Assignment Record– Rev. Thomas J. Gaffney

Summary of Case: Thomas J. Gaffney was ordained for the Archdiocese of New York in 1950. Early in his career he was an assistant priest in Rosendale, High Falls and Bronx parishes. He spent most of the following three decades as a high school educator - at Cardinal Hayes' in the Bronx 1955-1974, then St. Joseph by the Sea on Staten Island 1973-1982.
For a time, he served as Assistant Dean at Cardinal Hayes, and he was Supervising Principal and then Principal at St. Joseph's. He was in residence for five of those years at a Staten Island mission for 'homeless and destitute' children. In 1982 Gaffney was named pastor of St. Charles on Staten Island, and he was elevated to Monsignor in 1987. He remained at St. Charles' until his death in 2004.

http://www.bishopaccountability.org/Gaffney_Thomas_J.html 

Confessions of a Porn-Addicted Priest

“Forgive me. I have sinned.” I’ve always counted it a privilege to hear these words, to offer forgiveness. But for years, it was tainted with self-recrimination: You’re a hypocrite. Indeed, who was I to forgive or offer counsel, when I struggled with sin that I myself refused to confess because I couldn’t give it up and wasn’t sure I wanted to? Now, I have a confession to make.

It began during seminary, scanning photo galleries of models and actresses that I was attracted to. It seemed harmless, no threat to my celibate commitment. I took that promise seriously. I had no illusions that it would be easy, and it wasn’t. This might take the edge off, I thought.

http://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2017/03/22/confessions-porn-addicted-priest 

Don't shun abuse victims: Jewish leaders

Jews who shun Jewish child sex abuse survivors are themselves committing a sin and are complicit in the abuse, the senior leaders of Australia's Jewish community say.

The leaders say there is no role for Jewish laws or halachic principles when it comes to child sexual abuse, which must be reported to secular authorities.

https://au.news.yahoo.com/a/34762351/dont-shun-abuse-victims-jewish-leaders/#page1 

Catholic Ireland's saints and sinners

A story of faith, love and abuse. Colm O'Gorman is a man in demand. When we met him, Amnesty International Ireland had just released a report on public attitudes to abortion, still illegal in Ireland, and as executive director he has to field inquiries from the media.
He regularly writes for national newspapers and appears on TV and radio championing the poor and marginalised; he's also one of Dublin's most sought-after public speakers.

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2015/12/catholic-ireland-saints-sinners-151214103321394.html 

Is 'mea culpa' enough?

Riz Khan discusses how justice can be achieved for clerical abuse victims and if the Vatican should be held accountable. Pope Benedict XVI begins his historic four-day state visit to the UK not only facing an increasingly secularised society with whom he seeks to mend fences, but also with the critical voices of many who are demanding to do more about the widespread scandal that has severely tarnished the Catholic Church's reputation over the past year.

http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/rizkhan/2010/09/201091665215887284.html 

Time to end the boycott, time for Apuron to face problems in Guam

On Friday, the Archdiocese of Agana acknowledged that Guam's mother Catholic church, the Dulce Nombre de Maria Cathedral-Basilica, stands on the brink of financial collapse.
Over the past two years, the Cathedral-Basilica had taken on a $1.9 million debt, and the debt is getting tougher to carry, along with paying the bills to keep the church running. Collections from churchgoers have shrunk to less than half of what they once were, from about $10,000 a week to $4,000 a week on average, the Archdiocesan Finance Council said in a press conference on Friday. A receivership has been named to manage the church's finances.

https://www.postguam.com/forum/editorial/time-to-end-the-boycott-time-for-apuron-to-face/article_e6125e52-11d4-11e7-a1d1-4b21121e8d24.html 

Married Priests: the fine print

How do you feel when a friend forgets all about you, then one fine morning he calls you and asks you a favour? On one hand you are thankful that he/she remembered you. On the other hand you realise that friends are not there simply to be used by others! If friendship has died or has been forgotten, why ask for a favour after such a long pause?

https://maltesemarriedcatholicpriest.wordpress.com/2017/03/27/married-priests-the-fine-print/ 

Another Catholic priest faces child abuse case in Kerala

The priest allegedly tried to sexually abuse the plus-two student by summoning her to his room in the church. A Catholic priest from Mananthavadi diocese in Wayanad was booked for allegedly trying to sexually abuse a minor girl in his room in the church.

Two days back, the District Child Welfare Officer Sheeba Mumtas received secret information that a girl was allegedly molested by a priest in Mananthavadi. The officer acted quickly and recorded the statement of the victim. The plus-two student told the officer that Jino Mekkatt, a co-priest of a church in Choondakkara under Mananthavadi diocese, misbehaved with her after summoning her to his room in the church in September last year.

http://newsable.asianetnews.tv/south/another-catholic-priest-faces-child-abuse-case-in-kerala 

Survivors have waited too long': 4000 institutions named in sex abuse royal commission

Thousands of institutions have been implicated in allegations of child sexual abuse, according to new data released by a royal commission.
As the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse commences its final public hearing, chairman Justice Peter McClellan has urged child protection reform and proper redress for victims.

http://www.smh.com.au/national/survivors-have-waited-too-long-4000-institutions-named-in-sex-abuse-royal-commission-20170326-gv716h.html 

NZ Catholic Church Confirms 38 Sex Abuse Cases

The Catholic Church in New Zealand said on Saturday it had confirmed 38 cases of sexual abuse in its ranks going back over several decades.
“There are offences going over a period of 50 years…right back to the ’50s and it’s not 38 individual offenders because there are, in some cases, two or three complaints about one person,” Lyndsay Freer, spokeswoman for the Catholic Church in New Zealand, said.

http://gayglobe.us/blog/?tag=nz-catholic-church 

WA Chief Justice Wayne Martin says child molesters 'need therapy'

WA’S top judge says harsh judicial punishments are failing to stem the tide of child sexual abuse cases flooding the courts. WA Chief Justice Wayne Martin, who will this week chair an event investigating prevention of child sex abuse, said therapy needed to be offered to offenders to stop them molesting children.

“We have been handing out very significant penalties for a long time now and (child sex abuse) continues,” Mr Martin said.

http://www.perthnow.com.au/news/western-australia/wa-chief-justice-wayne-martin-says-child-molesters-need-therapy/news-story/4c878e1ed82fecadeaab034eb62e2d3c 

A fence for solidarity

A man who was sexually abused as a child by a Marist Brother teacher in Shepparton will return to his former home next week to speak about the challenges facing survivors.
Greg Barclay, 61, was just 13 when he was indecently assaulted by John Skehan at St Colman’s College in Shepparton, which is now Notre Dame College. After years of being haunted by the attack, Mr Barclay only came forward to the authorities about what Mr Skehan did to him in the past few years.

http://www.sheppnews.com.au/2017/03/25/80676/a-fence-for-solidarity# 

Court urged to clear up ‘mystery’ of hidden residential school documents

TORONTO – The courts must clear up the mystery of why the federal government withheld thousands of relevant documents from survivors who sought compensation for their horrific abuse at a notorious Indian residential school, a judge was told Friday.
In calling for a wide-ranging investigation into the non-disclosure, lawyer Michael Swinwood said one of the plaintiffs in the case was retraumatized by the initial denial of her compensation claim.

http://lethbridgeherald.com/news/national-news/2017/03/24/court-urged-to-clear-up-mystery-of-hidden-residential-school-documents/ 

Hurst pastor takes computer in for repair, faces child porn charge

A Hurst associate pastor faces a child pornography charge after he took his computer to a Best Buy store to be repaired, according to a Hurst Police Department news release.
Store employees called police about 8:40 p.m. Thursday after finding what appeared to be child pornography on a customer’s computer, according to the news release. After investigating, police arrested and charged the owner of the computer, 78-year-old James Rankin, with possession of child pornography, a third-degree felony. Bond was set at $5,000.

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/community/northeast-tarrant/article140563453.html#storylink=cpy

 

http://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/community/northeast-tarrant/article140563453.html 

Married Priests are already present and active in the Catholic Church!

When people talk about married priests, it seems as if we are talking about the future such as when aliens will land on earth! Those hearing us discussing about married priesthood might jump into the conclusion that it’s still not being practiced in the Catholic Church. This assumption that we’re talking about future decisions might harm our reputation. Some might nickname us as rebels or people outside the church!
Well there are so many people out there that they don’t know that there are already married priests in the church! If one uses a search engine, one might encounter a lot of such cases. One particular story is found here. So please note that all those people who might start arguing that a married priest might not have enough time for his wife and children, it is already being done!

https://maltesemarriedcatholicpriest.wordpress.com/2017/02/27/married-priests-are-already-present-and-active-in-the-catholic-church/

Shining the light on church abuse

Joanne McCarthy is the brave journalist who spearheaded the Newcastle Herald’s “Shine the light” campaign which, arguably, brought about the Royal Commission into Institutional Response to Child Abuse, and an earlier NSW special enquiry. She interviewed about 200 victims of sexual abuse, many of them scarred by alcohol, drugs and depression. She uncovered no less than 12 suicides or drug overdoses among former students of a priest called John Denham. McCarthy is the current holder of Australia’s highest journalism award, the Gold Walkley.

 https://www.eternitynews.com.au/australia/shining-the-light-on-church-abuse/

UK child migrant so hungry she 'ate grain meant for pigs'

A woman who was sent from England to Australia as a child was molested and left so hungry she ate grain meant for pigs, an inquiry has heard. Marcelle O'Brien was sent to a home in Pinjarra, western Australia, run by the Fairbridge Society, at the age of four.
The then-Queen, wife of George VI, later intervened to ask whether she could return to the UK to be adopted. But Fairbridge said it would not be in her "best interests", the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse heard.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-39116293?post_id=10204672433356106_10208947167021776# 

Eyewitness provides harrowing testimony to UK inquiry into sexual abuse in Australian schools

WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT

AN EYEWITNESS has told of the horror he experienced at growing up in Western Australia where he was abused by older boys and a priest in a boarding school from age seven.  Speaking to the UK Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, the anonymous witness who is now 70 years old, said he was repeatedly raped and molested by older boys and in the church vestry as a child.
“It wasn’t just older boys it was some of the younger ones as well. Because I was small … they seemed to think it was very funny just to pick on the small ones and they did what they wanted to do.”

http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/real-life/true-stories/eyewitness-provides-harrowing-testimony-to-uk-inquiry-into-sexual-abuse-in-australian-schools/news-story/042b228b2cabde3bb79b984cca9d7f65 

What is grooming? How to spot a paedophile before it's too late

It can start with making a child in their care feel "privileged". Then might come the purchase of a toy. What may seem like an innocent gesture may be the beginning of a plot to prepare a child for sex, according to the child abuse royal commission.
Painful and difficult stories in their thousands emerge from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. But how do you know? Schools, youth groups, and other organisations caring for children are being asked to be alert to grooming, but how can they step in before it's too late?

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/what-is-grooming-how-to-spot-a-paedophile-before-its-too-late-20170228-gumyd4.html

Cardinal O'Malley: There’s no excuse for not implementing sex abuse safeguards

There is absolutely no excuse for not implementing concrete measures to protect minors and vulnerable adults from sexual abuse, said Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley of Boston.
"Let there be no doubt about it: Pope Francis is thoroughly committed to rooting out the scourge of sex abuse in the church," he said, and "effectively making our church safe for all people demands our collaboration on all levels."
The cardinal gave the opening prayer and address at a daylong seminar March 23 at Rome's Pontifical Gregorian University. The seminar was sponsored by the papal advisory body Cardinal O'Malley heads, the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors.

http://www.catholicregister.org/faith/item/24668-cardinal-o-malley-there-s-no-excuse-for-not-implementing-sex-abuse-safeguards 

CNMI law to help clergy abuse survivors get help, justice

Three months after the CNMI lifted the statute of limitations on child sex abuse cases, retired Saipan bishop Tomas A. Camacho faced accusations he raped an altar boy in the 1970s. Camacho also is a former Guam priest.
That was in November, two months after Guam enacted a law that would allow victims of child sex abuse to sue their abusers and the institutions with which they are associated, at any time, paving the way for at least 18 former altar boys to file clergy sexual abuse lawsuits in the U.S. District Court of Guam.

http://www.guampdn.com/story/news/2017/03/25/cnmi-law-help-clergy-abuse-survivors-get-help-justice/97935338/ 

Search goes on to find root causes of clerical sex abuse

In a moment of truth and clarity, Archbishop Anthony Mancini once summed up the shock he has shared with most Catholics over the last 30 years as a feeling of “shame and frustration, fear and disappointment, along with a sense of vulnerability and a tremendous poverty of spirit.”

Halifax’s plain-spoken bishop spoke those words in 2009 when he was faced with a hydra’s head of media microphones asking how he reacted to news that Antigonish Bishop Raymond Lahey had been stopped at the border with a trove of child-porn images and videos on his laptop.

http://www.catholicregister.org/features/featureseries/item/24693-search-goes-on-to-find-root-causes-of-clerical-sex-abuse 

Christian Brothers papers show children being ‘sold into slavery’

Richard Bruton unaware of any power to seize industrial school ’private’ documents.   Documents, including contracts that showed children being “effectively sold into slavery”, are at the centre of a dispute between the Christian Brothers and a former industrial school resident who retained the papers for more than 40 years.

Tom Wall, a former resident of St Joseph’s industrial school in Glin, Co Limerick, obtained the documents in 1973, when the Christian Brothers who were leaving Glin asked him to burn files on every resident.

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/oireachtas/christian-brothers-papers-show-children-being-sold-into-slavery-1.3020770#.WNNLwkSGAZq.facebook 

Australian Chabad under fire over ongoing failings following sex abuse cases

Much has changed within the Chabad world since the Royal Commission hearings, more than two years ago, into child sexual abuse in the Melbourne and Sydney Yeshiva communities.
But old loyalties remain stubbornly resistant to change. Rabbi Zvi Telsner, the disgraced former chief rabbi of the Yeshiva Centre in Melbourne, is still being paid a salary more than 18 months after he resigned over his conduct towards victims and their families.

https://www.thejc.com/news/world/australian-chabad-under-fire-over-ongoing-failings-following-sex-abuse-cases-1.434987 

http://www.ucanews.com/news/indonesia-pedophile-bust-alarms-catholics/78725

A Catholic church official's 14-year legal odyssey over his handling of sex-abuse complaints won't end anytime soon after a Philadelphia judge said Friday he would be retried on child endangerment charges.
Monsignor William Lynn had served nearly three years of a three- to six-year sentence when the Pennsylvania Supreme Court tossed his conviction because of trial errors. That was the second time Lynn's conviction had been thrown out after a sweeping 2012 trial that unearthed decades of hidden complaints from locked vaults at the archdiocese.

http://www.wral.com/church-leader-s-long-legal-odyssey-over-abuse-claims-returns/16603270/ 

Indonesia pedophile bust alarms Catholics

Indonesian Catholics have voiced alarm over pedophile rings targeting children through social media. Their fears were heightened last week when Jakarta police announced the arrest of four suspects accused of luring children via Facebook.
The four were arrested in connection with a Facebook page called 'Official Candy's Group' where members shared tips and tricks to lure children, police said. Two suspects were group administrators while the other two were teenage boys under 17-years-old.

http://www.ucanews.com/news/indonesia-pedophile-bust-alarms-catholics/78725 

Man, 89, fronts court over 99 historical sex offence charges

An 89-year-old man has appeared before court charged with 99 sexual offences that allegedly occurred in Gippsland more than 40 years ago.
Melbourne Magistrates Court on Friday heard Lawrence Fitzpatrick intended to contest the charges against him, and was scheduled to appear before a 10-day hearing later this year, which will determine whether he stands trial.

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/man-89-fronts-court-charged-with-99-historic-sex-charges-20170310-guvfhc.html

Archbishop apologises to victim's mother

Sydney's Anglican archbishop has delivered a public apology to the mother of an abuse victim, whose untimely death has sparked a new protocol in his name. Wayne Guthrie, 47, died in December 2015, the month before he was supposed to give evidence at the royal commission about his abuse at the hands of Church of England Boys Society leader Simon Jacobs.
Archbishop Glenn Davies said Mr Guthrie's mother should have been able to expect the St Ive's CEBS group, which her son joined in 1979, was a safe environment. Mr Guthrie's abuse came to the attention of the local church leadership in the early 90s but nothing was done, he said.

http://www.9news.com.au/national/2017/03/22/14/22/archbishop-apologises-to-victim-s-mother

Migrants from UK urged to give evidence to child abuse inquiry

The Goddard inquiry is concerned about young people transported to Australia and Canada between 1920 and 1970 Men and women transported to Australia and Canada in the child migrant programme are being encouraged to give evidence about the sexual abuse they suffered to Britain’s public inquiry into historic and ongoing child abuse.
The Goddard inquiry, set up in 2014 to examine the abuse of children in public and private institutions, is urging those who may have been victims before and after being removed from the country to come forward as a priority.

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/jun/13/migrants-from-uk-urged-to-give-evidence-to-child-abuse-inquiry?CMP=share_btn_tw

The shameful secret of Britain's lost children: Tens of thousands of 'child migrants' were sent abroad after the war.

The shameful secret of Britain's lost children: Tens of thousands of 'child migrants' were sent abroad after the war. Now they are trying to piece together lives shattered in the name of the empire.  IT IS A STORY that defies belief. It seems inconceivable that a British government would order the migration of tens of thousands of its children to far- flung corners of the globe, severing, at a stroke, all connection with family, country and past.

But after the Second World War, ministers, aided by respected charities including Barnardos, the Salvation Army and the Catholic Church, did exactly that, emptying the nation's orphanages of a generation of children, some as young as four, who were shipped to Australia, Canada and other outposts of the empire.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/the-shameful-secret-of-britains-lost-children-tens-of-thousands-of-child-migrants-were-sent-abroad-1484622.html 

Sex victims' parents tell of Pell's 'sociopathic' response

CARDINAL George Pell showed a ''sociopathic lack of empathy, typifying the attitude and response of the Catholic hierarchy'' to parents whose young daughters were repeatedly raped by a priest, the Victorian inquiry into how the churches handled child sex abuse has been told.
Anthony Foster told on Friday how they met the cardinal - now Archbishop of Sydney - when he was Melbourne archbishop, in a furniture storage room at a Melbourne presbytery. They were squeezed onto a narrow wooden bench, while he sat in a ''grandiose'' padded leather chair.

http://www.theage.com.au/national/sex-victims-parents-tell-of-pells-sociopathic-response-20121123-29xmi.html 

Pedophilia Network Exposed in Australia — It Starts at the TOP, Just Like in the USA and UK

Australian woman Fiona Barnett showed a ton of courage in going public at a Sydney press conference in October 2015 and naming names. Fiona, a former victim of ritual abuse and part of an international VIP pedophile ring, not only exposed the existence of the pedophilia network and its international child trafficking ring, but actually named 3 former Australian Prime Ministers and 1 former US President as perpetrators.
She reveals that this network, composed of famous actors, celebrities, judges, politicians and other high-flyers, has infiltrated all the key organizations and institutions in Australia – just as it has in the US and Britain.

http://www.anonews.co/pedophilia-exposed-australia/ 

Catholic Church a 'law unto itself' Archbishop tells royal commission

The Catholic church is a "law unto itself" in need of serious cultural reform if it is to properly address widespread allegations of child sexual abuse within its ranks, a royal commission heard.
The Catholic Archbishop of Brisbane Mark Coleridge told the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse there was a lack of transparency within the church.

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/nsw/catholic-church-a-law-unto-itself-archbishop-tells-royal-commission-20170207-gu7v6k.html 

Pope's sex abuse adviser seeks to keep survivor voice heard

Pope Francis' top adviser on sex abuse insisted Thursday that the pontiff is "thoroughly committed" to rooting out abuse from the church but acknowledged his advisory commission must regroup following the clamorous resignation of Irish survivor Marie Collins.
Cardinal Sean O'Malley told a seminar on protecting children that the commission has always maintained a "victims first" priority and that keeping survivors involved was a crucial agenda item going into the group's plenary meeting starting Friday.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11824372 

Come down from pulpit to deal with sexual abuse, Catholic leaders told

Catholic leaders must come down "from the pulpit" to acknowledge that clergy sexual abuse of children and cover-ups had broken the Church's heart and to do more to prevent it, speakers at a conference said on Thursday.
The gathering at a pontifical university in Rome took place as the Vatican was still stinging from the shock resignation on March 1 of Marie Collins from a commission advising Pope Francis on how to root out sexual abuse.

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-vatican-abuse-idUSKBN16U22O

Ardern lashes govt's refusal to hold abuse inquiry

Labour's new deputy leader Jacinda Ardern, has attacked the government over its refusal to hold an inquiry into claims of historical abuse of children in state care.  Ms Ardern has accused the government of spending more on lawyers to fight the victims than it does on settling their claims.
An Official Information Act request obtained by Ms Ardern showed one lawyer for the Crown, Kristy McDonald QC, was paid $777,000 for her work on three historical abuse cases alone.

http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/326085/ardern-lashes-govt's-refusal-to-hold-abuse-inquiry 

Te Puna Wai youth justice facility boss called to give evidence in juvenile abuse enquiry

The manager of the South Island's only youth justice facility has been called to give evidence at a hearing into the abuse of juveniles in Australia.
The hearing, part of the Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory, started on Monday morning in Darwin. Russell Caldwell, site manager at Te Puna Wai near Christchurch, will give evidence as the former general manager of Don Dale Youth Detention Centre, which is at the centre of the investigation.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/90614339/te-puna-wai-youth-justice-facility-boss-called-to-give-evidence-in-juvenile-abuse-enquiry 

Ontario law firms allegedly sat on documents supporting residential school clients’ abuse claims

Two Ontario law firms allegedly failed to produce documents in their possession that could have helped their Indian residential school survivor clients during compensation hearings for abuse suffered at a notorious institution known for using an electric chair on students, according to a document filed with an Ontario court.
The two firms—Nelligan O’Brien Payne and Wallbridge, Wallbridge—are named in a request for directions filed with the Superior Court of Ontario as part of ongoing litigation related to the handling of St. Anne’s Indian residential school abuse claims by the Independent Assessment Proces.

http://aptnnews.ca/2017/03/21/ontario-law-firms-allegedly-sat-on-documents-supporting-residential-school-clients-abuse-claims/ 

NSW priest charged with historic sex abuse

A Catholic priest has been charged over the alleged sexual assault of a young boy on the NSW mid north coast in the late 1970s.

Police say the victim, now 46, came forward in March 2014, a year after the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse was established. It's alleged the man was sexually abused by two Catholic priests and another man between 1979 and 1980.

http://www.news.com.au/national/breaking-news/nsw-priest-charged-in-historical-sex-abuse/news-story/b8e644d8f798fcd07f3c9e826aeb54f2 

Cardinal O’Malley defends Pope Francis on anti-abuse fight

U.S. Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley, president of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, speaks during a seminar on safeguarding children at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome March 23. 

At a symposium on clerical sexual abuse in Rome, Cardinal Sean O'Malley of Boston, president of an anti-abuse commission in the Vatican, said there's "no doubt" Pope Francis is fully committed to the cause, but one expert argued the absence of abuse survivors at the event suggests "we still haven't gotten it."

https://cruxnow.com/global-church/2017/03/23/cardinal-omalley-defends-pope-francis-anti-abuse-fight/ 

Sex abuse suits against Hawaii priest persist

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu has settled one of three civil lawsuits that allege a prominent retired Big Island priest sexually molested teenage boys decades ago, according to the attorney for the plaintiffs in the cases.

Mark Gallagher, a Kailua, Oahu, attorney said Monday the settlement of the 2013 suit brought by two men known only as John Roe 6 and 7, concerns only the diocese and “there is no dismissal of any claims against Father George DeCosta.”

http://westhawaiitoday.com/news/local-news/sex-abuse-suits-against-hawaii-priest-persist 

Vatican abuse prevention event 'extremely important' for Church

On Thursday a Vatican event on the prevention of child abuse narrowed in on the importance of education in schools and parishes in the safeguarding of children – not only for teachers, but for parents and children – and on the Church's role.
Led by Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley of Boston, head of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, he told CNA at the March 23 event that Catholic schools are, of course, a very important part of the Church’s and Commission's ministry.

http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/vatican-abuse-prevention-event-extremely-important-for-church-14742/ 

Father Barry Tunks charged with indecently assaulting a child in the 1970s

FORMER Maitland-Newcastle diocese Vicar General Barry Tunks has been charged with child sex offences after a man alleged he was sexually abused by two Catholic priests and another man in the Taree area in the late 1970s.
Father Tunks, 76, was charged at Waratah police station on Thursday by detectives from Manning/Great Lakes Local Area Command. He will appear in Forster Local Court in April charged with three counts of indecent assault.

http://www.theherald.com.au/story/4551595/priest-charged-after-man-alleges-sexual-abuse-by-four-men/ 

U.S. Cardinal: Pope Committed to Ending ‘Scourge of Sex Abuse’ Despite Setbacks

Despite turmoil on the commission he created to deal with sex abuse in the Catholic Church, Pope Francis is committed “to rooting out the scourge,” Boston Cardinal Sean O’Malley said.
O’Malley, who heads the panel, spoke on March 23, to an international conference, on the subject in Rome. He said the church was committed to carrying out the pope’s directive, despite recent complaints that the commission’s work was being obstructed by the Vatican itself.

https://sojo.net/articles/us-cardinal-pope-committed-ending-scourge-sex-abuse-despite-setbacks 

Retired bishop gets more time to respond to sex abuse suit

Saipan retired Bishop Tomas A. Camacho has been granted more time to respond to a former altar boy’s lawsuit, alleging that the former Guam priest raped and sexually abused him in the 1970s. Camacho has until March 31 to file his response because his attorney, William M. Fitzgerald, will be in the mainland for a medical check up.

Man alleges Saipan's bishop emeritus raped him The additional time is part of a stipulation between Fitzgerald and attorney David Lujan, counsel for plaintiff Melvin Duenas, now a 55-year-old Yona resident. U.S. District Court of Guam Magistrate Judge Joaquin Manibusan signed the stipulation on Feb. 28.

http://www.guampdn.com/story/news/2017/03/01/retired-bishop-gets-more-time-respond-sex-abuse-suit/98514820/ 

Rape of minor girl by priest shows the systemic cover-up of serious crimes by the Church

An anonymous letter received by a child-line in Kerala has brought to light a major operation to cover up the rape of a minor girl by a Catholic priest in the state with 18 percent Christian population.
The police foiled the operation by detaining Fr Robin Vadakkumchery, vicar of St. Sebastians Church at Kottiyoor in the state’s northern district of Kannur, while he tried to escape to Canada on 27 February.

http://www.firstpost.com/india/kerala-sexual-abuse-rape-of-minor-girl-by-priest-shows-the-systemic-cover-up-of-serious-crimes-by-the-church-3309046.html 

Ontario law firms allegedly sat on documents supporting residential school clients’ abuse claims

Two Ontario law firms allegedly failed to produce documents in their possession that could have helped their Indian residential school survivor clients during compensation hearings for abuse suffered at a notorious institution known for using an electric chair on students, according to a document filed with an Ontario court.
The two firms—Nelligan O’Brien Payne and Wallbridge, Wallbridge—are named in a request for directions filed with the Superior Court of Ontario as part of ongoing litigation related to the handling of St. Anne’s Indian residential school abuse claims by the Independent Assessment Process (IAP).

http://aptnnews.ca/2017/03/21/ontario-law-firms-allegedly-sat-on-documents-supporting-residential-school-clients-abuse-claims/ 

Troubled Wallabies star reveals he was sexually abused at school

The Royal Commission into the Catholic Church uncovered some 4,444 victims of child abuse.  A former Wallabies star has revealed he was sexually abused by a Marist brother at one of Sydney’s most prestigious private schools.
Tony Daly, who played 41 times for Australia as a front-rower between 1989 and 1995, has told The Daily Telegraph that he was abused between the ages of 11 and 13 at St Joseph’s College.
“I was 11 at the time and didn’t know any better, for years I thought it was normal behaviour,” he told the newspaper. “I felt dirty, yucky, I felt betrayed and angry.”

https://startsat60.com/trending/news/wallabies-star-tony-daly-reveals-he-was-sexually-abused-at-school 

Victim: Sex abuse was 'penance'

A 45-year-old man filed a lawsuit in the District Court of Guam alleging he was sexually abused as "penance" to get confirmed in the Catholic Church.
James A. Mafnas, of Barrigada, filed a lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Agana, alleging he was abused by former priest Raymond Cepeda when he was attending confirmation classes at San Vicente Ferrer-San Roke Catholic Church in Barrigada. According to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, confirmation is a sacrament of initiation in the Catholic Church where a baptized person is "sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit."

https://www.postguam.com/news/local/victim-sex-abuse-was-penance/article_7bdfe7e0-0df9-11e7-91c8-e3a5c1fcb4a9.html 

The Child Sex Abuse Scandals Are All the Same and They Demand the Government to Act

The latest sex abuse scandal in the headlines paints USA Gymnastics in as bad a light as you can imagine. Indeed, it is so bad the successful president of the organization, Steven Penny had to resign. This scandal, amidst a series of other sports scandals, has pushed the U.S. Olympic Committee to create a new board to investigate claims of sex abuse, SafeSport, and Sen. Dianne Feinstein, with bipartisan support, to introduce the Protecting Young Victims from Sexual Abuse Act.
The latter mandates that anyone who suspects abuse in a National Governing Body (NGB) of an Olympic sport must report the suspected abuse to the authorities, extends the statute of limitations for civil suits against perpetrators, bans one-on-one time between coaches and athletes, and imposes other specific requirements on NGBs.

https://verdict.justia.com/2017/03/22/child-sex-abuse-scandals-demand-government-act 

George Pell Refuses Senate Call To Return Home, Slams 'Interference'

Cardinal George Pell has slammed the Senate for its motion.  Cardinal George Pell has rubbished a Senate motion calling for him to return to Australia over a misconduct investigation, slamming the upper house's "interference" in the police action.
In February, a Greens motion agreed to by the federal Senate called on Pell -- currently based in the Vatican -- to come back to Australia after Victoria Police reportedly began investigations of criminal misconduct against the former Archbishop of Melbourne. The Senate motion also noted "4444 people made allegations of child sexual abuse by members of the Catholic Church, including the clergy, between January 1980 and February 2015".

http://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/2017/03/20/george-pell-refuses-senate-call-to-return-home-slams-interfere_a_21902963/ 

The confessional box should never have meant invisibility from law

Priests are just men in religious garb. Pastors are purely people who have done some religious studies.  They are just like any other professional groups for whom people and society are the stock in trade, and care and concern should be the top priority.
Independent MP Rob Pyne is absolutely right: religious clerics should be legally required to report child abuse if they learn of it either from the abused or the abuser. It brings this hideous, damaging conduct out into the light. It edifies society’s understanding and offers a chance for greater compassion to be extended to survivors.

http://www.couriermail.com.au/rendezview/the-confessional-box-should-never-have-meant-invisibility-from-law/news-story/0681a8239ebf415b90a07eafa576f2e9 

Gay Priests Cost Money

This Vortex is coming to you from Manhattan, where the archdiocese of New York is facing a cash crisis because it has a gay priest crisis. Right behind me is a prized Manhattan property known as the Villard Houses. The property is on Madison Avenue in midtown Manhattan, directly behind St. Patrick's Cathedral. The mansion used to be the residence of the archbishops of New York and is extremely valuable — worth hundreds of millions.

http://www.churchmilitant.com/video/episode/vortex-gay-priests-cost-money 

US priest’s home raided by police on St Patrick’s Day in Mexico

Fr Robert Coogan alleges officers tried to plant drugs during the raid An American priest and prison chaplain in northern Mexico says his home, which doubles as a halfway house, was raided in the early hours of St Patrick’s Day as police came to arrest one of the three men who live with him.

Fr Robert Coogan, a New York native, also alleges that the police tried to plant drugs during the raid, part of a pattern of harassment against the former prisoners whom he helps transition from spending time behind bars to leading productive lives.

http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/2017/03/21/us-priests-home-raided-by-police-on-st-patricks-day-in-mexico/ 

Anglicans reveal child abuse confessions

catholic church should take notice... and also take heed from the bible... about the milestone around they necks... if they should harm any little one... . and they have done just that throughout the 2,000.00 years... since time began... so many children's lives been damage because of the RAPE and ABUSE... and what you have to remember..is that children were classed as children to the age or 21 years old.. the young teens are still children... and need love and care from their parents... and those who are looking after them...  Ann

========================================

Confession should not be used to cover up child sexual abuse, a senior Anglican official says as the church affirms that confessions are invalid if an abuser will not go to the police.

Unlike the Catholic Church where the seal of confession cannot be broken, the Anglican Church in Australia's position is that there is scope to disclose child sexual abuse.

https://au.news.yahoo.com/a/34758515/anglicans-reveal-child-abuse-confessions/?cmp=st#page1 

With mounting cases of sexual abuse by priests, the church in Kerala faces rising public anger

Fr Robin, alias Mathew Vadakkancheril, was arrested for sexually abusing and impregnating a 16-year-old on Monday. Barely two months after Pope Francis had exhorted Bishops all over the world to show zero tolerance towards crimes against children, a Catholic priest was arrested on charges of child sexual abuse in Kerala.
Father Robin, as Mathew Vadakkancheril had come to be known as Vicar of St Sebastian’s Church in Kottiyoor in Kannur district of Kerala, was arrested on Monday for allegedly raping a 16-year-old last year.

https://scroll.in/article/830556/with-mounting-cases-of-sexual-abuse-by-priests-the-church-in-kerala-faces-rising-public-anger 

A Pastoral Letter to the Catholic Community

Dear sisters and brothers,
The final hearing of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in relation to the Catholic Church was held in Sydney over three weeks from February 6 to February 24, 2017.  It concluded last Friday after a day and a half dedicated to the witness given under oath by the five metropolitan Archbishops of Australia, of whom I am one as Archbishop of Perth.
For the victims and survivors of sexual abuse by clergy, religious and other Catholic Church personnel this was an opportunity to hear from the current senior leadership of the Church our understanding of the causes of this terrible scourge, and what we, with our brother bishops and other leaders in the Church, intend to do in response.

http://www.therecord.com.au/news/local/a-pastoral-letter-to-the-catholic-community/ 

Church leaders protected this criminal priest, Father Gerard Mulvale, resulting in a victim's suicide

The Catholic Church harboured a paedophile priest (Gerard Mulvale) in a Melbourne parish, enabling him to sexually target the parish's youth group. This church-abuse (and the church's culture of cover-up) disrupted the lives of these youngsters, driving one of them (Stephanie Piper) to die by suicide. In 2017 (23 years after the suicide), Stephanie's mother Eileen Piper (now aged 92) is speaking publicly (through the media), demanding a full apology from church leaders for having inflicted this paedophile priest on these youngsters and for putting them in danger.

http://www.brokenrites.org.au/drupal/node/61 

Broken Rites helped the victims to end the church's cover-up of this Marist Brother

The Catholic Church harboured a child-sex abuser, Marist Brother Gerard Joseph McNamara, for four decades until some of his victims spoke (separately) to the Victoria Police child-protection detectives. When the police charged McNamara regarding these victims, the Marists enthusiastically supported McNamara and ignored the victims.
But Broken Rites supported the victims — and in 2004 McNamara finally pleaded guilty and was convicted with a suspended jail sentence. This prompted more McNamara victims to contact the detectives. In 2016, McNamara pleaded guilty to indecently assaulting two more of his victims and was again convicted with another suspended jail sentence. How many more McNamara victims have not yet exercised their right to speak to the child-protection detectives?

http://www.brokenrites.org.au/drupal/node/41 

The Christian Brothers ignored the crimes of Brother Robert Best, thus helping him to commit more crimes against more children

This Broken Rites article explains how the Catholic Church harboured Brother Robert Charles Best in Australia for many years while he committed crimes (including buggery) against young schoolboys. Colleagues of Brother Best knew about his crimes but covered up for him, a court has been told.
Brother Best is already in jail but, despite his crimes, he is still being accepted by the Christian Brothers as a member of their Order. That is, this convicted criminal is still officially "Brother" Best. More of Brother Best's victims are still contacting Victoria's child-protection police, and on 2 March 2017 a court sentenced Best to more time in jail after he pleaded guilty to indecently assaulting a further 20 of his victims.

http://www.brokenrites.org.au/drupal/node/27 

Albury woman Anne Levey's son was sexually abused by disgraced priest Gerald Ridsdale

Anne Levey is racked with guilt. Once a devout Catholic, the Albury woman still has faith in God — but she can’t bring herself to step inside a Catholic Church.
She doesn’t accept dogma from any church, not since her son Paul was sexually abused at the hands of disgraced paedophile priest Gerald Ridsdale.  “I blame myself, every day I blame myself,” she says. “I can’t help it.

http://www.bordermail.com.au/story/4538177/the-church-robbed-me-of-my-son/ 

Now is the time for married priests

It is time for the Catholic bishops to stop hoping for an increase in vocations to the celibate priesthood and to acknowledge that the church needs married priests to serve the people of God. We cannot have a Catholic Church without sacraments, and a priest is needed for the Eucharist, confession, and anointing.
At the Last Supper, Jesus said, “Do this in memory of me,” not “have a celibate priesthood.” The need for the Eucharist trumps having a celibate priesthood.

http://www.cathnewsusa.com/2017/03/thomas-reese-now-time-married-priests/?newsletter=1 

Catholics refuse to donate without apology

Hundreds of Catholics are refusing to donate to the church until it apologises to the elderly mother of an alleged sexual abuse victim. Eileen Piper, 92, is demanding an apology and compensation over her daughter's alleged sexual abuse at the hands of Pallottine priest Gerard Mulvale.
 Her 32-year-old daughter Stephanie killed herself in 1994, a year after she told her mother of about being sexually abused as a teenager.

https://au.news.yahoo.com/a/34628285/catholics-refuse-to-donate-without-apology/?cmp=st#page1 

25 French bishops accused of covering up hundreds of sex abuse cases

Twenty-five French bishops covered up sexual abuse of by 32 Catholic priests for years, an investigative website claims. The abuse, which continued after 2000 when the church claimed to have tackled the problem, affected 339 victims, it says.

The Mediapartwebsite names all 25 bishops, five of whom were still in office in January, and accuses Lyon's Cardinal Philippe Barbarin of having known about abuse by five priests without notifying police.

http://en.rfi.fr/france/20170320-25-french-bishops-accused-covering-hundreds-sex-abuse-cases 

French Catholic bishops accused of ‘covering-up sex abuses’

Twenty-five French bishops have been covering up scores of cases of sexual abuses by Catholic priests, French media revealed on Tuesday in a report reminiscent of the Spotlight investigation into clergy sex abuse.

Investigative reporters from the Mediapart website have identified 32 individuals, including 28 priests, who have been accused of committing sexual abuses from the 1960s up to today.

http://www.france24.com/en/20170321-french-catholic-bishops-accused-covering-sex-abusers-paedophilia 

France's Lyon diocese sacks four priests for sex abuse

Four priests of the Catholic diocese of Lyon in eastern France have been relieved of their duties for sexual abuse, a diocesan source said Thursday.

A panel of experts recommended the measure, the source added, declining to say whether the clerics had already been named since the diocese’s predator priest scandal came to light in March, rocking France’s Catholic Church.

http://www.france24.com/en/20160630-french-lyon-diocese-sacks-four-priests-sex-abuse 

Concerns raised over child abuse rules within Jehovah's Witness church

A NORTH-East man who was honoured earlier this year for his fight against sex abuse risks within the church has spoken of his “grave concerns” about evidence given to an official inquiry.
Steve Rose, from Hartlepool, who was once a member of the Jehovah’s Witnesses but has now been “shunned” after he raised concerns, said elders had refused to reform the “two witness rule” which they required to throw a member out of the church.

http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/15153344.Campaigner_against_child_abuse_raises/ 

After Four Years, Pope Francis Has Failed to Address Sexual Abuse in Church

Today marks the fourth anniversary of Pope Francis’s election as pope. It is clear that the Pope has changed the tone of the church, stressing social justice over adherence to strict sexual conduct norms. He’s also spoken out against clerics who are full of themselves, and made protecting our environment the theme of an encyclical – he’s only written two.

I am willing to give the Pope a bit of a pass on his blind spot about women, and his refusal to understand the injustice of not ordaining women to the priesthood. I do not excuse it, but I realize that an 80-year-old prelate from Argentina may find it difficult to really “get” women’s issues.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/after-four-years-pope-francis-has-failed-to-address_us_58c6d76ae4b0d06aa658036f 

Suit: Church wine used on victim

A 70-year-old Father Duenas Memorial School alumnus filed a lawsuit in the District Court of Guam alleging he was sexually abused and molested by his former teacher after being served church wine in the rectory of the Our Lady of Peace and Safe Journey Church in Chalan Pago during Holy Week in 1962.
William Payne alleges that former FD instructor and priest Father Antonio C. Cruz offered to give him driving lessons and then made him drink church wine in the rectory until he became mildly intoxicated when Payne was 15 years old, court documents state.

https://www.postguam.com/news/local/suit-alleges-church-wine-used-to-intoxicate-church-abuse-victim/article_e4f0fae0-0a15-11e7-b92c-8b6a795cdf09.html 

Sexual abuse at the Catholic Church

The Roman Catholic Church, over the past few decades, has been rocked by revelations of widespread sexual abuse of children and women by priests. The latest of such reports surfaced last week in Italy where a priest was suspended from his parish over claims he used internet sites to recruit potential sex partners. Another priest is also facing defrocking as well as judicial proceedings over allegations he had dozens of sex partners.
But that’s just the tip of the iceberg for sex scandals that have tarnished the Catholic Church’s reputation worldwide. Last month, an Australian commission on child abuse made shocking revelations after launching a 4 year probe. It found that 7 percent of all Catholic priests in the country were alleged sex abuse perpetrators. The average age of victims was said to have been 10 for girls and 11 for boys.

http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2017/03/14/514263/Priests-sexual-escapades 

Exclusive: Marie Collins responds to Cardinal Muller's allegations about abuse commission

Editor's note: Marie Collins of Ireland is a clergy sexual abuse survivor who resigned March 1 from Pope Francis' Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors. Cardinal Gerhard Müller, the head of the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, gave an interview shortly following Collins' resignation. Collins has written an open letter to Müller in response to that interview, which she asked NCR to publish below.
Dear Cardinal Müller,
I read with interest the answers you gave to the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera March 5 in reply to items in my statement following my resignation from the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors. There are some things you say in this interview to which I feel I need to respond.

https://www.ncronline.org/news/accountability/exclusive-marie-collins-responds-cardinal-mullers-allegations-about-abuse 

Maryland delegate's effort to allow child abuse lawsuits clears hurdle

C.T. Wilson gathered his courage, told his colleagues in the Maryland House of Delegates about how he was sexually abused as a child and urged them to allow child victims more time to file lawsuits against their attackers.
The first two times he did that, the Charles County Democrat saw his proposal die in a House committee without even being called for a vote.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/bs-md-abuse-statute-20170315-story.html 

Widow Of Priest Abuse Victim Blames Church for His Suicide

The priest "entrapped him in his web of sadistic abuse...alienating him from his family and support system," the lawsuit says. 

A widow has alleged her 50-year-old husband committed suicide due to depression suffered from being molested by a priest years earlier in Placentia. Now, she has taken his case to court, filing the lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court, on be half of herself and her four children, suing the archdioceses of Los Angeles and Orange.

http://patch.com/california/losalamitos/widow-priest-abuse-victim-blames-church-his-suicide 

David Shoebridge hosts forum at Bathurst

CRIMES from the past need to be judged on today’s laws, NSW Legislative Council Member David Shoebridge said on Wednesday as he hosted a public forum on historic sexual abuse at St Stanislaus’ College.
While local politicians were invited to the forum, Mr Shoebridge did not invite anyone from Stannies.  “I don’t believe you should give the same rights to the survivors and institutions that abuse them. It’s a false equivalent and inappropriate,” he said.

http://www.westernadvocate.com.au/story/4533341/justice-today-is-priority-for-past-crimes/ 

Sex Crimes and the Catholic Church Royal Commission and justice? (presented by Judy Courtin)

Judy Courtin presents her paper, 'Sex crimes and the Catholic Church: Will a Parliamentary Inquiry and a Royal Commission deliver justice to victims, survivors and their families?'

Priest who quit over abuse cases leaves priesthood entirely

In a period of time in which Marie Collins, clergy sex abuse survivor, resigned her place on a Vatican commission attempting to deal with new policies for dealing with clerical abuse, the spotlight has returned to these issues with new focus. A priest who resigned in frustration over mishandled abuse cases has now decided to leave the priesthood entirely.

The former vicar general of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis has left the priesthood, some 3 and a half years after his abrupt resignation amid allegations that church officials mishandled the case of a priest found with child pornography.

https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-usa/2017/03/19/priest-quit-abuse-cases-leaves-priesthood-entirely/ 

Church protesters react to $30K in ‘hush money’

Church protesters said yesterday they're ready to "clean house" after news of about $30,000 in "hush money" had been paid by then-Archbishop Anthony Apuron to a former altar boy in 2002 to conceal sex-abuse allegations against a Guam priest.
"This is a disgrace," said Mary Cruz, of the Concerned Catholics of Guam. "This is just another example of how he tried to cover his wrongdoings. I think now, more than ever, we need to clean out the church."

https://www.postguam.com/news/local/church-protesters-react-to-k-in-hush-money/article_2ef4b3c2-0c76-11e7-8bf6-5f0aa69ee708.html 

Eliminating statute of limitations

A Washington state legislator is using his life experience with sex abuse to sponsor a bill that would eliminate the statute of limitations for certain felony sex crimes, including molestation and child rape. House Bill 1155 was introduced in January 2017 and, if passed into law, would allow the offender to be prosecuted at any time after commission of the crime.

We think this bill should be passed into law. It’s all too often we read about victims of sex abuse and their journey to gain closure. What about the victims that choose to remain silent for years, how do they find closure?

http://tdn.com/news/opinion/eliminating-statute-of-limitations/article_aaa0372d-730a-53aa-8c0f-09a191a4d8ed.html 

Newcastle bishop resigns, saying he was threatened after revealing abuse by clergy

An Anglican bishop and advocate for child abuse survivors is resigning after being subjected to harassment, including being warned about his personal safety.
Greg Thompson will step down as Newcastle bishop to focus on his health after being ostracised by some of his own parishioners since revealing he was abused as a young man by senior church clerics.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/mar/16/newcastle-bishop-resigns-saying-he-was-threatened-after-revealing-abuse-by-clergy 

The Vatican is 'all words, no action' on addressing child sex abuse

When Pope Francis named two victims of clergy sexual abuse to a new Vatican commission on the protection of minors in 2014, some observers took it as a sign that the pope was getting serious about the issue.  But Marie Collins says there was still some skepticism.
“A lot of people felt that I was just being asked [to join] the commission as a sort of token survivor,” says Collins, who was sexually abused as a child by a Catholic priest in Ireland. “I wanted to be sure that the commission was sincere.”

https://www.pri.org/stories/2017-03-16/vatican-all-words-no-action-addressing-child-sex-abuse 

Erie bishop publicizes priest dismissals

A brief notice in a recent edition of the Catholic Diocese of Erie's newspaper signals a new diocesan policy. Bishop Lawrence Persico is publicizing the names of priests who, from now on, have been permanently dismissed from the priesthood for disciplinary reasons or removed from active clerical duty for reasons related to wrongdoing.

The notice, in the March 5 edition of Faith Life, the diocese's biweekly newspaper, states that Pope Francis has dismissed a former priest in the diocese, Samuel B. Slocum, 65.

http://www.goerie.com/news/20170318/erie-bishop-publicizes-priest-dismissals 

$135M claims exceed church assets

With 30 individuals alleging child sex abuse at the hands of Guam Catholic priests spanning four decades, the total amount of monetary damages being sought in U.S. District Court of Guam cases now surpasses the amount of money the church currently holds in assets.
Archdiocesan Finance Council President Richard Untalan recently said in a press conference with Guam's media that the council had identified about $132 million in net book assets, which include churches, land and schools under the Archdiocese of Agana.

https://www.postguam.com/news/local/m-claims-exceed-church-assets/article_37e4c948-0ad4-11e7-a922-af307c1a6d5e.html 

Paedophilia is a fate and not a choice, German doctor says

Paedophilia is a diagnosis and not a crime, says Dr Klaus Beier, who leads a programme in Germany to treat paedophilically inclined adults and juveniles.  In an interview to TOI, Beier says to protect children, a healthy society must accept that "paedophilia is a reality amongst us and we need to work towards prevention."
With India's legislation mandating reporting which overrides patient confidentiality, he says those found offending must be given stringent punishment but we must simultaneously focus on preventing this crime by investing in assessing and treating juvenile offenders and reaching out to adults before they act out on their sexual urges towards children.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/paedophilia-is-a-fate-and-not-a-choice-german-doctor-says/articleshow/57619901.cms

New horizons in sight following Royal Commission hearings on the Catholic Church

IN the wake of the Catholic Church’s final hearing before the Royal Commission into child sexual abuse, Church leaders from across Australia have held a day of “reflection and conversation” on child safety.
The three-week Royal Commission hearing investigated the Church’s response to a crisis of child sexual abuse by members over six decades, and particularly the Church’s plans for child protection protocols and institutional change.

http://catholicleader.com.au/news/new-horizons-in-sight-following-royal-commission-hearings-on-the-catholic-church 

Pope Francis reducing sanctions for pedophile priests is a 'worrying sign,'

A leading member of a group advising Pope Francis on how to root out sex abuse in the Catholic Church quit in frustration on Wednesday, citing "shameful" resistance within the Vatican.The sudden departure of Marie Collins, an outspoken Irish woman who was the last remaining survivor of priestly abuse on a Holy See commission, was a major setback for the pope, who has faced criticism of not doing enough to tackle the problem.

http://www.ecumenicalnews.com/article/pope-francis-reducing-sanctions-for-pedophile-priests-is-a-worrying-sign-catholic-church-authority-says/59745.htm 

Newcastle Anglican Bishop Greg Thompson giving evidence at royal commission hearing

NEWCASTLE Anglican Bishop Greg Thompson has told the royal commission he needs a ‘long break’ from the church, a day after announcing his resignation following shocking evidence about child sexual abuse in the diocese.
Bishop Thompson said he will remain on sick leave until May 31 when his resignation takes effect.

http://www.theherald.com.au/story/4536814/bishop-says-he-needs-long-break-from-church/ 

1,100 complaints of child abuse made against Australia's Anglican church

The head of Australia's Anglican Church expressed sorrow and shame after a government report published on Friday said close to 1,100 people had filed child sexual assault claims against the church over a 35-year period.
The interim report, which said most children were aged around 11 when they were abused, came a month after a high-level inquiry into child abuse was told the Australian Catholic church had paid A$276 million ($212 million) in compensation to thousands of victims since 1980.

http://www.reuters.com/article/uk-australia-abuse-idUSKBN16O0HK

questions whether church understands gravity of sexual abuse

They were played by actors in “Spotlight,” the Oscar-winning movie that told the story of how the Boston Globe uncovered what would turn out to be a worldwide child sex abuse scandal in the Roman Catholic Church.
But on Thursday night in Charlotte, an audience of trial lawyers got to hear from the real Sacha Pfeiffer, whose reporting as a member of the Globe’s Spotlight investigative team exposed a coverup by top church officials; the real Mitch Garabedian, an attorney who represented scores of families whose children were molested by priests; and the real Jim Scanlan, a survivor of child sex abuse whose story and words informed some of the film’s most memorable scenes.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/living/religion/article139092968.html#storylink=cpy

 

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/living/religion/article139092968.html 

Cardinal Pell could testify for victims in abuse trials

Cardinal George Pell could turn key witness against the Catholic Church on behalf of sexual abuse victims. In an unprecedented move, the Cardinal, the Church’s third most senior official, is expected to be called to testify in a string of lawsuits against former Ballarat bishop Ronald Mulkearns.

It is understood to be the first time such a senior Catholic official will face victims of abuse in their pursuit of damages against the Church. Cardinal Pell is expected to be called in dozens of cases, with lawyers for four victims telling the Supreme Court this week they had concerns about using a video link from Rome. 

https://thewest.com.au/news/australia/cardinal-pell-could-testify-for-victims-in-abuse-trials-ng-b88418586z 

The church helped Father Brian Spillane in his life of crime

This Broken Rites article is the most comprehensive account available about the paedophile priest Brian Joseph Spillane -- and how the Catholic Church enabled him to commit his sexual crimes against children. Father Spillane's victims were mostly boys who were assaulted while he ministered at St Stanislaus College — a Catholic day and boarding secondary school for boys, in Bathurst, New South Wales.
And he assaulted girls in parishes elsewhere. Spillane (now aged 74) has recently completed a series of separate criminal trials, resulting in multiple convictions. Spillane is already in jail regarding the girls. On 16 February 2017, a court gave him an additional jail sentence regarding the boys. And it is possible that more of Spillane's victims may obtain justice later.

http://www.brokenrites.org.au/drupal/node/408 

Catholic clergy (including George Pell) looked the other way during Father Ridsdale's life of crime:

This Broken Rites article is the most comprehensive account available about how the Catholic Church harboured this child-abuse criminal — Father Gerald Francis Ridsdale — for 30 years in western Victoria while his superiors and fellow-priests remained silent to protect the church's public image. In 1982, when Father Ridsdale had been abusing children for 20 years, a clergy committee (of which Father George Pell was a member) noted that Ridsdale was being transferred away from Victoria. Eventually, some of Ridsdale's victims began to report his crimes to the Victoria Police, instead of merely to the offending organisation (the church).
So, in 1993, Victorian detectives charged Ridsdale in court. He was accompanied to court by his support person, George Pell, who had become an assistant bishop in Melbourne. However, no bishop accompanied the victims. Encouraged by Broken Rites, more victims later spoke to the detectives. In his four court cases between 1993 and 2014, Ridsdale has been jailed for a minimum of 24 years for assaulting 54 of his victims. In 2017, after eleven more of his victims spoke to the detectives, Ridsdale is facing court again, on a fifth batch of charges, including rape, buggery and indecent assault. Broken Rites is proud of its role in exposing the church's cover-up of this criminal priest.

http://www.brokenrites.org.au/drupal/node/55 

Why is Cardinal George Pell not re-appearing in Australia?

What information has the Royal Commission received in its PRIVATE interviews?.  Cardinal George Pell is a frequent flyer, travelling in comfort in Business Class. During his years as Archbishop of Sydney, he would regularly make the flight to Rome so as to keep an eye on career opportunities at the Vatican. Now he has become the third most important person in the Vatican. He now possesses a Vatican passport. He still travels from his Rome headquarters to other countries.

For example. during 2016, he travelled from Rome to London, where (according to reports) he performed a religious ceremony in May and gave an oration in November. But he is reluctant to re-appear in public in Australia. This Broken Rites article is based largely on the public hearings of Australia's national child-abuse Royal Commission. In addition to the public hearings, the Royal Commission has also received certain other information in private interviews with members of the public. The Royal Commission arranges for some of these private informants to speak to police detectives — but this police information has not become available to the public.

http://www.brokenrites.org.au/drupal/node/391 

How the church forced me to relive my abuse

I’ve suffered from complex post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety for most of my life. I’ve worked in community mental health for almost two decades. Professionally, I have written programs that have assisted many hundreds of people to reclaim their lives out of the experience of mental illness, stigma and disadvantage. I’ve also recently completed a PhD in creative writing and mental health. I’m grateful for the richness of my life, particularly because there were times when it might have prematurely ended.

https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/law-crime/2017/03/18/exclusive-how-the-church-forced-me-relive-my-abuse/14897556004374 

This "celibate" priest (a supporter of George Pell) is facing further controversy after appearing at Australia's Royal Commission

During George Pell's rise from being a priest to a cardinal, one of his supporters has been Melbourne priest John Walshe. The Melbourne Catholic archdiocese has confirmed that it paid a $75,000 settlement (the maximum amount available) to a former student (John Roach) who has alleged that, when he was 18, he was sexually targeted by Father Walshe. The archdiocese gave a written apology to John Roach for the "wrongs and hurt" he suffered at the hands of Father Walshe. By January 2017, a number of Father Walshe's parishioners (at Mentone-Parkdale in Melbourne's south-east) succeeded in getting Fr Walshe to resign from their parish. Now, in February 2017, Fr Walshe is residing in a church house adjoining St Finbar's parish church (and parish school) in Melbourne's Brighton East. Some parishioners are objecting to this Brighton East placement. This Broken Rites article is based partly on evidence given by Father Thomas Walshe to Australia's national child-abuse Royal Commission, including a claim by Father Walshe that he supports the policy of priestly "celibacy".

http://www.brokenrites.org.au/drupal/node/386 

Cardinal George Pell instructed his lawyers to crush this victim, the Royal Commission has been told

Cardinal George Pell is claiming now that he has "helped" the Catholic Church's sex-abuse victims. Therefore, let's look at how Pell treated one of the church's victims — a former altar boy, John Ellis. Cardinal Pell (as head of the Sydney Catholic archdiocese) instigated the archdiocese's legal battle against John Ellis, according to evidence and documents presented to Australia's child-abuse Royal Commission.
Pell's legal victory in 2007 (known as the "Ellis defence") now forces church-victims to accept a discounted in-house "Towards Healing" settlement instead of suing for proper compensation, the Commission was told. And this Broken Rites article demonstrates that John Ellis was not the only victim of his abuser, Sydney priest Father Aidan Duggan.

http://www.brokenrites.org.au/drupal/node/280 

This "celibate" priest fathered two children, his colleagues say

Father John Ignatius O'Callaghan (of the Melbourne archdiocese) took the traditional Catholic vow of a "celibate" priest. That is, he vowed never to get married. Instead, in the 1980s, he merely had a private relationship with a woman, who gave birth to Father O'Callaghan's two daughters. These girls have grown up into adulthood, knowing that they are the offspring of Father John O'Callaghan.
The private life of Fr John O' Callaghan is no secret among the Melbourne clergy of his generation. Several Melbourne priests have confirmed the O'Callaghan matter to Broken Rites. And  a relative of O'Callaghan has spoken to Broken Rites, confirming the matter.

http://www.brokenrites.org.au/drupal/node/224 

Rob Walsh shares lifetime of pain in hope

Rob Walsh’s soul has been broken. His brothers Damien and Noel Walsh, and cousin Martin Walsh were all sexually abused by Catholic Clergy.
In the years following, each of them suicided. “The church destroyed my family unit, it broke our souls,” he says his eyes filling up with tears. “I was once told you could break a man and you can. But how do you put that man back together?”

http://www.thecourier.com.au/story/4511224/rob-walsh-shares-lifetime-of-pain-in-hope/ 

The Pope is for married people who ask for priesthood and not priests who ask for marriage.

We were happy that most readers sent us quotations from newspapers about the Pope’s recent pronunciations about married priesthood. It seems that finally our readers are taking a more active role. This is the church we want to see worldwide. Baptised people are not simply receivers where they are happy to receive instructions from priests. They have a mind, a soul, a heart and a lot of experience how they experience God.
Consequently, God can use anybody to bring changes in His church. This is not just theoretical but practical because the Pope is becoming aware that in most parts of the world, the church is disappearing simply because there is no one to tell people about the Good News. He has to resort to married people as otherwise the consequences could be disastrous.

https://maltesemarriedcatholicpriest.wordpress.com/2017/03/13/the-pope-is-for-married-people-who-ask-for-priesthood-and-not-priests-who-ask-for-marriage/ 

Indian Priest Accused of Committing Clerical Abuse.

Two weeks after his arrest, 48-year-old Rev. Robin Vadakkancheril has been removed by the bishop of the Mananthavady Diocese from his job as vicar of St. Sebastian church in Kottiyoor, Kannur district. The priest is accused of abusing a teenage member of his parish.

The abuse produced a baby boy that the 17-year-old victim delivered last month. The crime happened only once in the priest's bedroom at the parsonage attached to the church. Rev. Nobel Parackal, media officer for the diocese in Kerala state, said the girl was the daughter of farm hands whom he described as bitterly poor.

 

http://www.christianpost.com/news/indian-priest-accused-of-committing-clerical-abuse-177417/

Youth detention royal commission: Don Dale detainee 'denied treatment for broken bone for two days'

A 15-year-old detainee at the Don Dale youth detention centre was denied medical treatment for a broken collarbone for at least two days and guards would not allow him to wear a sling, a royal commission has heard.

In a written statement to the Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory, the former detainee, known only as BF, said that in spite of the injury in early 2011 he was told to play sports and later broke his collarbone again.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-03-14/royal-commission-hears-treatment-for-broken-collarbone-delayed/8351870