Review: Say Sorry - A Harrowing Childhood in Catholic Orphanages

I know some people do not like the way I wrote my story... Child like they say... Please remember one thing which I am so ashamed of... I found it very hard to write about what happened to me at the two catholic church orphanages... I was not educated... to tell you the truth my body and mind were so damage... that I forgot what I had read after two lines... I could not remember anything... I still get violent headaches everyday... and I can not sleep at night... because of the nightmares I have... Please forgive me for the mistakes I have made in my books... I did them all myself the covers and the layout of my books... I wanted to prove to myself that I could do something... The only thing I am guilty of is telling the TRUTH... Ann Free Spirit = Ann Thompson

https://www.amazon.com/Say-Sorry-Harrowing-Childhood-Orphanages/dp/1543994660/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Say+Sorry+Ann+Thompson&qid=1579524764&sr=8-1

Altar boys say they were abused by priests at the Vatican

Former altar boys have claimed they were molested by priests inside the Vatican, as a lingering scandal surrounding widespread abuse in the Catholic Church erupts at its headquarters once again. Several anonymous former altar boys at the Vatican’s youth seminary alleged at least two priests kissed and fondled three of them in the Nineties.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/vatican-child-sexual-abuse-catholic-church-priests-iene-altar-boys-a9205446.html 

The skeletons keep tumbling out: Three more former altar boys accuse two priests of sexually abusing them inside Vatican Church

The fresh allegations come just months after Catholic leaders had gathered for an unprecedented summit at the Vatican to tackle widespread paedophilia within the church. At the close of the summit in February, Pope Francis promised the church would "spare no effort" in bringing abusers to justice and would not cover up or underestimate abuse.

https://www.opindia.com/2019/11/vatican-church-sexual-abuse-altar-boys-priests/ 

Two priests guilty of sexually abusing deaf children at a school in Argentina

Each were sentenced to more than 40 years in prison for abuse at a school for deaf and hearing-impaired children in northwestern Argentina The court also sentenced an 83-year-old gardener linked to the case to 18 years in prison. Two priests were found guilty on Monday of sexually abusing deaf children at a Catholic-run school in Argentina, a case that has shaken the church in Pope Francis’s homeland.

https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3039317/two-priests-guilty-sexually-abusing-deaf-children-school 

Australia moves closer to compulsory child abuse reporting by priests

Australia’s top attorneys agreed on Friday to standardize laws across the country forcing priests to report child abuse revealed to them during confessions in a move that could widen a schism between the church and the government. Federal and state attorneys-general agreed on key principles for the laws, which fall under the responsibility of state and territory governments and which address the most contentious recommendations from a government inquiry into child abuse.

https://dailytimes.com.pk/510550/australia-moves-closer-to-compulsory-child-abuse-reporting-by-priests/ 

"A cruel insult". Former PM Tony Abbott criticised for his prison visit to George Pell,

Former prime minister Tony Abbott has visited convicted pedophile George Pell in prison, where he is being held on child sex convictions. Mr Abbott told Seven News he was “simply visiting a friend” after he was spotted leaving the Melbourne Assessment Prison on Monday. Pell – who in December last year was jailed for six years for sexually assaulting two choirboys at Melbourne’s St Patrick’s Cathedral while he was Archbishop of Melbourne – is being held at the prison.

https://www.mamamia.com.au/tony-abbott-george-pell-2/ 

Pope Francis meets with bishops to end abuses

In February, Pope Francis traveled to Abu Dhabi and became the first pope to visit the Arabian Peninsula. The reception in the royal palace was one of the most spectacular in living memory. During this trip, the pope signed together with the Great Imam Al-Tayeb an important declaration in promoting Universal Human Fraternity, against the use of religion to justify violence.

https://www.romereports.com/en/2019/12/26/february-2019-pope-francis-meets-with-bishops-to-end-abuses/

Ireland, 1984: A year of fierce debates and ‘mounting evils’

The year 1984 became notorious for a number of stories involving women, pregnancy outside marriage, and their treatment by society, church and State. The impact of these stories would resonate for decades. That year, 15-year-old Ann Lovett died after giving birth to a stillborn son at a grotto in Granard, Co Longford; a full-term pregnancy that appeared to have gone unnoticed by all who knew her.

https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/heritage/ireland-1984-a-year-of-fierce-debates-and-mounting-evils-1.3946743?fbclid=IwAR2BXoYgec51cLtRXharXJmWA-Km5v1zIGjAzKsEzqREsTZ0ws1KU6ZC7dM#.XSEbtq_cPgI.facebook 

Family violence: Men are victims too

New Zealand has the worst rate of family and intimate-partner violence in the world. Eighty per cent of incidents go unreported — so what we know of family violence in our community is barely the tip of the iceberg. Today is part four of We’re Better Than This, a week-long series on family violence. Our aim is to raise awareness, to educate, to give an insight into the victims and perpetrators. We want to encourage victims to have the strength to speak out, and abusers the courage to change their behaviour.

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11636220 

Australian High Court rules in favour of Cardinal George Pell, allows appeal

Australia's final arbiter has granted disgraced cardinal George Pell special leave to appeal his convictions for molesting two choirboys in Melbourne. The High Court of Australia this morning decided the 78-year-old, who is currently serving a six-year jail term, will have his appeal heard next year. The decision keeps Pell's chances for an early release from prison alive.

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=12284808 

Contextual hearing: Witness list and evidence summaries – Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry

The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry Contextual hearing returns for its final day today 10.00am at the Rydges hotel in Auckland. Commissioners will hear from three witnesses. Witness evidence summaries are outlined below. After witness speak, their full evidence, along with footage of them speaking, willavailable for download here.

https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2019/11/12/contextual-hearing-witness-list-and-evidence-summaries-abuse-in-care-royal-commission-of-inquiry/ 

CVA lawsuits bring spotlight back to St. Colman's Home

Susanne Robertson was one of seven children. When their mother had a nervous breakdown in 1957, the children were sent to St. Colman’s Home, under the eyes of the Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. There, Robertson and two of her sisters say, one nun sexually abused them, and the order’s leaders permitted other adults to sexually abuse them and failed to notify authorities of the crimes.

https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/CVA-lawsuits-bring-spotlight-back-to-St-Colman-s-14308054.php 

Shocking, graphic suit alleges child abuse over nearly 40 years at Staten Island orphanage

A bombshell lawsuit filed against The Mission of the Immaculate Virgin at Mount Loretto alleges that multiple people endured appalling abuse, over decades, at the hands of nuns, priests and lay employees at the former orphanage. The lawsuit is one in a flurry filed as the Child Victims Act took effect Wednesday, sending shockwaves across Staten Island.

https://www.silive.com/news/2019/08/shocking-graphic-suit-alleges-child-abuse-over-nearly-40-years-at-staten-island-orphanage.html 

Ex-cardinal Theodore McCarrick's letters show signs of grooming victims for abuse

James Grein holds postcards from Florida and the Vatican sent to him as a boy by now-defrocked Cardinal Theodore McCarrick. Correspondence penned by disgraced ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick to the young men he sexually abused show how a globe-trotting bishop made vulnerable men feel special - and then took advantage of them.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/114801812/excardinal-theodore-mccarricks-letters-show-signs-of-grooming-victims-for-abuse 

Vermont bishop releases list on claims, says church 'must remain' vigilant

Bishop Christopher Coyne of Burlington Aug. 22 released the names of 40 priests who served in Vermont and were credibly accused of sexually abusing a minor or vulnerable individual since 1950. He said he "asked that this report be compiled and published" because "the whole sordid tale of what happened in decades leading up to the U.S. bishops' 2002 'Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People' has not been fully aired."

https://www.ncronline.org/news/accountability/vermont-bishop-releases-list-claims-says-church-must-remain-vigilant 

Third Drag Queen Exposed as Sex Convict

"'Want to see a sweet, quiet town ripped asunder? 'Want to see a place anyone would want to live in and open a small business doxed and divided?" "Then watch the American Library Association, and its Antifa army, wage war on towns — and cities — across the country as it hoists its sneaky child-grooming campaign of drag queen story hours on the unsuspecting."

https://www.churchmilitant.com/news/article/third-drag-queen-story-hour-library-reader-exposed-as-convicted-sex-offender 

A Children’s Crusade: Patrick Radden Keefe's ‘Say Nothing’

In his New York Times review of Say Nothing, Roddy Doyle reminds readers of the nappy pin—the diaper safety pin—that appears at the beginning and end of Patrick Radden Keefe’s account of the Troubles and their aftermath. The diaper pin was the only ornamentation in Jean McConville’s wardrobe, a woman disappeared by the I.R.A. for allegedly informing British authorities of the I.R.A.’s membership and operations

https://www.americamagazine.org/arts-culture/2019/08/16/childrens-crusade-patrick-radden-keefes-say-nothing 

Kerala Priest Booked For Inappropriately Touching Three 9-Year-Old Girls

Officials in Vadakkekkara Police station in Ernakulam have booked a case against a priest on receiving a complaint from a child welfare committee. The committee wrote a plaint about the sexual assault of three 9-year-old girls by a Kerala Catholic priest Father George Padayattil of the Syro Malabar Church in Ernakulam district.

https://www.shethepeople.tv/news/kerala-priest-booked-inappropriately-touching-three-girls 

Lucie Morris-Marr reveals the inside story from Cardinal George Pell's conviction

This week, Cardinal George Pell began a last-ditch attempt to overturn his conviction for child sex offences. But much of the original trial took place in secret, behind the closed doors of the courtroom, until the media were finally able to report his conviction in February.  One woman who was inside the court day-in-day-out was journalist Lucie Morris-Marr.

https://7news.com.au/the-daily-edition/lucie-morris-marr-reveals-the-inside-story-from-cardinal-george-pells-conviction-c-460226 

Former Catholic priest faces historic sex charges

A former Catholic priest, now living in Nelson, has been charged with historic sex offences, including indecently assaulting young girls and rape. Peter Joseph Hercock, 71, a former chaplain at Sacred Heart College in Lower Hutt and administrator at a Nelson school, appeared in the Nelson District Court last week.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/nelson-mail/news/69178124/ 

Predatory priest Peter Hercock finally brought to justice

GRAPHIC WARNING: Some content in this story may upset some people In the dimly-lit room of a Wainuiomata presbytery bedroom, priestly robes lay strewn across the floor. Background music plays softly on a record player, while on the bed a drunk teenager is about to be raped by her priest.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/79401700/graphic-warning-predatory-priest-finally-brought-to-justice?rm=m 

Predator priests and pay outs - why the church investigates its own

Every surface in Sonja Cooper's Wellington office is swamped with boxes full of secrets. Each wall is lined with folders, and her shelves are stacked with cartons full of the worst memories of more than 700 New Zealanders' lives. But the human rights lawyer cannot talk about what's in the boxes.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/79684909/predator-priests-and-pay-outs--why-the-church-investigates-its-own?rm=m 

New bishop replaces convicted Australian cleric

Pope Francis has appointed a bishop to administer an Australian archdiocese whose archbishop was convicted of covering up for a paedophile priest. The Vatican said Bishop Gregory O'Kelly, an Adelaide native, will serve as apostolic administrator for the Adelaide archdiocese.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/australia/104442651/new-bishop-replaces-convicted-australian-cleric?rm=a 

Invercargill parishes looking into potential restructuring

Catholic parishes in Invercargill may combine into one large parish because of the declining number of priests. The parishes considering restructuring include St Mary's Invercargill, St Theresa's North Invercargill, St Patrick's Georgetown and Sacred Heart Waikiwi. Reverend Christopher O'Neill, from St Mary's, said the process had just begun, and would likely take "months not weeks".

https://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/news/88105100/invercargill-parishes-looking-into-potential-restructuring?rm=a 

The change maker: A conversation with Cardinal John Dew about the future of the Catholic Church

A wooden cross made from a lifeboat wrecked on rocks off the Italian island of Lampedusa hangs on Cardinal John Dew's office wall. The boat was carrying refugees from Africa in search of a new life in Europe when, like so many others, it crashed on the outskirts of the island. Many of the boat's occupants, including children, would have died.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/111958799/the-change-maker-a-conversation-with-cardinal-john-dew-about-the-future-of-the-catholic-church 

NZ's top Catholic says time to stop calling priests 'Father' in response to sexual abuse crisis

Don't call me Father, call me John: New Zealand's top Catholic has declared he no longer wants to be referred to by his title and he's encouraging other priests to take the same step. Cardinal John Dew, the Archbishop of Wellington, says dropping the traditional title 'Father' could be one way for priests to respond to the church's crisis over sexual offending by its senior officials

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/113143365/nzs-top-catholic-says-time-to-stop-calling-priests-father-in-response-to-sexual-abuse-crisis?rm=a 

Auckland Catholic sex abuse trial: Marist Brother Michael Beaumont admits historical attacks on girls... NZ

A former Catholic brother has admitted sexually abusing a 9-year-old girl in her home while her family sat in the same room, with their eyes closed in prayer. Michael Beaumont was due to face a jury trial at the Auckland District Court on Tuesday but pleaded guilty to the historical indecent assault charge. He stood holding his hands behind his back in the dock as the charge was read and he answered "guilty". Beaumont also admitted two more charges relating to touching two other girls, aged 12 at the time.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/110872193/auckland-catholic-sex-abuse-trial-marist-brother-michael-beaumont-admits-historical-attacks-on-girls?rm=a 

Sexual abuse by Catholic Brother during prayer haunted victim for 40 years... NZ

Brother Michael Beaumont was welcomed into 9-year-old Mary's* family home as a man of God. But as her devout Catholic family sat on the floor just metres away with their eyes shut to recite the rosary, Beaumont sat next to the young girl on the sofa and sexually abused her. "Fear stiffened my body as I felt 'God's' hands creep down into my pants and into my private parts," she said. "Inside, my body was screaming, desperate for my mother to open her eyes and see what Brother Michael was doing to me."

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/113936111/sexual-abuse-by-catholic-brother-during-prayer-haunted-victim-for-40-years 

Childhood horrors laid bare as survivors talk of sexual abuse... NZ

Tears have taken up residence behind Grant West's bright blue eyes. He is 57 years old, a burly Kiwi living in Australia with bleach-tipped hair and a crumpled leather jacket. By his estimate, he was sexually abused by 60 to 80 men by the time he turned 18. Just two of them faced justice. His first abuser was his mother, he says. He was 4.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/115636768/childhood-horrors-laid-bare-as-survivors-talk-of-sexual-abuse 

Vatican launches investigation into George Pell's child sexual abuse offences

Now we wait to see if the Pope keeps to his words... Stripped any Bishop... priest,... found guilty of child abuse and cover up or raped of children boys and girls and young men and women... Ann

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The Vatican has confirmed it is investigating disgraced cardinal George Pell over child sexual offences committed in Australia. The move could see Australia's most senior Catholic cleric dismissed from the priesthood. Pell, 77, has been remanded in custody for the first time on five child sex offences, which he was convicted of last December, after his bail was revoked in the County Court on Wednesday.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-02-28/vatican-launches-investigation-into-george-pell-sex-abuse/10855782 

DC priest convicted of sexually abusing 2 kids in parish

A Catholic priest faces up to 45 years in prison for sexually abusing two children in his parish in Washington, D.C. News outlets report 47-year-old Urbano Vazquez was convicted Thursday after a weeklong trial. The girls, now 12 and 18, testified he assaulted them, even during Mass. Prosecutors said that underneath the Mexican national’s holy robes was a devil that took advantage of his predominantly Latino parish.

https://www.citynews1130.com/2019/08/16/dc-priest-convicted-of-sexually-abusing-2-kids-in-parish/

Choirboy's father anxious about former Cardinal George Pell's appeal

The father of a choirboy sexually abused by former Catholic Church Cardinal George Pell is waiting "with bated breath" to see if the disgraced cardinal's conviction is overturned. The Australian man's son died in 2014 from a drug overdose, which the man argues was linked to post-traumatic stress disorder caused years earlier when Pell sexually abused the boy as a 13-year-old.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/australia/115148822/choirboys-father-anxious-about-former-cardinal-george-pells-appeal 

Matthew Bojanowski calls on diocese to shut down Christ the King Seminary

Only days after the dean of seminarians resigned in disgust from Buffalo, New York's seminary over its corrupt culture, another seminarian is also calling it quits. Matthew Bojanowski, whose mother took to media in early August to expose what she calls Bp. Richard Malone's cover-up of homosexual harassment, took part in a protest outside the Buffalo chancery Tuesday morning, where he called out Malone and his staff for attempts to "sabotage" his priestly vocation.

https://www.churchmilitant.com/news/article/another-buffalo-seminarian-quits-in-disgust-over-corruption-cover-up 

NY Catholic sex abuse lawsuit: former Nashville bishop part of 'racketeering enterprise'

Former Nashville Catholic Bishop Edward Kmiec has been named in a sweeping lawsuit filed in New York by 22 plaintiffs alleging the Diocese of Buffalo systematically covered up sexual abuse of minors by pedophile priests. Kmiec served as Bishop of the New York diocese between 2004 and 2012. He served as Bishop of the Diocese of Nashville between 1992 and 2004. He is now retired.

https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2019/08/20/former-nashville-catholic-bishop-edward-kmiec-named-ny-sex-abuse-lawsuit/2060780001/ 

A Sex-Abuse Story Catholics Need to Hear

I met my beloved husband, Walter, in 1966 at the University of Missouri, where he was studying to be a chemical engineer and I was enrolled in the School of Journalism, hoping to earn a living as a magazine writer. Almost from the moment we met, Walter and I were fast friends. After our marriage, he left engineering to become a struggling novelist, and we both freelanced from home, working, playing and raising our children side by side.

http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/a-sex-abuse-story-catholics-need-to-hear 

Courageous Voices: Victims of Abuse Speak Out.

Allen Hebert is a devout practicing Catholic. He and his wife, Denae, have nine children. They are active in numerous Catholic apostolates, including Your Holy Family Ministries, which they founded. Allen is also a survivor of childhood clergy sexual abuse. Allen Hebert is a devout practicing Catholic. He and his wife, Denae, have nine children. They are active in numerous Catholic apostolates, including Your Holy Family Ministries, which they founded. Allen is also a survivor of childhood clergy sexual abuse.

http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/courageous-voices-victims-of-abuse-speak-out 

Dioceses of Boston launched system to report abuse by Bishops

The Bishops of the dioceses of Boston have agreed to make and in fact launched a third party independent system to report abuses by Catholic Bishops. The decision was taken in the wake of Pope Francis’ landmark Vos estis letter which found a nearly unanimous response by the US Conference of Catholic Bishops in June 2019 according to ZENIT news agency.

https://www.newsbook.com.mt/artikli/2019/08/21/dioceses-of-boston-launched-system-to-report-abuse-by-bishops/?lang=en 

Vatican responds after George Pell's appeal denied

The Vatican has responded to the Court of Appeal's decision to deny George Pell's bid for freedom as Australia's highest ranking member of the Catholic Church failed to have his appeal against child sex convictions dismissed in court. By a majority of two to one, Victoria's Supreme Court dismissed the appeal earlier today, ordering Pell to "return to prison". "He will continue to serve his sentence of six years' imprisonment," Chief Justice Anne Ferguson said.

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=12260721 

Ex-Vatican treasurer George Pell loses appeal against child sex offence convictions

EAn Australian court by a 2-1 majority ruling on Wednesday (Aug 21) upheld convictions against Cardinal George Pell, the most senior Catholic to be found guilty of child sex abuse. The Victoria state Court of Appeal rejected Pell's appeal of the unanimous verdicts a jury issued in December finding Pope Francis' former finance minister guilty of molesting two 13-year-old choirboys in Melbourne's St Patrick's Cathedral in 1996 and 1997.

https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/australianz/ex-vatican-treasurer-george-pell-loses-appeal-against-child-sex-offence-convictions 

Catholic Cardinal George Pell will be stripped of his Order of Australia

Catholic Cardinal George Pell will be stripped of his Order of Australia after losing an appeal against his child sex abuse conviction. Prime Minister Scott Morrison told reporters in Canberra on Wednesday his sympathies lay with the victims of child sexual abuse, not just today but "on every single day". "My understanding is that this (appeal loss) would result in the stripping of the honours that are decided externally to the government," Mr Morrison said. "That is a process that is done independently, and that course will now follow."

https://www.thecourier.com.au/story/6340737/george-pell-stripped-of-order-of-australia/?fbclid=IwAR2kbmzGsNEcUjqJTIKKoPBEfI7wai-Q5PoP7GxgYsd4lP2bud1QEEqp4kM  

How does a priest get reinstated with three allegations of sexual abuse and a failed polygraph?

Critics describe the investigative report of sexual abuse allegations against The Rev. Dennis Riter as a biased, twisted sham not worth the paper it is printed on. Scott Riordan, a former sex crimes prosecutor contracted by the diocese to investigate allegations, told News 4 Investigates in an exclusive television interview that he began this case with the same open mind that he had for the other 12 complaints assigned to him.

https://www.wivb.com/news/investigates/how-does-a-priest-get-reinstated-with-three-allegations-of-sexual-abuse-and-a-failed-polygraph/ 

Nearly 600 priests, lay people have been publicly named in Pa. sex abuse scandal

The 2018 grand jury identified 301 priests who had sexually assaulted and abused hundreds of children over the past several decades. As large as that number is, the true scope is much higher. Last year’s grand jury report has been the largest in scale, covering six of the state’s eight dioceses — including the ones based in Greensburg and Pittsburgh — and identifying 1,000 victims. But it was just the latest in a string of Pennsylvania investigations dating back 15 years.

https://triblive.com/news/pennsylvania/nearly-600-priests-lay-people-have-been-publicly-named-in-pa-sex-abuse-scandal/ 

Child Victims Act takes effect with many lawsuits targeting Catholic Church

Victims of child sex abuse in New York who had been waiting decades to bring their cases to court finally had their chance on Wednesday. The state’s long-awaited Child Victims Act went into effect at midnight Wednesday, prompting an immediate flood of electronically filed New York State Supreme Court lawsuits — the majority of which targeted Catholic dioceses across the state.

https://nypost.com/2019/08/14/child-victims-act-takes-effect-with-many-lawsuits-targeting-catholic-church/ 

Wyoming police who investigated ex-KC priest recommend charges in sex abuse cases Read more here:

Wyoming police are recommending that charges be filed against a member of the Catholic clergy and a person who was seeking membership in the clergy who police allege sexually abused male juveniles in the 1970s and ‘80s. Though the suspects are not named, The Star previously reported that Cheyenne police were investigating allegations against Joseph Hart, a former Kansas City priest who later served as bishop of the Diocese of Cheyenne.

https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/crime/article231023633.html

New Law Could Open Floodgates on Decades of Child Sexual Abuse Within Jehovah's Witnesses

It can take years, even decades, for victims of child sexual abuse to gather the strength to go to authorities. By then, the statute of limitations may have run out, leaving them with no legal recourse. But a law going into effect in New York today could open the door to a deluge of new abuse lawsuits: Signed earlier this year, the Child Victims Act (CVA) temporarily lifts the statute of limitations for civil suits alleging abuse, regardless of the age of the plaintiff or how long ago the abuse allegedly occurred. While the "window" the CVA opens expires after one year, legal experts expect thousands of lawsuits to be filed in the coming months.

https://www.newsweek.com/jehovahs-witnesses-child-sex-abuse-lawsuit-1453610 

Former McQuaid priest part of new lawsuit alleging Jesuit conspiracy

When the boy first met the Rev Leonard Riforgiato, he was told to call him Father Lenny— that's what he asked all his friends to call him. They met at a program sponsored by the Children and Youth Agency of Center County while Riforgiato was a Jesuit seminarian at Our Lady of Victory Parish in State College, Pennsylvania.

https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2019/08/14/sex-abuse-scandal-ex-mcquaid-priest-part-of-pa-lawsuit-alleging-jesuit-conspiracy/2008872001/ 

Melbourne Catholic Archbishop Peter Comensoli would choose jail over breaking confessional seal

The Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne has said he would rather go to jail than report admissions of child sexual abuse made in the confessional. A bill which would make it mandatory for priests to report suspected child abuse to authorities, including abuse revealed in the confessional, was introduced to Victoria's Parliament on Wednesday morning.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-08-14/melbourne-catholic-archbishop-petrer-comensoli-on-confessional/11409944 

Deaf victims at trial of ‘demonic’ Argentine priests recount decades of sexual abuse

The trial of two priests and a layman accused of serial sexual abuse of impoverished deaf boys and girls in their care began in a courtroom in Argentina, where dozens of survivors and their supporters are demanding transparency and justice for “abominable crimes” committed at the Instituto Próvolo for deaf-mute children.

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/deaf-victims-at-trial-of-demonic-argentine-priests-recount-decades-of-sexual-abuse 

Archbishop says prison preferable to complying with child abuse confession law

Melbourne’s Catholic archbishop insists three years jail is preferable to breaking the seal of confession and reporting child sexual abuse to authorities. Priests will risk prison if they don’t report child abuse revealed to them during the sacrament of confession, under new laws introduced in Victoria on Wednesday.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/aug/14/victorian-bill-would-compel-priests-to-report-child-abuse-confessions-or-risk-jail 

Catholic sex abuse: Brothers say priest 'crushed my soul and spirit'

Two brothers have returned to a Catholic church where they experienced harrowing child abuse at the hands of a priest. Mike Ledingham​ launched his book The Catholic Boys on the church steps at Our Lady of the Assumption in Auckland's Onehunga on Saturday. Huddled under umbrellas, the former SAS soldier, 68, and his brother Chris spoke to friends, family and a Māori healer who came to cleanse the clergy house.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/113113796/he-crushed-my-soul-and-spirit-brothers-speak-out-about-catholic-priests-abuse 

Flix: ‘Spotlight’ – A great film that reminds us of the importance of reporting

Anyone already saddened by what sometimes seems to be the imminent death of investigative print journalism to the accompaniment of all those “fake news” accusations might be further saddened in that regard by “Spotlight.” This terrific journalistic drama shines a spotlight on “Spotlight,” the journalistic team that uncovered the massive child-molestation scandal and cover-up within the local Catholic Archdiocese in Boston and won the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for the Boston Globe.

 https://www.chestnuthilllocal.com/2019/07/26/flix-spotlight-a-great-film-that-reminds-us-of-the-importance-of-reporting/

After 25 years investigating Church sex abuse, I can’t do it anymore

For more than 25 years now, I have been reporting and writing about scandal within the Catholic Church. Yesterday, as I wearily wrote one more article about episcopal corruption, I realized how much the topic has come to nauseate me. I can't do it anymore. Since the 1990s I have been digging in the muck, uncovering more and more of what Pope Benedict XVI aptly termed the "filth" in the Church — the filth that obscures the image of Christ. It hasn't been pleasant work.

https://www.lifesitenews.com/opinion/after-25-years-investigating-church-sex-abuse-i-cant-do-it-anymore 

A woman says she didn’t realize an influential bishop sexually abused her for 20 years — until he called her 6-year-old daughter 'sexy'

Kimberly Pollard first met Bishop James L'Keith Jones, a pastor in the Church of God in Christ, in Clovis, New Mexico, 1994. Pollard was helping her godmother make phone calls for a June youth convention organized by the church, also known as COGIC, which describes itself as "the largest Pentecostal denomination in the United States," with 6.5 million members across 63 countries.

https://www.insider.com/kimberly-pollard-bishop-james-lkeith-jones-sexual-abuse-lawsuit-2019-7 

Unmarked buildings, quiet legal help for accused priests

The visiting priests arrived discreetly, day and night. Stripped of their collars and cassocks, they went unnoticed in this tiny Midwestern town as they were escorted into a dingy warehouse across from an elementary school playground. Neighbors had no idea some of the dressed-down clergymen dining at local restaurants might have been accused sexual predators.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/religion/priests-accused-of-sex-abuse-turned-to-under-the-radar-group/2019/07/29/b6502186-b1b9-11e9-acc8-1d847bacca73_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.1d188138f634 

U.S. priest to receive reports of abuse, cover-up at Vatican City State

Vatican City State will have its own reporting system in place before the end of the year for flagging suspected cases of the abuse of minors and vulnerable people and instances of cover-up or negligence in handling such cases, the Vatican said. In the meantime, U.S. Msgr. Robert Oliver was appointed to be the contact person for people with information or concerns about potential cases of abuse and cover-up within the Vicariate of Vatican City State, the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, reported July 30.

<a href="https://www.ncronline.org/news/accountability/us-priest-receive-reports-abuse-cover-vatican-city-state"></a> </div> 

List of clergy accused of child abuse includes 26 never before publicized in STL, church won't give details

t the end of a long gravel driveway, in a remote swath of eastern Franklin County, a community of disgraced Roman Catholic priests sang in a chapel last week during a feast day Mass. Vincent A. Heier, 68, who lives there, briefly stepped away from officiating. He told the Post-Dispatch that he didn’t want to comment about being on a list of 64 clergy facing sexual abuse and child pornography allegations that the Archdiocese of St. Louis recently made public. He started to walk away.

https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/list-of-clergy-accused-of-child-abuse-includes-never-before/article_5651ccc0-8bd8-5030-95b9-6c00260b76e2.html 

Faith Perspectives: Archdiocesan list of 64 abusers is an appropriate and meaningful step forward

Last fall, St. Louis Archbishop Robert J. Carlson promised to publish the names of clergy who had substantiated claims of sexual abuse of minors against them, as a first step toward the healing and reconciliation the Catholic Church needs surrounding the ongoing scandal of individual priests and, in the minds of many, of coverup within the Church itself. Last week, he fulfilled that promise, releasing the names of the 64 criminals, some of whom were charged and imprisoned during their lifetimes. Others — many — were removed from ministry and have since died.

https://www.stltoday.com/lifestyles/faith-and-values/civil-religion/faith-perspectives-archdiocesan-list-of-abusers-is-an-appropriate-and/article_262a06c5-fffe-5255-b659-9e0c0b909792.html 

French Catholics increasingly asking to be de-baptised

Adherence to the French Catholic church is dropping, and while it's impossible to know how many people officially renounce their faith, even the French bishops conference says de-baptism requests are going up, especially in the face of paedophilia and sex abuse scandals. Anne-Charlotte had been thinking about apostasy, official renouncing her Catholic faith, for years before she finally wrote a letter to the parish where she was baptised in 1985.

https://www.modernghana.com/news/948422/french-catholics-increasingly-asking-to-be-de-baptised.html 

Catholic priests in India protest cardinal’s return 0

India’s Catholic Church, already rocked by allegations that a bishop raped a nun, is facing an uprising by hundreds of priests against one of the country’s four cardinals following his reinstatement by Pope Francis. Francis last year effectively suspended Cardinal George Alencherry, head of the eastern rite Syro-Malabar church in the southern Indian state of Kerala, amid a controversy over disputed land sales. Francis named a temporary administrator to run Alencherry’s Ernakulam-Angamaly archdiocese, resolve its financial problems and try to heal the divisions the dispute had caused among the priests.

https://www.infosurhoy.com/cocoon/saii/xhtml/en_GB/news/catholic-priests-in-india-protest-cardinals-return/ 

Catholic Church in N.H. Publishes Names of Priests Accused of Sex Abuse of Minors

The Catholic Diocese of Manchester is publishing a comprehensive list of priests accused of sexually assaulting minors. The report includes the names of priests both living and deceased dating back to 1950. While all of the names were previously public, the Diocese says it created a website page as an act of "ownership and accountability."

https://www.nhpr.org/post/catholic-church-nh-publishes-names-priests-accused-sex-abuse-minors#stream/0 

Jerry Hill pulls church confession bill; heavy opposition from Catholics

A bill by state Sen. Jerry Hill, D-San Mateo, that would require Catholic priests to report their colleagues’ confessions of child abuse or neglect has been put on hold amid strong opposition from the Catholic Church. Hundreds of Catholics had planned to testify against the bill at a public hearing Tuesday (July 9) that was abruptly canceled.

https://padailypost.com/2019/07/11/jerry-hill-pulls-church-confession-bill-heavy-opposition-from-catholics/ 

Bishop Kihara: Child abuse is a reality that we must confront

The Vice Chairman of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) – Commission for Social Communications, Bishop Peter Kihara, I.M.C., has said child abuse is a reality that the Church must confront. He says the Church has to respond to all cases of child abuse and cannot afford to run away from its responsibility in ensuring that children are safeguarded.

https://www.vaticannews.va/en/africa/news/2019-07/bishop-kihara-child-abuse-is-a-reality-that-we-must-confront.html 

Laxity in Seminaries as a Contributing Cause to the Sex-Abuse Crisis

“Hide the handsome ones.” That was what was “jokingly” said when Theodore McCarrick would visit seminaries. It disgusts me that such “jokes” — which clearly portrayed a reality — did not lead to a thorough investigation of McCarrick decades ago. The likely reason they did not was that, for decades, U.S. seminaries not only tolerated but recruited and favored seminarians who have sex with males.

https://catholiccitizens.org/views/87906/laxity-in-seminaries-as-a-contributing-cause-to-the-sex-abuse-crisis/ 

A royal commission found that a religious leader covered up child sex abuse, our PM shared a stage with him

On July 5, Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his wife Jenny stood on a stage beside Pastor Brian Houston, a Pentecostal religious leader censured last year by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sex Abuse for covering up the sexual abuse of a seven-year-old boy, abuse that continued for five years.

https://www.thebigsmoke.com.au/2019/07/11/a-royal-commission-found-that-a-religious-leader-covered-up-child-sex-abuse-our-pm-shared-a-stage-with-him/ 

US man accused of sex abuse at Kenyan orphanage he founded

A convicted sex offender went on to establish an orphanage in Kenya where he preyed on children under the guise of missionary work, according to federal prosecutors who announced Friday that he was being charged with sexually molesting four teenage girls.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-man-accused-sex-abuse-144954586.html 

Former priest accused of sexual assault testifies in trial that he fathered baby in Juarez

Miguel Luna testified Friday in day four of his trial on charges of sexual abuse of a child. Luna, a former El Paso priest, is accused of sexually abusing a young girl who was an altar server at the church where he worked. While he was testifying, the defense asked Luna if he fathered a child with a prostitute in Ciudad Juarez in the '90s. Luna replied yes.

https://ktxs.com/news/texas/former-priest-accused-of-sexual-assault-testifies-in-trial 

St. Xavier High School releases names of brothers it says sexually abused children

St. Xavier High School released a list of former brothers who it says sexually abused minors while either at the Louisville high school or at some point during their years of service. Nine brothers appear on the list with "credible or established" acts of sexual abuse against youth, two of whom were assigned to St. X at the time of the abuse. Years spent at the high school are noted below.

https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/local/2019/07/12/st-xavier-releases-names-brothers-says-sexually-abused-kids/1719591001/ 

Why is priest sex abuse often unreported?

Survivors and experts who work in the field of child sex abuse will tell you there are many reasons why it’s difficult for some to report priest sex abuse. Denial, fear and shame are just a few of the reasons. So, we asked survivors and experts on this subject why sex abuse is so often unreported or reported decades after occurring.

https://wjla.com/news/the-50-year-secret/why-is-priest-sex-abuse-often-unreported 

Catholic Church throughout the world hiding abuse, devastating more lives through cover-ups. Instructors claiming the Holocaust ...

Turning on the news is a reminder to me not to be quiet. Epstein and those of great power and wealth buying justice, poor people in jails who cannot afford an attorney, a president who appears to own Fox News and those who only open their mouths and swallow Fox News as truth.

https://www.brainerddispatch.com/opinion/letters/3969497-Reader-Opinion-Not-who-I-am 

Sex crimes against children no longer protected by statute of limitations in Chile

Chile's President Sebastian Pinera Thursday signed into law on Thursday a bill whereby the statute of limitations on sex crimes involving children ceases to apply. However, the new law is not retroactive as some lawmakers intended during parliamentary deliberation. “Starting today, the passing of time will never again be an accomplice to those who abuse our children, nor an ally of impunity,” Piñera said.

https://en.mercopress.com/2019/07/12/sex-crimes-against-children-no-longer-protected-by-statute-of-limitations-in-chile 

The Bulletin: Bleak task ahead for Oranga Tamariki inquiries

Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Third Oranga Tamariki inquiry announced, Herald highlights iniquities in health sector, and significant new claims around Operation Burnham. A third inquiry into Oranga Tamariki has been announced, and this one looks like being the most significant.

https://thespinoff.co.nz/the-bulletin/20-06-2019/the-bulletin-bleak-task-ahead-for-oranga-tamariki-inquiries/

Whistleblower Claims Rector of Washington, D.C. Basilica Is a Member of the 'Gay Mafia'

Vatican whistleblower Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò claimed over the weekend that while he was the papal nuncio to the United States, he saw "documentation" alleging that the rector of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., sexually molested male students at the Catholic University of America.

https://pjmedia.com/faith/vigano-rector-of-washington-d-c-basilica-msgr-walter-rossi-is-a-member-of-the-gay-mafia/ 

'Secret' Catholic files called key to exposing the full clergy abuse scandal

Bruce Novozinsky says he was a 16-year-old seminary student when his longtime parish priest, the Rev. Gerry Brown of St. Mary of the Lake in Lakewood abused him and attempted to rape him. "It cost me part of my youth, my trust in those who I was taught to trust, and decades of my life" said Novozinsky, an Upper Freehold resident.

https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/2019/06/19/secret-catholic-files-called-key-exposing-full-abuse-scandal-victims-priests/1327728001/ 

Birmingham Archdiocese 'ignored abuse to protect reputation'

Children could have been saved from abuse if the Church had focused less on its reputation, the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse has said. More than 130 allegations of abuse were made against 78 individuals associated with Birmingham's Catholic Church.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-birmingham-48703484 

Editorial: Call 911, not the church

New Zealand call 111 the police... NOT THE PRIEST or the catholic church... everything will go to rome and that will be the end you will hear... Ann ============================================== 

Archbishop Jose H. Lopez, left, of Los Angeles and Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, archbishop of Galveston-Houston, conduct a meeting the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops last fall. The bishops have announced an insufficient plan to police themselves on matters involving sexual abuse. Catholic bishops came out last week with their plan to deal with bishops who commit or cover up sexual abuse. Their idea is that they will watch each other, and it is wholly insufficient.

https://buffalonews.com/2019/06/21/editorial-call-911-not-the-church/ 

Vatican abuse investigator: ‘You never get used to it, you feel your heart and soul hurting’

In a remarkably frank and detailed speech, the Vatican official heading the department charged with reviewing clergy sexual abuse allegations told an assembly of Catholic journalists that his investigators and the press “share the same goal, which is the protection of minors, and we have the same wish to leave the world a little better than how we found it.”

 https://grandinmedia.ca/vatican-abuse-investigator-never-used-ti-it/

Catholic Church Hypocrisy: Vows to fight child abuse yet lobbies for statute of limitations on child abuse cases

New York: In a sensational three-page report released last week the Roman Catholic Church has spent over USD 10 million on lobbying in eight Northeastern states in the US since 2011 at thwarting legislation that would extend or waive the statutes of limitation for survivors of clergy sexual abuse.

https://goachronicle.com/catholic-church-hypocrisy-vows-to-fight-child-abuse-yet-lobbies-for-statute-of-limitations-on-child-abuse-cases/ 

How priests played with a woman’s emotions

Finally we have another true and interesting story between priests and a woman. Please read carefully. We have to remember that we are not gods. There is no room for judging. Hopefully it will enlighten other women to come forward with their story. Our blog’s main aim is to tell more people that what happened in secrecy to your private and personal life, is not just you.

https://maltesemarriedcatholicpriest.wordpress.com/2019/06/24/how-priests-played-with-a-womans-emotions/

Presence of disgraced cardinals at ordination of new bishop causes uproar in Chile

After Pope Francis accepted the resignation of one of the two newly appointed auxiliary bishops of Santiago, Chile before his episcopal ordination, the second auxiliary’s ordination, in Rome, was tainted by the presence of two disgraced former archbishops of the Chilean capital.

https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-americas/2019/06/24/presence-of-disgraced-cardinals-at-ordination-of-new-bishop-causes-uproar-in-chile/ 

Guam's clergy sex abuse claims now exceed 220, with 2 months to go before filing deadline

With barely two months to go before the Aug. 15 deadline to file claims against the Archdiocese of Agana, the number of childhood sexual abuse allegations made against Guam's clergy and others associated with the Catholic Church have exceeded 220. These numbers do not include a church-related libel case and two childhood abuse cases that did not involve the archdiocese.

https://www.guampdn.com/story/news/2019/06/23/guam-clergy-sex-abuse-claims-above-200-two-months-ahead-deadline/1543648001/
 

New Pa. court ruling may help older clergy abuse claims proceed

A Pennsylvania court has ruled that an evolving legal landscape means a woman can pursue her lawsuit claiming officials in the Altoona-Johnstown Roman Catholic Diocese worked to conceal her alleged molestation by a priest. A three-judge Superior Court panel Tuesday reinstated Renee Rice's lawsuit alleging the diocese and two bishops illegally tried to cover it up to protect their reputations and that of the parish priest she claims abused her.

https://www.readingeagle.com/ap/article/new-court-ruling-may-help-older-clergy-abuse-claims-proceed 

Advocates dissatisfied with bishops' abuse plan

Under intense public pressure, the nation's Roman Catholic bishops approved new steps this week to deal more strongly with the clergy sex-abuse crisis. But activists and others say the moves leave the bishops in charge of policing themselves and potentially keep law enforcement at arm's length. As their national meeting in Baltimore concluded

http://www.journalgazette.net/features/faith/20190614/advocates-dissatisfied-with-bishops-abuse-plan

Catholic Church sex abuse memorial reinstated as survivors call for meeting with Bishop

The head of the Catholic Church in Auckland has called on parishioners to respect child sex abuse memorial ribbons after abuse survivors raised concerns. The destruction of a "Loud Fence" memorial outside an Onehunga church on June 1 sparked claims of re-victimisation from a survivors' group, which said the church continued to minimise or misunderstand the gravity of past abuse.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/113474166/catholic-church-sex-abuse-memorial-reinstated-as-survivors-call-for-meeting-with-bishop 

Trial date set for Argentine priests accused of abusing deaf children

Two priests accused of sexually abusing minors at a school for deaf children in Argentina will stand trial Aug. 5. The priests and a former employee at the Antonio Provolo institute will face charges of the abuse of more than 20 children, the AP noted. One of the priests involved is Fr. Nicola Corradi, who is a member of the Company of Mary, an Italian religious community which operates schools for deaf children in several countries, including Argentina and Italy.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/trial-date-set-for-argentine-priests-accused-of-abusing-deaf-children-45171

2 Catholic orders name 65 priests accused or convicted of abuse; 27 served in Arizona

Two Catholic religious orders recently released lists naming 65 clergy accused of sexual abuse against minors dating back decades; 27 of the men served in Arizona. The newly released information comes as American bishops met this week in Baltimore for a conference that focused on how to respond to the church's sex-abuse crisis, which has increasingly caught the attention of state prosecutors across the U.S.

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2019/06/15/2-catholic-orders-release-names-who-served-arizona-accused-child-sex-abuse/1435770001/ 

Trauma has no Timeline

To where shall our money go? If you have followed some of the recent scandal news that broke this week, involving bishops, money and the statute of limitations, you may find the reaction to that news surprising. Some were angered, some questioned why spend money on something like that and then some found themselves asking why people wait so long to go to authorities.

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/steelmagnificat/2019/06/trauma-has-no-timeline/ 

Pope Francis’ Arch Nemesis Comes Out of Hiding to Slam Him on Predator Priests

The archbishop who once called on the pope to resign now says the pope is a liar who needs to repent. There are few scandals in the sordid history of the American Catholic church more painful than the saga of former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, a high-ranking prince of the church who fell from grace amid a slew of lies and cover-ups.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/pope-francis-arch-nemesis-carlo-maria-vigano-comes-out-of-hiding-to-slam-him-on-predator-priests 

Another Voice: Catholic schools need supporters to keep the faith

It was not surprising to read the recent Buffalo News headline, “Unhappy Buffalo Catholics are giving less.” It was sad. Not surprising. Certainly understandable. Catholic leadership continues to struggle to regain the trust of the faithful. Clergy abuse is a horrific crime. The associated cover-ups are criminal as well.

https://buffalonews.com/2019/06/17/another-voice-catholic-schools-need-supporters-to-keep-the-faith/ 

Bp. Strickland demands that laypeople be allowed to investigate abuser bishops

Bishop Joseph Strickland called for the U.S. bishops to support proposed efforts before them to reveal specifics related to the scandal surrounding disgraced former cardinal Theodore McCarrick. McKnight had said, “I believe it should be mandatory that we involve laity in the investigation of any case of sexual abuse by a bishop or corruption, cover-up.”

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/bp-strickland-demands-that-laypeople-be-allowed-to-investigate-abuser-bishops 

We the People Have Brought Garcetti’s Plague on Ourselves

These people generally feel that everything has a good and noble purpose even if we cannot divine it. Other people are non-teleological and believe there is no pre-set objective. Rather, what happens today was caused by what happened yesterday and all the prior yesterdays and the same pattern will determine the future. While goodness is not inherent in the nature of things, they believe that they can impose truth, justice, and prosperity on society. Some call it, Tikkun Olam, helping to create the world.

https://www.citywatchla.com/index.php/2016-01-01-13-17-00/los-angeles/17857-we-the-people-have-brought-garcetti-s-plague-on-ourselves 

The Catholic Church Still Isn’t There on Abuse Prevention

RAPE is a CRIME report this vile crime to the police... and there you will get justice done for you... the priest and nuns who rape children and have to report to the pope WHY... because the pope will send them away for a holiday... which they call a retreat... be very aware of this... rape is a crime and it should be reported to the police... Ann Free Spirit

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

Two stories came across my radar earlier this month. Each dealt with different aspects of what the Catholic Church is (and is not) doing on preventing child sexual abuse. The upshot is this: the Church is still dragging its heals. Preventing child sexual abuse and holding abusers accountable is simply not on the top of their priority list. Instead, they’re prioritizing things like protecting the Church from local hostility, and ensuring that penitents have access to confession and the forgiveness it brings, without having to face legal consequences for their actions.

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/lovejoyfeminism/2019/05/the-catholic-church-still-isnt-there-on-abuse-prevention.html
 

As Cardinal DiNardo Leads A Crucial Meeting Of Bishops, Survivor Advocates Demand His Resignation

The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests says the head of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops lacks “leadership” and “moral authority.” The archdiocese said in a statement DiNardo will not resign. The archdiocese has said it acted proactively in these cases by suspending the priests and ordering them to undergo therapy, and is cooperating with law enforcement.

https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/2019/06/10/336187/as-cardinal-dinardo-prepares-to-lead-a-crucial-bishop-meeting-victim-advocates-demand-his-resignation/ 

Divorcing God Survivor Andrew Madden reveals clerical abuse ruined future to be priest in new documentary fronted by Oliver Callan

‘THE Church thought the man who abused me was a better fit for the priesthood than I was,’ brave survivor Andrew Madden has said. Irish Sun columnist Oliver Callan fronts a new documentary on ­Ireland’s relationship with religion. Growing up as a gay man in Monaghan, he said: “I never heard anything homophobic from the altar but at the same time I never heard anything positive.

https://www.thesun.ie/tvandshowbiz/4199059/andrew-madden-clerical-abuse-ruined-priest-documentary-oliver-callan/# 

State prosecutors step up scrutiny of Catholic Church

Hundreds of boxes. Millions of records. From Michigan to New Mexico this month, attorneys general are sifting through files on clergy sex abuse, seized through search warrants and subpoenas at dozens of archdioceses.

The office of Iowa's top prosecutor is also examining records obtained on a voluntary basis.

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/2019/06/11/catholic-church-records-hands-many-states-attorneys-general-iowa-michigan-nebraska-new-mexico/1420335001/ 

Priest and lay reform organizations take on clerical culture

Pope Francis has repeatedly called out the clerical culture’s danger to the Catholic Church and its faithful, for example, calling clericalism “our ugliest perversion.” Now a nationwide Catholic priests’ organization and two international lay reform groups have developed the BridgeDialogues: Laity & Clergy re-Imagining Church Together to show Catholics what they can do to recognize and prevent this perversion which blocks the laity from achieving their full potential in the Church.

https://voicefaithful.blog/2019/06/07/priest-and-lay-reform-organizations-take-on-clerical-culture/ 

Liberia: Police Monitor Allegations of Sexual Harassment and Power Abuse Within the Catholic Church

MONROVIA – The Liberia National Police say it is closely monitoring allegations of clerical homosexuality within Catholic Church. Police Spokesman, Moses Carter said Liberian laws will be enforced if anybody is found culpable of violations. “The Catholic Church is an institution. If any individual in the Catholic Church commits an act it does not becloud the entire church said individual must be made to face the full weight of the law.”

https://frontpageafricaonline.com/news/liberia-police-monitor-allegations-of-sexual-harassment-and-power-abuse-within-the-catholic-church/ 

What Catholic bishops must do to prevent sexual abuse and hold clergy accountable

The Roman Catholic Church has been plagued by sexual abuse scandals for years. Here's what it can do to clean up now and to prevent future abuse. Rarely do Americans pay attention to the biannual assemblies of the nation’s Roman Catholic bishops, but the gathering that starts on Tuesday in Baltimore will be different. 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2019/06/10/catholic-church-sex-abuse-bishops-laity-clergy-accountable-column/1400804001/

Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò gives his first extended interview since calling on the pope to resign

In his first extended interview since he called on Pope Francis to resign last August, accusing the pontiff of covering up for a sexual abuser, Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò corresponded by email with The Washington Post over two months, writing 8,000 words in response to nearly 40 questions. Here we present that exchange. Selected passages containing unverified allegations have been removed. Others have been lightly edited for clarity. The conversation took place in English.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/archbishop-carlo-maria-vigano-gives-his-first-extended-interview-since-calling-on-the-pope-to-resign/2019/06/10/00205748-8b79-11e9-b08e-cfd89bd36d4e_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.4c3daffd7e5av 

Archbishop who called on pope to resign says Francis was 'blatantly lying to the whole world'

After writing a letter calling on Pope Francis to resign on the grounds that he had tolerated a known sexual abuser, Carlo Maria Viganò refused to disclose his location or say much about his self-imposed exile. In the instant he became one of the most controversial figures in modern Catholic Church history, Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò went dark.

https://nationalpost.com/news/world/archbishop-who-called-on-pope-to-resign-says-francis-was-blatantly-lying-to-the-whole-world 

Sex abuse crisis the focus as US Catholic bishops convene

As the Roman Catholic Church’s sex abuse scandal grows ever wider in scope in the US, bishops convene for a national meeting in Baltimore on Tuesday under heavy pressure to acknowledge their oversight failures and give a larger role to lay Catholics and secular authorities in confronting the crisis.

https://nypost.com/2019/06/10/sex-abuse-crisis-the-focus-as-us-catholic-bishops-convene/ 

CNA Newsroom: Clerical Abuse Survivors Speak

We've had a year-long news cycle about abuse and cover up in the Church. We've heard a lot from the bishops. We've heard a lot from journalists and commentators. But, how much have we heard from the victims themselves? This week on CNA Newsroom, two survivors of clerical sex abuse share their stories - and their hopes for the future.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/column/cna-newsroom-clerical-abuse-survivors-speak-4024 

Lies, Lies and MORE Lies

Two stories broke earlier this week that were pretty significant on their own, but when you look at them together, the conclusion is especially noteworthy. The upshot, Pope Francis is lying when he told a reporter he knew nothing about McCarrick because senior Vatican officials knew all about McCarrick including Donald Wuerl who has gotten caught for the second time lying about all this.

https://www.churchmilitant.com/video/episode/vortex-lies-lies-and-more-lies 

'Sexually violent' ex-priest pleads guilty to assaulting boy in St. Louis County

A former priest in the St. Louis area and known sexual predator with multiple offenses in three states admitted Wednesday to abusing a boy in the 1990s while he was a chaplain at DePaul Health Center. Frederick Lenczycki, 74, pleaded guilty in St. Louis County Circuit Court to two charges of sodomy.

https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/sexually-violent-ex-priest-pleads-guilty-to-assaulting-boy-in/article_e492747a-c46f-518b-a5bd-a4f56793e758.html 

Polish prelates use emergency session to admit to Church abuse failures

The Polish bishops’ administrative council met in emergency session on May 22 and later admitted the Church failed to act against clerical sexual abuse. The meeting came amid outrage over a two-hour documentary, ‘Just Don’t Tell Anyone’, that included drastic accounts of cover-up of clerical sex abuse in Poland. The film had more than 19 million views within six days of its May 11 YouTube posting.

https://www.irishcatholic.com/polish-prelates-use-emergency-session-to-admit-to-church-abuse-failures/

Archdiocese Responds To Associated Press Story Of Woman Who Accuses Catholic Cardinal Daniel DiNardo Of Dismissing Sex Abuse Case

The Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston categorically rejects the unprofessional, biased and one-sided reporting contained in today’s Associated Press story headlined “The Reckoning.” At each step in this matter, Cardinal DiNardo has reacted swiftly and justly — and has always kept the welfare of the Pontikeses in mind. A number of the quotes attributed to the Cardinal are an absolute fabrication.

http://wtaw.com/2019/06/04/archdiocese-responds-associated-press-story-woman-accuses-catholic-cardinal-daniel-dinardo-of-dismissing-sex-abuse-case/ 

US Catholic Church reviews massive rise in sex-abuse…

During the period from July 1, 2017, to June 30, 2018, 1,385 adults came forward with 1,455 allegations of abuse, according to the annual report of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Secretariat of Child and Youth Protection. That was up from 693 allegations in the previous year. The report attributed much of the increase to a victim compensation program implemented in five dioceses in New York state.

https://infosurhoy.com/cocoon/saii/xhtml/en_GB/news-summary/us-catholic-church-reviews-massive-rise-in-sex-abuse/ 

Cardinal George Pell Launches Appeal Over Sex Abuse Conviction

George Pell will today appeal against the six-year jail sentence handed to him for sexually abusing two boys. The Catholic Church's former third in charge was convicted late last year and was sentenced in March for his crimes while he was Archbishop of Melbourne in the 1990s. The 77-year-old has maintained his innocence from the start and his lawyers will try to argue against his conviction on three grounds in the Victorian Supreme Court.

http://www.ladbible.com/news/news-george-pell-launches-appeal-conviction-at-victorias-supreme-court-20190604 

French sex abuse commission gets to work

France’s first ever independent commission set up by the Catholic Church to examine claims of clergy sex abuse has now launched its appeal for witnesses to offer testimony. The Catholic French bishops’ Independent Commission of Inquiry into Sexual Abuse within the Church (CAISE), which was formally established in November 2018, opened itself up for testimonials this week and will seek to chronicle clergy abuse dating back to the 1950s.

https://cruxnow.com/church-in-europe/2019/06/05/french-sex-abuse-commission-gets-to-work/ 

Cardinal George Pell calls child abuse charges 'bizarre' at launch of appeal

Jailed Australian Cardinal George Pell launched an appeal on Wednesday against his landmark conviction for child sex abuse, branding the charges against him as "bizarre" and "impossible". Pell, 77, left his prison cell under police guard to attend the two-day hearing, battling his conviction in December on five counts of sexually assaulting two choirboys in Melbourne’s St Patrick’s Cathedral in 1996 and 1997.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/06/05/cardinal-george-pell-calls-child-abuse-charges-bizarre-launch/ 

Disgust as memorial ribbons for Catholic Church child sex abuse victims vanish

Child abuse victims are shocked after commemorative ribbons with heartfelt messages vanished from a church. The colourful ribbons honouring sex abuse victims have gone less than one week after Mike Ledingham​ launched his book The Catholic Boys on Saturday at a church in Onehunga, Auckland.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/113265186/disgust-as-memorial-ribbons-for-catholic-church-child-sex-abuse-victims-vanish 

The Catholic Church Paid Lobbyists Millions to Block More Sex Abuse Lawsuits

So that’s where the congregation’s money is going. According to a new study titled “Church Influencing State: How the Catholic Church Spent Millions Against Survivors of Clergy Abuse,” between 2011 and 2018, the U.S. Catholic Church spent more than $10 million on lobbyists to fight against legislation that would have allowed victims of pedophile priests to sue the Church for damages even if prior statutes of limitations had passed. And that was just in northeastern states.

https://friendlyatheist.patheos.com/2019/06/05/the-catholic-church-paid-lobbyists-millions-to-block-more-sex-abuse-lawsuits/ 

Cardinal George Pell appears in court to appeal convictions for sexually abusing choirboys

The most senior Roman Catholic found guilty of child sex abuse has appeared in court to appeal his convictions for molesting two choirboys in an Australian cathedral. Cardinal George Pell’s lawyers argued he could not have abused the two victims undetected moments after Sunday mass while dressed in archbishops’ robes in the late 1990s.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/cardinal-george-pell-child-sex-abuse-appeal-australia-catholic-church-vatican-court-melbourne-a8945216.html 

'My Catholicism died the day the George Pell trial began.'

My Catholicism died the day George Pell was convicted. Will it be resurrected if his appeal is upheld this week? No. Pell didn’t kill my faith, but his trial was the virus that finished it off. To be honest, it had been unwell for some time. I’d been dragging it to mass for Christmas and Easter for years, telling myself it was fine, that seeing familiar faces and singing a few favourite hymns would perk it up.

https://www.mamamia.com.au/george-pell-appeal/ 

Disgraced Australian Cardinal George Pell begins appeal against conviction for child sexual abuse.

Disgraced Australian Cardinal George Pell has left his prison cell and attended the opening hearing in his appeal against conviction for child sexual abuse. The 77-year-old was convicted in December on five counts of assaulting two choirboys in Melbourne's St Patrick's Cathedral in 1996 and 1997. The Vatican's former number three, who managed church finances and helped elect two popes, was sentenced in March to six years in prison.

https://www.rte.ie/news/2019/0605/1053520-pell_appeal/

German bishop: ‘Synodal path’ revisiting celibacy, sexual morality is ‘path of destruction’

Bishop Rudolf Voderholzer – the successor of Cardinal Gerhard Müller in Regensburg – has once more raised his voice in opposition to the decision of a majority of German bishops to start a “synodal” discussion about the Church's sexual morality and priestly celibacy.

https://www.lifesitenews.com/blogs/german-bishop-synodal-path-revisiting-celibacy-sexual-morality-is-path-of-destruction 

Beth McCabe shares her church abuse story

For people like Beth McCabe, the wounds may be too deep to heal in a garden. McCabe has harsh words when it comes to how the Catholic Church responded to abuse. She says she was just 11 when she claims a church on Long Island failed to protect

https://www.wtnh.com/news/web-extra-beth-mccabe-shares-her-church-abuse-story_20190516231506/2007248611 

California bill forces priests to violate the seal of confession

SACRAMENTO, California, May 16, 2019 (LifeSiteNews) — The California legislature is considering this week a bill that would require Catholic priests to disclose penitents’ confessions if they learn of child abuse. Democrat state Sen. Jerry Hill introduced the Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act (SB 360), which demands priests and other clergy file a report should they learn of child abuse in confession or counseling. Failure to disclose what they heard in the confessional, according to the bill, can mean six months in jail, a $1,000 fine, or both.

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/california-bill-forces-priests-to-violate-the-seal-of-confession 

Dallas Police: Former Rockwall Priest Among Subjects of Interest

The Dallas Police Department executed a warrant Wednesday at the Roman Catholic Diocese of Dallas to search for documentation and data as part of an investigation into child sex abuse allegations. The raid was part of an effort to secure information about priests suspected of having committed sexual abuse.

https://www.ketr.org/post/dallas-police-former-rockwall-priest-among-subjects-interest

Local Group Cautions Clergy Sex Abuse Victims to Not Rush Into Settlements With Church

The Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego created a new compensation fund for victims of clergy sexual abuse, and several victims are speaking out against it. On Tuesday, the Diocese of San Diego joined five other California dioceses with a compensation fund program for victims abused by clergy members. “Do you know what it’s like to be terrorized, tormented, abused and knowing that you can do nothing about it?” said one victim named Dede.

https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/Church-Sex-Abuse-Victims-Roman-Catholic-Diocese-Fund-Compensation-510044681.html 

Conroe police picked lock at Houston archdiocese to uncover priest child sex abuse records

Authorities used a lock pick to open a “bank vault” containing a trove of clergy files that the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston failed to hand over following a subpoena, according to court documents. The picking tool helped Conroe Police Department investigators access the documents last November during a raid at the church’s Houston headquarters, Detective Joe McGrew said while describing the church’s lack of cooperation with their criminal probe.

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Conroe-police-picked-lock-at-Houston-archdiocese-13852411.php 

It took the Catholic Church nine decades to acknowledge the grievous wrongs inflicted on a Hunter woman as a child

IT took nine decades for the Catholic Church to apologise to Hunter woman Catherine Frances Muller, 97, who died on Wednesday surrounded by her family. She lived for long enough to reclaim some power from a church that committed grievous wrongs against her as a child, and to sit in Parliament House in October as Prime Minister Scott Morrison apologised to child sexual abuse survivors on behalf of the nation.

https://www.theherald.com.au/story/6129621/a-voice-for-the-voiceless-frances-muller-97-dies-after-apology-from-the-catholic-church/?cs=12 

Boy Scout sex abuse scandal’s stunning toll: Over 12,200 reported victims

For decades, the Boy Scouts of America has closely guarded a trove of documents that detail sexual abuse allegations against troop leaders and others. The most complete public accounting so far came in 2012, when the Los Angeles Times published internal Scout records about accusations against some 5,000 leaders and volunteers named in the organization’s blacklist, known as the “perversion files.”

https://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-na-boy-scouts-child-sex-abuse-20190515-story.html 

Native American victims of sex abuse at Catholic boarding schools fight for justice

There is a feel to the old place that still haunts her. Even with construction crews working the earth and birds chirping noisily in the trees above, she can feel the silence. Behind the silence, sadness and horror. Louise Charbonneau Aamot rested her fist on the church windowsill as her eyes welled with tears. Its gray steeple cutting into the sky, the church towered over the grounds of the old St. Paul's Indian Mission boarding school..

https://www.argusleader.com/story/news/2019/05/16/native-american-sex-abuse-victims-catholic-boarding-schools-south-dakota/1158590001/ 

No more silence on abuse

Sweeping new Church laws issued by Pope Francis to protect minors and hold bishops accountable reinforce the message that the days of covering up or ignoring abuse allegations are over, said the Vatican’s top abuse investigator. The new norms send “a very strong message that disclosure is the order of the day, and not silence,” when it comes to abuse of minors and abuses of power, said Archbishop Charles Scicluna of Malta, adjunct secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

https://www.catholicregister.org/home/international/item/29506-no-more-silence-on-abuse 

Pope mandates reporting of sex abuse to church, not police

Pope Francis issued a groundbreaking new church law Thursday requiring all Catholic priests and nuns around the world to report clergy sexual abuse and cover-ups by their superiors to church authorities, in a new effort to hold the Catholic hierarchy accountable for failing to protect their flocks.

https://www.newsherald.com/news/20190512/pope-mandates-reporting-of-sex-abuse-to-church-not-police 

C21 Convenes Panel of ‘Lay Business Leaders’

A panel of three “lay business leaders” and Boston College alumni discussed problems plaguing the Catholic Church and their potential solutions at the Church in the 21st Century Center’s fourth “Revitalizing Our Church” panel on Monday night.

https://bcheights.com/2019/05/12/c12-lay-business-leaders/ 

If sex offenders are working with kids, parents have the right to know

Imagine signing your child up for weekend sports which is umpired by a convicted sexual predator. Imagine further that not only have the authorities permitted this man to supervise children, but they also insist that no one can know he is a sex offender because of the embarrassment that it might cause him.

https://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/life-and-relationships/if-sex-offenders-are-working-with-kids-parents-have-the-right-to-know-20190511-p51met.html 

Pope Francis Stops Hiding From the Church’s Sexual-Abuse Epidemic

Before this week, the Roman Catholic Church had no global policy requiring priests and bishops to report and investigate allegations of sexual abuse. No formal measure held bishops accountable for misconduct and cover-ups, despite a number of high-profile, horrific cases of wrongdoing by the Church’s top leaders. With story after story exposing new abuses around the world, Catholics have grown cynical about the Vatican’s willingness to face the global sickness of sexual abuse, and many have abandoned the Church entirely.

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2019/05/catholic-church-sex-abuse-pope-francis/589243/ 

Attention journalists: New papal decree still avoids laity in process of fighting sexual abuse

A new decree by Pope Francis that now requires priests and nuns to report cases of abuse by other clergy — including any cover-ups by superiors such as a local bishop — is long overdue. It’s so long overdue that one has to wonder why this wasn’t something put into practice by the church years ago.

https://www.getreligion.org/getreligion/2019/5/10/attention-journalists-new-papal-decree-still-avoids-laity-in-process-of-fighting-sexual-abuse 

Gunmen attack Catholic church in Burkina Faso; 6 killed

uthorities say gunmen have attacked a Catholic church in Burkina Faso, killing a priest and five worshippers. The attack on Sunday took place in Dablo, about 200 kilometers (124 miles) from the capital, Ouagadougou. Urbain Kabore, a government spokesman for the West African country's Sahel region, said the gunmen also set fire to a health center and destroyed all places serving alcohol.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/gunmen-attack-catholic-church-burkina-faso-6-killed-170032274.html