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