• Cloak of silence covered the sin [2004 Roberts] -- Community Church. Girls +.
Sun,
www.thesunlink.com/ redesign/2004-09-08/ local/200409088902. shtml ,
By Julie McCormick, (360) 415-2683, jmccormick@thesunlink.com , Sep 8, 2004
EGLON (WA): The little Eglon Community Church that found a viper in its midst still isn't quite ready to completely cast him out.
Elders of the church learned that pastor Scott Roberts molested the young daughter of a church member in February. But they decided to handle things in what they call "the Biblical way," grant his plea for forgiveness, fire him, but keep quiet about it, even allowing him to continue coming to church.
The two sisters whose sexual abuse resulted in Roberts' conviction Tuesday were admonished by church members to tell no one.
Roberts has since told authorities that he lied to church members about the extent of his sinfulness, making his case for silence by calling up the specter of official interference and a quote from Matthew: "If a brother has sinned, go to them about it. ... If they repent, there is no need for anything further."
(This is the first of the Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker,
www.ncrnews.org/abuse ,
for Wed September 08, 2004.)
INCOMPLETE LINKS: Refer back to "References 61" for methods of obtaining the URLs.
Interim pastor Barry Bryant said the decision might have been different if church members had known more.
Lengthy pattern Because, as it turns out, Roberts didn't repent for enough.
Court documents from a psychosexual evaluation by a sex crime specialist, a lie detector test and a state Department of Corrections sentencing interview show Roberts has admitted to victimizing one little girl 10 times over a period of four years, fully aware she had been previously sexually abused.
He also molested three others. Victims were between the ages of 5 and 9 at the time of the incidents.
Roberts' admissions show a man with highly repressed relations with women whose life showed a pattern of extended hidden sexual compulsion, escalating deviant behavior, with pedophilia the most serious, the psychologist wrote.
Roberts himself admitted that if he hadn't been stopped, he probably would have raped his most frequent victim.
Lacked information Late last week, Roberts' longtime friend Bryant said neither he nor the elders of the congregation had yet had time to look at the newly filed documents and weren't aware of the full extent of Roberts' admissions, only of his initial lie and one additional victim.
Nevertheless, he and a few other members of the congregation are paying for Roberts' defense attorney, and Bryant offered him a home to live if the judge agreed to release him under a minimum special sentence.
"I would say that our basic position is that we really do love and forgive him," Bryant said Friday.
It's a picture disaffected members of the congregation find eerily familiar. "It's very, very cult-like," said former church member Leslie Pate. Pate stopped attending the church 10 years ago when she was 20 after spending much of her childhood as a member with the rest of her family.
"I was told that if I didn't repent, I would be leading my sisters to hell," Pate said.
Pate is the woman who learned in April of the February molestation incident and reported it to a Kitsap County sheriff's detective, who arrested Roberts shortly after.
On Tuesday, Roberts pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree child molestation and was sentenced to 6-1/2 years in prison.
Other controversy The church, which Roberts described as charismatic and evangelical, and Bryant calls conservative Christian, is nondenominational and has seen controversy before, although not in so public a way.
Bryant's father, Fred, became pastor in 1964, but had to step down in 1982 when his wife left and they divorced. The church considers divorce a sin, the reason some regard it as a cult, Bryant said. "We have strong standards on things," he said.
Roy DuPea, another fallen-away church member, said the event is recalled as tumultuous by all. "There was a huge break in the family and evidently a huge break in the church," he said.
Conservative Christianity was just what DuPea and his wife, Sandra, were looking for when they first moved to Eglon 16 years ago. They chose the little Eglon church to get married in and were warmed by the friendly welcome they received.
"Their message was what I thought was the right thing, just very basic and conservative," DuPea said. Each led Bible study groups and taught Sunday school.
Like Pate, the DuPeas felt an increasing intrusion by church members into their personal lives.
"I noticed they were trying to run our life by telling us what kind of friends we should have, who we associate with. Basically, what they wanted was to only communicate with the church family," DuPea said.
"My son became a skateboarder, and they said that was a real sin and he shouldn't be doing that."
Things came to a head three years ago when DuPea questioned Roberts about the propriety of the church paying the taxes on property owned by a Bryant family corporation whose board included him as a member.
According to DuPea, Roberts answered evasively. "I asked him to leave and that was the last time we ever attended the church," he said.
Bryant acknowledged the payment, but contended the property eventually will be used for church mission purposes. "Obviously, we have some property in this area, but so do a lot of other people," he said.
"It's a family-owned church, is what it is," DuPea said. "The fact that every adult in that church turned a blind eye, that's real control."
Bryant said not everyone in the church knew the details behind Roberts' resignation.
The two little girls who were the victims in the incidents Roberts was charged with have been in counseling. Initially, the girls were removed from their home by Child Protective Services until it was assured Roberts would not be released near them.
"Now there's all these insecurities on top of it," Bryant said, and recovery will take time.
The impact on victims was at the top of Kitsap County Superior Court Judge Leonard Costello's concerns at Tuesday's sentencing.
"How these kids see the world, the potentially negative impact for these kids, could be forever," he said. #
[Emphasis added]
[Posted by Kathy Shaw at 08:11 PM]
[COMMENT: In the second paragraph the Church elders are reported as saying they would handle things "the Biblical way," and in the fourth paragraph quoted Matthew's Gospel. Perhaps this is a reference to Matthew 18:15-17. However, the congregation and elders ought to also read Matt 10:34-35, Matt 12:32, Luke 9:62, 1 John 5:16- 18, Hebrews 6:4-6, 1 Corinthians 5:7-13, Ephesians 5:3, Matt. 18:6-9, Mark 9:42, Luke 17:2, Romans 14:13, and 1 Cor 6:13-20. The first five quotations especially contradict the "forgive seven times 70" and the forgery "don't cast the first stone" type of quotation!
These quotes, especially those from Hebrews 6 and Luke 9, helped convince the early Church that anyone who sinned seriously after joining the Church could hardly be forgiven. So impossible was it to be forgiven AFTER baptism that eventually some Christians in some places even delayed being baptised until death was believed to be imminent. (Elizabeth A. LIVINGSTONE (ed.),
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, 1977, Oxford University Press, Oxford and New York, page 47; and see p 209 a)
When the early Christians "softened off," those who had been baptised, if they sinned seriously, were expected to confess before the congregation, wear special robes and sit separately during religious ceremonies, not receive Holy Communion, go on a strict diet, give generous donations, and some were expected to have no sex for the rest of their lives ! (Livingstone 1977, article "Penance" p 390 b) You didn't learn that in Sunday School or R.E., did you ! Further information is at:
http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/religion/religcont.htm#repeated
COMMENT ENDS.]
• Former pastor gets 6-1/2 years for child molesting [2000s Roberts] -- Community Church. Girls.
Sun,
www.thesunlink.com/ redesign/2004-09-08/ local/200409088935. shtml ,
By Julie McCormick, Wed. Sep. 8, 2004
EGLON (WA): The judge who sentenced former Eglon Community Church pastor Scott Roberts for molesting two little girls chose accountability over treatment and Tuesday gave him 6-1/2 years in prison for his crimes.
"My decision in this case ultimately comes down to trust and the abuse of that trust," Kitsap Superior Court Judge Leonard Costello said of Roberts' sexual exploitation of two little girls.
The girls, both younger than 12, are daughters of a church member and longtime friend whose family regarded Roberts as one of its own.
Roberts and his supporters had hoped Costello would agree with the psychosexual evaluator, who recommended him as a good candidate for a special sex-offender sentencing alternative with only six months in jail followed by intensive treatment and monitoring.
• Trial begins for priest accused of decade-old abuse in Bay area [1994-95 Superiaso] - Roman Catholic Church. Girl.
The Tribune,
www.sanluisobispo.com/ mld/sanluisobispo/ news/politics/ 9610383.htm ,
Associated Press, Posted on Wed, Sep. 08, 2004
REDWOOD CITY, Calif. - The trial of a Catholic priest accused of decade-old sexual abuse in a Bay area parish opened with testimony from the alleged victim.
The trial of Jose Superiaso resumed Wednesday in San Mateo County Superior Court, a day after the prosecution's opening statements and two weeks after the priest rejected a plea offer.
Superiaso is accused of molesting a girl between July 1994 and November 1995 when he served at St. Andrew Church in Daly City. He has pleaded not guilty to 24 counts of child molestation.
The accuser, who was 12 when the abuse allegedly began, testified Tuesday after the prosecution's opening statements, the San Mateo County district attorney's office said. The defense chose to give opening statements later but called a character witness who is a friend of the 50-year-old priest. [...]
Ordained in his native Philippines, Superiaso also served in California as a priest at Our Lady of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in Belmont and at Our Lady of the Pillar Church in Half Moon Bay. ...
• DA Claims 'Legal Victory' In Battle Over Priest Documents -- RCC.
NBC 4,
www.nbc4.tv/news/3716170/detail.html ,
POSTED 3:27 pm PDT September 8, 2004,
UPDATED 4:28 pm PDT September 8, 2004
LOS ANGELES (CA) -- A judge ruled Wednesday that the nation's largest Roman Catholic archdiocese cannot withhold potential evidence or proof of clergy sex abuse by claiming that communications between priests and bishops are confidential.
The ruling in a long-running legal battle was made by Thomas F. Nuss, a retired state judge appointed to review thousands of pages of church personnel documents subpoenaed by a Los Angeles County grand jury investigating possible sexual abuse by priests.
In weighing the balance between private personnel files and potential evidence of abuse, Nuss wrote in his 32-page ruling that the grand jury's subpoenas don't "have as a principal or primary effect the inhibition of religion."
The district attorney subpoenaed about 2,000 pages of personnel files and other confidential church records since 2002. But most of those subpoenas were dismissed in July because they dealt with allegations that fell beyond the statute of limitations.
Prosecutors said Nuss' ruling could open the way for access to hundreds of pages of confidential documents involving two retired priests. But the archdiocese said the ruling was narrower, applying only to 80 pages that the church had argued were protected by the First Amendment.
• Community reacts to priest's resignation amid sex allegations [1970s Reyes] -- RCC. Girl, Women.
KVUE,
www.kvue.com/ news/top/stories/ 090804kvuepriest 3-eh.f9f2936a.html ,
By Kevin Peters and Amanda Lawson / KVUE News, 07:28 PM CDT, Wednesday, September 8, 2004
AUSTIN (TX): Austin's Catholic and Hispanic communities are reacting to the resignation of a well known and highly respected priest.
Father Lonnie Reyes of Santa Julia Church in East Austin confessed to having sexual relations with an underage girl as well as adult women.
The incidents date back to the 1970's.
Reyes has been the priest at Santa Julia in East Austin for the past 18 years. He earned the title monsignor and served as chancellor, one of the highest positions a priest can hold in the diocese.
"He's a man. He's a man, like anybody else, and he didn't force nobody. She was 17. She knew better than to go with a priest," says church member Carroline Aleman.
• Ruling May Put Priest Papers in Spotlight -- RCC.
Austin American-Statesman,
www.statesman.com/ news/content/news/ ap/ap_story.html/ National/AP.V9604. AP-Church-Abuse-Ca.html ;
By MICHAEL R. BLOOD, Associated Press Writer, Sep-08-04
LOS ANGELES (CA) (AP)--A judge ruled Wednesday that the nation's largest Roman Catholic archdiocese cannot withhold potential evidence or proof of clergy sex abuse by claiming that communications between priests and bishops are confidential.
A prosecutor hailed the decision in the long-running legal battle as a "major legal victory," while the Los Angeles Archdiocese expressed dismay, saying it feared the ruling would erode constitutional religious freedoms.
The ruling was made by Thomas F. Nuss, a retired state judge appointed to review thousands of pages of church personnel documents subpoenaed by a Los Angeles County grand jury investigating possible sexual abuse by priests.
In balancing privacy rights against prosecutors' need to search for potential evidence, Nuss wrote that the grand jury's subpoenas don't "have as a principal or primary effect the inhibition of religion."
• Cardinal Mahony Ordered to Provide Files [2003-04 Mahony] -- 500 complainants. 2-year battle. RCC.
Los Angeles Times,
www.latimes.com/ news/local/la- 090804priest_lat, 1,2935339.story?coll= la-home-headlines ;
By Jean Guccione, Times Staff Writer, September 8, 2004
LOS ANGELES (CA): Cardinal Roger M. Mahony was ordered today to turn over documents in the secret personnel files of Roman Catholic priests accused of sexually abusing children after a judge rejected his claim that prosecutors were interfering with Roman Catholic Church operations, in violation of the U.S. Constitution.
Superior Court Judge Thomas F. Nuss ruled that disclosing internal documents to criminal investigators doesn't violate the ability of the church to freely exercise religion, nor does it illegally entangle the state in church business. Rather, the state has a compelling interest in prosecuting child molesters, he ruled.
Mahony's lawyers - who have waged a fierce, 2-year legal battle behind closed doors to keep the subpoenaed documents secret - have vowed to appeal Nuss' ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court if necessary.
Those hardball tactics were criticized this year by an independent Catholic national review board that found that Mahony's legal "argument did little to enhance the reputation of the church in the United States for transparency and cooperation."
Mahony's quest to withhold the documents is being fought on two fronts: in the criminal case, where prosecutors have charged two priests with molesting children, and in the civil arena, where lawyers for more than 500 alleged victims say those papers will prove that the church hierarchy failed to protect children from known molesters.
• Vicar in family split after affair [2004 Abram] -- Church of England. Woman.
Manchester Evening News,
www.manchesteronline.co.uk/ news/s/129/129756_vicar_in_ family_split_after_ affair.html ;
Wednesday, September 8th, 2004
BRITAIN: A vicar who helped rebuild a shattered community in the wake of a five-year-old boy's gangland gun murder has separated from his wife after admitting an affair with a parishioner.
The Rev Steve Abram, vicar of St George the Martyr in Daubhill, Bolton, has left his wife Annette and teenage daughter for a mother-of-four it is understood he met at his church.
Church of England bosses today confirmed that the 54-year-old resigned from the ministry in July when news of the affair emerged.
It is understood that his family has moved out of the vicarage and Mr Abram is living there alone.
A Church of England spokesman confirmed today: "Mr Abram submitted his resignation and withdrew from public ministry in July following a period of separation from his wife.
"The diocese remains in close contact with the Abram family and parishioners at St George the Martyr to offer support and advice. A new vicar has yet to be appointed but the process is under way."
Mr Abram has been vicar at the church for 14 years.
Bullet He conducted a memorial service in 1998 to commemorate the life of Dillon Hull - shot dead by hitman Paul Seddon as he walked home hand-in-hand with his father John Bates in Bankfield Street, Deane, Bolton, in 1997. ...
• Priest Confesses To Sex With Teenager, Resigns [1970s Reyes] -- RCC. Girl.
WOAI,
www.woai.com/news/ local/story.aspx?content_ id=1B776ADB-4C31- 4E45-BEAE- 948EFF238B73 ;
Posted By Angela Becerra, LAST UPDATE 6:54:06 AM, Sep/8/2004
AUSTIN (TX): A high-ranking Catholic priest resigns from Saint Julia's Church in Austin, after admitting having sexual relations with an underage girl in the 1970s. The victim appears to be from San Antonio.
The Reverend Lonnie Reyes, who is 62, served as a priest for 30 years. He earned the title monsignor and served as chancellor.
Church officials said in a story in an online edition of the Austin American-Statesman, that a San Antonio woman recently reported having a sexual relationship with Reyes when she was a teenager. The diocese is also investigating two more possible victims.
The diocese will provide money for counseling for the woman.
• Detroit Archdiocese adds to child sex abuse prevention program -- 116 victims. RCC.
Detroit Free Press,
www.freep.com/ news/statewire/ sw103866_20040907. htm ,
September 7, 2004, 8:41 PM
DETROIT (MI) (AP) -- The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit says it is adding to its program to prevent child sexual abuse with lessons for children from kindergarten through eighth grade.
The lessons are part of "Protecting God's Children," the archdiocese said in a news release Tuesday.
"Touching Safety" is a "two-lesson, age-appropriate program" that "teaches children how to identify and resist any touch that can harm them and to be respectful of their own and others' health and safety," the archdiocese said.
Teaching children about good and bad touching has emerged as an important education issue in the aftermath of the church's sex abuse scandal. Thousands of children reported being sexually abused nationwide by priests over a 50-year period, including 116 in the Detroit archdiocese.
• Friar wanted in Canada moved to Missouri facility [1970s Chumik] -- RCC. Franciscan. Boy +.
Herald-Tribune,
www.heraldtribune. com/apps/pbcs.dll/ article?AID=/20040908/ APN/409080627 ,
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES (CA) -- A Franciscan friar who fled molestation charges in Canada and took refuge at the Santa Barbara Mission has been moved to a rural church facility in Missouri, a church official said.
Gerald Chumik, 69, will live at an isolated Franciscan facility, similar to a monastery, on 280 acres with about 20 other priests and brothers, church officials said.
Chumik was transferred because of pressure from victims' groups and others that began in July, when the public learned that the friar was wanted in Canada for allegedly molesting a boy three decades ago, said Father Alberic Smith, the superior at the Franciscan mission in Santa Barbara. The groups demanded that he be returned to Canada to face possible charges but no move has yet been made.
Cardinal Roger Mahony lacks jurisdiction over the Franciscan order, to which Chumik belongs, but he could have ordered Chumik out of his archdiocese. A spokesman for Mahony said the cardinal was satisfied that the Franciscans were properly monitoring Chumik and that he was no danger to children.
• Tarnished legacy [1970s Reyes] -- RCC. Female +.
American-Statesman,
www.statesman.com/ metrostate/content/ metro/09/8priest.html ,
By Eileen E. Flynn, Wednesday, September 08, 2004
AUSTIN (TX): A longtime community activist and high-ranking Catholic priest, the Rev. Lonnie Reyes, acknowledged having sexual relations with an underage girl in the 1970s and has resigned from the ministry, Austin Bishop Gregory Aymond announced Tuesday evening to parishioners of St. Julia's Church, which Reyes had pastored since 1986.
Diocesan officials said a San Antonio woman recently reported having a sexual relationship with Reyes when she was younger than 18, the legal age for consent. The diocese is also investigating the possibility that there are two more victims.
"In his weakness, Father Reyes was unfaithful to his commitment to chastity," Aymond told parishioners. "He is greatly embarrassed and repentant of his actions and the pain it will cause you."
Reyes, 62, could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
• Group asks for censure of bishop [2000s Brown; Murray] -- RCC. Female.
Daily Pilot,
www.latimes.com/ news/local/pilot/ news/la-dpt-allegation 08sep08,1,5294955. story?coll=la-tcn- pilot-news ;
by S.J. Cahn, Sep 8, 2004
NEWPORT BEACH (CA) - A support group for clergy abuse victims sent a letter to a Catholic lay group Tuesday, asking it to declare that Orange County Bishop Tod D. Brown violated the U.S. Bishops Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People in a case involving a priest at a Balboa Peninsula church.
The letter, sent by members of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests [SNAP], alleges that the diocese kept secret a $500,000 settlement with a victim of Msgr. Daniel Murray of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and failed to remove Murray from his position.
"As the largest support group for survivors for sexual abuse by clergy, we believe that the actions by Tod D. Brown and the Diocese of Orange are putting children in direct risk in the Diocese of Orange," the letter reads.
Among the two women who signed the letter was Corona del Mar resident Joelle Casteix, the group's Orange County spokeswoman, who says she was abused by a priest when she was in her teens. It was sent to the executive director of U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and asks that it be forwarded to the group's National Review Board.
• Woman testifies in priest's molestation trial [1994-95 Superiaso] -- RCC. Girl.
San Mateo County Times,
www.sanmateocountytimes.com/ Stories/0,1413,87~ 11268~ 2387 423,00.html ,
REDWOOD CITY (CA) -- Jurors Tuesday heard emotional opening testimony from the alleged victim of multiple acts of sexual abuse by a former Daly City priest.
Jose Superiaso, 50, once a priest at St. Andrew's Catholic Church in Daly City, allegedly had sex multiple times with a then-12 and 13-year-old girl in 1994 and 1995.
The alleged victim, a petite Filipina identified in court as "Jane Doe," first reported the crimes to authorities in May of 2003.
Superiaso was arrested on June 10, 2003 at a coffee shop after the woman, cooperating with the police, lured him to the area from New Mexico.
In opening statements, Prosecutor Sharon Henry read from a letter Superiaso wrote on the day of his arrest. "I come here fully resigned to accept responsibility and beg for your forgiveness and understanding," the letter stated.
• Defense says abuse suit filed too late [1973-74 Broderson] -- RCC. Boy.
Alameda Times-Star,
www.timesstar.com/Stories/0,1413,125~1486~2387489,00.html ,
By Glenn Chapman
OAKLAND (CA) -- Attorneys for a Roman Catholic priest being sued for alleged sexual abuse of a child more than 30 years ago will ask that the sexual battery portion of the suit be thrown out because it was filed too late, according to a motion filed in Alameda County Superior Court on Tuesday.
The man accusing Donald Broderson of being a molester while a priest at St. Francis parish in Concord in 1973 or 1974 apparently missed the filing deadlines outlined by state law, contends Patrick McMahon, a lawyer defending Broderson against the charges. Broderson's case is one of some 160 priest sex-abuse civil suits bundled together in the court as "Clergy III."
State law legitimizing belated priest molestation lawsuits requires litigation be filed within eight years of the purported victim reaching legal adulthood or within three years of the point the person should have reasonably become aware childhood sexual abuse was behind their mental health problems.
The man accusing Broderson of wrongdoing didn't indicate his age in the 2003 civil suit, but the time line in the accusation indicates he is older than 26, according to McMahon's motion. The complaint contains no information about when or how the man supposedly linked childhood sexual abuse to the emotional and psychiatric distress he claims to be suffering, the motion maintains.
[Posted by Kathy Shaw at 07:31 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker
www.ncrnews.org/abuse ,
Wed September 08, 2004
Abuse Chronology, visit: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont96.htm
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker,
www.ncrnews.org/abuse,
Thu September 09, 2004 edition follows:- • Catholic Church Ad Campaign Seeks Abuse Victims -- RCC.
National Public Radio,
www.npr.org/features/feature.php?wfId=3907771 ,
Sept. 9, 2004
OREGON: The Catholic Archdiocese of Portland, Ore., recently declared bankruptcy in an effort to manage expensive sexual abuse lawsuits. Now the church is proposing a national media campaign to seek out undeclared abuse victims. Colin Fogarty of Oregon Public Broadcasting has the story. (Single transcript: $4.95)
[Posted by Kathy Shaw at 07:35 PM]
• Diocese forms sex-abuse group -- RCC.
Herald,
www.zwire.com/ site/news.cfm? BRD=1601&dept_id= 478675&newsid= 12889494&PAG= 461&rfi=9 ,
By Nick Buglione September 09, 2004
LONG ISLAND (NY): The Diocese of Rockville Centre is forming a support group for victims who have been sexually abused by clergy and other church personnel in parishes throughout Long Island, including St. Raphael's in East Meadow.
The group, which is scheduled to hold its first meeting Sept. 20, was formed in response to victims' requests, according to Eileen Puglisi, director of the diocese's Office for the Protection of Children and Young People. We're responding to a need voiced by some survivors of abuse who said they would find a support group helpful in bringing about healing, Puglisi said.
The diocese, which comprises 134 parishes in Nassau and Suffolk counties, has come under fire in recent years, as victims have come forward alleging sexual abuse at the hands of clergy. Some have even accused William Murphy, bishop of the diocese, of trying to cover up the incidents by transferring pedophile priests out of the parishes where they have been accused of sexual abuse.
• No further allegations against priest emerge [1998 Deyo] -- RCC. Boy.
Press-Citizen,
www.press-citizen.com/ apps/pbcs.dll/article? AID=/20040909/NEWS01/ 40909013/1079 ;
by Mike McWilliams, 339-7360 or mmcwilliams@press-citizen.com , Thursday, September 9, 2004
IOWA: Catholic Church officials said no more allegations have been reported since local parishes learned nearly two weeks ago of an alleged sex abuse incident involving a boy and former Johnson County priest.
However, Davenport Diocese attorney Rand Wonio said the inquiry into accused priest Paul Deyo is ongoing and likely will not be closed any time soon.
“The policies relating to sexuality and personal behavior don't contain a statute of limitations,” Wonio said Thursday. “Any report will be investigated and handled in accordance with the policies.”
No criminal charges have been filed against Deyo, who lived in Iowa City from 1991 to 2000. The diocese released Deyo’s name Aug. 28 in an attempt to urge others who may have been abused by him to come forward.
Deyo is accused of committing sex abuse in 1998 against a minor in Johnson County. The alleged victim reported the incident to the diocese in July 2003 and has opted not press charges to protect his identity, church officials have said.
Click: Let us know what you think of this story... #
• €250,000 For Man Abused in School [1976-88 Kelly] -- Christian Brother. RCC. 11 victims.
One in Four organisation,
http://oneinfour.org/ news/news2004/schools , Source: The Star; Sep 8, 2004
IRELAND: A man who was raped by his school principal as a child has received compensation of over €250,000 from the Christian Brothers
Victim Derek Power (34) reached the settlement over five years after his abuser, Br Patrick John Kelly was sentenced to eight years in jail in 1999. Br Kelly who had an address at St Helen's York Road, Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin, was convicted on a 51 counts of indecent assault and two of gross indecency. He was the first Christian Brother to be convicted for the sexual abuse of youngsters in their care. Power who is originally from Waterford but now living in Dublin, told The Star he was happy to have reached the settlement after a long struggle with the Christian Brothers. "I spent my childhood being raped. I spent my teenage years suffering and I spent my adult life struggling to have this abuse recognised." he said.
The abuse took place in 1979, but Power did not confront his abuse until 1993. When he did, Kelly dismissed him as "an alcoholic, a liar and a junkie". Mr Power was receiving treatment at a rape crisis centre at the time. The victim said he had gone public because he wanted people to know about the extent of clerical sexual abuse in Ireland. "I want people to know that I put him in jail. I want people to know that the Christian Brothers have a history they should be ashamed of. "No one from the Christian Brothers ever came to us to say they were sorry. They never even sat down to talk to us," he said. [...]
Kelly's offences - committed against 11 victims - occurred in Dublin, Waterford, Cork, Wicklow, Kildare and Tipperary on dates from 1976 to 1988. They were committed in schools, his home, victims homes and in a field. He was a trusted family friend on several of his 11 victims and had been sexually abused as a child. ...
• Details of abuse were often written in Latin -- Rosminians. RCC. Boys.
One in Four,
http://oneinfour.org/news/news2004/latin ,
by Patsy McGarry, Religious Affairs Correspondent - Irish Times,
www.ireland.com/ newspaper/ireland/ 2004/0909/7167 24796HM8ABUSE.html ,
Sep 9, 2004
IRELAND: Latin terms were used in internal documents to describe sexual assaults by members of the Rosminian congregation on boys at industrial schools at Ferryhouse, Co Tipperary and Upton, Co Cork, the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse heard yesterday.
Father Joe O'Reilly, provincial of the congregation in Ireland, told the commission's investigation committee that correspondence found at the Rosminian headquarters in Rome this past year were frequently in Italian, as the superior general was usually of that nationality.
He recalled that letters to Rome from past provincials in Ireland had said relevant members were "indiscreet with boys" and had "sinned against the sixth commandment (thou shalt not commit adultery)" [It is 5th to non-RCs]
"I think Latin was used a good bit in correspondence," he said. A letter to Rome from Ireland in 1956 said one member had been "indiscreet cum pueres (with boys) and is in periculum (danger)". Senior Counsel for the committee, Mr Noel McMahon, referred to a letter from 1948 where a member was described as "in admiratio" (enamoured) of boys.
• Committee told boys were punished for sex with other boys -- RCC. Rosminians. Boys.
One in Four,
http://oneinfour.org/news/news2004/toldboys ,
by Patsy McGarry - Irish Times , Sep 9, 2004
IRELAND: Boys who had been found to be involved sexually with other boys at their industrial schools were punished "severely", the commission heard.
However, Father Joe O'Reilly told the investigation committee that he was sure that a boy abused by a member of the congregation was not punished. "I would hope not. I doubt if he was," he said.
He was sure also that "very little was done to help a boy ". He felt "it is clear a lot more should have been done", but he was "not sure whether it would've been known what more to do. It might not have been much better in society at the time."
There were no records of the extent of sexual abuse of boys by boys at the schools, but he was sure it would have been dealt with in the same way whether between boys of the same age or where there was an age difference. It was seen as a problem of "immorality, in the religious sense." It was recognised that older boys picked on younger boys and used sex to bully them.
• Parishes attempt to shield assets from seizure in bankruptcy of Archdiocese -- RCC.
The Oregonian,
www.oregonlive.com/ news/oregonian/index. ssf?/base/news/ 1094731100115710.xml ,
By NANCY HAUGHT and STEVE WOODWARD, Thursday, September 09, 2004
OREGON: At least two dozen Roman Catholic parishes in Western Oregon are moving to shield their churches, schools and financial investments from being seized to pay off millions of dollars in lawsuits alleging clergy sex abuse.
The Committee of Parishes, representing about one-fifth of parishes in the Archdiocese of Portland, has hired two lawyers to help it seek legal standing in the archdiocese's 2-month-old bankruptcy.
John H. Rickman, retired president of U.S. Bank and a longtime member of St. Pius X Parish in suburban Cedar Mill, said the parishes want to ensure that their assets may still be used for the mission work of the church.
Generations of Oregonians have worked and contributed to build parishes that participate in the Catholic mission, Rickman said.
"To live as Jesus taught us," Rickman said, "to pass that on to our children, to help the poor, work for the sick, console those who grieve, educate the young and old and, on a weekly basis, to worship God. That is the real heart of Catholicism."
The committee is sympathetic to victims' claims, Rickman says.
[COMMENT: It would be interesting to find the scripture to show that Jesus taught " ...to pass that on to our children ..." Most of us thought the Jesus teaching was not to worry too much about tomorrow, or what to eat or wear, and He declined to help a man with an inheritance dispute. COMMENT ENDS.]
• Parishioners share emotions over pastor [1970s Reyes] -- RCC. Girl, Women.
News 8 Austin,
www.news8austin.com/ content/headlines/? ArID=118957 &SecID=2 ,
By Jitin Hingorani, 7:40 PM, 9/8/2004
AUSTIN (TX): Josephine Zamarripa raised her 13 children all by herself. Her faith in God and the Catholic Church gave her strength. She's been attending Santa Julia for more than 30 years, but now she's not sure if she will ever go back.
"I told my family I don't want to go to Santa Julia. I don't want to get attached to another pastor. It's heartbreaking on us, the community," she said.
Rev. Lonnie Reyes, also a monsignor, resigned his ministry without explanation.
On Tuesday, Austin Bishop Gregory Aymond told parishioners why Reyes left. The pastor admitted to having sex with one teenage girl and intimate relationships with other women.
• Mass to pray for the Healing of Victims of sexual abuse -- RCC.
Fredericksburg.com ;
www.fredericksburg.com/community/calendar/one_event_info?event_id=1093551090 ,
ARLINGTON (VA): The Catholic Diocese of Arlington is offering Healing Masses to pray for victims of sexual abuse. Bishop Loverde will celebrate a mass on Sept. 9, St. Mary of Sorrows Chruch, Fairfax Station, 7:30 p.m; All Saints Church, Manassas, Oct. 21, 7:30 p.m., Fr. Bob Cilinski celebrating; St Mary, Fredericksburg, Nov. 8, 7:30 p.m. Bishop Loverde celebrating. For more information, call Patricia Mudd at 703-541-2530.
Info online:
www.arlingtondiocese.org/protect/healing-ma ;
Sponsored by: Catholic Diocese of Arlington
• Wuerl says pope active, alert and in command -- RCC.
Post-Gazette,
www.post-gazette.com/pg/04253/375953.stm ,
By Ann Rodgers, Thursday, September 09, 2004
PITTSBURGH (PA): On a visit to Rome this week, Bishop Donald Wuerl found Pope John Paul II more active and alert than he had been told to expect.
"To formulate words takes him a little longer," Wuerl said yesterday from Rome, where all bishops of Pennsylvania are making their five-year reports. "But he was clearly in command of the audience." ...
While reviewing his reports on developments in the diocese, Vatican staffers have so far shown little interest in lawsuits pending against it and several other dioceses that allege a conspiracy to cover up long-ago cases of child sexual abuse by priests.
Because legal procedures vary widely around the world, those are treated as local issues, Wuerl said. Vatican officials are more interested in programs, such as religious education, that are expected of every diocese, he said.
• Bankruptcy expert: Filing would be 'good thing' for Tucson diocese, sex-abuse victims -- RCC.
Tucson Citizen,
www.tucsoncitizen.com/breaking/090904bankruptcy.html ,
By SHERYL KORNMAN, Sept. 9, 2004
TUCSON (AZ): If the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson files for bankruptcy protection it will be a good thing, according to Marti Kopacz, a consultant to the Archdiocese of Boston while it considered Chapter 11 to resolve claims of sexual abuse by priests.
Boston chose instead to sell some of its valuable properties to settle claims.
Kopacz, a fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy, is an analyst for New York City-based Alvarez & Marsal, a global firm which provides turnaround management consulting and crisis management services.
She said Chapter 11 is the only way to go if the Tucson diocese wants to resolve the matter in a way that is fair to everybody.
"It allows the diocese to deal with it once and for all," she said.
And it allows the diocese to make it clear to claimants who have sued that "we're not going to be more fair to you because you have an attorney," Kopacz said.
• Bishop Mulvee meets with pope, brings local concerns to Vatican -- RCC.
Providence Journal,
www.projo.com/religion/content/projo_20040909_mulvee9.294b6e.html ,
BY RICHARD C. DUJARDIN, Journal Religion Writer, Thursday, September 9, 2004
PROVIDENCE (RI) -- Fresh from his once-every-six-years meeting with the pope, Providence Bishop Robert E. Mulvee says it goes without saying that the clergy sexual abuse scandal has been a dark cloud in the life of the church in the United States and John Paul II wants America's bishops to be more affirming of those who have been injured by the scandal.
"The message I got from the Vatican congregations and indeed from the pope was that we cannot forget the victims," Bishop Mulvee said. "We have to try to heal the wounds. It has to be our primary concern.
"And while the Holy Father made only passing reference to it because he's talked so many times on the subject, his message was that we must not forget the good priests."
Bishop Mulvee, who will turn 74 in February, was part of a delegation of 24 American bishops from the Northeast who visited the pope at his summer residence at Castel Gandolfo for their required "ad limina" visit. Roughly translated as "to the threshold," the ad limina gives the pope and bishops an opportunity to meet one on one and to raise any concerns.
It also opens the door to face-to-face meetings with the various congregations that make up the church's central bureaucracy, and to review issues related to doctrine, worship, priestly formation, education, dialogue with other faiths or any number of other topics affecting a region or diocese.
• Priest in Austin resigns [Reyes] -- RCC. Female.
San Antonio Express-News,
www.mysanantonio.com/ news/metro/stories/ MYSA090904.1B.priest_ quits.6413b383.html ,
by Peggy Fikac, Chief, Express-News Austin Bureau, Web Posted: 02:25 AM CDT Sep/09/2004
AUSTIN, TEXAS: The actions by Monsignor Lonnie Reyes - who resigned as pastor of St. Julia Parish and no longer can serve in any capacity as a priest - were brought to light by a San Antonio woman.
She informed Bishop Gregory M. Aymond several weeks ago, the diocese said.
Aymond said the woman wished to remain anonymous, so the diocese would not provide details of what occurred.
"She's been through a difficult time. It's been painful for her, but she's divulged the deep, dark secret, which is going to be very important for her healing," Aymond said Wednesday.
• Reaction to Mahony's Decision Is Divided -- RCC.
Los Angeles Times,
www.latimes.com/ news/local/la-me- mahony9sep09,1, 7227395.story?coll= la-headlines- california ,
By Larry B. Stammer, Times Staff Writer
LOS ANGELES (CA): Cardinal Roger M. Mahony's decision to appeal a court order to give prosecutors secret personnel files of priests accused of molesting minors has disturbed some critics, who called it "foolish and obstructionist," but pleased some priests who lauded its attempt to protect privacy rights.
Catholic scholars and lay leaders interviewed Wednesday said the Los Angeles cardinal's continuing legal battle over the files risks undermining gains in credibility that he and the nation's Roman Catholic bishops have made in addressing the sexual abuse crisis.
"It's not a wise decision, politically. But it's a wise decision legally," said Father Richard P. McBrien, a Catholic columnist and theology professor at the University of Notre Dame.
McBrien cautioned that he did not know the reasons why Mahony chose to appeal Wednesday's order by a state judge that the church turn over to prosecutors documents about two former priests accused of sexually abusing children. While an appeal, he said, could be "entirely legitimate," it also "looks to a lot of Catholic laypeople like the 'same old, same old' - fighting tooth and nail to resist being transparent."
• Judge Rules Mahony Must Provide Files: Prosecutors want to see records of two ex-priests accused of molesting children. Archdiocese plans to appeal, a step that could take years. [2003-04 Mahony] -- 27 months so far. RCC.
Los Angeles Times,
www.latimes.com/ news/local/la-me- priests9sep09,1 ,3728751.story?coll= la-headlines-california ,
By Jean Guccione, September 9, 2004
LOS ANGELES (CA): A state judge, rejecting claims by Cardinal Roger M. Mahony that the Constitution gives the Roman Catholic Church a right to withhold personnel files, on Wednesday ordered the Los Angeles archdiocese to turn over confidential records of two former priests accused of sexually abusing children.
Prosecutors have sought the files for 27 months, part of a county grand jury investigation of allegations that the two priests molested children. Citing grand jury secrecy, prosecutors have declined to name the two priests or say how many children were allegedly molested.
Lawyers for the archdiocese said they would appeal the ruling by Judge Thomas F. Nuss, a move that could delay, perhaps for years, the actual delivery of files to the grand jury.
"We believe that Judge Nuss' ruling is novel, is inconsistent … and should be considered by a higher court," said Donald F. Woods Jr., one of Mahony's attorneys.
Mahony has taken the position that any review of confidential communications between a bishop and his priest by prosecutors would violate the church's rights under the 1st Amendment.
• An Award of Punitive Damages Against A Religious Institution: Is It a Constitutional Violation? FindLaw,
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/ hamilton/20040909.html ,
By MARCI HAMILTON, hamilton02@aol.com , Thursday, Sep. 09, 2004
UNITED STATES: Recently, a novel constitutional basis has been proposed for limiting punitive damages in civil cases: The First Amendment's Free Exercise Clause, which guarantees the freedom to exercise one's religion. This basis is not only novel - it's ridiculous. And in the context in which this argument has been made - clergy abuse cases - it's actually offensive.
Can it truly be the case that tobacco companies who disregarded health risks to adults deserve punitive damages, but churches that disregarded horrific, traumatic abuse to children with immense psychological health consequences do not?
Can it truly be the case that car companies that disregarded faulty brakes deserve punitive damages, but churches that disregarded intentional rape of the defenseless do not?
That's exactly what this argument - which was recently made by the Becket Fund in an amicus (friend-of-the-court) brief filed in Arizona Superior Court - suggests.
The Becket Fund has declared that it will be filing similar briefs "in every case seeking punitive damages against religious institutions from whatever tradition." So the issue is not just an Arizona issue, or a Catholic Church issue. It's a national one.
But every court that addresses this argument ought to reject it - for it is simply wrong. And the courts that confront this argument in clergy abuse cases ought to passionately reject it - for it slights the terrible suffering of abuse victims, and the wrongs of their abusers, and those who knew of the abuse but did nothing. [...]
Punitives are necessary to get the attention of the institution of the Church, and to force it to change its ways. Institutions are inherently static, and act out of self-preservation instincts.
It takes a truly significant prod to move a criminal or tortious institution off its current position, and toward a position of social responsibility. And when an institution has been entrenched in its ways for many years (or centuries), that institution is going to be particularly adverse to change.
The question that must be posed to any entity arguing - even as a policy matter -- against punitive damages in clergy abuse cases is: How does it propose to deter this criminal, illegal, and antisocial behavior in the future? It is obvious that self-policing is inadequate to serve the public good.
Incarcerating the pedophiles and the leadership that aided and abetted their behavior is likely to deter particular individuals (unless current, shockingly short statutes of limitations make that incarceration impossible). But such incarceration does not address the institution's culpability, or effectively deter it for the future: An institution may simply accept that criminal prosecutors will "clean house" for it every so often (and belatedly), and keep right on acting as it always has. There are always candidates willing to be promoted through the ranks. ...
[ Also published on "The Messengers 12" website, www.themessengers12.net/page4.html ]
Marci A. Hamilton is a Visiting Scholar at the Princeton Theological Seminary and the Paul R. Verkuil Chair in Public Law at Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University. An archive of her columns, including those on the Catholic Church clergy abuse scandal can be found on this site. Her email is hamilton02@aol.com. • Ruling could put priest files in hands of L.A. grand jury -- RCC.
Oakland Tribune,
www.oaklandtribune.com/Stories/0,1413,82~1865~2389680,00.html ,
By Michael R. Blood, Associated Press, Thursday, September 09, 2004
LOS ANGELES (CA) -- A judge ruled Wednesday that the nation's largest Roman Catholic archdiocese cannot withhold potential evidence or proof of clergy sex abuse by claiming that communications between priests and bishops are confidential.
The ruling in a long-running legal battle was made by Thomas F. Nuss, a retired state judge appointed to review thousands of pages of church personnel documents subpoenaed by a Los Angeles County grand jury investigating possible sexual abuse by priests.
In weighing the balance between private personnel files and potential evidence of abuse, Nuss wrote in his 32-page ruling that the grand jury's subpoenas don't "have as a principal or primary effect the inhibition of religion."
The district attorney subpoenaed about 2,000 pages of personnel files and other confidential church records since 2002. But most of those subpoenas were dismissed in July because they dealt with allegations that fell beyond the statute of limitations.
[Posted by Kathy Shaw at 07:35 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker
www.ncrnews.org/abuse ,
Thu September 09, 2004
Abuse Chronology, visit: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont96.htm
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker,
www.ncrnews.org/abuse,
Fri September 10, 2004 edition follows:- • Archbishop says he's powerless in legal flap over Nevada priest [Roberts] -- RCC. Boy.
Las Vegas Sun,
www.lasvegassun.com/ sunbin/stories/nevada/ 2004/sep/10/ 091010446.html ,
By JIM SUHR, ASSOCIATED PRESS, Sep 10, 2004
ST. LOUIS (MO) (AP) - St. Louis' archbishop said Friday he has no authority to remove a former Nevada priest from a Missouri treatment center close to the home of a young man once sexually abused by the priest.
While saying he understood and sympathized with the victim's family, Archbishop Raymond Burke said Mark Roberts was being treated by court order at RECON, a Catholic-run residential center not under the archdiocese's control.
Beyond that, Burke said, "I acknowledge, too, RECON's 11-year successful history of housing priests and religious brothers who have committed sexual offenses and protecting society with the best security and safety available."
Roberts, 53, was removed from his position as pastor at St. Peter the Apostle Catholic Church in Henderson, Nev., in February 2002 and pleaded guilty in January 2003 to lewdness and child abuse involving five teens. He was sentenced to three years of probation.
[Posted by Kathy Shaw at 06:57 PM]
• Report: Austrian scandal bishop asked to resign -- RCC. Males in seminary.
Catholic World News, www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=32069 , Sep. 10, 2004
VIENNA, AUSTRIA (CWNews.com) - Pope John Paul has asked an Austrian bishop at the center of a sex scandal involving his seminary to resign from his office, according to the Kathpress news agency on Friday.
"Church sources in Rome said on Friday that the Vatican has suggested to St. Poelten Bishop Kurt Krenn, who is in Rome this week for talks, that he retire due to health reasons," the news agency reported. Bishop Krenn's spokesman declined to comment to the Austrian news agency APA.
The scandal erupted last month when local police arrested a Polish seminarian at the St. Poelten seminary on charges of storing and disseminating child pornography on a computer at the school. Other photos found in the course of the investigation showing seminarians and priests kissing and groping were later obtained by a magazine and published.
• Austrian Church struggles with scandal -- RCC. Males in seminary.
Toronto Star,
www.thestar.com/ NASApp/cs/ContentServer? pagename=thestar/ Layout/Article_ Type1&c=Article& cid=1094681411835& call_pageid= 991479973472& col=991929131147 ; "OPINION,"
By MICHAEL HIGGINS
AUSTRIA There are a lot of good things about the Roman Catholic Church in Austria that we should celebrate: the Von Trapp family; Cardinal Franz Koenig; a legion of distinguished composers, artists, intellectuals and leaders.
Contemporary Austrian Catholic notables include Aurora entrepreneur Frank Stronach of Magna, and the Republican governor of the state of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, a regular communicant at his parish in Santa Monica and a thorn in the side of Los Angeles Cardinal-Archbishop Roger Mahoney.
But there is no greater thorn in the side of the Austrian Church itself than the Bishop of St. Polten, Kurt Krenn, whose current imbroglio involves the Vatican itself and a scandal of depressing proportions.
The Austrian Church has not had an easy time over the past two decades. Following the resignation in the late 1980s of the much loved and much admired Cardinal Archbishop of Vienna, Franz Koenig, a Council Father and friend of several popes, things took a turn for the worse.
He was succeeded by Hans Herman Groer, a largely nondescript abbot of limited pastoral experience, limited theological acumen, and limited leadership ability. There was some resistance to his appointment, allegedly including Koenig himself, but the Vatican was determined to place a pious prelate of impeccable marian credentials as the new Primate of Austria.
Within a short time , Groer was enmeshed in a sexual abuse scandal that plunged the church into the slough of despond. Groer adamantly refused to answer the allegations, declare his innocence or guilt, apologize or reconcile. In brief, he chose silence and would be accountable to no one save the Pope.
• Priest target of parish fund probe [2004 Lisowski] -- Funds, prostitute. RCC.
Chicago Tribune,
www.chicagotribune.com/ news/local/chicago/ chi-0409100333sep10 ,1,3114611.story? coll=chi-newslocal chicago-hed ;
By Jeff Coen and David Heinzmann, September 10, 2004
CHICAGO (IL): The former pastor of a Catholic church on the Southwest Side has become the focus of a probe of possible financial misconduct at the parish, a review being handled by the Cook County state's attorney's office, authorities said.
The onetime leader of St. Bede the Venerable, Rev. Brian Lisowski, offered his resignation in July after acknowledging that he had been stopped by police in the company of an alleged prostitute, church officials confirmed. An audit by the Chicago Catholic Archdiocese followed, archdiocese spokesman Jim Dwyer said, and enough irregularities were found that prosecutors were notified.
Lisowski has not been charged with any crime, and prosecutors' assessment of materials turned over by church officials is ongoing.
• Woman: Church ousted her over sex abuse issue [Swafford] -- Whistleblower. Episcopal Church.
The Post and Courier,
www.charleston.net/ stories/091004/ loc_10episcopal.shtml ,
BY MICHAEL GARTLAND AND STEVE REEVES, Sep 10, 2004
SOUTH CAROLINA: A former member of West Ashley's Holy Trinity Episcopal Church said she was excommunicated nearly two years ago because she badgered church officials about improper behavior by a man who was arrested late last month on charges of sexually molesting children at the church.
But church lay leaders said they removed the woman because her constant gossip and negative behavior was disrupting the congregation and threatening to divide the church.
The former parishioner, Beverly Moore, complained about the man verbally and in writing to church officials from May 2001 until she was excommunicated in October 2002.
She said she was removed from the church after openly refusing to take communion wine from Mack Swafford, a lay leader. Swafford was arrested Aug. 30 on child molestation charges alleged to have occurred between 1986 and 1990.
• Bishop's charity event returns -- ~$156,000. Protesters. RCC.
The Union Leader,
www.theunionleader.com/ articles_showfast. html?article=43752 ,
By MARK HAYWARD
MANCHESTER (NH) - After putting a low profile on fundraising efforts for two years, Bishop John McCormack hosted a $500-per-head charity effort at his mansion last night, generating nearly $156,000 in donations and in-kind contributions.
Last night marked the return of the traditional Bishop's Charitable Assistance Fund garden party, which raises donations and distributes proceeds to charities across the state.
Some 200 people attended the event, men in suit and tie; women in gowns or professional dress. A Manchester chapter of the Knights of Columbus provided valet service, but protesters stood on a sidewalk across from the Trudel House, greeting guests with heckling and signs.
"This party is to raise funds to help the poor in our state," McCormack said before the event. "What we did in a quiet way for two years, we're now back to the house."
Ever since his part in the Boston priest-sex scandal became known, McCormack has been hounded by a small but committed band of protesters. Yesterday, the picketers said they don't want to stop people from giving money to charity. But they urged people not to attend the event.
"This institution is so incredibly corrupt, I wouldn't even trust a dime of my money to the church," said Lori Lambert, a former Bedford resident who now lives in Massachusetts. She said she gives to Catholic organizations such as the St. Boniface Fund and Earthen Vessels.
• Sex offender loses bid for teaching certificate [2001-02 Beine aka "Mar James"] -- Former clergyman.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch,
www.stltoday.com/ stltoday/news/stories. nsf/stlouiscitycounty/ story/601C68ACF01EEC 9586256ECD0013317A? OpenDocument&Headline= Sex+offender+loses+ bid+for+teaching+ certificate FULTON, Missouri: Former St. Louis city school counselor and convicted sex offender James Beine cannot regain his teaching certificate, the Missouri State Board of Education decided unanimously Thursday.
Beine's license was revoked automatically last year after a jury found him guilty on four counts of sexual misconduct with a child. The conviction was for exposing himself to students in a restroom at Patrick Henry School, 1220 North 10th Street, during the 2001-02 school year.
Beine, who also called himself "Mar James" is a former priest. He is serving a 12-year prison sentence on the charges.
• Priest Arrested For Murder Of Girl (8) [2004]
-- Apostolic Church.
Vaal Weekly,
www.news24.com/ Regional_Papers/ Components/Category_ Article_Text_Template/0,, 372_1587080~E,00.html SOUTH AFRICA: An Evaton priest has been denied bail by a Sebokeng magistrate following the alleged rape-murder of eight-year-old Delisile Dlamini on August 30.
A young Dlamini had been fatally strangled and her hands broken by the time neighbours discovered her body last Monday morning.
She was allegedly abducted by the priest on Saturday 28 August. Before kidnapping her, he had allegedly sent Delisile to buy him a "Polony Roll".
At the time the family was adamant that the priest had raped her before he killed her so as to silence her.
The Apostolic Church priest, who is close to the family, was arrested early on Saturday.
• Cardinal sins: Mahony's stonewalling in priest abuses continues [2004 Mahony] -- RCC.
Press-Telegram,
www.presstelegram.com/ Stories/0,1413,204~ 21479~2390979,00.html CALIFORNIA: Cardinal Roger Mahony of the Los Angeles Catholic Archdiocese has protected child molesters in the priesthood and knowingly helped them evade justice, has refused to cooperate in the D.A.'s investigation of the crimes, and has disregarded a grand jury subpoena.
So it comes as little surprise that Mahony has vowed to fight a judge's order to disclose evidence in the church's coverup of child abuse within its ranks.
A state judge on Wednesday ordered Mahony to turn over personnel records involving two priests accused of child molestation. The files are among many that District Attorney Steve Cooley has been seeking since 2002.
Mahony has steadfastly refused to give the files to the grand jury, claiming the same type of privacy privilege that applies to priests and religious confessions.
Mahony promised to appeal the judge's ruling, an action that could delay any transfer of the records to the grand jury for several years.
• Candlelight ceremony held in honor of slain children [2004 Meza] -- Jehovah's Witness.
The Sun News,
www.myrtlebeachonline.com/ mld/myrtlebeachonline/ news/local/9626280.htm ,
The Associated Press
ROCK HILL (NC) - A national support group for sexually abused children held a candlelight vigil Thursday tonight to honor three killed children from York County.
The service was sponsored by Silentlambs, a support group for abused children in "religious institutional settings."
The Meza family were members of a Rock Hill Jehovah's Witnesses church. The children -- Jayro, 5; Denise, 8; and Denia, 14 - died Aug. 9 before a fire engulfed their home. Authorities say they were slain by one of their parents -- Marbely or Jose Denis Meza -- who died in the fire. The case is still under investigation.
Jose Denis Meza had been arrested three weeks before on charges he molested Denia. Officials say she was also raped within five days of her death.
A national spokesman for the Jehovah's Witnesses church said Jose Denis Meza "confessed" to church officials about sexually abusing his daughter, but he stressed that church officials turned that information over to York County authorities.
• Clergy Abuse Victim Publishes Book [1970s Birmingham] -- RCC. Male.
TheBostonChannel.com ;
www.thebostonchannel.com/ news/3720320/ detail.html ,
POSTED: 6:23 am EDT September 10, 2004
BOSTON (MA) -- One of the most vocal victims in Boston's clergy sex abuse crisis has published a book about the scandal.
"Don't Call Me A Victim: A Personal Story of Faith, Hope & Sexual Abuse in the Catholic Church," was released Thursday by Arc Angel Publishing, a company started by the book's author, Gary Bergeron.
"If one survivor reads it and finds comfort in it, I've done what I set out to do," Bergeron said.
Bergeron, of Lowell, Mass., became a spokesman for victims in 2002, when he went public with his own abuse by the late Rev. Joseph Birmingham in the 1970s.
Last year, Bergeron, 42, and his 77-year-old father, also a clergy abuse victim, traveled to Rome and met with the Vatican's secretary of state.
In March, Bergeron founded a nonprofit foundation formed to help adult survivors of sexual abuse in recovery and treatment.
• Settlement reached in Kelley suit [1976-84 Kelley, 1968-70 Teczar, 1980s Shauris] -- RCC. Girls, Boys.
Telegram & Gazettewww.telegram.com/ apps/pbcs.dll/article? AID=/20040910/NEWS/ 109100474/1116 ;
by Gary V. Murray, gmurray@telegram.com , Sep 10, 2004
WORCESTER (MA) - The Worcester Diocese has reached an out-of-court settlement with an Idaho woman who filed a civil lawsuit two years ago alleging she was sexually abused as a child by the Rev. Robert E. Kelley. Terms of the recent settlement were not disclosed by a lawyer for the diocese, who said yesterday the settlement was one of seven reached in the last several months between the diocese and plaintiffs in clergy sex abuse cases.
The woman, Denise Hanrahan, was one of two remaining plaintiffs in a suit filed in 2002 in Middlesex Superior Court and transferred last month to Worcester Superior Court. Ms. Hanrahan alleged that she was sexually abused by Rev. Kelley between 1976 and 1983, when the Catholic priest was assigned to St. Cecilia's Parish in Leominster.
The abuse allegedly occurred at various locations, including the church rectory and in New Hampshire, according to the lawsuit. Named as defendants were the Catholic Diocese of Worcester, the Rev. George E. Denomme and the Rev. Francis Goguen. Rev. Denomme was pastor of St. Cecilia's when the abuse was alleged to have occurred and Rev. Goguen was also assigned to the Leominster parish, according to the suit. The plaintiffs were minors when they were allegedly abused.
The suit alleged that the defendants knew or should have known that Rev. Kelley posed a danger to Ms. Hanrahan and the other plaintiffs and failed to take steps to protect them.
Rev. Kelley, 61, was sentenced to 5 to 7 years in state prison on Oct. 1, 2003, after pleading guilty in Worcester Superior Court to raping two young girls between 1981 and 1984, when the victims were ages 6 to 9. The rapes occurred at St. Cecilia's and Sacred Heart Parish in Gardner.
One of the two victims in the criminal case was Diane Gallian of Ashburnham, who is now the sole remaining plaintiff in the civil case in which Ms. Hanrahan was also a plaintiff.
Heather Mackey of Tewksbury, the other victim in the criminal case, had also been a plaintiff in the civil action, but her claims against the diocese were dismissed in July, 2003, after she voluntarily chose not to proceed. The claims of two other plaintiffs, Nicole M. Cormier of Fitchburg and Debbie A. Doucet of Leominster, were also dismissed in July, 2003, after settlements were reached between them and the diocese.
Rev. Kelley's October sentencing marked the second time he had been imprisoned on child sexual assault charges. He had served six and a half years of a seven-year state prison sentence imposed in 1990 after pleading guilty to six counts of rape of a child.
Last week, Ms. Hanrahan's lawyers, Jeffrey A. Newman and James P. Ponsetto, and lawyers James G. Reardon Jr. and Joanne L. Goulka, representing the defendants in the civil case, filed a stipulation of dismissal regarding Ms. Hanrahan's claims. As grounds for the dismissal and the entry of a final judgment, the defendants' lawyers said they had reached a settlement with Ms. Hanrahan.
Mr. Reardon declined to comment yesterday on the terms of the settlements with Ms. Hanrahan and the plaintiffs in the other cases against the Worcester diocese that have been resolved. Mr. Newman could not be reached for comment. Court documents did not reflect the terms of the settlements.
A stipulation of dismissal based on an undisclosed settlement was filed April 5 in Worcester Superior Court in a 2003 suit filed by John Riganati of Dennis Port. Mr. Riganati alleged that he was sexually abused by the Rev. Thomas Teczar from about 1968 to about 1970, when he was about 16 to 18 years old. In his suit against the diocese and Rev. Teczar, Mr. Riganati alleged that he was repeatedly sexually abused in the rectory of St. Joan of Arc Church in Worcester, in Rev. Teczar's car and on Cape Cod.
A stipulation of dismissal based on a settlement was filed June 7 in a 2002 case brought by Melinda Ness of California, who alleged that she was sexually abused by Rev. Kelley in the late 1970s at St. Cecilia's in Leominster.
The settled cases also included one brought against the diocese in 2002 by James Kane of Derry, N.H., and Jeff Doherty of Deerfield Beach, Fla. Mr. Kane and Mr. Doherty alleged that the Rev. Robert Shauris engaged in acts of nonconsensual sexual contact with them in the 1980s, when they were students at St. Bernard's Catholic High School in Fitchburg and Rev. Shauris was a priest assigned to the school.
Rev. Shauris was not a named defendant in the lawsuit. A stipulation of dismissal in the case was filed July 15.
There are a dozen clergy sex abuse cases still pending against the Diocese in Worcester Superior Court.
[Posted by Kathy Shaw at 06:22 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker
www.ncrnews.org/abuse ,
Fri September 10, 2004
Abuse Chronology, visit: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont96.htm
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker,
www.ncrnews.org/abuse,
Sat September 11, 2004 edition follows:- • Accused priests stay close to Rome [Henn, Bossa] -- RCC.
The Dallas Morning News,
www.dallasnews.com/ sharedcontent/dws/dn/ religion/stories/091204 dnrelrome.bc6c5.html , One in an occasional series,
By REESE DUNKLIN, Saturday, September 11, 2004
ROME: - Pope John Paul II summoned U.S. cardinals to the Vatican two years ago, at the height of the church's sex abuse crisis, and made a stirring pronouncement.
"People need to know," he stressed to them, "that there is no place in the priesthood and religious life for those who would harm the young."
Yet today, one block from the Vatican, a fugitive priest lives in a church building with rooftop views of St. Peter's Basilica and the pope's apartment. The Rev. Joseph Henn's superiors have let him stay with them, even though they say he has refused their instructions to go back to Phoenix and face charges that he molested three boys.
A short cab ride north, the Rev. Barry Bossa, an ex-con and fugitive, has found similar sanctuary in a leafy neighborhood of sidewalk cafes and low-rise apartments. His religious bosses hastily moved him out of the United States two years ago as his criminal record and new allegations began to emerge.
Here in the heart of Catholicism, church leaders are giving refuge to priests who face allegations of sexual abuse in other countries. The Dallas Morning News located the men - some of them admitted abusers - as part of a yearlong investigation into the global movements of accused priests.
[Posted by Kathy Shaw at 04:45 PM]
• Monday Sept. 6 Labor Day. This is a joke, right? [Murray] -- $US 500,000. RCC.
Orange County Weekly,
www.ocweekly.com/ ink/05/01/columns- lowery.php , Tuesday Sept. 7, 2004
CALIFORNIA: It's that time of the month for the Diocese of Orange: pedo-spinning! Over the weekend, the Los Angeles Times reported that church officials settled a sex-abuse lawsuit last year against Father Daniel Murray for $500,000.
Church spokesman Father Joe Fenton defended the non-disclosure of the settlement-which violates a 2002 vow taken by all Catholic bishops in the United States to reveal all sex-abuse settlements-by claiming the alleged victim wished to avoid publicizing the case, a claim quickly repudiated in the article by the victim's attorney.
Meanwhile, all was silent at St. Boniface Church in Anaheim, where Murray served as priest from 1983 to 1994. Weekly writer Gustavo Arellano said there was no announcement on the Murray settlement at this past Sunday's Mass, despite Thesis No. 6 of the diocese's "Covenant with the Faithful," which pledges to be "open, honest and forthright" regarding all sex-abuse settlements.
Instead, a prayer was offered for the fifth straight Sunday that "everyone involved - victims, lawyers and judges - reach a fair and equitable settlement in their lawsuits against the diocese for sexual abuse." Those three are the last entities for which the faithful should be lighting votive candles - how about a tire fire for the soul of Orange Bishop Tod D. Brown?
• Rape of boy during papal visit recalled: Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse [1979] -- RCC. Boy.
One in Four,
http://oneinfour.org/ news/news2004/papal ,
by Patsy McGarry, Religious Affairs Correspondent - Irish Times
: IRELAND: The investigation committee of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse was told yesterday that a boy, prevented from attending Pope John Paul's Mass in Limerick in September 1979, was raped by the brother left in charge of him.
Father Patrick Pierce, manager in 1975-91 of St Joseph's Industrial School, Ferryhouse, Co Tipperary, told the committee the boy had not been allowed accompany his colleagues to the Pope's Mass as punishment for absconding. The brother who raped him had been a prefect at the school and volunteered to stay back with the boy.
Father Pierce, who was recalling that in November 1979 he first learned about the abuse of boys at St Joseph's by "Brother X", became upset while giving his evidence. "Little did we know we were living with an abuser," he said, ...
• A number of sex abusers resided in industrial school [Rosminians] -- RCC. Male.
One in Four,
http://oneinfour.org/ news/news2004/number ,
by Patsy McGarry - Irish Times
IRELAND: A number of sex abusers had connections to the industrial school at Ferryhouse, the investigations committee of the child abuse commission was told yesterday.
Father Patrick Pierce gave evidence about three other abusers, apart from "Brother X".
He said he was appointed Irish provincial of the Rosminian congregation in 1991, and in July 1992 ITV broadcast a programme about abuse, after which he received a call from his counterpart in England.
He said he had been contacted by a man in Wales alleging that an Irish Rosminian priest, who had been a prefect at Ferryhouse in the 1960s, had attempted to abuse him on a visit to Ireland.
• Man charged with making false abuse allegations bailed [2003-04 Anderson.] -- RCC.
One in Four,
http://oneinfour.org/ news/news2004/false ,
by Nicola Anderson - Irish Independent
IRELAND: A man who stands accused of making false allegations of indecent assault and buggery against a priest has been remanded on bail at Kilmainham Court.
It marks the first time that such a case has come before the courts.
Paul Anderson (30), of Ivy Trust House, New Bride Street, Dublin 8, was arrested on foot of a bench warrant yesterday morning at a house in Crumlin Park and charged under Section 12 of the 1976 Criminal Law Act.
It is understood that the claims, made in June 2003 relate to alleged incidents from February to May 1981.
The investigation was led by Det Sergeant Martin Mooney of the National Bureau of Criminal Investigations and a file was sent to the DPP. Mr Anderson could face five years in prison if found guilty. He was remanded on his own bail of €500. ...
Allegations of sexual abuse were made last year against Fr John Wall of Clondalkin but following a Garda investigation, no further action was taken.
Fr Wall was reinstated in his job as parish priest of the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Clondalkin, having been immediately asked by the diocese to stand aside following the allegations.
The Church's guidelines for dealing with allegations of child abuse, in place since 1996, allow bishops and religious superiors to exercise their discretion when deciding whether an accused cleric should step down from his ministry.
• Former Youth Group Sponsor Gets 20 Years [2003 Dickens] -- Baptist. Girl.
Tyler Morning Telegraph,
www.zwire.com/ site/news.cfm? BRD=1994&dept_id= 226369&newsid=12900916&PAG= 461&rfi=9 , By CASEY KNAUPP, September 10, 2004
EDITOR'S NOTE: The name of the victim in this article was not identified in keeping with the Tyler Morning Telegraph's policy to protect the identity of victims of sexual abuse and to encourage the reporting of such crimes. TEXAS: A sponsor of a church youth group in Winona was sentenced to 20 years in prison Friday after he pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl he met at church.
Greg Dickens, 35, worked with the youth group "Team Kids" at the Winona First Baptist Church when he met the girl in August 2003. The victim asked him if she could help with the group and soon he began "grooming" her to become his prey, Chief Felony Prosecutor April Sikes said.
The defendant is what Mrs. Sikes called an "authority pedophile." He groomed the victim, telling her she was beautiful and that he loved her. She rode her bicycle to his home, where he lived with his parents and where he would sexually assault her, Mrs. Sikes said.
• Abuse settlements reached; court rules on priest files -- Mixed actions. $US 7m RCC.
Catholic News Service
www.catholicnews.com/ data/briefs/cns/ 20040910.htm , Sep 10, 2004
WASHINGTON (DC) (CNS) -- Three U.S. dioceses reached a new phase in clergy sexual abuse settlements recently and a fourth said it would appeal a judge's order to turn over some priest personnel files. In the Cincinnati Archdiocese 134 sexual abuse claimants signed up by the Sept. 1 deadline to seek independently mediated settlement of their claims under a $3 million fund the archdiocese has set aside for that purpose.
The Diocese of Springfield, Mass., delivered checks to 46 abuse claimants Aug. 31, completing the main element of a $7 million settlement reached in July. In agreements announced Aug. 25, the St. Louis Archdiocese settled 18 of 21 sexual abuse lawsuits under mediation. The settlements totaled $2,036,800.
In California, an attorney for the Los Angeles Archdiocese said the archdiocese would appeal a Sept. 8 decision by Superior Court Judge Thomas F. Nuss ordering the archdiocese to turn over 80 pages of personnel files on two priests accused of sexual abuse of minors who are being investigated by a grand jury for possible criminal charges.
• The gospel according to Jimmy Breslin -- RCC.
Salon,
www.salon.com/ books/feature/ 2004/09/11/breslin/ index_np.html ,
By Andrew O'Hehir, Sept. 11, 2004
NEW YORK: Jimmy Breslin wants to start his own church. He's had enough of the old one after almost 74 years, and who can blame him?
When you look back over the career of New York's consummate common-man columnist -- one of the best at cramming characters, emotion and sense of place into a 650-word rectangle of newsprint that Gotham has ever seen -- his break with the Roman Catholic Church has been a long time coming.
It wasn't exactly the sexual abuse scandal itself that sent Breslin over the edge, although he's been covering it with intense and deepening anger for the last two years. Instead, he says, it was one of the scandal's side effects: discovering that one of the American church's most prominent men of God was a
niggling, pedantic little man.
[Emphasis added]
• Accuser absent from hearing in Shanley case
-- RCC. Males.
Telegram & Gazette,
www.telegram.com/ apps/pbcs.dll/article? AID=/20040911/APN/ 409110627 ,
The Associated Press, Sep 11, 2004
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.- One of two remaining accusers in the Paul Shanley rape case did not appear in court Friday for a pretrial hearing, but prosecutors said they expected the accuser to remain in the case.
Shanley's defense attorney, Frank Mondano, questioned whether the accuser was going to "stay the course" in the case.
But district attorney's spokesman Tim St. Laurent told the Boston Herald, "The charges do stand and we will go forward."
The 73-year-old defrocked priest was a key figure in the church sex abuse scandal that began in Boston in 2002.
Shanley is currently facing six rape charges and four charges of indecent assault. Prosecutors in July dropped several charges brought by accusers Anthony Driscoll and Gregory Ford.
• Goa DGP model to fight paedophiles The Times of India,
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/ articleshow/847517.cms ,
By SANJAY BANERJEE, TIMES NEWS NETWORK, 04:35:04 PM, SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2004
PANAJI, INDIA: Seven cases of child abuse registered in Goa last month including one involving a parish priest has helped put a smile on the faces of NGOs who have been waging a long and protracted fight against paedophiles.
The new director general of police, Amod Kanth, better known as a supercop in Delhi and who also runs 'Prayas' (NGO) for children says, "I believe that NGOs can make a difference in aiding social investigation and have followed the model in four states where Prayas is working."
Henceforth, a panel of lawyers, doctors, psychologists, sociologists and jury of the children and juvenile courts would work in tandem to help the victim shed away fear and ensure a composite understanding by professionals from various faculties to discern the abuse and nail the culprit.
The new methodology ensures protection of the child from not only foreign nationals but also the Goan society where the neighbour could be a paedophile.
• Pope Talks With U.S. Bishops About Scandal -- RCC.
Austin American-Statesman,
www.statesman.com/ news/content/news/ ap/ap_story.html/Intl/ AP.V4724.AP-Vatican- Sex-Abu.html
By TOM RACHMAN, Associated Press Writer
VATICAN CITY (AP) -- Pope John Paul II discussed the U.S. sex-abuse scandal with a group of American bishops Saturday, encouraging them to be more open to the needs of parishioners in the wake of a "crisis of confidence in the Church's leadership."
The pontiff was speaking with Church officials from Pennsylvania and New Jersey--including Cardinal Justin Rigali, archbishop of Philadelphia, and Archbishop John Myers of Newark--during a regularly scheduled visit to the Vatican.
John Paul noted that Roman Catholic bishops have "an unequivocal right and duty of governance." But he indicated that the approach of some American Church leaders may have inadvertently driven a wedge between them and churchgoers.
During the scandal, dozens of reports emerged of abusive priests who had been moved from parish to parish rather than being punished. Victims groups accused the Church hierarchy of favoring the protection of priests over their victims, and many faithful were infuriated by the response of Catholic leaders.
• Shanley accuser's no-show casts shadow over rape case
-- RCC.
Boston Herald,
http://news.bostonherald.com/ localRegional/view.bg? articleid=43749 ,
By Casey Ross, Saturday, September 11, 2004
CAMBRIDGE (MA): One of two remaining accusers in the Paul Shanley rape case did not appear yesterday for a pretrial examination, creating more problems for prosecutors trying to win a conviction against the defrocked priest.
The accuser's failure to attend the key hearing comes two months after Middlesex prosecutors dropped charges brought by two of four alleged victims in the case.
Also yesterday, a superior court judge postponed Shanley's trial until Jan. 18, moving it back from a scheduled start date in October. Attorneys on both sides said the postponement was the result of a scheduling conflict and had nothing to do with the accuser's failure to appear.
But Shanley's defense attorney, Frank Mondano, yesterday questioned whether the accuser is going to "stay the course" in the case.
[Posted by Kathy Shaw at 08:59 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker
www.ncrnews.org/abuse ,
Sat September 11, 2004
Abuse Chronology, visit: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont96.htm
#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker,
www.ncrnews.org/abuse,
Sun September 12, 2004 edition follows:- • Celibacy Seen as a Gift That Edifies the Church -- RCC.
Zenit,
www.zenit.org/english/visualizza.phtml?sid=58759 ,
SEPT. 12, 2004
SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA, Spain (Zenit.org).- A priest who is not profoundly spiritual is "a poor celibate," says a consultor to a Vatican dicastery.
"Priestly celibacy is not an exclusive characteristic of priests of the Catholic rite, and even less so an imposition of the Church, but a gift received for the edification of the community," said Father Amedeo Cencini, when referring to the topic he alluded to during a meeting of seminary rectors and formators in Spain.
Father Cencini is a professor at the Salesian and Gregorian universities of Rome, and a consultor to the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.
He explained during an interview with ZENIT that the Church "does not impose celibacy on anyone, it simply chooses priests among those who have received this charism."
"What is most important is that the celibate make these motivations his own and live his celibacy as a choice of love, with a thankful heart free of egoism, and with a profoundly spiritual attitude," he said. "If the priest is not profoundly spiritual, he is a poor celibate."
The priest continued: "The recent scandals of certain Churches must not lead to deception, because there is no scientific proof that shows that in the realm of ecclesiastical celibacy this type of problem is more frequent than in other realms."
[Posted by Kathy Shaw at 05:55 PM]
[COMMENT: It would be difficult to scientifically prove that celibacy is one of the causes of RCC clergy sex abuse, because no-one can perform repeatable experiments in such matters. However, in the USA 4 per cent of the supposedly "celibate" RCC clergy were exposed by the Church's own records as failing celibacy by sexually abusing children, youth, and women. The RCC celibacy rule seriously skews the selection process for clergy, so presumably has an effect on outcomes.
Christians don't need social studies theories ("science") to guide them on this subject. The New Testament favours marriage, including one text where the epistle writer claims that no man ought to touch a woman, but concludes by recommending marriage! (1 Corinthians 7:2) "It is better to marry than to be burnt up." (1 Corinthians 7:9) Two forged bible books include recommendations for the clergy to be "husbands of one wife" and fathers as well (1 Timothy 3:2-7; Titus 1: 5 - 9).
More information is at "Celibacy crept ...", "Non-marital carnal activity ... ", and "Fathers ..." .
COMMENT ENDS.]
• Accused priest recalled as both 'saint' and abuser [Lammers , Sisters of Charity of Nazareth] -- RCC.
Kentucky.com
www.kentucky.com/mld/kentucky/news/local/9646760.htm ,
Associated Press
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - At his death in 1986, the longtime director of Catholic Charities was lauded for his efforts to help refugees, tornado victims and others in need.
Now, 32 people have accused Monsignor Herman J. Lammers in lawsuits of raping, fondling or otherwise molesting them while he was resident chaplain at the former St. Thomas-St. Vincent Orphanage near Anchorage.
To date, 41 people have sued the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth in Jefferson Circuit Court accusing the order of failing to protect them from abuse between the 1930s and 1970s. Fourteen of the plaintiffs also accuse 15 nuns of sexual or physical abuse, and three others accuse two men identified as a volunteer and an assistant.
Most of the allegations are linked to St. Thomas-St. Vincent, which the order operated for the Catholic Charities agency of the Archdiocese of Louisville. Other allegations are linked to the St. Thomas and St. Vincent orphanages before they merged in 1952, or to schools where the nuns worked in the Louisville area.
A spokeswoman for the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth has denied the allegations.
• Televangelist Paul Crouch Attempts to Keep Accuser Quiet [1992 Crouch] -- Trinity Broadcasting Network. $US 425,000 paid. Male.
Yahoo! News,
http://news.yahoo.com/ news?tmpl=story&u=/ latimests/20040912/ts_ latimes/televangelist paulcrouchattempts tokeepaccuserquiet ;
By William Lobdell, 7:55 AM ET, Sun Sep 12 2004,
CALIFORNIA: Televangelist Paul Crouch, founder of the world's largest Christian broadcasting network, has waged a fierce legal battle to prevent a former employee from publicizing allegations that he and Crouch had a sexual encounter eight years ago.
Crouch, 70, is the president of Trinity Broadcasting Network, based in Orange County, whose Christian programming reaches millions of viewers around the world via satellite, cable and broadcast stations.
The source of the allegations against him is Enoch Lonnie Ford, who met Crouch at a TBN-affiliated drug treatment center in 1991 and later went to work for the ministry.
After Ford threatened to sue TBN in 1998, claiming that he had been unjustly fired, Crouch reached a $425,000 settlement with him. In return, Ford agreed, among other things, not to discuss his claim about a sexual encounter with the TV preacher.
But in the last year, Ford has threatened to go public with his story, prompting a flurry of legal maneuvers - conducted in closed court hearings, sealed pleadings and private arbitration.
In court papers, Crouch has denied the allegations, and ministry officials have described Ford - who has a history of drug problems and has served time for a sex offense - as a liar and an extortionist.
• Confession of a pervert priest [1987-90 McQuillan] -- RCC.
Boys.
Sunday Life,
www.sundaylife.co.uk/news/story.jsp?story=560918 ,
Exclusive by Stephen Breen, 12 September 2004
NORTHERN IRELAND: This is the first picture of the pervert Ulster priest who has confessed to a series of sex crimes against boys.
Father Gerard McQuillan, from Armagh, admitted a litany of gross indecency and indecent assault charges, at Newry Crown Court.
The shamed priest also pleaded guilty to committing an act of b*ggery, on a boy under 16.
Last night, one of his victims told Sunday Life he was relieved McQuillan had pleaded guilty, sparing his victims further suffering.
'Paul' (not his real name) said: "I can forgive him because I'm now getting on with my life, but he's a very sick man who needs help. He could have destroyed my life by what he did to me, but I won't let him."
McQuillan's offences against four boys took place between 1987 and 1990, but only came to light last year, following a complaint to police.
• Priest admits to stealing more than $1 million [1999-2004 Lisowski] -- Made full restitution. Caught with prostitute. RCC.
WQAD,
www.wqad.com/Global/story.asp?S=2289540 CHICAGO (IL): A Catholic priest who resigned earlier this summer from his Chicago church has admitted to stealing more than one million dollars from the parish.
The Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago announced yesterday that the Reverend Brian Lisowski had misappropriated funds at St. Bede the Venerable between January 1999 and July 2004. Lisowski resigned in July after acknowledging he had relapsed into alcoholism and had been stopped by police in the company of an alleged prostitute.
The Reverend Michael Adams read a letter written by Auxiliary Bishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller to parishioners yesterday on Chicago's southwest side. It said Lisowski had made full restitution of the money he took.
• Diocese concerned about audit -- RCC.
Nashua Telegraph,
http://nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040912/NEWS02/209120391/-1/news ,
Sunday, Sep. 12, 2004
MANCHESTER (NH) (AP) - Talks have broken down over auditing the Diocese of Manchester's child protection policies and procedures.
Attorney General Kelly Ayotte says the state and church have a fundamental disagreement over the audit's scope.
Ayotte would not specify the differences, but a lawyer for the Roman Catholic diocese said constitutional concerns divide them.
David Vicinanzo said the two disagree how much authority the state can have over internal church decisions without violating the Constitution.
"The diocese's view is that the state, while acting in good faith, wants certain authority that neither the agreement nor the federal constitution permits, and which is unnecessary to performing the thorough and professional audit that was agreed upon," he said.
• 'Sex case priests sheltered in Rome' [Henn] -- Salvatorian. RCC.
Irish Examiner,
http://breaking.examiner.ie/2004/09/12/story166174.html ,
Sep/12/2004
ROME: Some Roman Catholic religious orders have been sheltering priests in Rome despite claims that the men sexually abused children, it was reported today.
Of the seven accused priests located by The Dallas Morning News, one has been indicted in Arizona, but refuses to return to face the charges. Two others had admitted to abuse years ago, but now face additional claims.
Supervisors of the accused clergy said they were not trying to help the men elude law enforcement or victims, but wanted to give them a place to live and work away from children, the newspaper reported.
In one case, the Reverend Joseph Henn, a member of the Salvatorian order, was indicted last year in Arizona on child molestation charges. The Diocese of Phoenix, where he had worked, had already reached a settlement with one of his accusers in the 1990s, the newspaper said.
Salvatorian officials said in a written statement to the newspaper that they had told Henn to return and face authorities, but he refused.
The Arizona prosecutor in his case, Maricopa County Attorney Rick Romley, noted that priests take vows of obedience and said Henn’s superiors have the authority to order him back to America.
In another case, the Reverend Barry Bossa, a member of the Pallottines order, was criminally charged last year in Massachusetts. He has been accused of sexually abusing young boys in the 1970s, when he taught at a Bridgewater, Massachusetts, parish. Bossa had separately pleaded guilty in 1974 to misdemeanor sexual abuse.
A colleague of Bossa’s who had monitored him in the United States, the Reverend Terzo Vinci, said the religious order moved Bossa to Rome to isolate him from children and now he was unable to return because of his health.
"It’s not a promotion," Vinci said. "He went to Rome in exile. Zero promotion. Zero anything."
The Reverend James Tully, of the Xaverian Missionary Fathers, was moved to Rome two years ago, about a month after he was accused of inappropriately touching a boy several decades earlier, the newspaper said.
Tully had pleaded no contest to disorderly conduct in 1992 for giving alcohol to three boys and grabbing one of them.
An official with Tully’s order said his transfer to Rome was unrelated to the abuse allegations. The official said the clergyman was recovering from working in war-torn parts of Africa and was not ready for ministry in the United States.
The newspaper identified the men as part of a year-long investigation that found more than 200 priests accused of abuse have been moved from country to country. Nearly half of the cases involved clergy who tried to elude law enforcement, the newspaper said. #
• Camp Hill congregation surprised by pastor's sex abuse conviction [Hale] -- Universalist Church
The Decatur Daily
www.decaturdaily.com/decaturdaily/news/040912/abuse.shtml , Sep 4, 2004
CAMP HILL (AL) (AP) - The Rev. Signard Dennis Hale said he resigned as pastor when members of his congregation learned about the child sex conviction that he described as a "skeleton in my closet."
Members of the First Universalist Church of Camp Hill were to meet today to consider Hale's resignation.
"Personally, I feel that he has paid his debt to society and has tried to atone by living the right kind of life since," said church president Barbara Taylor.
She said the church has grown under his leadership.
"There's a deep hurt and I'm very surprised," said church member Jimmy Johnson of Cedartown, Ga. "This is a lot to digest. When you're dealing with human beings, anything is possible."
[Posted by Kathy Shaw at 04:43 AM]
• Criminal Record Forces Camp Hill Pastor to Resign [Hale] -- Universalist Church. Girl.
WSFA,
www.wsfa.com/ Global/story.asp? S=2290696&nav=0RdEQpAV CAMP HILL (AL): Camp Hill's First Universalist Church members unanimously accepted their reverend's resignation Sunday. The Associated Press reports the congregation was surprised to learn that Pastor Dennis Hale had served time in prison for sexually abusing a six year old Auburn girl.
However, WSFA 12 News has learned that the information may not have been completely unknown to church members.
In a telephone interview, Pastor Hale said, when he first took the job, he told church members he would resign if news of his conviction ever got out. WSFA 12 News tried to get church officials to confirm that, but they refused to comment on specifics.
In a prepared telephone statement, Church President Barbara Taylor would only say, "After over 158 years of history, First Universalist Church will continue to grow and serve the surrounding areas."
• Acrimony splits victims, church in mediation process -- ~ 75 victims. Religious Orders not brought in. RCC.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel,
www.jsonline.com/news/metro/sep04/258217.asp ,
By TOM HEINEN, theinen@journalsentinel.com , Posted Sept. 11, 2004
MILWAUKEE (WI): Begun last December with high hopes, mediation between the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and a group now totaling about 75 victims of sexual abuse by priests has fractured to the point that the two sides do not even agree on why they have not met for several months.
Victims contend the archdiocese made non-negotiable offers and dragged its feet on scheduling meetings after the Legislature and governor approved a new clergy sexual-abuse law. That law passed without a provision allowing victims in old cases to get around state Supreme Court decisions and statutes of limitation to sue the church.
Victims also claim that the archdiocese offered far less restitution than some other dioceses, failed to get representatives of religious-order priests to participate in mediation and is pushing all victims into individual mediation.
But Archdiocesan officials contend that various issues, including how to involve religious orders in the process, remain on the table along with an open invitation to continue meeting. They defend separate, independent mediation for individuals and small groups, saying it has helped victims begin to heal.
No sessions are scheduled.
• Diocese faces new claims of sex abuse -- 140 new claims. < $US 3m at risk. RCC.
Boston Globe,
www.boston.com/news/ local/massachusetts/ articles/2004/09/12/ diocese_faces_new_ claims_of_sex_abuse ;
By Kevin Cullen, September 12, 2004
BOSTON (MA): Less than a year after it paid $85 million to settle 541 sexual-abuse claims, the Archdiocese of Boston is facing at least 140 new claims that a church spokesman says the church cannot now afford to settle, in part because it has been unable to recoup money from its insurance policies to cover last year's settlement.
The new claims, which lawyers handling the cases say involve charges against priests that span the 1950s to the 1980s, have presented Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley with a potentially huge bill. Even if the suits were settled for the $20,000 maximum allowed under the charitable immunity standard, the archdiocese could be facing claims worth nearly $3 million. If the archdiocese followed the standard it set in settling the 541 cases last year, the bill would be more in the range of $20 million, legal analysts say.
The archdiocese borrowed the money used to settle the cases last December, and since then has sold the historic cardinal's residence and surrounding land in Brighton to Boston College for $107 million to pay down its debts. It has also slated 82 parishes for closure as part of a drastic cost-cutting effort and realignment.
But the Rev. Christopher J. Coyne, a spokesman for O'Malley, said none of the funds raised by the property sale or by closing parishes would be used to settle sexual abuse claims.
"Our intention is that the money used to pay the settlements shoul
