Clergy Child Molesters (151) — References / Archive / Blog

Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:10 AM

• Abuse lawsuit cites Episcopal church, school

  - Episcopalians.
   Houston Chronicle By DALE LEZON 11:35PM Aug. 7, 2008
   HOUSTON (TX) -- A Harris County man and former student at an Episcopal school in Houston has sued the Protestant Episcopal Diocese of Texas, alleging he was sexually abused by a school coach who was later convicted on multiple charges of sexual abuse of a child.
   The suit, filed in state district court late Wednesday, states that officials with Holy Spirit Episcopal School and the diocese did nothing even though they had received complaints that the former boys athletic director and coach had inappropriately touched students and sent them sexually suggestive text messages.
   The lawsuit states that the coach sexually assaulted the plaintiff.

• Two charges dropped in Belant child molestation case

  [~ 2000s Mr Belant*] - Presbyterian. 4 boys.
   The Eureka Reporter, By KAREN WILKINSON, 12:15 AM, Aug 8 2008
   CALIFORNIA -- Two child molestation charges were dismissed Thursday against a former church youth leader, teacher's aide and college student at his preliminary hearing, which is expected to end today.
   Andrew Belant, 25, knew the four alleged male victims through his role as a junior youth leader at the Eureka First Presbyterian Church and from the after-school program at Lafayette Elementary School. He was also attending Humboldt State University to receive a B.A. and go on to teach.
   District Attorney Investigator William Honsal testified about statements the boys made in interviews about the alleged sexual abuse and statements Belant made prior to him asking for an attorney. [LOOK BACK: July 16, 2008, April 17, 2008]

• Pastor gets prison time for molesting 2 girls

  [? 2000s Torres*] - "Iglesia Bautista Reformada". 32yrs prison. 2 girls.
   San Jose Mercury News, The Associated Press Article Launched 10:48:30 PM PDT August/07/2008
   SAN FERNANDO, Calif.–A former pastor has been sentenced to 32 years in prison for sexually molesting two girls who attended his church in the San Fernando Valley.
   Joseph Gary Torres received his sentence Thursday in San Fernando Superior Court. He was convicted of the sexual abuse in June.

• Sex offender registry hot meeting topic

 
   Times Argus by Thatcher Moats, August 8, 2008
   RANDOLPH CENTER (VT) – About 30 people attended a panel discussion in Randolph Center Thursday night to hear officials from the Legislature, law enforcement, Department of Children and Families and other organizations detail how the state handles sexual predators.
   The discussion was organized by Randolph Cares, an ad hoc group of community members and leaders that formed in response to the death of Brooke Bennett about a month ago.
   Rev. Robin Junker, who moderated the event, said the group formed after Bennett's body was found to try and answer the question, "How can we respond to this long-term?"

• DeLuca removed from the priesthood

  [DeLuca]
   WDEL, By Carl Kanefsky, ~ August 08, 2008
   DELAWARE -- Francis DeLuca is no longer a priest following a decree by Pope Benedict.
   The request for DeLuca's laicization came from Bishop Michael Saltarelli after DeLuca was arrested for sexual abuse in Syracuse, New York back in 2006.
   The final decision by the Pope come in the wake of a recommendation from the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome, and cannot be appealed.

• Priest Named in Sex Abuse Lawsuits Defrocked

  [DeLuca]
   WILM By Mark Fowser, 1450 WILM, Friday, August 8, 2008
   DELAWARE -- The Catholic Diocese of Wilmington says the Pope has granted a request to remove Francis DeLuca from the priesthood. DeLuca, who was a former priest in Delaware, has been named in several sex abuse lawsuits and has been convicted of child molestation. DeLuca was arrested in 2006 in New York State on charges he sexually abused a …

• DELMARVA: Priest charged in sex-abuse cases defrocked

 
   The News Journal By ESTEBAN PARRA, August 8, 2008
   DELAWARE -- A Catholic priest who has been the subject of eight sex-abuse lawsuits has been defrocked, the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington announced Thursday.
   A Catholic priest who has been the subject of eight sex-abuse lawsuits has been defrocked, the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington announced Thursday.
   "The bishop's request was made shortly after DeLuca was arrested on charges of misdemeanor sexual abuse in Syracuse, N.Y., in October 2006," diocesan spokesman Bob Krebs said. "The decision to laicize Mr. DeLuca was made at the recommendation of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome and issued by the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI."
   The decision was effective the moment the pope issued the decree and it cannot be appealed. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:36 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Fri August 08, 2008
• Priest pleads guilty on child-sex and porn charges.  [? 2007-08 Haines*] - RCC. Procuring child for porn, enticing, possessing, transmitting. 70 charges, admits 10.    

---

   [COMMENT: Just as the computer pornography perpetrators keep on corrupting themselves and others, in spite of repeated news reports of arrests, it seems that the clergy of many religions are also unable to stop sinning.  The bishops ought to tell them that, since the Boston disclosures of early 2002, "the game is up."  Catholic schools used to teach that RC clergy were protected by Sanctifying Grace and Actual Grace.  Retraining them for another career at Church expense might make a lot of sense. ENDS.]
   [LOOK BACK: February 21, 2008 ff. ENDS.] http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm#priest_pleads_guilty [August 9, 2008]
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Sat August 09, 2008 edition:

• Rites and wrongs - alleged abuse in the Mormon church

  [Caccipppoli -NEW*] - Mormons.  
   Sunday Star Times, for Sunday, August 10, 2008
   NEW ZEALAND -- BOSS IS dead. The Southland bull mastiff had to be put down after he became aggressive, says his owner, Ora Tautari. She says her pet's behaviour changed after becoming another victim of Raphael Caccioppoli, who was last month sentenced in Invercargill to five years' jail on 13 indecency, sexual and violence charges.
   These, involving mostly young boys and a teenage man, were committed while Caccioppoli was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS) or Mormons. According to Tautari and several other sources the Sunday Star-Times has spoken to, Caccioppoli, a lawyer and justice ministry judicial officer, was sent south from the North Island by the church and made a Sunday school teacher. He was invited to live with the family, a common practice within the church, after he befriended Tautari's husband.
   Tautari is angry that North Island church leaders never let on they knew Caccioppoli had sexually abused boys in the past. They never told her family when they first opened up their home to him and they didn't tell the parents of the Sunday school children he taught. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:12 PM]

• Abuse victims took their own lives: classmate

  [1950s-60s Unnamed priest/s -NEW*] - RCC. 5 suicided. 10 victims in one class.    
   Sydney Morning Herald, by Kate Dennehy, for August 10, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- FIVE former students of a high-profile Catholic school committed suicide years after being sexually abused by a priest there, says an alleged sixth victim.
   Paul Fauth, 59, now based in Melbourne, attended St Joseph's Nudgee College in Brisbane in the 1950s and 1960s. He said a classmate attempted suicide on July 30 in Brisbane after memories of abuse were rekindled prior to World Youth Day. His life support system was turned off on August 1 and he was cremated on Thursday.
   Mr Fauth said that of his class of 29 students he knew of 10 who were sexually abused by the priest.

• Priest to stand trial for sex offences

  [Cloutier ? -NEW*] - RCC.  
   North Bay Nugget, ~ August 09, 2008
   CANADA -- A North Bay priest has been committed to stand trial for sex offences in the Sudbury area against teenage boys in the 1970s and early '80s.
   Father Bernard Cloutier, 66, was serving as parish priest at Saints-Anges Roman Catholic Church in North Bay when he was first charged in June 2007.
   Cloutier has been relieved of his duties since then and has been living with family in North Bay, Bishop Jean-Louis Plouffe, who heads the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie, has been quoted as saying.

• CHRISTIAN CHARITY?

  [Years - Pell*]- RCC's lawyers issue threat to victim's home.    
   Northern Star, www.northern star.com.au/ storydisplay. cfm?storyid= 3781188 , By Tonia Moorton, ~ August 09, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- IT wasn't bad enough that local man Anthony Jones was abused by a Catholic priest.
   Now Cardinal George Pell's lawyers have told Mr Jones he could lose his house if he keeps pursuing legal action against the Church.
   "I've had a letter from my lawyer where the Church says I'd be forced into the situation (of having) to sell my home if I continued with the proceedings," Mr Jones said.
   The 54-year-old disabled pensioner, who lives near Nimbin, said he was furious lawyers representing the Church would act in such a manner.
   [TEXT: From them that hath not, it shall be taken away! ENDS.]

• Diocese didn't provide information to board reviewing sex abuse allegations

  [Kownacki, Ratermann] - RCC. SECRET ARCHIVES meant 12 files did not get released.  
   News-Democrat, BY GEORGE PAWLACZYK, ~ August 09, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) --Belleville Diocese officials possessed numerous documents concerning alleged sexual abuse of minors by priests but did not offer them to a citizens review board set up to investigate and help victims, according to transcripts filed in a 2002 civil law suit.
   The Rev. Jack McEvilly, the diocese's vicar general, said, "Since this is pending litigation, we are unable to comment."
   The documents included the personnel folders of more than a dozen accused priests who were eventually removed from active ministry after allegations of sex abuse of minors.
   They also included reports from the 1970s compiled by former vicar general Monsignor Bernard Sullivan that were not placed in personnel files but were kept in a small safe referred to as the "secret archives," according to court documents. The records concerned allegations of sex abuse against two priests eventually removed from ministry -- the Rev. Raymond Kownacki and the Rev. Jerome Ratermann, the transcripts state.

• A Special Note to Readers: The Article Still Stands.

  [McCormack]
   TomRoeser.com , www. tomroeser. com/blogview. asp?blogID= n24708 ~ August 09, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The Office of Legal Services, Archdiocese of Chicago sent me a letter dated July 30 that just now came to hand…since the letter was addressed to an old office I had which I closed more than a year ago. It is from one John C. O'Malley who says I "personally published defamatory statements" on July 29, 2008 saying that the Rockford diocese "has decided it is finished with Mundelein." A memorandum from the director of communication of the Rockford diocese to the director of communications for the archdiocese of Chicago deny this as does the bishop of Rockford. "Given that you personally published these defamatory statements," writes O'Malley, "I am compelled to bring their falsity to your attention." He expects that I will
   1. "Remove the defamatory statements from your blog entry."
   2. Print a retraction of the false statements contained therein"
   3. "Refrain from making any further un statement regarding the relationship between St. Mary of the Lake Seminary, Mundelein and the diocese of Rockford." And--
   4. "I must demand that you distribute your reaction to" websites which republished them.
   As the language brims with provocative legal terminology, I have responded swiftly by retaining competent legal counsel. My favorite colonial hero to whom I repair at times like this is William Prescott of Pepperell, Middlesex county, Massachusetts, a colonel in the Revolutionary War who commanded Americans at Bunker Hill. And his words are an axiom, at once conciliatory yet forthright: [***]
   The letter from O'Malley concludes with these words: "if the statement regarding seminarians propositioning any individual is true, it is a matter of grave concern for the Archdiocese. Therefore, if you have any additional information regarding this allegation-including the names of any individuals involved-I ask that you please share the information with me so that the allegation can be fully investigated."
   Rest assured, sir not only the archdiocese will be notified but more importantly those empowered to take swifter action than the archdiocese has exerted previously.
   Meantime, I would remind attorney O'Malley who is concerned about being told of instances of homosexuality at Mundelein that the rector who ordained McCormack told the "Chicago Sun-Times" that if he had to do it over again, he still would have ordained this man who violated children… . The rector being promoted to auxiliary bishop of Chicago, then named bishop of Tucson, Arizona, then elected vice president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and now approaches the time when he will ascend to the presidency of the USCCB without objection or dissent. I am not aware that there has been any mention whatsoever in the Chicago archdiocese about the former rector's statement made subsequent to his rapid promotions. Nor has his lack of contrition been an impediment to his startlingly fast rise in ecclesiastical circles.
   Enough. Full texts of all statements are available on the Catholic Citizens of Illinois website…catholiccitizens.org [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:55 PM]

• Diocese owes bankruptcy advisers $2 million

  - RCC condoning very expensive.
   Quad-City Times By Ann McGlynn | Saturday, August 9, 2008
   DAVENPORT (IA) -- The bills for the attorneys and other professionals who worked on the Diocese of Davenport's bankruptcy total just more than $2 million, records show.
   The largest bill came from the law firm that represented the 162 people who filed claims of sex abuse in the case. Pachulski, Stang, Ziehl and Jones of Los Angeles, the largest bankruptcy law firm in the country, billed $1.1 million. The second largest bill, $794,734, is from Lane & Waterman, the Davenport firm that represented the diocese.
   The smallest charge, $40,995, is from Richard Calkins. Calkins is the arbitrator who considered all of the claims, including in-person interviews with many of the victims, and decided where each would fall on the matrix that determines payment.

• Bourgeois homily: 'Conscience compels us to be here today'

  - RC women ordination homily.
   National Catholic Reporter, Homily text of Father Roy Bourgeois, Published: August 9, 2008
   LEXINGTON (Kentucky) -- When I met Janice Sevre-Duszynska years ago in the SOA Watch movement, she spoke about her journey of faith and her call to be ordained in the Catholic church.
   That day has arrived. And we are here to share in her joy and to support Janice in her call to the priesthood.
   As we know, the ordination of women in the Catholic church is a controversial issue. Ten years ago I wrote the following letter to my Maryknoll community about why women should be ordained. It was published in the Maryknoll newsletter under the headline "No One Likes a Bully."

• Peace activist priest assists at women's ordination ceremony

  - Unorthodox RCs.
   National Catholic Reporter, By TOM ROBERTS, NCR staff, Published: August 9, 2008
   LEXINGTON (KY) -- Maryknoll Fr. Roy Bourgeois, long associated with the cause of Christian non-violence and attempts to close the international school for military training at Fort Benning, Ga., today staked his conscience to a different cause: the ordination of women in the Catholic church.
   Bourgeois was a concelebrant and homilist at the ordination of Janice Sevre-Duszynska, a longtime peace activist and advocate of women's ordination. The ordination occurred Aug. 9 at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Lexington, Ky.
   In an interview Aug. 7, two days before the ordination, Bourgeois told NCR that he had thought long and hard about participating after receiving an invitation to the ceremony. "I consulted a lot of friends, I've done a lot of discernment, spoken with a lot of women friends. I felt in conscience -- this matter of conscience keeps coming up and I don't know what other word to use -- if I didn't attend her ordination, I would have to stop addressing this issue as I do" in speaking engagements at parishes and other Catholic venues around the country.

• Sixth Catholic woman priest ordained this year

  - Ceremony to appoint women as RC priests.
   National Catholic Reporter, By DENNIS CODAY, NCR staff writer, Published: August 9, 2008
   LEXINGTON (KY) -- Bishop Dana Reynolds lays hands on Janice Sevre-Duszynska during Sevre-Duszynska's ordination Aug. 9Janice Sevre-Duszynska was ordained a priest Saturday, Aug. 9, in Lexinton, Ky., making her the sixth woman to be ordained in the United States this year as part of the Roman Catholic Womenpriests movement.
   The movement has ordained about 25 women and a few men in the United States over the last two years. Saturday's event was noteworthy because for the first time, a male, Roman Catholic priest in good standing publicly joined the ceremony. Maryknoll Fr. Roy Bourgeois concelebrated at the ceremony and was a homilist. (See related story and read Bourgeois' homily.)
   Sevre-Duszynska, 58, is married. She has said she will serve as an itinerant priest "speaking out for the voiceless and challenging the powers that be to hear the call of nonviolence and cooperation in our world community."

• Accused in Scandal, a Pastor Who Rose High Yet Felt Free to Speak Out

  [Harris]
   The New York Times, By PAUL VITELLO, Published: August 9, 2008
   NEW YORK -- Tall and charismatic, Msgr. Wallace A. Harris has earned a reputation over a 36-year career for cool-handed crisis management and for forging connections. He revived a Harlem parish where the previous pastor was in drug rehabilitation, helped arrange the pope's visit this year, and as the highest-placed black cleric in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, was talked about as a potential bishop, even cardinal.
   But as a black man in a largely white organization who saw himself as something of an outsider, friends say, Monsignor Harris also earned a reputation as someone willing to speak up for those he saw as underdogs – a quality that made him the natural choice of fellow priests in the mid-1990s, when they elected him chairman of the Presbyteral Council, the senate that represents all 650 priests in the archdiocese.
   In recent years, as reports of low morale among priests surfaced under the simultaneous stresses of sex abuse scandals, church closings and tensions with Cardinal Edward M. Egan's briery management style, Monsignor Harris has been described by some friends as the closest thing to a priests' union shop steward, taking late-night phone calls from his peers and sometimes carrying their concerns to the hierarchy.
   At the height of the national uproar over sexual abuse in 2002, he testified before a blue-ribbon church panel studying the problem, saying that while some priests were guilty, many others were being falsely accused.
   Now, Monsignor Harris himself is snared in allegations of abuse, and the shock has been felt not just among the members of his Harlem parish, but also among the members of the other flock he tended: fellow priests.

• Must Read: Tom Doyle on Survival of the Spirit

  - RCC.
   Voice from the Desert,
   THE SURVIVAL OF THE SPIRIT WHILE MIRED IN THE TOXIC WASTES OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL SWAMP; By Thomas P. Doyle, J.C.D., C.A.D.C., ANNUAL SNAP GATHERING, Chicago, Illinois, July 13, 2008
   UNITED STATES -- Preface -- Sexual abuse of children and minors by trusted clergy results is a unique type of trauma. The vast majority of victims are devoted members of their denominations with an exceptional degree of trust in their clergy person and in the religious system. The intensity and destructive effects of the trauma associated with clergy abuse are directly related to the emotional bond between the victim and the abuser. This bond is grounded in factors that are described as "spiritual" but which in fact are toxic and lead to a traumatic relationship that is accompanied by sexual abuse.
   There are two dimensions of religious based trauma that directly impact the overall effects of clergy sexual abuse: the emotional and mental conditioning of the victim, which directly influences susceptibility to abuse and, the same conditioning with the added element of a toxic spirituality which shapes the impact of abuse on the victim.
   Prevention of the lasting effects of trauma from clergy sexual abuse involves more than awareness of the modus operandi of sexual predators in clergy clothing. It must also take into account the enabling aspect of religious conditioning that leads to a post-abuse feeling of alienation from God as well as society. Short term prevention is directed at potential victims but also at the religious systems or institutions that both train and employ clergy. Long term prevention probes deeply into the systemic factors that enable clergy sexual abuse and produce the unique traumatic effects of this abuse on the believing victims.

• Mandatory Fingerprinting – a Solution? Or Sound and Fury Signifying Nothing

  - RCC trying to weed out dangerous helpers.
   Les Femmes, The Women of Truth by Mary Ann Kreitzer, ~ August 09, 2008
   VIRGINIA -- The June 30 diocesan deadline for mandatory finger-printing spelled automatic dismissal for diocesan employees and volunteers working with children who refused to submit to the requirement. At one parish in the diocese the policy is creating disunity and broken hearts. For Dr. Eleanor Kelly, Director of Religious Education (DRE) at St. John the Baptist in Front Royal since 1994, the decision not to be fingerprinted was a painful one. She loves her young charges. Like Jesus, who compared his love for Jerusalem to a mother hen gathering her chicks, Dr. Kelly speaks tenderly of the hundreds of children she guided through the catechetical program. "I'm like a grandmother to them," she told Les Femmes. "It's so important that someone else speaks to them [in addition to parents] and presents the faith. I'm really going to miss doing it."
   Kelly's assistant, Shan Loughry, was also fired in the parish purge which swept out most volunteer catechists in the parish and many others working with children. Loughry, a homeschooling mom of two and a convert, ruefully described a conversation with Fr. Edward Hathaway, the new pastor. "He told me not to worry to be fingerprinted if I have a shoplifting record or something. It would all be kept in strictest confidence." Father's comment illustrates what many fear, i.e., that the diocese's policy judges the laity as guilty until proven innocent. During implementation of the safe environment program, diocesan representatives, including the bishop, stated "parents might be abusers" and that those who refuse to be fingerprinted "must have something to hide." It is an attitude many find troubling. [Les Femmes attempted to reach Fr. Hathaway for comment, but he was unavailable due to attending a two-week workshop out of state.]

• Diocese expels visiting priest

  - RCC. Bringing in priest without authority.
   Calibre, Bart Jones Newsday, Melville, N.Y., Released 4:00 AM, Saturday, August 09, 2008
   LONG ISLAND (NY) -- The Diocese of Rockville Centre has expelled a priest brought here for the last eight summers by Msgr. James Lisante without the diocese's knowledge, and who was suspended recently by his home diocese near Guam.
   The Rev. Matthew Blockley, who assisted Lisante, a Fox News commentator, and upset some parishioners in Lisante's new parish in Massapequa Park who said Blockley removed a religious statue, has been ordered by Bishop William Murphy to immediately cease presenting himself as a priest on Long Island.
   After learning Blockley was working here without authorization, the bishop also ordered him to cease celebrating public Masses here, Rockville Centre spokesman Sean Dolan said Friday. Murphy then instructed Blockley to immediately return to his home diocese in the Northern Mariana Islands. …
   "No one in the world is saying Father Matthew has done anything wrong," Lisante said. "Father Matthew is a good priest, a hardworking priest. … There was no issue of faith or morals."

• Pastor Indicted By Grand Jury In Molestation Case

  [8yrs -? 2008 Taboada*] - Christian. Girl.    
   American Chronicle, by Aaron Wilmot, August 08, 2008
   HAWAII -- In recent Hawaii legal news, a fifty-six year old minister has been indicted by the O´ahu Grand Jury and he is identified as Manuel Guillermo Taboada and also known as Memo.
   He is charged with seven counts of first and second degree sexual assault charges for allegedly molesting one of his parishioners children.
   This comes after the Monday arrest of Taboada that took place at the Honolulu International Airport. There are questions to as to whether or not he was attempting to evade justice in this case. He is now being held in lieu of a hefty $2 million dollars in bail. It is speculation but the high bail amount appears to possibly be due to the possibility of the defendent fleeing the state or perhaps even the country. Of course, the defendent is innocent untill proven guilty of the crime at hand.
   [LOOK BACK: July 24, 2008. ENDS.]

• Board investigating abuse by priests didn't get key info

  [1973-78 Kownacki] - RCC still keeping secrets. Fraudulent concealment. Altar boy.  
   St. Louis Post-Dispatch, By Nicholas J.C. Pistor, August/09/2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) – Former Belleville Bishop Wilton Gregory and diocesan officials didn't turn over key information to a civilian review board investigating allegations of sexual abuse by priests, a former administrator for the board said in a court deposition made public on Friday.
   Margaret Mensen, the former administrator for a civilian review board investigating priestly misconduct, said neither Gregory nor diocesan officials handed over information alleging that the Rev. Raymond Kownacki abused a 14 year-old girl – something she said she would have investigated.
   "I'm getting new information here," Mensen said in a July court deposition while being questioned about what information was turned over to her by Gregory.
   Mensen also said the review board did not have access to documents kept on allegations of sex abuse that predated its formation in 1993.

• Vatican dismisses retired priest

  [DeLuca] - RCC.
   Post-Standard, By Renée K. Gadoua, Saturday, August 09, 2008
   SYRACUSE (NY) -- A retired Catholic priest sentenced to 60 days in jail after pleading guilty to sexually abusing a boy in Syracuse has been removed from the priesthood.
   The Diocese of Wilmington, Del., announced Thursday the Vatican had accepted its request to "laicize" the former Rev. Francis DeLuca, 79.
   "This decree from the pope permanently dismisses DeLuca from the priesthood and he is now known as Mr. DeLuca," the Wilmington Diocese said in a news release. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:26 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Sat August 09, 2008
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Sun August 10, 2008 edition:

• Disgraced vicar's sentencing delayed

  [~ 2000s Fereday -NEW*] - ? Church of England. Child pornography.  
   The Guardian, http://www. dinnington today.co. uk/news/ Disgraced- vicar39s- sentencing- delayed. 4367805.jp ; ~ August 10, 2008
   UNITED KINGDOM -- THE FATE of a Firbeck vicar who made pornographic images of children will now be decided at the end of August.
   Adrian Fereday who serves the Woodsetts, Letwell and Firbeck parishes was due before Sheffield Crown Court on Thursday but the date has been withdrawn until Friday 29th August.
   Fereday, formerly of Barker Hades Road, Letwell, admitted 17 charges of making and possessing indecent images of children.

• What happened to this All-American boy?

  [Mr McInerney -NEW*] ? RCC. Boys.  
   The Star-Ledger, by Mark Mueller / 8:45 PM, Saturday, August 09, 2008
   NEW JERSEY -- Alone in the dark, Andrew Clark Jr. walked along the rocky apron of the railroad tracks in Spring Lake. He was in a bad way, he told a friend on the phone. He didn't say why. He didn't have to.
   It always came back to Bart.
   Bart McInerney had been Andrew's baseball coach at St. Rose High School in Belmar. A respected man from a large and well-liked family, he'd been a friend and neighbor of the Clarks in Spring Lake Heights. He'd eaten at their table, talked sports with Andrew's father.
   According to prosecutors, he'd also been a sexual predator. Charges filed against McInerney in November allege he repeatedly engaged in explicit conversations with players, hectoring them to provide details of private acts in text messages, offering them condoms and cash incentives. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:03 AM]

• Sex shame priest drops legal action to sue Catholic Church

  [18yrs Mons. Creegan*] - RCC. Mistress (married).  
   Glasgow Sunday Mail, By Charles Lavery, Aug 10 2008
   SCOTLAND -- A PRIEST sacked over an 18-year affair with a woman has abandoned his sensational legal action.
   Monsignor Joseph Creegan had threatened to expose scandals in the Catholic Church in Scotland, including priests' secret homosexual liaisons and alcoholism.
   But now he has ditched the unfair dismissal action only two weeks before the hearing was due, prompting speculation he has been paid off.
   [LOOK BACK: June 29, 2008]

• Bishop defends church

  - Bp Geoff Robinson speaks.      
   Brisbane Times, by Mary Adams, August 10, 2008
   BRISBANE (Qld), AUSTRALIA -- A CONTROVERSIAL Catholic bishop has defended the church's handling of sexual abuse victims, despite widespread criticism that it encourages cover-ups.
   Retired Sydney Bishop Geoffrey Robinson was in Brisbane last week to promote his book <9>Confronting Power And Sex In The Catholic Church, which created a storm before World Youth Day last month.
   Addressing an event organised by sexual abuse support group the Esther Centre at the Queensland State Library on Wednesday, Bishop Robinson encouraged victims to access the Towards Healing program, set up in 1996 after the jailing of several priests and brothers for sexual abuse.
   The program was promoted as an alternative to court action and promised justice and compensation to victims.

• Instant Editorial: Setting a bad example on child abuse

  - RCC. [1980s Killion* (Salesian Oblate)] - 4 boys. [1996-2008 Salesian Oblates] - Knew of allegations, allowed continuance.  
   News-Press, by Mark Stephens, August 7, 2008
   FLORIDA -- Organizations such as churches and schools with the responsibility of protecting and nurturing children should respond honestly and vigorously when child abuse is discovered in their own ranks.
   They should set an example of not only how to care for children but how to confront and uproot child abuse.
   Some Catholics have struggled to rid their church of the plague of child-abuse by priests, but the case of The Rev. Dennis Killion is a depressing reminder of how much more work is to be done. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:50 PM]

• Candidates for St.Stan's board warned of possible excommunication

  - Bell, book and candle?    
   St. Louis Post-Dispatch, By Tim Townsend, August/10/2008
   ST. LOUIS (MO) -- Bishop Robert Hermann, the St. Louis archdiocese's interim leader, warned eight parishioners at St. Stanislaus Kostka church Saturday that they could face excommunication if they ran for the lay board in this weekend's church elections.
   "It's a threat from Bishop Hermann that I better not try for the board because my soul is in danger," said Marion Kirkiewicz of Fenton.
   Letters admonishing the parishioners for running for the board and warning them of the consequences of election were hand-delivered Saturday night. Some of the parishioners returned home in the evening to find the letter taped to their front doors.
   "I haven't even been elected yet," said Marybeth McBryan of St. Louis. "It's like the archdicoese is wagging their finger in my face."

• Hero? Heretic? Parish divided

  - RCC. Homosexual relationships, lady priests, married priests.
   St. Louis Post-Dispatch, By Tim Townsend, August/10/2008
   ST. LOUIS (MO) – It was just before midnight on Christmas Eve 2005, and the Rev. Marek Bozek was the focus of 2,000 souls crammed in pews or standing on tiptoe in the aisles, straining to see him.
   They came to St. Stanislaus Kostka church to be a part of Bozek's first Mass as pastor. He had arrived in St. Louis from Springfield, Mo., thumbing his nose at the Roman Catholic hierarchy and riding to the rescue of fellow Polish countrymen deprived of the Eucharist for more than a year by their archbishop.
   For many St. Stanislaus parishioners whose ancestors had built the church just north of downtown, Bozek became a hero.
   But more than two years later, Bozek has reshaped the church into a community that would be unrecognizable to those 19th-century founders.
   His vision for a reformed Roman Catholic faith calls for supporting female ordination, allowing priests to get married and accepting gay relationships. Bozek's stands have attracted hundreds of new St. Stanislaus parishioners who share the priest's reform-minded vision.

• Letter Regarding ADC and ADR on Mundelein Seminary

  - RCC.  
   Catholic Citizens of Illinois, ~ August 10, 2008
   ILLINOIS -- This links to a letter from the Chicago archdiocese refuting certain statements made by blogger Tom Roeser about a seminary in Illinois.

• Police ask for info on accused ex-pastor

  [1992~2007 Mr Picard*] - Brethren. Girl.
   News Journal, By MARK CAUDILL, August 10, 2008
   MANSFIELD (OH) -- City police want to hear from News Journal readers who might know something about the John Picard case.
   Picard, 40, of Springboro, was arrested last month and charged with 10 counts of sexual battery. He is accused of having sexual relations with a teenage parishioner starting in 1992, when she was 13, and continuing until she reached adulthood. Picard was a youth pastor at Grace Brethren Church on Marion Avenue at the time.
   Picard was being held in the Richland County Jail on a $250,000 cash bond.
   Police especially want to hear from people who have posted on the forums of the News Journal's Web site.
   "There's been a lot of comments, people saying that they've had information," Lt. Allen Vandayburg said. "The one person said Picard had confided in him."
   [LOOK BACK: July 18, 2008]

• Lexington Woman Ordained a Priest

  - "Catholic" or rebel?
   WTVQ, 19:13, Saturday, August 09, 2008
   A Lexington woman goes against centuries of tradition and the Catholic Church to be ordained a priest.
   LEXINGTON (KY) -- Jane Sevre-Duszynska was publicly ordained Saturday afternoon as a Roman Catholic woman-priest.
   Ten years ago, Sevre-Duszynska asked a Lexington bishop to ordain her as priest. He refused. Even so she never gave up her belief she had been called to the ministry.
   Saturday, inside the Unitarian Universalist church, she became the first woman in the South to be ordained by the Roman Catholic woman priest.

• Catholic archdiocese gives nod to controversial religious group

  - RCC. Legion of Christ.
   Examiner, by G.M. Corrigan, Aug 10, 2008
   BALTIMORE (MD) -- Warned by Archbishop Edwin F. O'Brien that its closely held activities must become more transparent if they are to continue within the archdiocese, the controversial Catholic religious order Legionaries of Christ – and its lay counterpart, Regnum Christi – appears to have seen the light.
   "We had a meeting several weeks ago with three priests of the Legion, and they handed over a rather significant volume of information concerning membership and the programs that they run," O'Brien told The Examiner.
   O'Brien, who in June was on the verge of barring the religious and lay orders' operations within his 153-parish jurisdiction – including the group's K-8 Woodmont Academy in Cooksville and its Crownsville family center – now tentatively supports the traditionalist congregation's organizational and evangelical work.

• Preacher, prophet, murder suspect: A man accused of killing his wife, storing her in a freezer

  [2000s Hopkins*] - Church of God in Christ. 2004 Wife dead in freezer. Daughter ravished, impregnated. And another.
   Press-Register, By ROBERT McCLENDON Sunday, August 10, 2008
   ALABAMA -- Before his arrest, Anthony Jujuan Hopkins was known as a prophet among those familiar with his work as an evangelist.
   In the culture of the Holiness churches and spirit-filled congregations where he preached, the dreaming of dreams and the casting out of demons are skills expected of any good minister, and by many accounts, that's just what he was.
   "A lot of people claim to be psychics," said Nicholas L. Jackson Sr., pastor of a small church in the Clarke County town of Jackson, where Hopkins has preached. "But when they speak, it doesn't always come. When a prophet speaks, you know it's. And he was a prophet. When he told you something was going to happen, you could pretty much count on it."

• 2 churches to shut doors in West side

  - RCC.
   The Republican, By MICHAEL McAULIFFE, mmcauliffe@repub.com , Sunday, August 10, 2008
   WEST SPRINGFIELD -- The Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield will close St. Ann's and St. Louis de France churches in West Springfield, joining those parishes with Immaculate Conception Parish to create the new St. Francis Xavier Cabrini Parish.
   That decision was disclosed to churchgoers in the city at services Saturday via the reading of a letter from Bishop Timothy A. McDonnell. The new parish will come into existence by Jan. 1.
   The changes were among recommendations for church reconfigurations in four of the diocese's 10 regions presented by the Pastoral Planning Committee and accepted by McDonnell as the diocese deals with a diminishing number of priests, fewer worshippers and rising costs to keep churches open.
   The diocese will detail the changes at a press conference on Monday, but McDonnell wanted to give parishioners in each of the affected areas the opportunity to hear of any changes in their community at services this weekend.

• Harrisburg rapist to be released from prison

  [Feigley] - "Light of the World" sect. Strange sex etc.
   The Patriot-News, www.pennlive. com/midstate/ index.ssf/ 2008/08/ convicted_ rapist_to_ leave_ pris.html , by CARRIE CASSIDY, 11:30 PM, Saturday August 09, 2008
  PENNSYLVANIA -- She lived in a world where parents willingly gave up their children to a man who declared himself "The Light of the World."
   A world where children were beaten for letting anyone but fellow cult members see them, and their genitals were pierced with a lock to be controlled by this so-called prophet. It was a world unimaginable to most people, but it was her reality for seven years, from the time she was 5 until her mother broke free of George Feigley's grip.
   Three decades later, that world still haunts her through dreams occasionally featuring Feigley and his flock of followers. She was shocked to learn from a reporter that the man who beat her, made her call him "Master," and photographed her in graphic sexual poses would be released from prison this week.

• For Feigley, prison was new beginning

 
   The Patriot-News, BY CARRIE CASSIDY, Sunday, August 10, 2008
   PENNSYLVANIA -- George Feigley was so charismatic that he persuaded parents, including a psychiatrist, to hand over their children for "religious training" that involved sex acts performed on children, starting from birth.
   Two prison escapes, a deadly breakout attempt, and a conviction for a sex-related crime while in prison followed in the years after George Feigley's 1975 conviction for raping three girls he was teaching at a school he opened four years earlier.
   Those events helped to secure Feigley's place as one of Dauphin County's notorious criminals. His sordid tale can be found in a patchwork of newspaper clippings, court records and recollections of those who grew up in the cult.

• Experts: Hopkins' case fits pattern of abuse

  [2000s Hopkins*] - Church of God in Christ. 2004 Wife dead in freezer. Daughter ravished, impregnated.
   Press-Register, By ROBERT McCLENDON, Sunday, August 10, 2008
   ALABAMA -- Traveling evangelist Anthony Hopkins isolated his family from the outside world, according to authorities, neighbors and former friends.
   The children weren't allowed to play with other kids on their central Mobile block. They didn't go to school. Hopkins' wife, Arletha Hopkins, didn't work and had few friends.
   When the mother quietly went missing about four years ago, police said, few took notice and none notified authorities.
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Sun August 10, 2008
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Mon August 11, 2008 edition:

• Church lists banned touches

  - RCC.  
   Cincinnati Enquirer, http://news. cincinnati. com/apps/ pbcs.dll/ article?AID=/ 20080811/ NEWS01/ 808110333/ 1168/NEWS ; By Dan Horn, August 11, 2008
   CINCINNATI (OH) -- The Archdiocese of Cincinnati's new Decree on Child Protection includes the most detailed rules yet for how priests, employees and volunteers should interact with children.
   The latest version of the decree, which is updated every five years, lists for the first time examples of physical contact that would be appropriate or inappropriate under church rules.
   Handshakes, pats on the back, high-fives, side hugs or shoulder-to-shoulder hugs all are acceptable. But bear hugs, lengthy embraces, lap-sitting, kisses, wrestling, tickling, massages or piggy-back rides are off limits.
   Church officials say the list should help eliminate any confusion staff members or volunteers might have about contact with kids. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 11, 2008 9:08 PM]

• Hearing on class action lawsuit set for fall

  [MacDonald] - RCC. Male.  
   The Cape Breton Post, ~ August 11, 2008
   SYDNEY, CANADA - A hearing on whether to certify as a class action a lawsuit filed against the Diocese of Antigonish by a Sydney man will take place this fall, the lawyer handling the case says.
   John McKiggan filed the lawsuit in June on behalf of Ronald Martin, a native of New Waterford. Martin's brother, David, killed himself in 2002, leaving behind a suicide note which led to charges of sex crimes against former priest Hugh Vincent MacDonald. Ronald Martin says he also endured abuse from MacDonald.

• Midland priest faces charges

  [Years - Guinan, Skehan] - RCC. Money US$8.6m.    
   Midlands 103, ~ August 11, 2008
   IRELAND -- An Offaly priest is one of two who could face new charges of stealing money from their parishes in the US.
   65 year old Fr. Francis Guinan, from outside Birr, along with 80 year old Fr. John Skehan from Johnstown, Kilkenny had the charges against them dropped earlier this year.
   The two priests were previously accused of stealing millions of dollars from their parish in Delray Beach, Florida earlier this year but the charges were dropped.
   However prosecutors recently re-filed a first degree felony charge of grand theft of over €100,000.
   [LOOK BACK: October 29, 2007 ]

• Mount Prospect priest indicted on theft charge

  [2004-05 Patte*] - RCC. Money > US$10,000.  
   Chicago Daily Herald, By Joseph Ryan | ~ August 11, 2008
   ILLINOIS -- Following theft charges tied to an earlier Chicago assignment, officials at St. Emily Catholic Church say Rev. Steven Patte had no access to parish money while serving at the Mount Prospect church.
   "While here, he had no independent or private access to parish finances or financial transactions, and the investigation is not related to his work at St. Emily," reads a statement on the parish's Web site. "We offer our prayer as he faces these charges."
   Patte, 64, was indicted Friday in Cook County court on a host of theft charges that accuse him of stealing more than $10,000 from St. Ita Parish on Chicago's North Side while he worked there in 2004 and 2005.

• Ireland - Ireland's Catholic Crisis

  - RC clergyman moved to Anglicanism.  
   Journeyman, IRELAND'S CATHOLIC CRISIS TRANSCRIPT, ~ August 11, 2008
   IRELAND – Given the blanket media coverage of the so-called WYD in Sydney this week, it would seem the Catholic Church is thriving. But in Ireland - a country steeped in Catholic tradition – it is a very different story. With paedophilia scandals undermining faith in the faith, as it were, the country that once exported Catholic priests to the world is now being forced to import clergy just to keep the Church alive. Here's David Brill.
   REPORTER: David Brill
   At a cathedral in central Dublin an age-old ceremony is under way as a new priest is inducted into the Church.
   PRIEST 1: I offer you these symbols of your office and authority.
   PRIEST 2: In the name of Jesus Christ we meet to welcome a new dean of this cathedral church. It's a new ministry because Dermott brings particular gifts to our life and work together. We welcome him and Celia.
   But in this land dominated by the Catholic faith, this is an Anglican ceremony. And the reverend being installed as the new dean used to be a Catholic priest.
   DERMOT DUNNE, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND FORMER CATHOLIC PRIEST: It came to a point where I had a real problem with preaching one thing and believing another.

• Diocese formerly headed by Archbishop Gregory withheld abuse evidence

  [1973-78 Kownacki] - RCC. Fraudulent concealment. Altar boy.  
   Catholic World News, Aug. 11, 2008
   ST. LOUIS (MO), (CWNews.com) - A former president of the US bishops' conference has been accused of withholding evidence about an abusive priest from a review board.
   In an Illinois court case, Margaret Mensen-- who headed a board studying clerical abuse in the Belleville diocese-- has testified that former Bishop Wilton Gregory did not provide full records of priests who had been accused of molesting young people. In a sworn deposition Mensen said that her panel would have investigated rape charges against Father Raymond Kownacki, but those charges were never disclosed to the board.

• More Catholic churches to close

  - RCC.
   Berkshire Eagle, By Derek Gentile, Monday, August 11
   SPRINGFIELD (MA) – The Diocese of Springfield is expected to announce this morning further reconfigurations for Western Massachusetts Catholic churches.
   The regions and communities that will be part of these announcements include Region 1, which is comprised of the city of North Adams, and the towns of Adams, Cheshire, Lanesborough and Williamstown; and Region 3, which is made up of the towns of Great Barrington, Lee, Lenox, New Marlborough, Monterey, Otis, Sheffield, Stockbridge and West Stockbridge and the villages of Housatonic and Lenox Dale.
   Other Regions that will be part of the announcement will be Region 4, which includes all the villages, towns and the City of Greenfield in Franklin County and Region 10, which is made up of the cities of Agawam, Westfield and West Springfield, as well as the towns of Chester, Huntington, Russell and Southwick.

• More churches closing in county

  - RCC.  
   Capital News 9 with video, By Ryan Burgess Updated 05:26 PM August/11/2008
   NORTH ADAMS, MA -- "It's an emptiness. A feeling of emptiness. A void," said parishioner David Gilmore.
   That's his reaction to an announcement on Monday that six Catholic churches in Berkshire County are set to close by the first of the year.
   The Diocese of Springfield says the church closings include St. Francis of Assisi and Our Lady of Mercy in North Adams. In the town of Adams, St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Stanislaus are also closing. In Lanesborough, North American Martyrs Parish is set to close, as well as All Saints Parish in Housatonic.

• Court won't downgrade naked priest's conviction

  [Whipkey]
   Daily Camera, By Vanessa Miller, August 11, 2008
   COLORADO -- A Catholic priest convicted of indecent exposure after he was arrested for jogging nude around a high school track won't have his conviction downgraded to a petty offense of public indecency, a Weld County District Court judge ruled this morning.
   An attorney for the Rev. Robert Whipkey, 53 -- who was serving at parishes in Erie, Mead and Frederick when he was arrested June 22, 2007 -- argued before the court today that the indecent exposure conviction was unconstitutional.
   Defense attorney Harvey Steinberg said his client didn't knowingly and with intent expose himself to members of the public and shouldn't be subject to the higher penalties that come with a charge of indecent exposure.

• New board elected at St. Stanislaus as controversy takes unexpected turn

  - RCC. New board also might be excommunicted.    
   KWMU, with audio, August 11, 2008
   ST. LOUIS (MO) -- The long-running dispute over St. Stanislaus Kostka has reached a boiling point. On Sunday, members of the Polish Catholic church in north St. Louis elected a new board. And the archdiocese has warned the new members they face excommunication like the others.
   But this is not the same old story. Some members now want to reconcile with the archdiocese. And they say unless a judge steps in, those now in charge of the parish will take it in a direction its immigrant founders could never have imagined.

• Parish reconfigurations in four areas announced this weekend

  - RCC.  
   The Catholic Observer (run for RC R.C. Diocese of Springfield, Mass., USA), By Terence Hegarty, ~ August 11, 2008
   For complete reports go to www.dio springfield. org/reports/ index.html .
   SPRINGFIELD (MA) – Eleven churches will close within the next five months throughout four areas of the Diocese of Springfield according to plans announced to parishioners in those four areas at weekend Masses beginning yesterday.
   Springfield Bishop Timothy A. McDonnell decided earlier this week, after consultation with the Presbyteral Council, to implement the changes, which were recommended by the diocesan Pastoral Planning Committee (PPC).
   The changes, which involve closings and mergers, will occur in southern and northern Berkshire County; Franklin County; and the Agawam, West Springfield and Westfield areas. Details of the reconfigurations were announced during Masses yesterday and will continue to be announced at all Sunday liturgies.

• Springfield Diocese announces closures, consolidations

  - RCC.
   The Republican, By GEORGE GRAHAM ggraham@repub.com 12:03 PM Monday August 11, 2008
   SPRINGFIELD (MA) -- Springfield Bishop Timothy A. McDonnell this morning formally announced the closure of churches in Agawam, South Deerfield, Adams and North Adams.
   McDonnell acknowledged the closures will be painful but stressed a new vitality will spring from the consolidations.
   "We have been putting money into the buildings rather than the people," McDonnell said. "I am looking for a critical mass at Mass."

• Burlington Diocese Back In Court For Sex Abuse Case

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). Altar boy.
   WPTZ, ~ August 11, 2008
   MONTPELIER, VERMONT -- Three months after being socked with an $8.7 million verdict in a priest sex case, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington returns to court this week for another trial focusing on its handling of a rogue priest who allegedly molested altar boys.
   Jury selection is set for tomorrow in the civil suit brought by a former altar boy who says former Rev. Edward Paquette molested him when he was a student at Christ the King school in Burlington.

• Who gets to "reform" who?

  - St. Sanislaus Kostka Parish, St. Louis.    
   GetReligion, Posted by tmatt, ~ August 11, 2008
   ST. LOUIS (MO) -- As any regular GetReligion.org reader would know, we go out of our way to note the exceptionally good work that many religion reporters do on this very complex and difficult beat. A quick glance in the archives will also tell you that, more often than not, we are fans of the work of Tim Townsend of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
   This brings me to Townsend's latest piece on one of the most complex ongoing stories in American religion right now – the battle for control of the historic St. Stanislaus Kostka Parish in St. Louis. Normally you would add the word "Catholic" to that title, but, you see, the status of that term is what the battle is all about.
   The battle for control of this parish is unfolding on several levels and Townsend does a great job of explaining the background.

• St. Louis parishioners warned of schism

  - RCC parish might go it aone.
   United Press International Aug. 11, 2008
   ST. LOUIS (MO), (UPI) -- A St. Louis bishop has warned eight parishioners of St. Stanislaus Kostka Church they are supporting a possible schism in the Catholic Church.
   Bishop Robert Hermann, the Archdiocese of St. Louis' interim leader, informed the parishioners seeking positions on the church's lay board their actions constituted a formal breach of union in the church, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch said Monday.
   "You are in danger of losing the eternal salvation of your soul, jeopardizing the salvation of other innocent faithful and inflicting a most severe wound to the communion of the Roman Catholic church," Hermann wrote in a letter to those involved.

• Ohio church: No kissing, tickling allowed

  - RCC.  
   The Associated Press, ~ August 11, 2008
   CINCINNATI (OH), (AP) – The Archdiocese of Cincinnati has issued a detailed list of inappropriate behaviors for priests, saying they should not kiss, tickle or wrestle children.
   The newest version of the archdiocese's Decree on Child Protection also prohibits bear hugs, lap-sitting and piggyback rides.

• National shortage of Catholic priests forcing many to work past retirement age

  - RCC.
   South Florida Sun-Sentinel BY LOIS K. SOLOMON | August 11, 2008
   FLORIDA -- By the time they reach 65, most people have been thinking about retirement for years, even decades.
   Not the Rev. Frederick Brice. At 80, he is still the pastor of St. Paul the Apostle Church in Lighthouse Point. He said he has not even considered slowing down.
   "I am ready and willing to keep going as long as the archbishop will have me," Brice said.
   Brice said he knows why the Archdiocese of Miami still needs him: the national priest shortage, which compels church leaders to keep their oldest priests working past what most Americans would consider a reasonable age to retire. At the same time, a burgeoning number of priests are hitting retirement age.
   And some church observers say the church needs a plan to replace these aging men as the number of Roman Catholics increases. The Catholic population of the United States has grown steadily since 1965, from 45.6 million to 64.1 million this year. There are 1.3 million Catholics in the Archdiocese of Miami and 278,674 in the Diocese of Palm Beach.

• Diocese to close more churches

  - RCC.
   The Republican, By KEN ROSS, kross@repub.com , Monday, August 11, 2008
   AGAWAM, MASSACHUSETTS -- The Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield intends to close churches in Agawam, South Deerfield, Adams and North Adams, a spokesman for the diocese confirmed yesterday.
   These are in addition to two churches in West Springfield whose closures were announced Saturday.
   "I just want to sit down and cry," Elsie B. Cascella, of West Springfield, said Sunday standing in the parking lot of Sacred Heart Church on Springfield Street. "It's heartbreaking."

• The truth is out there

  [2007 Bishop Pelotte*] - RCC. Phone call to emergency. Beaten, but says fell downstairs.
   Gallup Independent, By Barry Heifner, Independent Managing editor, ~ August 11, 2008
   GALLUP (NM) -- The released emergency room photos taken by Gallup Police last year of former Catholic Diocese of Gallup Bishop Donald Pelotte raise more questions than they answer.
   It has been obvious from the beginning the bishop was beaten up by someone. The emergency room physician thought so and called police. Police thought so and began taking photos and filling out an assault report until the bishop said he fell down stairs. Why would someone beat him up? Who could have beaten him up? Why did the bishop lie about being beaten up?
   I tend to believe most people and institutions are basically good – even if they stumble once in a while. However, if I see a pattern of stumbles or misstatements, then I start questioning the motives and veracity of that person or institution.

• Bishop photos expose lies

  [2007 Bishop Pelotte*] - RCC. Mystery phone call. Beaten on face, shoulders and legs, but says he fell downstairs (carpeted).
   Gallup Independent, ~ August 11, 2008
   GALLUP (NM) -- For the past year, two top officials of the Gallup Catholic Diocese have been involved in a sustained and deliberate program of lies and intimidation to convince members of the Diocese of Gallup that the injuries Bishop Donald Pelotte received before the afternoon of July 23, 2007, came as a result of a fall down carpeted stairs at his home.
   The police photos from that day were made public this past week and they clearly show that the statements made by Deacon Timoteo Lujan, chancellor for the Diocese, and The Rev. James Walker, the Diocese's vicar general, were lies and were part of a cover-up by Diocesian officials to keep the truth from coming out that Pelotte was beaten.
   The truth is that the bishop was the victim of a savage attack. He might have been thrown down the stairs but the photos show that he was beaten repeatedly on the face, shoulders and legs by one or more persons. The photos of his knuckles also show that he put up a fight, possibly in fear for his life. …
   The Church lucked out by the fact that George Kozeliski, a loyal member of the Church and a friend of the bishop, was the city attorney and had the power to keep the photos from being released to the press. Instead, he became part of the cover-up.

• Question for the diocese

  [1973-78 Kownacki] - RCC. Fraudulent concealment. Altar boy.
   News-Democrat, ~ August 11, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) -- Was the Belleville Catholic Diocese protecting itself when officials kept records of alleged priest sexual misconduct from parishioners and even its own review board?
   That's the question St. Clair County Circuit Judge Lloyd Cueto wants a jury to decide in a lawsuit against the Rev. Raymond Kownacki and the diocese. Specifically, does the state's Fraudulent Concealment Statute apply?
   Their answer will determine not only whether the case can go forward, but also how the diocese fares in the court of public opinion.

• Diocese of Rockville Centre's cash reserve rapped

  - RC diocese has US$268m in reserves.
   Newsday, BY BART JONES | bart.jones@newsday.com , August 4, 2008
   ROCKVILLE CENTRE (NY) -- A clash between a dissident group of Catholics and the Diocese of Rockville Centre over how much the diocese has in the bank - and what it ought to do with the money - reflects a national church debate over how to best use its funds.
   Although the diocese disputes the figures, the Voice of the Faithful asserted last week Rockville Centre has what the group calls a "jaw-dropping" $268 million in cash reserves.
   "We believe the money should not be sitting idly by and it should be used for God's work," said Phil Megna, co-chair of VOTF's Long Island chapter, which was formed in the wake of the church sex abuse scandal in 2002. "If we don't need the money in this diocese, then we should just give it away."
   [COMMENT: No, the reserves will be needed to pay compensation, or to help other bishops facing compensation judgements. ENDS.]

• Fr Tom Doyle…

  - RCC.
   Catholica, August 11, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- On this page today we publish an abridged version of what is probably the hardest-edged commentary we've yet published on Catholica. We also publish the unabridged version in pdf format. It is from an address Fr Tom Doyle gave to the annual gathering of SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) in Chicago on 13 July 2008. The paper might be of particular interest to readers of Catholica Australia for two reasons: Firstly, it is one of the most comprehensive discussions you're likely to find anywhere on the steps that are necessary to bring the maximum possible healing to victims of abuse. Allied to that what Fr Doyle has to say might provide valuable insights for any person who is dealing with the effects of abuse, either as a victim or a person endeavouring to provide support to victims. Secondly, the necessary discussion on the nature of priesthood and the nature of the Church Tom Doyle engages in provides a wealth a valuable reflections that dovetail in exceedingly well with the on-going discussion we've been having on priesthood.

• They want church back

  - RCC.
   The Express-Times By LYNN OLANOFF, Monday, August 11, 2008
   BETHLEHEM (PA) | St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church has been closed for almost a month, but some parishioners of the former South Side parish haven't given up on it.
   They've appealed the church's closing to the Vatican and have raised questions about the closing process to Diocese of Allentown officials. St. Joseph's should have been the South Side church to remain open -- not one of the four closed -- considering the diocese's parish merger criteria, the parishioners say.
   The criteria give weight to a church's size, physical condition, handicapped accessibility and parking. According to St. Joseph's parishioners, their parish is superior in all four of those areas to Sts. Cyril and Methodius, the South Side church chosen to be the shared parish for the four closed churches. Our Lady of Pompeii, St. John Capistrano, and St. Stanislaus also celebrated their final Masses on July 13.

• Editorial: Clergy Sex-Abuse Cases

 
   Philadelphia Inquirer, August 11, 2008
   PHILADELPHIA (PA) -- Cardinal Justin Rigali and other Roman Catholic officials last week unwittingly provided a textbook example of the need for Pennsylvania to enact a law giving child sex-abuse victims their day in court.
   So why are church officials still so staunchly opposed to Harrisburg lawmakers taking this important step?
   Cardinal Rigali did the right thing last Monday by blocking the transfer to Bucks County of a long-time Philadelphia-area priest who was accused in a lawsuit of abusing four boys at a Delaware high school.

• Two more face excommunication at St. Stan

  - RCC.    
   St. Louis Post-Dispatch, By Tim Townsend August/11/2008
   ST. LOUIS (MO) – Two more parishioners of St. Stanislaus Kostka Church face excommunication after being elected to the church's lay board Sunday.
   In letters hand-delivered Saturday night, Bishop Robert Hermann, the Archdiocese of St. Louis' interim leader, warned eight parishioners who were running for positions on the board of their possible fate. Some of the parishioners returned home in the evening to find the letter taped to their front doors. …
   Richard Lapinski and Janice Merzweiler were the two new parishioners voted onto the new board Sunday. According to Hermann's letter, they now face excommunication. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 11, 2008 5:11 AM]
   [COMMENT: This bishop won't have a CLERGY shortage, but a PEOPLE shortage, if this keeps going! ENDS.]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Mon August 11, 2008
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Tue August 12, 2008 edition:

!!!: Nun commits suicide, father alleges sexual abuse

  [2008 Unnamed head nun -NEW*] - RCC. Sr Anupa/Anoopa Mary.  
   Times of India, ~ August 12, 2008
   THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, INDIA : Even as controversy over the death of Sister Abhaya refuses to ebb, the death of a second nun in mysterious circumstances has pushed the Church in Kerala into a spot. The nun's father on Tuesday alleged that she was sexually abused in the convent where she was living.
   Body of 22-year-old nun, Anupa Mary, was found hanging from the ceiling of the St Mary's convent in Kollam district on Monday. A member of the Vimala Hrudaya Franciscan Congregation, Mary had joined the convent only three months back. Police said a suicide note recovered from the body mentioned her sufferings at the convent and her differences with the mother superior.
   The twist in the tale came on Tuesday with her father Pappachan accusing a senior nun in the convent of sexually abusing Mary. He claimed that the nun had made several advances towards Mary and when they were turned down, she forced Mary to work more at the convent.
   [SCRIPTURE: Every woman ought to have her own husband. (1 Corinthians 7:2)  ENDS.]

• Police: 'Cult' Starved Toddler Who Wouldn't Say 'Amen'

  [2006 Ms Ramkissoon -NEW*] - "1 Mind Ministries". Starved tot to death.  
   Fox News, http://www. foxnews.com/ story/0,2933, 402004,00. html , ~ August 12, 2008
   BALTIMORE (MD) – A toddler whose remains were found inside a suitcase in Philadelphia this spring was starved to death by members of a religious cult, including his mother, in part because he refused to say "amen" after meals, police said.
   Ria Ramkissoon, the mother of Javon Thompson, was charged Sunday with first-degree murder in the boy's death, and Baltimore police said Monday that three other members of a group called 1 Mind Ministries have also been charged with first-degree murder. Police and Ramkissoon's family say the group is a cult.
   Members did not seek medical care for Javon when he stopped breathing, and the boy died in his mother's arms, according to court documents that described police interviews with a confidential informant and two children. He would have been about 19 months old when police say adults stopped feeding him in December 2006.

• Ex-principal pleads guilty to theft

  [? 2000s Mr Clint Green - ? NEW*] - ? Christian. Money (US$3000 repaid so far).  
   Cincinnati Enquirer, By Jim Hannah, jhannah@nky.com , August 12, 2008
   COVINGTON (KY) -- A former elementary school principal accused of stealing money from an Independence church has pleaded guilty to the charge.
   Clint Green, 33, pleaded guilty Tuesday to theft by unlawful taking over $300, a Class D felony punishable by up to five years in prison.
   Commonwealth's attorneys are recommending a sentence of 60 days in jail and for Green to repay the stolen money. While authorities have not said how much was stolen, officials said Green had already paid back $3,000 when he was arranged on the charges earlier this year.

• US church to pay 12.6 million to 16 victims of pedophile priests

  [Decades - Chicago Archdiocese] - RCC. US$12,600,000 going. 16 survivors.
   AFP, ~ August 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (AFP) – Sixteen victims who were abused by pedophile priests will share in 12.6 million dollars in damages to be paid out after long negotiations, Chicago's Catholic Archdiocese said Tuesday.
   "My hope is that these settlements will help the survivors and their families begin to heal and move forward," said Cardinal Francis George, the head of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops.
   The nationwide scandal, which erupted six years ago, has undermined the reputation of the church here and devastated its finances. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 12, 2008 10:03 PM]

• Exclusives : PENNSYLVANIA: Bennison's Desperate Bid To Hold On To Power

  - Episcopalians. [1973 + Bp Charles Bennison] - US$11.6m. 1973 onwards - Did not report brother. [≤ 1973 ?+ Rev. John Bennison] - Girl (14). [~2007 Ms Alton] - Allegedly changed Wikipedia entry, so banned by Wikipedia.
   Virtue Online, News Analysis, By David W. Virtue www.virtueonline.org August/12/2008
   PHILADELPHIA (PA) -- The Standing Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania and four of his victims have issued public statements saying that the inhibited Bishop of Pennsylvania should be deposed for engaging in conduct unbecoming a member of the clergy. He should never again be allowed to lead a diocese or fill a pulpit, they say.
   The Rt. Rev. Charles E. Bennison, Jr., 64, was recently found guilty in a public trial on two counts. The first count was for failing to respond properly after learning that his brother, John Bennison, a newly-ordained deacon whom he had hired as youth minister, was "engaged in a sexually abusive and sexually exploitive relationship" with a 14-year-old parishioner in 1973. The second count was for suppressing the information about his brother until 2006.
   Bishop Bennison described the relationship to the ecclesiastical court as "yet another affair" in his parish.
   [LOOK BACK: June 08, 2008]

• Pell says sorry for priest sex abuse letter

  - RCC. [1982 Goodall*] - Male religion teacher. [2003-08 Pell*] - Denied justice to one, approval for the other.      
   The Age, by Annabel Stafford, August 13, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- AUSTRALIA'S most senior Catholic, Sydney Archbishop Cardinal George Pell, has apologised to the man at the centre of the sex abuse scandal that threatened to derail July's World Youth Day.
   But Dr Pell has apologised only for badly drafting a 2003 letter in which he said Anthony Jones' claims of sexual assault at the hands of Father Terence Goodall could not be substantiated.
   He did not apologise for dismissing Mr Jones' claims or for subsequently suggesting the attack could have been consensual, despite revelations Father Goodall had admitted forcing himself on Mr Jones.

• Catholic Archdiocese Releases Clergy Sex Abuse Settlements

  [McCormack] - RCC. US$12.5m going.  
   Chicago Public Radio, with audio, Produced by City Room on Tuesday, August 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) – After eight months of mediation, Chicago's Catholic Archdiocese is paying more than $12 and half million dollars to 16 people sexually abused by priests. The Archdiocese and victims' lawyers say the church has improved how it handles such claims. Some victims are not so sure.
   In 2006, victims of former Catholic priest Daniel McCormack sued the Chicago Archdiocese. Soon after, Cardinal Francis George invited other victims to come forward. He also shared documents with lawyers and mediators. Jeff Anderson represents some of the victims.
   ANDERSON: I credit the Cardinal for finally doing what needs to be done. And that is making the first step, and a giant step towards transparency.
   BLAINE: To be honest with you, I have to say that I'm skeptical to believe that this will actually bring about that beginning.

• Settlement of priest abuse lawsuits at a glance

  [McCormack] - RCC. US$12.5m going.
   WTHI, Associated Press, 7:44 PM ET, August 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Chicago's Catholic archdiocese agreed to pay more than $12.6 million to settle 14 lawsuits filed by victims of sexual abuse at the hands of priests. Here are highlights of the settlement:
   CARDINAL'S APOLOGY: Cardinal Francis George, spiritual leader of Chicago's big Catholic archdiocese apologized to the victims. "My hope is that these settlements will help the survivors and their families heal and move forward," he said.

• Pell to meet sex assault victim

  - Roman Catholic Church. [1982 Goodall*] - Male religion teacher. [2003-08 Pell*] - Denied justice to one, approval for the other.      
   ABC News, ~ August 12, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- Sydney's Catholic Archbishop, Cardinal George Pell, has offered to meet a man whose sexual assault by a local priest renewed pressure on the church ahead of World Youth Day.
   Cardinal Pell last month apologised for what he called a "poorly drafted" letter to Anthony Jones, in which he challenged the man's complaint against Father Terence Goodall, who was later convicted of the assault.
   The Archbishop had said the claims could not be substantiated and there had been no other allegations of abuse by the priest.
   But an internal church investigation had found Mr Jones's complaint to be proven and recommended action be taken.

• Sex abuse victim unhappy with apology

  - Roman Catholic Church. [1982 Goodall*] - Male religion teacher. [2003-08 Pell*] - Denied justice to one, approval for the other.
   The Age, for August 13, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- An apology from the Catholic Archbishop of Sydney to sexual abuse victim Anthony Jones is "window dressing" in the face of bad publicity, Mr Jones says.
   The former Catholic educator was indecently assaulted by a priest, Terrence Goodall, in 1982.
   He has accused Cardinal George Pell of being "deceitful" in his handling of the allegations that led to Goodall being convicted of indecent assault in 2005.
   In 2003 Dr Pell wrote to Mr Jones saying the complaint was unsubstantiated and no one else had contacted the church with complaints about Goodall, but he has since admitted being mistaken when he wrote that letter.

• Nun found hanging in Port Kollam

  [2008 Unnamed nun*] - RCC. Nun.  
   Newindpress, ~ August 12, 2008
   KOLLAM, INDIA: A nun was found hanging at the St Mary's Convent, Port Kollam, on Monday. Anupa Mary, 22, daughter of Pappachan and Bijiamma of St Jude Villa, Kanjirode, Kundara, was found hanging in the bedroom of the convent around 4 p.m. She was the second of the six children of the couple.
   She had been serving at the Pattathanam Convent till recently.
   She came to the St Mary's Convent at Port Kollam on May 27. She was a member of the Vimala Hrudaya Franciscan congregation.
   Pallithottam police have recovered a suicide note from the convent.

• Kerala nun kills self over 'sexual abuse'

  [2008 Unnamed nun*] - RCC. Nun.
   Howrah News Service, BY OUR CORRESPONDENT, 03:57:32 August 12, 2008
   THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, INDIA -- The suicide by a 22-year-old nun in Kollam has stirred up controversy with her father alleging on Tuesday that his daughter was being sexually harassed by a senior nun of the same convent.
   Sister Bindu Anupa of the Kollam St. Mary's Convent was found hanging from the ceiling in her room on Monday evening. She had left a note saying that the harassment in the convent had crossed all limits and she no longer wanted to live.
   Her father, Pappachan, a cook in the Bishop's House, said that his daughter had complained that an older nun in the convent had been sexually harassing her.
   "My daughter was forced to do menial jobs all day and at nights, this woman sexually abused her," said a shocked Mr Pappachan

• Chicago Catholic Church settles some abuse claims

  - RCC. US$12.7m going.  
   Reuters, ~ August 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (Reuters) - Chicago's Roman Catholic archdiocese announced on Tuesday it will pay $12.7 million to settle 16 claims of sexual abuse involving 10 former priests and a school principal.
   U.S. Catholic archdioceses have paid nearly $2 billion to satisfy hundreds of abuse claims since the scandal broke in Boston in 1992. Some abusive priests were found to have been shielded by church leaders.
   "My hope is that these settlements will help the survivors and their families begin to heal and move forward," Chicago Cardinal Francis George, head of the second-largest U.S. archdiocese, said in a statement.

• $12M settlement reached in Chicago clergy abuse

  [McCormack] - RCC. Serving 5yrs. 5 children.
   Belleville News-Democrat, By MIKE ROBINSON, AP Legal Affairs Writer, ~ August 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) --The Archdiocese of Chicago said Tuesday it agreed to pay more than $12.6 million to settle lawsuits by 16 people who said they were sexually abuse by priests, and for the first time released a lengthy deposition by Cardinal Francis George.
   "My hope is that these settlements will help the survivors and their families begin to heal and move forward," George said in a statement. "I apologize again today to the survivors and their families and to the whole Catholic community."
   Fourteen cases settled Tuesday involve sexual abuse by 10 different priests. Two involve an 11th priest, the Rev. Daniel J. McCormack, who pleaded guilty last year to abusing five children and is serving a five-year prison sentence.

• Settlements reached in Chicago clergy abuse cases

  - RCC.
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, Statement by Barbara Blaine of Chicago, national president of SNAP, (312-399-4747), ~ August 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- No single check magically erase years of cover up and insensitivity and recklessness and deceit public relations posturing by church officials. Nor does a check magically restore the shattered trust, stolen childhoods and devastated psyches of dozens of victims of predatory priests and comlicit bishops.
   It is not praiseworthy when a church official, years later, under tremendous stress, finally gives money to men and women who were raped and sodomized as kids by trusted priests, who suffered in silence and shame for decades because church officials covered up the crimes, and (in many cases) whose pain could have been prevented if only church officials showed a modicum of compassion.

• $12.675 Million Settlement In Priest Abuse Cases

  [10 clergy] - RCC. 10 survivors.
   WBBM, ~ August 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (WBBM/AP) -- As first reported by WBBM Newsradio, the Archdiocese of Chicago says it's agreed to pay $12.675 million to settle lawsuits that accused 11 Catholic priests of sexual abuse.
   WBBM's Mike Krauser reports.
   Cardinal Francis George announced the $12.675 million settlement himself, which involves ten Chicagoland priests and 16 abuse cases.
   The Cardinal apologized to the priests' victims. He says the church is "certainly wounded" by the abuse and he hopes the settlements will allow the victims to heal.

• Settlements reached in Chicago clergy abuse cases

 
   NECN, with video, ~ August 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (NECN) - The Archdiocese of Chicago has reached a multi-million dollar settlement in lawsuits involving ten Catholic priests accused of sexual abuse.
   $12.6 million will be paid out to 16 victims who had been abused in the last 30 years.
   Cardinal Francis George said the important thing is the healing of the victims.

• Diocese to close 10 more parishes, 9 buildings in Western Massachusetts

  - RCC.
  The Republican Newsroom , with link to the first five reports of the Diocesan Pastoral Planning Committee, By GEORGE GRAHAM ggraham@repub.com , Monday August 11, 2008
   SPRINGFIELD - The Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield will shutter 10 more parishes and nine buildings by Jan. 1 as it continues a major restructuring to deal with declining congreations and financial hardships.
   The Most Rev. Timothy A. McDonnell Monday made formal the closure plans which had been announced during the weekend at Masses in parishes across four regions of the sprawling diocese that covers the state's four western counties.
   Still to be announced are reorganization plans for parishes in Hampshire County, Chicopee, Holyoke, Springfield and the Palmer-Ware area. The diocese announced plans in February to close five of Pittsfield's nine parishes and a mission church there.

• The Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington is Back In Court

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). Altar boy.
   Fox 44, ~ August 12, 2008
   VERMONT -- Jury selection is underway in another case against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington.
   A former altar boy says he was molested by Father Edward Paquette when attending Christ the King in Burlington.
   The focus is how the Diocese handled priests accused of molesting kids.

• Settlements reached in Chicago clergy abuse cases

  [Decades - Chicago Archdiocese] - RCC. > US $12.6m. 16 victims.
   The Associated Press, ~ August 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (AP) – The Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago said Tuesday it had agreed to pay more than $12.6 million to settle lawsuits by 16 people who accused priests of sexual abuse.
   "My hope is that these settlements will help the survivors and their families begin to heal and move forward," Cardinal Francis George said in a statement in which he also apologized for the abuse.

• Chicago archdiocese settles priest sex-abuse cases for $12.7 million

  [11 clergy] - RCC. 16 survivors.
   Chicago Tribune By Manya Brachear | 11:12 AM CDT, August 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago will pay $12.7 million to settle lawsuits brought by clergy sex-abuse victims, including boys molested by Daniel McCormack, a former priest on the West Side, church officials said Tuesday.
   The settlement covers cases involving 16 abuse survivors and 11 priests, including McCormack, who pleaded guilty last year to abusing five boys and has been sentenced to 5 years in prison. Two of the suits settled Tuesday involved McCormack, and the archdiocese said it has now settled four of the five cases against him.
   Cardinal Francis George said he hoped the payouts would help bring closure for the victims.

• Settlements reached in Chicago clergy abuse cases

  [10 priests] - RCC.  
   The Associated Press, ~ August 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (AP) – Clergy sex abuse victims and their attorneys say they've reached settlements in lawsuits involving 10 Catholic priests in the Archdiocese of Chicago.
   The plaintiffs say the priests include Daniel McCormack, who pleaded guilty last year to abusing five boys and was sentenced to five years in prison.

• Victims Settle Clergy Sex Abuse Cases With Archdiocese of Chicago

  [McCormack, Bennett, Maday, Mayer, Hagan, Craig, Becker, Kelly, Steel, Owens.]
   Market Watch, PRNewswire via COMTEX / Aug 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- WHAT - At a news conference, survivors of clergy sex abuse and their attorneys will announce and discuss the settlement of child molestation cases involving 10 priests of the Archdiocese of Chicago: Daniel McCormack, Joseph Bennett, Norbert Maday, Robert Mayer, James Hagan, Robert Craig, Robert Becker, Thomas Kelly, James Steel, and Joseph Owens. Additional information will be provided at the press event.
   WHEN - Tuesday, Aug. 12, 11:30 a.m.
   WHERE - At the law office of Kerns, Frost & Pearlman, 70 West Madison (Suite 5350), in downtown Chicago (on Madison between Dearborn and Clark) SOURCE Jeff Anderson & Associates
   [COMMENT QUESTION: Who has sinned, these men -- or those who took their vows of celibacy, letting them deny their God-given duty to "increase and multiply"? ENDS.]

• WBBM Exclusive: $12.675 Million Settlement In Priest Abuse Cases

  [1960s-2006 - 10 priests - Chicago Archdiocese] - RCC. US$12.675m. 16 survivors.
   WBBM, ~ August 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (WBBM) -- Newsradio 780 has learned of a big settlement will be announced Tuesday involving priest sex abuse cases in the Chicago area.
   WBBM's Mike Krauser reports.
   The $12.675 million settlement involves ten Chicagoland priests and 16 abuse cases.
   These abuse cases date back to the 1960s and extend through 2006. All of the priests have been removed from public ministry.

• Bishop Hopes Closings Reinvigorate Parishes

  - RCC.
   IBerkshires, By Tammy Daniels, August 11, 2008
   NORTH ADAMS, MASSACHUSETTS – Diocesan officials are hoping for a renewed sense of purpose and vitality in local parishes after the latest round of church closings were announced this weekend.
   "I really want to be building up a church, not a church building," said Bishop Timothy A. McDonnell of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield, adding it was important to build "critical mass at Mass."
   McDonnell, speaking at a press conference in Springfield, said the consolidation will help in bringing congregants together, sparking what he hopes will be "a new dynamic, a new sense of possibility … because we are going to be focusing on people."
   [COMMENT: So, why were the churches built in the first place? Why not just have prayers and ceremonies in people's homes. ENDS.]

• Catholic church nixes 10 parishes

  - RCC.
   The Republican, By GEORGE GRAHAM, ggraham@repub.com , Tuesday, August 12, 2008
   SPRINGFIELD (MA) -- The Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield will shutter 10 more parishes and nine buildings by Jan. 1 as it continues a major restructuring to deal with declining congregations and financial hardships.
   The Most Rev. Timothy A. McDonnell on Monday made formal the closure plans which had been announced during the weekend at Masses in parishes across four regions of the sprawling diocese that covers the state's four western counties.
   Still to be announced are reorganization plans for parishes in Hampshire County, Chicopee, Holyoke, Springfield and the Palmer-Ware area. The diocese announced plans in February to close five of Pittsfield's nine parishes and a mission church there.

• Diocese drops the hammer in Adams, N. Adams

  - RCC.
   North Adams Transcript, By Meghan Foley, Monday, August 11, 2008
   ADAMS (MA) -- At St. Francis of Assisi and Our Lady of Mercy in North Adams, parishioners were silent, while at St. Stanislaus Kostka in Adams, they gasped following an announcement that the Diocese of Springfield will close those three parishes and St. Thomas Aquinas in Adams no later than Jan. 1, 2009.
   The St. Francis, Our Lady and St. Thomas closings have long been expected, but word that the Catholic community in Adams will lose the 103-year old St. Stanislaus came as a surprise, even though the church's school will stay open, according to the diocese.
   Long-time St. Stanislaus parishioner Josephine Trimarchi said that prior to an announcement at the 4 p.m. Mass on Saturday, no one had known the church was closing.
   "They're all in shock," Trimarchi said Sunday afternoon of the congregation.
   [TEXT: By their fruits you shall know them. ENDS.]

• 6 Berkshires churches targeted

  - RCC.
   Berkshire Eagle By Derek Gentile, August/12/2008
   MASSACHUSETTS -- The Diocese of Springfield announced yesterday that six more Catholic churches in Berkshire County will be closing by the end of the year.
   Slated to close are St. Francis and Our Lady of Mercy churches in North Adams; St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Stanislaus churches in Adams; North American Martyrs Church in Lanesborough; and All Saints Church in Housatonic, which is a village in the town of Great Barrington.
   St. Joseph's Church in Stockbridge will become a mission church, attached to St. Mary Mother of the Church in Lee.
   The churches in North Adams, Adams and Housatonic will be consolidated into already existing churches in each community. According to Bishop Timothy A. McDonnell, the three consolidated churches will also be renamed.

• Another suit against church goes to trial

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). Altar boy.
   Rutland Herald, August 12, 2008
   MONTPELIER, VERMONT – Three months after being socked with a $8.7 million verdict in a priest sex abuse case, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington returns to court this week to defend its handling of a rogue priest who allegedly molested altar boys.
   Jury selection is set for today in a civil suit brought by a man who says Rev. Edward Paquette molested him when he was a student at Christ the King school in Burlington.
   The case is being tried in Chittenden County Superior Court in Burlington, where a jury on May 13 returned the $8.7 million verdict in the case of a former Christ the King altar boy who said Paquette molested him dozens of times.

• Diocese of Texas Faces Sexual Abuse Lawsuit

  [Unnamed man] - Episcopalians. Boys.
   The Living Church Foundation, Posted on August 11, 2008
   HOUSTON (TX) -- The Diocese of Texas has been added as a defendant in a sexual abuse lawsuit brought by a Harris County man who was former student at an Episcopal school in Houston.
   The suit, filed recently in state district court states that officials with Holy Spirit Episcopal School and the diocese did nothing even though they had received complaints that the former boys athletic director and coach had inappropriately touched students and sent them sexually suggestive text messages.

• Texas widens FLDS probe

  - FLDS.
   Deseret News, By Leigh Dethman Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008
   TEXAS -- Texas Rangers are investigating 20 cases of sexual assault and about 50 bigamy charges involving members of the FLDS Church, the Deseret News has learned.
   Texas officials on Monday confirmed the number of open cases but would not say how many suspects were involved.
   "We are working with several other agencies on this investigation, and I do not know what ultimately the team will decide to do as far as possible charges filed," Texas Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Tela Mange said.

• Prominent Black NY Monsignor Accused of Sexual Abuse

  [1980s Mons. Harris*] - RCC. 2 children.
   EDGE Boston, by Kilian Melloy, EDGE Contributor, Monday Aug 11, 2008
   NEW YORK -- The pastor of a Roman Catholic church known as Harlem's Cathedral has been suspended from his duties following accusations that he sexually molested two boys in their early teens two decades ago.
   The New York Times reported on Aug. 5 that Msgr. Wallace Harris, a prominent African-American priest who offered a prayer at the inauguration of New York Governor David Paterson, had been suspended from his pastoral duties at Harlem's Church of St. Charles Borromeo.
   The article said that the church's congregation learned of the suspension during church services on Aug. 3. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 12, 2008 7:53 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Tue August 12, 2008
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Wed August 13, 2008 edition:

• Ex-Teacher Accused Of Sex With 15-Year-Old

  [? 2008 Mr Scott -NEW*] - Baptist. Child.  
   Fox 12, http://www. kptv.com/ news/1717 9886/ detail.html , with video, ~ August 13, 2008
   WARRENTON, Ore. -- Police arrested a former Oregon teacher earlier this month on charges he had sex with a 15-year-old student.
   The district attorney's office said Jeremiah Scott, 26, used to work at the North Coast Christian School in Hammond, which is near Astoria.
   He also served as a youth pastor in Warrenton.
   [ALSO SEE: The Daily Astorian, http://www. dailyastorian. info/main.asp? SectionID=2& SubSectionID=398& ArticleID= 53474&TM= 3367.829 of August 12, 2008. ENDS.]

• More alleged victims of church youth leaders

  [~ 2000s Mr Michael and Mrs Laura Salazar -NEW*] - "Lord's Disciples". 3 girls.
   The Daily Times, By Iva Butler, August 13, 2008
   TENNESSEE -- Two more victims in the alleged sexual battery and rape cases involving two married youth leaders of a Maryville church have come forward, said Maryville Police Chief Tony Crisp Wednesday afternoon.
   Michael (Ace) and Laura Lee (Lori) Salazar, both 35, of Wrights Road, Louisville, were charged Friday with a total of eight counts of sexual battery by an authority figure and statutory rape by an authority figure of three 15-year-old girls in the church, the Lords Disciples Ministries of Whosoever Will, 2002 Old Knoxville Pike, Maryville.
   Ace Salazar was charged with three counts each of sexual battery by an authority figure and statutory rape by an authority figure. His wife was charged with one count of each.

• Sex suspect not in court

  [1971-2007 Hanson -NEW*] - Christian. Some were children.  
   Times & Transcript ~ August 13, 2008
   WOODSTOCK, CANADA -- A pastor charged with sex crimes spanning three decades failed to appear yesterday in Woodstock provincial court, where he was scheduled to enter a plea.
   Lawyer Robert Digdon, speaking to the judge on behalf of his client, Fred Hanson [59], requested and was granted a three-week postponement, during which he can review the Crown's case.
   Hanson is now set to appear on Sept. 2.
   Approached outside of the courthouse minutes after appearing before the judge, Digdon refused to discuss the matter. …
   RCMP indicated the charges date back three decades, as early as 1971 and as recently as 2007. …

• Priest absolved

  [≤ 2006 Grillis - ? NEW*] - Greek Orthodox. Assault.    
   The Inner West Weekly, by Stephen Ryan, Wednesday 13 August, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- BURWOOD'S Greek Orthodox priest the Rev Father John Grillis has confessed to assaulting a parishioner, but avoided a conviction.
   A hearing into the two-year-old assault case was cut short in Burwood Court last week when a deal was struck between the prosecution and the defence team.
   Father Grillis initially pleaded not guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm, but then offered to plead guilty to the lesser charge of common assault.

• Cardinal tried to spring sex abuser, then changed view

  [≤ 1994 Maday] - RCC. 2 boys.  
   Chicago Sun-Times, BY ANDREW HERRMANN AND CHRIS FUSCO, August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Cardinal Francis George acknowledged Tuesday that he and other Archdiocese of Chicago officials had worked to reduce the prison sentence of sex-abusing priest Norbert Maday, who is believed to have molested children dozens of times.
   In a letter dated March 6, 2000, to Maday -- formerly an associate pastor at a Chicago Ridge parish who was sentenced in 1994 for molesting two boys -- George writes, "Hopefully, some good souls will see that the six years of incarceration you have already endured are enough to satisfy the state and any sense of justice… . It would be a great fulfillment of the millennium spirit to see your captive heart set free."
   In a memo to George from the archdiocese's vicar of priests in February 2000, George is urged to contact a Wisconsin bishop "regarding Norb" in support of Maday's attorney's efforts to have Maday's sentence commuted, allowing him to return to the Chicago area.

• Former Naperville priest won't receive new trial

  [Lenczycki] - ? RCC. FIRST U.S. priest under this section. Child/ren.
   Naperville Sun (IL), By Jennifer Golz, jgolz@scn1.com , August 13, 2008
   WHEATON -- A former Naperville priest and convicted child molester deemed a sexually violent person will not get a new trial.
   In March, a jury decided Fred Lenczycki, 64, might re-offend and committed him to the Illinois Department of Human Services as a sexually violent person. He is the first priest in the United States to be declared as such, and be civilly committed under the Sexually Violent Persons Act.
   The law allows prosecutors to seek civil commitment of convicted sex offenders thought to have the propensity to re-offend due to mental disorder.

• Minister told to surrender his social-work license

  [≤ 2006 Swedberg] - Presbyterian. Stealing, perjury, etc.
   Asbury Park Press, By Erik Larsen, TOMS RIVER BUREAU, August 13, 2008
   TOMS RIVER, NEW JERSEY – A Presbyterian minister who oversaw the financial affairs of incapacitated individuals and was later accused of stealing their money has been ordered to surrender his license to practice social work and to be admitted to a pretrial intervention program.
   "This is a big one for us," declared Ocean County Surrogate Jeffrey W. Moran Tuesday after receiving Superior Court Judge Barbara Ann Villano's written order, dated Monday.
   In 2006, the Rev. Brian C. Swedberg, 53, of Toms River was indicted on 17 counts of theft, three counts of false swearing, two counts of contempt of court and one count of misapplication of entrusted property.

• Four new Catholic abuse victims come forward

  [2 priests] - RCC. 4 victims.    
   ABC ("PM"), Reporter: Aja Styles, 18:20:00, Wednesday, August 13, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- MARK COLVIN: Four West Australian men are demanding justice from the Catholic Church after coming forward about their alleged sexual abuse by two priests.
   The men say they have spent most of their lives feeling isolated by their childhood trauma. Even now three of them are afraid to be named.
   They've accused the Church of taking insufficient action over child abuse; instead choosing to hide behind legal arguments.
   The Church says it has done all it can.

• Expelled priest in NY is AWOL from CK diocese

  [Blockley] - ? RCC.    
   Saipan Tribune, By NAZARIO RODRIGUEZ JR., n_rodriguez@saipantribune.com , ~ August 13, 2008
   MICRONESIA -- A controversial priest who was expelled from a diocese in New York is "technically" on AWOL (absence without leave) from the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa, according to Bishop Thomas Camacho.
   In an interview yesterday at his office in Mt. Carmel Church, Camacho confirmed that he ordained Fr. Matthew Blockley in 1996. He said the priest left Saipan sometime in 2000 and never came back.
   Blockley, an Englishman, was recently expelled by the Diocese of Rockville Centre and was ordered by Bishop William Murphy to immediately cease presenting himself as a priest on Long Island.

• Ten Reasons Why Priests Haven't Responded to Sexual Abuse Survivors

  - RCC.  
   Voice from the Desert; by Pauline Salvucci, pauline \at\ psalvucci \point\ com , e-mail to a group, August 2, 2008
   UNITED STATES -- Ten Reasons Why Priests Haven't Responded to Sexual Abuse Survivors
   1. They're afraid of what their bishop will do to them.
   2. They're afraid that parishioners will think them unloyal and disobedient to their bishop.
   3. They're afraid that the weekly collection basket will return more empty than full.
   [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 13, 2008 7:16 PM]
   4. They're afraid their fellow priests will scoff and reject them.
   5. They're afraid to speak out on behalf of survivors because Silence is the number one "Golden Rule" among clergy.
   6. They're afraid their families and lay friends will think them "radical dissenters" within the church.
   7. They're afraid to support survivors because doing so is a sure ticket to no advancement within the clerical hierarchy.
   8. They're afraid to support survivors because they believe that reconciliation and forgiveness of clerical perps takes precedence over compassion and justice for survivors.
   9. They're afraid because they believe that revealing additional sexual abuse scandals will destroy the church.
   10. They're afraid because they are more concerned about themselves than those they are ordained to serve.
   Pauline Salvucci of Maine is a former religious sister who now advocates for church reform and accountability.

• Kerala CM promises probe into nun suicide

  [2008 Unnamed head nun*] - RCC. Nun  
   Gulf Times (Qatar), Published 01:39 AM Doha Time, Thursday, for August 14, 2008
   THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, INDIA: Kerala Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan yesterday assured the father of a nun who committed suicide at her convent that the government will ensure a complete and fool-proof probe.
   Anupa Mary, 24, committed suicide on Monday evening by hanging herself in the St Mary's Convent at Kollam.
   Pappachan, the nun's father, and his son met Achuthanandan along with state Education Minister M A Baby. Later they met state Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan who assured them that if needed, a high level investigation team would be appointed to conduct a probe.

• Indian diocese, government order separate probes into nun's suicide

  [2008 Unnamed head nun*] - RCC. Nun.
   NZ Catholic, for Thursday, August 14, 2008
   TRIVANDRUM, India (CNS) - The Kerala state government and the Kollam Diocese have ordered separate probes into a nun's suicide after her father accused convent authorities of harassing her.
   The deceased nun's father, identified only as T. Pappachen, told journalists Aug. 12 that a senior nun was trying to sexually abuse his daughter, Sister Anoopa Mary.
   The previous day the 23-year-old member of the Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary was found hanging from the ceiling fan of a convent room, reported the Asian church news agency UCA News.

• Must Read: The Pope Really DOES Understand the Sexual Abuse Problem

  - RCC.  
   Voice from the Desert, ~ August 13, 2008
   UNITED STATES -- In a recent widely viewed entry on this blog, retired 87-year-old Msgr. Harry Byrne from the Bronx, NY, and a former Chancellor of the Archdiocese of New York, argued that the pope doesn't really understand the nature of the clergy sex abuse crisis.
   In the following brief essay my friend Jim Jenkins takes strong exception to Msgr. Byrne's claim about the Pope Benedict's understanding of the crisis. Jim is a clinical psychologist with a practice in the San Francisco Bay area. He writes with the authority of an insider. Dr. Jenkins was chair of the archdiocese of San Francisco Review Board under Archbishop, now Cardinal, William Levada. Cardinal Leveda has Pope Benedict's old job, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (formerly the Office of the Holy Inquisition).
   Here is Jim's response. * * * Friends:
   There has been some speculation recently on VOTFND [VOTF's Notes and Discussion YahooGroup] that the pope does not understand the sexual abuse problem.
   NOTHING COULD BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH!
   Benedict (nee Joseph Ratzinger) has been the point person in charge of the church's response since the time when the dimensions of the abuse scandal first came to the attention of the Vatican curia back in the 70's and 80's.
   Benedict understands very well the threat the sexual abuse scandal represents to the ruling oligarchy of the church (i.e., the bishops). And he has always acted consistent with that understanding.
   We now know that Ratzinger essentially ran the Vatican for the last decade of the sickly John Paul's life. It was undoubtedly one of the major factors in Ratzinger's ascension to the papacy. …
   What this all meant to me is that management of the church's response to the abuse scandal was indeed controlled from Rome. The dominant message would be: "Give the impression that things are changing. Soon, when the furor dies away, we can go back to things as usual."

• More lawsuits against defrocked priest

  [DeLuca]
   WDEL, By Rachael Samuels, ~ August 13, 2008
   DELAWARE -- Six more names added to the growing list of lawsuits against Francis DeLuca.
   John Vai, Michael Sowden, Michael Schulte and John Does 1, 2 and 3 filed lawsuits against the defrocked priest Francis DeLuca for sexual abuse.
   The six men also amended their previous lawsuits against the Diocese of Wilmington, St. Elizabeth's and St. John the Beloved Churches to add charges for DeLuca.

• Another trial under way for Diocese of Burlington

  [Decades - Burlington Diocese] - RCC. Putting seducers in charge of children.
   The Boston Globe, By John Curran, Associated Press Writer / August 13, 2008
   BURLINGTON, VERMONT – A lawyer for the Diocese of Burlington told jurors in a priest sex abuse trial Wednesday that church officials may have made mistakes in hiring a pastor with a history of molestation allegations against him but that they weren't reckless or malicious.
   In the opening day of another trial targeting the Vermont church, Diocese attorney Thomas McCormick said the case involves events of decades ago and people who have long since died or ceased practicing as priests, urging jurors to consider the benefits of hindsight -- and modern knowledge about childhood sex abuse -- as they hear and see the evidence. [COMMENT: "Modern knowledge" -- but I thought the Founder said he would be with his disciples all days, even to the end of the world! ENDS. ]

• Attorney: Diocese had history of ignoring priest sexual misconduct

  [1978 Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). Altar boy.
   Burlington Free Press, August 13, 2008
   VERMONT -- An attorney for the state's Roman Catholic diocese told a Burlington jury Wednesday it will have to step back in time in order to fairly decide if the church should pay monetary damages to a former altar boy fondled by a priest in 1978.
   "More than one of you on the jury wasn't alive then," attorney Tom McCormick told the jury on the opening day of the second priest sexual abuse trial in four months. "How you and we can legitimately put ourselves back then, that is the challenge of this case."
   The case involves claims by a Waitsfield man who alleges that as an altar boy at Christ the King Church in Burlington in 1977 and 1978, he was fondled by the Rev. Edward Paquette between 20 and 50 times.
   [COMMENT: What, weren't the Ten Commandments current in 1977-78 ? ENDS.]

• HIV positive priest accused of sex abuse dead

  [Magaldi]
   USA Today, August 13, 2008
   FORT WORTH (TX), (AP) – A former priest who was HIV positive and accused of sexually abusing minors in Texas and Rhode Island has died.
   The Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth announced Wednesday that Philip Anthony Magaldi died Tuesday in a North Texas health care facility.

• Accused Fort Worth Priest With HIV Dies

  [Magaldi] - RCC. Dies with HIV.
   CBS 11, ~ August 13, 2008
   FORT WORTH (TX), (CBS 11 News) -- A priest who was diagnosed with HIV and also was dismissed from a North Richland Hills church amid allegations of sexual abuse died Tuesday.
   The Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth announced Wednesday that the Rev. Philip Anthony Magaldi, 72, died at a North Texas health care facility.
   In February, Magaldi told diocesan officials he was HIV positive.

• HIV-positive Fort Worth priest accused of sexual misconduct dies

  [Magaldi]
   The Dallas Morning News, By SAM HODGES / samhodges@dallasnews.com , ~ August 13, 2008
   FORT WORTH (TX) -- A Fort Worth Catholic priest who was the subject of "credible" sexual misconduct allegations has died.
   The Rev. Philip Anthony Magaldi died Tuesday in a North Texas health care facility, said Pat Svacina, spokesman for the Fort Worth Catholic Diocese.
   Father Magaldi was removed from active ministries after what the diocese found to be credible allegations of sexual misconduct, Mr. Svacina said.
   In February, the diocese said that Father Magaldi had acknowledged he had HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Mr. Svacina said today that the priest's health had lately been in general decline, but added that the diocese does not know the cause of death.

• Bishop, priest group hold face-to-face dialogue session

  - RC bishop spent US $10,100 for table and chairs, $7000 on vestments.
   News-Democrat, ~ August 13, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) -- Face-to-face negotiations between Bishop Edward Braxton and a six-member steering committee of priests were held over two days last week, according to a written statement released by the diocese.
   "The topics discussed included genuine communication, mutual trust, appropriate collaboration, transparency, financial issues and accountability," said the Rev. Jack McEvilly, vicar general.
   The sessions were moderated by Tom Reid and Maureen Gallagher of the Reid Group, a non-profit consulting group based on Bellevue, Wash., that has been hired by many Catholic dioceses to consult about such problems.
   [LOOK BACK: ~ July 11, 2008]

• HIV-positive priest in Fort Worth is dead

  [Magaldi]
   The Dallas Morning News, Sam Hodges has the story, on dallasnews.com. ~ August 13, 2008
   TEXAS -- The Rev. Philip Anthony Magaldi, a Fort Worth Catholic priest who was the subject of "credible" sexual misconduct allegations, has died at 72.
   He had been removed from active ministry after reports of sexual misconduct were made to the Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth. The diocese, a spokesman said, received repeated complaints about the priest's conduct with boys and young men.
   In February, it was revealed that Father Magaldi had HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

• Catholic priest in sex abuse case dies in North Texas

  [Magaldi]
   Fort Worth Star-Telegram, By DARREN BARBEE, dbarbee@star-telegram.com , ~ August 13, 2008
   FORT WORTH (TX) -- The Rev. Philip Anthony Magaldi, who weathered embezzlement charges and was accused by two people of separate but similar charges of sexual abuse, died Tuesday. He was 72.
   The priest had told the Fort Worth Roman Catholic Diocese this February that he was HIV positive. He died in a North Texas healthcare facility, according to a diocese news release.
   Bishop Kevin Vann, leader of the Fort Worth Diocese, was in the process of having the priest defrocked and had further restricted Magaldi's activities in 2006.

• Survivors NetworK: Cardinal Has Not Done Enough

  - RCC secrecy not unveiled willingly.
   WBBM, ~ August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (WBBM) -- A day after the Chicago archdiocese announced a more than $12 million dollar settlement with survivors of priest sex abuse, survivors' groups are demanding even more action from Cardinal George.
   Holding up the front page of the Chicago Tribune, David Clohessy, the national director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, said, "This is wrong."
   The headline said: "Cardinal lifts the veil on abuses."
   "The cardinal wasn't voluntarily deposed. The cardinal didn't voluntarily release that deposition. The cardinal did not voluntarily release the records that go with the deposition… The cardinal has been brought kicking and screaming into behaving like a reasonable person and a caring person would behave."

• Catholic activists press cardinal for tougher stance on abuse

  [Decades - Chicago Archdiocese] - RCC. US $12.7m.
   Chicago Tribune By Margaret Ramirez | 1:49 PM CDT, August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Responding to the extraordinary deposition on sexual abuse released by Cardinal Francis George, victims' advocates on Wednesday demanded more information on abusive priests and assurances that church secrecy would end.
   The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago agreed on Tuesday to a $12.7 million settlement involving 16 victims and 11 priests. With the settlement, the cardinal also released a 305-page transcript of a court deposition detailing errors, secrets and deception by church officials that kept abusive priests in Chicago churches for several years after allegations were made.
   George became only the third American cardinal to be deposed in court for questioning on sexual abuse of children by clergy. The other two leaders are Cardinal Roger Mahony of Los Angeles and Cardinal Bernard Law, formerly of Boston. [EXPLANATION: "Deposed" in the USA in this context means to make a formal deposition in a legal matter.  It does not mean removed from their position. ENDS.]

• Systemic Abuse at the Sun-Times

  [Decades - Chicago Archdiocese] - RCC. US $12.7m.
   Chicago Daily Observer, By Pat Hickey, With Both Hands, Posted in Our Columns on August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Yesterday, August 12, 2008, Francis Cardinal George settled with the victims of priest/cleric abuse in the amount of $12.6 million dollars. The Chicago Tribune reported that story. The Sun Times, like the little fat punk who watches two tough guys fight and then rekindles the violence with taunts to each combatant, intends to milk this issue.
   The horror of the abuse is too monstrous to imagine. Catholics are all too aware of the damage inflicted by monsters in stiff collars and vestments who hid behind canon law, the majesty of the Catholic Church and the protocols of the hierarchy, the trust of the faithful and innocence of children in order to lunge out and sodomize babies.
   The victims, for the most part (there have been a couple of dubious claimants here and there), deserve every tiny bit of monetary and legal compensation – nothing can restore the damage to their souls by the monsters who abused them.

• Clergy abuse survivors on road to recovery

  [Decades - Chicago Archdiocese] - RCC. US $12.7m.
   United Press International, Aug. 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (UPI) -- An attorney for clergy sex abuse victims says revealing the failures of Chicago's Roman Catholic Archdiocese will go a long way to helping survivors recover.
   Attorney Jeff Anderson says Cardinal Francis George's apology and wholesale disclosure of a flawed and secretive system signals a new era of cooperation, The Chicago Tribune reported Wednesday.
   "They have begun the process of coming clean and transparent in a way they have never done before," Anderson said. "It's now no longer about secrets. It's about protection."

• Brief analysis of Cardinal George's deposition

  - RCC promoted man who mishandled seducer's case.
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, August 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Some disturbing portions of Cardinal George's deposition:
   -The cardinal says his vicar general at the time of McCormack's first arrest, mishandled the case (p. 94). Yet, after McCormack's second arrest, that vicar general, Fr. George Rassas, was elevated to an Auxiliary Bishop in the archdiocese.
   -The cardinal says he never asked Daniel McCormack whether he sexually abused children (p. 93.) McCormack was first arrested in August 2005, but never charged with sexually abusing a minor. In January 2006, he was arrested again and charged. In July 2007, he pled guilty go abusing five boys and was sentenced to prison.
   -The cardinal says that after McCormack's first arrest, he never asked legal authorities whether they thought he was guilty (p. 83). ".they had set him free which I interpreted to mean they didn't think he was a danger."

• Clergy sex abuse victims & Catholics criticize Cardinal

  - RCC's Cardinal George.
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) – WHAT -- At a sidewalk news conference, concerned Catholics and clergy sex abuse victims and concerned Catholics) will blast Chicago's Cardinal George for
   -- repeatedly trying, until at least 2002, to get a convicted serial child predator priest out of jail, and
   -- keeping a credibly accused predator priest in parish ministry until 2006 despite at least four allegations against him four years earlier.
   They'll urge George to
   -- post on his archdiocesan web site the photos, addresses and work histories of all pedophile priests, and
   -- publicly pledge to never try such reckless moves in the future.
   WHEN -- TODAY, Wednesday, Aug. 13, 11:00 a.m.
   WHERE -- Outside the Archdiocesan chancery office/headquarters, 155 E. Superior in downtown Chicago

• INDIA Young Nun's Suicide Shocks The Church In Kerala

  [2008 Unnamed nun*] - RCC. Nun.  
   Union of Catholic Asian News, August 12, 2008
   THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, India (UCAN) -- A young nun's suicide in Kerala on Aug. 11 has shocked the Catholic Church in this southern Indian state.
   A suicide note found on 23-year-old Sister Anoopa Mary's body said she took her life because of differences with her superior.
   The nun of the Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary had been living in the indigenous congregation's St. Mary's Convent in Kollam (formerly Quilon), a port town 70 kilometers north of Thiruvananthapuram, the state capital, which is 2,815 kilometers south of New Delhi.
   Sister Rexia, a councilor of the congregation, told UCA News that the "unfortunate incident" shocked her people. This was the first such incident in her congregation's history, she pointed out.

• Hearing scheduled in Ala. frozen body case

  [2000s Hopkins*] - Church of God in Christ. 2004 Wife dead in freezer. Daughter ravished, impregnated.  
   WTVM, Associated Press, 4:34 AM ET, August 13, 2008
   MOBILE, Ala. (AP) - A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Wednesday for a part-time south Alabama evangelist who's charged with killing his wife, a mother of 8 whose body had been stored in a freezer for at least three years.
   Anthony Hopkins has pleaded not guilty to murder in the death of 36-year-old Arletha Hopkins.

• Father blames convent head for nun's suicide

  [2008 Unnamed nun*] - RCC. Nun.  
   Gulf Times (Qatar), By Ashraf Padanna, ~ August 13, 2008
   THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, INDIA: A nun who committed suicide in a Kerala convent was tortured by her superior "mentally and physically", her father alleged here yesterday.
   "She had to do all the chores in the convent like cleaning toilets and washing dishes before leaving for the school (where she teaches) and after coming back. And at night the senior sister would forcibly sleep with her," Pappachan, a cook who works at the Bishop's house in Kollam, said.

• Nun's suicide: Kerala government to hold thorough probe

  [2008 Unnamed nun*] - RCC. Nun.
   Sindh Today (Pakistan) | Aug 13, 2008
   Thiruvananthapuram, India (IANS) -- Kerala Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan Wednesday assured the father of a nun who had committed suicide at her convent in Kollam that the government will ensure a complete and fool-proof probe.
   Anupa Mary, 24, committed suicide Monday evening by hanging herself in the St Mary's Convent at Kollam.
   Pappachan, the nun's father, and his son met Achuthanandan along with state Education Minister M.A. Baby.
   Later they met state Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan who assured them that if need be, a high level investigation team would be appointed to conduct the probe into the nun's suicide.

• Deposition Transcript of Cardinal George

  - RCC.  
   SNAP-Great Plains, ~ August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- This links to a deposition of Cardinal Francis George with exhibits 1 and 2.

• Chicago Archdiocese to pay $12.6 million to 16 sex abuse survivors

  - RCC.
   Catholic News Service ~ August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (CNS) -- The Archdiocese of Chicago has agreed to pay 16 victims of clergy sex abuse more than $12.6 million in a settlement announced Aug. 12.
   In addition to financial payments, the archdiocese agreed to make public additional information and files related to the cases, including the deposition of Cardinal Francis E. George of Chicago.
   The settlement followed two years of mediation between the archdiocese and attorneys for the victims.

• Chicago Archdiocese priests listed in settlement

  - List of RC seducers.
   Chicago Sun-Times, www. suntimes. com/ lifestyles/ religion/ 1105126, CST-NWS- alist13. article , August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) –
   Robert C. Becker - Status: Deceased. Abuse suit against him settled in 2003. More abuse allegations in 2006, at least one claim settled with archdiocese in 2007.
   Joseph R. Bennett -- Status: Accused of abusing two girls between 1967 and 1973 at St. John de la Salle. Removed in February 2006.
   Robert Craig -- Status: Resigned 1993. Accused of abuse in March 2006, sued in April 2006. Victims allege abuse from 1982 to 1990. Previous settlement in 1989. [More]

• Cardinal George's Deposition Released in Clergy Sex Abuse Settlement

  - RCC.
   Chicago Public Radio, Produced by City Room on Wednesday, August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- A deposition given by Chicago's Cardinal Francis George to an attorney for victims of clergy sex abuse can now be seen on the Archdiocesan Web site. It's the first time in the history of the Catholic Church such a transcript has been publicly released as part of a settlement with victims. Yesterday George announced a $12.6 million settlement.
   GEORGE: The Archdiocese is committed to helping overcome these consequences and join victims in their efforts to see that no child has to suffer what the victims have endured.
   But attorney Jeff Anderson says George will have to keep his word in dealing with future allegations of clergy abuse.

• THE DEPOSITION OF FRANCIS CARDINAL GEORGE

  - RCC.
   Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago with link to the desposition, August 12, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Francis Cardinal George gave a deposition on January 30, 2008 as part of the mediation of a group of legal claims brought by victims of childhood sexual abuse against the Archdiocese of Chicago. The purpose of the deposition was to allow the victims' attorney, Jeffrey R. Anderson, to ask Cardinal George questions to assist in resolving those claims fairly and promptly.
   At a deposition only the witness provides testimony under oath. The words of the attorneys are not testimony. The attorney taking the deposition asks questions that he or she chooses. Accordingly, a deposition is not meant to provide a full view of a case.

• $12.7M settlement in 16 sex-abuse cases

  - RCC.
   Lake County News-Sun, (with list of all accused priests involved in the settlement), By Frank Abderholden, fabderholden@scn1.com , August 13, 2008
   ILLINOIS -- Three of the 11 priests involved in a $12.7 million sex abuse settlement announced Tuesday by the Archdiocese of Chicago had ties to Lake County.
   And two of the 16 known abuse victims were from St. Mary's Church in Lake Forest.
   The priests involved in the abuse settlement are:
   *Robert E. Mayer, who was ordained in 1964 and served as associate pastor at St. Mary's Church in Lake Forest from 1976 to 1981. He resigned in 1994.
   *James R. Steel, who was ordained 1968 and served at St. James Church in Highwood from 1969 to 1974. He resigned in 1992.
   *Norbert Maday, ordained in 1964, who was convicted in Wisconsin and was removed from the ministry in 1993. He tried to get released from a Wisconsin prison so he could live with his mother in Waukegan. He was not released from prison, and his mother died in 1997.

• A halt to church closings

 
   Berkshire Eagle, Editorial, Wednesday, August 13, 2008
   MASSACHUSETTS -- We hope the Diocese of Springfield will heed the call of Representative Daniel Bosley and declare a moratorium on North Berkshire church closings so the affected communities can have the kind of discussion that should have taken place before the closings were announced Monday. Closings will have a long-term impact and they are coming too quickly and with too little public input.
   The church closings in Pittsfield were done with inadequate concern for the opinions of parishioners and city officials, which briefly raised the ire of City Hall. Rather than learn from the experience, the Diocese repeated it in North Berkshire County, blithely engaging in what the North Adams Democrat accurately describes as a "heavy handed, top-down policy," which shows little concern for church members or the towns they are located in.

• Bosley aims to save Berkshires churches

 
   Berkshire Eagle, By Derek Gentile, Wednesday, August 13, 2008
   NORTH ADAMS (MA) – State Rep. Daniel E. Bosley, D-North Adams, saying he was caught off guard by the recent announcement that six local churches will be closed by Jan. 1, is calling for Bishop Timothy A. McDonnell to impose a moratorium on the closings to enable the community to discuss the issue – and possibly find a solution.
   But a spokesman for the Diocese of Springfield said such a moratorium is extremely unlikely, and questioned the propriety of Bosley's request.
   "It is an inappropriate and unrealistic response to the situation," said Diocesan spokesman Mark E. Dupont, who added that the Diocese believes that Bosley's request "runs awry of the Constitution," which he said mandates the separation of church and state.
   On Monday, Bishop McDonnell announced the consolidation of churches in North Adams, Adams and Great Barrington. In the case of North Adams, St. Francis and Our Lady of Mercy Churches would be closed. Services would be consolidated at St. Anthony's Church. The new consolidated church would be named St. Elisabeth of Hungary, after a 13th century saint.

• Current number of cases against FLDS is unknown

  - FLDS.
   The Salt Lake Tribune By Melinda Rogers Article Last Updated 12:19:48 AM MDT August/13/2008
   TEXAS -- While Texas authorities were initially investigating 20 cases of sexual assault and 50 bigamy cases involving FLDS members, it is unclear how many of those cases remain open four months later.
   Texas Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Tela Mange confirmed the number of cases - outlined in an April e-mail - was accurate in the month officials raided the Yearning for Zion Ranch near Eldorado.
   But she said she can't confirm the current number of cases still being investigated. And Salt Lake City attorney Rod Parker, a spokesman for the polygamous Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, thinks that more than likely the numbers have drastically changed as the investigation has progressed.

• Abuse victims speak

 
   ABC 7, with video, By Leah Hope, ~ August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Two of the 16 church abuse victims spoke out Tuesday about the settlement and about their own struggles following the abuse they suffered.
   Two of the victims involved in the settlement shared their stories - lives deeply affected by what they say was betrayal by their priests and their church.
   It's been 40 years since Therese Albrecht's first communion

• Grieving parents sue son's coach

  [Mr McInerney*] ? RCC. Boys.
   Star-Ledger, BY MARK MUELLER, Wednesday, August 13, 2008
   NEW JERSEY -- The parents of a Monmouth County teenager killed by an NJ Transit train in June filed suit yesterday against the former baseball coach at St. Rose High School in Belmar, contending the man's alleged abuse of their son led him to consider suicide.
   The suit, filed on behalf of Jackie and Drew Clark in Superior Court in Freehold, also names as a defendant St. Rose, where Bart McInerney served as head baseball coach for 13 years.
   McInerney, 42, was charged in November with two counts of endangering the welfare of a child for allegedly engaging in inappropriate sexual conversations with players. Authorities said McInerney pressed the teens to masturbate and demanded they send him details of the acts in text messages.

• Family of teen killed by train sue coach

  [Mr McInerney*] ? RCC. Boys.
   Newsday, August 13, 2008
   FREEHOLD, N.J. - Relatives of a Monmouth County man who was killed by an NJ Transit train are suing the high school baseball coach whom the 18-year-old accused of sexual misconduct.
   The lawsuit alleges former St. Rose High School baseball coach Bartholomew McInerney sexually harassed, abused and endangered Andrew Clark Jr.
   The 18-year-old died after being struck by the train in June. The death has not been ruled a suicide or an accident.

• Cardinal lifts the veil on abuses

  - RCC had flawed secretive system protecting their own.
   Chicago Tribune, with video, By Manya A. Brachear, Margaret Ramirez and Azam Ahmed | August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The sexual abuse of children happened on his watch.
   And so for the first time, Cardinal Francis George on Tuesday opened the books on a litany of failures by church officials as he announced a $12.7 million lawsuit settlement by the Chicago Roman Catholic Archdiocese.
   By releasing the details and unveiling his own sworn deposition, the archbishop revealed a flawed and secretive system where priests and bishops employed by the archdiocese to this day protected their own.

• Episcopalians speak for and against Pa. bishop

  - Episcopalians. [1973 + Bp Charles Bennison] - US$11.6m. 1973 onwards - Did not report brother. [≤ 1973 ?+ Rev. John Bennison] - Girl (14). [~2007 Ms Alton] - Allegedly changed Wikipedia entry, so banned by Wikipedia.
   Philadelphia Inquirer, By David O'Reilly, August 13, 2008
   PHILADELPHIA (PA) -- Episcopal Bishop Charles E. Bennison Jr. should be removed from church office, according to the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church USA and the victim of Bennison's brother's sexual abuse.
   But a special church court - which in June found Bennison guilty of failing to protect a girl in his parish from his brother John's sexual abuse decades ago - has also received dozens of letters from Bennison's admirers asking that he be allowed to continue to lead the five-county Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania he has headed since 1998.
   "His ministry is a gift the Episcopal Church so desperately needs," wrote one.
   In October, the Episcopal Church suspended Bennison, 62, on two charges of "conduct unbecoming a member of the clergy" and called for a trial.

• Another priest sex abuse trial gets under way today

  [1978 Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). Altar boy.
   Burlington Free Press, By Sam Hemingway, August 13, 2008
   VERMONT -- Lawyers probed prospective jurors Tuesday about their views on large monetary awards in civil cases before settling on a six-man, six-woman jury for the latest priest sexual abuse trial scheduled to get under way today in Burlington.
   "We need 12 fair people," Tom McCormick, an attorney for the state's Roman Catholic diocese, told the prospective jurors near the end of the daylong hearing at Chittenden Superior Court.
   The case going before the jury today is the second in four months involving nearly identical claims by former altar boys at Christ the King Church in Burlington who say a parish priest, the Rev. Edward Paquette, molested them at the church between 1976 and 1978.

• $12M settlement reached in Chicago clergy abuse

  - RCC.
   The Beacon News, By CARLA K. JOHNSON, The Associated Press, August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Bob Brancato is prone to flashbacks in the supermarket when he sees a brand of soap he used as a child to clean himself after his Catholic priest sexually abused him.
   Therese Albrecht lost faith in God, spent years in therapy and considered suicide because of repeated rapes by her priest when she was young.

• Victim was 7 when abused by priest

  - RCC.
   Chicago Sun-Times, BY MIKE THOMAS, Religion Reporter / mthomas@suntimes.com , August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Less than a year ago, Therese Albrecht wanted to kill herself.
   Four decades after allegedly being raped and sodomized by a Catholic priest at St. John de la Salle School on the South Side, the burden of her secret shame had become too much to bear.
   "I've been down the road of therapy and psych meds and wanting nothing more than to die and thinking about suicide all the time," the 48-year-old Steger resident said Tuesday.

• Settlements reached in Chicago clergy abuse cases

  - RCC.
   The Times, The Associated Press | Wednesday, August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) | Chicago's Catholic archdiocese agreed Tuesday to pay more than $12.6 million to settle lawsuits by 16 people who accused priests of sexual abuse over three decades, including one who served in South Holland.
   "My hope is that these settlements will help the survivors and their families begin to heal and move forward," Cardinal Francis George said in a statement in which he also offered an apology for the abuse. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 13, 2008 7:00 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Wed August 13, 2008
• Priest John Sidney Denham facing 30 sex charges.  [1970s-80s Denham -NEW*] - RCC. 18 boys (so far).    

---

   [ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: Broken Rites - Australia. ENDS.] http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm#priest_john_sidney_denham [August 14, 2008]
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Thu August 14, 2008 edition:

• Abusive dad's confession kept secret by priest

  - Evangelical group. [2004 Unnamed man -NEW*] - Daughter (4). [2004-08 Unnamed minister -NEW*] - Failed to report to police.    
   NEWS.com.au , http://www. news.com.au/ story/0,23599, 24181791-2, 00.html , ~ August 14, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- A FATHER who sexually abused his one-year-old daughter confessed to a minister but the matter was never reported to police.
   The man, who cannot be named, told police of his crimes after further abusing the girl when she was just four.
   The Melbourne father told the minister at a small evangelical Christian church that he had committed offences against his young daughter in 2004.
   The clergyman allegedly advised the family to stay with him in order to address the offending. The family lived with the minister for about two weeks.

• York County Pastor Text Messaged 2 Girls

  [~ 2007-08 Snyder -NEW*] - "New Beginnings." 2 girls.  
   WGAL, ~ August 14, 2008
   WINDSOR, Pa. -- A York County pastor is charged with the corruption of minors, accused by police of exchanging thousands of text messages with two girls.
   Scott Snyder, 34, is a pastor at the New Beginnings Bible Fellowship Church in Windsor Borough.
   Snyder exchanged more than 3,000 text messages with two girls, ages 13 and 14, and some of the messages were inappropriate, state police said.

• Sex abuse lawsuit against Jesuits settled

  [1960s Poole, Duffy (Jesuits)] - RCC. US$15m claim. SETTLED (? amount).Girl.  
   KGW Associated Press, ~ August 14, 2008
   PORTLAND, Ore. -- A $15 million sex abuse lawsuit against a pair of Jesuit priests has been settled for an undisclosed amount.
   Lawyers for a woman who claimed she was abused as a young girl say they were ready to go to trial after a judge refused to dismiss the case against the Oregon Province of the Society of Jesus.

• Plaintiff: Bishop Marshall Could Have Done More

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (At least US$8.7m so far). Altar boy/s.
   Fox 44, ~ August 14, 2008
   VERMONT -- On day two of the trial Thursday, attorneys for the plaintiff in the latest lawsuit against the Diocese of Burlington pointed fingers at the late Bishop John A. Marshall, who presided over the statewide diocese in the 1970s, when Rev. Edward Paquette allegedly molested several young boys.
   The plaintiff claims Paquette abused him when he was an 11-year-old altar boy at Christ the King Parish in Burlington. The lawsuit is one of 22 pending against the Diocese of Burlington. Some of the others also involve Paquette.
   During one mid-afternoon exchange, Jerome O'Neill, an attorney for the plaintiff, peppered Rev. John McSweeney as he sat on the witness stand. McSweeney served as diocese's chancellor - the equivalent of a clerk - during the 1970s. …
   It was not until 1978 that Rev. Thomas Kane, who counseled Paquette at the House of Affirmation in Massachusetts, wrote against Paquette's reassignment to another parish.
   [LOOK FORWARD (and compare his start and finish dates with his tardy counsel) re Rev Thomas Kane to August 31, 2008.]

• Vermont diocese covered up scandal

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (At least US$8.7m so far). Altar boy/s.
   Burlington Free Press, By Sam Hemingway, August 14, 2008
   VERMONT -- Bishop John Marshall in the late 1970s feared what would happen to the state's Roman Catholic diocese if people knew he had employed a priest who was molesting altar boys, a former diocesan chancellor acknowledged today.
   Monsignor John McSweeney made the admission under questioning by Jerome O'Neill, an attorney representing a Waitsfield man who has sued the diocese, claiming that, as an altar boy in the late 1970s, he was molested by the Rev. Edward Paquette.
   "The concern was, if the people of this diocese knew that Father Paquette and other priests were molesting boys and that Bishop Marshall was covering it up, people would leave the diocese in droves, would they not?" O'Neill asked.
   "That was what Bishop Marshall was worried about," McSweeney answered.

• Former Texas church planter files libel suit against BGCT, others

  - Baptists.
   Associated Baptist Press, By Vicki Brown, Thursday, 14 August 2008
   EDINBURG, Texas (ABP) -- A former Hispanic church planter implicated in a 2006 Baptist General Convention of Texas scandal has filed a defamation lawsuit against the BGCT and several other Texas Baptist entities and individuals.
   Otto Arango, founder of the now-defunct Piper Institute of Church Planting, was one of three pastors accused in 2006 of misappropriating funds the Texas convention provided for new Hispanic church starts.
   In addition to the BGCT, the lawsuit names the Baptist Standard, the BGCT's news journal; David Montoya and Calvary Baptist Church in Mineral Wells, Texas, where he is pastor; Palo Pinto Baptist Association, which includes the Mineral Wells church; David Tamez and Dexton Shores and the Rio Grande River Ministry for which they worked; Roberto Rodriguez and the church he serves as pastor, Primera Iglesia Bautista in Harlingen, Texas; and Eloy Hernandez.

• Priest to meet Maryknoll leaders over role in Womenpriests' ceremony

  - Fr Roy Bourgeois took part.
   Catholic News Service, By Dennis Sadowski, Catholic News Service, ~ August 14, 2008
   WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Maryknoll Father Roy Bourgeois will meet Aug. 18 with the three members of his order's General Council to discuss his participation in a recent ceremony sponsored by Roman Catholic Womenpriests.
   The Aug. 9 ceremony involved what Roman Catholic Womenpriests considers the ordination of Janice Sevre-Duszynska to the priesthood.
   The organization, which is not recognized by the church, has sponsored numerous ceremonies since 2002 involving reported ordinations of women deacons, priests and bishops. These ceremonies have led to the excommunications of all involved because women cannot be ordained Catholic priests.
   [COMMENT: Can a Christian Church ordain a lady deacon?  Look up Phoebe in a good concordance. ENDS. ]

• Bail hearing canceled for FLDS men

  - FLDS.
   Deseret News, By Ben Winslow, Published: Thursday, Aug. 14, 2008
   ELDORADO, Texas – A court hearing for four men from the Fundamentalist LDS Church's YFZ Ranch indicted by a grand jury here was canceled after they hired lawyers and bailed out of jail.
   A bail reduction request for Raymond Merril Jessop, 36; Merril Leroy Jessop, 33; Allan Eugene Keate, 56; and Michael Emack, 57, was scheduled to be heard Thursday. However, court clerks said the hearing was canceled at the last moment when attorneys entered notices of appearance, and by the fact that the men had posted $500,000 in bail nearly a week ago.

• Davenport diocese looks at restoring money paid out in abuse cases

  - RCC.
   Des Moines Register By ERIN JORDAN, ejordan@dmreg.com , August 14, 2008
   DAVENPORT (IA) -- The Catholic Diocese of Davenport will launch a study to see if there is support for a major fundraising drive to help the diocese recover from bankruptcy after a clergy abuse scandal, officials announced.
   The diocese, which includes 83 parishes in the southeastern quarter of Iowa, has also hired a development director to lead fundraising efforts.
   "After the first of the year when we began to realize we'd be coming out of bankruptcy, we saw a need for us to get back on our feet," Msgr. John Hyland said in a prepared statement Thursday. "The only way that could take place was to begin the process of a campaign to raise money for the needs of the diocese."

• FLDS questions state management of trust

  - FLDS.
   Houston Chronicle, By JENNIFER DOBNER, Associated Press Writer, Aug. 14, 2008,
   SALT LAKE CITY (UT) – A spokesman for the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints was in state court Thursday to ask a judge if members can ultimately own their homes, now held by a state-managed church trust.
   A state-appointed accountant has managed the $110 million United Effort Plan Trust for three years.

• Archdiocese updates Child Protection Decree

  - RCC.
   Catholic Telegraph, ~ August 14, 2008
   CINCINNATI (OH) -- ARCHDIOCESE – The Archdiocese of Cincinnati has issued a new version of its Decree on Child Protection, the protective policies, procedures and recommendations that apply to all of its parishes, schools, agencies and institutions.
   The original Decree on Child Abuse was promulgated by Cincinnati Archbishop Daniel E. Pilarczyk in March, 1993. It became the Decree on Child Protection in 1997 and was last updated in 2003 in line with archdiocese policy that the Decree be updated every five years in the light of experience.
   The new booklet containing the Decree is 52 pages long than the former 44 pages. More than 600 church personnel attended 12 workshops outlining the changes. Among dozens of additions and alterations in the latest version are the following:
   The addition of a statement that, "It is the intention of the archdiocese that no person who has been convicted of sexually abusing a child will work with children at an office, parish, school, agency or institution of the archdiocese."

• Phone Numbers, Addresses of Accused Priests Posted On Web

  [8 priests, 1 school head] - RCC.
   WBBM, ~ August 14, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (WBBM) -- The addresses and phone numbers of eight Chicago priests and a Catholic school principal have been posted on the Web - two days after the archdiocese announced a $12.6 million dollar settlement of sex abuse cases involving those men.
   It was not the archdiocese that posted the addresses and phone numbers. It was the attorney for the sex abuse survivors, Jeff Anderson.
   "We feel there is a moral imperative to protect others."
   Anderson says he has no problem releasing the addresses and phone numbers of the nine men - eight priests and a former Catholic school principal - even though only three have ever been convicted of sexual abuse.

• Deposition of Cardinal Francis E. George with 74 Exhibits, Including Documents from Maday, Bennett, and McCormack Personnel Files

  [? years - Maday, Bennett, McCormack] - RCC.
   BishopAccountability.org , ~ August 14, 2008
   [Note from BishopAccountability.org: Below we present the deposition of Cardinal Francis E. George, O.M.I. in several download sizes, and the 74 individual deposition exhibits in easy-to-download formats, bundled and also listed with individual descriptions. The exhibits include documents from the personnel files of Norbert Maday (15 exhibits), Joseph R. Bennett (33 exhibits), and Daniel McCormack (14 exhibits).
   WALTHAM (MA) -- Francis Cardinal George gave a deposition on January 30, 2008 as part of the mediation of a group of legal claims brought by victims of childhood sexual abuse against the Archdiocese of Chicago. The purpose of the deposition was to allow the victims' attorney, Jeffrey R. Anderson, to ask Cardinal George questions to assist in resolving those claims fairly and promptly.

!!!: Thompson allowed convicted priest to hold memorial service in prison

  - RC priest's mother's body brought into prison.
   Jackson County Chronicle, By JASON STEIN | Lee Newspapers, August 14, 2008
   MADISON, WISCONSIN – Former Gov. Tommy Thompson played a key role in arranging an unusual memorial service for the mother of a former Catholic priest and convicted child molester inside a Wisconsin prison, according to documents that surfaced this week as part of a legal settlement.
   The documents also provide a fuller picture into the efforts by Catholic officials to win better treatment and even early release for the former priest.
   In a September 8, 1997, letter to Thompson, Cardinal Francis George, the archbishop of Chicago, thanked the then-Republican governor for "personal thoughtfulness in granting an extraordinary permission" for the body of the priest's deceased mother to be brought into the prison. …
   The letter drew sharp criticism from Peter Isely of Milwaukee, the Midwest director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, who said it showed the special treatment priests can receive from public officials.
   "The unwritten law has been, unfortunately, that clearly priests and bishops are treated differently, even if they've raped children, than other citizens. And that has to change," Isely said.

• LAST KNOWN CONTACT INFORMATION FOR PERPETRATORS

 
   Jeff Anderson & Associates ~ August 14, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The contact information listed below is the contact information as Jeff Anderson, attorney for the Plaintiffs, believes it to be based upon available public record. Anderson cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information because changes in addresses or phone numbers may not be reflected in public records. …

• Attorneys for Clergy Sex Victims Release Predators' Addresses

  - RCC.
   Market Watch Aug 14, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- For the sake of 'public safety,' attorneys who negotiated a settlement with the Chicago Catholic archdiocese this week are making public the last known addresses of 8 current and former priests who molested kids, as well as 1 former Catholic school principal also named in the settlement.
   "The victims we've helped have told us time and time again that their main goal is to make sure other children don't suffer as they have and still do," said Jeff Anderson of St. Paul MN. "This step will hopefully prevent future devastating child sex crimes."
   Anderson and his firm have represented hundreds of sex abuse victims who were hurt in church and school settings.

• S.C. Allows Sex Abuse Suit to Go Forward Against Fresno Diocese

  [1959-73 Mons. Herdegan] - RCC. 2 brothers.
   Metropolitan News-Enterprise, By KENNETH OFGANG, Staff Writer, August 14, 2008
   CALIFORNIA -- The California Supreme Court yesterday denied review of a Court of Appeal ruling allowing two men who claimed they were abused by a priest decades ago to sue the Fresno Diocese of the Roman Catholic Church.
   By a vote of 6-1, the justices, who held their weekly conference yesterday in San Francisco, opted not to intervene in the litigation brought by George and Howard Santillan, brothers who claim they were abused by Msgr. Anthony Herdegen between 1959 and 1973. Justice Marvin Baxter was the lone member of the court who wanted to hear the case.
   The high court also denied a request for depublication of the May 21 decision by this district's Div. Eight.

• Withholding information from review boards shows lack of transparency

  [Kownacki, Bp Gregory] - RCC. Withheld pre-1993 information.
   St. Louis Post-Dispatch, ~ August 14, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) -- Two new disclosures in court records cast further aspersions on Bishop Wilton Gregory, who led America's bishops during the high-profile years of the Catholic church's ongoing child sex abuse and cover-up scandal ("Sex abuse panel lacked key data, member reports," Aug. 9)
   While head of the Belleville Diocese, Bishop Gregory won praise in 1993 for setting up a review board to look at allegations against abusive clerics. The trouble is that the former head of that panel now has testified that no information about pedophile priests prior to 1993 was given to board members. She also testified that Bishop Gregory and his staff never brought child molestation reports against the Rev. Raymond Kownacki to the board in 1994.
   This is further proof of what we've long said: These hand-picked abuse panels often get no information, little information or biased information from church officials. So they end up functioning more as a public relations tool than an investigative tool.

• Minister may be held as a danger

  [? 2000s Reinke] - Methodist. Boy, pornography.
   Courier Press
   By Len Wells Thursday, August 14, 2008
   GEFF, (IL) – Prosecutors have filed a petition seeking to declare the former minister of a small Methodist church in Geff a sexually dangerous person.
   Lawrence J. Reinke, 57, was scheduled to stand trial Monday on two class X felony charges of predatory criminal sexual assault and a class 1 felony charge of child pornography for allegedly having unlawful sexual contact with an 11-year-old boy who attended his church.
   Wayne County State's Attorney Kevin Kakac has asked the court to declare Reinke is sexually dangerous and that the Illinois Department of Corrections be appointed his guardian.
   [LOOK BACK: April 27, 2008]

• Two more teens report sex crimes; Maryville church cancels services 'until further notice'

  [~ 2000s Michael and Laura Salazar*] - "Lord's Disciples." 3 girls + 2 more minors.
   The Daily Times, By Iva Butler, August 14, 2008
   MARYVILLE (TN) -- Two more victims in the alleged sexual battery and rape cases involving two married youth leaders of a Maryville church have come forward, Maryville Police Chief Tony Crisp said Wednesday.
   Michael "Ace" and Laura Lee "Lori" Salazar, both 35, of Wrights Road, Louisville, were charged Friday with a total of eight counts of sexual battery by an authority figure and statutory rape by an authority figure of three 15-year-old girls in the church, the Lord's Disciples Ministries of Whosoever Will, 2002 Old Knoxville Pike, Maryville.
   Ace Salazar was charged with three counts each of sexual battery by an authority figure and statutory rape by an authority figure. His wife was charged with one count of each.

• Legionaries of Christ deliver requested information to Archbishop of Balitmore

  - RCC.
   Catholic News Agency, 11:04 pm, Aug 13, 2008
   BALTIMORE (MD) / (CNA).- Archbishop of Baltimore Edwin F. O'Brien has said he has received a "rather significant volume of information" from the Legionaries of Christ following his June request for information about their membership and programs in his archdiocese.
   In a June 6 letter Archbishop O'Brien wrote to the Superior General of the Legionaries of Christ, Monsignor Alvaro Corcuera Martinez del Rio, asking the leader of the prominent religious order to identify all Legionary-associated clergy, ministries, apostolates and youth programs in the archdiocese.
   The archbishop had requested the information be provided within a month of his letter and asked that a Legionaries priest be appointed as a liaison to the archdiocese.

• Serving priest 'abused 18 boys'

  [1970s-80s Denham*] - RCC. 18 boys (so far).    
   ABC News, August 14, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- A serving Catholic priest has been charged with abusing 18 boys, some of them at schools in Newcastle.
   Sixty-five-year-old John Sidney Denham faces 30 child sex charges relating to boys aged 11 to 17.
   Police allege the priest abused the boys in the 1970s and early 1980s, while he was based at St Pius X High School in Adamstown in Newcastle, at the Charlestown and Taree parishes.

• Priest on sex charges refused bail

  [1970s-80s Denham*] - RCC. 18 boys (so far).
   NEWS.com.au , 04:23pm, August 14, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- A CATHOLIC priest accused of sexually abusing 18 boys aged as young as 11 has not applied for bail in a Sydney court.
   John Sidney Denham, 65, is facing 30 child sex related charges dating back to the 1970s and 1980s.
   Father Denham was arrested in Kensington, in Sydney's east, earlier today after a four-month police investigation.

• Victim, cop slam archdiocese's efforts to get priest out of prison early

  [≤ 1994+ Maday] - RCC wasting effort on seducer. 2 boys.  
   Chicago Sun-Times, BY ANDREW HERRMANN AND MIKE THOMAS, ~ August 14, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- A victim of sex-abusing priest Norbert Maday and the detective who helped put the clergyman behind bars said Wednesday they were appalled and disheartened by efforts by the Archdiocese of Chicago to spring Maday from prison.
   "It made me sick," said Oshkosh police Detective Gerald Forseth, now retired.
   Referring to a letter from Cardinal Francis George to Maday that six years in prison was "enough," the victim, now 40, said in an interview that "600 years wouldn't be enough."
   Laicized in December 2007, Maday was convicted in 1994 and sentenced to 20 years in jail by a Winnebago County, Wis., judge. Forseth, who investigated the case, including visiting Chicago parishes where Maday worked, said Wednesday he had read Sun-Times accounts of the efforts by George and other archdiocese officials to get Maday released.

• Ex-husband of teenage bride could face trial

  [Steed] - FLDS.
   KSL, By Jennifer Dobner, Associated Press Writer, 9:34pm, August 13, 2008
   SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH (AP) -- The ex-husband of the former teenage bride who helped convict polygamous church leader Warren Jeffs on two counts of rape by accomplice could be headed for a criminal trial.
   Allen Glade Steed, now 26, is charged with one count of first-degree felony rape for his sexual relationship with Elissa Wall after the couple married in 2001 religious ceremony. She was 14 and he was 19, and both were members of Jeffs' Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 14, 2008 8:16 AM

• Freezer Not Arletha Hopkins' First Grave

  [2000s Hopkins*] - Church of God in Christ. 2004 Wife buried, later put in freezer. Daughter ravished, impregnated.
   WKRG, By Jamie Burch, ~ August 14, 2008
   ALABAMA -- A shocking day of testimony in the Anthony Hopkins case. The part-time preacher is accused of killing his wife and then stuffing her body in a freezer.
   During today's preliminary hearing, police revealed new information about Arletha Hopkins' final moments. According to a detective, one of the couple's eight children, the same girl Hopkins is accused of raping, told police that her mom was strangled. As she fought for her life, Arletha screamed "Call the cops. Your dad is trying to kill me, your dad is trying to kill me!" Among her final words, "I'll do anything. Please let me go."
   News 5 also learned in court that the freezer was not Arletha's first grave. The daughter told police that Hopkins buried her mom behind a church in Jackson. [COMMENT: What kind of people are these two? ENDS. ]

• UPDATE: Sex Abuse Support Group Focuses on Cardinal George's Efforts

  [≤ 1994+ Maday] - RCC wasting effort on seducer. 2 boys.
   WBBM, Steve Miller, WBBM NewsRadio 780 Reporting, ~ August 14, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- A support group for those who have been sexually abused by priests has combed the just-released archdiocese documents and deposition of Cardinal George -- and is accusing the cardinal of using his time and diocesan money to try to get a pedophile priest out of jail.
   The priest in question: Father Norbert Maday -- removed from ministry in the early '90s and convicted of sexual assaulting of two boys and sentenced in 1994 to 20 years in prison.
   Recently released documents, including a deposition of Cardinal George, show the cardinal wrote Maday in prison, telling him in a letter from 2000, "As you know, we are trying… to make some definite efforts to have a sentence reduction in your case. Hopefully, some good souls will see that six years of incarceration you have already endured are enough to satisfy the state and any sense of justice."

• Sask. Law firm gets its $25M payout for residential school class action

  - Another CAN $25m of donations gone.  
   Canada.com , by Barb Pacholik, Canwest News Service Published: Wednesday, August 13, 2008
   REGINA, CANADA - Good news for a Saskatchewan law firm that led the charge for residential-school survivors: turns out the cheque was actually in the mail.
   The Regina-based firm, Merchant Law Group, has succeeded in getting Ottawa to hand over $25 million owed for legal work on First Nations residential claims.
   On Tuesday, a spokeswoman with Indian and Northern Affairs Canada said the department was still reviewing a court order directing it to pay up, so it hadn't yet released the money.

• Nun's suicide rocks Kerala, women's panel alleges harassment

  [2008 Unnamed head nun*] - RCC. Sr Anoopa/Anupa.  
   Kaleej Times (United Arab Emirates), From T.K. Devasia, August 13, 2008
   TRIVANDRUM INDIA -- Another Catholic nun has committed suicide in Kerala, giving credence to the State Women's Commission's observation that all is not well in the convents in the state. A suicide note found on the body of the 23-year-old nun, Bindhu Anoopa, at the St. Mary's Convent at Quilon said that the nun had ended her life due to harassment in the convent.
   The nun's distraught father Pappachan said that her daughter had told him that his daughter had faced sexual harassment at the convent. Anoopa allegedly committed suicide in her room at the Saint Mary's Convent in the Port area on Monday.
   The body of the nun, who belonged to the Holy Cross Order, was found hanging from the ceiling fan inside her room at the convent. Anoopa is the 16th nun to commit suicide in the state in the last 12 years.
   [NEW TESTAMENT: To prevent fleshly sins, … every woman ought to have her own husband. ENDS.] [COMMENT: Christians ought to remember that other religions are watching the failures of the supposed bastions of virtue.]

• Kerala nun's suicide: Detailed probe sought

  [2008 Unnamed head nun*] - RCC. Sr Anoopa/Anupa.
   The Times of India, ~ August 14, 2008
   THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, INDIA -- As a Crime Branch inquiry was ordered on Wednesday into the suicide by a nun in Kollam allegedly due to sexual harassment by a senior nun, father of the deceased met Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan seeking a detailed probe into the incident.
   State DGP Raman Sreevastava ordered a crime branch probe into the incident, official sources said.
   The 23-year-old Anupa Mary was found hanging from a ceiling fan in her room in the St Mary's Convent in Kollam yesterday. A note left by her said she was taking the extreme step as she could no longer bear the harassment.

• Nun's suicide: father seeks state help for justice

  [2008 Unnamed head nun*] - RCC. Sr Anoopa/Anupa.
   Indian Catholic, ~ August 14, 2008
   KOLLAM, INDIA (ICNS): Father of the nun who committed suicide in Kerala met Chief Mnister V. S Achuthanandan and sought a high level enquiry, while expressing his lack of trust in a Church-conducted probe into the allegations of harassment. Pappachan told press that his daughter Sr. Anoopa Mary (23), hanged inside her convent on Aug.11 unable to suffer the sexual and mental harassment from convent superiors.
   Kollam diocese has instituted an inquiry into the situation that led to sucide of the nun. A suicide note that the nun left had blamed the convent superior of harassing her.
   Pappachan, after meeting chief minister on Aug. 13, told media that he has no faith in the enquiry initiated by the diocese and its sincerity in the matter. "Money is a strong factor in deciding turn of justice in our system and that the Church has always stood by those who had money power," he said the man, who works as cook in Kollam bishop's house.

• Merged Easton churches feel bond of faith

  - RCC.  
   The Express-Times By JOHN A. ZUKOWSKI, Thursday, August 14, 2008
   PENNSYLVANIA -- Church closings have hit parishioners hard in some areas of the Allentown Catholic Diocese's five-county region.
   After the diocese announced a massive restructuring, which closed 47 churches, some parishioners in Bethlehem made an appeal to keep churches open -- including the now-closed St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church. Similar drives have happened in other parts of the diocese.
   But in other places, the transition is generally going smoothly.
   That's the case in Easton, according to some parishioners attending a recent weekday Mass at St. Bernard's in Easton. In some way, the changes have been kind of a spiritual lesson, they say.

• Mercy Toward Our Fathers

  - RCC.
   America, By Camille D'Arienzo | for AUGUST 18, 2008
   NEW YORK -- On a frigid night last January, Joseph R. Maher, a successful businessman and president of Opus Bono Sacerdotii, spoke at a parish on Long Island in New York. Opus Bono's mission is to provide help for priests who have been expelled from ministry because of accusations of sexual abuse. In the audience were priests, abuse victims and members of Voice of the Faithful. Although the opening prayer called for healing and reconciliation, the tension in the room militated against both.
   In his talk, Maher argued that a large number of accused priests are innocent and that, abandoned by bishops and laity, they are denied the resources to clear their names. He spoke also of the need to give culpable priests opportunities to reform and return to active ministry. And he said that many victims who claim abuse are merely seeking financial gain, and argued against the suspension of statutes of limitation in cases of sexual molestation.
   Although every one of Maher's points had some validity, his failure to nuance them incited the audience. One after another, individuals came to the microphone to voice criticism of Maher's insensitivity. What began as a good-faith attempt to bring together people concerned about both victims and accused priests concluded by exposing what one person in attendance termed "the still open wound on the soul of the church." The discussion reached its nadir when one woman declared, "For such men no healing is possible."
   [COMMENT: Nadir, or zenith?  RCs ought to read Hebrews 6:4-6; 1 John 5:16, 18; Mattew 12:32; Luke 9:62; and 2 Thess. 3: 6 and 14, for a start.  Then they could read "Non-marital carnal activity of Church workers". These apologists are still trying to defend the indefensible. ENDS.]

• POLICE SAY: Body buried before frozen

  [2000s Hopkins*] - Church of God in Christ. 2004 Wife buried, later put in freezer. Daughter ravished, impregnated.
   Press-Register, By GARY McELROY, Thursday, August 14, 2008
   MOBILE (AL) -- Itinerant preacher Anthony Jujuan Hopkins killed his wife and buried her in a shallow grave, but dug her up and put her in a home freezer when her bloating body began to crack the ground, police told a Mobile judge Wednesday.
   Investigators testifying in Hopkins' preliminary hearing also stated that one of the family's daughters – the same daughter who turned Hopkins in – is five months pregnant and claims Hopkins is the father. She told police that Hopkins:
   Convinced her to have sex with him eight years ago by citing Old Testament passages. [More]

• Sex charge priest 'restricted'

  [1970s-80s Denham*] - RCC. Already convicted. 18 boys (so far).    
   Brisbane Times by Les Kennedy | August 14, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- A priest charged today with 30 sex offences has been working in a Catholic library opposite a school, having been placed on restricted duties by the church in 2001 following a conviction for a child sex offence.
   Sidney Denham, 65, faced a Sydney court this afternoon after being charged by police with offences against 18 boys in the Hunter Region.
   Police from Strike Force Georgiana, set up to investigate a complaint received by Lake Macquarie police in April, arrested Denham at the Catholic library opposite the school in Kensington this morning.

• 2 more girls possibly sexually abused by church youth leaders

  - "Lord's Disciples."  
   Knoxville News Sentinel By Robert Wilson, Thursday, August 14, 2008
   MARYVILLE (TN) -- As the investigation continues into alleged child sex abuse involving a Maryville church's youth leaders, two more teens' names have been added to the list of possible victims.
   Maryville Police Chief Tony Crisp confirmed the addition of the two names, bringing the list of victims to five.
   No charges have been filed in connection with the two new alleged cases, and Crisp said that probably will not happen until the investigation is complete and the cases are turned over to a grand jury.
   David Hutsell, one of the founders of The Lord's Disciples Church, near the intersection of East Broadway and Old Knoxville Highway, said Wednesday that the entire sequence of events "blindsided us. We had no knowledge" of any problems with the youth program.

• Sex Cult Leader Freed From Prison

  [Feigley]
   ABC News By LINDSAY GOLDWERT and TERI WHITCRAFT Aug. 13, 2008
   HARRISBURG (PA), (ABC) -- Because of the timing and the nature of his crimes, he is not subject to Megan's Law restrictions. He will not be ordered to check in with police or with a parole officer. He will not wear a tracking device.
   He is expected to return to his house at 1316 Derry St. in Harrisburg, the residence where in 1975 prosecutors say he sexually abused children while acting as the charismatic leader of a sex cult and advocating the use of children for sexual gratification, according to police reports. …
   In the 1970s, everyone in Harrisburg knew the name of George Feigley and the Neo American Church, which prized sexual pleasure above all else, on Derry Street.

• Interest shown in closed college

   
   The Whig Standard, Posted By NICK GARDINER, ~ August 14, 2008
   CANADA -- An undisclosed expression of interest in the Grenville Christian College property at Maitland is only in the "very preliminary" stages but is nevertheless encouraging news for Augusta Township, says Councillor Bill Pakeman.
   Pakeman, who revealed the matter at Monday's regular council meeting, provided no details about the potential buyer of the property and said it's unclear if an offer will be made. …
   He said the expression of interest is encouraging on a property that closed its doors suddenly in July of last year and subsequently became embroiled in lawsuits by former students alleging cult-like activities and physical and sexual abuse.
   None of the allegations have been proven in court and they have been denied by Rev. Charles Farnsworth, headmaster at the time the alleged abuse took place.

• Activists press Cardinal Francis George for tougher stance on abuse

   
   Chicago Tribune By Margaret Ramirez | August 14, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Responding to the extraordinary deposition on sexual abuse released by Cardinal Francis George, victims' advocates on Wednesday demanded more information on abusive priests and assurances that church secrecy would end.
   The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago agreed on Tuesday to a $12.7 million settlement involving 16 victims and 11 priests.
   With the settlement, the cardinal also released a 305-page transcript of a court deposition detailing errors, secrets and deception by church officials that kept abusive priests in Chicago churches for several years after allegations were made.

• Cardinal intervened for priest

  [> 10yrs Card. George and others] - RCC. Seeking release of guilty man. Prison authorities took his mother's body to prison.
   Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, (with links to Cardinal George's deposition and his letter to Gov. Tommy Thompson), By MARIE ROHDE, mrohde@journalsentinel.com , Posted: Aug. 13, 2008
   WISCONSIN -- For more than a decade, officials from the Archdiocese of Chicago attempted to influence Wisconsin state officials on behalf of Norbert Maday, a priest convicted in 1994 of sexually assaulting two boys he had taken to an Oshkosh recreational retreat, according to newly released records.
   Chicago Cardinal Francis George and others repeatedly sought to have Maday's sentence reduced or have him released to the care of church officials.
   Though unsuccessful, church officials did convince then-Gov. Tommy Thompson to allow the body of Maday's mother to be brought to the Fox Lake Correctional Institution for a service - something state prison officials say had never been allowed before and has not happened since.
   In a 1997 letter to Thompson, George wrote: "Thank you for your personal thoughtfulness in granting extraordinary permission for the body of Catherine Maday to be brought to the Fox Lake Correctional Facility for the viewing by her son, Norbert. It was an exceptional act of charity."

• HIV-positive Catholic priest accused of sexual abuse dies in North Texas

  [Magaldi] - RCC.
   Fort Worth Star-Telegram By DARREN BARBEE dbarbee@star-telegram.com , ~ August 14, 2008
   FORT WORTH (TX) -- The Rev. Philip Anthony Magaldi, who was convicted of embezzlement and was accused by two people of separate but similar incidents of sexual abuse, died Tuesday. He was 72.
   The priest, who maintained his innocence, had told the Fort Worth Roman Catholic Diocese in February that he was HIV positive. He died in a North Texas healthcare facility, according to a diocese statement.
   Bishop Kevin Vann, leader of the Fort Worth diocese, was in the process of having the priest defrocked. In 2006, he barred Magaldi from performing religious services "because of credible allegations of sexual misconduct," according to the statement. [COMMENT: AIDS might have come from preying, but not praying. ENDS. ]

• Vt. church fears another costly trial verdict

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). (20 cases). Altar boys.
   Rutland Herald, By Kevin O'Connor August 14, 2008
   BURLINGTON, VERMONT – No one is contesting the child-sex allegations. What's in contention: the potential millions of dollars in cost.
   Vermont's Catholic Church doesn't dispute that former priest Edward Paquette repeatedly molested altar boy Thomas Murray three decades ago. But its lawyers, appearing Wednesday in Chittenden Superior Court, said the diocese shouldn't be liable to claims made by the now 40-year-old Waitsfield man in a trial under way.
   The state's largest religious denomination, socked in May by a record $8.7 million verdict of negligence in its 1970s hiring and supervision of the pedophile priest, fears the latest civil lawsuit – just one of 20 regarding the retired clergyman – may bring an equally costly ruling.
   [DOCTRINE: The wages of sin is death.  Woe to him by whom scandal comes. ENDS.]

• Activists want tougher stance on abuse

  - RCC.
   CBS 2, ~ August 14, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (AP) -- Advocates for victims of sexual abuse are demanding that Cardinal Francis George take a tougher stance against abusive priests and make assurances that church secrecy would end.
   David Clohessy of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests said Wednesday that although the cardinal apologized for past sexual abuse by priests he did not assure parishioners such errors would no longer be tolerated.

• Lawyer says deal with diocese is dissolving

 
   The News Journal, By SEAN O'SULLIVAN, August 14, 2008
   WILMINGTON, DELAWARE -- An informal accord between attorneys representing victims of child sexual abuse and the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington to quietly resolve civil lawsuits out of court is breaking down, according to a lawyer for the plaintiffs.
   Wilmington attorney Thomas S. Neuberger of the Neuberger Firm, who has represented plaintiffs in the majority of lawsuits filed under the state's Child Victim's Act of 2007, announced the breakdown Wednesday, charging the diocese's new bishop is taking a hard line against victims.
   "The recent [Bishop Michael] Saltarelli era of good will and reconciliation toward the survivors of priestly sexual abuse is over," he said.
   Diocesan officials deny there has been any change or that the bishop set to take over the diocese in September, the Most Rev. W. Francis Malooly, has instructed attorneys to change course.

• Latest priest sex abuse trial under way in Burlington

 
   Burlington Free Press By Sam Hemingway, August 14, 2008
   VERMONT -- A lawyer for the state's Roman Catholic diocese told a Burlington jury Wednesday that they will need to step back in time to fairly decide whether the church should pay monetary damages to a former altar boy fondled by a priest years ago.
   "More than one of you on the jury wasn't alive then," attorney Tom McCormick told the six-man, six-woman Chittenden Superior Court jury. "How you and we can legitimately put ourselves back then, that is the challenge of this case."
   McCormick made the remark during his opening statement in the trial, which marks the third time a case involving child molestation claims against a diocesan priest has been tried at the Burlington court in the past eight months.

• More charges against priest likely

  [1970s-80s Denham*] - RCC. 18 boys (so far).    
   NEWS.com.au By Kim Christian and Danny Rose, 06:43pm, August 14, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- NSW police expect to lay more charges against a Catholic priest accused of sexually abusing 18 boys aged as young as 11 in the state's Hunter region.
   John Sidney Denham, 65, is facing 30 child sex related charges dating back to the 1970s and 1980s.
   He opted not to apply for bail or appear in Sydney's Central Local Court today where his case was before Magistrate Alan Moore.

• Priest charged with sexual assault

  [1970s-80s Denham*] - RCC. 18 boys (so far).
   Channel 4 News (United Kingdom) ~ August 14, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- Australian police say they have arrested a Catholic priest and charged him with 30 counts of sexual assault related to abuse allegations dating back three decades.
   The 65-year-old is accused of assaulting 18 boys aged between 11 and 17 during the 1970s and 1980s while he served as the priest at a church in Newcastle, 100 miles north of Sydney. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 14, 2008 7:00 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Thu August 14, 2008
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Fri August 15, 2008 edition:

• Second priest charged

  [1998-2008 Brennan -NEW*] - RCC. Statement to police.    
   Sydney Morning Herald, for August 16, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- THE Vicar-General of the Catholic Church's Maitland-Newcastle diocese has become the second priest to be arrested and charged in the past two days by police investigating child sexual abuse allegations in the Hunter region.
   Father Tom Brennan, 70, the most senior priest in the diocese after Bishop Michael Malone, was charged with perverting the course of justice by detectives from Strike Force Georgiana at Toronto police station yesterday.
   Police said the charge related to a statement he made during a police investigation in 1998 into a complaint against a fellow priest who was a teacher at St Pius X Catholic Boys High School at Adamstown. Brennan was headmaster at the time.

• Kanawha man indicted on sex abuse charges

  [? 2000s Mr Timothy Edmonds -NEW*] - Christian. Female.  
   West Virginia Record, By Lawrence Smith - Kanawha Bureau, 7:00 AM, August/15/2008
   CHARLESTON, WEST VIRGINIA -- A grand jury has indicted a youth pastor of an upper Kanawha Valley church for allegedly sexually abusing a former student of the church's affiliated school.
   On July 31, the Kanawha County grand jury returned two counts of sexual abuse by a parent, guardian or custodian against Timothy C. Edmonds of Chesapeake.
   The indictment does not give many specifics except that Edmonds "did engage in or attempt to engage in an act of sexual intercourse with … [Name suppressed] … while {she} … was in the care, custody and control of {Edmonds}."

• Woman's suit alleges priest tried to rape her

  [1966 Mackiewicz -NEW*] - RCC. Teen girl.
   The News Journal By SEAN O'SULLIVAN, August 15, 2008
   DELAWARE -- Attorneys announced the first lawsuit against the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington by a female victim of an alleged pedophile priest today in Wilmington.
   In court papers, Mary Dougherty, 55, charged that in 1966, when she was 13, the Rev. Leonard J. Mackiewicz sexually assaulted her on several occasions, and attempted to rape her.
   At the time she was a member of the Catholic Youth Organization under Mackiewicz at Holy Rosary Roman Catholic Church.

• Public Nuisance Complaint

  [1964 Unnamed Brother -NEW* (Franciscan)] - RCC. Girl.
   Santa Barbara Independent, By Nick Welsh, Thursday, August 14, 2008
   CALIFORNIA -- A 50-year-old woman now living in Northern California claims that she was forced repeatedly to strip naked in front of the prying eyes of a Franciscan brother when she was a six-year-old girl growing up in Santa Barbara in 1964.
   The lawsuit, filed by Maria Cunningham against the Franciscan Friars of California, claims that an unnamed Franciscan had her undress in front of him and at least one other friar in what became a "pedophile peep show," that he frequently fondled her to the point where her genitals became raw, and that she was forced on at least 10 occasions to masturbate this man.
   The lawsuit describes Cunningham, then the child of a single mother struggling to raise three kids, as perfect pedophile prey. She alleged that her alleged victimizer – whom she said she met while at the Girls Club – groomed her by praising her, buying her candy, and taking her to the beach and to the zoo.

• West Warwick church worker accused of stealing from collection plate

  [- 2008 Mr Berger -NEW*] - RCC. Money.
   Providence Journal, http://www. projo.com/ news/courts/ content/WB_ WW_EMBEZZLE_ 08-15-08_ BGB7Q35_ v9.3e88783. html ; By Talia Buford, August 15, 2008
   WEST WARWICK (RI) – An employee of SS. John & James Church stole thousands of dollars in collection plate money from the parish over the past year, the state police said yesterday.
   Evan Berger, 18, of 152 Newell St., a salaried parish sexton – whose duties include maintenance as well as helping to coordinate Sunday collections – was arrested Aug. 7 on a felony charge of larceny over $500, said Capt. Stephen Lynch. Berger is free on his own recognizance pending action by the attorney general's office, according to Lynch, who said a felony screening is scheduled for Aug. 28.
   The arrest was made the day troopers went to the church in response to a report by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, Lynch said. After interviewing a number of employees, including Berger, the troopers seized $2,500 from the sexton's home, he said.

• Suspect arrested in Fla. on suspicion of St. Mary embezzlement

  [≤ 2007 Ms Patterson -NEW*] - Christian. Money US $295,000.
   Gaylord Herald Times, By Chris Engle, 1:38 PM EDT, Tuesday, August 12, 2008
   GAYLORD (FL) – The woman officials believe embezzled $295,000 from St. Mary Cathedral over a 2 1/2-year period was arrested Friday in Florida.
   Those stolen funds include donations to the church and school tuition, as well as fundraiser and event proceeds.
   Though local officials decline to identify the suspect, staff at Volusia County Branch Jail in Daytona Beach, Fla. confirmed Shelly Jean Patterson, 44, was arrested Friday on a fugitive of justice warrant out of Michigan. A letter sent Friday by the Diocese of Gaylord to parishoners of St. Mary Cathedral said the parish's former business manager, Shelly Patterson, had "recently been arrested" as a result of an investigation into embezzlement of approximately $295,000. The letter states Patterson had resigned in September 2007 to accept an out-of-state position.

• Forgive them, father

  - RCC. [1982 Goodall*] - Male religion teacher. [2003-08 Pell*] - Denied justice to one, approval for the other.      
   Sydney Morning Herald, for August 16, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- Cardinal George Pell's determination to deny compensation to an abuse victim was uncompromising, writes Erik Jensen.
   The cardinal was not budging. Anthony Jones, a religion teacher at a Catholic high school in Sydney's south when he claimed he was the victim of attempted rape by a Catholic priest 26 years ago, would be offered no church compensation. Not a cent.
   According to correspondence seen by the Herald, George Pell, the Archbishop of Sydney, took the Jones case particularly personally, rejecting internal advice that payment be made.
   He was not at all concerned by negative publicity, of which there would be plenty at a time most sensitive to the Catholic Church - the eve of the Pope's visit to Sydney in July to celebrate World Youth Day.
   Just why Pell dug in his heels so emphatically is not explained, but the Jones scandal soured at least the entree to a feast that should have been the church's unmitigated blessing.

• Exclusive: Priest Sentenced For Sexual Abuse

  [1965-72 MacArthur*] - RCC. PRISON SENTENCE forecast. 3 girls in hospital.  
   TMJ4, By Tom Murray, Katie DeLong, and Erin Drew Kent; ~ August 15, 2008
   DODGE COUNTY (WI) - A TODAY'S TMJ4 exclusive: a woman finally confronts the Catholic priest who she says sexually abused her more than 40 years ago.
   Late Friday afternoon, a judge convicted a former Catholic priest of sexually abusing three young girls decades ago.
   Now in his 80s, Father Bruce MacArthur is on his way to jail.
   We heard riveting testimony Friday from a victim who says the sexual assaults she endured more than forty years ago still haunt her today. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 15, 2008 8:08 PM]
   [LOOK BACK: ~ June 26, 2008]

• La Cei: la pedofilia non ci riguarda

   
   Fai Notizia, 15 agosto 2008
   ITALIA -- Oggi, 15 agosto 2008, ho inviato il seguente email a benedettoxvi@vatican.va
   Carissima Sua Santita' Benedetto XVI, pochi anni fa ho letto il seguente articolo di Marco Politi sul giornale "La Repubblica";
   http://www. repubblica. it/online/ cronaca/ papapreti/ cei/cei. html?ref= search
   [translation]
   ITALY -- Today, August 15, 2008, I sent the following email to: benedettoxvi@vatican.va
   Your Holiness Benedict XVI, A few years ago I read the following article by Marco Politi in the newspaper "La Repubblica":
   http://www.repubblica.it/online/cronaca/papapreti/cei/cei.html?ref=search
   The assembly of the Italian bishops deems the problem "extremely limited" and it's not going to perform any "monitoring" The CEI (Italian Bishop's Conference): Pedophilia has nothing to do with us.
   The only alarm is for the lower number of priests, which in 20 years will diminish of one third By MARCO POLITI
   Your Holiness,
   Don't you think there is the need of intervention towards the CEI (Italian bishops' conference) so that what they then affirmed can be corrected?
   Many greetings

• 'I doubt Pell's sincerity': Jones

  - Roman Catholic Church. [1982 Goodall*] - Male religion teacher. [2003-08 Pell*] - Denied justice to one, approval for the other.      
   Northern Star, By Tonia Moorton, ~ August 15, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- ABUSE victim Anthony Jones has received confirmation from Cardinal George Pell that an internal investigation into how his claims were handled has begun.
   The 54-year-old disabled pensioner, who lives near Nimbin, was sexually assaulted in 1982 by Fr Terence Goodall.
   The leader of the Catholic Church in Australia, Cardinal Pell, has denied trying to cover up allegations of sexual abuse against Fr Goodall.
   When the allegations against Fr Goodall were investigated by the church and police, the priest was stood down.

• Albany Diocese priest defrocked

  [1980s Mercure]  
   Albany Times Union By JIMMY VIELKIND, Last updated: 7:00 p.m., Friday, August 15, 2008
   ALBANY (NY) -- ALBANY Officials of the Albany Diocese have defrocked a priest accused of sexually abusing boys in the early 1990s.
   Rev. Gary Mercure, 60, was suspended from the ministry in January. The permanent removal which will be announced to parishioners in Troy, Albany, Latham, Clinton Heights, Glens Fals and Queensbury at Masses this weekend is a sign that a diocesan review committe found "reasonable grounds" for sexual abuse, according to Rev. Kenneth Doyle.
   The Diocese investigated an incident relating to "misconduct with a minor" at St. Teresa of Avila parish in Albany in the mid-1980s, Doyle said.

• Albany Diocese Removes Priest from Ministry

  [Mercure]
   WRGB, 7:10PM, August 15, 2008
   ALBANY (NY) -- The Albany Roman Catholic Diocese has permanently removed the Reverend Gary Mercure, 60, from the ministry, announced Bishop Howard J. Hubbard.
   Mercure has been on administrative leave since January when the Diocese received a complaint alleging that he had engaged in sexual misconduct with a minor in the mid-1980s at St. Teresa of Avila parish in Albany. The allegations are still being investigated.
   Mercure has served at Sacred Heart and St. William parishes in Troy, St. Mary's in Clinton Heights, St. Mary's in Glens Falls, Our Lady of Annunciation in Queensbury, St. Teresa of Avila in Albany, and Our Lady of the Assumption in Latham.

• Roman Catholic priest removed from ministry amid sex allegations

  [1980s Mercure]
   Daily Gazette By Jill Bryce August 15, 2008
   ALBANY (NY) – A priest in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany has been removed from ministry after it was determined he sexually abused a minor in the mid-1980s, officials said.
   Gary Mercure has been on administrative leave since January when the diocese received a complaint alleging Mercure had engaged in sexual misconduct with a minor in the mid-1980s at St. Teresa of Avila parish in Albany.
   Other allegations were made about Mercure, and diocese officials said they turned information over to police and the allegations are being investigated.

• Woman Claims Priest Tried to Rape Her as Child

 
   WBOC, 11:27 AM ET, August/15/2008
   WILMINGTON, Del. (WBOC/AP)- A 56-year-old Delaware woman has filed a lawsuit claiming she was abused by a priest when she was a child, and that another priest intervened when her tormentor tried to rape her on a beach.
   Attorneys filed the lawsuit Friday in Sussex County Superior Court on behalf of Mary Dougherty against the Diocese of Wilmington and Holy Rosary Church.
   Dougherty, a divorced mother of two daughters, charges that beginning in approximately the summer of 1966, the Rev. Leonard J. Mackiewicz, her Catholic Youth Organization director and a long-time Boy Scout chaplain, began to sexually abuse her in the church basement, at CYO events, and on CYO trips, among other places.

• Lawyer Posts Addresses of Alleged Pedophile Priests on Website

 
   ABA Journal By Debra Cassens Weiss, ~ August 15, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- A Minnesota lawyer for victims of pedophile priests has posted addresses and some phone numbers of alleged Chicago abusers on his website.
   Jeffrey Anderson of St. Paul told the Chicago Sun-Times that he posted information about nine men yesterday to protect the public. Anderson represented victims in a $12.7 million settlement with the Chicago archdiocese that cited the men.
   Some of the alleged abusers are in jail but at least one was never criminally charged.

• DELAWARE: Woman claims priest tried to rape her as child

  [Unnamed priest ? Mackiewicz*] - RCC. Girl.
   The Daily Times, Associated Press, August 15, 2008
   WILMINGTON, DELAWARE – A 55-year-old Delaware woman has filed a lawsuit claiming she was abused by a priest when she was a child, and that another priest intervened when her tormentor tried to rape her on a beach.
   Attorneys filed the lawsuit today in Sussex County Superior Court on behalf of Mary Dougherty against the Diocese of Wilmington and Holy Rosary Church.

• Woman sues diocese claiming sexual abuse

  [1966 Mackiewicz*] - RCC. Teen girl
   WDEL, with audio, By Carl Kanefsky, ~ August 15, 2008
   DELAWARE -- The Catholic Diocese of Wilmington faces another lawsuit, this one by a female claiming she was the victim of sexual abuse at the hands of a priest.
   Mary Dougherty says she was 13 years old when Reverend Leonard Mackiewicz sexually abused her several times, claims she says her mother failed to believe.
   Dougherty's attorney, Stephen Neuberger, says the abuse culminated in the summer of 1966 when Mackiewicz allegedly attacked Mary on the beach, choking her and trying to rape her, forcing Mary to address the issue herself.

• Abuse settlement is only a beginning

  - RCC.  
   Chicago Daily Herald, ~ August 15, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Chicagoland Voice of the Faithful is grateful that this (Archdiocesan sex abuse) settlement of $12.6 plus million was finally reached.
   We applaud the courageous survivors who came forth to continue to speak the truth to the world and the attorneys who fought for justice for them.
   We, too, hope this settlement will indeed help somewhat in their healing from "soul murder."
   Questions remain: How many more victims are out there? How will these victims be treated? Will anything change or will the Archdiocese fight tooth and nail until it is seen it cannot "win" in court and therefore offers financial settlements?

• Father Flim Flam finds new flock

  [Mons. Woolsey] - RCC. Money.
   New York Daily News, By Edgar Sandoval, Veronika Belenkaya and Tracy Connor; 12:56 AM, Friday, August 15, 2008
   NEW ROCHELLE (NY) -- Father Flim Flam has gone from making confessions to taking them.
   Msgr. John Woolsey, who copped to stealing from a Manhattan parish, has found a new job as associate pastor of a Westchester church.
   "He's paid the price. He knows he has done wrong," said Msgr. Ferdinando Berardi, who didn't hesitate to offer Woolsey the No. 2 slot at Holy Family in New Rochelle.
   "He's in pain for what he has done, but he needs to begin a new life," Berardi added. "He can be a very effective priest because he is one who has suffered."

• Former NYPD officer says he was molested by Msgr. Wallace Harris

  [~ 1979-82 Mons. Harris*] - RCC. 2 children.
   New York Daily News, BY OREN YANIV 8:35 PM Thursday, August 14th 2008
   NEW YORK -- A retired city cop bared his private pain Thursday, claiming he was molested by a popular Harlem priest who was recently bounced from the pulpit amid charges he fondled children for decades.
   Breaking nearly 30 years of silence, former NYPD Officer Eric Crumbley Sr. said Msgr. Wallace Harris baptized him, taught him - and tormented him.
   "I was sexually molested numerous times on various occasions," said Crumbley, 42.
   Crumbley said in an interview that the abuse started in 1979, when he was 13, and lasted until he was 16.

• State Commission visits house of nun committed suicide

  [2008 Unnamed head nun*] - RCC. Sr Anoopa/Anupa.  
   Indian Catholic, ~ August 15, 2008
   KOLLAM, INDIA (ICNS): Three members of Kerala State Women's Commission visited the house of the nun who committed suicide apparently to enquire about the allegations of convent authorities harassing the nuns.
   Commission chairperson D. Sreedevi and members T. Devi and Meenakshi Thampan visited the house of deceased nun Anoopa Mary's house in Kollam diocese's Kanjiracode parish.
   The nun's father Pappachan had alleged in the media that his 23 year daughter hanged inside her convent on Aug.11 unable to suffer the sexual and mental harassment from convent superiors.

• Judge rules archdiocese's insurance not liable for fraud-based claims

  - RCC. Court rules fraud system not insurable.  
   Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, By MARIE ROHDE, mrohde@journalsentinel.com , Posted: Aug. 14, 2008
   MILWAUKEE (WI) -- The Archdiocese of Milwaukee will be solely responsible for paying any potential settlements or judgments in at least four lawsuits involving clergy sexual abuse because its insurance policies don't cover intentional acts such as fraud, a judge ruled Thursday.
   Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Jean DiMotto made no findings about whether the archdiocese committed fraud in moving abusive priests without notifying new parishioners of prior allegations, which is the claim underlying the lawsuits.
   Around the country, insurers have generally paid 50% or more of multimillion-dollar settlements or judgments in clergy sex abuse cases, most of them based on negligence claims.
   John Rothstein, a lawyer for the archdiocese, said he would consult with his client about a possible appeal of the decision or other possible actions.
   [COMMENT: At last, a court that sees the difference between an insurable mishap and a series of criminal behaviours. ENDS.]

• Merger protests shadow Galante

  - RC group objects to parish closures.
   Press of Atlantic City, By TRUDI GILFILLIAN, 609-463-6716, Friday, August 15, 2008
   WILDWOOD (NJ) -- A small but persistent band of protesters follows Bishop Joseph A. Galante wherever he goes.
   On Thursday, Galante, head of the Diocese of Camden, came to St. Ann's Church here to celebrate a Vigil Mass for the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and then the procession to the ocean for the Wedding of the Sea.
   The protesters took their places about a half-hour before the 7 p.m. Mass was to begin.

• New rules for priests

  - RCC new rules, again. (Newsitem, followed by irony)
   San Francisco Chronicle, By Mark Morford, SF Gate Columnist, Friday, August 15, 2008
   UNITED STATES -- The Archdiocese of Cincinnati has issued a detailed list of inappropriate behaviors for priests, saying they should not kiss, tickle or wrestle children. The archdiocese's Decree on Child Protection also prohibits bear hugs, lap-sitting and piggyback rides. But it says priests may still shake children's hands, pat them on the back and give high-fives. – Associated Press
   The archdiocese of Boston, notorious in the past decade as the most pedophilic and scandal-plagued of all, having currently paid out over $136 million to more than 1,000 victims of sexual abuse, has quietly issued strict new guidelines for all its remaining pastors.
   The Decree on Creepy Overlong Stares states that, in the rare instances when a Boston-area priest must look straight into the eyes of a child, said pastor must first don a pair of specially designed sunglasses, the lenses of which have been coated in a compound harvested from the sweat glands of ascetic eunuchs who live deep in the Catacombs of Agony just beneath Vatican City. The active ingredient of the special compound reportedly dims the bright light of a child's tantalizing innocence, thus making the youth appear just as old and soiled and sinful as, well, everyone else.

• Archdiocese of Chicago arrives at $12.6 million sexual abuse settlement for victims

  [Chicago Archdiocese]
   Catholic News Agency, Aug 15, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (CNA).- The Archdiocese of Chicago has reached a settlement totaling $12,675,000 with 16 victims of clerical sexual abuse. Speaking about the settlement, Archbishop of Chicago Cardinal Cardinal George said he has to "accept the blame" for the abuse which occurred during his tenure.
   Fourteen of the cases relate to abuse by ten different priests in incidents occurring between 1962 and 1994. Two relate to Daniel J. McCormack, who in 2007 pled guilty to having abused five children. With the new settlement, the archdiocese has settled four of the five cases to which McCormack pled guilty.
   "My hope is that these settlements will help the survivors and their families begin to heal and move forward," said Cardinal George in an archdiocesan press statement. "I apologize again today to the survivors and their families and to the whole Catholic community. We must continue to do everything in our power to ensure the safety of the children in our care."

• Pastor Steps Forward With New Claim of Past Sexual Abuse by Harlem Monsignor

  [~ 1979-82 Mons. Harris*] - RCC. 3 boys.
   The New York Times, By PAUL VITELLO, Published: August 14, 2008
   NEW YORK -- A Harlem pastor and retired police officer said on Thursday that he was sexually abused as a teenager by Msgr. Wallace A. Harris, the prominent and popular priest who was suspended indefinitely by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York two weeks ago on the basis of similar complaints by two other men.
   The pastor, Eric C. Crumbley Sr., 42, who leads a nondenominational storefront congregation known as the Harlem Faith Center, said his motivation in coming forward with the accusation now was to lend moral support to the two men, the first of whom contacted the archdiocese in June.
   The second was located by the Manhattan district attorney's office as it investigated the first man's claim; prosecutors determined that the statute of limitations had lapsed for the two complaints, which concerned events about 20 years ago.
   Neither man has been identified by prosecutors or archdiocesan officials, and Mr. Crumbley says he does not know who they are, either.

• Abuse probe snares second Catholic priest

  [1998-2008 Brennan*] - RCC. Statement to police.    
   ABC Newcastle, August 15, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- A Catholic priest has been charged with perverting the course of justice as part of an investigation into sexual abuse in the New South Wales Hunter region.
   Police are revealing few details but say the offence relates to a statement provided to a police investigation in 1998.
   The 70-year-old man has been bailed to face Newcastle Local Court on September 9. …
   Acting Police Commander Gary O'Dell this morning hinted there would be further arrests.
   "We're certainly looking at a number of further allegations and making inquires in relation to that," he said.

• Strike force charges second priest

  [1998-2008 Brennan*] - RCC. Statement to police.
   Sydney Morning Herald, 3:52PM, August 15, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- A second Catholic priest has been arrested and charged by NSW police in relation to a child sexual abuse investigation centred on the Newcastle region.
   The 70-year-old man was today charged with perverting the course of justice in relation to a statement he provided to a police investigation in 1998.
   The priest was bailed to appear at Newcastle Local Court on September 9, 2008.

• Former bishop feared scandal over Paquette

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (US$8.7m already). Diocese knowingly retained him. (20 cases). Altar boys.  
   Burlington Free Press, By Sam Hemingway, August 15, 2008
   VERMONT -- Bishop John Marshall in the late 1970s feared what would happen to the state's Roman Catholic diocese if people knew he had employed a priest who was molesting altar boys, a former diocesan chancellor acknowledged Thursday.
   Monsignor John McSweeney made the admission under questioning by Jerome O'Neill, an attorney representing a Waitsfield man who has sued the diocese, claiming that, as an altar boy in the late 1970s, he was molested by the Rev. Edward Paquette.

• Lawyer posts abusive priests' phone numbers

  - RCC.
   Chicago Sun-Times, BY ANDREW HERRMANN, aherrmann@suntimes.com , August 15, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- An attorney who represented victims of pedophile priests in a settlement with the Archdiocese of Chicago posted on his Web site Thursday the addresses and, in some cases, phone numbers of some of the alleged offenders.
   "I have no problem people calling them and asking them if they're still abusing kids," said attorney Jeff Anderson, who posted the names of nine men cited in the $12.7 million settlement.
   Pedophiles have high recidivism rates, "and they live in somebody's neighborhood," said Anderson, who posted the names on his site, andersonadvocates.com.

• Diocese's study to assess support for fundraising

  - RCC.
   Des Moines Register, By ERIN JORDAN, ejordan@dmreg.com , August 15, 2008
   DAVENPORT (IA) -- The Catholic Diocese of Davenport will launch a study to see whether there is support for a major fundraising drive to recover from bankruptcy after a clergy abuse scandal, officials announced Thursday. The diocese, which includes 83 parishes in the southeastern quarter of Iowa, has also hired a development director to lead fundraising efforts.
   "After the first of the year when we began to realize we'd be coming out of bankruptcy, we saw a need for us to get back on our feet," Monsignor John Hyland said in a statement. "The only way that could take place was to begin the process of a campaign to raise money for the needs of the diocese."
   The diocese has hired Sister Laura Goedken of Iowa City to be its first development director. Goedken, who will start work Oct. 1, has been the director of evangelization and stewardship for the Iowa City Catholic parishes since 2004, the diocese said. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 15, 2008 6:52 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Fri August 15, 2008
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Sat August 16, 2008 edition:

• Pastor rapes girl to death inside church

  [2008 August - Ovotoka -NEW*] - "Miracle Deliverance Church International." Girl (9) raped to death.  
   Vanguard, http://www. vanguardngr. com/index. php?option= com_content& task=view& id=14473& Itemid=0 ; Written by Evelyn Usman, Saturday, August 16, 2008
   NIGERIA -- The gory sight of nine-year-old Covenant Elijah in one of the rooms of a church in Iyana-Era area of Badagry Lagos, was not only mind blowing but ear-tingling. A teeming sympathetic crowd had quickly gathered with eyes bugling to behold the lifeless, violated body of an innocent girl whose mother, out of determination to find a spiritual solution to her daughter's strange behaviour, only ended up in the claws of the devil himself, thereby sending her not just only to an untimely grave but with an untold torture and excruciating pains which could only be imagined than described.
   Covenant's unprepared journey to the land of the great beyond started few years after her mother Mrs Arit Bassey, reportedly noticed some strange behaviour in her. Efforts to proffer a lasting solution, saw her taking her daughter from one spiritual home to the other, until she landed at Miracle Deliverance Church International, where to her greatest shock, rather than living up to its name, the reverse was the case, as Covenant was found stone dead in the pastor's room naked, with blood gushing out of her virgina.
   Crime Guard investigation revealed that the unsuspecting mother was introduced to the Edo State-born Pastor Henry Ovotoka by one Essi, a member of the church, last month. The clergy man reportedly asked that the child be brought for deliverance with an assurance that all would be well at the end of the deliverance exercise. Mrs Bassey then left the church after the visit with a resolve to bring her daughter, little knowing that her predicament then was nothing compared to what awaited her.
   [COMMENT: Another case of a layperson thinking that a religious practitioner has the power to cure disorders that the medical profession is still coming to grips with. ENDS.]

• Youth pastor arrested on sex charges

  [2008 Apr 8 - Mr Ponder -NEW*] - Baptist. Teen male.  
   Athens Daily Review, By Nicole Hines, Cedar Creek Pilot, ~ August 16, 2008
   MABANK, TEXAS – First Baptist Church of Mabank youth minister Joshua Neal Ponder, 32, was arrested Aug. 13, for sexual assault of teen-ager.
   Mabank Police Chief Kyle McAfee said Ponder confessed to charges related to a 16-year-old male victim.
   The assault is alleged to have happened April 8, but it was not reported until Aug. 8, according to reports. The teen is not a member of the church.

• Former bishop provides some intriguing testimony

  [Bp LaRocque] - RCC. Took on rejected priest.    
   Standard Freeholder, By CLAUDE MCINTOSH, ~ August 16, 2008
   CANADA -- Eugene LaRocque, former bishop of Cornwall-Alexandria Diocese, looked anything but comfortable during his first four days on the witness stand at the Cornwall Public Inquiry.
   It was anything but a stellar performance.
   On the fourth day the inquiry adjourned early when a haggard-looking LaRocque informed Commissioner Normand Glaude he was too tired to continue.
   LaRocque is, after all, 81 years old. …
   Perhaps Father Deslauriers missed his real calling -- selling Florida swamp land.
   Just as intriguing was testimony that an American priest landed in Cornwall after being declared persona nongrata by his U. S. bishop for messing around with young boys.
   The priest -- a classic bad actor -- not only got work with the Alexandria-Cornwall Diocese, but was given a federal ministerial permit … and it would be extended by the immigration minister of the day.
   LaRocque made a horrible error in judgment by hiring the U. S. priest, but a bigger question is how in Hades the guy got a work permit … not once, but twice.

• Contact Information for Priests Named in Settlement Posted Online

  - RCC.  
   Chicago Public Radio, with audio, Produced by Stephanie Lecci on Friday, August 15, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The contact information for several priests named in a recent settlement with Chicago's Catholic Archdiocese is now online.
   Minnesota-based attorney Jeff Anderson represented some of the victims who settled with the Archdiocese for $12.7 million. He says he wanted the Archdiocese to post the addresses and phone numbers of the priests on its Web site as part of the settlement. It didn't. He says as a result, he felt a "moral imperative" to post the last known contact information for the priests on his Web site.
   ANDERSON: We don't want other kids hurt by any of these offenders. They frankly belong behind bars and not in the community. We can't put them behind bars, but we can alert the communities to protect other kids. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 16, 2008 8:12 PM]

• Former Catholic priest, 86, gets jail time for sex assaults

  [1965-72 MacArthur*] - RCC. PRISON SENTENCE. Girl/s in hospital.
   The Reporter, BY COLLEEN KOTTKE AND SHARON ROZNIK, August 16, 2008
   JUNEAU, WISCONSIN – An 86-year-old former Catholic priest will spend six months in jail plus an additional month each year for six years for sexually assaulting three young girls in the 1960s and 1970s.
   Dodge County Circuit Court Judge Brian Pfitzinger sentenced Bruce Duncan MacArthur on Friday for several sex crime convictions, including two counts of sexual intercourse with a child, four counts of indecent behavior with a child, and attempted indecent behavior with a child.
   Prison terms totaling 80 years were imposed and stayed, but Pfitzinger honored a request from one of the victims, now 53-years-old, that MacArthur meet with her at least 10 times for two hours to discuss the assaults.

• A Garden of Healing Can Divide as Well

  - RCC.
   The New York Times, By JESSE McKINLEY, Published: August 16, 2008
   OAKLAND, Calif. – Rising on the shores of Lake Merritt, the Cathedral of Christ the Light in downtown Oakland is striking. Its glass exterior shimmers, its nave is ringed in Douglas fir, and a high-tech image of Jesus floats above its marble altar.
   But for all that, what may be most remarkable about the $190 million Roman Catholic cathedral, now nearly completed, is a small garden devoted to a group whose very existence was long hidden from view: victims of sexual abuse by priests.
   While some parishes have offered exhibits, small memorials or apology Masses dedicated to victims, the "healing garden" here will be the largest and most prominent recognition of the scandal ever built at an American cathedral.
   Even before its scheduled opening in October, the garden has touched on the delicate and often contentious issue of how to acknowledge a scandal that has shattered the Roman Catholic church for much of the decade.
   Its presence has divided some church members as well as victims and their advocates, who feel that the display threatens to cast a note of closure over an issue they consider still painfully alive.

• Protestors Demand More on Sex Abuse Settlement

  - The rest of the the RC names sought.
   CBS 2, Susan Carlson Reporting, ~ August 16, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (CBS)-- Despite a major sex abuse settlement this week, victim's advocates are demanding more from Francis Cardinal George. They claim the archdiocese is protecting priests who are accused of abuse and they want names, as CBS 2's Susan Carlson reports.
   Demonstrators were handing out flyers right before the 5 p.m. mass at Holy Name Cathedral urging Catholics to contact the cardinal demanding answers.
   The Survivors Network of those Accused by Priests (SNAP) is calling on Cardinal George to release the names of any priest who is accused of sexual abuse and may still be in a parish.

• 'I trusted in the system'

  [Years - Card. McCormack] - RCC. Failed to report.
   Chicago Tribune 6:31 PM CDT, August 16, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- In the deposition, Cardinal Francis George explained why he did not more quickly remove Daniel McCormack, a former priest at St. Agatha Church on the West Side:
   "I had the usual conduits of information that I relied on. I ask myself now why I did not more aggressively pursue it… . I trusted in the system that I thought had served us well and I'm sorry that I did."
   [COMMENT: What system?  Crimen Sollicitationis secrecy perhaps?  ENDS]

• FROM THE DEPOSITION

  [Years - Card. George] - RCC. Trying for release of seducer Maday.
   Chicago Tribune, 6:32 PM CDT, August 16, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Cardinal Francis George was asked about Norbert Maday, a former priest serving a 20-year prison sentence for sexual abuse, and letters from the cardinal to Maday were introduced:
   Letter from George to Maday dated March 6, 2000: "As you know, we are trying to make some definite effort to have a sentence reduction in your case. Hopefully, some good souls will see that the 6 years of incarceration you have already endured are enough to satisfy the state and any sense of justice."
   Letter from George to Maday dated Feb. 4, 2002: "We have tried a number of avenues to see if your sentence might be reduced or parole be given early. So far, we have not had any success but we'll keep trying and I personally hope that you will not lose hope."

• Release of Cardinal George's deposition revealing

  [Years - Card. George] - RCC. Colleagues before children.
   Chicago Tribune, By Margaret Ramirez and Manya A. Brachear | 6:30 PM CDT, August 16, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- When Cardinal Francis George released his deposition on the sexual abuse scandal last week, he offered an unprecedented look into the Roman Catholic Church's shameful actions and also into his own mind.
   Many Catholics were appalled to learn the cardinal worked to reduce the 20-year prison sentence of a convicted child molester, Norbert Maday.
   Others were infuriated by evidence of his repeated refusal to follow recommendations and promptly remove abusive Chicago priests from ministry.
   In his own words throughout the testimony, he often appeared deeply conflicted between his concern for children and his duty to defend accused priests.

• Pastor denies acts

  [~ 2007-08 Snyder*] - "New Beginnings." 2 girls.
   York Daily Record By TED CZECH, Daily Record/Sunday News, Article Last Updated 12:46:15 PM EDT, August/16/2008
   WINDSOR (PA) -- A Windsor pastor -- accused earlier this week of inappropriate contact with two teenage girls -- denied the charges in an e-mail sent Friday.
   "Things have been said that I have never said and accusations made that are simply not true," Scott Allen Snyder, pastor of New Beginnings Bible Fellowship, wrote.
   Snyder confirmed during a phone call with the York Daily Record on Friday night that he wrote the e-mail. He also said the word "accusations" referred directly to the two counts of corruption of minors charges filed Monday by Pennsylvania State Police.
   He had no further comment.

• Trial set for Monday raises questions about Atlanta archbishop

  [Bp Gregory and Fr Margason] - RCC. Kept accusations private.
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, August 15, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) -- A civil child sex abuse trial set to begin on Monday raises troubling questions about how Atlanta's Catholic archbishop handled child molestation reports in his former diocese.
   In a recently released sworn deposition, a former Belleville Diocese official says that then-Bishop Wilton Gregory failed to turn over several cases of alleged clergy sex crimes to a church panel as required by diocesan policy.
   Margaret Mensen, the long time head of the diocesan sex abuse review board, repeatedly said under oath recently that neither Gregory nor his second-in-command, Fr. James Margason shared information about reported sex abuse charges. Her deposition was reported publicly on Saturday in the St. Louis Post Dispatch and the Belleville News Democrat.
   The board also got no documents about abuse claims prior to 1993, Mensen said.

• Priest removed by Diocese

  [1980s Mercure] - RCC. Minor
   Capital News 9, By Web Staff, ~ August 16, 2008
   ALBANY, N.Y. -- A priest has been removed from the Albany Roman Catholic Diocese after being accused of sexually abusing a minor more than 20 years ago. Reverend Gary Mercure has been permanently removed from the ministry by Bishop Howard J. Hubbard. He can't publicly act as a priest under Hubbard's ruling.
   Mercure has been on leave since January when the Diocese received a complaint that he had engaged in sexual acts with a minor in the mid 1980s.

• The healing power of forgiveness

  - RC school.  
   San Diego Union-Tribune, By Sandi Dolbee, RELIGION AND ETHICS EDITOR, August 16, 2008
   CALIFORNIA -- Paul Livingston doesn't look like a victim. At 6-foot-7 and 330 pounds, he is taller than Michael Jordan and big enough to play offensive tackle for the San Diego Chargers. But 36 years ago, when he was only 6 years old, he became prey for a pedophile custodian at a Catholic school in Orange County.
   Last summer, his lawsuit was one of more than 500 claims in a record $660 million settlement with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles.
   Then, in May, he took another step toward healing: During a weeklong program at a private institute near Napa, Livingston forgave his now-dead abuser.

• Local priest removed from ministry

  [Mercure]
   Troy Record, ~ August 16, 2008
   ALBANY (NY) -- A pastor of Sacred Heart and St. William parishes in Troy, who was been on administrative leave since January pending the outcome of an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct with a minor, was permanently removed by the Albany Diocese Friday.
   Rev. Gary Mercure, 60, served since his ordination 33 years ago in the Troy parishes, St. Mary's in Clinton Heights, Our Lady of Assumption in Latham, Our Lady of Annunciation in Queensbury, St. Teresa of Avila in Albany and St. Mary's in Glens Falls.

• Kerala's Women's Commission criticizes convents

  [2008 Unnamed head nun -NEW*] - RCC. Sr Anoopa/Anupa.  
   Indian Catholic, ~ August 16, 2008
   KOCHI, INDIA (ICNS): The head of Kerala's Women Commission has publicly criticized convent life, saying it is a matter of "serious social concern" when a nun commits suicide unable to withstand harassment inside her own convent.
   Commission head D. Sreedevi, a former judge was speaking at a press conference after the commission members visited the house of a nun who committed suicide early this week in a convent in Kollam diocese.
   Sister Anoopa Mary, 23, was found hanging from the ceiling fan of convent on Aug.11. He suicide note said he took the extreme step unable to suffer mental harassment from convent superiors. Her father Pappachan later accused the nun was also sexually harassed inside the convent.
   [COMMENT: Yes, it is not just the Muslim system that is unjust towards women.  Some other religions also ought to stop their unholy ways. ENDS.]

• Vicki Polin - CALL TO ADULTS WHO WERE SEXUALLY ABUSED AS CHILDREN IN DELAWARE

  - General community.  
   The Awareness Center, video presentation, ~ August 16, 2008
   DELAWARE -- This links to a speech given by Vicki Polin at an event at the Jewish Community Center in Wilmington, Del. about the Child Victim Act.

• Trial set to begin Monday in lawsuit alleging sex abuse by priest in Belleville Diocese

  [1973-78 Kownacki] - RCC. Altar boy.
   News Democrat, BY GEORGE PAWLACZYK, ~ August 16, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) -- Despite a request filed with the Illinois Supreme Court by the Catholic Diocese of Belleville to throw out a lawsuit alleging that one of its priests sexually abused an altar boy, a civil court trial is scheduled to begin next week in St. Clair County Circuit Court.
   Belleville attorney Mike Weilmuenster said that at a pretrial hearing today, Circuit Judge Lloyd Cueto told attorneys for both sides to be ready to pick a jury Monday.
   On Aug. 8, attorneys for the diocese asked the Supreme Court for a supervisory order, an unusual procedure, dismissing the case on statute of limitations grounds or that failing, to postpone it. As of this afternoon, the case was still scheduled to begin Monday.
   The lawsuit, filed in 2002, alleges that beginning when he was 13, James Wisniewski, of Champaign, was sexually molested by the Rev. Raymond Kownacki, 73, of Dupo, at St. Theresa's Parish in Salem from 1973 to 1978. Kownacki was removed from ministry in 1995 by former Belleville Bishop Wilton Gregory.

• Church founder: Victims are 'great kids;' couple get lawyers

  [~ 2000s Michael and Laura Salazar*] - "Lord's Disciples." 5 minors.
   Knoxville News Sentinel, with video, By Robert Wilson , Updated 01:38 p.m., August 15, 2008
   MARYVILLE (TN) -- A judge today appointed attorneys for a pair of church youth ministers charged with sexual abuse of teenage girls.
   General Sessions Court Judge William R. Brewer appointed attorney Stacey Nordquist to represent Laura Lee Click Salazar.
   Attorney Troy Boling will represent her husband, Michael R. Salazar. Both are 35.

• Grand jury gets church sex abuse case

  [~ 2000s Michael and Laura Salazar*] - "Lord's Disciples." 3 girls.
   WZTV, 13:35 EDT, August 15, 2008
   MARYVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A judge in Maryville has sent a church sex abuse case to a Blount County grand jury.
   Michael Salazar and Laura Lee Click Salazar were charged by police with statutory rape and sexual battery against three teenage girls in the youth program at Lord's Disciples Ministries of Whosoever Will church.

• Attorneys appointed for couple accused of sex crimes

  [~ 2000s Michael and Laura Salazar*] - "Lord's Disciples." Girls.
   WZTV, 16:21 EDT, August 15, 2008
   MARYVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A judge has appointed attorneys for a pair of church youth ministers charged with sexually abusing teenage girls.
   The Knoxville News Sentinel is reporting that General Sessions Court Judge William R. Brewer appointed attorney Stacey Nordquist of the public defender's office to represent Laura Lee Click Salazar. Attorney Troy Bowlin of Knoxville will represent her husband, Michael R. Salazar. Both are 35.

• Freezer Murder: History Of Domestic Violence

  [2000-08 Hopkins*] - Church of God in Christ. 2004 Wife buried, later put in freezer. Daughter ravished, impregnated.
   WKRG, with video, (with link to the Jackson police report), By Jessica Taloney, ~ August 16, 2008
   ALABAMA -- A shallow grave marks the spot where investigators believe a travelling preacher buried his wife before digging her back up and stuffing her body in a freezer.
   The hole, partially covered by planks of wood lies just a few hundred feet behind a Jackson, Alabama church Anthony Hopkins, 37, and his family frequently attended.
   Prosecutors say Hopkins and his family lived in Jackson in 2000 and 2001 before moving the Mobile. News Five obtained an exclusive copy of a police report filed while the couple lived in the small town.
   In the report, Anthony claimed he was attacked by Arletha while he was trying to leave for work, calling his wife "belligerent" and claiming she scratched him. The report was filed in July 2001, just one year after police say Anthony Hopkins began raping his daughter.

• How Arizona's polygamist raid paved the way to Texas

  - Polygamous group.
   The Arizona Republic, by Jaimee Rose, Aug. 16, 2008
   ARIZONA -- It's hard to see your way in polygamist country, always has been. The nights are dark, and street lamps rare or absent altogether. The people prefer to be guided by God's light, leaning on the moon and stars to show the way.
   The first time the children were taken, in the summer of 1953, police crept into town beneath an eclipsed moon. A trail of sedans bounced over the muddy road from Fredonia to Short Creek, Ariz., with headlights dimmed. Their mission hinged on surprising the polygamists before they could flee. Overhead, a full moon glowed with a ruddy red light then faded slowly into the Earth's shadow.
   The airwaves hummed in the dark. Ham-radio operators were carrying messages from Gov. Howard Pyle to the police and relaying news from Short Creek's sheriff to the Arizona attorney general. Pyle had vowed to shatter the serenity of Short Creek, where nary a girl had reached age 15 "without having been forced into a shameful mockery of marriage," he said.

• Court lets CPS end oversight of 34 FLDS children

  - FLDS.
   Houston Chronicle, By LISA SANDBERG, Austin Bureau, ~ August 16, 2008
   AUSTIN, TEXAS – A West Texas judge on Friday agreed to end court oversight of 34 children from a polyamist group.
   Child Protective Services indicated last week that it would no longer pursue legal action against the parents of 34 children because the agency felt they were not in immediate danger. On Friday, State District Judge Barbara Walther agreed to the motion, without comment.
   Friday's court action doesn't mean CPS ends its involvement with the 10 families of the 34 children, all members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a group that allegedly practices underage marriage.

• FLDS hearing held in closed court

  - FLDS.
   Deseret News, By Ben Winslow, Published 12:32 a.m. MDT, Saturday, Aug. 16, 2008
   SAN ANGELO, Texas – Lawyers for a member of the Fundamentalist LDS Church may be trying to prevent that person from testifying before a grand jury investigating crimes within the polygamous sect.
   A hearing on a motion to quash a subpoena was held behind closed doors here on Friday. Little else is known about what happened at the hearing or why there is concern about anyone's testimony.
   A Deseret News reporter was not allowed inside the courtroom on Friday afternoon because the hearing involved matters of grand-jury secrecy, a bailiff said.

• Former BD priest convicted

  [1965-72 MacArthur*] - RCC. Admitted. 6mos + 6 x 1mo prison. Girl/s in hospital.
   Beaver Dam Daily Citizen, By AARON MARTIN, ~ August 16, 2008
   JUNEAU, WISCONSIN – A former Catholic priest was convicted Friday of sexually assaulting three girls while he worked as a chaplain at St. Joseph's Hospital in Beaver Dam in the 1960s and 70s.
   Bruce Duncan MacArthur, 86, pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual intercourse with a child, two counts of indecent behavior with a child, one count of attempted indecent behavior with a child and he entered an Alford plea on an additional count of indecent behavior with a child.
   Dodge County Circuit Judge Brian Pfitzinger sentenced MacArthur to six months in jail and 10 years of probation. Pfitzinger also ordered MacArthur to serve an additional 30 days in jail to begin on Aug. 15 for each of the next six years. Pfitizinger said that component of the sentence was because he wanted "the year to go by with you (MacArthur) thinking about it as much as they (the victims) have thought about the crimes committed upon them."

• Woman sues diocese over alleged sex assault

  [1966 Mackiewicz*] - RCC. Teen girl.
   The News Journal, By SEAN O'SULLIVAN, August 16, 2008
   DELAWARE -- Attorneys on Friday announced they had filed the first lawsuit by a female victim of an alleged pedophile priest in Wilmington.
   Mary Dougherty, 55, charged in court papers that in 1966, when she was 13, the Rev. Leonard J. Mackiewicz sexually assaulted her on several occasions, and tried to rape her.
   At the time, she was a member of the Catholic Youth Organization under Mackiewicz at Holy Rosary Roman Catholic Church.

• Former priests accused of sexual abuse 'a bad situation'

  [2 former priests] - Christian. Minors.
   Lake County News-Sun, By FRANK ABDERHOLDEN, fabderholden@scn1.com , August 16, 2008
   LAKE COUNTY (WI) -- Local law enforcement has had an especially difficult time dealing with priests and former priests who have been accused of sexually abusing minors.
   They have never been criminally charged because of the statute of limitations.
   The recent revelation that two former priests who were accused of sexually abusing minors now live in Lake County has not slipped under the radar of law enforcement.
   Because they have never been criminally charged, they do not have to register as sex offenders. But their presence in the county is still bothersome to Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran and Mundelein Police Chief Raymond Rose.

• Priest pulled from duties

  [Mercure]
   Glens Falls Post Star, By NICK REISMAN, reisman@poststar.com , Published: Saturday, August 16, 2008
   NEW YORK -- A priest who served at parishes in Queensbury and Glens Falls has been removed from the ministry after church officials found reasonable grounds to believe he sexually abused a minor, the Albany Roman Catholic Diocese announced on Friday.
   The allegations against the Rev. Gary Mercure date back to the 1980s when he was serving as a pastor at St. Teresa of Avila parish in Albany. Mercure, 60, was placed on a paid leave of absence in January when the Albany Roman Catholic Diocese received the complaint.
   After the complaint was made public, other allegations against Mercure were received, according to the diocese. The diocese said all the reports were turned over to law enforcement officials and some are still being investigated. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 16, 2008 7:20 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Sat August 16, 2008
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Sun August 17, 2008 edition:

• Tom Doyle on The Dishonoring of My Regiment

  [George, Harris] - RCC.  
   Voice from the Desert, http:// reform-network. net/?p= 1919 , "DISHONORING MY REGIMENT," A Response and Reflection by Thomas Doyle, August 16, 2008
   UNITED STATES of AMERICA – I became part of the "regiment" as a Dominican priest in May, 1970. I first became aware of the reality of sexual abuse of minors by priests before I was ordained through rumors and stories about certain priests in the Order who "liked altar boys." I never knew that "liking altar boys" went far beyond touching until after I was ordained. I learned the disgusting extent of "liking altar boys" in 1984 when I was working at the Vatican embassy and first became involved with the whole issue of clergy sex abuse. That was when I was asked to manage the file of Gilbert Gauthe, the notorious priest from Lafayette LA. My direct involvement increased with each month and each year and continues today.
   Let me start out by offering my conclusion. The "regiment" truly is dishonored. It is dishonored in part by the thousands of priests who have raped and abused innocent boys, girls, men and women…..and in doing so have ravaged their souls and the souls of those who loved them. But the regiment is dishonored even more by the bishops, archbishops, cardinals and popes, who have enabled, covered up, lied, manipulated, ignored and responded in anything but a Christian manner. They have really dishonored the regiment because they have knowingly turned their backs on that which the regiment is really all about, namely following the example of Christ. They can't fall back on the excuse that they suffer from a sexual disorder or are impaired by substance abuse. Their impairment is a moral impairment and there is no excuse for that.
   Two recent examples: the first I will cite is the total lack of hierarchical integrity in Chicago! Cardinal George is a criminal and a traitor to the regiment……but will the members of the regiment who are so concerned about its honor step up and call him on it? No! Why not? Fear, timidity, irrelevant respect for the office? Pick one. They are all irrelevant to the facts.
   The second example is the famed Msgr. Wally Harris is [in] New York. The hero of Harlem was interviewed by the John Jay Study people and complained about the number of false accusations…..all the while knowing he was guilty himself.
   The regiment has also been dishonored by the thousands of priests who knew that others were abusing children and did nothing. It is dishonored by the thousands who looked the other way and failed to speak out in support of the victims. It is dishonored by the many priests who stood by in silence while their bishops ran roughshod over victims, lying to them, lying to the public and lying to the clergy because of their obsession with their image and their power.
   [RECAPITULATION: Cardinal George is a criminal and a traitor to the regiment……but will the members of the regiment who are so concerned about its honor step up and call him on it? ENDS.] [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 17, 2008 3:27 PM]

• Mass goes on at St. Teresa of Avila

  [Mercure]
   Capital News 9, with video, By Jessica Mokhiber, ~ August 17, 2008
   ALBANY, N.Y. -- A local priest has been permanently removed from the priesthood because of sex abuse allegations.
   The Albany Catholic Diocese says it has reason to believe Reverend Gary Mercure, 60, sexually abused a minor more than 20 years ago. Bishop Howard Hubbard says the allegations stem from Mercure's time as a priest at St. Theresa of Avila in Albany.

• Jackson Man Says He Helped Feed Hopkins' Children

  [2000-08 Hopkins*] - Church of God in Christ. 2004 Wife buried, later put in freezer. Daughter ravished, impregnated.
   WKRG, with video, Steve Alexander Reporter, ~ August 17, 2008
   ALABAMA -- People who live in Jackson, Alabama were shocked by details of Wednesday afternoon's testimony in the Anthony Hopkins case.
   One person said he knew Hopkins and helped feed his children.
   Daniel Maharrey said he and his wife knew the Hopkins family when they lived at 401 Commerce Street.
   Maharrey said three weeks before the discovery of Arleltha Hopkins body, Anthony Hopkins was at his place of business.
   Maharrey said, "He (Hopkins) was not a preacher. He was a man that was going to use whoever for whatever gain he could get out of life."

• The dilution of a sex offender

  [Whipkey]
   Daily Camera, By Erika Stutzman, Sunday, August 17, 2008
   COLORADO -- The term "sex offender" has the tendency to, quite rightfully, strike fear in parents' hearts, cause countless Web sites to track registries (complete with searchable maps), and inspire the citizenry to distribute fliers and call public meetings. And we're not making light of any of it -- the Child Molestation Research and Prevention Institute estimates that two of every 10 girls and one of every 10 boys will be abused by the end of their 13th year.
   It is terrifying, and often has a lifetime of repercussions for the victims.
   That's why diluting the term by adding a whole host of criminals to the database is a scary proposition indeed.
   And that includes naked priests.
   This week, a court declined to downgrade the conviction of Rev. Robert Whipkey, 53, to a petty offense of public indecency. Whipkey, a Catholic priest who has been on administrative leave from the archdiocese since his arrest, was charged with indecent exposure after being caught running naked around the Frederick High School track last June.

• Shamed priest Joseph Creegan is to marry after being sacked over affair

  [18yrs Creegan] - RCC. Married woman.  
   Glasgow Sunday Mail, By Charles Lavery, Aug 17, 2008
   SCOTLAND -- A PRIEST sacked over an 18-year affair with a married parishioner is to marry another woman.
   Monsignor Joseph Creegan will wed Anne Marie Ogden whom he counselled during her marriage breakdown.
   Friends say the couple plan to elope abroad for a secret ceremony next month.
   The revelations prove that Creegan, 67, and Ogden, 49, are more than just the good friends they have claimed to be.
   An insider said: "It is going to be a civil ceremony because despite his huge ego he can't find anyone to marry him locally.

• Change of heart

  - RCC. Sex abuse and episcopal neglect caused loss of US $172m hq.  
   The Boston Globe, By Matt Carroll / August 17, 2008
   BRAINTREE (MA) -- The Archdiocese of Boston has thrown open the doors of its new facility in Braintree, completing a historic shift from the Brighton headquarters of the past 80 years.
   While construction continues, most notably in the chapel, the administrative heart of the church is up and running in a modern office building on Brooks Drive, near South Shore Plaza and overlooking Interstate 93. A series of inaugural events to introduce the building to parishes and priests will be held in the fall.
   The gleaming new "Pastoral Center" is a far cry from the dowdy "Little Vatican" chancery in Brighton. Not only is it technologically advanced, it is designed to draw in the faithful - as its new name suggests - rather than function just as an administrative center. …
   The archdiocese sold its Brighton property to Boston College for $172 million. The sale was largely the result of the sexual abuse crisis, which caused financial turmoil for the church.

• Posts Archbishop Burke's "Ten most reckless & callous actions"

  [Years - Abp Burke] - RCC. Brought predators from outside.
   Voice from the Desert For immediate release: Sunday, Aug. 17, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- SNAP posts Archbishop's "Ten most reckless & callous actions"
   Group blasts Burke for "letting accused sex offenders work and live here"
   As Archbishop Raymond Burke celebrates his last mass in St. Louis, leaders of a support group for clergy sex abuse victims are releasing a list of his ten "most reckless and callous actions in clergy sex cases here."
   The new list is posted at SNAPmidwest.org and is included below.
   SNAP criticizes Burke for paying $500,000 to free a convicted predator priest, for moving a priest who's been accused of molesting at least three boys, and for bringing a number of proven, admitted and credibly accused priests from elsewhere to live and/or work here.

• Mergers leave parishes with prime real estate

  - RCC. Communities torn by paedophilia's results.
   Press of Atlantic City, By JULIET FLETCHER, 856-237-9020, Published: Sunday, August 17, 2008
   NEW JERSEY -- Silvia Rodriguez was married under the steeple of Our Lady of Victories, a white clapboard Catholic church near her home in Buena. She has worshipped there for about 40 years and recently began attending Tuesday evening Mass, where she prays in Spanish.
   Like many, the news that the church might be vacated within a year seemed to have passed her by.
   "Oh, no!" she said when she heard of a proposed parish-merger plan that would move services to a nearby parish yet to be named. "No, because - what about all the years?" Standing on the church's neatly tended brick path, she appeared to mentally tally the years. "It's like our house." …
   An analysis of tax rolls across the diocese's territory reveals churches worth a total of about $59 million. Add other parish holdings - from rectories to gardens to vacant lots, as well as affected missions that are expected to merge with parishes - and the land is worth more than $89 million.
   These lots cover hundreds of acres across six counties and occupy sites next to highways and bayside towns.

• Church merger stumbles on cultural issues

  - RCC. "Invisible" black RCs.
   Courier-Post By KIM MULFORD, August 17, 2008
   CAMDEN (NJ) – About 20 parishioners from St. Bartholomew Church in Camden say they were slowly accepting Bishop Joseph Galante's plan to merge their historically black congregation with St. Joan of Arc in Fairview until some of them visited Mass at the mostly white and Hispanic church in late April.
   Rather than nurturing a new relationship between the two churches, the parishioners said the worship service exposed wounds carved long ago.
   Some said St. Joan congregants did not drink from the communal cup during the Eucharist. And during the sign of the peace, a point in the service when Catholics typically greet one another, some visitors from St. Bartholomew said they received a cold shoulder.
   "People would not even turn to us and acknowledge that we were even there," said Charlene A. Morris, a 62-year member of St. Bartholomew and a Bellmawr resident. "There was no recognition."

• Priest takes center stage in controversy

  [Blockley]  
   Newsday, BY BART JONES | bart.jones@newsday.com , August 17, 2008
   LONG ISLAND (NY) -- One of James Lisante's tasks when he was in the minor seminary in the 1970s was to get a public figure to come speak each year. The one he remembers best was Frank Capra, the film director whose works included the Christmas classic "It's A Wonderful Life."
   As Msgr. Lisante tells the story, the two became friends, vacationing together in California. Capra, who died in 1991 at age 94, gave him advice that stuck.
   "He would say to me, 'It's good to be a priest but … if St. Paul lived now there's no doubt that rather than float around the Mediterranean in a ship, he'd be using the popular media'" to spread God's word, Lisante said. …
   Parishioners were upset at the actions of the Rev. Matthew Blockley, who was brought to the parish by longtime friend Lisante. Among other things, parishioners accused Blockley of having a popular statue removed. Earlier this month, Blockley, who did not have permission to be in the diocese, was expelled by Bishop William Murphy and sent home to the Northern Mariana Islands in the South Pacific. The controversy follows another in May when Lisante publicly endorsed Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) for president. …
   "It's gotten the attention of our membership," said Phil Megna of Voice of the Faithful, a group of laypeople demanding more accountability from the church hierarchy.

• Catholic, Christian schools begin to see end of dramatic enrollment declines

  - Christians.
   The Grand Rapids Press by Beth Loechler | 4:42 AM, Sunday August 17, 2008,
   UNITED STATES -- There once was a time when most Catholics sent their children to Catholic schools. Tuition was minimal -- many of the schools were free or nearly free -- and classrooms were filled to overflowing.
   In 1960, Catholic churches couldn't build schools fast enough to accommodate the growth. Nearly 50 years later, the schools face an entirely different challenge.
   Nationwide, enrollment has dropped by half. Other religious schools, too, are shrinking, forcing leaders to hike tuition, curb costs and close buildings.

• Killer helps jail child sex abuser

  [Beaver] - Jehovah's Witness. 3 victims.  
   New Zealand Herald, By Stephen Cook, Sunday, August 17, 2008
   NEW ZEALAND -- Convicted murderer Antonie Dixon has turned whistleblower on a member of the Jehovah's Witness church now serving three years in prison for historic sexual offences against him and two others.
   John Olav Beaver, 56, was jailed after admitting to a raft of sexual abuse charges against Dixon and two other complainants, whose cases came to light only when Dixon detailed the offending in a letter shortly after his rampage in 2003.
   Dixon, 40, is awaiting sentencing on eight charges, including the murder of James Te Aute, aggravated robbery, kidnapping and causing grievous bodily harm, following a samurai sword attack on two women on the Coromandel.

• Safe Sanctuaries

  - Methodists.  
   The Morning News, By Bettina Lehovec, ~ August 17, 2008
   ROGERS (AR) - Once upon a time, church communities knew the people in their midst.
   Fellow worshippers were friends and neighbors. Parents felt comfortable leaving their children with Sunday school teachers. No one thought twice about an adult volunteer helping toddlers on the potty or driving teens to an event.
   "Those things have changed," said Karen Anderson, children's education director at Central United Methodist Church in Rogers. "We have so many new faces and so many people moving in and out of this area. … There are lots of people coming (to church) that we don't know."
   Central United has joined a growing group of area churches in implementing a safe environment policy for the children in its care. The Safe Sanctuaries program requires all who work with children to attend a three-hour training, undergo a background check, wear a photo badge and follow staff supervision guidelines.

• REMEMBERING FATHER MAC

  - Called for resignation of Card. Bernard Law.
   The Boston Globe, August 17, 2008
   CANTON -- Selectmen recently held a moment of silence for the late Rev. Bernard McLaughlin, a Roman Catholic priest at St. Gerard Majella Church for more than a decade. "The people of Canton just loved him," said John J. Connolly, chairman of the Board of Selectmen. The priest, known as "Father Mac," was known for his personal interest in people and for being among the first priests to call for the resignation of Cardinal Bernard Law amid the sexual abuse scandal in the church. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 17, 2008 7:14 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Sun August 17, 2008
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Mon August 18, 2008 edition:

• Cape priest flees to Brazil after child sex allegation (9:15 p.m.)

  [≤ 2008 Lima -NEW*] - RCC. Minor.    
   SouthCoast Today, http://www. southcoast today.com/ apps/pbcs. dll/ article?AID=/ 20080818/ NEWS/ 80818022/- 1/TOWN1001 ; By PATRICK CASSIDY. 9:13 PM, August 18, 2008
   BARNSTABLE, MASSACHUSETTS – A Brazilian priest who celebrated Mass at St. Francis Xavier Church in Hyannis and other Cape churches has fled the country after being accused of sexual assault of a minor in Connecticut.
   The Rev. Jose Afonso Lima was placed on temporary leave Wednesday after the allegation came to light, Catholic Diocese of Fall River spokesman John Kearns said today.
   "At this point, we don't know all that much," Kearns said of the investigation. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 18, 2008 9:58 PM]
   [COMMENT: Another case of the RC Church telling the alleged seducer he is suspended by the Church, thus giving him a chance to escape, and thereby putting the law enforcement authorities to more expense and trouble. ENDS.]

• Tales of horror from 500 abused children

  [Decades -NEW*] - RCC, Anglicans, Salvation Army, and a State-run institution. 500 survivors.    
   Geelong Advertiser, by Tony Prytz, August 18, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- ANGELA Sdrinis has heard more tales of horror than most people could bear.
   The Melbourne lawyer has become one of the leading advocates for people who were abused in state care as children.
   She is currently acting for about 500 former wards of the state.
   About 50 of those are from Geelong and Colac.
   The claims relate to St Augustine's run by the Christian Brothers, Glastonbury run by the Anglican Church, Kardinia Children's Home run by the Salvation Army, the State Government institution Pirra and St Cuthbert's in Colac run by the Anglican Church.

• Catholic Priest Abuse Case – How Many More Victims?

  [1960s-80s Fr William Green -NEW*] - RCC. Boys  
   WebWire, Monday, August 18, 2008
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A top Manchester solicitor acting for former children abused by Catholic Priest, Father William Green, says there may be more victims yet to come forward to testify against the priest who was charged at Manchester Crown Court with 33 counts of indecent assault on boys in an around the Manchester area from the 1960's to the mid 1980's. He pleaded guilty to 27 counts.
   Richard Scorer, a Partner with Manchester law firm, Pannone LLP and an acknowledged expert in abuse cases, said, "The judge indicated that there was an overwhelming likelihood that Green will face an immediate and significant sentence of imprisonment when he is sentenced next month. This can only be right and proper, given the dreadful abuse he subjected a succession of young boys to."

• Back to school for girls serving Togo's voodoo priests

  - Voodoo religion. Hundreds of girls to be freed.  
   AFP, ~ August 18, 2008
   TOGOVILLE, Togo (AFP) – Hundreds of young girls will be able to abandon their roles serving Togo's voodoo priesthood and go to school, ending what some rights campaigners blasted as a deeply abusive system.
   After a three-year campaign, rights groups claimed victory over a way of life that they said cut the girls off from their own families, sometimes involved ritual scarring -- and occasionally led to sexual abuse.
   But it took some intense lobbying of political and religious authorities in this small west African state -- and, it would seem, the voodoo divinities -- to get there.

• Pastor Cries, Apologizes To Teen Victim

  [2008 March - Brian Williams*] - "Grace Brethren Church." 8YRS PRISON. Girl.  
   NBC4i , with video, By Donna Willis, August 18, 2008
   DELAWARE COUNTY, Ohio -- A former Delaware County pastor who pleaded guilty to sexual battery was in court Monday to receive his sentence.
   BOTTOMLINE: Brian Williams will spend eight years behind bars; he was sentenced to four years for each of two counts of sexual battery. The two four-year sentences will be served consecutively.
   The Delaware County Prosecutor's Office said Senior Pastor Brian Williams attacked a 15-year-old girl during a scheduled appointment in early March at the Sunbury Grace Brethren Church.
   [LOOK BACK: March 10, 2008 ]

• Peter Popham: Rome Notebook

  [1983] - Emanuela Orlandi disappearance.  
   The Independent (United Kingdom), Monday, August 18, 2008
   ITALY -- Italy is the land of great speed and great sloth. The new Fiat 500, as this paper noted last week, is surprisingly fast. Its sibling the new Fiat Bravo is about the fastest thing on the road, as I discovered when I hired one the other day. Its designers have succeeded in transplanting the coglione of a Ferrari into a sub-compact saloon.
   But other things go incredibly slowly, if they move at all. Twenty-five years ago, in June 1983, a teenager called Emanuela Orlandi, daughter of a Vatican employee, was abducted by someone driving a large grey BMW 745i. She was never seen again. The most popular theory about the kidnapping is that it was a bid by the Mafia to stop the Vatican blabbing about the death of fugitive banker Roberto Calvi, found under Blackfriars Bridge in London.
   We don't know what happened to the unlucky Miss Orlandi, but somebody knows about the car: Rome's police were tipped off last week that it was parked in a certain bay in the multistorey car park under Villa Borghese, Rome's most important park. Police duly found it and are investigating.
   The new discovery may lead somewhere or nowhere. But what is very Italian is that the car had been parked in the same bay for 13 years. Rome is a nightmare for parking, as the world knows. "You turn any street corner in Rome," wrote Bill Bryson, "and it looks like you've just missed a parking competition for blind people … Romans park their cars the way I would park if I had just spilled a beaker of hydrochloric acid on my lap."

• Survivors unite at unveiling

  [Years - Sylvestre] - RCC. Many girls.  
   The Sarnia Observer, By SHAWN JEFFORDS, ~ August 18, 2008
   CANADA -- They are survivors.
   Their shattered lives held together by a common thread. And now that thread has given way to a patchwork collection of their grief, pain and fledgling recovery. It's a creation that is helping the victims of disgraced pedophile priest Charles Sylvestre move from "isolation to action," said Sarnian Irene Williams.
   She and dozens of other women who were abused by the priest as children contributed panels to a quilt that was unveiled during an emotional ceremony at Dow People Place Saturday.
   "We thought art was a good forum for our voices to be heard," she said.
   Those voices, after decades of being ignored by church authorities, police and sometimes even family members, are now finally being acknowledged, she said.

• Controversial religious group to return funds

  - Donations like €90,000 probed. "House of Prayer." 7 complainants.  
   Irish Independent, By MAEVE SHEEHAN, Sunday June 01, 2008
   IRELAND -- THE House of Prayer has offered to return donations to its aggrieved followers amid a growing number of complaints about the vast wealth accumulated by the prophetic religious group.
   Donations of up to €90,000 to the Catholic religious outfit are being investigated by gardai and the taxman, after allegations about its vast wealth emerged earlier this year.
   Four donors have now made formal complaints to gardai, alleging they gave the money in the belief that the House of Prayer was in need of it. At least three more complaints are expected to follow.

• Some priests take vow they can't keep

  - RCC celibacy partly at fault.  
   Chicago Sun-Times, BY LAURA BERMAN, laura@bermancenter.com , August 18, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- On Tuesday the Archdiocese of Chicago announced that the Catholic Church will award $12.6 million to victims of sexual abuse involving priests.
   This landmark settlement serves as validation for victims who feel that the church too often brushed aside their claims, but the money will be of little consequence to those who lost decades of their lives to silent suffering and shame.
   The church's requirement that priests remain celibate is a key factor behind some priests' aberrant sexual behavior. Celibacy may create an unnatural situation that increases the likelihood of these abuses. In a perfect world spirituality can overcome something as basic as our sex drive; however, we don't live in a perfect world. The abuse victims speak volumes to this reality.

• Ex-Pastor Sentenced For Sexually Abusing 15-Year-Old Girl

  [2008 March 6 - Brian Williams*] - "Grace Brethren Church." 8yrs prison. Girl.
   WBNS, ~ August 18, 2008
   DELAWARE, Ohio – A former pastor who admitted sexually abusing a teenage member of his congregation was sentenced Monday to eight years in prison.
   Brian L. Williams, the former pastor of Sunbury Grace Brethren Church, pleaded guilty in June to charges of sexual battery.
   The plea came after a 15-year-old girl accused Williams of raping her inside a church office.
   The girl told investigators that the assault happened on March 6 when she went to see Williams to talk about her grades, 10TV's Maureen Kocot reported.

• Former Pastor Sentenced To Prison

  [2008 March 6 - Brian Williams*] - "Grace Brethren Church." 8yrs prison. Girl.
   WTVN, Monday, August 18, 2008
   OHIO -- A former Delaware County pastor who pleaded guilty to charges that he sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl at his church was sentenced Monday to eight years in prison.
   Brian Williams, the former head pastor at Sunbury Grace Brethren Church, told the girl she wasn't to blame for what happened. He also apologized to his congregation.
   "When that openness and that trust is violated in this most intimate and most-personal kind of way, it's an especially egregious offense," said Delaware County Prosecutor Dave Yost.

• Texas seeks custody of teen Jeffs allegedly wed

  - FLDS.
   The Associated Press, By MICHELLE ROBERTS, ~ August 18, 2008
   SAN ANGELO, Texas (AP) – Attorneys for Texas child welfare authorities began presenting evidence Monday at a hearing on whether a girl allegedly given in marriage at age 12 to jailed polygamist leader Warren Jeffs should be returned to foster care.
   The state wants to remove the girl, now 14, and an 11-year-old brother from the care of her mother, saying the woman has refused to guarantee the girl won't have contact with men accused of being involved in underage marriages. The girl's father allegedly blessed her marriage to Jeffs and the underage marriages of at least two sisters.

• Ill. SupCo lets priest abuse case go forward

  [1973-78 Kownacki] - RCC. Fraudulent concealment. Altar boy.
   WREX, Associated Press, 1:44 PM ET, August 18, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL), (AP) - The Illinois Supreme Court says it won't intervene in a 47-year-old Champaign man's lawsuit against the Diocese of Belleville over sex-abuse allegations decades ago.
   The state's high court didn't comment in declining the diocese's request to dismiss James Wisniewski's (wizh-NEW'-skees) 2002 lawsuit against the diocese and the Rev. Raymond Kownacki.

• Former Pastor To Stand Trial In Child Sex Case

  [≤ 2005 Lamonica] - "Hosanna Church". 2 sons and girl (2).
   WSDU, ~ August 18, 2008
   NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA -- The former pastor of a Ponchatoula church is scheduled to stand trial Tuesday in Amite, accused in a 2005 child sexual abuse case.
   Pretrial proceedings took place Monday for Louis Lamonica, the former spiritual leader of the now-defunct Hosanna Church.

• Sex abuse lawsuit against Belleville Diocese moves ahead; jury selection underway

  [1973-78 Kownacki] - RCC. Fraudulent concealment. Altar boy.
   News-Democrat, ~ August 18, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) -- The Illinois Supreme Court has denied a request by the Diocese of Belleville to dismiss a lawsuit brought by a 47-year-old former altar boy who alleges he was sexually assaulted beginning at age 13 by the Rev. Raymond Kownacki.
   The high court also denied a request to postpone the trial that began this morning with jury selection. The denials, which were filed today, were issued without comment.
   Wisniewski filed suit in 2002, claiming Kownacki molested him at St. Theresa's Parish in Salem during 1973-78.

• This summer has been a bad one for the truth

  [Decades - Las Vegas Diocese] - RCC. US $65m in 30yrs. Lies about funds' source. > 250 victims.
   Daily Herald, By Chuck Goudie | Columnist, August/18/2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Unlike Chicago, whose motto is "The City that Works," Las Vegas could rightly be called "The City that Plays."
   But Vegas doesn't need a catchy new jingle. It already has a world-famous slogan in "What Happens Here, Stays Here."
   If truth was actually required in advertising, that would only be half of the phrase. The entire refrain would be: "What Happens Here Stays Here, Only if You Tell Some Lies to Cover It Up but Probably Not Even Then."
   Such a full and exact statement might not attract as many tourists though and it would certainly cut into the call-girl business. Besides, "What Happens Here Stays Here, Only if You Tell Some Lies to Cover it Up but Probably Not Even" wouldn't fit as well on billboards. …
   The season has been rough on the truth and last week was particularly jagged.
   • The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago announced another multimillion dollar settlement paid to more than a dozen victims of pedophile priests.
   The tally for Chicago Catholics is now $65 million over three decades, handed out in more than 250 sex abuse claims.
   The root of this evil has been years of enabling perverted priests by church officials from the very top on down, through lies, deceit and cover-ups.
   Lest you think the truth has won out, consider a statement from archdiocesan officials that none of the millions of dollars used to pay settlements to sex abuse victims come from parish collection baskets. All the payoffs, they said, would be from the sale of church real estate holdings.
   "We just felt it was very important that parishioners understand that this is not money that is coming from their local parish," said Jimmy Lago, archdiocese administrator.
   This has been a common untruth put forth by church officials in Chicago and elsewhere for years. Who do you think paid for all the prime property owned by the Archdiocese? Caesar of Augustus?

• Expert Witness Testifies in Priest Sex Abuse Trial

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (US$8.7m already). Diocese knowingly retained him. Altar boys.
   Fox 44, ~ August 18, 2008
   VERMONT -- An expert witness, a catholic priest who specializes in counseling victims of clergy sexual abuse, testified Monday that the Catholic Diocese of Burlington was negligent in its handling of Father Edward Paquette in the 1970s.
   A former altar boy blames the Diocese for sexual abuse he says he suffered at the hands of the priest.
   Father Thomas Doyle said in Chittenden County Superior Court that evidence showed Paquette had a history of abusing boys in the Diocese he previously worked in.

• Cardinal's depositions shows good -- and bad

  - Favourable comment for Card. George.  
   Chicago Sun-Times August 14, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Because Cardinal Francis George is a good and decent man, so it is all the more disheartening to learn just how horribly he failed his parishioners and their children in the church's child sex-abuse crisis.
   The details are revealed in a confidential court deposition released Tuesday as part of an agreement to settle the legal claims of 16 victims for $12.675 million.
   The cardinal's 305-page deposition shows what he is -- and is not.
   George is not one of cardinals who covered up for pedophile priests by transferring them from church to church, one step ahead of scandal, supplying fresh victims along the way.

• St. Stanislaus' Parishioners Seek Solution

  - RCC.
   IBerkshires, By Tammy Daniels, August 18, 2008
   ADAMS (MA) – Nearly 200 people packed the front hall of the Elks Club on Sunday night hoping to find a way to keep their parishes open.
   They left after three hours with a sense of purpose.
   "It's given us some hope," said Linda Zepka Chalifoux as she and family members conferred with other St. Stanislaus Kostka parishioners outside the Elks. "Maybe we can do something."

• Hearing today on sect custody cases

  - FLDS.
   Austin American-Statesman, By Michelle Roberts, ASSOCIATED PRESS, Monday, August 18, 2008
   SAN ANGELO, TEXAS – More than two months after being forced to give children from a polygamist sect back to their parents, Texas child welfare authorities want eight of the youngsters, ranging in age from 5 to 17, put back in foster care.
   Individual hearings for the four mothers of the children are set to begin today.

• Hosanna Church pastor goes on trial Monday

  [≤ 2005 Lamonica] - "Hosanna Church". 2 sons and girl (2).
   WAFB (BATON ROUGE, LA), ~ August 18, 2008
   AMITE (LA), (WAFB) - The pastor at the center of the scandals surrounding the now defunct Hosanna Church in Ponchatoula goes on trial in Amite on Monday.
   Louis Lamonica, 49, is among the seven members of the defunct Hosanna Church indicted in the 2005 sexual abuse case involving Lamonica's minor sons and a 2-year-old girl related to another church member.

• Victim criticises diocese's sex abuse therapies

  - RCC.    
   ABC News, August 18, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- A Catholic diocese in New South Wales has been criticised for offering inappropriate therapies at its unit set up to help victims of sexual abuse by members of the clergy.
   Zimmerman House was established by the Maitland/Newcastle Catholic Diocese last year.
   Earlier this month, the diocese's Bishop Michael Malone apologised to abuse survivors. He was the only Australian bishop publicly calling for the Pope's World Youth Day apology to abuse victims.
   Victims such as Peter Gogarty applauded the bishop for dealing with the issue.
   But Mr Gogarty has raised concerns about Zimmerman House, saying it has a mostly female staff and the meditation, art and gardening therapies are not beneficial. [COMMENT: RC Bp Geoffrey Robinson also suggested that the pope apologise. ENDS.]

• Talking Sex and Power in the Catholic Church

  - Bp Robinson says celibacy ought to be debated.
   Foreign Policy , Posted August 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- What might drive a committed Roman Catholic bishop to resign his office after almost 25 years and denounce his church? In the case of Geoffrey Robinson of Sydney, it was the church's meltdown during the recent sexual abuse scandals. In the September/October issue of FOREIGN POLICY, John Allen says Robinson's recent book about his ordeal "will keep an important conversation alive." Now, Robinson discusses his journey from consummate insider to persona non grata.
   Foreign Policy: Without fundamental changes, what do you believe is the future of the Catholic Church?
   Geoffrey Robinson: I see this whole question of sexual abuse and the response to it as crippling much of the work of the church. When the local church speaks out on some other question, I'm afraid nobody is listening. Until this is confronted, I'm afraid that loss of credibility will continue and get worse. The same problem exists internally. Authorities within the church have lost credibility with their own members. One similarity between [the United States and Australia] is that what's keeping the church strong, numerically speaking, is the great migrant factor. Take that away, and you have a quite steep decline.
   FP: What's the first thing the pope should do to resolve the sexual abuse crisis?
   GR: I will know the Catholic Church is truly serious when it places obligatory celibacy on the table for discussion. I don't believe the celibacy requirement is the sole cause of abuse, but it has become a litmus test.

• Take these steps to protect children

  [A priest and a school head] - RCC. Boy.  
   Chicago Daily Herald, Daily Herald Editorial Board, August/18/2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Nothing ever will heal the scars of those who were raped and molested by their Catholic priests when they were children.
   No apology, no amount of money, ever will be enough.
   Robert Brancato was violated by both a priest and a principal at St. Joseph the Worker Church and school in Wheeling when he was 13 years old. As he put it last week, "It's become part of my DNA. You never get over it."
   Brancato spoke as Cardinal Francis George gathered the media together to announce the Archdiocese of Chicago had agreed to pay $12.7 million to Brancato and 15 other men and women who were sexually abused by their spiritual counselors when they were children. George also apologized.
   And he took the rare step of releasing to the public a 307-page deposition describing the steps the church hierarchy has taken to try to respond to complaints of sexual abuse. Lawyers say the publishing of the deposition was only the second of its kind. Another such document was released during a clergy abuse trial in California.

• Confession and consequences

  - RCC does not punish the sinning bishops.
   Chicago Tribune, August 18, 2008
   "There are certainly consequences even after sin is forgiven. So we have to deal with those consequences … and they can be severe, as they must be." – Cardinal Francis George, June 9, 2002
   CHICAGO (IL) – On the day he spoke those words at Chicago's St. Juliana Parish, Cardinal George was talking about clerics who had sexually abused children. This wasn't his only invocation of "consequences" in that dramatic week. As U.S. bishops of the Roman Catholic Church gathered in Dallas, the cardinal also proposed unspecified "consequences" for bishops who mishandled abuse cases.
   Unfortunately, George's brethren in the U.S. and in Rome didn't follow his lead and enact any such policy. A 2004 report from a National Review Board of lay Catholics chosen by the bishops defined the roles of some bishops in tolerating felonious behavior: [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 18, 2008 7:59 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Mon August 18, 2008
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Tue August 19, 2008 edition:

• Youth worker had child porn on computer

  [- 2008 Sutherland -NEW*] - 2 churches. > 4000 child pornography images.  
   Edinburgh Evening News, http:// edinburghnews. scotsman. com/breaking- news/Youth- worker-had- child-porn. 4404601.jp , ~ August 19, 2008
   SCOTLAND -- A CHURCH youth worker and school music teacher has admitted having thousands of pictures of child pornography on his home computer.
   Jamieson Sutherland, 40, worked with children as young as four while a youth worker at two Edinburgh churches and in his part-time role as a school music teacher.
   Sutherland, who is also a professional choir singer, was caught when police searched his home and seized his computer after a tip-off in January.
   Investigators found the laptop contained more than 4,000 images of children being abused, four of which showed the most severe level of abuse.

• Argentine priest on trial for sexual abuse

  [~ 2000s Grassi -NEW*] - RCC. 3 boys.  
   The Associated Press, ~ August 19, 2008
   BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) – An Argentine priest went on trial Tuesday, charged with 17 counts of sexual abuse and corruption of three young boys.
   Prosecutors say Julio Grassi, 52, abused three boys – including two minors – who attended his well-known "Happy the Children" Foundation for underprivileged youth. The boys are on a list of more than 350 witnesses who will testify against Grassi over the next few months. The archbishop of Buenos Aires is also on the list.

• Sex-abuse liability case sent to state's top court

  - Unlimited time to sue supervisors?  
   Portland Press Herald, By BETTY ADAMS, Blethen Maine News Service, August 6, 2008
   AUGUSTA (ME) – The Maine Supreme Judicial Court will be asked to rule on whether supervisors can be held liable for an unlimited period of time for sexual-abuse acts by individuals who work for them.
   Two men are seeking money for alleged sexual abuse by priests, and their attorneys want the court to rule that the priests' supervisors can also be held accountable indefinitely.
   Kennebec County Superior Court Justice Joseph Jabar decided Tuesday that he will forward the question to the supreme court, as requested by Gerald Petrucelli, an attorney representing the defendants.
   The plaintiffs' attorney, Keith Varner, opposed going to the court for a ruling. Varner maintains that a law governing the filing of civil lawsuits -- which says "actions based upon sexual acts toward minors may be commenced at any time" -- applies to supervisors as well as alleged perpetrators.

• Cape Cod priest faces assault allegation

  [≤ 2008 Lima*] - RCC. Minor.    
   Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, MA), The Associated Press, August 19, 2008
   BARNSTABLE, MASSACHUSETTS – Church officials say a Cape Cod priest has gone to his native Brazil after being accused of sexual assault of a minor.
   A spokesman for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fall River says the Rev. Jose Afonso Lima left for Brazil after being notified by the Connecticut Department of Children and Families that an abuse allegation against him had been substantiated.

• Sex abuse victims want Superior Bishop to investigate Eagle River Church

  [- 2000s Mr Stardust] - RCC. Offender re-hired, re-offended.  
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, August 19, 2002
   EAGLE RIVER, Wisconsin, - The nation's largest self help organization of victims of childhood sexual abuse by clergy are calling on the Catholic Bishop of the Superior, Wisconsin diocese to explain how a convicted child molester could have been hired to help staff a Catholic parish and then go on to sexually assault a girl who was a member of the choir.
   On Monday, in Vilas County, "Ziggy" Stardust, who co-wrote a popular church song performed before Pope Benedict XVI at the World Youth Day last month in Sidney, Australia, was convicted to 17 years in prison for sexually assaulting a girl whose family belonged to St. Peter the Fisherman Parish in Eagle River.
   Stardust was hired as the church's choir director in 2000 although he had a previous sex assault conviction in Dane County. He was arrested in 2005 for five felony counts of child enticement.

• Newish Lawsuit Filed Against Mater Dei Statutory Rapist Jeff Andrade

  - RCC. [1995-96 Mr Andrade*] - Girl. [Bp Brown*] - 1965 boy. Years - Keeping seductions secret. 2007 allows flight to Canada. [Mons Urell*] - Years - Permitted transfers. 2007 Crossed to Canada. [Mr Avila*] - Didn't know, now he knows.    
   Orange County Weekly, Posted by Gustavo Arellano in Ex Cathedra, 3:52 PM, August 19, 2008
   CALIFORNIA -- The pedophilic piñata that is Mater Dei High School just keeps on producing lawsuits alleging sex abuse. Recently revealed is yet another one filed May 31 (but recently unsealed) in Orange County Superior Court by a former Mater Dei student against former assistant boys' basketball coach Jeff Andrade (pictured). [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 19, 2008 7:12 PM]
   [LOOK BACK: June 18, 2008; March 18, 2008.]

• Women's forum asks police to reopen murder probe

  [1998 Unknown offender] - RCC. Mystery murder of Sr Jyothis. [2008 Sr Anupa Mary] - RCC. Alleged suicide.  
   The Peninsula (Qatar) Source ::: THE PENINSULA. / By John Mary, ~ August 19, 2008
   Thiruvananthapuram, India -- Kerala's State Women's Commission has asked the Crime Branch police to re-open the investigation into the mysterious death of a Catholic nun ten years ago and asked for details of the probe, if any, from the diocesan authorities in north Kerala.
   Sister Jyothis of the Sacred Heart Convent under the Thamarassery diocese in Kozhikode was found murdered on the premises of the convent ten years ago. The post mortem report confirmed multiple wounds on the body but the Crime Branch had failed to make much headway in the case.
   The Commission yesterday ordered a notice to the Bishop of Thamarassery diocese, seeking to know whether the diocese had probed the death and what was the outcome. The diocesan reaction was not readily available but commission member T Devi said the death had occurred at a time when such tragic events never had got the prominence they deserved. Hence, the commission, based on complaints, asked the agencies concerned to review the probe.
   It was only last week that the commission and the Catholic diocese in the southern district of Kollam confronted each other on the 23-year-old Sister Anupa Mary. The Vimala Hridaya Congregation, to which the nun belonged, expressed disappointment over the Commission's "sweeping comments on the harassment inside convents".

• Clergy Sex Abuse Victims Speak Out At San Fernando Cathedral

  - 3 accused clergy fled overseas.  
   WOAI, ~ August 19, 2008
   Clergy sex abuse victims speaking out in front of San Fernando Cathedral Tuesday.
   TEXAS -- Members of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or S.N.A.P., believe Catholic officials have not done enough to protect children from abuse.
   They say 3 local predator priests fled San Antonio to other countries.
   "And we want the mothers who have children that are near these men to know about their history," said Barbara Blaine, President of S.N.A.P.

• Jeffs' alleged child bride taken from mom

  [Jeffs and Jessop families] - FLDS.
   United Press International, Aug. 19, 2008
   SAN ANGELO, Texas, (UPI) -- A teenage girl who was allegedly married to polygamist leader Warren Jeffs at 12 must return to state custody, a Texas judge ruled Tuesday.
   The girl, now 14, is the daughter of Merril Jessop, head of the Yearning for Zion Ranch, the Salt Lake Tribune reported. She and an 11-year-old brother had been living in San Antonio with their mother, Barbara Jessop, instead of returning to the ranch.
   Judge Barbara Walther allowed the boy to remain with his mother, although she set additional restrictions. But she found that Barbara Jessop cannot guarantee her daughter's safety.

• Priest admits 27 sexual assaults

  [1970s-80s Fr William Green*] - RCC. Boys  
   BBC News, ~ August 19, 2008
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A priest who sexually abused boys at a Manchester Catholic school in the 1970s and 1980s has admitted 27 assaults on children at Manchester Crown Court.
   Father William Green, 67, of Cale Lane, Aspull, Wigan, admitted the assaults on children aged between eight and 16.
   Green took physical education classes at St Bede's College in Alexandra Park, Manchester, when the assaults happened and has also worked at other schools.

• Catholic Diocese Safe Environment Audit Scheduled 8/19/08

  - RCC.  
   CBS 7, August 19, 2008
   SAN ANGELO (TX) -- During the week of August 25th, auditors from the Gavin Group of Boston, an independent firm commissioned by the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops (USCCB), will visit the Catholic Diocese of San Angelo to evaluate its Safe Environment Programs to insure compliance with the USCCB Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.
   The Charter, originally adopted by the USCCB in November 2002, setsd forth specific requirements which enable dioceses across the country to establish safe environment programs to protect children and youth from sexual abuse. During this audit, Diocesan Safe Environment Policies; Safe Environment Programs for chuch personnel, parents, and children; as well as procedures for assisting victims of abuse will be examined.

• Girl, 14, Allegedly Married To Jeffs Gets Foster Care

  [Jeffs, Jessop families] - FLDS.
   KPHO, ~ August 19, 2008
   SAN ANGELO, Texas -- A Texas judge has ordered a 14-year-old girl who was allegedly married to polygamist leader Warren Jeffs, who's in jail in Kingman, to be placed in foster care.
   The judge ruled there is "uncontroverted evidence of the underage marriage."
   Under the ruling, the girl's 11-year-old brother can stay with his mother.
   Meanwhile, lawyers reached settlements for three other girls from polygamous families. The children can stay with their mothers, if the women restrict contact with men accused of being involved in underage marriages.

• Sex abuse trial against Belleville Diocese priest to begin Wednesday

  [1973-78 Kownacki] - RCC. Fraudulent concealment. Altar boy.
   News-Democrat, ~ August 19, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) --A jury has been seated and opening statements are set to begin tomorrow morning in a civil trial where a former altar boy is claiming he was psychologically damaged when a priest sexually molested him.
   The trial involves a lawsuit filed in 2002 by James Wisniewski, 47, of Champaign, who alleges that the Rev. Raymond Kownacki of Dupo molested Wisniewski beginning at age 13 at St. Theresa's Parish in Salem.
   Kownacki, who was removed from active ministry in 1995, has said he will not comment on the case.

• Maryknoll's Bourgeois calls meeting with order 'productive'

  - Concelebrated mass at women's ordination ceremony.
   National Catholic Reporter, By TOM ROBERTS, Published: August 19, 2008
   UNITED STATES -- Maryknoll Fr. Roy Bourgeois, who concelebrated a Mass at a women's ordination ceremony earlier this month, has met with leaders of his religious community, calling the meeting "productive." At the same time, Bourgeois told his superiors he did not recant his actions and urged a continuing dialogue about the place of women in the church.
   In a phone interview Aug. 19, Bourgeois said that he and Maryknoll leadership, including Superior General Fr. John Sivalon, had agreed that in the future they would engage in "collective discernment" over issues of justice, including the role of women in the church.
   Maryknoll spokeswoman Betsey Guest said Bourgeois and Maryknoll leadership released a joint statement following their meeting that states, "An investigation has been carried out as to the facts of the August 9 event in Lexington, Ky.  A report of that investigation will be sent to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome.

• Charles Lewis: Love the sinner, hate the sin

  - RCC forgiveness theory.
   National Post (Canada), by Charles Lewis, August 19, 2008
   In the most recent issue of America Magazine, a Catholic weekly published by the Jesuits, Sister Camille D'Arienzo has written a compelling and courageous piece called Mercy Toward Our Fathers. It opens up the highly controversial subject of offering forgiveness to priests who abused children.
   In 2002, massive allegations came to the surface of abuse by Catholic priests, especially in the Los Angeles and Boston areas. In Los Angeles, for example, the Church paid out US$100-million to compensate 87 sex abuse victims. And then spent millions more to compensate scores of further victims across the country. It remains an especially painful issue, given that many abusers were shuttled from parish to parish in the hopes they would vanish quietly into the system.
   This is not an issue that will dissipate any time soon. Last week, for instance, the Archdiocese of Cincinnati published new guidelines for what priests could do with children. It prohibits big hugs, lap-sitting and putting children on one's shoulder or back, as well as bans on kissing, tickling or wrestling.
   [DOCTRINE: If anyone trips up one of these little ones, it were better that a millstone be tied around his neck, and he be drowned in the depths of the sea. ENDS.]

• Pastor charged with murder and incest

  [Hopkins]
   The Voice (United Kingdom), by Marcia Dixon, ~ August 19, 2008
   ALABAMA -- AN AMERICAN preacher was arrested for murder, sodomy and incest whilst holding a revival at the Inspiration Tabernacle Church, in Jackson, Alabama.
   Police stormed the small revival church where father of eight Rev Anthony Hopkins was preaching on July 28, armed with guns, and arrested him in front of the 50-strong congregation.
   They had received a tip off from Rev Hopkins' 19-year-old daughter, who told police at a child Advocacy Centre what had been happening at her home.

• Belleville Diocese abuse trial set to start

  [Kownacki]
   St. Louis Post-Dispatch, By Nicholas J.C. Pistor, August/19/2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) -- Opening statements in a sex abuse lawsuit against the Belleville Diocese and a retired priest will begin tomorrow morning.
   The suit is filed by a former altar boy who alleges he was sexually abused in the 1970s by Rev. Raymond Kownacki, now a retired priest. He also alleges the Belleville Diocese covered it up.

• Waukesha psychologist (and former priest) loses license

  [Mannelli]
   Public Investigator Blog (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel), By Keegan Kyle, 09:41 AM, Tuesday, Aug 19 2008
   WISCONSIN -- A Waukesha psychologist borrowed thousands of dollars from his patients and gave at least one advice on where to find a great strip club, according to a state investigation.
   Those professional transgressions cost David Mannelli his psychology license last month.
   Public Investigator occasionally reports disciplinary actions from the Wisconsin Department of Regulation and Licensing to keep consumers up-to-date on licensed businesses and professionals. (check out an older story about hair salons or our continuing coverage of a high-priced foot doctor.)

• Day 4 of trial focuses on priest misconduct

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (US$8.7m already). Diocese knowingly retained him. Altar boys.
   Burlington Free Press, August 19, 2008
   VERMONT -- The alleged sexual misconduct of several priests now retired or deceased became the focus of testimony Tuesday in the fourth day of a trial on claims by a Waitsfield man who alleges that, as Christ the King Church altar boy in the late 1970s, he was molested by the Rev. Edward Paquette.
   Attorney Jerome O'Neill, representing the Waitsfield man, questioned the Rev. Wendall Searles, a former vicar general for the state's Roman Catholic diocese, about the diocese's investigation into complaints about the Rev. George Paulin, who had his priestly duties suspended in 2002.
   Tom McComick, a diocesan lawyer, then had Searles review other documents regarding Paulin, the late Rev. Forrest Rouelle and Benjamin Wysolmerski that indicated the diocese's concern about sexual misconduct allegations.

• Scheidler v. Trombley (Planned Parenthood) update; Author's case studies of murdered priest, hanged priest

  - Murders of Fr Kunz and 2 others, and suicide of Fr Erickson.
   Renew America, by Matt C. Abbott, August 19, 2008
   UNITED STATES -- Catholic author Leon J. Podles has completed case studies of the 1998 unsolved murder of Father Alfred Kunz and the subsequent double homicide investigation of Dan O'Connell and James Ellison, which ultimately led to the suicide of Father Ryan Erickson. Both cases, while not connected, occurred in Wisconsin. The case study of Father Ryan Erickson contains certain details of which I was not previously aware.
   The following are links to said case studies in PDF format:
   Father Alfred Kunz
   Father Ryan Erickson (contains graphic and disturbing language)

• Sex Abuse Victims Criticize Michigan Governor, Senator for Praising Admitted Child Molester

  [Dr Hodgman]
   Voice from the Desert, ~ August 19, 2008
   MICHIGAN -- A support group for clergy sex abuse victims is asking two Michigan politicians to distance themselves from a teacher who admitted molesting a child.
   Last year, Senator Carl Levin and Governor Jennifer Granholm sent commendation letters to Dr. Thomas Hodgman, who is a music professor at Adrian College in Adrian. (The letters are on the college's website - http://www.adriancollegemusic.org/Gov%20letter.htm)
   Leaders of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, are writing Levin and Granholm, asking them to rescind the praise.
   "These politicians will likely say these letters are somewhat 'routine,' but it's still hurtful and intimidating to victims when high profile figures endorse a child molester -," said Claudia Vercellotti, who heads the Toledo SNAP chapter. "It's bad enough when religious officials applaud predators. It's even worse when secular officials do the same."

• Absolute Must Read: An Ill Wind Blows for Children of Chicago Catholics

  [Card George]
   Voice from the Desert, By Vinnie Nauheimer, ~ August 19, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Where would you look to find the church's most skilled buck passer, second only to the pope? Where would you look to find the master of denial with a straight face, who arguably sports the best razor sharp convenient memory in all of Chicago? You have to go no farther than Chicago's own Cardinal George. Like the pope, he would have us believe that he was never consciously in the business of hiding sexually abusive priests. He deserves special attention not only because of his condescending and despicable attitude towards children, civil law, church law and God, but because he is also the president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops whose stated purpose is:
   The purpose of the Conference is to promote the greater good which the Church offers humankind, especially through forms and programs of the apostolate fittingly adapted to the circumstances of time and place. 1
   As such, Cardinal George will be responsible for policy in the United States for the next three years and his minions will do the same into the foreseeable future.
   Cardinal George has proven himself particularly adept at fittingly adapting things to fit the circumstances of his view on clerical sexual abuse. The USCCB is the august body that created the very superficial and now legless Dallas Charter of 2002. It has subsequently been trampled upon by the Cardinal. How ironic is it that George led the delegation to Rome to receive the Vatican's stamp of approval for the Dallas Charter?

• Custody of two FLDS children in judge's hands

  - FLDS.
   Deseret News, By Ben Winslow Published 10:33 a.m. MDT Tuesday, Aug. 19, 2008
   SAN ANGELO, Texas – A judge has taken under advisement a custody case involving two children taken in the raid on the Fundamentalist LDS Church's YFZ Ranch.
   The hearing over the two children of Barbara Jessop and her husband, ranch leader Merril Jessop, ended with Jessop's attorney calling no witnesses and urging the judge to create a "starting point" with conditions for Barbara Jessop to follow so she will not lose her children.
   "We are asking the court to give Ms. Jessop a starting point so she can begin doing what they want her to do," said Gonzalo Rios, Jessop's attorney

• Story cannot be ignored

  [Sylvestre] - RCC. 47 girls.  
   Sarnia Observer, ~ August 19, 2008
   CANADA -- An important event took place on Sarnia's waterfront over the weekend. Victims of the late Charles Sylvestre, a disgraced pedophile priest, gathered at Dow People Place for an emotional ceremony.
   The women, who were abused by Sylvestre as children, contributed panels to a quilt that was unveiled during the event.
   The gathering included a song and poems specifically written about Sylvestre's victims and their experiences.
   And there were a lot of victims. Sylvestre pled guilty to molesting 47 girls over three decades when he served at parishes in Sarnia, Chatham, Windsor and Pain Court.

• Expert Witness Testifies in Priest Sex Abuse Trial

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). Diocese knowingly retained him. Altar boys.  
   Fox 44, ~ August 19, 2008
   VERMONT -- An expert witness, a catholic priest who specializes in counseling victims of clergy sexual abuse, testified Monday that the Catholic Diocese of Burlington was negligent in its handling of Father Edward Paquette in the 1970s.
   A former altar boy at Christ the King in Burlington claims the diocese acted irresponsibly when it hired Paquette even though it knew of reports of sexual abuse at parishes in Massachusetts and Indiana.
   Bishop John Marshall made that decision and then moved Paquette from parishes in Rutland to Montpelier and then finally Burlington as accusations of molestation arose at those places.
   Father Thomas Doyle said in Chittenden County Superior Court that evidence showed Paquette had a history of abusing boys in the Diocese he previously worked in.

• Adams' St. Stan's to fight closing

  - Pewfillers to fight for pew hall.
   Berkshire Eagle, By Meghan Foley, North Adams Transcript, Tuesday, August 19, 2008
   ADAMS (MA) – Parishioners of St. Stanislaus Kostka, like their counterparts at St. Francis of Assisi in North Adams, will fight the Diocese of Springfield's decision to close their church.
   About 150 parishioners met at the Elks Lodge for an often emotional discussion Sunday night about what the next steps should be for the Polish parish, the only one of its kind in the Berkshires.
   "It's very important. I feel like our heritage is being ripped away from us," Becky Zepka of Cheshire said.
   "We want to keep our church," said Joan Maznicki of Adams.

• Ex-pastor hopes that resurfacing of '86 conviction will "set me free"

  [≤ 1986 Slone] - Baptist. 2 charges.
   The Denver Post By Electa Draper Article Last Updated 01:23:23 AM MDT August/19/2008
   COLORADO -- Baptist Pastor David Slone dreamed of leading a church where people could expose and heal any sin or dark secret without fear of judgment or rejection.
   But a decades-old secret Slone kept from his Lafayette congregation surfaced last month, not through his testimony, but through anonymous letters mailed to church deacons, to newspapers and to a local chamber of commerce.
   In 1986, Slone had been convicted, after pleading guilty, to two counts of child molestation in Oklahoma. He was 22 and served a year in prison.
   [ALSO SEE: July 23, 2008 http://www. coloradohome townnews. com/Erie- Review/top- story.asp? ID=2917 .]

• Ex-Palestine youth pastor arrested on sex charges

  [Ponder]
   Palestine Herald Press By NICOLE HINES Cedar Creek Pilot, ~ August 19, 2008
   MABANK, TEXAS – First Baptist Church of Mabank youth minister Joshua Neal Ponder, 32, was arrested Aug. 13, for sexual assault of a teenager.
   Mabank Police Chief Kyle McAfee said Ponder confessed to charges related to a 16-year-old male victim.
   The assault allegedly occurred April 8 but was not reported until Aug. 8, according to reports.
   The teenager is not a member of the church.

• Deposition exposes Cardinal George

 
   Chicago Daily Herald, ~ August 19, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The truth only emerges when abuses are dealt with through settlements and bankruptcies. What a sad day for our faith.
   We must accept some of the blame for believing our pastoral leaders, revering them until the truth finally emerged.
   Well the jig is up. The exposition of Cardinal George's deposition testimony reveals information unavailable to Catholic citizens in the past.
   No surprise. The clerical culture is rife with secrecy, lies and cover ups the likes of which Catholics are only now uncovering through our legal system.

• Priest admits 27 cases of attacks on children

  [1970s-80s Fr William Green*] - RCC. Boys  
   Wigan Today, ~ August 19, 2008
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A priest from Wigan who has admitted 27 sex assaults on children probably wrecked even more young lives, it was claimed today.
   Father William Green, 67, a priest at the Holy Family Roman Catholic Church, New Springs, Wigan, has admitted 27 assaults on children who were aged between eight and 16. He faces a "significant" jail sentence.
   The charges relate to alleged incidents while he worked as a physical education teacher at St Bede's School in Manchester in the 1970s and 80s. He asked to see boys on his own and then took them into a room where he indecently assaulted them.

• Ex-youth pastor faces new charges of sex battery

  [1992+ Mr Picard] - Brethren Church. Girl.  
   CentralOhio.com , By MARK CAUDILL, News Journal, August 18, 2008
   MANSFIELD (OH) – Another person has come forward in the John Picard sexual battery case.
   Picard, 40, of Springboro, was arrested last month and charged with 10 counts of sexual battery. He is accused of having sexual relations with a teenage parishioner starting in 1992, when she was 13, and continuing until she reached adulthood. Picard was a youth pastor at Grace Brethren Church on Marion Avenue at the time.
   Picard was charged with six more counts of sexual battery in indictments released Monday. If convicted on all 16 counts, he could receive up to 80 years in prison.

• Priest testifies against diocese

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). RC priest Doyle speaks out. Diocese knowingly retained him. Altar boys.
   Burlington Free Press, By Sam Hemingway, August 19, 2008
   VERMONT -- A priest who has been a national critic of his church's handling of clergy sex abuse cases said Monday that the state's Roman Catholic diocese was irresponsible in handling molestation reports in the 1970s involving the Rev. Edward Paquette.
   "They were in some sort of vacuum," the Rev. Thomas Doyle told a Burlington jury. His testimony came during the third day of a trial on claims by a Waitsfield man that as a Christ the King Church altar boy he was molested by Paquette between 20 and 50 times in 1977 and 1978.
   "In my opinion, they were irresponsible," Doyle said of the Vermont diocese. "Their concern was for the image of the institutional church. I've seen this in more instances than I can count."
   Doyle, a former Air Force chaplain and Vatican embassy aide in Washington, D.C., has researched the issue of clergy sex abuse records for 24 years and written extensively on the subject. He is an advocate for the victims of such abuse and testified Monday on behalf of the Waitsfield man.

• Sect hearings make halting progress

  - FLDS. Mrs Jessop questioned.
   Abilene Reporter-News, By Paul A. Anthony, San Angelo Standard Times, Monday, August 18, 2008
   TEXAS -- Three times, the state's attorney asked Barbara Steed Jessop the question, stated slightly differently: Have you ever left your residence overnight while your two children remained?
   The answers varied.
   "We are there by ourselves," the 55-year-old woman said once during Monday's hearing. "I stay with my children," she said when asked again. The third time, she replied, "My daughters live there also."

• Child porn Scout leader must never work with children again

  [Mr McKeown] - Baptist. Pornography.  
   Worcester News, By Jack Blanchard, ~ August 19, 2008
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A FORMER scoutmaster who downloaded sickening porn from the internet has been banned from working with children for life.
   Police found 363 photographs of boys and girls as young as 12 on Graham McKeown's computers and 17 videos.
   His home in St George's Walk, Barbourne, Worcester, was raided after a mother became suspicious when he took her son on a trip to a red light district during a holiday abroad, said prosecutor Ian Ball. …
   The 45-year-old, an assistant leader at the 6th Worcester (Kempsey) troop for 26 years and a youth volunteer at St Peter's Baptist church, Worcester, could have been jailed for his crimes, said Judge Andrew Geddes. He said: "These were revolting images of children being degraded and suffering terrible trauma. You contributed to that kind of intolerable behaviour."

• Hearing to resume in new polygamist sect case

  - FLDS.  
   The Associated Press, By MICHELLE ROBERTS, ~ August 19, 2008
   SAN ANGELO, Texas (AP) – A mother accused of abuse for allegedly allowing her then-12-year-old daughter to marry polygamist leader Warren Jeffs plans to call in her defense a stepdaughter who returned voluntarily to the polygamist community.
   Barbara Jessop is fighting a request by the state to take away her now 14-year-old daughter and the girl's 11-year-old brother. Witnesses for the state argued Monday that Jessop isn't a suitable caregiver because the girl and several other children were involved in underage marriages. The 14-year-old allegedly married Jeffs, 52, in 2006.

• Knowledge is best defense against sex abuse, say experts

 
   Times Argus, By Peter Hirschfeld, Vermont Press Bureau, August 19, 2008 MONTPELIER, VERMONT – At the Park Street Program in Rutland, Chuck Laramie works five days a week with teenage boys accused of sex crimes against children.
   His work as their teacher, he said, has offered him insight into the minds and behavioral patterns of known abusers. And his informed assessment of the problem elicited audible gasps from an audience Monday.
   "In every single town in Vermont today, a kid is being sexually assaulted," Laramie said during a presentation on child sex abuse at the Statehouse.

• Former Bishop Gregory on pretrial witness list

  [1973-78 Kownacki] - RCC. Fraudulent concealment. Altar boy.
   News-Democrat, BY GEORGE PAWLACZYK, ~ August 19, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) -- Former Bishop Wilton Gregory is on the defense list of potential witnesses in a civil trial involving a Belleville Diocese priest accused of sexually molesting an altar boy, prospective jurors were told Monday.
   The trial involves a lawsuit brought in 2002 by James Wisniewski of Champaign, who alleges that when he was a 13-year-old altar boy at St. Theresa's Parish in Salem in the early 1970s, he was sexually assaulted by the Rev. Raymond Kownacki. Named as defendants are Kownacki and the diocese. Kownacki has stated he will not comment.
   Belleville attorney Mike Weilmuenster, who represents Wisniewski, asked potential jurors Monday whether they would give added weight to the testimony of witnesses who are or were officials of the Diocese. He mentioned four witnesses on the defense list -- Gregory, now archbishop of Atlanta, former vicar general Monsignor James Margason, current chancellor the Rev. Ken York, and Monsignor Joseph Schwaegel, who was removed from active ministry in the mid 1990s for a sexual addiction not involving a minor.

• Priest admits molesting schoolboys

  [1970s-80s Fr William Green*] - RCC. Boys  
   Manchester Evening News, by Nicola Dowling, August 18, 2008
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A PRIEST who sexually abused a string of boys at a top Catholic school more than 20 years ago has finally been brought to justice.
   Father William Green, 67, who took physical education classes at St Bede's College in Alexandra Park, Manchester, has admitted 27 assaults on children who were aged between eight and 16. He faces a `significant' jail sentence.
   Green, who was a priest at the Holy Family Roman Catholic Church, Wigan, made excuses to see boys on their own, taking them to a room where he indecently assaulted them.

• Former Vatican counsel castigates Vt. church

  - RCC. Fr Tom Doyle in 1980s forecast huge money costs.  
   Times Argus By Kevin O'Connor, Rutland Herald, August 19, 2008
   BURLINGTON, VERMONT – A former Vatican canon lawyer testified Monday that Vermont's Catholic Church was "irresponsible" and "negligent" in dealing with a pedophile priest who's now the focus of 20 civil lawsuits.
   "The concern was for the image of the institutional church – 'How are we going to look?'" said the Rev. Thomas Doyle. "What I didn't find was any serious effort to sit down with the families to provide pastoral care, to consider the harm that had been done to these victims."
   Doyle said he spoke from experience: Working for the pope in Washington a quarter century ago, he helped write a confidential report that documented the then-secret details of sexual abuse by U.S. priests and warned it could cost the church more than $1 billion – a figure reached three years ago.
   "They knew that this man had repeatedly acted out in every assignment in spite of intervention," Doyle said of the Vermont diocese. "But I didn't see any indication that either the pastors or communities were informed." [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 19, 2008 6:31 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Tue August 19, 2008
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Wed August 20, 2008 edition:

• Priest facing criminal charges placed in monastery

  [2008 Ramirez -NEW*] - RCC. Battery, burglary. Boy (17).  
   The Orange County Register, By RACHANEE SRISAVASDI, ~ August 20, 2008
   CALIFORNIA -- A Roman Catholic priest facing criminal charges for taking an unaccompanied youth to a motel room was removed from his Santa Ana parish and placed in an area monastery pending his sentencing today in the case.
   The Rev. Luis Eduardo Ramirez, a member of the Augustinian Recollects order who has worked at Our Lady of the Pillar parish since 2003, was arrested by Anaheim police Jan. 8 on suspicion of child annoyance or molestation and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
   The case has not been publicized, other than a diocese announcement in the church bulletin.
   Ramirez was arrested after taking to a motel room a 17-year-old boy whose mother asked Ramirez to counsel, said his attorney Gary Pohlson.

• Faith healer Todd Bentley separates from wife, draws criticism from charismatics

  [~ 2000s Bentley -NEW*] - "Fresh Fire." Female.    
   Church Executive, By David Roach, ~ August 20, 2008
   NASHVILLE, TN--With controversial faith healer Todd Bentley announcing that he is separating from his wife, charismatic leaders J. Lee Grady and Stephen Strang have reacted by saying someone should have raised questions about Bentley earlier.
   Grady, editor of the popular charismatic magazine Charisma, said the way thousands celebrated Bentley despite his moral and theological shortcomings demonstrated a lack of discernment that pervades the charismatic movement. …
   On Aug. 15, the board of Fresh Fire released a statement saying it had learned Bentley had been involved in "an unhealthy relationship on an emotional level with a female member of his staff." The statement said Bentley had agreed to "to refrain from all public ministry for a season to receive counsel in his personal life." [LOOK BACK: July 18, 2008]

• Former Morris priest pleads guilty

  [~ 2000s Caskey -NEW*] - Christian. Child pornography.  
   Morris Sun Tribune, www.morris suntribune. com/articles/ index.cfm? id=14647 , for Thursday, August 21, 2008
   MINNESOTA -- A former Morris priest charged with possessing pornographic images of children on computers has pled guilty as part of a plea agreement.
   John Lloyd Caskey, 53, was charged with 20 counts of possessing child pornography in Stevens County District Court earlier this year.
   On Wednesday, he pled guilty to the first three counts and admitted possessing the images of minors, according to Stevens County Attorney Charles Glasrud. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 20, 2008 6:42 PM]

• Padre Minor Gets Sentence Increased On Appeal

  [? 2000s Fr Minor -NEW*] - RCC.  
   Inside Costa Rica, August 20, 2008
   COSTA RICA -- Catholic priest, Padre Minor de Jesús Calvo, looking to reduce his sentence lived yesterday what perhaps can be described as the worst day in his life, in hearing the decision of the Sala Tercera de Casación Penal in reviewing his appeal.
   The Sala III decided to upgrade his sentence from "estafa" to "estafa agravada", along with that an increase in the sentence.
   The Sala III magistrates decided not annul the sentence for 'estafa" of donations made to the Radio María radio as claimed by Calvo in his appeal, but instead ratified the lower court sentence and elevated it to a higher level of "agravada".

• Former Catholic school principal pleads guilty to theft

  [? 2000s Ms Little -NEW*] - RCC. ADMITTED. Money US$8000.  
   The Star-Ledger, by Jennifer Golson / 4:03 PM, Wednesday August 20, 2008
   NEW JERSEY -- A former Catholic school principal admitted this afternoon to taking more than $8,000 from two institutions in the Diocese of Metuchen.
   Michelle Little, 40, of Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty to third- and fourth-degree theft for the incidents that occurred at Holy Family Academy in Bound Brook and the now-defunct Corpus Christi Elementary School in South River.
   Little and her defense attorney Eric B. Morrell appeared before Superior Court Judge Paul Amstrong in Somerville. Somerset County Assistant Prosecutor Nicole McGrath handled the case for the state.

• Hindu leader not allowed in festival

  [1993 Saraswati - ? NEW*] - Hindu. 2 girls.
   KXAN, ~ August 20, 2008
   HAYS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) - In a hearing Wednesday afternoon, a Hays County judge denied a Hindu leader's request to attend Janmashtmi, one of the greatest celebrations of the Hindu community on Aug. 23.  Prakashanand Saraswati, also known as Shree Swamiji or Swami Ji, was charged with 20 counts of indecency with a child back in May.
   According to the indictments, Saraswati was accused of groping two girls younger than 17.  He was charged with 10 counts of indecency with each girl.  Court documents stated the indecency incidents happened twice a month over six months, dating back to 1993.
   Saraswati, 79, founded the Barsana Dham temple in Hays County in 1993.

• Sex Charges Dropped Against OC Priest

  [? 2008 Ramirez*] - RCC. ADMITS battery, burglary.
   KTLA, ~ August 20, 2008
   ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA -- An Orange County priest accused of child sex charges has been placed in an area monastery pending his sentencing in the case.
   The Rev. Luis Eduardo Ramirez, has worked at Our Lady of the Pillar parish since 2003.
   In January he was arrested by Anaheim police on suspicion of child annoyance or molestation after taking a 17-year old boy to a motel room.
   He pleaded guilty in June to misdemeanor battery and burglary in a plea bargain with prosecutors who dropped the sex charges.

• Mexico church assailed for maligning miniskirt

  - RC leader criticises very short skirts.  
   The Associated Press, http://ap. google.com/ article/ALeq M5jFQr9FHsq- ZMG9RKpaq3 CpkRLdmQD92 LK9FO0 , By MARY CUDDEHE, ~ August 20, 2008
   MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AP) – A Catholic priest's condemnation of miniskirts on an official church Web site is causing outrage among some Mexican women, who say the Roman Catholic Church is making it easier to justify sexual violence against women. …
   Guadalupe Loaeza, a renowned Mexican social commentator, said she worries the priest's statements will be taken seriously and make it acceptable to blame the victim.
   "It gives rapists permission to say, 'Well, she had on a miniskirt,'" Loaeza said. "What the church says has credibility – that's why this type of statement is so dangerous." [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 20, 2008 8:52 AM]
   [COMMENT: I thought the problem in the RCC was SHORTS, not SKIRTS. ENDS]

• Maryknoll priest warned against supporting women priests

  - Fr Bourgeois.  
   Indian Catholic, ~ August 20, 2008
   WASHINGTON, UNITED STATES (CNS) -- Maryknoll Father Roy Bourgeois has received a canonical warning from his order's leadership council because of his involvement in a reported ordination ceremony sponsored by Roman Catholic Womenpriests.
   The warning came during a four-hour meeting Aug. 18 between Father Bourgeois and Maryknoll Superior General Father John Sivalon and the two other members of the order's General Council in Maryknoll, N.Y.
   The meeting was called to discuss Father Bourgeois' role in what Roman Catholic Womenpriests considers the ordination of Janice Sevre-Duszynska to the priesthood nine days earlier in Lexington, Ky.
   A canonical warning informs a person of a violation of church law. Any future violation of canon law could lead to additional penalties such as the opening of dismissal procedures or excommunication.
   [COMMENT: A warning only, for defying the Roman Church's teaching, which itself now refuses to ordain women deacons, in spite of the deaconess Phoebe being praised in the New Testament.  ENDS.]

• Priest guilty of abusing schoolkids

  [1970s-80s Fr William Green*] - RCC. ≥ 6 boys  
   Mirror, August 20, 2008
   UNITED KINGDOM -- COURT -- A paedophile priest faces jail after he was convicted of preying on boys at a leading Catholic school.
   Father William Green, 67, molested at least six victims over 10 years at the £7,995- a-year, 920-pupil St Bede's College in Manchester.
   The attacks were in the 70s and 80s at the school where former pupils include Doctor Who actor Colin Baker.

• Another clergy sex abuse and cover up lawsuit is filed

  - RCC being charged again.  
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, ~ August 20, 2008
   DENVER (CO) -- WHAT
   At a sidewalk news conference, clergy sex abuse victims and their supporters will announce another child molestation lawsuit against the Denver archdiocese. They will also urge local Catholic officials to
   -- disclose whether they have or are trying to get any convicted predators out of prison early, and
   -- ask a recently convicted Colorado sex offender priest to voluntarily give the bishop his passport, so he won't have a chance to flee the country (as several pedophile priests have done recently).
   The request comes on the heels of shocking court documents that surfaced last week in Chicago showing that the head of the US bishops' conference spent nearly a decade trying to get a convicted serial pedophile priest an early release from prison. It is timely because of the recent case of Fr. Whipkey, who was convicted of indecent exposure, may be jailed.
   WHEN
   Wednesday, Aug. 20, 10:00 a.m.
   WHERE
   Outside the Colorado Catholic Conference Offices, 1535 Logan St, (on the side of the Cathedral, in downtown Denver

• Cape priest flees country after abuse accusation

  [≤ 2008 Lima*] - RCC. Minor.    
   The Boston Globe, By David Abel, August 20, 2008
   CAPE COD (MA) -- A Cape Cod priest fled to his native Brazil after being accused of sexually assaulting a child in Connecticut, church officials said yesterday.
   The Rev. Jose Afonso Lima, 46, of South Yarmouth was suspended last week from his work ministering to the Brazilian community at St. Francis Xavier Church in Hyannis, St. Patrick's Church in Falmouth, and Good Shepherd Parish on Martha's Vineyard, said John Kearns, a spokesman for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fall River.
   Church officials said Lima learned of the allegations when he received a letter last week from the Connecticut Department of Children and Families.
   Kearns said that Lima promptly alerted church officials about the allegations and denied them.

• Parish appeals merger to Vatican

  - RCC parish resists abolition.  
   Courier-Post, By JIM WALSH, August 20, 2008
   HADDON TOWNSHIP (PA) – A parish here has asked the Vatican to enter its dispute with Bishop Joseph Galante over a planned reconfiguration of the Diocese of Camden.
   Lay leaders at St. Vincent Pallotti have filed an appeal with the Congregation for the Clergy in Rome, seeking to block a merger with St. Aloysius of Oaklyn.
   "None of it makes sense," Ed Pierzynski, a St. Vincent Pallotti parishioner, said of the merger, which would end the use of the Westmont church as a worship site. The planned merger is part of a program, announced by Galante in April, to cut the number of parishes in the diocese from 124 to 66 over a two-year period.
   The appeal is meant to freeze the merger process in the two parishes "until the whole administrative recourse process has come to conclusion in Rome," said Pierzynski. He expressed confidence that the Vatican body "will be an advocate for our parish rights."
   But church law won't allow that yet, said Andrew Walton, a diocesan spokesman.
   [COMMENT: "Parish rights"!  That will be the day!]

• Accountability and the church

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). No invisible indelible mark on his soul, says Nun. Diocese knowingly retained him. Altar boys.
   Rutland Herald, By SISTER MAUREEN PAUL TURLISH, August 20, 2008
   VERMONT -- Pedophile priest Edward Paquette is an archetypal figure, a product of the clerical system that spawned him or at least enabled and protected him. He speaks to the tragic need to change all states' inadequate childhood sexual abuse statutes for the protection of everyone.
   To even consider that Paquette would really remain a priest even though removed from ministry because the church teaches that there is an indelible priestly character taken on by the soul during ordination ceremonies is appalling.
   It is insulting to the priests I know, especially those I have met across the country who attempt to minister to two and even three parish communities in rural areas of Colorado, Iowa, Louisiana and Minnesota. These men, these priests, represent the spiritual underpinning of the church, at least in the Roman Catholic Church I know.
   Sexual abusers like Paquette and his ilk are men of unrelenting depravity and as such have abrogated any claims to such an appellation by the perfidy of their actions in the sexual abuse of numerous children, young people or vulnerable adults of either sex.

• Victims of abuse by clergy get support

  - SNAP to form branch.
   The Buffalo News, By Jay Tokasz, August/20/08
   NEW YORK -- A national support and advocacy group for victims of clergy sexual abuse is starting a chapter in Western New York.
   The Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, known as SNAP, held its first meeting last week in Amherst.
   The meeting was organized and led by Mark Lyman, volunteer director of a SNAP chapter in Albany. Five people attended, although organizers expect the number to grow with increased awareness of the group.

• Kansas City Priests, Abuse Victims Reach Agreement

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. 47 victims.
   My Fox Kansas City, ~ August 20, 2008
   KANSAS CITY (MO) -- Although the bishop hasn't signed off on it yet, lawyers for victims of sexual abuse by priests in the Kansas City area said they came to an agreement Tuesday night. One of the major points is a forthcoming apology.
   "The Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph will apologize for the wrongful abuse by its priests," attorney Patrick Noaker said.
   In addition to the public apology, the Diocese will not recommend anyone accused of such crimes for other jobs, especially ones involving children.

• Testimony to start today in priest suit

  [Kownacki]
   News-Democrat, BY GEORGE PAWLACZYK, ~ August 20, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) --A jury was seated Tuesday, and opening statements are set to begin this morning in a civil trial where a former altar boy is claiming he was psychologically damaged when a priest sexually molested him.
   The trial involves a lawsuit filed in 2002 by James Wisniewski, 47, of Champaign, who alleges that the Rev. Raymond Kownacki, of Dupo, molested Wisniewski beginning at age 13 at St. Theresa's Parish in Salem.
   Kownacki, who was removed from active ministry in 1995, has said he will not comment on the case.

• Diocese tries to use confidential records to aid its case

  - RCC.
   Burlington Free Press, By Sam Hemingway, August 20, 2008
   VERMONT -- The clergy sex abuse trial in Burlington took an unexpected turn Tuesday when a lawyer for the state's Roman Catholic diocese had a church official review confidential personnel records of six former priests accused of molesting children.
   "I'm going to show you documents that were not shown you yesterday," attorney Tom McCormick told former diocesan Vicar General Wendall Searles as he put into evidence a series of letters and memos detailing the diocese's response to molestation allegations involving the priests.
   The move by McCormick was a surprise because the diocese has, over the years, strongly opposed having its priest personnel records become public.
   In previous trials, including one in May that ended with an $8.7 million verdict, the diocese did not rely on the documents as part of its defense. That verdict, which stunned the diocese at the time, has been appealed.

• Catholics must have courage to speak out

  - RCC.
   Chicago Daily Herald, ~ August 20, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The deposition of Cardinal George sadly points to an endemic problem in the Catholic Church.
   It is replicated in city after city (Boston, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Chicago, etc.) with the same chants of theatrical apologies and settlements.
   This is about morality, the very attribute that they chide us to live by.
   There is no integrity among thieves. They treat us as second class citizens, lie to us, betray us and steal from us and we take it. [COMMENT: The deposition evidence shows that it is a built-in problem, due to the monarchical system having no Upper and Lower "Houses of Parliament" to dismiss people who sin against purity, honesty, and good governance. ENDS.]

• Mexican Priest Blames Rapes On Women Wearing Miniskirts

  - RC leader criticises very short skirts.  
   News Blaze, By Robert Paul Reyes, ~ August 20, 2008
   MEXICO -- "A Catholic priest's condemnation of miniskirts on an official church Web site is causing outrage among some Mexican women, who say the Roman Catholic Church is making it easier to justify sexual violence against women.
   The Rev. Sergio G. Roman sounded the alarm against miniskirts in an online publication to prepare Catholics for a church family-values forum next year in Mexico City.
   'When we show our body without prudence, without modesty, we are prostituting ourselves,' wrote Roman, a Mexico City priest.' " Quotation from Associated Press/Mary Cuddehe
   I thought that this type of sexist mindset no longer existed, even in the reactionary Roman Catholic Church.

• News Story…

  - VOTF calls on head cardinal to resign.  
   Catholica (Australia), ~ August 20, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- In a significant escalation of the clergy sexual abuse scandal in the United States the lay movement formed in the wake of the Abuse scandal, Voice of the Faithful, has published a media release today calling for the Archbishop of Chicago and President of the American Catholic Bishops Conference, Cardinal Francis George, to resign. Following is the text of the media release.
   Text of Media Release from Voice of the Faithful
   The recently revealed deposition by Cardinal Francis George is a clear indictment of his pastoring skills and his inability to lead the people of Chicago. His repeated failures in both the Bennett and McCormack cases indicate a trend to disregard advice from outside clerical circles and continue to follow precedents of deceit, cover-ups and secrecy (imbedded in the clerical culture) in lieu of protecting innocent children from irreparable harm.
   Voice of the Faithful, reviewing the concrete revelations in the deposition, has no choice but to ask the Cardinal to step down. We call for his resignation.
   We also call for a criminal investigation of the actions within the Archdiocese revealed in this deposition. (325 IL. Comp. Stat. Ann.5/4 (West, WESTLAW through 2003 Reg. Sess.))
   We ask, "Where is the criminal justice system in light of demonstrated criminal failings repeated across the country, diocese after diocese? When will Catholic citizens demand morality and justice in our own Church?"

• UNFIT TO LEAD

  - VOTF wants criminal investigation.
   Voice from the Desert, ~ August 20, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The recently revealed deposition by Cardinal Francis George is a clear indictment of his pastoring skills and his inability to lead the people of Chicago. His repeated failures in the both the Bennett and McCormack cases indicate a trend to disregard advice from outside clerical circles and continue to follow precedents of deceit, cover ups and secrecy (imbedded in the clerical culture) in lieu of protecting innocent children from irreparable harm.
   Voice of the Faithful, reviewing the concrete revelations in the deposition, has no choice but to ask the Cardinal to step down. We call for his resignation.
   We also call for a criminal investigation of the actions within the Archdiocese revealed in this deposition. (325 IL. Comp. Stat. Ann.5/4 (West, WESTLAW through 2003 Reg. Sess.))
   We ask, "Where is the criminal justice system in light of demonstrated criminal failings repeated across the country, diocese after diocese? When will Catholic citizens demand morality and justice in our own Church?"

• Reform group urges Cardinal George to resign

  - VOTF requests resignation.
   Chicago Tribune, 11:48 PM CDT, August 19, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- A lay reform group on Tuesday called on Cardinal Francis George to leave his post as Chicago's Catholic archbishop, saying recent revelations about his handling of sexual abuse allegations against priests were intolerable.
   Leaders of the Boston-based Voice of the Faithful said they can't understand why the cardinal ignored advice to remove from ministry two priests accused of abusing minors or why he worked to reduce the prison sentence of a convicted child molester–actions the cardinal disclosed last week as part of a $12.7 million settlement involving 16 abuse victims and 11 accused priests.
   Colleen Dolan, communications director for the Chicago archdiocese, said the cardinal has not considered resigning.

• Tentative settlement reached in KC priest abuse cases

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. US $10m going. 47 victims.
   The Kansas City Star, {with link to video giving comments from lawyers for the plaintiffs}, {with link to a list of the priests involved]}, By MARK MORRIS, ~ August 20, 2008
   KANSAS CITY (MO) -- The Catholic Diocese in Kansas City and more than 40 victims of clergy sexual abuse tentatively agreed late Tuesday to settle lawsuits against the church for about $10 million.
   The settlement – which still must receive final approval by Bishop Robert Finn and two church boards – also requires the diocese to take new steps to prevent further molestation by priests. The settlement could become final by Thursday, lawyers said.
   Attorneys for the plaintiffs described the settlement as the largest by the church in Missouri and said it would resolve claims filed in Jackson County from 2002 to the present. The lawsuits alleged clergy sexual abuse beginning almost 60 years ago and continuing into the 1990s.

• $10M Settlement Made In Clergy Sex Abuse

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. US $10m going. 47 victims.
   KMBC, with video, ~ August 20, 2008
   KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph on Tuesday agreed to a $10 million settlement in a clergy sex abuse case.
   The $10 million will settle 47 claims of child sexual abuse against 12 priests.
   KMBC's Martin Augustine reported that it will settle everything on file in Jackson County District Court. Some of the claims date back 50 years.
   In addition to the $10 million payment, the settlement includes 19 noneconomic points, including that the bishop write letters of apology to the victims and their families.

• 6 sect youths return to custody of state

  [Jessop family problems] - FLDS.
   San Angelo Standard-Times, By Paul A. Anthony, August 20, 2008
   TEXAS -- A series of agreements and a ruling by state District Judge Barbara Walther placed six children from the FLDS in state custody. However, only one - the 14-year-old girl alleged to have been married to polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs at age 12 - will be placed in foster care.
   A gaggle of attorneys representing the state's Child Protective Services agency, four sets of parents and seven children arrived at three agreements Tuesday afternoon covering five of the children.
   Earlier in the day, Walther ordered the alleged Jeffs bride to be removed from the custody of her parents, leading sect couple Merril and Barbara Jessop. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 20, 2008 2:26 AM]

• Diocese Sex Abuse Scandal Settlement May Bring Help to Victims

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. 47 victims.
   My Fox Kansas City, ~ August 20, 2008
   KANSAS CITY (MO) -- A pending settlement in a Catholic Church sex abuse scandal could be the first of its kind in Missouri.
   The settlement includes 47 persons who have sued the Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese. The Diocese is expected to finalize it by Thursday.
   As part of the settlement, the Bishop will apologize to the victims who have filed lawsuits. Counseling will be made available to them, and the victims will no longer be called "alleged" victims. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 20, 2008 6:59 PM]

• Fired Pastor Becomes Controversial Hire At nearby Church

  [- ? 2007 Thomas] - Christian. Money.  
   NBC 5, ~ August 20, 2008
   ORLAND HILLS, (IL) -- When the Rev. George Thomas was booted from a south suburban church last year for allegedly diverting hundreds of thousands of dollars for personal use, the last place the congregation expected to see him next was at the pulpit of an affiliated church.
   That's why they were stunned to learn that Thomas recently was hired as school principal and associate pastor at Christian Hills Church in Orland Hills.
   "I was quite shocked," said Gregory Morris, president of the board of directors of All Nations Community Church in Homewood.

• Canadian revivalist resigns from ministry over 'unhealthy relationship' with woman

  [- 2008 Bentley*] - "Fresh Fire." Female.    
   The Canadian Press, ~ August 20, 2008
   ABBOTSFORD, B.C., CANADA – Todd Bentley, the Canadian revivalist whose tactics drew protest from some fellow Pentecostals, has resigned from public ministry after acknowledging an "unhealthy relationship on an emotional level" with a female staff member.
   The board of Bentley's Fresh Fire Ministries announced the resignation last Friday, saying the pastor has agreed to "receive counsel in his personal life."  Days earlier, the board of directors had said that Bentley, 32, and his wife Shonnah had separated.

• Ex-principal in Bound Brook, South River pleads guilty to theft charges

  [2006-08 Ms Little*] - RCC. Money > US #8000.  
   Home News Tribune, August 20, 2008
   SOMERVILLE, NEW JERSEY – The former principal of two parochical schools in Middlesex and Somerset counties pleaded guilty Wednesday to two counts of theft.
   Michelle Little, 40, of Tobyhanna, Pa., pleaded guilty before Superior Court Judge Paul Armstrong in Somerville that as principal of Corpus Christi Elementary School in South River, she stole approximately $241.48 between July 1, 2006, and June 30, 2007, from the principal's petty cash account.
   While employed as the principal of Holy Family Academy in Bound Brook, she admitted to stealing approximately $7,787.00 between July 1, 2007 and March 13, 2008 from the principal's petty cash account.

• Mexico church assailed for maligning miniskirt

  - RCC gives sex advice.  
   Los Angeles Times, ~ August 20, 2008
   MEXICO -- Last week's condemnation of the miniskirt by the Mexican Catholic Church has enraged some Mexican women, who say the church's statement that women should wear less provocative clothing makes it easier to justify rape and other forms of violence against them.
   Last week's statement, which advised women not to get into "spicy" conversations with men if they wanted to avoid rape and violence, said:
   If you want to avoid sexual aggression … do not use provocative clothing … watch your glances … don't be alone with a man, even if you know him … don't permit spicy chats or jokes … look for help when you suspect bad intentions.
   Women protested in front of the cathedral in Mexico City's Zocalo over the weekend – wearing miniskirts of course – and the statement has been lambasted by newspaper columnists and women's rights activists.
   [SCRIPTURE-TYPE WISDOM: Before trying to remove the speck from your neighbour's eye, first remove the log from your own. ENDS.]

• Diocese Sex Abuse Scandal Settlement May Bring Help to Victims

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. 47 victims.  
   My Fox Kansas City, ~ August 20, 2008
   KANSAS CITY (MO) -- A pending settlement in a Catholic Church sex abuse scandal could be the first of its kind in Missouri.
   The settlement includes 47 persons who have sued the Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese. The Diocese is expected to finalize it by Thursday.
   As part of the settlement, the Bishop will apologize to the victims who have filed lawsuits. Counseling will be made available to them, and the victims will no longer be called "alleged" victims.
   Many of the people who took the Diocese to court said St. Elizabeth's Rectory is where a lot of the abuse went on. In fact, there is a group of victims and family members who have asked the Bishop to demolish the rectory.
   David Biersmith wishes the memories could be wiped away as easily as a building. Among the 47 people who sued the Diocese was David Biersmith's son Christopher.

• Priest sex-abuse trial begins in Belleville

  [1973-78 Kownacki] - RCC. Fraudulent concealment. Girl previously. Altar boy.
   St. Louis Post-Dispatch, By Nicholas J.C. Pistor, August/20/2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) -- The Belleville Diocese has covered up decades of sex abuse by priests, an attorney said this morning during opening arguments in a civil lawsuit filed by a former altar boy who says he was abused by a priest.
   Michael Weilmuenster, representing the former altar boy, told jurors that his client was molested by the Rev. Raymond Kownacki just months after the Belleville Diocese had received complaints that Kownacki raped a girl and tried to perform an abortion on her.
   Weilmuenster said in an opening statement this morning that Kownacki told his client, who was 12 years old at the time: "The Catholic church condones this, other priests do it."

• Tentative $10M settlement in KC church abuse cases

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. ~ US $10m going. 47 victims.
   The Associated Press, ~ August 20, 2008
   KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – The bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Kansas City and St. Joseph says a tentative $10 million deal has been reached to settle 47 sexual abuse claims against a dozen clergy or former clergy.
   Bishop Robert W. Finn tells priests in a letter released late Tuesday night that the agreement is subject to his approval after he consults with two diocese boards.

• Agreement in works in priest abuse case

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. ~ US $10m going. 47 victims.
   The Examiner, By Debbie Coleman-Topi - deborah.topi@examiner.net , Posted 12:19 PM, Aug 20, 2008
   EASTERN JACKSON COUNTY, Missouri – A tentative agreement was put in place late Tuesday in which the Catholic diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph agreed to pay about $10 million to 47 alleged victims of sexual abuse or misconduct, according to a diocese spokesperson.
   "The conversations have been taking place, but the bishop (Robert Finn) hasn't executed an agreement," said Rebecca Summers, director of communications for the diocese.
   However, the bishop released a letter late Tuesday night to area priests, updating progress on the case. The letter states that diocese officials and legal staff are negotiating a group settlement of all existing lawsuits. The cases involve 47 victims and 12 clergy or former clergy and are said to have occurred between 1951 and 1992, the letter states.
   [COMMENT: From 1951 to 1992 -- that wasn't some bit of sin, it was a SYSTEM of sinning!]

• Kansas City diocese settles abuse suits

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. ~ US $10m going. 47 victims.
   United Press International, Aug. 20, 2008
   KANSAS CITY, Mo., (UPI) -- A tentative settlement has been reached between the Roman Catholic diocese of Kansas City and 47 people who claim they were molested by priests.
   Under the agreement announced late Tuesday, the victims would receive a total of about $10 million, the Kansas City Star reports.
   If the settlement is approved by Bishop Robert Finn and other church officials, it would settle lawsuits filed over abuse that allegedly occurred in Jackson County, Mo., from 2002 to 2008, lawyers said.

• Another priest sex abuse lawsuit announced

  [White]
   Fox 21, ~ August 20, 2008
   DENVER (CO), (AP) -- Advocates for victims of sex abuse say another lawsuit is being filed against the Archdiocese of Denver.
   The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests said Wednesday the latest case involves a man identified only as John Doe. He alleges he was abused by the late priest Harold White at St. Catherine's parish in Denver in the 1960s.

• Former principals testify

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). (20 cases). Altar boys.
   Burlington Free Press, August 20, 2008
   VERMONT -- Two Roman Catholic priests who have served as principals at parochial high schools in Vermont, told a Burlington jury Wednesday they would never have hired someone with a history of sexually abusing children to teach in their schools.
   "No, I would not have," said the Rev. Roland Rivard, a former principal of Rice Memorial High School in South Burlington. Asked why not, Rivard said "Because of the threat of potential harm to the students.  The Rev. Richard LaValley, a former principal at Mount St. Joseph Academy in Rutland, agreed. "I wouldn't want to take that risk," he said.
   The two priests' testimony came on the fifth day in the trial involving claims by a Waitsfield man who says that, as an altar boy at Christ the King Church in the late 1970s, he was molested by the Rev. Edward Paquette between 20 and 50 times.
   According to church records shown the jury in the case, the diocese hired Paquette knowing he had molested boys at parishes in Massachusetts and Indiana before coming to Vermont.

• Diocese leaders covered up for priests, attorney in trial says

  [1973-78 Kownacki] - RCC. 30-yr fraudulent concealment. Altar boy.
   News-Democrat, BY GEORGE PAWLACZYK, ~ August 20, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) --High-ranking church officials "aided and abetted" and "enabled" one of its priests to engage in criminal sexual molestation of minors, an attorney said today in opening statements of a trial in a lawsuit brought by a former altar boy.
   The lawsuit, filed in 2002, names the diocese as defendant and alleges that the Rev. Raymond Kownacki, who was removed from ministry in 1995, sexually abused James Wisniewski of Champaign, 47, for five years beginning when he was 13.
   Kownacki, of Dupo, recently suffered a stroke and is unable to attend the trial.
   In a Power Point presentation on a screen to the jury, Weilmuenster reviewed what he called a "paper trail" of documents that he said will prove that the diocese for 30 years covered up detailed reports of sexual abuse of minors by Kownacki and other priests who have since been removed from active ministry.

• Out-of-court deal appears likely in sex allegations against ex-Wyo. Bishop Hart

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. ~ US $10m going. 47 victims.
   Wyoming Tribune-Eagle, By Michael Van Cassell, mcassell@wyomingnews.com , August 20, 2008
   CHEYENNE, Wyoming -- Sexual abuse allegations against former Wyoming Roman Catholic Bishop Joseph Hart may soon be settled out of court, along with dozens of related lawsuits.
   According to an attorney for the plaintiffs, a settlement is expected in Missouri civil lawsuits involving allegations of sexual abuse and cover-ups against Hart and other priests in the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph.
   The Kansas City Star reported on its Web site late Tuesday that 47 plaintiffs have agreed to settle for about $10 million.
   Six of the cases involving the Kansas City diocese name Joseph Hart, who served as the Diocese of Cheyenne's bishop from 1978 to 2001, when he retired.

• Atlanta archbishop to testify in sexual misconduct trial

 
   The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, By CHRISTOPHER QUINN, Wednesday, August 20, 2008
   ATLANTA (GA) -- Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory of Atlanta has been called to testify in a civil suit over allegations of sexual misconduct by an Illinois priest.
   Gregory served as Archbishop of Belleville, Ill., from 1994 to 2004.
   According to a report in the Belleville News-Democrat, an attorney for Wisniewski told jurors Wednesday morning in opening arguments that church officials covered up evidence of the abuse for years.

• THE POPE'S VISITS: A REFLECTION ON WAITING

  - RCC wasting money on lawyers.
   Voice from the Desert, by the Rev Thomas Doyle, August 20, 2008
   VERMONT -- This past Monday I testified at a trial. The diocese had ample notice that the abuser-priest was a danger to minors. The former bishop of the diocese being sued had received this priest from another diocese and that diocese in turn had received him from his home diocese. In the first diocese the bishop kicked him out after he had sexually assaulted boys in three out of the four parishes to which he had been assigned. He found a new bishop who took him in. In that diocese he sexually assaulted boys in each of the four parishes to which he had been assigned. That bishop gave him his walking papers and he ended up in the last diocese. There he sexually assaulted boys in the first two parishes to which he was assigned and was sent to a third. That's where he assaulted the plaintiff in the case. The bishop knew all of this but, to use his own words, he was willing "to take the risk." Sounds like a slam dunk doesn't it? It gets better. This is the third trial for this diocese. They have already lost in two. They are about 20 more projected for victims of the same priest.
   The trials are a nightmare for the victims and their families. They are expensive as well. The lawyers who represent the diocese get paid one way or the other. The lawyers for the victims are on contingency. The church lawyers' fees come from the donations of the people. If the jury gives a big award, some people will get bent out of shape and complain about how much the payments to the victims cost the diocese. They really ought to complain about the payments to the lawyers which are totally unnecessary.
   I learned during a break that the little guy in the black outfit sitting at the corner of the defense table was the bishop. I also learned that neither he nor any of his predecessors had ever reached out to any of the victims. Throughout the day as I sat on the stand and answered questions I looked at the victim on my left and the bishop on my right. What was wrong with that picture? Simple! The bishop was in the wrong place. He should have been sitting next to the victim offering support, sympathy, kindness and hope. Instead he was on the other side, probably worrying that the testimony was not making his diocese look too good.

• Sex abuse and the Catholic Church: No change

  [2008 Ramirez*] - RCC. City and Church quite discreet. Battery, burglary. Boy.
   William Lobdell, August 20th, 2008
   CALIFORNIA -- If you're Catholic and think the clergy sexual abuse scandal is behind you, think again.
   Here's a "post"-scandal story of Father Luis Eduardo Ramirez, who was arrested in January in Anaheim for suspicion of child annoyance or molestation and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. The city of Anaheim didn't publicize the case, and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange – which fancies itself as being "open and transparent" when it comes to priests who mess around with children – only placed an item in the church bulletin of the accused priest's church, Our Lady of the Pillar.
   As a sexual abuse expert will tell you, the vast majority of molesters have many victims. The idea of being open and transparent is so a) the community is warned and b) other victims can come forward. A single article in a parish bulletin doesn't cut it. What if another victim left the church? Or didn't go to church that Sunday? Or wasn't a member of that parish?

• Aretakis sanctioned again in lawsuit against diocese

  [Aretakis taking it too seriously.]
   Daily Gazette, (with link to the decision of U.S. District Court Judge Gary Sharpe), Wednesday, August 20, 2008
   ALBANY (NY) – The controversial Albany attorney who has represented several alleged victims of clergy sexual abuse has been sanctioned a second time for bringing what a federal judge called "scurrilous allegations" against the Albany Roman Catholic Diocese in a lawsuit filed by a survivor of Hurricane Katrina.
   John Aretakis filed a lawsuit in April 2007 against the diocese, as well as Catholic Charities, the federal government and Federal Emergency Management Agency on behalf of Tina Zlotnick. The lawsuit alleged that the church broke its agreement to provide charitable housing to Zlotnick, who had lived in New Orleans and was forced to leave her apartment because of Hurricane Katrina.

• Archdiocese paid out $467,500 in abuse settlements last year

  - RCC. Compensation US $467,500.
   KCUR, AP/KWMU, August 07, 2008
   ST. LOUIS (MO) -- The Archdiocese of St. Louis said it has mediated and settled nine cases of clergy sexual abuse for more $467,500 in the last fiscal year.
   Archdiocesan attorney Bernard Huger says the average settlement was $52,000.
   Settlements, ranging from $20,000 to $90,000, came from insurance, investments, and the sale of archdiocesan buildings, not from parishes and weekly collections, the archdiocese said.
   [COMMENT: "The Magic Pudding"!!!  The archdiocese paid for all the insurance premiums, investments and buildings from the Magic Pudding!  And NOT from the collection plate and other donations!  It's a miracle! ENDS.]

• $10 Million Settlement in Clergy Sex Abuse Case

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. ~ US $10m going. 47 victims.
   KCUR, with audio, by Dan Verbeck, ~ August 20, 2008
   KANSAS CITY (MO) -- A tentative settlement has been reached between 47 men and the Kansas City-St. Joseph Catholic diocese. Lawyers for plaintiffs say the diocese will pay ten million dollars. And money is not the key. KCUR's Dan Verbeck reports;
   After months of negotiations the settlement began taking form late yesterday. Some of the charges date back four and five decades. Plaintiffs attorney Patrick Noaker says the chief goal was reform. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 20, 2008 10:05 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Wed August 20, 2008
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Thu August 21, 2008 edition:

• Pastor Addresses Abuse Case At Weekend Masses

  [? 2005-08 Garcia -NEW*] - RCC. ≤ 3 children.  
   The Georgia Bulletin, By MARY ANNE CASTRANIO, August 21, 2008
   JONESBORO (GA) – Parishioners at St. Philip Benizi Church heard a message of explanation, sorrow and prayer from their pastor, Conventual Franciscan Father Gregory Hartmayer, this past weekend. The priest spoke in both English and Spanish at the conclusion of all seven weekend Masses at the Jonesboro church on Aug. 16-17, addressing the concerns and questions of parishioners following recent news reports that a contract musician at the church was arrested on child sexual abuse charges.
   Rafael Rojas-Lopez Garcia, 40, who directed an adult Hispanic choir at St. Philip Benizi, was arrested in Clayton County Monday, Aug. 4, on multiple counts of felony child sex abuse. He has been charged with sexual battery, enticing a child for indecent purposes, child molestation and sexual exploitation of children. Garcia is in the Clayton County Jail, without bond, as the investigation continues.
   According to published news reports, Garcia molested at least one and perhaps up to three children in the home of a local family where he had rented a room for the past two and a half years. He also taught private music lessons at the home. Family members, who are not parishioners at St. Philip Benizi, discovered the abuse of their child and reported it to police.

• Swedish 'cowboy church' called abusive

  [? 2008 Segerliv -NEW*] - "Kingdom Center." Female.  
   United Press International, Aug. 21, 2008
   MALMO, Sweden, (UPI) -- A Swedish church that operates out of a cowboy theme park is being accused by former members of being a violent religious sect.
   The Kingdom Center's pastor, Christer Segerliv, who calls himself the Sheriff of Lone Star, allegedly bullies members and their children to work long hours at the theme park and conference center. He also forces participation in extremist exorcism ceremonies, said former church members interviewed on a Swedish public service broadcast Tuesday.
   One former congregation member who declined to give her name, alleged that Segerliv forced her to be part of one bizarre ceremony, The Local reported Thursday.
   "He was supposed to pray for me but instead he threw himself on top of me and knocked me to the ground", she said on the program. "It was very violent."

• Ex-pastor gets four months for voyeurism

  [~ 2008 Porter -NEW*] - Christian. 4mos prison. Filming clothes-changing.  
   Bradenton Herald, By NATALIE NEYSA ALUND, nalund@bradenton.com , ~ August 21, 2008
   BRADENTON (FL) -- A former youth pastor accused of secretly taping Bible study students changing clothes in his Ellenton home was sentenced today to four months in jail and two years probation.
   Matthew C. Porter, 31, of Ellenton, pleaded no contest to nine counts of misdemeanor voyeurism on July 7.
   Circuit Judge George Brown issued the sentence at the Manatee County Judicial Center.

• Ex-pastor blamed for sex assault

  [? 2000s Unnamed pastor -NEW*] - Pentecostal. Woman.  
   The Fiji Times, Friday, August 22, 2008
   FIJI -- A FORMER Pentecostal Church pastor is being investigated for an alleged claim of indecent assault against a patient admitted in hospital last week.
   Although divisional crime officer northern Luke Rawalai said they have not received a report, police sources said yesterday that a report was lodged and being investigated by a group of Criminal Investigation Department officers in Labasa.
   It is understood the patient, a woman in her 40s, was admitted at the women's ward of the Labasa Hospital with a fractured ankle.

• Man Accused In Oak Harbor Molestations Contacts Minors; Bail Revoked

  [? 2000s Martinez -NEW*] - Living Faith. 10 children.  
   KIRO, ~ August 21, 2008
   ISLAND COUNTY, Wash. -- Bail was revoked for an Oak Harbor man charged with 30 counts of child sexual abuse after he contacted one of the minors involved in the case, said Colleen Kenimond, Chief Criminal Deputy Prosecuting Attorney.
   In an emergency hearing Wednesday, a judge decided to hold Nathan Martinez, 21, without bail pending his trial. …
   Martinez met his alleged victims through his activities at the Living Faith Christian Center in Oak Harbor.
   He baby-sat the 10 alleged victims, boys and girls, ranging in age from 3 to 13, until one of them complained about Martinez to a parent, Banks said.

• Schwaegel: Priest's abuses well known to church leaders in 1982

  - RCC. [1982 Kownacki] - 2 boys. [1982 + Mons. Schwaegel -NEW*] - Was told, did nothing.
   News-Democrat By George Pawlaczyk, ~ August 21, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) -- Former monsignor Joe Schwaegel testified today that when parents wrote him in 1982 that the Rev. Raymond Kownacki had sexually molested two boys, he did nothing other than tell the parents to forget the issue.
   "By this time (1982) everyone in archdiocese command knew this guy was a child molester, isn't that right?" plaintiff's attorney Steve Wigginton asked Schwaegel.
   Schwaegel's barely audible answer was "Yes."
   The trial, that began Monday in St. Clair County Circuit Court, involves a lawsuit filed in 2002 by the former altar boy, James Wisniewski of Champaign, that accuses the Belleville Diocese of covering up widespread sexual child abuse by priests for decades and failing to investigate.

• Secretary: Ex-pastor mixed church school, personal funds

  [1998-2006 Richard Cunningham -NEW*, Philip Cunningham -NEW*] - Baptist. Money $3m.
   The Orange County Register, By JON CASSIDY, ~ August 21, 2008
   FULLERTON (CA) -– A former secretary of Calvary Christian School in Yorba Linda testified this week that the school's director, a former pastor at Calvary Baptist Church of Yorba Linda, mixed school funds with his own money, paid for personal expenses with a school credit card, and deposited his own money into the school account when it ran low.
   The testimony came during the first of two days of a preliminary hearing at North Justice Center in the criminal case against Richard and Philip Cunningham, a father and son who resigned as pastors at Calvary Baptist in 2006 after a private investigation concluded that millions in church and school funds were misspent. The purpose of the hearing is to determine whether there is enough evidence to proceed with a trial.
   The court also heard testimony from a former church board member who said the board exercised no oversight of the accused pastors; and from a retired Anaheim police captain whose private investigation found that more than $3 million had been misspent from 1998 to 2006.

• Former Altar Boys Testify at Priest Sex Abuse Trial

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). (18 cases). Altar boys.
   WCAX, August 21, 2008
   BURLINGTON, Vermont -- The jury in Vermont's third priest sex abuse lawsuit could begin deliberations by Friday.
   The plaintiff is a former altar boy who claims former Vermont Bishop John Marshall knowingly failed to protect him from pedophile priest Edward Paquette 30 years ago. He is one of 18 former altar boys who have filed suit making the same claim.
   Thursday, four of the others told the jury what Paquette did to them when they were 10 and 11 years old. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 21, 2008 8:44 PM]

• Friday's editorial: Priest abuse settlement

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. ~ US $10m going. 47 victims.
   The Kansas City Star, ~ August 21, 2008
   KANSAS CITY (MO) -- It took years and dozens of lawsuits, but the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph has tentatively agreed to a $10 million settlement for 47 people who said they were sexually abused by priests.
   In a news conference Wednesday, Bishop Robert W. Finn apologized for the "fully unacceptable behavior that prompted these lawsuits to be brought against the Diocese …" He expressed compassion for the victims and "institutional accountability" for the cases.
   It was a long time coming. Assuming the settlement is approved by two diocesan boards, the agreement should help close an ugly chapter in the history of the diocese. [COMMENT: "Close an ugly chapter" -- the causes have not been removed, so the chapter is, most likely, still being written. ENDS.]

• Feds seek nine years for former KGO talk host

  [2004-05 Ward* (Precious Blood Society)] - RCC. "Godtalk" ex-priest admits one porn charge. 2 minors.
   CBS 2, Associated Press, 6:44 PM ET, August 21, 2008
   SAN FRANCISCO (CA), (AP) - Federal prosecutors are recommending a 9-year prison sentence for Bernie Ward, the liberal radio talk show host who pleaded guilty to distributing child pornography.
   The 57-year-old Ward spent 24 years with KGO-AM in San Francisco before being fired in December over the child porn charges. He pleaded guilty in May to one charge of distributing child pornography in exchange for dismissal of 2 other related charges.

• More Alleged Priest Sex Abuse Victims Take the Stand

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). (18 cases). Altar boys.
   Fox 44, ~ August 21, 2008
   VERMONT -- Dramatic testimony Thursday from four men who say they were molested as young boys by Father Edward Paquette.
   "He would constantly grab me in what he called wrestling where he would pick me up with one hand on my genitals and one hand on my back asking me how old I was," said a former alter boy.
   4 men who served as altar boys at Christ the King Church in Burlington in the late 1970's took the stand Thursday.
   Each one, who asked we not reveal their identities, described in detail how they say they were sexually abused by Father Edward Paquette.

• Mother of abuse victim calls for cardinal's resignation

  [≤ 1994+ Maday] - RCC wasting effort on seducer. 2 boys.
   ABC 7, ~ August 21, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL), (WLS) -- The mother of a victim of sexual abuse by a priest is supporting calls for Francis Cardinal George to resign.
   Leaders of the reform group Voice of the Faithful asked for the resignation earlier this week.
   Diane Houston's son John was molested by Father Nobert Maday as a child. Six years ago, he committed suicide. Maday is serving a 20-year sentence.

• Family of abuse victim sues archdiocese

  [McCormack]
   ABC 7, ~ August 21, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The family of a boy allegedly molested by a convicted Catholic priest is now suing the Chicago Archdiocese.
   The lawsuit claims Daniel McCormack molested the boy at school in 2004 and then at a White Sox game the next year. The family's attorney said he expected the lawsuit to be resolved in a settlement next week.

• Grand jury issues 3 indictments in polygamist case

  - FLDS.
   The Associated Press, By MICHELLE ROBERTS, ~ August 21, 2008
   ELDORADO, Texas (AP) – A grand jury issued three new felony indictments Thursday against members of a polygamist sect raided here in April.
   Schleicher County Clerk Peggy Williams confirmed the grand jury issued indictments against three individuals. She would not say who was indicted or what the indictments allege, other than that they are felonies.
   A spokesman for the Attorney General's Office, which is handling the prosecution of the case, also declined to comment on what the indictments allege or who the accused are.

• 3 more FLDS followers indicted in Texas

  - FLDS.
   The Salt Lake Tribune By Brooke Adams 5:30 PM ~ August 21, 2008
   ELDORADO, Texas - A Texas grand jury on Thursday indicted three FLDS members on unspecified felony charges, according to a county clerk.
   The indictments came at the end of a day-long session before a grand jury in Schleicher County. Five FLDS women - all who had appeared at two previous sessions - and sect spokesman Willie Jessop appeared before the jury.
   "This has been a very painful process for the people, and it certainly had a tremendous toll on everyone involved," Jessop said after his approximately 40-minute appearance. "We'll get through it."

• The Worst OC Catholic Molesting-Priest Apologists Are Mater Dei Monarchs And…

  [2008 Ramirez*] - RCC. City and Church quite discreet. Battery, burglary. Boy.
   Orange County Weekly, Posted by Gustavo Arellano, in Ex Cathedra, 2:46 PM, August 21, 2008
   Mexicans!
   SANTA ANA (CA) -- Yesterday, Orange County Superior Court Judge Lance Jensen sentenced Luis Eduardo Ramirez, an Augustinian who was serving at Our Lady of the Pillar Catholic Church in SanTana, to 180 days in jail for attempting to molest a 17-year-old boy in an Anaheim motel. Ramirez plead guilty to taking the parishioner to the hotel, putting his head in his lap, and reaching up his shirt. This admission did not stop parishioners from getting angry at the conviction.
   "When the judge announced his decision, two burst out sobbing," wrote Orange County Register writer Rachanee Srisavasdi. "One supporter had to be dragged outside, his face red with anger. 'He's a good man,' said another parishioner, Leonardo Cortez. 'These are lies.' Ramirez's attorney, Gary Pohlson, presented more than 2,000 parishioner letters to Jensen in an attempt at leniency.
   Letters, angry Mexicans, an admitting molester--where have we heard this story before? Oh, yes: Gerardo Tanilong!

• Government aid to bereaved family challenged

  [2008 Unnamed head nun*] - RCC. Nun.  
   Newindpress, ~ August 21, 2008
   KOCHI, INDIA : A public interest writ petition has been filed before the Kerala High Court praying to quash the State Cabinet's decision to grant an assistance of Rs 2 lakh to the parents of Sr Anupa Mary, an inmate of St Mary's Convent, Kollam, who committed suicide on August 11, 2008 allegedly due to the mental torture meted out to her from the superiors.
   The petitioner, Peter George of Edakochi, a teacher by profession, has also prayed to direct the government to prepare proper guidelines for financial assistance to the dependents of any person committing suicide or meeting with accidental death, and publish them for public knowledge.

• Bishop at the centre of killer rapist horror

  - "Christians." Blood, organs, to church.  
   Daily Nation, By FRED MUKINDA and MACHARIA MWANGI, Posted 19:17, Thursday, August 21 2008
   KENYA -- A religious cult angle is emerging in the serial killings and rape, accompanied by drinking of human blood in Naivasha.
   On Thursday, police interviewed a bishop on suspicion the suspected rapist often delivered human blood and body organs to his church.
   As he was being locked up, the bishop (name withheld) told the Nation: "The man who has been drinking blood in Kihoto brought police to my house saying he had been supplying blood to us."
   The suspect behind the bizarre affinity for human blood and sexual extremity lived in Kihoto estate.
   According to police officers, the bishop will be held in custody since his house had been mentioned in investigations into the killing of a woman found buried in a shallow grave in the suspect's house.

• Round Rock pastor pleads guilty

  [? 1990s-2000s Clyde*] - Christian. Money. > US $500,000.
   Austin American-Statesman, By Isadora Vail | 11:30 AM, Thursday, August 21, 2008
   TEXAS -- A Round Rock pastor who admitted to stealing more than $500,000 from his church pleaded guilty today in District Judge Ken Anderson's court.
   Donald Clyde, 49, turned himself in last August after he told officials he took money from the Forest Creek Church in Round Rock to buy vacations, property, horses and boats. He told police that he used the church's bank accounts and credit cards for the purchases.
   A church accountant noticed some strange charges on the accounts, and when a leadership group began looking into the case, Clyde stepped down. He had been with the church, which has a membership of about 1,500, since 1992.

• Swedish pastor accused of leading violent 'cowboy sect'

  [? 2008 Segerliv*] - "Kingdom Center." Female.  
   The Local, Online: http://www.thelocal.se/13836 , Published 08:46 CET / Aug 21, 2008
   SWEDEN -- A southern Swedish religious congregation based at a cowboy-themed conference centre has been accused of harbouring a violent and extreme religious sect.
   A show aired on Tuesday by public service broadcaster SVT contained interviews with former Kingdom Center members who accuse the group of being a sect, guilty of performing violent exorcism ceremonies and using child labour, Expressen reports.
   According to religious affairs programme Existens, members are often bullied into working long hours at the centre, and children are taken out of school and made to work at the cowboy-themed Lone Star park and conference centre in Höör, 50 km north of Malmö.
   One woman who did not want her child to work there said they threatened to take her children away.

• Local pastor pleads guilty to felony thefts

  [? 1990s-2000s Clyde*] - Christian. Money. ~ US $500,000.
   KXAN, ~ August 21, 2008
   AUSTIN, Texas (KXAN) -- A local pastor plead guilty Thursday in Williamson County court to two felony theft counts after church members accused him of stealing.
   Donald Roger "Roddy" Clyde, 48, is charged with theft more than $200,000 and turned himself into the Williamson County jail Wednesday.
   Clyde waived his right to a trial by jury scheduled for Aug. 25 and has already paid back $343,000 of the $476,694.36 of the stolen money by selling land, a trailer and a business.

• Manatee youth pastor gets jail time for secretly videotaping girls

  [2yrs Porter*] - Baptist. 4mos prison. Filming girls undressing.
   Herald Tribune, By Frank Gluck, ~ August 21, 2008
   BRADENTON (FL) – A former youth minister was sentenced this afternoon to 120 days in the Manatee County jail and two years of probation for secretly videotaping girls as they undressed in his homes in Bradenton and Ellenton over a two-year period.
   Matthew Porter, 31, was found guilty of nine counts of voyeurism, a misdemeanor. He had admitted to hiding video cameras in his bathroom and bedroom and taping girls between the ages of 12 and 16 changing clothes. Porter was a pastor at Bethel Baptist Church in Bradenton.
   Porter, who had sought to avoid jail time, apologized to family members of the victims who attended sentencing in the Manatee County courtroom.

• Youth minister charged with second sexual assault

  [2006, 2007 Mr Jenkins*] - Baptist. Girls (8, 14).
   Belleville News-Democrat, BY JENNIFER A. BOWEN, ~ August 21, 2008
   ST. LOUIS (MO) -- A former church youth minister charged last month with assaulting an 8-year-old girl has been charged again with sexually assaulting another youngster.
   Terrence Jenkins, 36, of 542 N. 14th St. in East St. Louis, was charged Thursday by the St. Clair County State's Attorney with aggravated criminal sexual abuse and criminal sexual assault. The girl was 14 when assaulted on Aug. 11, 2006, charges state.
   He is accused of molesting both girls while he served as a youth minister with the Faith United Baptist Church in O'Fallon, according to the court documents. Jenkins is no longer with the church.

• Lawsuit Alleges Priest Molested Boy at 2005 White Sox Game

  [2004-05 McCormick] - RCC. Boy.
   Deadspin, ~ August 21, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The lawsuit was filed against the Chicago Archdiocese yesterday. The alleged molester, priest Daniel McCormick, has already been the subject of a lawsuit settled on behalf of the archdiocese last week. In that case 11 priests were sued by 16 children. The alleged molestation occured in August of 2005 which was, of course, the year the Chicago White Sox finally won a World Series.
   The lawsuit claims McCormack molested the unnamed boy at Our Lady of the Westside School in September 2004 and again at a White Sox game in August 2005. Archdiocese spokeswoman Colleen Dolan said the lawsuit is "not a new case" of abuse. She said the lawsuit is the "finalization of a legal process on this particular case."

• Psychologist: Alleged priest abuse victim still suffers

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). (18 cases). Altar boys.
   Burlington Free Press, August 21, 2008
   VERMONT -- The former Burlington altar boy still suffers low-grade depression and post-traumatic stress 30 years following his molestation by the Rev. Edward Paquette at Christ the King Church, a local psychologist testified in court on Thursday.
   "His claim of experiencing anxiety and depression is borne out not only in his verbal report but in his test results," Dr. Joseph Hasazi told the jury in the clergy sex abuse trial. Hasazi was hired by the man's lawyer and performed a forensic evaluation of him in preparation for the trial.
   Tom McCormick, a lawyer for the state's Roman Catholic diocese, got Hasazi to concede the man had a learning disability that preceded the time Paquette allegedly abused him.

• Petition backs feminist theologian for USD chair

  - RCC.
   Union-Tribune, By Sherry Saavedra, 11:30 a.m., August 21, 2008
   SAN DIEGO (CA) -– A petition demanding that Catholic feminist theologian Rosemary Radford Ruether be allowed to assume an endowed chair at University of San Diego was delivered to the president and provost offices Thursday morning.
   The petition, which contains more than 2,000 signatures, including 50 from USD faculty, was delivered by members of the nonprofit Call to Action of San Diego County, which advocates on Catholic social reform issues. …
   The petition was sponsored by the national Women's Ordination Conference, an advocacy group for female priests, deacons and bishops; and the national Women's Alliance for Theology, Ethics and Ritual, a multi-religious feminist educational center with Catholic co-directors.

• Priest jailed over church theft

  [2004-05 Patte*] - RCC. Money > US$10,000.
   Chicago Sun-Times, By RUMMANA HUSSAIN, August 21, 2008
   EDGEWATER (IL) -- Bail was set at $25,000 today for a Roman Catholic priest who prosecutors say swiped thousands of dollars from his former Edgewater parish to pay for his vacations, massages and other luxury items.
   Rev. Steven Patte, 64, is charged with theft, money laundering and wire fraud. Prosecutors said he issued checks and and wired money to his personal accounts as reimbursement for expenditures that never occurred while he was St. Ita's Parish between July 2001 and August 2005.
   He then used the money, splurging on trips to California, laptops, computer accessories, massages and personal training sessions, according to his indictment. During that period, Patte dissolved the church's finance committee, which had overseen the expenditures, prosecutors said.

• Start of trial postponed in Fushek sex case

  [Fushek]
   East Valley Tribune, by Lawn Griffiths, 11:54AM, August 21, 2008
   ARIZONA -- A three-week postponement was granted Thursday, Aug. 21, for the start of the trial of Monsignor Dale Fushek, former pastor of St. Timothy's Catholic Community in Mesa, who is charged with seven misdemeanor sex crimes.
   San Tan Justice of the Peace, Samuel Goodman, moved the jury trial from Oct. 27 to Nov. 17 to give more time to hear and rule on motions in cases brought almost three years ago related to Fushek's conduct around minors in his role as a Roman Catholic priest.
   Defense and prosecuting attorneys Thursday morning wrangled for an hour on a motion on whether Fushek would get a fair trial if all five counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, one count of assault and one of indecent exposure were heard at one trial. The complaints were brought by five men who were minors in the 1980s and early 1990s when the incidents allegedly took place on St. Timothy's campus where Fushek founded and led the Life Teen movement for Catholic youth.

• $25,000 bail set for priest accused of stealing from Edgewater parish

  [2004-05 Patte*] - RCC. Money > US$12,000.
   Chicago Tribune, THE BLOTTER, 10:21 AM CDT, August 21, 2008
   EDGEWATER (IL) -- Bail of $25,000 was set Thursday for a Chicago-area Roman Catholic priest accused of stealing from his former North Side parish.
   Rev. Steven Patte, 64, pleaded not guilty earlier this month to charges of theft, money laundering and other financial crimes.
   Authorities say Patte stole a little more than $12,000 from St. Ita's Parish in Edgewater between May 2004 and July 2005.

• Group Decries Catholic Diocese On Child Abuse Case

  [2008 Jan 3 - Ramirez*] - RCC. City and Church quite discreet. Battery, burglary. Boy.
   CBS 2, ~ August 21, 2008
   SANTA ANA (CA) -- A support group for people abused by clergy said Thursday the case of a Santa Ana priest who tried to seduce a 17-year-old boy with alcohol "smacks of collusion and secrecy on the part of both Catholic and secular authorities."
   The Rev. Luis Eduardo Ramirez, the former youth director at Our Lady of the Pillar parish in Santa Ana, took a 17-year-old parishioner to a motel room on Jan. 3, gave him alcohol and then tried to grope him.
   In June he pleaded guilty to two misdemeanors, the Orange County Register reported. As part of a plea bargain with the Anaheim City Attorney's Office, three other misdemeanors -- furnishing/selling alcohol to a minor, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and annoying or molesting a child -- were dropped.

• Clergy abuse victim advocate: Catholic Church engaged in "shameful secrecy"

  [2008 Jan 3 - Ramirez*] - RCC. City and Church quite discreet. Battery, burglary. Boy.
   The Orange County Register, posted by Rachanee Srisavasdi, August 20, 2008
   CALIFORNIA -- I got an email today from David Clohessy, executive director of Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, who read my story today about Father Luis Eduardo Ramirez facing sentencing today for bringing a youth unattended to a motel room.
   Ramirez was removed from Our Lady of the Pillar in Santa Ana after his January arrest.
   "This shameful secrecy by church officials violates every pledge they've made to be 'open and transparent.' " Clohessy wrote.

• St. Vincent Pallotti members appeal to Vatican

  - RCC.
   Philadelphia Inquirer By David O'Reilly, August 20, 2008
   HADDON TOWNSHIP (PA) -- Saying Bishop Joseph Galante has failed to justify his plans to merge their parish, members of St. Vincent Pallotti Roman Catholic Church in Haddon Township have petitioned the Vatican to halt the merger.
   They announced this week that they had filed a canonical appeal with the Congregation for the Clergy in Rome, citing Galante's "lack of transparency" and his "questionable decisions" regarding their 42-year-old, handicapped-accessible parish, which they say fills an essential need.
   "We feel pretty confident," Ed Pierzynski, vice president of Friends of St. Vincent Pallotti Inc., said yesterday. "We intend to follow through on this and think it will be accepted."

• Scandal in Chicagoland

  [Card. George] - RCC.
   Beliefnet, by David Gibson, Wednesday August 13, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The Chicago Tribune has the disturbing deposition by Cardinal Francis George and other coverage detailing what is being described as a "cover-up" of an abusive priest--but AFTER George presided over the passage of the 2002 charter to protect children, and AFTER he said he had cleared out any abusive priests in accord with the charter. And George is now present of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and was the churchman who welcomed Pope Benedict XVI to the U.S. in April and assured everything was being done to make sure the scandal never happened again. The this comes out in the wake of this week's civil settlement with victims. Here's the Trib on a couple of cases, namely convicted child molester Daniel McCormack:
   In his deposition, George revealed under oath the steps, missteps and lies that led to McCormack's tenure at St. Agatha years after initial allegations of misconduct surfaced during his seminary days. According to the document, as many as 23 people have alleged abuse by McCormack, who is now serving a 5-year prison sentence.
   The allegations against McCormack spurred the archdiocese to commission an independent 2006 audit of what went wrong in the case.
   In the deposition, the cardinal also detailed church deception and coverup in the Bennett investigation -- facts omitted from that audit. …
   This could explode, especially if criminal charges come in under the statute of limitations. It could also seriously undermined much of the progress that has been made.

• Hindu guru can't go back to temple, Hays judge says

  [1990s Saraswati] - Hindu. 2 girls.
   American-Statesman, By Eric Dexheimer, Thursday, August 21, 2008
   TEXAS -- A judge on Wednesday denied the request of a Hindu guru accused of groping two minor girls in the mid-1990s that he be permitted back at the ashram, or spiritual retreat center, that he founded nearly two decades ago.
   Prakashanand Saraswati, known to his devotees as Shree Swamiji, was arrested this spring after a Hays County grand jury indicted him on 20 counts of indecency with a minor. He was released on $1 million bail.
   In May, he requested permission to travel abroad, which state District Court Judge Charles Ramsay granted after one of the guru's devotees posted a $10 million personal bond guaranteeing Prakashanand's return to Hays County.

• Belleville Diocese leaders failed to investigate priest sex abuse, former vicar general testifies

  [Kownacki] - RCC. Documents kept from review board.
   News-Democrat, BY GEORGE PAWLACZYK, ~ August 21, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) -- While reports that the Rev. Raymond Kownacki was sexually molesting minors were piling up, Belleville Diocese bishops and other top church officials failed to investigate and routinely reassigned the priest six times to unsuspecting parishes, former vicar general Monsignor James Margason testified Wednesday.
   Margason, now pastor of Corpus Christi Church in Shiloh, was on the witness stand for more than three hours during a civil trial in St. Clair County Circuit Court stemming from a 2002 lawsuit brought by James Wisniewski, 47, of Champaign. Wisniewski claims that beginning in the early 1970s, when he was an altar boy at St. Theresa's Parish in Salem, Kownacki sexually molested him for five years. …
   While on the witness stand, Margason, who was not in a leadership position when some of Kownacki's alleged abuse occurred, testified that:

Detailed reports kept by Sullivan, which were kept in a secret archives, were kept from the review board.

A key 1982 report from a Salem family complaining that their son was molested by Kownacki and mentioning Wisniewski for the first time, was kept from Margason and the review board.

If diocese officials had acted when the reports about the molestation of one of the twins and the 16-year old girl and others had been investigated, Kownacki might never had met Wisniewski.

• Plaintiff testifes at priest-abuse trail

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). (18 cases). Altar boys.
   Burlington Free Press, By Sam Hemingway, August 21, 2008
   VERMONT The alleged victim in a clergy sex abuse trial in Burlington testified Wednesday that the Rev. Edward Paquette molested him at his first altar boy training session at Christ the King Church in the fall of 1977.
   "I was a little confused by it," the former altar boy, now 40 and a resident of Waitsfield, told the six-man, six-woman jury. "I wasn't quite sure why he'd do that."
   The man said he was a 9-year-old fourth-grader when he went to the sacristy at the church, a room near the pulpit, for the training session.
   He said he was clothed when Paquette picked him up and held him with one hand over his genitals and one hand over his mouth and then swung him in the air for about a minute. He said the incident was the first of between 20 and 50 similar molestations that occurred over the next six months.

• Church settles abuse claims

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. ~ US $10m going. 47 victims.
   Casper Star-Tribune, August 20, 2008
   KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A Roman Catholic diocese has tentatively agreed to pay $10 million to settle 47 pending sexual abuse claims against the diocese and 12 of its priests, including former Wyoming Bishop Joseph Hart. …
   Finn will recommend to the Diocese Tribunal and to the Vatican that the accused priests have their holy orders removed, an action known as laicization, he said.
   Hart was among the priests named in the lawsuits. At least five people had sued claiming they had been molested by him when they were children while he was bishop in Wyoming and as a priest in the Diocese of Kansas City.
   Hart had repeatedly and adamantly denied the accusations.

• Family of alleged McCormack victim sues archdiocese

  [McCormack] - RCC. Boy.
   Chicago Sun-Times, BY MARK J. KONKOL, August 21, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The family of a boy who allegedly was molested by former Catholic priest and convicted sexual abuser Daniel McCormack filed a lawsuit against the Chicago Archdiocese on Wednesday.
   The family's attorney, Kenneth Cunniff, said he expects the lawsuit will be resolved in a "substantial settlement" next week. Cunniff declined to elaborate.
   The lawsuit claims McCormack molested the unnamed boy at Our Lady of the Westside School in September 2004 and again at a White Sox game in August 2005. Archdiocese spokeswoman Colleen Dolan said the lawsuit is "not a new case" of abuse. She said the lawsuit is the "finalization of a legal process on this particular case."

• Priest faces jail for abusing youngsters

  [1980s Green] - RCC. Several boys.  
   South Manchester Reporter, August 21, 2008
   UNITED KINGDOM --A PRIEST who sexually abused a string of boys at a top Catholic school more than 20 years ago has finally been brought to justice.
   Father William Green, 67, who took physical education classes at St Bede's College in Alexandra Park, Manchester, has admitted 27 assaults on children who were aged between eight and 16. He faces a 'significant' jail sentence.
   Green, who was a priest at the Holy Family Roman Catholic Church, Wigan, made excuses to see boys on their own, taking them to a room where he indecently assaulted them.

• Another priest sex abuse lawsuit filed in Denver

  [White] - RCC.  
   9 News, ~ August 21, 2008
   DENVER (CO), (AP) -- Another lawsuit alleging sexual abuse by a late priest has been filed against the Archdiocese of Denver.
   The lawsuit was filed in Denver this week. A man identified only as John Doe 2D alleges he was abused by Harold White at St. Catherine's parish in Denver in 1960 or 1961.
   The lawsuit cites a church record from February 1961 which says White admitted to molesting five or six children.

• Statement from Bishop Robert Finn

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. ~ US $10m going. 47 victims.
   My Fox Kansas City, ~ August 21, 2008
   KANSAS CITY (MO) -- Statement of the Most Reverend Robert W. Finn Bishop, of Kansas City ~ St. Joseph:
   "We apologize for the fully unacceptable behavior that prompted these lawsuits to be brought against the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph. With compassion for the victims of this behavior and with sadness over any failure by the diocese to serve as a proper steward of safety and security for our young people and our parishioners, I am here as an individual leader of the diocese to demonstrate institutional accountability for these sad events. I pray that with the settlement of this matter, the healing for all may truly begin.
   "In reaching a settlement with lawyers representing the families involved in this case, we took painstaking steps to fully vet all issues enabling thoroughness to be the hallmark of this process. Assured that we have met that standard, we have agreed to fund $10 million in payments to the victims and to adhere to a number of nonmonetary stipulations that should assure our community, our congregation and these families that the diocese will continue in its exercise of vigilance and in its devotion to training and education so that we may be confident there will never, ever be a repeat of the behaviors, the offenses, or the claims that have been associated with this matter.
   "A priest is ordained with the privilege of celebrating the Church's sacraments by nothing less than a holy order. The behaviors attributable to certain priests involved in this matter not only betray those holy orders, but diminish the stature of the faithful and responsible priests who dispatch their ministry effectively and faithfully day in, day out. For that reason, although the statute of limitations prevents man's law from moving forward with any criminal proceedings here, I - as bishop of this diocese - will present to the Diocesan Tribunal and ultimately to the Vatican the recommendation that these priests see their holy orders removed from them. In the church's vernacular, this is called laicization."

• Bishop Regrets: Apologizes for Clergy Sex Abuse

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. ~ US $10m going. 47 victims.
   KCUR news, by Dan Verbeck, ~ August 21, 2008
   KANSAS CITY (MO) -- During a hastily called meeting with reporters,the Catholic bishop of the Kansas City-Saint Joseph Diocese says it happened, it shouldn't have and he's making amends. Bishop Robert Finn acknowledges the $10 million settlement of lawsuits against a dozen present and former clergy, accused of sexual abuse. Forty seven boys, survivors who are now men, filed suit in Jackson County Missouri Circuit Court claiming abuse beginning as far back as fifty years. The diocese was accused of negligence. Now all are settled. Bishop Finn will recommend to the Vatican the clergymen be stripped of priestly powers.

• Judge gives priest 180 days, calls his actions a 'double betrayal'

  [2008 Jan 3 - Ramirez*] - RCC. City and Church quite discreet. Battery, burglary. Boy.
   The Orange County Register, By RACHANEE SRISAVASDI, ~ August 21, 2008
   SANTA ANA (CA) – In a case the judge called a "double betrayal," a Catholic priest who took a 17-year-old parishioner to a motel room, gave him alcohol and then tried to grope him was sentenced Wednesday to 180 days in jail for the crime.
   The Rev. Luis Eduardo Ramirez, ousted from Our Lady of the Pillar parish in Santa Ana in January after his arrest, stood quietly as Orange County Superior Court Judge Lance Jensen rendered his decision.
   "The victim and his family have been abused by (both) someone they trust and a person in their religious faith," the judge told the priest. "Your actions have ostracized the family from their Catholic faith."

• Sources: Fugitive Priest Beltran Out Of Jail

  [1989-91 Beltran] - RCC. Fugitive released. 2 girls.    
   CBS 13, ~ August 21, 2008
   SACRAMENTO (CA), (CBS13) -- CBS 13 has confirmed through inside sources that Gerardo Beltran, a former Sacramento priest accused of molesting children, has been released from a Mexican jail.
   Beltran was once a priest in the Sacramento Roman Catholic Diocese before fleeing to Mexico after allegations surfaced that he was sexually molesting children.
   Beltran had been arrested in March for charges filed in Sacramento County on behalf of two victims he allegedly victimized between 1989 and 1991. The Sacramento District Attorney's office had been trying to extradite Beltran back to Sacramento "to be held accountable for his conduct."
   [LOOK BACK: March 14, 2008]

• Mexico frees ex-priest in molest case

  - RCC. [1989-91 Beltran] - Fugitive released. 2 girls. [Urbina, Garcia] - Minors.    
   Sacramento Bee, By Jennifer Garza - jgarza@sacbee.com , Thursday, August 21, 2008
   SACRAMENTO (CA) -- Mexican authorities have released a former Sacramento priest who was awaiting extradition to California on charges that he sexually abused two minors nearly 17 years ago.
   Sacramento church officials said they have no idea where Gerardo Beltran has gone since his release last week from a Mexico City jail, where he had been held since March.
   Diocesan officials said they had been working with the Vatican for nearly two years to remove Beltran and two others – Jose Luis Urbina and Francisco Javier Garcia – from the priesthood. All three worked in the Catholic Diocese of Sacramento and had fled to Mexico after being accused of sexually molesting minors.
   On Wednesday, diocesan officials announced that the three men have been laicized, or barred from serving as priests anywhere in the world.

• "A good way to scare and control people"

  - RC sex teachings to do with control-seeking: claim.  
   California Catholic Daily, ~ August 21, 2008
   CALIFORNIA -- San Damiano Retreat center in Danville -- 42 miles east of San Francisco -- hosted a retreat this month with a Franciscan sister who, with her priest team-teacher, has addressed numerous Catholic audiences on the subject of sex. Sr. Fran Ferder led a women's retreat, "Awaken to the Sacred," at the center Aug. 8-10, according to the "Administrative Weekly," an official communication of the Oakland diocese. …
   Ferder deplores the "dualism" of Catholic sexual teaching. Dualism, that has been present in Christianity for centuries, Ferder said in a 2003 interview with U.S. Catholic, and which, she said, "divides body from soul." Though Christianity itself is "incarnational, embodied, fleshed," many Christians, she said, "labor under messages that sexual mistakes, even small ones, are about the most offensive thing that one can engage in relationship to God."
   Church leaders, she said, reinforce this message. "My personal belief is that these negative messages have to do with control and maintaining power," she said. "The patriarchal dominance in the hierarchy is incredibly strong, and sexual mandates are a good way to scare and control people."

• "Canonical warning"

  - Ban on women clergy is prejudice: Fr Bourgeois.
   California Catholic Daily, ~ August 21, 2008
   UNITED STATES -- A Maryknoll priest who earlier this month participated in the attempted ordination of a "womanpriest" has said a subsequent meeting with his superiors over the affair was "productive."
   On Aug. 8, Fr. Roy Bourgeois joined Dana Reynolds, a Carmel-by-the-Sea woman who claims to be a Catholic bishop, in the attempted ordination of Janice Sevre-Duszynska at a Unitarian church in Lexington, Kentucky.
   In his homily during the ordination service, Bourgeois equated the Holy See's teaching that the Church has no authority to ordain women with the segregation of African-Americans in his home state of Louisiana. "No matter how hard we may try to justify discrimination, in the end, it is always wrong and immoral," said Bourgeois. "As Reverend Nancy Taylor of Boston put it, 'Prejudice in liturgical clothing is still prejudice.' "

• OC priest gets 6 months in jail for taking teen to motel

  [2008 Jan 3 - Ramirez*] - RCC. 6mos PRISON. Battery, burglary. Boy.
   Las Vegas Sun, The Associated Press, 12:18 a.m., Thu, Aug 21, 2008
   CALIFORNIA -- A Roman Catholic priest accused of trying to molest a boy he was asked to counsel was sentenced Wednesday to six months in jail.
   The Rev. Luis Eduardo Ramirez reached a plea deal with prosecutors in June in which he admitted he took a 17-year-old parishioner to an Anaheim motel, tried to grope him and gave him alcohol.
   Ramirez was arrested days after the incident in January and was later ousted from the Our Lady of the Pillar parish in Santa Ana, where he served as the church's youth director.

• Warrant orders DNA sample from FLDS man

  - FLDS.
   Deseret News, By Ben Winslow 5:33 p.m. MDT Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2008
   SAN ANGELO, Texas – A member of the Fundamentalist LDS Church indicted on a sexual assault charge was forced to give a DNA sample, a newly unsealed search warrant states.
   The search warrant was filed with the Schleicher County Court in Eldorado, Texas, on July 29 but was made public Wednesday.

• No FLDS insiders expected by grand jury

  - FLDS.
   Houston Chronicle, By LISA SANDBERG, Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau, ~ August 21, 2008
   SAN ANGELO, TEXAS – When a West Texas grand jury reconvenes today to consider evidence against members of a polygamist sect, it's not likely to hear from any insiders.
   Not a single follower of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints appears to have stepped forward to cooperate with authorities pursuing criminal charges against their peers, law enforcement authorities concede.
   "No one is talking to me," Schleicher County Sheriff David Doran said Wednesday. "They do not open up to law enforcement."

• More FLDS indictments today?

  - FLDS.
   Deseret News, By Ben Winslow, Thursday, Aug. 21, 2008
   ELDORADO, Texas – A grand jury investigating alleged crimes within the Fundamentalist LDS Church will meet here again today, with the possibility of more indictments being handed up.
   Six men, including FLDS leader Warren Jeffs, have already been indicted on charges ranging from sexual assault to bigamy and failure to report child abuse. If evidence entered into court in nearby San Angelo is any indication, more members of the Utah-based polygamous sect can expect to face criminal charges.
   Marriage records, bishop's records, dictations, love letters, diaries and photographs were among the hundreds of thousands of pieces of evidence seized during the April raid on the church's YFZ Ranch. Some of that evidence has been used in child-custody cases that played out this week in nearby San Angelo.

• Capital Region attorney sanctioned by judge

  - Aretakis and Katrina victim.
   WNYT, with video, ~ August 21, 2008
   NEW YORK -- A well known Capital Region attorney is defending himself and the cases he takes, after a judge stands by his decision to sanction him.
   The high profile attorney is John Aretakis.
   He's made a name for himself in clergy sex abuse cases against the Albany Catholic Diocese.
   The case that got him sanctioned by the court involved the church as well, but not sex abuse. It revolved around a relocated Hurricane Katrina victim.
   Earlier this week, a federal judge re-affirmed his decision to sanction Aretakis, saying the lawsuit was frivolous and baseless.

• Should priests give kids piggyback rides?

  - RCC.
   Chicago Tribune, by Manya Brachear, ~ August 21, 2008
   Priests in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cincinnati may shake children's hands, pat them on the head, and give high-fives.
   But they are forbidden to kiss them, tickle them and give them bear hugs or piggyback rides, according to a renewed Decree on Child Protection.
   Are the new rules an example of good judgment or an irrational response to the clergy sexual abuse crisis that has plagued the Catholic Church?
   The new safety precautions are taking effect in Cincinnati as the Chicago Archdiocese still reels from last week's decision by Cardinal Francis George to release a legal deposition that explained how priests accused of abuse were permitted to remain in ministry. Some Catholics found the deposition so "damning" that the Boston-based church reform group Voice of the Faithful on Tuesday called for George to resign.
   [COMMENT: The RCC ban on piggyback rides is "closing the stable door after the horse has bolted," surely? ENDS.]

• Aretakis slapped with sanctions

  - Aretakis in trouble, again.
   Troy Record, By Kathryn Caggianelli, August/20/2008
   ALBANY (NY) - A federal judge Wednesday stood by his original decision to sanction Albany attorney John Aretakis for initiating law suits with no basis in law or fact and for singling out the Catholic Church for its involvement in unrelated sexual abuse matters.
   The sanctions originally included a $10,000 fine and $14,310 in legal fees incurred by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany.
   Aretakis, who has represented several alleged victims of clergy sexual abuse, filed a $2 million lawsuit in April 2007 against the diocese, Catholic Charities, the federal government and Federal Emergency Management Agency on behalf of New Orleans resident Tina Zlotnick who was displaced from her home during Hurricane Katrina.

• St. Frances fundraiser is Aug. 22

  - RCC.
   Wicked Local Scituate, By Brian P. Nanos 02:12 PM EDT, Wed Aug 20, 2008
   SCITUATE (MA) -- Since October 2004, when Archbishop Sean O'Malley of the Boston Archdiocese closed St. Frances X. Cabrini Church in Scituate, parishioners have been running the church – holding weekly lay-led services, planning CCD classes and manning a 24-hour vigil – while at the same time fighting appeals of O'Malley's decision.
   On Friday, Aug. 22, the 1,397th day of that vigil, the Friends of St. Frances will be holding the annual fundraiser that pays for most of these efforts, an "Under the Summer Stars" event at the Scituate Country Club from 7 to 10 p.m. Tickets are $30 per person.
   According to Maryellen Rogers, who with her husband Jon often acts as a spokesperson for the group, the event will be the largest fundraiser held by the Friends this year. Last year's event, she said, was very successful.
   "I don't want to talk all about money, but people have been very generous," she said.

• Plaintiff Testifies in Clergy Abuse Trial

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). (18 cases). Altar boys.
   Fox 44, ~ August 21, 2008
   VERMONT -- The man suing the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington took the witness stand Wednesday and described the abuse he allegedly suffered at the hands of Rev. Edward Paquette.
   The plaintiff, who asked the media not to use his name or image, said Paquette molested him several times in the 1970s, when he served as an altar boy at Christ the King Parish in Burlington.
   Damage done by the abuse has limited the plaintiff's ability to sustain a relationship, the plaintiff said. He is currently divorced and has 40 percent custody of his young son.

• Lawyer Sanctioned for 'Hijacking' Case for His Own Cause

  - Mixed state eviction with a Church!
   Law.com by Mark Hamblett New York Law Journal August 21, 2008
   NEW YORK -- An attorney who used his pro bono representation of a woman in a state eviction proceeding to attack the Roman Catholic Church for clergy sexual abuse and the federal government for its response to Hurricane Katrina has been hit with heavy sanctions.
   Northern District of New York Judge Gary Sharpe blasted attorney John A. Aretakis in a 46-page opinion Monday that cited the lawyer for "scurrilous" claims and "monstrous" allegations in his representation of Tina Zlotnick, who was relocated to church-owned property in the Albany area after being evacuated in the wake of Katrina.
   Sharpe ordered Aretakis, of Albany and Manhattan, to pay a total of $16,678 in attorney fees to his adversaries and gave him a strict warning to avoid all sanctionable conduct in the future.
   "There was nothing in the assignment and nothing in Ms. Zlotnick's legal dilemma that should have caused Mr. Aretakis to hijack her litigation for his own personal reasons," Sharpe said in Zlotnick v. Hubbard, 07-CV-405.

• Records show repeated complaints

  [1960s-80s Kownacki] - RCC. Boys and girls.
   St. Louis Post-Dispatch, By Nicholas J.C. Pistor, August/21/2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) – Documents released in court Wednesday show that the Belleville Diocese moved the Rev. Raymond Kownacki from parish to parish – even as evidence grew that he couldn't control sexual urges toward underage boys and girls.
   Complaints of sexual abuse against Kownacki dated to the late 1960s, the documents indicate, and from Mexico to nearly every corner of Southern Illinois. It took more than 20 years for the priest to be removed from active ministry, according to the internal memos that were displayed before a St. Clair County jury.
   A former altar boy is suing the Belleville Diocese for allegedly covering up Kownacki's sex abuse. He says in the lawsuit that Kownacki repeatedly molested him throughout the 1970s, but that he never told his parents or authorities.
   Defense attorneys for the diocese say the statute of limitations for the altar boy to sue has run out. They argue that many of the diocesan officials involved in the early complaints against Kownacki are dead, and that the diocese ultimately removed the priest from active ministry in 1995. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 21, 2008 3:08 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Thu August 21, 2008
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Fri August 22, 2008 edition:

• Molestation suspect nabbed at Oakland airport heads Ugandan megachurch

  [2008 Aug 16 - Senyonga -NEW*] - Christian Life Ministries. Girl.    
   San Jose Mercury News, By Gideon Rubin, The Daily Review, Article Launched 04:44:36 PM PDT, August/21/2008
   OAKLAND (CA) – A man arrested Saturday on suspicion of molesting a 13-year-old East Bay girl on a flight from Denver to Oakland is the minister of a Ugandan megachurch and is known internationally as a poverty-relief advocate.
   Jackson Senyonga, 41, of Uganda was arrested by sheriff's deputies at Oakland International Airport on suspicion of fondling a girl seated next to him on the flight, sheriff's deputies said.
   Alameda County prosecutors have since declined to charge Senyonga because of jurisdictional issues, but have referred the case to the FBI, Sheriff's Sgt. J.D. Nelson said Thursday.
   Senyonga was initially taken to Santa Rita jail in Dublin, but was released after posting bail on a date not immediately known, Nelson said Thursday.
   [COMPARE WITH: Zielinski charge, report of July 11, 2008]

• Local priest accused of sexual assault flees to Brazil

  [? 2000s Lima -NEW*] - RCC. Minor.    
   O Jornal, By: Lurdes C. da Silva, August/22/2008
   HYANNIS, Massachusetts -- A Brazilian priest who celebrated a weekly Mass in Portuguese at Saint Francis Xavier in Hyannis has fled to Brazil after being accused of sexually assaulting a minor in Connecticut.
   Father José Afonso Lima had been placed on temporary leave from ministry by Fall River Diocese Bishop George W. Coleman last week.
   "At this point, there have been absolutely no allegations about Father Lima's misbehavior in our diocese," John Kerns, director of communications for the Fall River Diocese told O Jornal.
   "All reports [about Fr. Lima] around here are in fact very positive," added Kerns.

• Former Fairy Meadow priest on sex charges

  [1960s-70s Sharkey -NEW*] - RCC. Altar boy.    
   Illawarra Mercury, BY JODIE MINUS AND MICHELLE HOCTOR, August 23/2008
   AUSTRALIA -- A retired Catholic priest from Fairy Meadow has been charged with a string of child sex offences after a former altar boy complained to a victims support group.
   Kelvin Gerald Sharkey, 81, was charged by Lake Illawarra detectives earlier this month with two counts of bu*g*ry and 10 counts of indecent assault.
   He has been summonsed to appear in Wollongong Local Court on September 30.

• Testimony Ends in Church Abuse Civil Suit

  [~ 2008 Bp Angell -NEW*] - RCC. Said no procedures in 1970s.  
   Fox 44, ~ August 22, 2008
   VERMONT -- Testimony wrapped up Friday in the latest civil lawsuit against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington.
   The jury heard testimony by video from now retired Bishop Kenneth Angell about how the Diocese of Burlington handled the situation involving allegations of a priest molesting altar boys.
   On videotape, Bishop Angell said there was no procedure to handle these types of situations in the 1970s. He said he would have gotten advice from his lawyers before alerting police.
   [COMMENT: "No procedure" in the 1970s?  What, the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church never developed procedures in all those 15 or so centuries since its foundation?  Wrong!  The procedures DO EXIST, and the secrecy modus operandi is largely revealed in Crimen Sollicitationis. ENDS.]

• Sex Abuse Trial Takes Bizarre Twist

  [≤ 2005 Lamonica] - "Hosanna Church". 2 sons and girl (2).
   WGNO, by Jon Huffman, August 22, 2008
   AMITE (LA) – The trial of a former pastor from Ponchatoula accused of molesting his two young sons took a strange twist this morning.
   In opening statements, defense attorneys portrayed the charges as the demented fantasies of one powerful Church member who convinced other congregants it was true.
   They painted a picture of the Hosanna church as an almost Jim Jones-like cult headed by a charismatic leader. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 22, 2008 7:20 PM]

• Statements delivered against pastor

  [≤ 2005 Lamonica] - "Hosanna Church". 2 sons and girl (2).
   The Advocate, By DEBRA LEMOINE, Florida Parishes bureau, UPDATED: 3:50 PM, Published Aug 22, 2008
   AMITE (LA) – Louis D. Lamonica confessed to raping his two young sons because he was manipulated by a self-proclaimed prophet who had visions of Lamonica's sins and insisted he admit them to be cleansed by God, defense counsel Michael Thiel said in opening statements this morning.
   Assistant District Attorney Don Wall, however, told the jury in his opening statements that Lamonica is a pedophile who began having sex with his sons starting when they were 5 years old. Lamonica not only confessed these crimes to law enforcement personnel but also wrote about them "to a nauseating extent," Wall told the jury.
   Lamonica, 48, of Hammond is being tried in the 21st Judicial District Court in Amite on four counts of aggravated rape of his two sons. He is the second of seven members of the now-defunct Hosanna Church in Ponchatoula indicted in 2005 on charges of sexually abusing children to be tried.

• Court: Conversations with pastors not always privileged

  [Unnamed person] - Unnamed religion. 2 daughters.
   USA Today, By Kate Coscarelli, Religion News Service, August 22, 2008
   NEW JERSEY -- A conversation with a religious leader is not protected from being revealed in court unless it occurred in private and the leader was acting as a spiritual adviser, a New Jersey appeals court ruled Wednesday.
   A unanimous three-judge panel of the New Jersey Appellate Division ruled that a pastor's testimony should be allowed at a trial in which a father is facing charges of sexually molesting his two daughters.
   While the conversation occurred in private, the pastor did not offer to keep it confidential. Nor did he purport to be acting in the role of a spiritual adviser, and he explicitly refused to counsel the man.

• Clergy Sex Abuse Is Measured: Arbitrator Calculates

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. ~ US $10m going. 47 victims.  
   KCUR news, with audio, by Dan Verbeck, ~ August 22, 2008
   KANSAS CITY (MO) -- A contract is sealed between forty seven men and women and the Kansas City St. Joseph Catholic diocese. Bishop Robert Finn admits plaintiffs suffered sexual abuse when they were young boys or girls and over a period that spanned five decades.
   Outside Crown Center District law offices where arbitrations are deciding how $10 million in church funds will be divided among the forty seven, lawyers say the atmosphere inside is so charged nearly everyone has been weeping. The independent arbitrator is hearing descriptions of abuse and gauging duration and severity. But the outside subject is the non money settlement, point after point detailed by attorney Rebecca Randles who says, "these are the most far reaching non monetary commitments that have ever been negotiated between a diocese and the victims of childhood sexual abuse anywhere in the United States and as far as we know, anywhere in the world."

• No excuse for inaction

  [1973-78 Kownacki] - RCC. 30-yr fraudulent concealment. Altar boy.
   News-Democrat, ~ August 22, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) -- Fifteen years ago, Southern Illinois residents reacted in stunned disbelief when the Belleville Diocese started removing priests accused of sexual misconduct. The civil trial this week brought by James Wisniewski, who said he was abused by the Rev. Raymond Kownacki in the early 1970s, has brought back that punch-in-the-gut feeling.
   The general allegations were bad enough. But to listen to diocesan leaders testify they knew Kownacki was accused of abusing young boys and simply moved the priest to unsuspecting parishes is in some ways worse. Wisniewski's attorney on Thursday produced records during testimony that showed similar patterns with three other priests.
   Church leaders had an obligation to call the police about Kownacki. At a minimum they should have kept him away from children. They did neither.

• Diocese meets with area parishes for long-term planning

  - RCC.
   Cheboygan Daily Tribune, By RICH ADAMS, ~ August 22, 2008
   GAYLORD, Mich. - A series of parish town hall meetings are being scheduled throughout Northern Michigan to determine the future of the various Catholic churches in the Diocese of Gaylord.
   A shortage of clergy is prompting the Diocese to look at each church and come up with a list of long-term goals.
   But that doesn't necessarily mean church closings, as was the case in the 1990s in Cheboygan County.
   "The Parish and Personnel Task Force has been working for about two years," said Candace Neff, director of communications for the Diocese. "It is made up of people throughout the Diocese. It has worked on short-term goals, and is now working on the long-term goals."

• Ex-priest's trial on sex charges to start Nov. 17

  [Fushek]
   Fox 11, AP, August 22, 2008
   MESA, Ariz. (AP) -- The trial of a former Roman Catholic priest charged with seven misdemeanor sex-related crimes has been pushed back to November.
   A three-week postponement was granted Thursday for the start of the trial for Monsignor Dale Fushek, former pastor of St. Timothy's Catholic Community in Mesa.
   San Tan Justice of the Peace Samuel Goodman moved the jury trial from Oct. 27 to Nov. 17 because of court calendar conflict. The cases were filed almost three years ago.
   Prosecutors and defense lawyers wrangled over a motion on whether Fushek would get a fair trial if all five counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, one count of assault and one of indecent exposure were heard at one trial.

• Lawyers rest cases in church abuse trial

 
   Burlington Free Press, August 22, 2008
   VERMONT -- Both sides in the clergy sex abuse trial in Burlington rested their cases today after showing jurors videotaped testimony addressing allegations the state's Roman Catholic diocese covered up sexual misconduct by priests.
   Lawyers for the alleged victim in the case given the jury presented a pre-recorded interview of former Bishop Kenneth Angell and lawyers for diocese showed testimony by Judge Mark Keller and the Rev. Phillip LaMothe.
   After the final videotape was shown, Judge Matthew Katz dismissed the jury for the weekend and told them they will begin deliberations on the case after hearing closing arguments from the lawyers Monday morning.

• Psychiatrist says former altar boy suffered long-term damage

  [1973-78 Kownacki] - RCC. 30-yr fraudulent concealment. Altar boy.
   News-Democrat, By George Pawlacz, ~ August 22, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) --A St. Louis psychiatrist testified today during a civil trial involving a lawsuit against the Diocese of Belleville that former altar boy James Wisniewski suffered long-term damage from sexual abuse by the Rev. Raymond Kownacki.
   The trial, before St. Clair County Circuit Judge Lloyd Cueto, heard testimony from Dr. Stephen E. Petersen. He stated that Wisniewski was 13 when he was first assaulted by Kownacki who, sexually molested him at the rectory, or priest's residence, of St. Theresa's Parish in 1973. Petersen said after examining Wisniewski for more than eight hours, that he believes the former altar boy is telling the truth and will require medication and treatment for at least five to 10 years.
   Petersen told plaintiff's attorney Mike Weilmuenster of Belleville, that Wisniewski suffers from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and other psychological damage. The psychiatrist testified that while Wisniewski did not recognize that he had been damaged until 2002, when reports of priest sexual abuse in Boston became national news, such a delayed reaction was common in cases of sexual abuse of boys.

• Catholic priest tried to order porn movie and lied to victim's parents

  [2008 Jan 3 - Ramirez*] - RCC. 6mos prison. Battery, burglary. Boy.
   The Orange County Register, By RACHANEE SRISAVASDI, ~ August 22, 2008
   SANTA ANA (CA) -– A Catholic priest sentenced to 180 days in jail this week for taking a 17-year-old parishioner to a motel room had tried to rent a pornographic movie and lied to the victim's parents about the teen's whereabouts, according to court records made public today.
   The Rev. Luis Eduardo Ramirez, ousted from Our Lady of the Pillar in Santa Ana after his January arrest, told the victim's parents that he was bringing their son to a youth seminar the night of Jan. 3, wrote Orange County Deputy Probation Officer Vicki L. Pedrin in a Aug. 7th probation report.
   Instead, the priest drove to a restaurant in Orange where he ordered two margaritas for the victim, then brought the boy to Cortona Inn and Suites in Anaheim, the report says. There, the priest rented a room, and tried to order a pornographic film.

• Diocese boards approve priest abuse settlement

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. ~ US $10m going (40% to lawyers). 47 victims.
   Kansas City Star ~ August 22, 2008
   KANSAS CITY (MO) -- Two boards of the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph have approved a $10 million settlement with 47 plaintiffs in sexual abuse lawsuits against priests.
   The Board of Consulters and the Diocese Finance Council affirmed the agreement Thursday evening, said Rebecca Summers, spokeswoman for the diocese. Bishop Robert W. Finn said Wednesday he would sign the agreement once the two boards affirmed it.
   Twelve priests were accused in lawsuits of abusing the plaintiffs as children, mostly between the 1950s and early 1980s. The suits were filed beginning in 2002 in Jackson County. An arbiter will determine how much each plaintiff will receive, after about 40 percent is taken out for legal fees.
   [COMMENT: That 40% for legal fees could have been saved for real CHURCH work, if the RC leaders would act like the Good Shepherd by helping the "injured lambs," instead of resisting the known truth about the clergy's sinfulness. ENDS.]

• Public invited to workshop on pastoral planning process

  - RCC.
   The Pilot (Boston RC journal), ~ August 22, 2008
   MASSACHUSETTS -- The public is invited to a series of workshops to be held in the first week of September on the pastoral planning process underway in the archdiocese.
   In May 2007, at the request of Cardinal Seán P. O'Malley, the 15-member Pastoral Planning Committee produced the report, "A Church Continually Being Reborn," a roadmap for how parishes in the archdiocese will have to adapt to future realities.
   Since its release, pastors and parish leaders have used this report as a starting point for parish and inter-parish meetings to discuss its contents and implications.
   To begin this process, Cardinal O'Malley identified three areas of pastoral life he considers particularly challenging for the archdiocese: faith formation, marriage, and pastoral planning.

• Former priest charged with sex offences

  [1969-76 Sharkey*] - RCC. Altar boy.
   Sydney Morning Herald, by Alex Tibbitts and Georgina Robinson, for August 23, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- A former Wollongong priest has been charged with a series of sex offences dating back to the 60s.
   Kelvin Gerald Sharkey, an 81-year-old retired Catholic priest who now lives in Victoria, has been charged with 10 counts of indecent assault and two counts of b*g*ery of an altar boy at St John Vianney's, Fairy Meadow, which runs a primary school.
   Police allege the offences occurred from 1969 to 1976, starting when the victim was 10 years old.

• Bruce guilty of church theft

  [Ms Bruce] - Christian. GUILTY. Money.    
   The Garden Island, by Michael Levine, August 22, 2008
   HAWAII -- After more than two weeks of evidence presentation and testimony, and two days of deliberation, a jury returned a verdict of guilty for Daria Bruce – the former Westside church employee who had been accused of stealing donations – yesterday in 5th Circuit Court.
   Bruce stood completely still and showed no emotion as her attorney, William Feldhacker, requested a polling of the 12-member jury, requiring them to stand, one by one, and confirm that they agreed with the guilty verdict.
   The verdict was unanimous.
   "The jury did their job," said deputy prosecuting attorney Mauna Kea Trask. "They listened to all the evidence and they made their decision."

• IRS goes to court over Brooklyn Park church's records

  - "Living Word Christian Center."  
   The Bemidji Pioneer, The Associated Press - Friday, August 22, 2008
   MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA -- The Internal Revenue Service is looking into financial dealings between a Twin Cities church and its pastor.
   The Star Tribune reports the IRS is investigating whether compensation and loan deals between the Living Word Christian Center of Brooklyn Park and its pastor, the Reverend Mac Hammond, violated laws for tax-exempt organizations.

• Sessions until Christmas: Engelmann

  - Cornwall Inquiry into general community.  
   Standard-Freeholder, By TREVOR PRITCHARD, ~ August 22, 2008
   CANADA -- Black binders containing reports, memos, and personal e-mails surround Comm. Normand Glaude's desk at the Cornwall Public Inquiry. More than 2,000 exhibits have been entered into evidence since the inquiry's first witness testified in early 2006.
   With the Beijing Olympics in full swing, perhaps it's not surprising that athletic metaphors are on Peter Engelmann's mind.
   "What you typically see in a public inquiry, towards the end, (is) a bit of a sprint," says Engelmann, lead counsel for the city's own olympian undertaking, the Cornwall Public Inquiry.
   Hearings have been on hold since Aug. 1, when former Bishop Eugene LaRocque left the stand, complaining of fatigue.

• Clergy sex abuse victim wins appeal

  [Unnamed priest (Salesian)] - RCC. Boy.  
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, with link to court document, August 21, 2008
   CALIFORNIA -- A California appeals court has upheld a lower court's finding that a Catholic priest molested a boy and his church colleagues and bosses were responsible for the crimes.
   Joey Piscitelli charged, in a civil case, that he was molested by a Salesian cleric in the Bay Area and that the priest's supervisors could and should have prevented the abuse. He was awarded a six figure verdict. The Salesians appealed the case, claiming there wasn't a fair trial.
   The 13 page order, in favor of Piscitelli, was apparently issued late yesterday.

• Lawsuit against diocese involving ex-Dover priest dismissed

  [Unnamed priest] - RCC. Raped a man.
   Foster's Daily Democrat, By AARON SANBORN, asanborn@fosters.com , Friday, August 22, 2008
   NEW HAMPSHIRE -- A lawsuit against the Diocese of Manchester, claiming a former Dover priest raped and infected a man with HIV, has been dismissed.
   Officials at Hillsborough County Superior Court confirmed the case's dismissal on Thursday afternoon but could give no further information because the dismissal is under seal.
   The diocese's attorney, Brian Quirk, declined to comment about any aspect of the case.

• "Tough to swallow"

  [1988-91 Beltran] - RCC. Fugitive released. 4 minors. .    
   California Catholic Daily, ~ August 22, 2008
   SACRAMENTO (CA) -- Authorities in Mexico have released a former Sacramento diocesan priest who was awaiting extradition to California to face charges of having sexually abused minors.
   Mexican authorities arrested Gerardo Beltran, 51, in March and have been holding him in a Mexico City jail. "Our understanding is that he was released from custody when Mexican courts ruled that he couldn't be extradited because the statute of limitations had run out," Jeff Galvin, assistant information officer at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City, told the Sacramento Bee.
   Beltran started working in the Diocese of Sacramento in 1982. He fled to his native Mexico in 1991 when Sacramento police began investigating allegations that he had molested two girls. After Beltran's flight, the Sacramento diocese removed his faculties.
   Beltran has been charged with four counts of child molestation involving two victims for incidents that allegedly occurred between 1989 and 1991. Media coverage this year brought forward two more accusers, and Beltran faces three additional charges for alleged acts of abuse between 1988 and 1991.

• Grand jury returns three more indictments in FLDS case

  - FLDS.  
   San Angelo Standard-Times, By Paul A. Anthony, Friday, August 22, 2008
   ELDORADO (TX) - A Schleicher County grand jury returned three more felony indictments against members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, bringing to 12 the number of charges affiliated thus far with the April raid on the polygamist sect.
   The indictments were against three people, District Clerk Peggy Williams said, but she declined to discuss any further details - including even whether the indictments name any of the same men charged by the grand jury at its July meeting.
   "I'm not going to go into that until these people have been arrested," she said.

• Ex-youth minister charged with another sexual assault

  [2006, 2007 Mr Jenkins*] - Baptist. Girls (8, 14).
   Belleville News-Democrat, BY JENNIFER A. BOWEN, ~ August 22, 2008
   EAST ST. LOUIS (MO) -- A former O'Fallon church youth minister charged last month with assaulting an 8-year-old girl has been charged again with sexually assaulting another youngster.
   Terrence Jenkins, 36, of 542 N. 14th St. in East St. Louis, was charged Thursday by St. Clair County prosecutors with aggravated criminal sexual abuse and criminal sexual assault. The girl was 14 when assaulted on Aug. 11, 2006, the charges state.
   He is accused of molesting both girls while he served as a youth minister with Faith United Baptist Church in O'Fallon, according to the court documents. Jenkins is no longer with the church.

• More charges filed against Metro East youth pastor

  [2006, 2007 Mr Jenkins*] - Baptist. Girls (8, 14).
   Fort Mill Times, August 22, 2008
   EAST ST. LOUIS (MO) – A former O'Fallon church youth minister already facing charges of assaulting an 8-year-old girl has been charged again with sexually assaulting a second youth.
   Thirty-six-year-old Terrence Jenkins of East St. Louis was charged Thursday with aggravated criminal sexual abuse and criminal sexual assault. According to the charges, the girl was 14 when assaulted on August 11, 2006.
   According to court documents, Jenkins is accused of molesting both girls while he served as a youth minister with Faith United Baptist Church in O'Fallon. Jenkins is no longer with the church.

• Witness: Ex-altar boy shows signs of abuse

  [1970s Paquette] - RCC. (> US$8.7m already). (18 cases). Altar boys.
   Burlington Free Press, By Sam Hemingway, August 22, 2008
   VERMONT -- A Burlington altar boy allegedly molested between 20 and 50 times by the Rev. Edward Paquette in the 1970s continues to suffer low-grade depression and post-traumatic stress 30 years later, a psychologist testified in court Thursday.
   "His claim of experiencing anxiety and depression is borne out not only in his verbal report but in his test results," Dr. Joseph Hasazi of Burlington told the jury during the sixth day of a clergy sex abuse trial at Chittenden Superior Court.
   The alleged victim was a 9-year-old fourth-grader when he says the incidents occurred at Christ the King Church.

• Judge orders Aretakis to pay for 'bogus' suit

  - Aretakis to pay up.
   Albany Times Union, By ROBERT GAVIN, Friday, August 22, 2008
   ALBANY (NY) -- In a scathing decision, U.S. District Judge Gary Sharpe has given attorney John Aretakis 20 days to pay $12,368 for a "bogus federal lawsuit."
   The judge minced no words in ordering Aretakis to fork over legal fees and costs totaling $10,000 to the Albany Roman Catholic Diocese and $2,368 to the federal government.
   "It is absolutely improper for a trained lawyer to file a bogus federal lawsuit in an effort to vent about his personal dissatisfaction with government," Sharpe wrote in a 46-page decision released Aug. 18. "Furthermore, if a client wishes to file a bogus lawsuit, it is the responsibility of a trained professional to dissuade her from doing so."

• Priest: Sex allegations were hushed up

  - RCC. [1973-78 Kownacki] - Altar boy. [Decades - Belleville Diocese] - Hushed up crimes.
   St. Louis Post-Dispatch, By Nicholas J.C. Pistor, August/22/2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) – Alleged sexual abuse by a priest within the Belleville Diocese was hushed and treated as dirty laundry, a former high-ranking diocesan official testified in court on Thursday.
   "Like any family, you don't go hanging your dirty laundry all over the line," the Rev. Joseph Schwaegel, a former vice chancellor in the diocese, testified on Thursday.
   A former altar boy is suing the Belleville Diocese, alleging that it covered up sexual abuse involving the Rev. Raymond Kownacki. The altar boy, now 47, says in the suit that Kownacki repeatedly molested him throughout the 1970s.

• Priest charged with child sex offences

  [1960s-70s Sharkey*] - RCC. Altar boy.      
   New South Wales Police Force, 02:56pm, Friday, 22 Aug 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- Lake Illawarra detectives have charged an 81-year-old retired Catholic priest with a series of child sex offences, dating back almost 40 years.
   The former clergyman, now living in Victoria, has been issued with a summons to appear in a New South Wales court after investigators travelled to Melbourne to follow up numerous complaints to a victim's support group.
   The charges relate to the repeated sexual assault of a former altar boy on the state's south coast.

• Retired priest charged with assaults

  [1960s-70s Sharkey*] - RCC. Altar boy.
   Sydney Morning Herald, by Georgina Robinson, August 22, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- Police have charged a retired Catholic priest with a string of child sex offences against an altar boy that date back almost 40 years.
   The 81-year-old former clergyman, who now lives in Victoria, was alleged to have repeatedly sexually assaulted the boy over a seven-year period on the New South Wales south coast.
   The boy was 10 years old at the time and served as an altar boy.

• NSW priest faces 12 child sex charges

  [1960s-70s Sharkey*] - RCC. Altar boy.
   Sydney Morning Herald, August 22, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- An 81-year-old retired Catholic priest has been ordered to appear in a NSW court to face a series of child sex charges.
   The charges follow an investigation into claims of altar boy abuse, which date back almost 40 years, in NSW's Lake Illawarra district, south of Sydney.
   The clergyman - formerly based in the area but now living in Victoria - has been issued with a summons to appear in Wollongong Local Court on September 30.

• Despite complaints about molestations, diocese put priest near two Belleville schools

  [1973-78 Kownacki] - RCC. Fraudulent concealment. Altar boy.  
   News-Democrat, BY GEORGE PAWLACZYK, ~ August 22, 2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) -- When it came time to finally decide what to do with a priest who was the subject of complaints over 15 years that he raped and sexually molested minors, diocese officials sent him to live next door to hundreds of Belleville elementary and high school students.
   "You put him right in the heart of a grade school and a high school?" attorney Steve Wigginton loudly asked the Rev. Joseph Schwaegel, a witness Thursday in a civil trial stemming from a 2002 lawsuit.
   In a barely audible voice, Schwaegel, who was removed from ministry in 1994 because of sexual addiction not involving a minor, said "yes."

• Clive (13) had visions of monsters -- but the truth was even worse

   
   Irish Independent, Friday August 22 2008
   All names have been changed
   IRELAND -- The Occupational Therapy Unit at St Vitus's, an adult psychiatric hospital, was a long room with a dirty, vinyl floor and high windows, the lower panes of which were obscured by opaque plastic sheets.
   I was there to see a 13-year-old boy named Clive Plummer. (All names have been changed). He had been committed due to the terrible, demonic hallucinations he experienced after the death of his mother.
   I had been asked to meet him by his sister, Roberta, whom I had been to college with. She was convinced there was more to his apparent breakdown than met the eye -- I wasn't so sure, but wanted to help her.
   Clive was in terrible physical shape -- thin, hollow-eyed and scarred from self-harming. He wore an expression devoid of feeling, and sat perfectly still, gazing unblinking into space.

• Mother of abuse victim calls for George's resignation

  [≤ 1994+ Maday] - RCC wasting effort on seducer. ? dozens of boys.  
   Southtown Star, By Andrew Herrmann, Sun-Times News Group, August 22, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Reading her Chicago Sun-Times last week, Diane Houston lingered over a prison photo of the Rev. Norbert Maday, his mug shot showing the convicted sex abuser with a black eye and a swollen lip.
   Though the Homewood woman is the mother of one of the dozens of boys believed to have been raped by Maday, the picture of the jailed Chicago priest didn't bring her any solace.
   Her reaction: "He was beaten up but not beaten up enough for me."
   On Thursday, Houston, whose son John committed suicide years after he was abused by Maday, called on Cardinal Francis George to resign. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on August 22, 2008 6:43 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Fri August 22, 2008
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont151.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Sat August 23, 2008 edition:

• 'Abused student' mystery

  [1950s-60s Unnamed priest/s -NEW*] - RCC. 5 suicided. 10 victims in one class.      
   Brisbane Times, 6:24AM, for August 24, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- A MAN who has alleged a priest abused him at St Joseph's Nudgee College in Brisbane was not a student there, school officials say.
   Paul Fauth, who said he was 59 and now lived in the Melbourne suburb of Richmond, told ABC Radio Sydney last month that a priest had molested him at the school in the 1950s.
   He said he had discovered during World Youth Day events that others in his class had also been abused and four had committed suicide.
   Mr Fauth later told The Sun-Herald the abuse had occurred at Nudgee College.
   A spokesman for the school said he could not confirm Mr Fauth's allegation but last week the spokesman said records showed no one by that name had attended the school.

• Confermate le accuse di pedofilia a don Ruggero Il Riesame: "Impressionante numero di abusi»

  [~ 2000s Conti -NEW*] - RCC. Boys.  
   Il Messaggero, ~ 6 agosto, 2008
   ROMA, Italia -- "Nel complesso le accuse appaiono gravissime perchè riferiscono di un numero impressionante di abusi sessuali compiuti sui minori». Questo uno dei passaggi contenuti nelle sei pagine di motivazioni depositate dal Tribunale del Riesame di Roma che nei giorni scorsi ha confermato la misura cautelare in carcere per don Ruggero Conti, il sacerdote, ex parroco della chiesa di Selva Candida, alla periferia della Capitale, arrestato il 30 giugno scorso con le accuse di violenza sessuale. Il collegio presieduto da Antonino Lo Surdo si spinge ad ipotizzare "una condanna altamente probabile» per Conti, detenuto nel carcere di Regina Coeli.
   [translation] Confirmed the allegations of pedophilia to the Rev. Ruggero. The Tribunal for the reexamination: "An impressive number of abuses"
   ROME, Italy (August 6, 2008) -- "On the whole the allegations appear very grave for they refer to a very impressive number of sexual abuses performed on minors". That is one of the passages contained in the six pages of motivations deposited by the Tribunal for the Reexamination of Rome which in the past days confirmed the cautionary measure to keep in jail the Rev. Ruggero Conti, the former parish priest of the church of Selva Candida in the periphery of Rome, arrested on last Jun 30th after being accused of sexual violence. The group of judges, under the presidency of Antonino Lo Surdo, went so far as to hypothesize " a very likely conviction" for the Rev. Conti, now detained in the Regina Cieli's jail.
   The defensive strategy. The defendant's lawyers - composed by Riccardo Olivo, Anna D'Alessandro and Giancarlo D'Onofrio - had brought during the Reexamination procedure numerous parents of boys who witnessed in favor of the priest. Among them there a was a cleaning lady who said the priest had often paid for her son's vacations.
   The charges. In the Reexamination's ordinance, instead, it can be read the sexual abuses "even if they weren't accompanied with physical violence and menaces were possible because the victims were in a state of subjection and the Rev. Conti profited from that without any moral and material restrain deriving from his role and the condition of the boys". [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:38 PM]

• Preacher 'never saw a doctor'

  [~ 2000s Guglielmucci -NEW*] - Religious superstar. Fake battle with cancer.    
   Adelaide Now, By ELISSA LAWRENCE, for August 24, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- MICHAEL Guglielmucci hung around in doctors' waiting rooms as part of a web of lies to convince followers that he was dying of cancer.
   Family members of the fallen Christian superstar were also convinced God had healed him of some of the debilitating effects – including broken bones – of his fake battle with cancer.
   Details have begun to emerge about how Mr Guglielmucci deceived those close to him. A friend of 15 years, Adelaide motivational speaker Colin Pearce, revealed his adult sons had been fooled by Mr Guglielmucci.

• Settlement leaves victims of abuse by priests cold

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. ~ US $10m going. 47 victims.  
   Wyoming Tribune-Eagle, By Bill McCarthy, bmccarthy@wyomingnews.com , ~ August 23, 2008
   CHEYENNE (WY) -- Three men who allege sexual assault by former Wyoming Roman Catholic Bishop Joseph Hart said Friday that the $10 million settlement of a lawsuit is small comfort compared to a lifetime of suffering.
   The Roman Catholic Diocese of Kansas City and St. Joseph, where Hart served as a priest early in his career, has agreed to settle sexual-abuse claims against the diocese and 12 priests brought by 47 victims who said the incidents occurred between 1951 and 1992.
   Diocese spokeswoman Rebecca Summers said Bishop Robert W. Finn received unanimous recommendations from two diocese boards Thursday to approve the settlement - a stipulation of church law, The Associated Press reported.
   "I would trade all the money if I could make it so that it never happened," said Mike Hunter, 59, who alleges Hart abused him and his brother as boys dating back to 1963.

• An American Catholic tragedy

  [Bennett] - RCC. Card. George coached priest about evidence.  
   GetReligion, Posted by Mark Stricherz, ~ August 23, 2008
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Have you read Theodore Dreiser's An American Tragedy? The book is a favorite of mine. Its greatness lies not only in the story, but also its accumulation of detail. In reading the book I felt as if I knew all about Clyde Griffiths – his shame at his poor Christian parents, his envy of the wealthy guests at the Kansas City hotel where he worked, his cold-blooded plan to murder his working-class pregnant girlfriend.
   I had a roughly similar feeling while reading The Chicago Tribune's expose of the Chicago archdiocese's mishandling and cover-up of its sex-abuse scandal.
   Granted, reporters Margaret Ramirez and Manya A. Brachear were fortunate to hit the journalist's equivalent of a jackpot: the release of Cardinal Francis George's deposition. Yet give the reporters credit for describing and quoting from the deposition's testimony in detail. Consider the passage below about how the Rev. Edward Grace, the archdiocese's vicar for priests, coached accused abuser Father Joseph Bennett:
   In 2002, a male victim voluntarily underwent a lie-detector test that showed he was telling the truth. The cardinal says he never received that information. In 2003, a female victim tells archdiocese officials specific details about freckles on Bennett's scrotum and a round birthmark on his back that led an archdiocese review board to conclude that sexual abuse "did happen."
   Grace advised Bennett on how to handle the victim's knowledge of his private parts, according to a memo. According to the testimony, Grace told Bennett in November 2005 to get a note from a dermatologist questioning whether the scrotum marks might be "aging marks" and may not have been present at the time of the allegation.
   The victims' attorney, Anderson, asks the cardinal about the freckles matter, saying: "Grace is–looks like he's trying to explain it away. Do you read it that way?"
   George responds: "It could be read that way."

• Non-Monetary Commitments of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. ~ US $10m going. 47 victims.
   SNAP - Great Plains, ~ August 23, 2008
   KANSAS CITY (MO) -- 1. Through a press statement to the secular media and through publication in The Catholic Key, the Diocese will continue to publicly acknowledge the wrongfulness of sexual abuse by the perpetrators, and will acknowledge that its own response to reports of sexual abuse has, in the past, been wrong.
   2. The Diocese will continue its long-standing offer to provide counseling to all victims of sexual abuse and their immediate family members, at the expense of the Diocese. The plaintiffs collectively shall appoint an individual of their choice to act as an intermediary between plaintiffs and the Diocese in order to facilitate the provision of independent therapy for any plaintiff for a maximum of twenty four (24) sessions.
   3. The Diocese will not provide a reference or recommendation for purposes of prospective employment with respect to any priest, nun, deacon, lay employee or volunteer of the Diocese who has been credibly accused of sexual abuse. If the Diocese receives a request for such a reference or recommendation, the Diocese will respond that it will not provide such a reference or recommendation, except in the case where a lawsuit alleging sexual abuse has been filed, in which case the Diocese will inform the prospective employer of that fact. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:19 PM]

• Man, 77, on sex charges

  [1960s-70s Unnamed man] - No religion link reported. Boys (State wards). [1970s Unnamed clergyman] - Anglican. Minor/s.    
   Adelaide Now, By NIGEL HUNT, August 24, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- POLICE have charged an Oaklands Park man, 77, with numerous sex offences in connection with the abuse of young boys who were wards of the state.
   The offending allegedly occurred from the early 1960s to the late 1970s at the Glandore and Somerton Park boys' homes, where the man was employed.
   The victims, aged between eight and 13 at the time, gave evidence to the Mullighan inquiry. …
   His arrest is the latest in a series for historical sex offences made by task force detectives this month.
   The others include:
   A FORMER Anglican priest, 73, charged with indecent assault and unlawful sexual intercourse in the 1970s.

• Disgraced pastor 'porn addict'

  [Guglielmucci]
   Adelaide Now, By ELISSA LAWRENCE, August 24, 2008
   AUSTRALIA -- THE father of disgraced pastor Michael Guglielmucci has revealed his son has been addicted to pornography since the age of 12.
   Danny Guglielmucci – whose high-profile preacher son this week admitted his two-year battle with cancer was fake – said the "severe addiction to pornography" was part of a bizarre double life his son had been leading.
   Mr Guglielmucci said Michael had made a full confession to his family about his past, including revelations about the 16-year porn obsession and the lies over his supposed battle with terminal illness.

• Pastor Senyonga arrested in USA

  [2008 Aug 16 - Senyonga*] - Christian Life Ministries. Girl.    
   The New Vision, BY L. NAMUBIRU AND AGENCIES, Friday, August 22, 2008
   UGANDA -- America's Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) is probing allegations that Pastor Jackson Senyonga of Christian Life Ministries in Kampala molested a 13-year-old girl on a flight last Saturday, the Associated press has reported.
   The Associated Press is an international news agency based in the US.
   Senyonga was accused of fondling the girl, who was seated next to him during the flight from Denver to Oakland.
   When the flight landed, he was arrested by Oakland authorities, then he was questioned and released on bail.

• Lawsuit claims abuse by former city priest

  [1970+ Mackiewicz] - RCC. Boys and girls.  
   The Daily Times, By Earl Holland, August 23, 2008
   SALISBURY (MD) -- An Arizona man has filed a lawsuit against the Diocese of Wilmington, claiming he was molested by a priest assigned to a city church nearly 40 years ago.
   David Dixon, of Peoria, Ariz., filed the suit Friday in Sussex County Superior Court charging that he was molested in 1970 by Leonard Mackiewicz, a former priest at St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church.
   The lawsuit also claims that Mackiewicz, who died in 1994, was a serial abuser of both boys and girls during his 30 years as a priest in churches throughout the Lower Eastern Shore of Maryland and most of Delaware.

• Diocese mulls local church reconfiguration Valley, Towanda, Canton and Wyalusing could be affected

  - RCC.
   The Daily Review, BY TIFFANY PEDEN, Saturday, August 23, 2008
   SCRANTON (PA) -- The planning commission of the Diocese of Scranton recently recommended the potential reconfiguration of Catholic churches in seven Bradford County communities.
   As part of the diocese's project "Called to holiness and mission: pastoral planning in the Diocese of Scranton," a preliminary recommendation was made to reconfigure churches in Sayre, Athens, South Waverly, Bentley Creek, Towanda, Canton and Wyalusing, according to statements from the Diocese of Scranton Planning Commission on the Diocese of Scranton's Web site.
   The project is to focus on the "effective revitalization of all parishes," the release stated.

• Nun's suicide: petition challenges compensation

  - RCC. Marxist government to compensate! [2008 Unnamed head nun*] - RCC. Nun Anupa/Anoopa.  
   Indian Catholic ~ August 23, 2008
   KOCHI, INDIA (ICNS): A petition has challenged the compensation of 200,000 rupees that the state government offered to pay to the family of the nun who committed suicide in Kerala.
   The Marxist coalition government in the state promised the compensation to the parents of Sister Anoopa Mary, who was found hanging on Aug. 11 from the ceiling of a room in her St Mary's Convent in Kollam.
   The petition filed by Peter George, a teacher in Kochi, wanted the Kerala High Court to prevent the misuse of public money offered as financial assistance to undeserved people.
   The suicide note of the nun had accused the convent superior of harassing her. Her father Pappachan accused the convent authorities of sexually harassing the nun and met state chief minister seeking action against the convent authorities. The chief minister promised to pay the compensation Aug. 13.

• Jury convicts ex-secretary of stealing from churches

  [Ms Bruce] - RCC. GUILTY. Money < US $85,000.    
   Honolulu Star-Bulletin, By Tom Finnegan tfinnegan@starbulletin.com , ~ August 23, 2008
   LIHUE, HAWAII -- Daria Bruce, longtime secretary of Holy Cross Catholic Church in Kalaheo, was found guilty in Circuit Court of stealing money from two churches' donations.
   After a three-week trial and two days of deliberation, a jury found this week that Bruce, 62, diverted nearly $85,000 from the churches, first to the Filipino Catholic Club and then to herself.
   Bruce, 62, could receive up to 10 years in prison and a $25,000 fine when she is sentenced Dec. 4, as well as being forced to pay restitution.
   County Deputy Prosecutor Mauna Kea Trask said Bruce was secretary of Holy Cross Church in Kalaheo and Sacred Heart Parish in Eleele from 1998 until 2005. She routinely commingled funds between the church and the Filipino Catholic Club, of which she was treasurer and president. Then, prosecutors said, she allegedly wrote checks from the club's account to herself.

• Jeffs, 2 other FLDS leaders charged with bigamy

  [Jeffs* + 2] - FLDS.  
   Houston Chronicle By LISA SANDBERG San Antonio Express-News, ~ August 23, 2008
   TEXAS -- Bigamy charges have been filed in Texas against jailed polygamist leader Warren Jeffs and two other members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
   All three men were charged last month with sexual assault of a child in connection with underage marriages.
   Charged along with Jeffs on Thursday were Raymond Merril Jessop, 36, and Michael George Emack, 57. The pair surrendered to Schleicher County authorities Friday afternoon, said the sheriff there, David Doran. Both were released after each posted $10,000 bond, Doran said.

• Jeffs, 2 others indicted on felony bigamy counts

  - FLDS.
   Deseret News, By Ben Winslow, Saturday, Aug. 23, 2008
   ELDORADO, Texas – Fundamentalist LDS Church leader Warren Jeffs and two of his followers are the latest to be indicted by a grand jury here on third-degree felony bigamy charges.
   The indictments were unsealed after Raymond Merril Jessop, 36, and Michael George Emack, 57, surrendered to authorities at the Schleicher County Sheriff's Office Friday afternoon. They were booked and released after each posted $10,000 bond.

• Joseph Biden: a frank and abiding faith

 
   The Christian Science Monitor, By Gail Russell Chaddock | Staff writer, from the August 27, 2007 edition
   WASHINGTON (DC) -- From his childhood bedroom in a treeless industrial suburb of Wilmington, Del., Joe Biden looked out on Archmere, an Italianate mansion and Catholic boys high school that he called "the object of my deepest desire, my Oz."
   Archmere was also the home of financier John Jacob Raskob, who ran the 1928 campaign of Gov. Al Smith (D) of New York, the first Roman Catholic to become the presidential nominee of a major US political party. …
   Biden is troubled, too, by ongoing sexual-abuse scandals involving children within the church. But he says his commitment to church remains unchanged. "This is my church as much as it is the church of a cardinal, bishop, or janitor, and I'm not going anywhere," he said. I care a great deal about my faith."

• AP: Obama Chooses Biden

  - RCC.
   Beliefnet, By Mara Vanderslice, ~ August 23, 2008
   UNITED STATES -- I think Biden is a great choice for the Obama campaign! His working class roots in Scranton, PA, foreign policy bona fides and deep Catholic faith - that you can just tell is in his bones - will be a great addition to the ticket. …
   There will be a lot more discussion on these topics in days to come, but in the meantime, check out this great Christian Science Monitor piece on Biden's faith: "Joseph Biden: A Frank and Abiding Faith". …
   Biden is troubled, too, by ongoing sexual-abuse scandals involving children within the church. But he says his commitment to church remains unchanged. "This is my church as much as it is the church of a cardinal, bishop, or janitor, and I'm not going anywhere," he said. "I care a great deal about my faith."

• Sex charge against missionary dropped

  - Mormons refused to give testimony.
   The Salt Lake Tribune, By Melinda Rogers, August/23/2008
   UTAH -- Charges were dropped Friday against a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who was accused of fondling a 12-year-old Salt Lake County boy he had recently baptized.
   Third District Judge Judith Atherton dismissed a first-degree felony count of aggravated sexual abuse of a child against Kyle Saucier after prosecutors said they could not go forward because of "witness problems."
   Prosecutor Alicia Cook said there was "a refusal to participate in the process" by the boy and his mother.

• Texas drops cases involving 49 more kids

  - FLDS.
   The Salt Lake Tribune, By Brooke Adams, ~ August 23, 2008
   SAN ANGELO, Texas - Child welfare authorities have moved to drop cases involving another 49 children from a polygamous sect.
   Requests to dismiss the cases were filed in Tom Green County Court Friday, said Patrick Crimmins, a spokesman for Texas Child Protective Services.
   To date, CPS has dropped cases involving approximately 150 FLDS children removed last April from the Yearning for Zion Ranch, home to members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

• What of victims when inquiry wraps?

  - General community.  
   Standard-Freeholder, By TREVOR PRITCHARD, ~ August 23, 2008
   CANADA -- The room is at the end of a hallway, its door adorned with a simple sign marked "Private."
   Inside, Colleen Parrish has placed a coffee pot, a box of Kleenexes, and some of her own magazines. Two of her husband's paintings hang on the otherwise bare walls.
   "It was really unattractive," she explains. "If I was a person who was going to come in for counselling support or witness support, I wouldn't have wanted to be in the room."
   It's not hard to view the changes Parrish has made to the Cornwall Public Inquiry's support room as a microcosm of the greater changes she'd like to see take place in the city. As policy director, Parrish oversees Phase 2 of the inquiry, which has a mandate to foster healing and reconciliation in a community that's struggling to cope with decades of sexual abuse allegations.

• Attorneys File Sex Abuse Case Against Diocese of Wilmington

  [1966, 1970 Mackiewicz*] - RCC. 1966 girl, 1970s boy. .  
   WBOC, August/22/2008
   WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) - Attorneys have filed a lawsuit against the Diocese of Wilmington alleging child sexual abuse against one of its former priests.
   Lawyers say their client was abused in 1970, when he was 12 years old, by the Rev. Leonard Mackiewicz at St. Francis de Sales Church in Salisbury, Md. The priest died in 1994.

• Video helps tribal leaders educate about sex abuse

  - RCC. Amerinds made video with native voices.
   Billings Gazette, By DIANE COCHRAN, August 22, 2008
   MONTANA -- After 14 children in an Alaska Native community were sexually abused by one person, tribal leaders began looking for ways to educate and heal their people.
   But most officials who address sex crimes in Alaska's native communities are white, said Diane Payne, a children's justice specialist with the Tribal Law and Policy Institute in Anchorage.
   Tribal members wanted a resource that used native voices.
   "We created a tool that can be used on the community level," Payne said in Billings Friday. "It doesn't require people from outside or people with degrees to come in and use it." …
   The interviews in the production were conducted by Elsie Hardin, a Yup'ik social worker who told the audience Friday that she was sexually abused by a Catholic priest.
   "Sexual abuse is not a cultural practice," Hardin said. "It is not something we pride ourselves in or want to teach our children. But it is a part of our history as native people, and it is part of our reality today."

• Abuse victims say Diocese is delaying settlements

  [Sylvestre] - RCC.  
   The Windsor Star, by Trevor Wilhelm, Friday, August 22, 2008
   CANADA -- Frustrated victims of pedophile priest Charles Sylvestre say the London diocese is prolonging their pain by dragging its feet over compensation and forcing them to repeatedly relive the horrors of their youth.
   "I feel like I'm being raped again," said Lou Ann Soontiens, who was assaulted from about age 11 to 17, when she had a forced abortion.
   "Bishop (Ronald) Fabbro made comments of a speedy resolution and compassion. Where's the compassion? We want to move on with our lives and we've got this hanging over us."

• Information on priest wasn't given to review board

  [1973-78 Kownacki] - RCC. 30-yr fraudulent concealment. Altar boy.  
   St. Louis Post-Dispatch, By Nicholas J.C. Pistor, August/23/2008
   BELLEVILLE (IL) – Margaret Mensen said she was supposed to investigate allegations of misconduct by priests for the Belleville Diocese and interview victims. But she couldn't investigate them all, she said, because she didn't know some existed.
   Mensen, the former administrator for a civilian review board investigating priestly misconduct, told a St. Clair County jury on Friday that a file containing complaints against Rev. Raymond Kownacki didn't include information about numerous people who claimed abuse.
   The file was given to her by former Belleville Bishop Wilton Gregory, she said.
   Mensen said she only got information about two possible victims – even though diocesan documents displayed in court show there were many others.

• Priest abuse settlement to include apologies

  [1951-92 - 11 priests and Bp Hart] - RCC. ~ US $10m going. 47 victims.
   The Kansas City Star, By KEVIN MURPHY, ~ August 23, 2008
   KANSAS CITY (MO) -- A $10 million settlement with the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph includes commitments for apologies, counseling and a promise not to refer to plaintiffs' abuse claims as "alleged."
   Two diocese boards Thursday night approved the settlement with 47 plaintiffs who filed sexual abuse lawsuits.
   On Friday, lawyers for the victims outlined 19 non-monetary commitments by the diocese.
   "These are the most far-reaching, non-monetary commitments that have ever been negotiated between a diocese and victims of childhood sexual abuse in the United States," said Rebecca Randles, lead attorney for the plaintiffs.

• Sex abuse case filed against diocese

  [1966, 1970 Mackiewicz*] - RCC. 1966 girl, 1970s boy. .
   Annapolis Capital, ~ August