - RCC.The Sunday Oregonian, By ASHBEL S. GREEN, Sunday, December 11, 2005
OREGON - Process servers have crashed celebrity parties, donned disguises and engaged in car chases -- whatever it takes to put legal papers into the hands of reluctant defendants.
But rough-and-tumble tactics won't work against the Vatican, an independent country located within the city of Rome. To sue a foreign nation, lawyers in an Oregon priest abuse case needed to spend $40,000 for a pair of Latin translators and wait more than three years to serve the proper Vatican official through the right diplomatic channels.
"I've never in 24 years of practice ever had the kind of obstruction, obfuscation, delays, difficulties, challenges and nonsense that I've encountered in trying to serve them," said Jeffrey R. Anderson, a Minneapolis attorney representing the plaintiff in the case.
But Anderson's persistence paid off. Thousands of lawsuits have been filed against Catholic dioceses and religious orders, but Anderson's suit is believed to be just one of two pending against the Vatican itself.
And Anderson's lawsuit, which involves a priest who molested a boy in Portland in the mid-1960s, is believed to be the first priest-abuse case to be successfully served against the Holy See in Rome.
Anderson, who has sued hundreds of dioceses and religious orders around the country, said he wants to hold the Vatican financially responsible.
• Throughout life, 'Father Ryan' cloaked himself in many faces
. [2002, 2004 Erickson] - RCC. 2 shot. Suicided.Minneapolis Star-Tribune, www.startribune. com/stories/462/ 5774608.html , by Richard Meryhew, Randy Furst and Paul Levy, Last update: December 10, 2005 at 10:11 PM
HUDSON (WI) - As he spoke to the congregation about the Blessed Virgin Mother, the Rev. Ryan Erickson began sobbing.
Like others at St. Patrick's Church in Hudson, Wis., Joan Richie was stunned the first time she witnessed one of Erickson's emotional outbursts.
But when his crying became a regular part of his sermons, an irritated Richie said she could no longer hold herself back. She confronted him one Sunday about four years ago in the church sacristy.
"He was like a little child, gasping for air between sobs when I asked him, 'Aren't you overdoing it a bit? Can't you quit crying?' " Richie, 79, recalled. "And he did. If he had to, he could turn it on and off.
"I never doubted his devotion to his faith. But Ryan Erickson was an actor. And his greatest role may have been as a priest."
A year ago this month, Erickson hanged himself at age 31 from the railing of a church in Hurley, Wis. A St. Croix County judge has since ruled that the priest was the likely killer of two men at a Hudson funeral home in February 2002.
... he lived playing very different roles for different audiences.
