Ongoing religious scandals

robindch

Penn wrote: »

I thought that in a lot of the cases, the priest had died which meant no charges could be brought against him.

Yes, but it's not clear from the article above whether or not deceased or incapacitated priests account for the majority of cases -- hard to know really.

LittleBook

Bannasidhe wrote: »

The Church of Rome - insulting the intelligence of the Irish public since Patrick.

So two schoolchildren have been selected out of thousands in 26 dioceses to be confirmed in Rome by the pope.

Both kids are from ... wait for it ... Cloyne.

The Vatican’s Council for the New Evangelisation chose Cloyne out of the 26 Catholic dioceses on the island when selecting which should be invited to send two children to represent Ireland at the ceremony.

Bannasidhe

LittleBook wrote: »

So two schoolchildren have been selected out of thousands in 26 dioceses to be confirmed in Rome by the pope.

Both kids are from ... wait for it ... Cloyne.

Wasn't that just the most amazing co-inkydinks.

SebBerkovich

Thanks for the post, when there hadn't been anything posted here in 3 days i thought boards was broken.
Well guess we should set back the number on the big board:

0 Days Since Religious Scandal


wait.. it seems like two 12 year olds are being asked to rome by a priests and it's not an actual scandal..


3 Days Since Religious Scandal

Bannasidhe

SebBerkovich wrote: »

Thanks for the post, when there hadn't been anything posted here in 3 days i thought boards was broken.
Well guess we should set back the number on the big board:

0 Days Since Religious Scandal


wait.. it seems like two 12 year olds are being asked to rome by a priests and it's not an actual scandal..


3 Days Since Religious Scandal

and it really was an amazing co-inkydinks that there were from Cloyne. No really, it was. Honest.

Np PR stunt here folks. Move along please.

SebBerkovich

Bannasidhe wrote: »

and it really was an amazing co-inkydinks that there were from Cloyne. No really, it was. Honest.

Np PR stunt here folks. Move along please.

It's just that i've become accustomed to a certain standard of scandal from the RCC. A part of me feels that with a PR stunt, they're not fulfilling their scandal potential.

Bannasidhe

SebBerkovich wrote: »

It's just that i've become accustomed to a certain standard of scandal from the RCC. A part of me feels that with a PR stunt, they're not fulfilling their scandal potential.

They did set the bar rather high.

Nodin

Bishop Peter Connors (above) of the diocese of Ballaret appeared, at the
government-lead inquiry into the handling of child sex abuse cases by the
Catholic Church in Victoria, Australia, today

He was asked by Committee member David O’Brien about Fr Paul Ryan a
paedophile who was moved from parish to parish.

Depressingly fucking familiar stuff follows.....
http://www.broadsheet.ie/2013/04/29/meanwhile-in-victoria/

Banbh

Have the two kids that were sent to Rome been forced to sign anything?

Sarky

We don't know. They won't say anything.

recedite

RTE news covered it extensively of course, the Argentinian was rubbing and groping each childs face in a slightly disturbing manner. Maybe that's just the usual way of performing the ceremony, I don't know.

Sulla Felix

http://www.policymic.com/articles/39225/fabio-martinez-castilla-abortion-is-worse-than-child-rape-says-mexican-archbishop

Fabio Martínez Castilla, Archbishop of Tuxla Gutiérrez sparked some controversy over remarks made on Tuesday at a homily in the Metropolitan Cathedral of San Marcos, by claiming that “abortion is much more serious than rape of children by priests.”

Appointed Archbishop last May by then Pope Benedict XVI, Castilla went on to clarify that both abuse and abortion “quantitatively do much harm and deserve punishment.” He is a firm believer in the Church’s stance on contraceptives and condoms as “patches” to avoid responsibility.

kylith

“abortion is much more serious than rape of children by priests.”

MrPudding

OK, bear with me here... I am not one to support the RCC, I despise them, but, I can kind of see where he is coming form here.

Out yourself in his position. He believe that abortion is murder, having sex with kids is "just" rape. In fact, it is even worse than that. Under cannon law being a paedophile is actually a full defence to raping children. So, as far as he is concerned, abortion is murder, which is very serious, but the raping of a child, if you are a paedophile, isn't even a crime.

I think when you look at it like this two things are apparent. First, views like his appear to have a rational basis to those that share his way of life and secondly, they are batsh1t crazy and have no place as the moral guardians of anything.

MrP

Cossax

'Catholic mafia' hindered priest probe, special commission of inquiry into child sex abuse hears. Australia this time.

robindch

MrPudding wrote: »

First, views like his appear to have a rational basis to those that share his way of life [...]

I think a lot of people forget that point in the entire abortion debate.

To the religious -- and non-religious -- who believe that life inheres from the point of conception, abortion is premeditated murder. One can debate the rights, wrongs, the foundation and the consequences for that belief, but once accepted, the visceral reaction is as predictable as it is rational.

SebBerkovich

Former priest charged with assaulting two altar boys in Cork church.

Honestly, they're going to have start adding sequel numbers to these headlines.

Kivaro

SebBerkovich wrote: »

Former priest charged with assaulting two altar boys in Cork church.

Honestly, they're going to have start adding sequel numbers to these headlines.

Seriously.

The headline that would truly shock me would be:
Parish found where priest did not abuse a member of the community.

robindch

The engagingly-named Msgr. Arsenault, the top priest at a "leading treatment center for clergy suffering from emotional, sexual and addiction problems", has resigned because...

Ah, hang it, you can guess:

http://www.religionnews.com/2013/05/06/priest-who-heads-top-clergy-treatment-center-accused-of-impropriety/

religionnews wrote:

(RNS) The priest who headed a leading treatment center for clergy suffering from emotional, sexual and addiction problems has resigned in the wake of accusations that he misused funds in his home diocese and that he was engaged in an “inappropriate adult relationship.”

Saint Luke Institute, located just outside Washington, said Monday that Monsignor Edward J. Arsenault had resigned as president and CEO of the center. Over the past two decades, the institute became well known for treating priests who had sexually abused children. The center deals primarily with priests, nuns and brothers who have a range of other issues, such as depression, anxiety, and addictive behaviors.

Arsenault took over at Saint Luke’s in 2009 after a decade as a senior official in the Diocese of Manchester, which covers the state of New Hampshire. Arsenault’s sudden departure came as the diocese – which is still responsible for guaranteeing his bona fides as a priest – announced that earlier this year it had received allegations of “a potentially inappropriate adult relationship” involving Arsenault. It said that a further investigation “discovered evidence suggesting improper financial transactions by Msgr. Arsenault involving diocesan funds.”

Because the financial allegations are potentially criminal, the diocese reported them to the state attorney general’s office, which has opened its own investigation. The diocese said Arsenault has been suspended from public ministry but provided no further details on the allegations.

“I am committed to reviewing our internal diocesan operations to ensure that any issues are identified and corrected, as necessary,” Manchester Bishop Peter A. Libasci said in a statement on Monday. “We will do this in the light of day. In the meantime, we will be cooperating fully with the Attorney General’s investigation.”

The Saint Luke Institute, based in Silver Spring, Md., said in a statement that the investigations do not involve Saint Luke Institute. It said that the previous head of Saint Luke’s, Monsignor Stephen J. Rossetti, would serve as interim president; Sheila Harron, who has been on staff for 18 years, will be the interim CEO.

“This is very difficult news, and we are keeping this situation in prayer,” Harron said. “Saint Luke Institute has been in the process of expanding education and services nationally. We are committed to continuing to move forward, to providing high quality care for priests and religious, and to supporting a culture of healthy ministry in the Church.”

MrPudding

robindch wrote: »

The engagingly-named Msgr. Arsenault, the top priest at a "leading treatment center for clergy suffering from emotional, sexual and addiction problems", has resigned because...

Ah, hang it, you can guess:

http://www.religionnews.com/2013/05/06/priest-who-heads-top-clergy-treatment-center-accused-of-impropriety/

How funny would it be if he suggested that "it was only resting in his account"?

MrP

SebBerkovich

Anything The Catholic Church can do... The Church of England can do to.

NOTE: Names mentioned below are actually what these people are called and not an attempt at humor on my part.

It all kicks off with Lord Hope of Thornes, he discovered that the Very Rev Robert Waddington (a man once in charge of church schools) had some child abuse allegations made against him (in 1999 and again in 2003).
After what assume was a brisk flick through the Catholic FAQ on how to deal with a sexual predator - he decided not to report the Very Rev.

Lord Hope of Thornes thought that he probably wouldn't do it again and so everything was going to be just fine... But then some pesky Journalists went snooping around and now we have this -

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/may/10/church-england-child-abuse-allegations

robindch

In the US, a priest who was convicted ten years ago of having "groped a boy’s crotch during several wrestling horseplay encounters" and agreed not to have unsupervised access to kids, is assigned to a youth group with unsupervised access to kids. The priest under whose watch it happened, it is reassigned.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/13/nyregion/newark-archbishop-is-criticized-for-his-handling-of-an-abuse-case.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0

New York Times wrote:

COLTS NECK, N.J. — With 10 children knelt around the altar for their first communion and the pews at St. Mary’s Church packed with families gathered for Mother’s Day, there was little sign on Sunday of the turmoil that has struck the parish, and threatens the Archdiocese of Newark.

Just two weeks earlier, the parishioners learned that a priest working with their church’s youth groups had been barred from being around children unsupervised — a restriction that he accepted to avoid retrial on a sexual abuse charge. “I think everyone was just shocked; there’s no other way to put it,” said Darren Barreiro, a father of three girls, as he left Mass on Sunday. The priest, Michael Fugee, was convicted in 2003 of criminal sexual conduct stemming from allegations that he had groped a boy’s crotch during several wrestling horseplay encounters when he was associate pastor at St. Elizabeth Church in Wyckoff, N.J.

Three years later, an appellate court overturned the conviction, in part because the judge allowed jurors to hear a statement that Father Fugee made to the police saying he was attracted to males, according to The Star-Ledger of Newark. Rather than begin another trial, Father Fugee and the Bergen County prosecutor’s office signed an agreement that he would enter sex-offender treatment and have no unsupervised contact with children as part of his church duties. The 2007 agreement was also signed by the Archdiocese of Newark, which was required to ensure that Father Fugee was not assigned any tasks that would put him in a position to have unsupervised contact with children, including involvement with youth groups, attending youth retreats or hearing confessions of children.

Father Fugee’s name came up again in 2009, when he was appointed chaplain at St. Michael’s Medical Center in Newark, a position that the Newark Archdiocese said did not put him in contact with children because the hospital did not have a pediatric unit. But after inquiries, he was removed from that post. Late last year, the Newark archbishop, John J. Myers, assigned Father Fugee to become co-director of the Office of Continuing Education and Ongoing Formation of Priests, which caused critics of how the church has handled sexual abuse issues among its clergy to call for Archbishop Myers to step down.

That criticism escalated after The Star-Ledger published an article on April 28 revealing that Father Fugee had been working with youth groups at St. Mary’s, which falls under the jurisdiction of the Trenton Archdiocese. The article said that the priest had attended weekend youth retreats, traveled with the church’s youth group to Canada, and heard confessions from minors behind closed doors. On Wednesday, Steve Sweeney, president of the New Jersey State Senate, released a statement calling the accusations “deeply disturbing.”

“Those who are put in a position of trust, whether it be through elected office, as a coach, or as a person of faith, must be held to a higher standard,” the statement said. “And when we are talking about children, that need to trust those in charge leaves absolutely no margin for error. Archbishop Myers must step down now.” Archbishop Myers was unaware of Father Fugee’s work in Colts Neck until the archdiocese was asked about it by a Star-Ledger reporter, his spokesman, James Goodness, said on Sunday.

When he learned of the work, Archbishop Myers moved to suspend Father Fugee, who voluntarily left the ministry on May 2, Mr. Goodness said. The archbishop, who will return this week from a previously scheduled trip to Poland, plans to speak publicly about the issue soon after, Mr. Goodness said. The Diocese of Trenton also said it was unaware of Father Fugee’s involvement with the Colts Neck church until it was contacted by a reporter. The archdiocese said the parish’s two youth group ministers, Michael and Amy Lenehan, had improperly invited Father Fugee to participate in the youth program without approval from the diocese or the church’s pastor, Father Thomas J. Triggs.

During Masses on the weekend of May 4 and 5, a statement from the Trenton bishop, David M. O’Connell, was read to parishioners in Colts Neck, saying that the “troubling events” made clear that a change in leadership was in the best interest of everyone involved. The statement said the Lenehans had resigned and that Father Triggs was being reassigned. “There are few things in life as important as protecting our children and young people,” Bishop O’Connell said in the statement, adding that he prayed “that this community of faith will move forward together, that any anger or hurt will subside and that the Lord will bless our efforts to serve one another in his name.”

A note tucked into the program for Mass on Sunday announced that the Rev. Jeffrey Lee, currently the pastor of Our Lady of Angels Church in Trenton, would be the church’s new pastor. During services on Sunday, Father Lee made no mention of the recent troubles.

recedite

Bishop O’Connell said in the statement, adding that he prayed “that this community of faith will move forward together...

They can move forward, but they can't seem to escape the paedophile.

Bannasidhe

recedite wrote: »

They can move forward, but they can't seem to escape the paedophile.

Or expel the paedophiles.

recedite

But paedophiles move around so quickly. They are the sprinters of the priesthood. If they were chess pieces, they would be even quicker than a bishop.

SebBerkovich

recedite wrote: »

But paedophiles move around so quickly. They are the sprinters of the priesthood. If they were chess pieces, they would be even quicker than a bishop.

and if they were chess pieces they could only take pawns adjacent to a bishop .

Bannasidhe

SebBerkovich wrote: »

and if they were chess pieces they could only take pawns adjacent to a bishop .

rather than take pawns while being protected by the bishop?

Nodin

The four men whose accusations of sexual misconduct led to the dramatic
resignation of Britain's leading Catholic cleric as archbishop have attacked a
Vatican announcement last week that he will leave the
country for a period of "prayer and penance". The three priests and one
ex-priest, whose complaints were first reported in the Observer in
February, say Cardinal Keith O'Brien should have been sent for psychological
treatment instead.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/may/18/cardinal-obrien-still-danger-say-accusers

Interestingly

The Vatican's statement followed O'Brien's recent return
to Dunbar, in his old diocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh, where he was due to
retire. Peter Kearney, director of communications for the Catholic church in
Scotland, told the Observer that no one in Scotland had the authority
to challenge O'Brien's behaviour, his return to Scotland or his residence in
church property. "We are part of the Roman Catholic church and the ultimate authority for the way the church functions in Scotland lies in Rome. The only person who is senior to the cardinal is the pope."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/may/18/cardinal-obrien-still-danger-say-accusers
Weren't they trying to say the Pope had little power over the churches in various countries a while back?

Bannasidhe

Nodin wrote: »

Weren't they trying to say the Pope had little power over the churches in various countries a while back?

Depends on the context obviously.

robindch

Nodin wrote: »

Weren't they trying to say the Pope had little power over the churches in various countries a while back?

The political structure is peculiar - the pope appoints the bishops, but he's not responsible for what they do.

Allowing him to sit in his exalted chair, raise his finger and, I suppose, say "The buck stopped there".