Disgraced Catholic priest, 76, who scandalized the church in New Orleans 30-years-ago

Disgraced Catholic priest, 76, who scandalized the church in New Orleans 30-years-ago when he was found to possess a horde of child porn is murdered by his 18-year-old male lover in Colombia. Dino Cinel, 76, was found stabbed to death last month in Medellin, Colombia A former Catholic priest who was kicked out of a church rectory where he lived after child pornography was discovered in his room was stabbed to death last month by his 18-year-old male lover in Colombia, it has been reported. Dino Cinel, 76, was a priest in a New Orleans church until 1988, when colleagues found homemade videotapes in his room showing him having sex with young men in his rectory. Last month, local police in the northern Colombian town of Medellin received an emergency call from a young man who confessed to stabbing Cinel, a Colombian news site, El Tiempo, reported.

Crying out

There was such a powerful, and youthful, confluence of events the last few days that speak well of the future. The event that caught the most media attention was the “March for Our Lives” rallies last Saturday that involved hundreds of thousands of Americans, mostly young, in major cities of the United States, as well as in other countries. The mobilizations were organized to demand tighter gun laws, following the Feb. 14 mass shooting at a high school in Florida, where a lone gunman killed 17.

https://opinion.inquirer.net/112059/crying-out 

Paterson sculptor Bill Cummins creates Star of Hope sculpture for victims of abuse

If you talk to victims of abuse, most would describe feeling alone with no one to turn to. It’s a feeling all too familiar for Paterson’s Bill Cummins, who suffered physical and psychological abuse at the hands of the Catholic church. Beaten and verbally abused by his headmistress from the age of 4 and even pushed down a set of stairs by a teacher at his Marist Brothers school, almost 60 years later Bill is still dealing with the horrific memories from his childhood.

http://www.maitlandmercury.com.au/story/5309609/a-star-to-shine-bright-for-all-abuse-victims/ 

Pope Francis will not apologize for Catholic Church’s role in residential school abuses

Pope Francis will not apologize to residential school survivors and their families for the role the Roman Catholic Church played in operating the schools or the abuses suffered by their students. A papal apology was one of the 94 recommendations from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and during a visit to the Vatican last year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau personally asked the Pope to consider such a gesture

https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2018/03/27/pope-francis-will-not-apologize-for-catholic-churchs-role-in-residential-school-abuses.html 

Private school teacher, coach denies accusations of fondling three students

A teacher at a Williston private school has been charged with three counts of gross sexual imposition.. Everest Moore, 28, was arrested Friday afternoon. Moore, who is a teacher at St. Joseph Catholic School, is accused of fondling three girls, all under the age of 15. Investigators at the Williston Police Department said they started investigating when someone who is legally mandated to report suspected sexual assault or child abuse told them of the allegations in mid-February.

http://www.wday.com/news/crime-and-courts/4423507-nd-private-school-teacher-coach-denies-accusations-fondling-three 

Catholic authorities criticised over paedophile Capuchin friar

The Swiss order of Capuchin Friars and the Diocese of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg have been heavily criticized in a report into a former Catholic priest, who for decades abused victims in Switzerland and France. An investigation carried out by an independent commission said on Tuesday that a former Capuchin friar had sexually abused various people but only 24 victims had been formally identified so far by the justice system: 22 in Switzerland and two in France. The Swiss cases never went to court as they were too old and beyond the legal deadline on when victims can bring civil suits or prosecutors can press charges.

https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/sexual-abuse_catholic-authorities-criticised-over-paedophile-capuchin-friar/44004930 

NY Archdiocese 'most secretive' on priest abuse: Report

The Archdiocese of New York is among the "most secretive" Catholic districts in dealing with sex abuse allegations against priests, a new report alleges. BishopAccountability.org, a Massachusetts-based clergy abuse watchdog group, said this week that the nation's second largest diocese has done so poorly exposing sex abuse by priests that it has exposed fewer than one of the nation's smallest dioceses. The Archdiocese of New York, with more than 2.5 million members, has had 84 Catholic clergy members identified as sexual abusers of children, compared with 92 in the Diocese of Manchester, New Hampshire, which has 316,000 members, the report said.

https://www.lohud.com/story/news/local/westchester/2018/03/27/ny-archdiocese-most-secretive-priest-abuse-report/460437002/ 

Milligan denies ‘distorting’ Pell story

ABC investigative journalist Louise Milligan has rejected accusations that she omitted information from her reports in order to “distort” a story about Cardinal George Pell and “poison the public’s mind” against him, a court heard today. Milligan is giving evidence at a committal hearing in the Melbourne Magistrates Court today about her interactions with alleged victims of Cardinal Pell, whose interviews were broadcast on the ABC’s 7.30 program and also included in her book, Cardinal: The Rise and Fall of George Pell.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/milligan-denies-distorting-pell-story/news-story/34ca80af2bfe9701bf10c5cd6cf7531b 

Malcolm Turnbull blasts 'indifference and resistance' by churches in child sex abuse letter

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has tried to pressure the major churches into circumventing the states and immediately joining the national redress scheme for survivors of child sexual abuse, telling them their "indifference and resistance" must stop. Just two states - NSW and Victoria - as well as the Australian Capital Territory have signed on to the Commonwealth scheme, which would provide up to $150,000 in compensation for 60,000 survivors of abuse in government and non-government institutions.

https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/malcolm-turnbull-blasts-indifference-and-resistance-by-churches-in-child-sex-abuse-letter-20180327-p4z6jj.html 

Bishop places Dunkirk pastor on leave following abuse complaint

A Dunkirk pastor was placed on administrative leave Monday following an abuse complaint dating back to the 1990s when he served at a church in Buffalo. Bishop Richard J. Malone announced Monday afternoon that Riter was placed on leave as an investigation continues into the complaint. According to a 7 Eyewitness News investigation, Dennis G. Riter, current pastor of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church in Dunkirk, is facing allegations that he had inappropriate sexual contact with two former altar boys. A victim who spoke with 7 Eyewitness News stated he was was abused more than 20 times over the course of three years.

http://www.observertoday.com/uncategorized/2018/03/bishop-places-dunkirk-pastor-on-leave-following-abuse-complaint/ 

Fr Brian speaks out on the latest sex abuse scandal

Fr Brian said this week: “In all of this, the victims are the people who still are the most damaged and in need of sympathy, encouragement and care. It has been a terrible few days for anybody who ever has been abused, not only for the victims of Malachy Finnegan but for anyone who has suffered abuse.

http://fermanaghherald.com/2018/03/fr-brian-speaks-latest-sex-abuse-scandal/ 

Priest followed 2 sex abuse victims from North Tonawanda to Atlanta, mother says

When Janet and Frank Larango moved from North Tonawanda to an Atlanta suburb, they were happy the Catholic priest they considered part of their family also made the move. The Rev. Stanley Idziak, who had celebrated Masses at Our Lady of Czestochowa parish in the 1960s and 1970s, arranged to have himself transferred in 1978 to the Larangos' new parish 900 miles away. The Larangos did not suspect anything beyond friendship was motivating Idziak's move.

http://buffalonews.com/2018/03/09/priest-followed-2-sex-abuse-victims-from-north-tonawanda-to-atlanta-mother-says/ 

Lawsuit: Priest abused boy while ordering him to stand in praye

A now deceased priest has been accused of sexually abusing a boy who had been ordered to stand in prayer with his eyes closed, according to a lawsuit filed against the Archdiocese of Agana Friday in federal court. The plaintiff, identified in court documents only as J.M.R. to protect his privacy, said in his lawsuit that Father Ray Techaira sexually abused him in about 1984 at the Asan parish office after the boy asked a question that upset the priest.

https://www.guampdn.com/story/news/2018/03/09/lawsuit-priest-abused-boy-while-ordering-him-stand-prayer/409747002/ 

x-priest says a priest abused him as a teen in Erie

James Faluszczak, now of Buffalo, said he testified about the abuse before a grand jury investigating the Catholic Diocese of Erie. A former northwestern Pennsylvania priest has provided a glimpse into a Pennsylvania grand jury’s investigation of the Catholic Diocese of Erie. James Faluszczak, who resigned from the active priesthood in the Erie diocese in 2014, said he testified before the grand jury about how a priest in Erie sexually abused him when he was a teenager in the 1980s.

http://www.goerie.com/news/20180319/ex-priest-says-priest-abused-him-as-teen-in-erie 

Engler looks quite unsympathetic during House testimony

Twenty years ago, John Engler was by far, the biggest figure in Lansing, and perhaps the most powerful governor Michigan has ever had. He understood the legislature better than anyone, largely because he had been in it for twenty years before becoming governor. He was both respected and feared, and lawmakers in both parties thought twice before taking him on. Times have changed, however, and yesterday Engler, now interim president of Michigan State University, found himself testifying before a skeptical senate subcommittee.

http://michiganradio.org/post/engler-looks-quite-unsympathetic-during-house-testimony 

Deacon’s journey from press to priesthood

Former Flourish editor VINCENT TOAL on his path from seminary to ordination via Catholic journalism - By DEACON VINCENT TOAL “To respond to the expectations of modern society and cooperate in the vast evangelising action that involves all Christians, we need well-trained and courageous priests who are free from ambition and fear but convinced of the Gospel Truth, whose chief concern is to proclaim Christ and who are prepared to stoop down to suffering humanity in his name, enabling everyone, particularly the poor and all who are in difficulty, to experience the comfort of God’s love and the warmth of the ecclesial family.”

http://www.sconews.co.uk/feature/55095/deacons-journey-from-press-to-priesthood/ 

Time limit for South Australian victims

New South Wales plans to respond to Royal Commission recommendations in June, but South Australia still refuses to abolish time limits on claims lodged by sexual abuse survivors. Discover more current news of institutional abuse with Kelso Lawyers. New South Wales plans to respond to Royal Commission recommendations in June, South Australia refuses to abolish time limits on claims from survivors of sexual abuse, and the first female bishop is appointed in the Newcastle Diocese

https://kelsolawyers.com/au/news-item/time-limit-south-australian-victims/?utm_source=Kelso+Lawyers+Newsletter&utm_campaign=a8d01c97aa-Newsletter_20_22February&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_8de5cf57f7-a8d01c97aa-26107273&goal=0_8de5cf57f7-a8d01c97aa-26107273 

Ex-priest seeks parole If granted, The Wolf in Priest's Clothing follow up

There was supposed to be closure. The ghosts of the past were supposed to be at rest. But William O'Sullivan doesn't sleep. Not since October 23, the day the Catholic priest who sexually abused him as a child was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Justice, O'Sullivan thought, would bring him peace of mind. Instead, when O'Sullivan closes his eyes, he sees a replay of years of abuse suffered at the hands of Donald Grecco and at least two other clergymen. Rather than putting it to rest, confronting the past in court gave it new life.

https://www.niagarafallsreview.ca/news-story/8333966-ex-priest-seeks-parole/ 

Fr Seamus Reid connected to sex abuse at St Colman's

A second priest has been connected to sexual abuse at St Colman's College in Newry during the 1960s, the Nolan Show reports. Fr Seamus Reid, who died in 2001, was not a teacher but did visit the school. In 2015 the Catholic church confirmed that a catalogue of allegations had been made against the priest. In February, it came to light that Fr Malachy Finegan, who taught at St Colman's from 1967 to 1976, had sexually abused pupils.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-43428021 

I-TEAM: Survivor calls on Bishop Malone to release names and files of abusive priests

An advocate and childhood sex abuse survivor have come forward calling on Bishop Malone to release the names and documents of abusive clergymen in the Buffalo Diocese. Robert Hoatson, Ph.D., president of Road to Recovery, Inc., and James Faluszczak, a sex abuse survivor from Erie, Pennsylvania, gathered in front of St. Joseph Cathedral, during a Saint Patrick's Day Mass on Sunday morning, asking for more transparency from the Diocese.

https://www.wkbw.com/news/i-team-erie-pa-victim-calls-on-bishop-malone-to-release-names-and-files-of-abusive-priests 

Finding solace in Loud Fence after the Royal Commission

Keep the ribbons on the fences Australia... they show me hope from New Zealand... for the NZ government to include the catholic church and other churches... in The Royal Commission into child abuse... in New Zealand, The Royal Commission into Child abuse is just for the STATE run homes and orphanages... we the men and women who were abused and RAPED... by the many churches as children... have been turned away yet again... our fight over these many years... have been for nothing... now it is the New Zealand Government... who have turned their backs on us innocent children of yesterday...  Ann

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If there has ever been someone able to appreciate the value of Ballarat’s Loud Fence movement, it’s Helen Watson. Ms Watson’s son Peter took his own life aged 24 after battling escalating drug and alcohol abuse for years. He was among a long list of victims of a disgraced pedophile priest, who The Courier has chosen not to name for legal reasons. A 15-year-old when abused, the formerly gentle character took a destructive turn which would lead him to make several attempts on his own life. He went missing in 1999, bu it would take six years for his body to be formally identified.

http://www.thecourier.com.au/story/5282120/finding-solace-in-loud-fence-after-the-royal-commission/ 

Mary McAleese's brother calls for 'gentlemen' of St Colman's Newry to reveal what they know of Fr Finnegan abuse

The brother or Mary McAleese has joined with growing calls for the Secretary of State to establish an independent inquiry into child sex abuse at a Northern Ireland school appealing to the "gentlemen" who knew of the abuse going on at the school to speak out saying they could still offer comfort to those who suffered abuse. The Northern Ireland Office, however, rejected the call for an inquiry, saying it was for a restored Northern Ireland Executive to decide on if there needed to be an investigation.

https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/mary-mcaleeses-brother-calls-for-gentlemen-of-st-colmans-newry-to-reveal-what-they-know-of-fr-finnegan-abuse-36699543.html 

Catholic Diocese of Buffalo priests tied to abuse listed.

A list of priests accused of sexual abuse while serving in the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo includes several names with previous ties to parishes in Niagara County. The list, released Tuesday morning by attorneys representing sexual abuse victims, covers clergy associated with the Diocese of Buffalo who have been accused of committing sexual offense crimes against minors. Of the 13 priests on the list compiled by Jeff Anderson & Associates, P.A., five were shown to have service histories with ties to Niagara County communities, including Niagara Falls, North Tonawanda and Lockport.

http://www.niagara-gazette.com/news/local_news/priests-tied-to-abuse-listed/article_3009cc6f-af40-5d66-ac10-d3f840bc5d0e.html 

Police appeal for victims of historical child sex abuse within Penrith boys’ home

Detectives, investigating allegations of horrific, historical sex offences at a Penrith boys’ home, have made their first arrest. Strike Force Eckersley was established by the Nepean Police Area Command in late 2016 following a series of complaints made to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Nepean detectives are primarily focussing on the alleged abuse of children at the Daruk Training School at Berkshire Park between 1965 and 1985.

http://www.northerndailyleader.com.au/story/5278567/police-appeal-for-child-sex-abuse-victims-within-boys-home-photos/ 

Catholic Church fights new child sex abuse bills in Florida & Georgia as ‘unfair’... RAPE IS A CRIME...

The Catholic Church is opposing new child sex abuse legislation in both Georgia and New York. One archbishop described proposed statute of limitations extensions for survivors to come forward as “extraordinarily unfair.” A legislative proposal known as the “Hidden Predator Act” (House Bill 605), to extend the statute of limitations for adult survivors of child sex abuse, has been decried by the Roman Catholic Church (RCC) in Georgia as a step too far. A lobbyist for the RCC’s Archdiocese of Atlanta is attempting to gut the bill, which would afford survivors more time to file lawsuits against groups, entities or organizations that harbored pedophiles in the past. The proposed rule change would extend the statute of limitations for child sex abuse cases from age 23 to 38. It would also afford survivors additional recourse beyond that upper limit.

http://www.infosurhoy.com/cocoon/saii/xhtml/en_GB/topstories/catholic-church-fights-new-child-sex-abuse-bills-in-florida-georgia-as-unfair/

Sexual abuser admits guilt

James Brian Hamilton pleaded guilty in the Perth District Court to one charge of indecently and unlawfully dealing with a child under 14. A man sexually assaulted by a Christian Brother while a student in Kalgoorlie more than 50 years ago has called for the Catholic Church to be more accountable for those working in the institution. The 66-year-old, who agreed to speak to the Kalgoorlie Miner on condition of anonymity, was sexually abused by former Christian Brothers College teacher James Brian Hamilton when he was 12.

https://thewest.com.au/news/kalgoorlie-miner/sexual-abuser-admits-guilt-ng-b88775310z 

Vatican Treasurer's Pre-Trial Hearing Re-Opens to Public

The pre-trial hearing examining charges against Vatican treasurer Cardinal George Pell of historical sexual offences re-opened to the public and media on Wednesday following a week of closed evidence from complainants. Pell, 76, a top adviser to Pope Francis, sat quietly next to his lawyers during the open session at Melbourne Magistrates' Court.

https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2018-03-14/vatican-treasurers-pre-trial-hearing-re-opens-to-public 

Lawsuit: Priest quoted Bible during abuse

A former altar boy and Boy Scout alleges he was forced to engage in oral sex with a priest and was told that by doing so he was “one to one with God,” states a lawsuit filed Thursday in the Superior Court. J.G., 49, who used his initials to protect his identity, filed a civil complaint against the Archdiocese of Agana, the Boy Scouts of America and retired priest Louis Brouillard.

https://www.postguam.com/news/local/lawsuit-priest-quoted-bible-during-abuse/article_1b125f22-281c-11e8-9a8f-1bd6fad1cd4b.html 

Father testifies in Australian court cardinal abused son

A father testified in an Australian court Thursday that his son said he was sexually abused by Vatican Cardinal George Pell during a waterskiing outing years ago. When a defense lawyer accused him of lying, the father told the court it was an insult. The testimony in the Melbourne Magistrate Court came at a hearing to determine whether prosecutors have sufficient evidence to put Pell on trial.

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/father-testifies-australian-court-cardinal-abused-son-53763261 

Priest guilty of child sex abuse.

An 82-year-old Catholic priest has been convicted of sexually abusing three children and a student priest in crimes spanning more than 20 years. Father Paul Moore committed the crimes in various locations in Ayrshire between 1977 and 1996. The court heard how he abused one boy at a school, another at a leisure centre and a third on the beach at Irvine in the 1970s. He was also found guilty of indecently assaulting a student priest in 1995.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-43405448# 

Two brothers say they were among those abused by priest in the 1960s

James A. McCarthy hasn't seen the Rev. Norbert F. Orsolits in years. But the face of the priest still creeps into his mind anytime he enters a Catholic church, he said. McCarthy, 69, says a short prayer to make the image go away: "Lord, help me to do the right thing and let this pass." It gets him past the awful memory of the sexual abuse that McCarthy said he endured from Orsolits in his childhood bedroom some 50 years ago. Orsolits, now 78, made the startling admission on Tuesday that he had molested "probably dozens" of boys prior to entering a Canadian facility for treatment in the early 1980s.

http://buffalonews.com/2018/03/04/two-brothers-say-they-were-among-those-abused-by-priest-i-was-a-victim-and-they-wouldnt-tell-me-anything/ 

Age of confusion for Catholics under Pope Francis

If you think politics today in this country are a mess – it’s the same and probably worse for the Catholic Church. What started as a time of hope with the election of Pope Francis has turned into the greatest period of confusion and likely heresy since the Reformation. Confusion is the name of the game, but it isn’t a game. Pope Francis, who initially exuded a look of caring and friendliness, has turned into a pope who issues opinion that contradict established Catholic teaching, while at the same time denying he’s doing that. Well, sort of.

http://www.wnd.com/2018/03/age-of-confusion-for-catholics-under-pope-francis/ 

Allegedly violated by priest behind the walls of piety

William Segodisho admits he was a headstrong and difficult youth. By the time he entered adolescence, he had already joined a militant faction that was fighting against the apartheid regime in Polokwane, then Pietersburg. In 1986, when he had just turned 14, he and his group had set numerous government vehicles alight in protest. As the number of arson incidents climbed, so did the arrests of his friends. He was forced to flee his home province, not able to tell his family where he was going.

http://en.brinkwire.com/186246/allegedly-violated-by-priest-behind-the-walls-of-piety/ 

Victim of sexual abuse by priest calls for diocese to open compensation to all

Last week, Michael F. Whalen of South Buffalo stood outside the offices of the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo on Main Street to tell his story of sexual abuse at the hands of the Rev. Norbert F. Orsolits. Sunday, he and his advocate, Robert Hoatson of Road to Recovery Inc., stood outside St. Louis Church, across from the diocesan offices, this time to speak up for other victims.

http://buffalonews.com/2018/03/04/victim-of-sexual-abuse-by-priest-calls-for-diocese-to-open-compensation-to-all/ 

Vatican finance chief Pell arrives for abuse hearing in Australia.

MELBOURNE: Cardinal George Pell, a top advisor to Pope Francis, arrived on Monday (Mar 5) for a crucial hearing in Australia to determine if he stands trial on multiple historical sexual offence charges. The 76-year-old, the most senior Catholic cleric to be charged with criminal offences linked to the Church's long-running sexual abuse scandal, denies all the claims. He has taken leave from his role as Vatican finance chief to fight the charges, which relate to incidents that allegedly occurred long ago.

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asiapacific/vatican-finance-chief-pell-arrives-for-abuse-hearing-in-10012980

Accusers of Vatican treasurer to testify in abuse case

The alleged victims in the historic sexual offenses brought against the treasurer for the Vatican are to be questioned in court for the first time this week. Cardinal George Pell, who stood down from his post in Rome in June last year to fight the case in his home country of Australia after being charged by Victoria police on multiple allegations, is required to attend Melbourne Magistrates Court each day of the four-week long committal hearing.

https://edition.cnn.com/2018/03/03/asia/accusers-vatican-treasurer-testify-abuse-case-intl/index.html 

Bishop sends open letter regarding abuse revelations; Report to the police savest thing to do

Bishop Richard J. Malone is encouraging “anyone who has any knowledge of child sexual abuse” to report it both to the police and, if the allegations involve Catholic clergy or church personnel, to the Diocese of Buffalo. Earlier this week, a retired priest, the Rev. Norbert F. Orsolits, admitted that he sexually abused “probably dozens” of teenage boys in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

http://buffalonews.com/2018/03/03/bishop-sends-open-letter-regarding-abuse-revelations/ 

Accusers of Vatican treasurer to testify in abuse case

MELBOURNE, Australia — The alleged victims in the historic sexual offenses brought against the treasurer for the Vatican are to be questioned in court for the first time this week. Cardinal George Pell, who stepped down from his post last June to fight the case in his home country of Australia after being charged by Victoria police on multiple allegations, is required to attend Melbourne Magistrates Court each day of the four-week long committal hearing.

http://www.wcvb.com/article/accusers-of-vatican-treasurer-to-testify-in-abuse-case/19070727 

The shocking case that shows how far the Vatican has to go in child protection / Catholic Herald

If this were an isolated act, it would be one thing. But it suggests a culture in parts of the Church which is still not taking abuse seriously enough. (Catholic Herald) We canon lawyers, unfortunately, spend a lot of time dealing with tragic, disturbing, sometimes appalling situations. It’s all too easy to become inured. But even among canonists who routinely deal with cases of child sexual abuse, the news that Msgr. Pietro Amenta, a senior Vatican judge, has been convicted of possessing child pornography is shocking.

https://voicefaithful.wordpress.com/2018/02/21/the-shocking-case-that-shows-how-far-the-vatican-has-to-go-in-child-protection-catholic-herald/ 

Church officials shielded priest suspected of murder for decades

A "48 Hours" investigation has uncovered new details in a former priest's 57-year journey from murder to justice. Father John Feit was shielded by church officials from prosecution in the 1960 murder of a former Texas beauty queen, and allowed to rise to a position of authority overseeing troubled priests, according to dozens of interviews and hundreds of pages of public records and documents obtained by "48 Hours." By "48 Hours" producer Josh Gaynor, with additional reporting by producer Lourdes Aguiar and field producer Alicia Tejada

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/church-officials-shielded-priest-suspected-of-murder-for-decades/

Archbishop, as Vatican sex abuse envoy, returns with more than he expected

The Vatican's leading expert on clerical sex abuse wrapped up his fact-finding mission to Chile on Thursday and headed to Rome to brief the pope, concluding one of the most extraordinary months in the Catholic Church's long-running saga of coming to terms with priests who rape children and the church hierarchy that protects them. Archbishop Charles Scicluna (who returned to Malta this afternoon, photo above) plans to present not only a report about Bishop Juan Barros, who is accused by victims of witnessing their abuse and ignoring it. Scicluna is also bringing back testimony from Chilean victims of other abusers in the Marist Brothers, Salesian and Franciscan religious orders and how their accusations were mishandled, confirmation that the Chilean Catholic Church has a very big problem on its hands, and to date hasn't handled it very well.

http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2018-03-02/local-news/Archbishop-as-Vatican-sex-abuse-envoy-returns-with-more-than-he-expected-6736185551 

Time to exorcise all the skeletons still in cupboard

That is a question that will be taxing the minds of numerous committed Catholics and their priests at Mass throughout Northern Ireland this evening or tomorrow. And many more what might be called cultural Catholics, who have long given up on their Church if not their Christian faith, will not be particularly bothered one way or another though they might just, in time, express an interest in looking at the Church again if the right lessons are demonstrably learnt.

https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/time-to-exorcise-all-the-skeletons-still-in-cupboard-36664572.html 

Child sex abuse survivor: ‘It hurt a lot, I bled’

WARNING: Graphic WHEN Russell Clark shoved a needle in his arm and injected heroin into his veins it worked “like medicine”. The 62-year-old child sex abuse survivor told news.com.au that the drug was the only thing that helped him cope after he was raped and beaten by four priests during his boarding school years at Salesians College in Brooklyn Park, South Australia. He was just 12 years old the first time he was sodomised by one of the men who he described as “a demon”.

http://www.ntnews.com.au/news/national/child-sex-abuse-survivor-it-hurt-a-lot-i-bled/news-story/0790fc375cec7b0cded6bac228e13765 

Moral authority 2000 years old

Jesus did not build the church... Jesus built his church on St. Peter... "I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock (Peter means rock). I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." Jesus built His church on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Jesus Himself as the cornerstone. We the People are the church... Jesus would do the same as if He were here today... He would build His church on the foundation of His True Followers... Jesus went out to His people... feed them with food for their bodies... but most of all Jesus feed the people's Hearts and Souls... The chief priests and the scribes sent out spies, who pretended to be righteous, that they might trap him in something... They asked him, "Teacher, we know that you say and teach what is right, truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?. Jesus knew that they were trying to trick Him... So he said to them... which the churches should follow Jesus words today... Jesus said to them, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.” If you take a good look into Jesus words... He is saying... "Give back to Caesar ( meaning the taxes.) the churches and Charities do not pay any taxes and I think that they should... Ann

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Martin Hanson claims on February 24 that the Catholic Church is facing “A complete loss of moral authority”. Ill-informed people have been making that claim for 2000 years. The moral authority of the Catholic Church is not dependent on the rectitude of its clergy, religious or laity. The Catholic Church was founded by Jesus Christ and He is the source of the Church’s moral authority. The New Testament shows that Christ deliberately created his Church to be the vehicle of his continuing mission in the world. He promised to remain present in his Church for all time and he lovingly guides it through the presence of the Holy Spirit.

http://gisborneherald.co.nz/opinion/3258103-135/moral-authority-2000-years-old 

Cardinal George Pell Confronts Charges of ‘Historical Sexual Offenses’

Cardinal George Pell, the Vatican’s third-highest-ranking official, will appear in a Melbourne court on Monday for the start of several weeks of hearings to determine whether he will face trial on charges of “historical sexual offenses.” The slow-moving case — charges were filed in June — will be a test of both Australia’s justice system and the Vatican’s efforts to hold clerics accountable after decades of abuse scandals.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/03/world/australia/cardinal-george-pell.html?emc=edit_tnt_20180303&nlid=63876270&tntemail0=y