Clergy Child Molesters (166) — References/Archive/Blog

• Child Pornography in the Rectory at Lords Valley, Pennsylvania

SNAP is opening in Australia,

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Wed November 04, 2009 edition:

• Roman Catholic diocese facing £8m compensation bill over abuse claims

  [1972-90 St William's staff -NEW* (De La Salle Brothers) ] - RCC. 142 boys.  
   The Times, by Ruth Gledhill, Religion Correspondent, November 04, 2009
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A Roman Catholic diocese could be forced to pay up to £8 million in compensation after a judge ruled that it was liable for running a home at the centre of a child abuse scandal.
   The case could last at least one more year, however, because the diocese was given leave to appeal.
   The High Court ruling opened the door for 142 people alleging sexual and physical abuse to seek damages from Middlesbrough diocese in what could turn out to be the biggest historical abuse claim against the Catholic Church in the country so far. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:25 PM, November 04, 2009

• Victim's mother speaks out about son's abuse

  [Pastor Billy Masters (64)] - Baptist. ≤ 2002 4 charges. ~ 2007-09 Boy (12).  
   WAFF, with video, By Barbara Czura, ~ November 04, 2009
   KILPATRICK, AL (WAFF) - A man convicted of sexual abuse in 2002 is headed back to prison for violating his probation.
   64-year-old Billy Paul Masters was convicted of four different sodomy and sexual abuse charges in 2002.
   He was released from prison in 2007.
   While he was on probation, Masters was arrested and charged in another sexual abuse case involving a 12-year-old-boy. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:39 PM, ~ November 04, 2009]

• Former area preacher faces new sex charges

  [Pastor Billy Masters (64)] - Baptist. ≤ 2002 4 charges. ~ 2007-09 Boy (12).  
   Sand Mountain Reporter, ~ November 04, 2009
   FORT PAYNE (AL) – A DeKalb County preacher charged with the sexual abuse of a boy faces having his probation revoked.
   The preacher, 67-year-old Billy Masters, was arrested in May and charged with sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12, apparently a member of his congregation.
   Masters was pastor of Harvest Baptist Church in the Kilpatrick area. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:36 PM, November 04, 2009

• Los Angeles church pastor sued for alleged abuse

  [Years - Rev. John Hunter -NEW*] - African Methodist Episcopal Church. Female.
   Daily Comet, The Associated Press, Wednesday, November 4, 2009
   LOS ANGELES (CA) - A former employee is suing the pastor of a Los Angeles County church, claiming he sexually abused her over a period of years.
   Rev. Brenda Lamothe says in a complaint filed Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court that Rev. John J. Hunter of the First African Methodist Episcopal Church repeatedly demanded sex as part of "God's will." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:33 PM

• Bridgeport Diocese Out Of Options: Open Abuse Files

  - RCC.
   The Hartford Courant, ~ November 04, 2009
   CONNECTICUT -- The U.S. Supreme Court was the Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport's last hope. The diocese wanted the nation's highest court to hear its appeal of a Connecticut state court's decision to make public thousands of pages of files about sexual abuse by clergy.
   But the diocese acknowledged Monday that the court has decided not to hear its case.
   Barring some unforeseen intercession, the documents from 23 sexual abuse cases settled in 2001 will see daylight. Four newspapers including The Courant have been fighting for eight years to get the files unsealed. Next week, a status conference on how the material might be made public will be held at Superior Court in Waterbury. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:30 PM, November 04, 2009
   [COMMENT: The diocese is NOT out of options.  There is nothing that the guilty men in purple shirts won't try. ENDS.]

• Looking for victims of priest abuse

 
   ConnectTriStates, By Chad Douglas, Wednesday, November 04, 2009
   QUINCY (IL) -- Allegations of sexual abuse by priests comes up in the national news from time to time.
   A couple of weeks ago, the New York Times reported a story about a priest who lived and worked in Quincy in the 1980s.
   The article says the priest, Father Henry Willenborg, had a love affair with a woman and fathered a child with her. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:27 PM

• Group asking Quincyans to step forward if they were abused by Catholic priest who once worked at QU

   
   Herald-Whig, By STEVE EIGHINGER, November 05, 2009
   QUINCY (IL) -- Judy Block Jones was in Quincy to make a plea on two fronts.
   Jones was urging past victims of sexual abuse by Catholic priests to come forward. She was also asking Quincy University to take an active role by encouraging anyone with information about potential crimes committed by a Franciscan priest who once worked for the school to also step forward.
   Block is a regional director for SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, a nationwide organization headquartered in St. Louis that urges fellow Catholics to help abuse victims come forward and name their abusers. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:21 PM, November 04, 2009

• Lawsuit: First AME Pastor Pushed For Sex As "God's Will"

 
   LA Weekly, By Dennis Romero, ~ November 04, 2009
   LOS ANGELES (CA) -- A lawsuit against controversial First AME Church Rev. John J. Hunter claims that he pressured a subordinate for on-demand sex as "God's will."
   Rev. Brenda Lamothe, who now works for the office of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, says in a complaint filed in Los Angeles Superior Court that the married pastor pressured her for sexual "comfort" as a way to fulfill her church duties.
   The relationship began in 2005 and, according to the lawsuit, Lamothe was soon coerced into providing sex on-demand as part of her job. She states in the suit that Hunter called her his "everything." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:18 PM, November 04, 2009

• Former employee files lawsuit …

  - First African Methodist Episcopal Church.
   Los Angeles Times November 4, 2009
   LOS ANGELES (CA) -- A former employee of First African Methodist Episcopal Church of Los Angeles has accused the pastor, John Hunter, in a civil lawsuit with forcing her into sexual service for four years and firing her when she finally refused to comply.
   The Rev. Brenda Lamothe, who worked with Hunter as his executive assistant and in other jobs since 2004, charged in the lawsuit filed Tuesday that the pastor first began pressuring her into inappropriate hugging and kissing in about April 2005 and escalated the demands to sex.
   The complaint charges that Hunter told her it was "God’s will" to satisfy his desires and regularly demanded sex both at his church office and hotels in Southern California, Virginia and North Carolina. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:13 PM

• Men heard differing on slain NJ priest's 911 call

 
   Belleville News-Democrat By DAVID PORTER - Associated Press Writer, November 04, 2009
   NEWARK, NEW JERSEY -- The muffled voices are heard only for a few seconds, but are chilling nevertheless.
   "This is the state police, you called 911, do you have an emergency?" a woman's voice asks.
   "No, we don't, thank you," a man's voice answers.
   "Yes, we do," a second man seems to say in the background.
   "No, thank you," the first man repeats. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:11 PM, November 04, 2009

• New Lawsuit Against Archdiocese

  [2008 Archbishop Weakland] - RCC. (Sexual assault payout.) Secret files, Yes in 1993, No in 2008.
   TMJ4, By Elizabeth Braun and Melanie Stout, November 04, 2009
   MILWAUKEE (WI) -- In a newly-filed lawsuit SNAP alleges Archbishop Rembert Weakland kept evidence about priests who sexually assaulted children inside a secret vault at the Cousin's Center.
   The lawsuit was filed by a man who says he was molested by Father Lawrence Murphy. Murphy is suspected of abusing hundreds of children at the School for the Deaf in St. Francis.
   The survivors Network of those Abused by Priests claims Archbishop Rembert Weakland kept the charges against Father Murphy in a secret archive.
   SNAP's Peter Isely says, "We have proof that not only did Archbishop Weakland know about the secret archive but used it in order to cover up crimes against children that were being committed by Father Murphy." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:07 PM

• Group urges victims of priest abuse to come forward

  [Fr James Poole (Jesuit)] - RCC. Girl (10-16).
   Billings Gazette, By SUSAN OLP | Posted: Wednesday, November 4, 2009
   BILLINGS (MT) -- Elsie Boudreau, a Yu'pik Eskimo from Alaska, suffered sexual abuse at the hands of a Jesuit priest in Nome, Alaska, from age 10 to 16.
   She later successfully sued Father James Poole and won a financial settlement against him. Now he lives in a Jesuit retirement center in Spokane, and Boudreau is a victim liaison for a California law firm.
   On Wednesday, she was in Billings with another member of SNAP - the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests - to encourage others who have gone through the same type of ordeal to come forward. The timing is crucial, Boudreau said, because a deadline looms for victims of abuse who fall in the Oregon Province of the Society of Jesus to file a claim. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:02 PM

• Judge Thwarts Convicted Priest's Motion to Seal Court, Records

  [McCormack]
   NBC Chicago By BJ LUTZ and CHARLIE WOJCIECHOWSKI Updated 1:43 PM CST, Wed, Nov 4, 2009
   CHICAGO (IL) -- A motion from a defrocked priest and convicted sex offender to close the courtroom and seal the records in his upcoming sexually violent person detention hearing was thrown out Wednesday.
   Daniel McCormack, who pleaded guilty two years ago to abusing five boys and was sentenced to five years in prison, had argued that the proceedings be closed to protect his privacy under the mental health act.
   Barbara Blaine, founder of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) said Wednesday's ruling removes the same kind of the secrecy that allowed priest sex abuse to happen in the first place. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:51 PM

• 911 tapes reveal slain Chatham priest called for help before being disconnected

 
   The Star-Ledger, with audio, November 04, 2009
   CHATHAM BOROUGH (NJ) -- The Chatham priest slain last month tried to tell a 911 dispatcher his location, but the call was disconnected moments too soon.
   When the dispatcher called the priest back, another man -- identified by Morris County authorities as the alleged killer, Jose Feliciano -- said there was no emergency. The dispatcher then hung up. State Police said the dispatcher followed protocol. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:28 PM, November 04, 2009

• Bishop facing child-porn charges gets new court date.

  [1983 and 2009 Sep 15 - Bp Raymond Lahey* (69)] - RCC. 1983 - Child porn. 2009 Sep 15 - Importing child pornography.                  
   Kelowna, Canwest News Service, November 04, 2009
   OTTAWA, CANADA – Roman Catholic Bishop Raymond Lahey has a new date for his child-pornography case to continue in Ottawa criminal court.
   In a routine hearing Wednesday morning, Lahey’s lawyers appeared on his behalf and had a date set for another appearance on Dec. 16.
   Several such proceedings and postponements are common as criminal charges move toward trial. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:26 PM, November 04, 2009

• Ex-priest McCormack's hearings to be open to public

   
   Chicago Sun-Times, BY STEFANO ESPOSITO, November 4, 2009 br />   CHICAGO (IL) -- A Cook County judge ruled today that court hearings dealing with ex-priest Daniel McCormack's mental health will be open to the public as prosecutors seek to have McCormack civilly committed as a sexually violent person.
   One of McCormack's attorneys, Daniel Coyne, argued in court today that the public's interest in openness isn't "safeguarded by knowing the inner workings of (McCormack's) brain." Prosecutors and an attorney for the Chicago Tribune had argued that the hearings be held in open court. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:22 PM

• Ex-FLDS member: Jailed sect leader kept detailed notes about interactions with church members

  - FLDS.
   Legal News November 04, 2009
   ELDORADO, Texas – A former member of a polygamist group has taken the stand in the sexual assault trial of the first group member tried since Texas authorities raided the group’s ranch last year.
   Rebecca Musser left the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in 2002, before the church bought the Yearning For Zion Ranch in Eldorado (el-doh-RAY’-doh).

• Pike County priest headed to court on porn charges

  [2008 Dec and 2009 Oct 19 - Fr Robert Timchak* (43)] - RCC. Computer child porn, tampering with evidence.
   Pocono Record, November 04, 2009
   PENNSYLVANIA -- A priest in Pike County waived his right to a preliminary hearing this afternoon in Milford on charges related to possessing child pornography on his computer.
   The Rev. Robert Timchak, 43, turned himself in on Oct. 20 on 19 charges after an investigation launched when an annonymous letter to the Diocese of Scranton tipped off church officials that someone using Timchak's e-mail address had been accessing child pornography. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:16 PM

• Bankruptcy Trustee Holds Closed-door Meeting

  - Secrecy creeping in to creditors' meeting.
   CBS 3, RANDALL CHASE, Associated Press Writer, ~ November 04, 2009
   WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) -- The U.S. Trustee's office for Delaware is beginning its role in the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington's bankruptcy in secrecy.
   The trustee's office publicly advertised a meeting Wednesday at a Wilmington hotel to choose members of the diocese's committee of unsecured creditors. But officials then declared that it was a private meeting that would not start until a reporter left. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:14 PM, November 04, 2009

• Stonehill symposium played role in women religious study

 
   National Catholic Reporter (USA), By Thomas C. Fox Nov. 04, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- Speaking publicly for the first time about the apostolic visitation of U.S. women religious communities his congregation is conducting, Cardinal Franc Rodé said that he requested the three-year study to help the sisters and to respond to concerns for their welfare.
   "This apostolic visitation hopes to encourage vocations and assure a better future for women religious," Rodé said in a statement released by the Vatican Nov. 3.
   The women religious study was first announced last January in Washington, but until last week the prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life had remained silent. His statement was issued, he said, in response to "many news accounts" and inquiries about the visitation. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:12 PM, November 04, 2009

• Ex-priest McCormack fails to seal records in commitment battle

  - RCC.
   Chicago Breaking News, November 4, 2009
   CHICAGO (IL) -- A judge today denied a request from a convicted former priest to seal records and keep private most of the court proceedings on whether he should be committed under a state statute for sex offenders.
   Under the Sexually Violent Persons Commitment Act, the Illinois attorney general and the Cook County state's attorney filed a joint petition last month to have Daniel McCormack confined to a state treatment facility.
   The law allows prosecutors to seek continued incarceration if a psychological exam leads them to believe another sex crime is likely if the inmate goes free. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:23 PM, November 04, 2009

• Perlitz Detained

  [Perlitz]
   The Fairfield Mirror By Chris Simmons November 4, 2009
   FAIRFIELD (CT) -- Last Wednesday, Federal Magistrate Judge Joan G. Margolis detained Doug Perlitz ‘92 after his lawyers withdrew their argument against his detainment.
   William F. Dow III, Perlitz’s lead attorney, asked for the right to continue the matter at a later date if the defense should choose to. The government’s petition for detainment was granted without prejudice. Dow said that the defense had not yet met the conditions that Margolis had set forth for his release, but that ultimately, he will ask for Perlitz to be released once he secures the finances.
   "It’s an extraordinary bond requirement," said Dow after the hearing. "It involves a bunch of moving parts, like playing three-level chess." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:31 AM

• Tulsa ex-priest named in sex-abuse suit

  [? ≤ 2007 Fr Ken Lewis] - RCC. Minor.
   Tulsa World By GINNIE GRAHAM, November 04, 2009
   TULSA (OK) -- An unidentified plaintiff has filed a lawsuit against a former priest and the Catholic Diocese of Tulsa, alleging sexual molestation of a minor and failure to warn of past accusations.
   Ken Lewis was "laicized," or dismissed from the clerical state, in 2007 after a history of sexual-abuse allegations. He is the only priest to be defrocked in the Tulsa diocese's history.
   Bishop Edward Slattery is also named as a defendant in the suit, which seeks more than $10,000 in damages. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:02 AM

• Elior Chen to stay in detainment; Supreme Court rejects appeal

  [~ 2000s "Rabbi" Chen/Hen*] - Judaist. Cruelty to "correct children's souls."       
   YNet News, November 04, 2009
   ISRAEL -- The Supreme Court rejected the appeal of the "abusive rabbi" Elior Chen against the extension of his remand. Chen's counsel claimed that his remand was extended on the basis of an attempted murder charge that did not appear in Brazil's decision to extradite him to Israel.

• Lawyer for N.S. bishop asks for more disclosure

  [1983 and 2009 Sep 15 - Bp Raymond Lahey* (69)] - RCC. 1983 - Child porn. 2009 Sep 15 - Importing child pornography.                  
   CTV, The Canadian Press, Date: Wednesday Nov. 4, 2009
   OTTAWA, Canada – A judge has put off the case of a Roman Catholic bishop facing child-pornography charges.
   A lawyer for Raymond Lahey has asked for more disclosure of evidence on the charges of possessing and importing child pornography.
   The Nova Scotia bishop was charged Sept. 25 -- 10 days after he was detained and questioned by Canada Border Services Agency officers at Ottawa airport. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:09 AM

• Diocese hit with 21 new claims; Sex abuse victims respond

   
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests November 03, 2009
   SPOKANE (WA) -- Even now, after decades of cover up and years of promised 'reform,' church officials are still hiring high priced defense lawyers to argue they need alleged clergy sex crimes to remain secret. Shame on them.
   These new victims stepping forward confirms what we've always said about churches exploiting the Chapter 11 process - it's just immoral and impractical to try to force deeply wounded victims of horrific child sex crimes to meet some arbitrary deadline that's set up to benefit the wrong-doers. Traumatized victims step forward when they can, not when church bureaucrats and lawyers try to tell them they must. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:42 AM, November 04, 2009

• Four Amish bishops charged in Webster County …

  [4 bishops] - Amish.  
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, November 03, 2009
   WEBSTER COUNTY (MO) -- We are grateful that law enforcement has held the bishops in the Amish community accountable for their failure to report these horrific crimes. We must give wrong-doers no added incentives to hide their wrongdoing. On the contrary, we must make sure our justice system rewards victims and whistleblowers, no matter when they find the ability and courage to understand and report crimes.
   We hope that this message will encourage anyone who is being sexually abused by a member of the clergy to come forward and get the help they need and deserve. That anyone who saw or suspected these crimes will contact law enforcement. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:38 AM, November 04, 2009

• Is the Diocese of Fairbanks Racist?

  - RCC.    
   Second Rape: The Diocese of Fairbanks and Sexual Abuse, November 04, 2009
   ALASKA -- We’ll start with the numbers:
   No other diocese has a victim pool that is almost 100% Alaska Native/Native American.
   Here is the average compensation for mostly white sex abuse victims in the other dioceses that chose to file for bankruptcy protection:
   Archdiocese of Portland: $400,000
   Diocese of Spokane: $400,000
   Diocese of Tucson: $500,000
   Diocese of San Diego: $1.4 million
   Diocese of Davenport: $230,000
   And finally -- drumroll, please -- Diocese of Fairbanks: $5,500 Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:08 AM, November 04, 2009

• Bishop Lahey in court today; warrant alleges abundant homosexual child porn on laptop

  [1983 and 2009 Sep 15 - Bp Raymond Lahey* (69)] - RCC. 1983 - Child porn. 2009 Sep 15 - Importing child pornography.                  
   Catholic Culture, November 04, 2009
   CANADA -- Bishop Raymond Lahey, who resigned in September after Ottawa airport security found child pornography on his computer, will appear in court today. The Canadian Press reports:
   Police say they found hundreds of files and dozens of videos on Lahey's laptop after he arrived in Ottawa on a flight from the United Kingdom, many of them showing young males engaged in sex acts. Police warrants say some images show boys as young as eight, though none of the allegations made in the search warrants have been proven in court … Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:06 AM, November 04, 2009

• More Charges Filed In Webster County Sexual Abuse Inves…

  [2000-07 Four leaders]- Amish. 2 teenagers.  
   Ozarks First, with video, Reported by Jeremy Stevens, Tuesday, Nov 3, 2009
   MISSOURI -- More charges have been filed in a sexual abuse investigation in Webster County.
   Four Amish church leaders face misdemeanor charges for not reporting allegations of sexual crimes by one of their members.
   It claims Fannie Schwartz, Johnny's Wife told these men about her husband having sexual relations with two people under that age of 17. This was supposedly happening between 2000 and 2007. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:03 AM

• Amish men charged with failing to report abuse

  [2000-07 Four bishops*] - Amish. 2 teen girls.
   News-Leader, by Amos Bridges, November 4, 2009
   WEBSTER COUNTY (MO) -- Webster County prosecutors have charged four Amish church leaders with failing to report a congregation member's alleged abuse of two young girls.
   The four men, all bishops in Amish churches in the county, are charged with the class A misdemeanor of violating Missouri's mandated reporter law, which requires teachers, medical professionals and others to report potential abuse to the Missouri Department of Social Service's Children's Division.
   Authorities say the men were aware for at least six months that Johnny Schwartz, a member of one of Webster County's six Amish churches, allegedly had been molesting two female relatives. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:53 AM, November 04, 2009

• Abused children case may drag on

  [1972-90 St William's staff* (De La Salle Brothers] - RCC. 142 boys.  
   Yorkshire Post, By Rob Waugh, Published Date: November 04, 2009
   UNITED KINGDOM -- THE long battle to win compensation for the children abused at St William's Community Home, Market Weighton, between York and Hull, could yet run for at least another 12 months, despite yesterday's court ruling finding the Middlesbrough Diocese liable for its management.
   Judge Hawkesworth, QC's, decision to grant leave to appeal against his judgement, which followed an exhaustive trawl through the complex management history of the home, is likely to mean more legal wrangling before lawyers go through a final total of 142 individual claims to finalise damages.
   The Catholic Church has previously been accused of "prolonging the agony" of the victims by the claimants' solicitor but the De La Salle Brotherhood will certainly feel vindicated in fighting its corner after being found to be free of liability by the judge. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:48 AM, November 04, 2009

• High court refuses to stop release of clergy abuse suit records

   
   Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, November 04, 2009
   BRIDGEPORT (CT) -- The Supreme Court on Monday refused to hear an appeal by a Connecticut Roman Catholic diocese to stop the release of records related to sexual-abuse lawsuits against its priests.
   The Associated Press reported that the Court denied the Diocese of Bridgeport's appeal to overturn the Connecticut high court's order to unseal more than 12,000 pages of documents from 23 lawsuits.
   Publications including The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Washington Post and the Hartford Courant requested to see the documents. The New York Times intervened in the case in 2002. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:41 AM, November 04, 2009

• Church compensates abuse victim

  [2 unnamed priests] - RCC. 5-figure sum. Child.  
   BBC News, November 04, 2009
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- The Catholic Church has paid a five-figure sum to a victim of clerical sexual abuse in Northern Ireland.
   The case was taken against the diocese of Down and Connor and was settled out of court.
   The victim was sexually abused as a child at the hands of two priests. Both men have since died. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:39 AM

• UPDATED:Four Amish bishops charged with failing to report sexual abuse

  [2000-07 Mr Johnny Schwartz] - Amish religion. 2 young female relatives. [2000-07 Bishops - Christian J.F. Schwartz, 40; Jacob P. Schwartz, 79; Emmanuel M.S. Eicher, 44; and Peter M. Eicher, 59] - Amish. Failing to report to police.  
   Marshfield Mail, By Mark Lile and Nicholas W. Inman, markl@marshfieldmail , nicholasi@marshfieldmail.com , Tuesday, November 3, 2009
   WEBSTER COUNTY (MO) -- Charges were filed Tuesday morning against four officials from the Amish community for failure to report alleged sexual abuse by Johnny A. Schwartz, a member of the Amish community in southern Webster County.
   Charged with failing to report a sexual crime against a child under 17 years of age were Christian J.F. Schwartz, 40; Jacob P. Schwartz, 79; Emmanuel M.S. Eicher, 44; and Peter M. Eicher, 59. According to online court records, each was charged with one count of the Class A misdemeanor.
   Webster County Sheriff Roye Cole and Prosecuting Attorney Danette Padgett held a press conference Tuesday morning to announce the charges to the media, and to talk about the case that has evolved following allegations of sexual abuse by Johnny A. Schwartz and charges against his wife, Fannie J. Schwartz, for not reporting that Johnny A. Schwartz was sexually abusing two young female relatives. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:36 AM, November 04, 2009

• Diocese settles abuse case out of court

  - RCC.  
   RTE News, Wednesday, November 4, 2009
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- The Catholic Diocese of Down and Connor has paid a five-figure sum to a victim of clerical sexual abuse from Co Antrim.
   The case was settled out of court, according to the victim's solicitor.
   The victim says she was sexually abused as a child 50 years ago at the hands of two priests. Both men have since died. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:33 AM, November 04, 2009]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Wed November 04, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Thu November 05, 2009 edition:

• Child sex case arrest leaves Leland church without leader

  [James T. Johnson -NEW* (46)] - "Olive Branch Church." Girl.  
   Star News, By Amanda Greene, Amanda.Greene § StarNewsOnline com , November 05, 2009
   LELAND (NC) -- When the members of The Olive Branch Church meet tonight for their regular Thursday night mid-week service at their Leland church, they will do so without the church's founder, James T. Johnson.
   He was arrested Tuesday and charged with three counts of indecent liberties with a child, two counts of first-degree sex offense with a child and one count of attempted first-degree rape of a child, according to the Brunswick County Sheriff's office. Johnson, 46, will have a bond hearing Friday in Brunswick District Court. According to the Brunswick County District Attorney's office, the alleged victim was a seventh-grade girl, and the alleged abuse happened over a period of time.
   Johnson's lawyer, Robert Epstein could not comment on the case Thursday. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:17 PM, November 05, 2009

• Middlesbrough Diocese liable for payouts for abuse of children at St William’s Community Home, Market Weighton

  [1972-90 St William's staff* (De La Salle Brothers)] - RCC. £8m possibility. 142 boys.  
   The Northern Echo, By Lucy Richardson, November 05, 2009
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A CATHOLIC diocese faces an £8m compensation bill after a judge ruled it liable for running a former children’s home at the centre of an abuse scandal spanning 30 years.
   There are 142 alleged victims of sexual and physical abuse from St William’s Community Home, in Market Weighton, near York, who could now seek damages from the Middlesbrough Diocese.
   It would result in the biggest historical abuse claim against the Catholic church in England. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:48 AM, November 05, 2009

• Mexico: Priest dismissed for holding mass during swine flu epidemic

  - RCC.  
   Momento 24, November 05, 2009
   MEXICO -- In Mexico, a priest was dismissed for disobedience and simony, and among his "serious misconduct" are having celebrated Mass during the health crisis caused by the swine flu epidemic last May.
   The decision was taken by the Metropolitan Archbishop of Tijuana, Rafael Romo Muñoz. The suspended priest was identified as Raymundo Figueroa Perez, who was in charge of the diocese of Playas de Rosarito. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:33 PM, November 05, 2009

• Market Weighton abuse victim hails ruling

  [1972-90 St William's staff* (De La Salle Brothers)] - RCC. 142 boys.  
   Hull Daily Mail, November 05, 2009
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A children's home abuse victim who is eligible for part of a £8m compensation payout today insisted that 'it was never about the money'.
   Rape victim Graham Baverstock spoke out after a judge ruled that the Roman Catholic Middlesbrough Diocese was responsible for running an East Riding children's home where 142 boys were abused.
   The boys were sexually assaulted at St William's Community Home in Market Weighton between 1972 and 1990 in one of the country's biggest abuse cases. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:50 AM, November 05, 2009

• Is the Diocese of Fairbanks Racist? Part II

  - Amerindians get less than others.    
   Second Rape: The Diocese of Fairbanks and Sexual Abuse; November 06, 2009
   ALASKA -- We have already discussed how high-ranking priests in the Diocese of Fairbanks called Alaska Natives "fairly loose" on sexual matters.
   As if that were not bad enough --
   We have two new stories -- The Village of St. Mary’s and the highly questionable (and possibly illegal) Diocese of Fairbanks Endowment. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:23 PM, Nov 5, 2009]

• Murder of Nun Marks the 11th Death and 40th Violent Incident in Christian Organizations This Year

  - Christians being murdered, robbed, in USA  
   Earned Media Nov. 5, 2009
   CINCINNATI, Ohio, /Christian Newswire/ -- By all accounts, the murdered Catholic Nun in New Mexico was worried about crime and her safety; she was killed on October 31st and her killer(s) are still at large.
   "It is very sad to see another incident occur in the Christian community and another life lost. This isn't a 'big headline story,' but it deserves the attention of church leaders nonetheless." stated Jeff Hawkins, executive director of the Christian Security Network (CSN) ( www.christian security network.org )
   The Christian Security Network has tracked over 950 crimes against Christian churches so far this year including 40 violent incidents, 1 child kidnapping, 1 attempted child kidnapping, 85 arsons, and over 600 burglaries resulting in over $20 million in losses. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:51 PM, November 05, 2009

• St. Louis priest faces new sex charge

  [2009 July 29 - Fr James Grady* (57)] - RCC. E-mail "sting" for teen girl.  
   St. Louis Post-Dispatch, By Robert Patrick, November 05, 2009
   ST. LOUIS (MO) -- A St. Louis priest already accused of trying to pay for sex with a 16-year-old girl was indicted Thursday on new charges, including a child pornography charge.
   The superseding indictment handed up Thursday afternoon accuses the Rev. James P. Grady of possessing three pornographic images of young girls. One of the photos also had a nude male in it, the indictment says. Prosecutors also added a felony charge of "coercion and enticement."
   Grady was first indicted July 30 on a felony charge of attempting to obtain a minor for a commercial sex act after being caught up in a sex sting being run by the FBI and police from St. Louis County and Maryland Heights. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:48 PM, November 05, 2009 [LOOK BACK: July 29-31, 2009.]

• Priest faces three felonies for allegedly seeking sex with teenaged girls

  [2009 July 29 - Fr James Grady* (57)] - RCC. E-mail "sting" for teen girl.
   KWMU, by Rachel Lippmann, Nov 05, 2009
   ST. LOUIS (MO), (St. Louis Public Radio) -- A former priest at St. Raphael the Archangel Catholic Church in south St. Louis has been charged with three felonies for allegedly seeking sex with an underage girl.
   James Patrick Grady was one of three men picked up in an FBI sting in late July. He allegedly responded to an advertisement set up by the FBI offering girls for sexual activity, and set up a meeting with a 16-year-old. He was arrested when he showed up to the meeting location.
   The indictment issued Thursday also says law enforcement found child pornography on Grady's computer. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:43 PM, November 05, 2009

• COGIC bishop addresses convocation relocation, sexual misconduct

  - 30 allegations against the Church of God in Christ.
   The Commercial Appeal, By Lindsay Melvin, November 05, 2009
   MEMPHIS (TN) -- The head of the fourth-largest protestant denomination in the United States, Presiding Bishop Charles E. Blake, spoke to reporters today about the convocation’s move to St. Louis in 2010, his urban initiative and the church’s stance on sexual misconduct by church leaders.
   Offered a more enticing convention package by St. Louis, after more than 100 years of celebrating convocation in Memphis, COGIC will head to the Gateway City next year. …
   The attention the site has received is out of proportion, considering there are "hundreds of thousands" of COGIC leaders, Blake said.
   "Thirty allegations of sexual misbehavior is too many, but it should be looked at in that context," he said.
   COGIC has had sexual abuse policies in place since 1992 and has a zero-tolerance policy, which is enforced by a sexual misconduct review board, the bishop said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:37 PM, November 05, 2009

• Crossing the line

  [1983 and 2009 Sep 15 - Bp Raymond Lahey* (69)] - RCC. 1983 - Child porn. 2009 Sep 15 - Importing, distributing child pornography.                  
   Maclean's, by Philip Slayton, Thursday, November 5, 2009
   CANADA -- Every day, thousands of Canadians who have been outside the country return, crossing the border back into Canada. Many carry laptop computers. Just about anything might be stored on them–emails, financial information, tax returns, health records, trade secrets, a history of Web searches, pornography. A look inside by a border official–and publicity about what is found–could ruin careers, marriages, lives.
   But the contents of our personal laptops aren’t safe at the border. Agents of the Canada Border Services Agency have almost untrammelled authority to search your computer. They have more power than ordinary police officers. They don’t need a search warrant. They don’t need reasonable belief that you are committing a crime. A vague suspicion that you may be up to no good is enough, and maybe even that is not required. Constitutional protection against unreasonable search and seizure (found in Section 8 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms) won’t help you. You’re pretty much defenceless.
   This state of affairs was recently brought home in a dramatic way. According to a police search warrant, on Sept. 15, Raymond Lahey, the Catholic bishop of Antigonish, arrived at Ottawa airport on a flight from Britain, travelling alone. He went to a Canada Border Service counter for the usual screening. The agent, Venessa Fairey, looked at his passport. He’d been in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand, known sources of child pornography. Fairey asked Lahey if he had a laptop. Lahey hesitated for a moment, avoiding eye contact. Then he said yes, his voice cracking. Fairey flagged him for secondary inspection. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:34 PM, November 05, 2009
   [COMMENT: Does this writer think that child pornographers and terrorists ought to be free of searches? ENDS.]

• Group looking for other victims of abuse by former Quincy priest

  - RCC.  
   Quincy News, by Bob Gough, editor, QuincyNews.org , November 05, 2009
   QUINCY (IL) -- A director of an organization advocating for victims of sexual abuse by Catholic priests is looking for other people who may have been victims of abuse in Quincy.
   Judy Block Jones is with SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests), a 9,000 member organization that urges Catholics to come forward if they have been abused.
   Jones was in Quincy just weeks after a New York Times story revealved that a priest formerly stationed in Quincy fathered a child with a woman who was then living in Quincy during a retreat at the Our Lady of Angels Seminary, now known as Quincy University's North Campus. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:32 PM, November 05, 2009

• Former Pastor Avoids Jail but is Banished from Church

  [1993-96 Dale Giffin* (59)*] - Lutheran. Female.
   WYTV, November 05, 2009
   OHIO -- As Dale Giffin sat with his lawyer, and with his wife and sons just a few feet away, his victim stood before Judge Jim Evans. She asked not to be photographed but read a 25-minute statement detailing her involvement with the man who was her pastor for three decades.
   Giffin was indicted back in February -- accused of repeatedly raping the victim while she was a member of Zion Lutheran Church in Cornersburg. The charges dated back to 1993, but the victim claims the abuse began when she was just 15. In court, the victim described her first sexual encounter, saying Giffin "reached over and put his hand on my thigh, and he leaned into me and he kissed me on the lips."
   The gallery included dozens of church members, some shaking their heads in disbelief as the woman claimed her sexual encounters with Giffin took place all around the Zion Lutheran property. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:29 PM, November 05, 2009 [LOOK BACK: Feb 19, 2009]

• Church claims impotence as Statutes are Creatures of Public Policy, then fights 11 entities to 1 to keep SOL's unfair as possible

  - RCC.
   City of Angels, By Kay Ebeling, ~ November 05, 2009
   CALIFORNIA -- Using teams of attorneys, eleven corporate entities of the Catholic Church are fighting a lawsuit by one family in California all the way to the state's highest court. The bishops are expending endless legal hours and Church resources to get a California appellate court decision "de-published," as letting the Quarry decision stand would open the door for dozens more legal claims against corporate entities that allow child sex crimes to take place.
   In briefs quoted below, the Catholic Church argues to the high court that statutes of limitations are just "creatures of public policy that may be disappointing to plaintiffs," and "are unfair because they bar potentially valid claims," but what can you do…
   At the same time, the Church uses teams of attorneys to keep statutes of limitations as unfair as possible, in California, as well as other states. The Church is able to lobby state lawmakers and file mountains of legal briefs to justices. The Church can fight changes in law that would help get settlements for crime victims of the Church, who are unable to get help by going to the Church itself. Genuine pastoral outreach to adult victims of pedophile priests appears to be totally off the Church’s agenda. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:19 PM, November 05, 2009

• A dedicated few remain vigilant to protect children after sex offender is ordained

  -[2000s "City of Refuge" worship centre]
   WHAS, with video, by Rachel Platt, ~ November 05, 2009
   Louisville, Ky. (WHAS11) - Another voice is weighing in on whether a convicted sex offender - a child molester - should be an ordained minister in Louisville.
   This newest voice is a long time advocate for victims and saw firsthand the damaging effects of clergy abuse.
   Richard Lauersdorf is a man on a mission. Twice a week he carries signs of protest in front of the City of Refuge worship center in Germantown. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:12 PM, November 05, 2009

• Diocesan Employee Accused of Theft

  - RCC.
   KCRG, ~ November 05, 2009
   DUBUQUE, IOWA (AP) - The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dubuque is investigating allegations that an employee stole up to $60,000 intended for a school tuition program.
   The money is tied to the church's scrip program, which involves gift cards that are redeemable at local retailers. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:38 PM, November 05, 2009

• Former area priest waives porn charges

  [2008 Dec and 2009 Oct 19 - Fr Robert Timchak* (43)] - RCC. Computer child porn, tampering with evidence.
   Standard Speaker, ~ November 05, 2009
   PENNSYLVANIA -- A Diocese of Scranton priest accused of possessing computer files depicting naked underage boys waived his preliminary hearing Wednesday.
   The Rev. Robert Timchak, 43, most recently of 101 St. Vincent Drive, Milford, is charged with 17 counts of possessing child pornography, criminal use of a communication facility and tampering with physical evidence Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:36 PM, November 05, 2009

• Church records

  - Baptists.
   Stop Baptist Predators, November 05, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- He complained that I offered only media reports and insurance data.
   "The greater number of sex abuse victims and abusers never come to public attention via either set of data," he said. "Church records" are where the greatest number of priest abusers can be found, he insisted.
   "I could not possibly agree more," I answered. "The greater number of sex abuse victims and abusers never come to public attention" via media reports or insurance data. "But among Baptists, there are no church records being kept and so the possibility of data via church records simply doesn't exist." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:28 PM

• California bishops offer support to U.S. women religious

  - RCC.
   National Catholic Reporter (USA), By Thomas C. Fox, Nov. 03, 2009
   CALIFORNIA -- The California bishops voted last week to pass a statement of support on behalf of U.S. women religious who are facing a Vatican investigation.
   Word of the support came in a letter dated Nov. 2 written by Los Angeles Cardinal Roger Mahony.
   In the letter addressed "Dear Sisters" the cardinal writes:
   "We are all aware of the special anxieties which surround our women religious these days," wrote Mahony, "and I am writing to offer you my prayers of gratitude and my support for all of your members. The bishops of California met last week and passed a statement of support for all of you, and I am pleased to send a copy of that statement to you." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:41 AM, November 05, 2009
   [COMMENT: Are the U.S. bishops gently opposing the Pope? ENDS]

• Area priest headed for court over child porn

  [2008 Dec and 2009 Oct 19 - Fr Robert Timchak*] - RCC. Computer child porn, tampering with evidence.
   Times Leader By Rory Sweeney rsweeney@timesleader.com , November 05, 2009
   PENNSYLVANIA -- The Rev. Robert Timchak, known to many in the region as "Father Bob," Wednesday waived his right to a preliminary hearing on charges related to possessing male child pornography on his computers at the St. Vincent Church in Pike County, according to his attorney, Joseph Petorak
   The hearing was to be before District Judge Alan Cooper in Shohola. Timchak, a Roman Catholic priest who has spoken out against the church as a columnist for The Times Leader, faces 18 felony counts relating to having images of males in various stages of nudity performing sexual acts, at least 18 of which were identified by a medical doctor as depicting males younger than 18 years old.
   He also faces a misdemeanor charge for attempting to delete some of the evidence. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:29 AM, November 05, 2009

• Prosecutors fight relief move for priest

  [Fr Gerald Robinson] - RCC.
   Toledo Blade, By DAVID YONKE, November 05, 2009
   TOLEDO (OH) -- Lucas County prosecutors are seeking to have Toledo priest Gerald Robinson's latest legal efforts dismissed, calling the convicted killer a "mythomaniac" who fabricates while failing to address constitutional issues as required by law.
   The 71-year-old Toledo diocesan priest is serving a 15-years-to-life sentence at a southern Ohio prison after being convicted in 2006 for the brutal murder of Sister Margaret Ann Pahl in 1980.
   Sister Margaret Ann, 71, was choked nearly to death and then was stabbed 31 times in the chest, neck, and face on April 5, 1980 - Holy Saturday - in the sacristy of the former Mercy Hospital. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:27 AM, November 05, 2009

• CORRECTING and REPLACING First AME Church of Los Angeles Files Extortion and Conspiracy Lawsuit against Former Church Employee Brenda Lamothe

  - First AME Church.
   Reuters, November 05, 2009
   LOS ANGELES (CA) --(Business Wire)-- First paragraph, date of lawsuit filing should read Tuesday afternoon, Nov. 3 (sted Wednesday afternoon, Nov. 3).
   The corrected release reads:
   FIRST AME CHURCH OF LOS ANGELES FILES EXTORTION AND CONSPIRACY LAWSUIT AGAINST FORMER CHURCH EMPLOYEE BRENDA LAMOTHE
   The Steward Board of First AME Church of Los Angeles said today that its lawsuit against former church employee Brenda Lamothe was filed early Tuesday afternoon, Nov. 3, after Ms. Lamothe demanded money from the Church and well before she publicly leveled what church leaders consider to be false and spurious accusations against Senior Pastor John J. Hunter.
   The lawsuit FAME, et al. v. Lamothe - LASC Case No.: LC087455 was filed in Superior Court in Los Angeles. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:16 AM, November 05, 2009

• Bishop facing child-porn charges gets new court date

  [1983 and 2009 Sep 15 - Bp Raymond Lahey* (69)] - RCC. 1983 - Child porn. 2009 Sep 15 - Importing child pornography.                  
   Montreal Gazette, ~ November 05, 2009
   OTTAWA, CANADA – Roman Catholic Bishop Raymond Lahey has a new date for his child-pornography case to continue in Ottawa criminal court.
   In a routine hearing Wednesday morning, Lahey's lawyers appeared on his behalf and had a date set for another appearance on Dec. 16.
   Several such proceedings and postponements are common as criminal charges move toward trial. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:14 AM, November 05, 2009

• Pedophile ex-priest loses bid to have court proceedings kept secret

  [McCormack]  
   Chicago Tribune, By Manya A. Brachear, November 5, 2009
   CHICAGO (IL) -- A Cook County Circuit Court judge on Wednesday denied a request from a convicted former priest to seal records and keep private most of the court proceedings on whether he should be committed under a state law for sex offenders.
   In his ruling, Judge Dennis Porter said the process to determine whether Daniel McCormack should be confined to a state treatment facility under the Sexually Violent Persons Commitment Act does not qualify for the same protection as a mental health proceeding.
   The Illinois attorney general and the Cook County state's attorney filed a joint petition to have him committed to an institution in September when McCormack, 41, came up for parole. He served more than two years of a five-year prison sentence for abusing five boys in the rectory of St. Agatha Roman Catholic Church. He was removed from the priesthood in 2007 by Vatican decree. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:11 AM, November 05, 2009

• Vicar denies 11 child sex assaults

  [1973-87 Canon James Wilson* (61)] - Church of England (i.e., Anglican). 11 charges, girls and boys.   
   The Herald, Thursday, November 05, 2009
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A VICAR and former primary school teacher has appeared in court to deny five further offences of indecently assaulting children.
   The Rev Canon James Andrew Christopher Wilson, the Rector and Rural Dean of Calstock, now faces a total of 11 charges of indecency against boys and girls between 1973 and 1980.
   The 61-year-old has indicated not guilty pleas to all the allegations. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:09 AM, November 05, 2009 [LOOK BACK: Oct 14, 2009; ~ Sep 16, 2009; Aug 26, 2009.]

• Document refers to secret church archive with abuse files

  [2008 Archbishop Weakland] - RCC. (Sexual assault payout.) Secret files, Yes in 1993, No in 2008.  
   Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, By Annysa Johnson, Posted Nov. 4, 2009
   MILWAUKEE (WI) -- Records involving at least one sex-offender priest were maintained in so-called archives at the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, according to a document released Wednesday as part of a pending lawsuit. That would call into question testimony by retired Archbishop Rembert G. Weakland, who dismissed the notion as "antique" and "Old Testament" in a deposition last year.
   "I've heard about it, but I've never seen those files, and I don't know if the Archdiocese of Milwaukee has such things," Weakland said in response to a question about "sub secreto or confidential files."
   That appears to contradict earlier testimony by Weakland in a 1993 deposition in which he acknowledged the existence of such files and newly released archdiocesan documents - including one addressed to Weakland - that reference the archives. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:56 AM, November 05, 2009

• Archbishop Weakland apparently contradicted himself in depositions on secret archives

  [2008 Archbishop Weakland] - RCC. (Sexual assault payout.) Secret files, Yes in 1993, No in 2008.
   Catholic Culture November 05, 2009
   MILWAUKEE (WI) -- Archbishop Rembert Weakland, whose 25-year tenure as archbishop of Milwaukee ended after the revelation that he had used $450,000 in archdiocesan funds to settle a man’s sexual assault claim, has apparently contradicted himself on the existence of diocesan secret archives where some documents related to clerical sexual abuse were allegedly stored.
   According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Archbishop Weakland in a 2008 deposition said, "I've heard about it, but I've never seen those files, and I don't know if the Archdiocese of Milwaukee has such things." He mocked the idea of a secret archive as "antique" and "medieval." However, the text of a 1993 deposition has come to light in which Archbishop Weakland acknowledged the existence of the files. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:52 AM, November 05, 2009

• York's Roman Catholic diocese may appeal against High Court decision

  [1972-90 Middlesbrough Diocese] - RCC. £8m possibility. 142 boys. [1972-90 St William's staff* (De La Salle Brothers)] - RCC. 142 boys.  
   The Press, By Mike Laycock, 8:22am Thursday November 5, 2009
   UNITED KINGDOM -- YORK’S Roman Catholic diocese may appeal against a High Court decision which could leave it facing a bill for millions of pounds.
   Judge Simon Hawkesworth QC, sitting in Leeds, ruled that the Middlesbrough Diocese, which includes the York area, was liable for running a former children’s home in East Yorkshire where scores of children were alleged to have been victims of physical and sexual abuse.
   He decided that responsibility for St William’s Community Home in Market Weighton fell on the diocese rather than the De La Salle Brothers, a Catholic order of lay teachers. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:45 AM, November 05, 2009

• Child-porn charges against priest, who briefly taught at Notre Dame, go to court

  [2008 Dec and 2009 Oct 19 - Fr Robert Timchak*] - RCC. Computer child porn, tampering with evidence.  
   Pocono Record, {The criminal complaint}, By Michael Sadowski, November 05, 2009
   SHOHOLA (PA) – A priest and onetime teacher at Notre Dame Elementary in East Stroudsburg accused of having child pornography on his computer will be headed to court after he waived his preliminary hearing Wednesday.
   The Rev. Robert Timchak, 43, who has been an assistant pastor in Pike County for two years after working throughout the Diocese of Scranton since 1992, is charged with 17 counts of sexual abuse of children for having explicit pictures of underage boys on his personal computer. The police affidavit accuses Timchak of downloading the photos from two Internet porn sites. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:42 AM, November 05, 2009

• Sex-abuse lawsuit down to one claim

  - RCC.
   The News Journal, By SEAN O'SULLIVAN, November 5, 2009
   WILMINGTON (DE) -- One of the few civil lawsuits seeking damages for alleged abuse by a priest that was not affected by the recent bankruptcy filing by the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington continued to a possible trial this month in New Castle County Superior Court.
   Judge Calvin L. Scott Jr. held an hour-long hearing Wednesday where he heard arguments on several issues that have to be resolved before trial on Nov. 16.
   Scott, however, did not indicate how he will rule on a key motion that could end the case before it goes before a jury. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:39 AM, November 05, 2009

• Judge orders lien on Burlington diocese's assets

  - RCC.
   Burlington Free Press, By Sam Hemingway, Thursday, November 5, 2009
   VERMONT -- A Burlington judge has ordered a lien to be placed on a portion of the state Roman Catholic diocese's investment portfolio to cover the $2.2 million a jury awarded last month to a former altar boy molested by a priest in the 1970s.
   Judge Helen Toor signed the lien order last week. Tuesday, a Chittenden Superior Court clerk sent a note to the church portfolio's manager at Chittenden Bank requesting that $2,728,000 be set aside to pay the verdict, pending the outcome of any appeals in the case.
   "You must retain that property for satisfaction of the final judgment in this case," the notice to the bank said. The figure includes the $2.2 million award and $528,000 in estimated interest charges if the Oct. 9 jury verdict is appealed to the Vermont Supreme Court. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:36 AM, November 05, 2009]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Thu November 05, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Fri November 06, 2009 edition:

• SEX PASTOR JAILED

  [? 2000s Rev. Samuel Ntsebele -NEW*] - Christian. Girl (14).  
   The Voice, By Calistus Bosaletswe, ~ November 06, 2009
   BOTSWANA -- A self-styled ‘celebrity’ priest, who claimed he could perform miracles, was sentenced to 10 years behind bars for defiling an underage schoolgirl.
   Samuel Boitumelo Ntsebele, 23, was convicted after admitting to having sex with a 14-year-old member of his congregation. There was a brief scuffle in court as excited members of the Eloyi Church in Gaborone jostled towards the disgraced pastor after the magistrate passed sentence.
   Amid chaotic scenes at the Extension II Magistrate’s Court in Gaborone, disgraced pastor Samuel Ntsebele was lead away to begin his 10-year-jail sentence. He was still muttering that he thought his ‘victim’ was older. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:59 AM, November 06, 2009]

• One Paedophile Priest in Prison, One Sought with Warrant

  [2 unnamed priests - NEW*] - Christian.  
   STA, November 6, 2009
   DOB, Slovenia, (STA) -- The former parish priest of Ormoz who has been found guilty on three counts of sexual assault started serving his sentence at the Dob prison this week. Meanwhile, police have issued an international warrant against the first priest ever to be sentenced for child sex abuse in Slovenia, daily Vecer reported on Friday. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:50 AM, November 06, 2009

• All God’s Children

  - Documovie.  
   Catholic Exchange, by Mark Earley, November 6th, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- In the new documentary All God’s Children , there’s a lot of talk about sacrifice. Near the beginning of the film, Dr. Bob Fetherlin, vice president of International Ministries for the Christian and Missionary Alliance, says, "The advance of the Kingdom of God historically has always involved some suffering and hardship…We know that there will be sacrifice involved."
   Then we hear two more people, Beverly Shellrude Thompson and Rich Darr, talking about sacrifice. But their perspective is very different. Thompson, Darr, and others in the film say that they themselves were sacrificed when they were children. Sent to a Christian and Missionary Alliance boarding school while their parents served as missionaries in Africa, they claim they were physically, sexually, emotionally, and spiritually abused by their house parents and teachers.
   All God’s Children tells the devastating story of at least two decades of abuse that went on at Mamou Alliance Academy in Guinea. Missionary parents in the denomination were required to send their children to boarding schools at an early age. Today, some of them can’t talk about their time at those schools without weeping. They recall beatings, molestation, and other "sadistic" treatment. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:35 PM, November 06, 2009]

• Gauteng Legislature to tackle Central Methodist Church crisis

  [2008-09 Unnamed teacher* and perhaps others] - Methodist. Zimbabwean refugee girls and women, and boys. 6 - 20 cases.    
   Eyewitness News, by Micel Schnehage, ~ November 06, 2009
   SOUTH AFRICA -- The Gauteng Legislature is to hold an extraordinary meeting on Friday to discuss the crisis at the Central Methodist Church.
   The Gauteng Portfolio Committee on Social Development and Health visited the facility a week ago, recommending that it be closed down.
   Around 3000 people, mostly Zimbabwean refuge seekers, are being housed there. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:13 AM, November 06, 2009

• Abuse campaigner gets award from President

  - Christine Buckley named Volunteer of the Year.  
   Irish Independent, By Allison Bray, Friday November 06 2009
   IRELAND -- OUTSPOKEN abuse campaigner Christine Buckley was honoured by President Mary McAleese last night after being named Ireland's Volunteer of the Year.
   The survivor of industrial school abuse and co-founder of the Aislinn Eduation and Support Centre for survivors of institutional abuse was chosen for her tireless efforts fighting for the rights of those abused as children while in care.
   Mrs McAleese said Ms Buckley represented "a constituency of men, women and children whose lives were cruelly and appallingly skewed out of shape because of their experience of institutional abuse". Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:35 AM, November 06, 2009

• OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

  - RCC.      
   Vatican Information Service, ~ November 06, 2009
   VATICAN CITY -- Fr. Vincent Nguyen of the clergy of the archdiocese of Toronto, Canada, adjunct judicial vicar and vice chancellor, and Fr. William Terrence McGrattan of the clergy of the diocese of London, Canada, rector of the Saint Peter major seminary, as auxiliaries of the archdiocese of Toronto (area 13,000, population 5,556,000, Catholics 1,889,000, priests 835, permanent deacons 110, religious 1,176). Bishop-elect Nguyen was born in Vietnam in 1966 and ordained a priest in 1988. Bishop-elect McGrattan was born in London, Canada in 1956 and ordained a priest in 1987. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:55 AM, November 06, 2009

• Paraguay leader sacks army head

  [Lugo]  
   BBC News, ~ November 06, 2009
   PARAGUAY -- Paraguay's president has sacked the head of the armed forces, after warning some officers were plotting a coup against him.
   The commander has been replaced by a general seen as more loyal to President Fernando Lugo.
   Two days ago he also replaced the heads of the army, navy and air force, after warning of what he called "pockets of coup-plotters" in the military. …
   Support for Mr Lugo, a former Catholic bishop, has been damaged by recent allegations that he fathered the children of three women during his time as a priest.
   In May he admitted responsibility for one of the children but denies the other allegations. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:41 PM, November 06, 2009

• Is The Diocese of Fairbanks Racist? Part III: The Video

  - RCC.    
   Second Rape: The Diocese of Fairbanks and Sexual Abuse November 06, 2009
   ALASKA -- Grab your popcorn! We now have the video deposition of Fr. William "Lom" Loyens. You remember him: He is the well-known Jesuit anthropologist – and a priest who worked closely with the Bishop of Fairbanks – who said that Alaska Natives were "fairly loose on sexual matters."
   We got the 2004 deposition video here. Be prepared – Loyens is a major creep.
   With guys like this consulting Kettler and creating the entire pastoral attitude, it’s no wonder that Fairbanks would offer Alaska Natives a fraction of what white victims received. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:30 PM, November 06, 2009

• Deal puts off 8 abuse cases against parishes

  - RCC.  
   The News Journal, By BETH MILLER, November 6, 2009
   WILMINGTON (DE) -- Plaintiffs in the eight child sexual abuse cases that were put on hold in Superior Court when the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington filed for bankruptcy last month agreed today not to pursue claims against the three parishes involved in those cases until the diocese’s Chapter 11 reorganization process is complete.
   All eight cases involved claims related to former priest Francis G. DeLuca. The first of the eight jury trials was to begin Oct. 19, but the diocese filed for bankruptcy the night before – putting all of the cases it faced on hold. Plaintiffs’ attorneys then argued that they should be able to continue their cases against the three parishes involved in those eight claims, because none of the parishes had filed for bankruptcy.
   But today, attorney Thomas Neuberger – whose firm represents all eight plaintiffs – reached agreement with the diocese that his clients would not pursue the parishes while the Chapter 11 process was unfolding. In exchange, the diocese agreed to release personnel records on 11 other priests accused of child sexual abuse as well as data on its insurance policies. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:51 PM, November 06, 2009

• Delaware Church, Abuse Victims Agree to Trial Halt

  - RCC. One diocese has 78 complainants now on hold.
   Bloomberg, By Steven Church, Nov. 6, 2009
   WILMINGTON (DE), (Bloomberg) -- Sexual-molestation victims agreed with Roman Catholic officials in Delaware to put 78 lawsuits against churches and priests on hold while the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington is in bankruptcy.
   In exchange, church officials will release information on several priests accused of sexually abusing children as well as financial and insurance records. Lawyers for the victims and the diocese said today five trials involving individual churches will go forward under the deal. The two sides will try to settle the lawsuits as part of the diocese’s bankruptcy case.
   "We think it will move the case forward," victim attorney James Stang said, referring to the bankruptcy. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:49 PM, November 06, 2009

• Judge orders lien on diocese's investments

  - RCC.
   Times Argus, November 06, 2009
   BURLINGTON, VERMONT (AP) – A judge has ordered that a lien be placed on a portion of the investments of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington to cover a $2.2 million jury award to a former altar boy.
   The Burlington Free Press says Judge Helen Toor signed the order last week. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:37 PM, November 06, 2009

• Magdalene victims to sue

  - State and RCC.  
   Irish Independent, By Stephen O'Farrell, Thursday November 05 2009
   IRELAND -- A GROUP of Magdalene laundry abuse victims are to sue the State, the Catholic Church or both for the decades of mistreatment they suffered while in their care.
   Five survivors of the infamous laundries met with senior officials from the Department of Justice yesterday and said afterwards that a class action or constitutional case was inevitable.
   It was the first ever meeting between state representatives and Magdalene abuse victims, and follows numerous failed attempts by the women to tell government officials how they were treated while in the laundries. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:56 AM, November 06, 2009

• Catholic Church reluctant to accept its responsibility for Britain’s biggest child abuse case so far

  [1972-90 Middlesbrough Diocese] - RCC. £8m possibility. 142 boys. [1972-90 St William's staff* (De La Salle Brothers)] - RCC. 142 boys.  
   National Secular Society, ~ November 06, 2009
   UNITED KINGDOM -- The Middlesbrough Diocese of the Catholic Church was told by a High Court judge this week that it was responsible for a children’s home that was the centre of a large-scale abuse scandal. The diocese now faces a potential £8m compensation bill.
   The abuse claims centred on the St William’s Community Home in Market Weighton, East Yorkshire. More than 140 former residents filed claims of physical and sexual abuse but it was unclear who was responsible for the home – whether it was the Middlesbrough diocese or the De La Salle Brothers, an order of lay teachers.
   The case concerns alleged systematic abuse of children at the care home from 1960 until 1992 when it closed. St William’s took emotionally and behaviourally disturbed boys, aged 10 to 16, referred by councils largely from Yorkshire and the North East. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:53 AM, November 06, 2009

• The teacher, with the knife, in the (Catholic) parish school?

  - RCC.  
   Renew America,
   By Matt C. Abbott
   WISCONSIN -- In response to my Oct. 22 column about the suspicious suicide of Father Waclaw Jamroz, whose body was found bearing more than 20 stab wounds, two readers brought up the Father Alfred Kunz case. Father Kunz, of the Diocese of Madison, was murdered in 1998 – his throat was cut – and the case remains unsolved.
   While there have been no recent developments per se, media reports last year indicated that investigators have had at least one "person of interest" they've been monitoring the past few years.
   Who is that person of interest? From what I understand, it's the teacher who "discovered" Father's body. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:51 AM, November 06, 2009

• Catholic officials & judge meet in secrecy; Abuse victims respond

  - Secret meeting with judge.
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, November 06, 2009
   WILMINGTON (DE) -- Public court proceedings are the best way to protect the innocent and expose the truth. We're appalled that Catholic and court officials would meet behind closed doors. Secrecy only benefits predators and those who shield predators. Let's hope this troubling secrecy won't become a pattern.
   We aren't lawyers and may not fully understand the intricacies of Chapter 11 proceedings. But we know all too well, from painful personal experience over decades, that the Catholic hierarchy has repeatedly exploited secrecy for self-serving ends while endangering kids in the process.
   It's easy to become complacent about clergy sex crimes and cover ups, and to assume that since the courts are now involved, the truth will ultimately surface. That's naive. Kids need and adults deserve openness, especially surrounding predator priests and complicit bishops. Only vigilance will preserve openness. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:14 AM, November 06, 2009

• California bishops come to defense of women religious in midst of apostolic visitation

  - RCC.  
   Catholic Culture, November 06, 2009
   CALIFORNIA -- Responding to "questions from the faithful regarding the Apostolic Visitation of Institutes of Women Religious in the United States," the bishops of California have issued a statement expressing deep gratitude for the work in women religious in their state, comparing their faith to that of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
   "During the month of October we honor the Blessed Virgin Mary, the faith-filled woman of the Gospel," the bishops begin. "As we, the Bishops of California, reflect on her generous response to God, we call to mind other faith-filled women-- the thousands of Women Religious whose presence and ministry have helped to shape the face of the Catholic Church in California. We find it appropriate to acknowledge with profound gratitude the contributions of these women of the Gospel who have lived and served in the Catholic Dioceses and Archdioceses of California." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:42 AM

• Pope Benedict XVI appoints two Auxiliary Bishops for the Archdiocese of Toronto

  - RCC.      
   CNW, Nov. 6, 2009
   TORONTO, CANADA /CNW/ -- The Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, has appointed Father Vincent Nguyen of the Archdiocese of Toronto and Father William McGrattan of the Diocese of London as Auxiliary Bishops for the Archdiocese of Toronto.
   His Grace, Thomas Collins, Archbishop of Toronto, responded to the news with the following statement:
   "We thank the Holy Father for blessing us with two new shepherds to assist the people of the Archdiocese of Toronto as we grow together in faith. I have worked closely with both Father Nguyen and Father McGrattan; as bishops, they will bring a love of the church and an abundance of gifts to their new roles. I look forward to collaborating extensively with them in the days ahead." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:40 AM

• Terry Mattingly: NY archbishop takes on The Times

  - RCC.    
   Abilene Reporter-News, November 05, 2009
   NEW YORK -- Maureen Dowd of The New York Times has long enjoyed flaunting her Catholic schoolgirl pedigree like a badge of honor.
   Still, the Pulitzer Prize winner took her game to another level in a recent column attacking Rome for its investigation of religious orders which shelter sisters who oppose many of the church’s teachings.
   Wait, is "investigation" the right word?
   "The Vatican is now conducting two inquisitions into the ‘quality of life’ of American nuns, a dwindling group with an average age of about 70, hoping to herd them back into their old-fashioned habits and convents and curb any speck of modernity or independence," she wrote. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:16 AM, November 06, 2009

• 'Sexual abuse' at church

  [2008-09 Unnamed teacher* and perhaps others] - Methodist. Zimbabwean refugee girls and women, and boys. 6 - 20 cases.    
   iAfrica, Fri, Nov 06 2009
   SOUTH AFRICA -- Fresh allegations of sexual abuse have emerged at the Central Methodist Church in Johannesburg.
   The claims emerged at a public meeting in the Gauteng Legislature.
   Eyewitness News first revealed such allegations two months ago prompting swift action by local government, NGOs and others. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:10 AM

• Texas sect man guilty of sexual assault of minor

  [Jessop]  
   KXXV, Associated Press - November 6, 2009
   ELDORADO, Texas (AP) - Texas has won a criminal conviction in its first trial of a polygamist sect member charged with sexually assaulted an underage girl.
   The penalty phase begins Monday in Eldorado (el-doh-RAY'-doh) for 38-year-old Raymond Jessop. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:08 AM, November 06, 2009

• Aaron’s hearing delayed

  [Aaron (54)] - Grace Christian Fellowship.
   Andalusia Star-News By Stephanie Nelson | Published Thursday, November 5, 2009
   ALABAMA -- The preliminary hearing set Friday for the former pastor accused of sexually molesting and torturing young boys while on camping trips has been continued.
   Ralph Lee Aaron, the 54-year-old former pastor of Grace Christian Fellowship, was charged last week with 152 counts of sex-related crimes including the production and possession of child pornography, sexual abuse and torture and sodomy. He is currently in the county jail under a $24.5 million bond.
   The settlement phase of Aaron’s case began last week with a meeting between not only him and his court appointed attorney, Al Smith of Elba, but also District Attorney Greg Gambril and the families of Aaron’s alleged victims, where Gambril discussed with the victims’ families about how to proceed with the case. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:06 AM

• Countersuits rock First AME Church

  - First African Methodist Episcopal Church.
   KABC, with video, By John North, ~ November 06, 2009
   LOS ANGELES (CA), (KABC) -- A former female employee of the First AME Church in Los Angeles and a reverend at the church are trading lawsuits. One lawsuit alleges sexual abuse, and the other, an attempt to extort money.
   First African Methodist Episcopal Church (First AME Church) has always figured prominently in Los Angeles politics, charity and religious work. Its senior minister, Reverend John Hunter, is now accused of forcing a fellow minister into sexual submission.
   The court documents allege he fired Reverend Brenda Lamothe for refusing to continue to submit. Lamothe filed a lawsuit this week. Her attorney says he has love letters written by Hunter to Lamothe. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:03 AM, November 06, 2009

• Ex-pastor pleads to assault, gets no jail time in jail

  [1993-96 Dale Giffin* (59)*] - Lutheran. Female.
   Vindicator, By John W. Goodwin Jr., November 06, 2009
   YOUNGSTOWN (OH) – A former pastor accused of rape has cut a deal avoiding jail time, but he could not avoid a searing lecture from the woman who says he abused her.
   Dale Giffin, 60, of Topaz Circle, Canfield, under an agreement with county prosecutors, pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of assault. Giffin was initially indicted on six counts of rape by a Mahoning County grand jury in February.
   Judge James Evans of common pleas court sentenced Giffin immediately after accepting his guilty plea Thursday morning. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:01 AM, November 06, 2009

• San Angelo diocese passes safety audit

  - RCC.
   Abilene Reporter-News, November 05, 2009
   SAN ANGELO (TX) -- The Catholic Diocese of San Angelo is in compliance with the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops’ Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People according a recent audit of its Safe Environment Programs.
   A news release from the diocese reported the Gavin Group of Boston, an independent firm commissioned to do the audit, found the diocese to be in compliance.
   "I am pleased with the results of this audit which represent the hard work of so many people throughout our diocese to provide a safe environment for all of our children and youth in the many programs through which we minister to them," said the Most Rev. Michael D. Pfeifer, bishop of San Angelo. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:58 AM, November 06, 2009

• Bookmarks: The Bishop's Man

  - RCC celibacy covered in book.  
   Pique, By Jesse Ferreras, ~ November 06, 2009
   CANADA -- The priest's life is lonely and sad.
   You spend your entire life denying primal desires and have to sit back and listen when others have indulged their own. Your moral code takes a backseat to loyalty. When a man of the cloth falls by the wayside, you become complicit in a cover-up of his misdeeds.
   That is the impression I take away from Linden MacIntyre's The Bishop's Man, an engrossing but maddening nominee for the Scotiabank Giller Prize.
   MacIntyre's background as an investigative journalist is clear here. The host of CBC's The Fifth Estate dove headfirst into his material, spending countless hours researching before putting pen to paper. The result is a controversial one, a tome that dares to lay some empathy with sexual abusers but an authentic one that mirrors real events. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:55 AM, November 06, 2009

• Polanski's past catches up

  [1977 Mr Polanski]- No religion link. Girl (13).        
   The Australian, OPINION: By Phillip Adams, From The Australian, November 06, 2009
   WHEN a US senator or congressman, a Catholic priest or TV evangelist is caught with his pants down, hostile headlines reach to the heavens - which promptly open and it's open slather on "the perp". As many heads have rolled in recent years as bounced into the guillotine's basket.
   I've lost count of the Republican roosters who've become headless chooks, while the Vatican continues to reel from revelations about child abuse around the world. Only televangelists are given second chances - provided they kneel before their parishioners and tearfully, prayerfully express contrition.
   And if you're a mega-celeb in a culture addicted to celebrity? Chances are you'll get away with murder - as the O. J. Simpson trial attests. If you're a popular presidential candidate - better still a popular president - entirely implausible denials of sexual misconduct will be welcomed by your supporters. If you're the presenter of a late-night TV show your public confessions will boost your audience. And if you're Roman Polanski, your criminality will be brushed aside by fellow celebrities who'll represent any attempt to bring you to the justice you've long avoided as some sort of martyrdom. Your talent, dear Roman, is too precious. Your rape conviction should be forgiven and forgotten. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:52 AM

• Committee to represent plaintiffs in diocese suits

  - RCC.  
   The News Journal, By BETH MILLER, November 6, 2009
   WILMINGTON (DE) -- Six men and one woman -- all of whom have sued the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington seeking damages for child sexual abuse by priests -- have been appointed to represent the interests of all such plaintiffs in the diocese's bankruptcy proceedings, according to court papers filed Thursday.
   The Committee of Unsecured Creditors was appointed by David M. Klauder of the U.S. Trustee's office from a pool of applicants that met with him privately Wednesday.
   Some of the seven committee members had filed their lawsuits anonymously, but agreed to disclose their identities to serve on the committee. The seven appointees are: James J. Holman, Matthias C. Conaty, Scott R. Mauchin, Jeff Rose, John Michael Vai, William Heaney (representing the estate of his late son, Kevin Heaney) and Mary K. Dougherty. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:46 AM, November 06, 2009]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Fri November 06, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Sat November 07, 2009 edition:

• Chandler Pastor Charged With Having Sex With a 14-Year-Old Girl Indicted on Unrelated Charges in Ohio

  [Pastor Joshua O'Bannion* (25)] - "Christ Life Church." 2009 July, Aug - Girl (14). Date unknown - 6 charges. Minor.  
   Phoenix New Times, By James King in News, 4:43PM, Fri., Nov. 6 2009
   ARIZONA -- The Chandler pastor charged with having sex with a 14-year-old girl at the Christ Life Church in Tempe has been formally indicted on similar but separate charges in Parma, Ohio.
   Joshua O'Bannion, 25, was indicted on four counts of sexual battery and three counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor.
   The indictments were expected. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:56 AM, November 07, 2009
   [LOOK BACK: Sep. 15 2009]

• Calls for Joburg school to be closed after claims of sexual abuse

  [2008-09 Unnamed teacher* and perhaps others] - Methodist. Zimbabwean refugee girls and women, and boys. 6 - 20 cases.    
   Eyewitness News, by Micel Schnehage, ~ November 07, 2009
   SOUTH AFRICA -- Concerned NGOs have called for the temporary closure of the Albert Street School in the Johannesburg city centre, following allegations of sexual abuse.
   Scores of minors from the nearby Central Methodist Church attend the school, where teachers have been accused of buying young girls gifts in exchange for sexual favours.
   One of the teachers was suspended after Eyewitness News exposed claims of abuse in September. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:58 AM, November 07, 2009

• Clergy sex abuse victims want action on 2 accused bishops

  [BISHOPS Joseph Hart and Joseph Sullivan] - RCC. Boys.  
   Examiner, by David Willoughby, 6:18 PM, November 6, 2009
   KANSAS CITY (MO) -- SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) is upset after they claim that Kansas City MO's Catholic officials continue to say and do virtually nothing about two Kansas City priests who became bishops, were sent elsewhere, were sued for molesting boys and have had such suits against them settled. The alleged predators are Bishop Joseph Hart and Bishop Joseph V. Sullivan. …
   Yet Kansas City Bishop Robert Finn refuses to disclose lawsuits or settlements involving either predator, acknowledge their guilt, or reach out to their victims. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:49 AM, November 07, 2009

• Full publication of clerical child sex abuse report may take years

  - RCC.  
   The Irish Times, November 07, 2009
   IRELAND -- THE PUBLICATION of a crucial chapter in the report of the Dublin Archdiocese Commission of Investigation could be delayed by years, according to well-informed sources.
   The chapter is understood to be significant because it deals with shortcomings in how the State and the Garda Síochána dealt with allegations of clerical child sex abuse in Dublin, including the case of a priest alleged to have committed a large number of offences.
   Sources emphasised the absence of this chapter would, in their view, render the report skewed and unbalanced as it is "by far the longest, at approximately 60 pages, and one of the most important" chapters. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:27 PM

• Peyser Backs NY Archbishop for Slamming Dowd

  - RCC.    
   NewMax, Thursday, November 5, 2009
   NEW YORK -- On Thursday, star New York Post columnist Andrea Peyser applauded "gutsy" New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan for his online attack against The New York Times and columnist Maureen Dowd's Catholic-bashing and "anti-religious fervor."
   Dolan wrote an article for the Archdiocese of New York's Web site after Dowd's "scurrilous" Oct. 25 column criticized the Vatican for "two inquisitions" into nuns who spurn "old-fashioned habits and convents," and claimed that nuns are still "second-class citizens" in the church. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:49 PM, November 7, 2009]

• NYT’s Laurie Goodstein responds to NYC’s Archbishop Dolan

  - RCC.  
   DotCommonweal, Posted 10:52 pm by David Gibson, November 5, 2009
   NEW YORK -- New York Times religion writer Laurie Goodstein was one of the targets of Archbishop Dolan’s recent blog post alleging anti-Catholicism on the part of The Times (as discussed in Father Imbelli’s post below).  I found the Archbishop’s piece indiscriminate in its effort to tar his opponent, and think he missed an opportunity to be more effective by being more selective, and to be more just as well as more charitable.  That was disappointing as his post was also one of those that gave license to many far harsher criticisms and helped to lower the quality of conversation.
   (Bill Donohue’s omnibus attack on us "hypocrites" who thought the Archbishop less-than-convincing is worth the read if only for his jab at Commonweal: "a Catholic magazine on life support, faults Dolan for responding in a way that is ‘not fruitful.’ Nice to know that these writers object to the archbishop for writing. Maybe they prefer throwing bricks." I’m not sure what that means, but at least he considers Commonweal Catholic!) Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:46 PM, November 07, 2009

• Blog Fight: Roman Catholic Church vs. New York Times

  - RCC.
   U.S. News & World Report, By Dan Gilgoff, God & Country, November 06, 2009
   NEW YORK -- Unlike his predecessor, recently installed New York archbishop Timothy Dolan was expected to use his proximity to the nation's most powerful media outlets to raise the Roman Catholic Church's public profile. He hasn't yet; can you name the last time you saw him on TV?
   But Dolan is making some waves by attacking one of the nation's top news organizations, the New York Times. And the Times is hitting back. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:44 PM, November 07, 2009

• Child protection director to take HSE post

  - RCC.  
   The Irish Times, By PATSY McGARRY Religious Affairs Correspondent, November 07, 2009
   IRELAND -- THE DIRECTOR of the child protection service for Dublin’s Catholic archdiocese will take up a new post with the HSE on Tuesday. Phil Garland will be one of four assistant national directors of its children’s and families’ service.
   Mr Garland has held his position with the Dublin archdiocese since September 2003.
   He played a key role in putting in place measures for the protection of children throughout the archdiocese as well as training programmes for volunteers who supervise child protection in Dublin’s 199 Catholic parishes. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:30 PM, November 07, 2009
   [COMMENT: Cast your mind back to about 30 AD.  Picture, if you can, Yehoshua, Kepha, Ya‘aqob and Yochanan with the rest of the Twelve or the 72, appointing the first "Director of the Child Protection Service."  Stop laughing!!!  This is serious!
   Who?  Jesus, Peter, James, and John. ENDS]

• Even as Dioceses file bankruptcy over sex abuse cases, Catholic Bishops threaten to undermine health insurance reform

  - Comment about RC leaders.  
   AMERICAblog, by Joe Sudbay (DC), Nov/07/2009
   UNITED STATES -- Not happy with just ruining the lives of same-sex couples in Maine this week, the Catholic Bishops are trying to bring down health insurance reform in the House over the abortion issue. What really sucks is that members of the House are willing to let the Catholic Bishops, who enabled rampant sex abuse of children, to impose their theocratic view on this issue:
   Under the agreement, anti-abortion Democrats will be permitted to offer an amendment on the House floor to the health-care overhaul bill. The amendment would prohibit a new government-run insurance plan created by the health-care bill from offering to cover abortion services, congressional sources said. It would also block people who received federal subsidies for the purchase of health insurance from buying policies that offered coverage for abortions. …
   Does anyone on the Hill know the history of the Catholic Bishops Conference and the horrors they allowed to be inflicted on children? How can those Bishops speak with any moral authority? The Catholic Bishops protected and enabled pedophiles and child abusers. And, it's costing them. Last month, the Diocese of Wilmington became the seventh Diocese to file bankruptcy:
   It joins a list of six other dioceses in the United States that have filed for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the bankruptcy laws in what lawyers said is an attempt to manage an avalanche of clergy sexual-abuse litigation. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:16 AM, November 07, 2009

• Man said to confess murder. Accused allegedly told fellow inmate he killed girl in 1985

  [Fr Gerald Robinson]
   Toledo Blade, By JANET ROMAKER, November 07, 2009
   WAUSEON, OHIO -- The man accused of killing a Swanton girl in 1985 allegedly has made a jail-house confession, telling an inmate that he beat a 14-year-old girl to death because she wanted to break up with him, and he couldn't handle it. …
   Some recent motions filed by the VanGuntens are related to the fact that Mr. Zimbeck was arrested more than 20 years after Miss Hill was killed. Defense lawyers are questioning protocols related to lost or destroyed evidence, for instance, and in one motion, the VanGuntens cite proceedings in the case of Toledo priest Gerald Robinson and ask the court to take special note that the Robinson case and the Zimbeck case involve the same cold-case investigator, Sgt. Steve Forrester.
   Robinson was arrested by Lucas County cold-case investigators in 2004. He was convicted and sentenced in 2006 for the murder of Sister Margaret Ann Pahl whose body was found April 5, 1980, on the floor of the sacristy, next to the chapel, of the former Mercy Hospital in Toledo. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:10 AM, November 07, 2009

• Polygamist Raymond Jessop faces long jail term after sexual assault on under-age bride

  [Jessop] - FLDS. 9 wives. Impregnated girl (15).
   The Times (United Kingdom) from James Bone in New York, ~ November 07, 2009
   ELDORADO (TX) -- A sect member with nine wives has been convicted of sexually assaulting an underage bride in the first case stemming from the controversial raid on a polygamist compound in Texas.
   Raymond Jessop, 38, faces up to 20 years in prison for the sexual assault on the girl, whom he made pregnant when she was just 15.
   Jessop is a leading member of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a sect that split from the Mormon church after it abandoned polygamy. His nine wives allegedly include three daughters and two sisters of the self-styled prophet of a breakaway sect, Warren Jeffs, who is now in jail. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:08 AM, November 07, 2009

• Bond reduced for Leland man facing child sex charges

  [3yrs - James T. Johnson* (46)] - "Olive Branch Church."  Schoolgirl.
   Star News, By Shelby Sebens, Shelby.Sebens@StarNewsOnline.com , November 06, 2009
   NORTH CAROLINA -- A Brunswick County District Court judge has made it easier for a Leland pastor who was arrested Tuesday on multiple child sex abuse charges to get out of jail.
   District Court Judge Jerry Jolly on Friday reduced James T. Johnson's bond from $250,000 to $100,000, over objections from Assistant District Attorney Meredith Everhart. She argued that if he gets out of jail, pressure on the victim to recant her story would increase.
   Johnson, 46, has been charged with three counts of indecent liberties with a child, two counts of first-degree sex offense with a child and one count of attempted first-degree rape of a child. The victim was in elementary school when the alleged incidents occurred over a three year period, Everhart said. The victim is now 13 years old. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:00 AM, November 07, 2009

• Plaintiffs make deal for release of priests' records

  - RCC.
   The News Journal, By BETH MILLER, November 7, 2009
   WILMINGTON (DE) -- Plaintiffs in scores of child sexual abuse lawsuits pending against the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington agreed Friday not to pursue claims against the 28 parishes involved in those suits until the diocese completes its Chapter 11 bankruptcy process. In exchange, attorneys for the diocese and parishes agreed to release the records of 11 priests named in the suits, as well as data on insurance policies they hold for such claims.
   A series of eight jury trials -- all with claims related to former priest Francis G. DeLuca -- was to begin Oct. 19 in Delaware Superior Court. When the diocese filed for bankruptcy the night before, all 141 cases pending against it were put on hold. Because parishes were named as co-defendants in many of the cases, attorneys argued that they should be able to pursue their claims against those parishes, none of which had filed for Chapter 11 protection. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:47 AM, November 07, 2009

• Four Amish bishops charged with failing to report sexual abuse

  [2000-07 Mr Johnny Schwartz] - Amish religion. 2 young female relatives. [2000s Fannie J. Schwartz] - Amish. Not reporting sex abuse. [2000-07 Bishops - Christian J.F. Schwartz, 40; Jacob P. Schwartz, 79; Emmanuel M.S. Eicher, 44; and Peter M. Eicher, 59] - Amish. Failing to report to police.  
   Marshfield Mail, By Mark Lile and Nicholas W. Inman, markl§marshfieldmail , nicholasi§marshfieldmail.com , Published: Friday, November 6, 2009
   WEBSTER COUNTY (MO) -- Charges were filed Tuesday morning against four officials from the Amish community for failure to report alleged sexual abuse by Johnny A. Schwartz, a member of the Amish community in southern Webster County.
   Charged with failing to report a sexual crime against a child under 17 years of age were Christian J.F. Schwartz, 40; Jacob P. Schwartz, 79; Emmanuel M.S. Eicher, 44; and Peter M. Eicher, 59. According to online court records, each was charged with one count of the Class A misdemeanor.
   Webster County Sheriff Roye Cole and Prosecuting Attorney Danette Padgett held a press conference Tuesday morning to announce the charges to the media, and to talk about the case that has evolved following allegations of sexual abuse by Johnny A. Schwartz and charges against his wife, Fannie J. Schwartz, for not reporting that Johnny A. Schwartz was sexually abusing two young female relatives. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:44 AM, November 07, 2009

• Philip Mathias: The two Catholic Churches

  - RCC.  
   National Post (Canada), by Philip Mathias Posted: November 07, 2009
   Is the Roman Catholic Church (RCC) being "bashed" these days, as writer Michael Coren recently claimed on these pages? Coren even goes so far as to say that RCC-bashing is "the last acceptable prejudice" in Western society – which suggests an element of base religious bigotry.
   On the other hand, is it possible that the torrent of criticism aimed at the Church is both fair and constructive?
   To answer that question, it’s necessary to realize the RCC is two things. First, it is a community of believers trying to live according to the teachings of Jesus, who said, along with much else, "love your enemy." If everybody lived by such admonitions, the world would simply be transformed. In that sense, the Catholic church is above reproach, except insofar as its adherents fall short of its magnificent ideals. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:41 AM, November 07, 2009

• Diocese childcare boss to take top HSE job

  - RCC.  
   Irish Independent By John Cooney Saturday November 07 2009
   IRELAND -- The child protection supremo of the Catholic archdiocese of Dublin has left to take up a £100,000 plus job with the HSE as assistant national director for children and families.
   Diocesan Child Protection Director Phil Garland will take up his post with the HSE at a critical time when the country's largest diocese anxiously awaits the explosive findings of a state investigation into paedophile clergy.
   A spokesperson for the HSE said that the salary range of an assistant director was between e99,166 and e122, 230. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:06 AM, November 07, 2009

• Activist group criticizes KC bishop over sexual abuse issue

  - SNAP blames RCC.  
   The Kansas City Star, By JUDY L. THOMAS, ~ November 07, 2009
   KANSAS CITY (MO) -- The bishop of the Kansas City-St. Joseph diocese has failed to report accusations of sexual abuse and lawsuit settlements to the public, an activist group alleged Friday.
   "Despite a national sex abuse policy that mandates openness and despite Bishop Finn’s repeated promises to be open about clergy sex cases, at least in this diocese, it’s business as usual," said David Clohessy, executive director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, at a news conference outside the chancery.
   Diocesan spokeswoman Rebecca Summers said current Bishop Robert Finn was on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land and could not be reached for comment. But she said the diocese had numerous policies and practices in place to protect children, including removing from ministry those who were credibly accused, pending a fuller investigation. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:03 AM, November 07, 2009

• Tom Messer is speaker for Florida Baptist Convention

  [Rev. Bob Gray] - Baptist. Child. [Rev. Tom Messer] - Baptist. Cover up.
   Stop Baptist Predators, ~ November 07, 2009
   FLORIDA --Tom Messer is scheduled as a featured speaker for the Florida Baptist Convention when it meets November 9-10 in Pensacola, Florida. Messer, who is pastor of Trinity Baptist in Jacksonville, is shown on the speakers’ line-up for the Monday morning pastors’ conference.
   My question is this: Why?
   Why are Southern Baptists of Florida holding up Tom Messer as an example of pastoral leadership?
   For starters, Tom Messer’s church isn’t even affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. It’s an independent Baptist church.
   More importantly, Tom Messer is the pastor who, reportedly, participated in a huge, long-standing cover-up of the child sex crimes committed by his church’s founding pastor, Bob Gray. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:00 AM

• National Survivor Advocates Coalition Calls for Active Vigilance

  [2007-09 Bridgeport Diocese] - RCC. Have not kept promise.  
   National Survivors Advocates Coalition November 07, 2009
   BRIDGEPORT (CT) -- The National Survivors Advocates Coalition (NSAC) calls upon Catholics in the Diocese of Bridgeport, CT and throughout the country to be actively vigilant regarding the release of documents that the diocese fought up to and including a request for an appeal hearing from the United States Supreme Court.
   The coalition asked Catholics to remember that the Archdiocese of Los Angeles settlement in 2007 included a provision for the release of documents. This release has yet to be fulfilled. The same is true in the Diocese of San Diego where full disclosure of documents is still not complete.
   "We urgently ask our fellow Catholics to make it a priority that the Diocese of Bridgeport’s records be released, "the coalition said, "Let us not go the way of Los Angeles and San Deigo where promises become vapors." [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:56 AM, Nov 7, 2009]

• The Archbishop’s Blog

  - RCC.
   The New York Times, By CLARK HOYT, Published: November 7, 2009
   NEW YORK -- LATE last month, Paul Vitello, who covers religion for The Times, wrote a lighthearted feature about a new blogger: Archbishop Timothy Dolan, installed this year to lead the 2.5 million Catholics of the Archdiocese of New York. Little did Vitello know that before the day was out, Dolan would turn his blog on the reporter and his paper, citing news articles and a column by Maureen Dowd as examples of anti-Catholicism.
   "It is not hyperbole to call prejudice against the Catholic Church a national pastime," the archbishop wrote. He said that if you wanted examples of the church being treated unfairly, The Times had supplied four in a couple of weeks. They included Dowd’s "intemperate and scurrilous" column about the treatment of nuns by the church hierarchy and a front-page article about a priest who had fathered a son in a long-term relationship with a parishioner.
   Dolan originally submitted his blog post to The Times as an Op-Ed article, and I heard from readers wanting to know why it wasn’t published. David Shipley, the Op-Ed editor, said that his page "has never been the forum for direct responses to articles." He suggested that the archbishop submit a letter to the editor, but Dolan declined. He told me he knew that a letter to the editor would have to be condensed and he feared that key points would be lost. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 7, 2009 9:51 PM]

• Peyser Backs NY Archbishop for Slamming Dowd

     
   NewMax Thursday, November 5, 2009
   NEW YORK -- On Thursday, star New York Post columnist Andrea Peyser applauded "gutsy" New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan for his online attack against The New York Times and columnist Maureen Dowd's Catholic-bashing and "anti-religious fervor."
   Dolan wrote an article for the Archdiocese of New York's Web site after Dowd's "scurrilous" Oct. 25 column criticized the Vatican for "two inquisitions" into nuns who spurn "old-fashioned habits and convents," and claimed that nuns are still "second-class citizens" in the church. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 7, 2009 9:49 PM

• NYT’s Laurie Goodstein responds to NYC’s Archbishop Dolan

  - RCC.  
   DotCommonweal, Posted by David Gibson, 10:52 pm, November 5, 2009
   NEW YORK -- New York Times religion writer Laurie Goodstein was one of the targets of Archbishop Dolan’s recent blog post alleging anti-Catholicism on the part of The Times (as discussed in Father Imbelli’s post below). I found the Archbishop’s piece indiscriminate in its effort to tar his opponent, and think he missed an opportunity to be more effective by being more selective, and to be more just as well as more charitable. That was disappointing as his post was also one of those that gave license to many far harsher criticisms and helped to lower the quality of conversation.
   (Bill Donohue’s omnibus attack on us "hypocrites" who thought the Archbishop less-than-convincing is worth the read if only for his jab at Commonweal: "a Catholic magazine on life support, faults Dolan for responding in a way that is ‘not fruitful.’ Nice to know that these writers object to the archbishop for writing. Maybe they prefer throwing bricks." I’m not sure what that means, but at least he considers Commonweal Catholic!) Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 7, 2009 9:46 PM

• Blog Fight: Roman Catholic Church vs. New York Times

  - RCC.
   U.S. News & World Report, By Dan Gilgoff, God & Country, November 06, 2009
   NEW YORK -- Unlike his predecessor, recently installed New York archbishop Timothy Dolan was expected to use his proximity to the nation's most powerful media outlets to raise the Roman Catholic Church's public profile. He hasn't yet; can you name the last time you saw him on TV?
   But Dolan is making some waves by attacking one of the nation's top news organizations, the New York Times. And the Times is hitting back. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 7, 2009 9:44 PM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Sat November 07, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Sun November 08, 2009 edition:

• Hearing planned on releasing church documents

   
   The News-Times Updated November 08, 2009
   WATERBURY, Conn.– A court hearing is planned to determine when to release documents generated for sexual abuse lawsuits against priests in a Roman Catholic diocese in Connecticut.
   The hearing will be held Monday in Waterbury Superior Court after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal from the Diocese of Bridgeport, which has been fighting for years to prevent the release of the documents. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 8, 2009 5:49 PM]

• Racism in the Diocese of Fairbanks, Part V: The Yup’iks Aren’t Smart Enough to Know They Are Being Abused

     
   Second Rape: The Diocese of Fairbanks and Sexual Abuse, November 08, 2009
   ALASKA -- Squirm alert: this one is going to make your blood boil.
   Fr. James E. Jacobson was a naughty, naughty priest. He spent 13 years – from 1963 to 1976 – working in Alaska’s Yup’ik villages. And while he was there, he liked to rape the girls. At least three of these women have now come forward, two of whom have hard evidence (and a positive DNA test): the children that Jacobson fathered.
   Their civil suits unearthed a letter that shows how pervasive racism was in the diocese.
   It tells how back in 1967, allegations against Jacobson were coming from the villages. Finally, because they were considered "serious moral charges," the Bishop of Fairbanks launched an investigation – a year after the birth of Jacobson’s first child. The investigation concluded that the locals were prone to "personal grudges and politics" and that they "were not advanced enough to give impartial and true testimony."

• Dolan's Catholic crusade

  - RCC.  
   New York Post, By JOSEPH BOTTUM, ~ November 08, 2009
   NEW YORK -- Timothy Dolan came to town with a hammer in his hand. Of course, it wasn’t really much of hammer: just a little tappity-tap kind of thing, a tack hammer with a bright blue head, which he used it to rap on the door of St. Patrick’s Cathedral as part of the traditional ceremony for the installation of a new archbishop in New York.
   That was back on April 15, the Wednesday before Easter. In the six months since, Archbishop Dolan has done hardly any public hammering – until now. On Oct. 29 he used the archdiocese’s website to publish a blistering attack on the repeated and knee-jerk anti-Catholicism of The New York Times
   Not that the attack was undeserved. At no point in its long history has the Times been what anyone would call a pro-Catholic institution, and if somebody needs to whacked upside the head to wake her up, it’s the Times’ columnist Maureen Dowd, whom Dolan singled out for the "intemperate and scurrilous" column she wrote on Sunday, Oct. 24

• Is The Diocese of Fairbanks Racist? Part IV – A Little Bit of History

  - RCC.      
   Second Rape: The Diocese of Fairbanks and Sexual Abuse, November 07, 2009
   ALASKA -- The conquest of Alaska by Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Missionaries is not a good saga for Alaska Natives. Since the first Russians landed in the area, Native peoples have been enslaved, raped, killed, and stripped of almost their entire cultural heritage.
   Unfortunately, things have changed very little in the Diocese of Fairbanks.
   Let’s have a little history lesson.
   Alaskana Catholica, a hulking book by Louis Renner, is considered by many to be the "definitive book" on the Catholics in Alaska. In fact, it is even for sale in the Diocese of Fairbanks online store. Written in the style of an encyclopedia, the book is considered the crown jewel of the Diocese of Fairbanks and the Northwest Jesuits. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 8, 2009 8:47 AM, November 08, 2009

• Call to Action honors SNAP at CTA national convention in Milwaukee

  - RCC.  
   Voice from the Desert, Saturday, Nov. 7, 2009
   MILWAUKEE (WI) -- A support group for clergy sex abuse victims being honored by a national lay Catholic organization at its annual convention in Milwaukee tomorrow.
   SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, will receive a Leadership Award from a Chicago-based Call To Action at the Midwest Airlines Center ballroom.
   SNAP is the nation’s oldest and largest support group for victims of clergy sexual abuse with 9,000 members. It also has support groups in over 60 cities nation wide. The organization’s mission is to help protect the vulnerable and heal the wounded. It was founded in 1988 by a social worker who was molested in Ohio by her parish priest. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 8, 2009 8:45 AM, November 08, 2009

• Top stories from Broken Rites, written by Broken Rites researchers

  - RCC. 115 Australian RC "consecrated" males sentenced so far.  
   Broken Rites, ~ November 08, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- 115 Catholic priests and brothers have been sentenced in Australian court cases in which Broken Rites had an involvement or an interest. These 115 court cases are on the top half of the Black Collar Crime page. In addition, on the bottom half of the page, there are a number of out-of-court cases in which Broken Rites had an involvement or an interest (updated 1 October 2009)
   [COMMENT: Are these a few bad apples in the barrel, or 115 apples from a bad barrel of apples?]

• Altar boy #2 (Daniel): He committed suicide in 2007

 
   Broken Rites, By a Broken Rites researcher, ~ November 08, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- A certain Australian priest – let us call him Father "F" – built up a pool of altar boys in his parishes. On 1 January 2001, one of those altar boys (named Damian) died in tragic circumstances, aged 28. On 25 November 2007 another of Father F's altar boys (named Daniel, from a different parish) took his own life. Both were aged 28 at the time of death.
   This article is about Altar Boy #2, Daniel. At the bottom of this article, you will find a link to the story of Altar Boy #1, Damian. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 8, 2009 8:41 AM

• Altar boy #1 (Damian): His tragic death in 2001

 
   Broken Rites, By a Broken Rites researcher, ~ November 08, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- The Catholic Church has accepted – and settled – a complaint from a former altar boy (Damian), whose life deteriorated after an encounter with an Australian priest (Father F) at the age of 12.
   Despite the settlement, Damian never completely recovered. He died in tragic circumstances on 1 January 2001, aged 28.
   This was not the only tragic death among Father F's altar boys. On 25 November 2007 another of Father F's altar boys (named Daniel, from a different parish) committed suicide, aged 28. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 8, 2009 8:38 AM

• Catholic Church considers a report on Father John Fleming

  [Rev John Fleming] - Anglican (now in RCC).      
   Broken Rites, ~ November 08, 2009
   AUSTRALIA --The Adelaide Sunday Mail reported on 25 October 2009 that the Adelaide Catholic archdiocese is seeking advice from the Vatican's lawyers about how the Catholic Church should deal with allegations of sexual misconduct involving a prominent Australian priest, Father John Fleming.
   Father Fleming was originally a minister of the Anglican Church. The allegations concern his time in the Anglican ministry. After leaving the Anglican ministry, he was ordained as a Catholic priest in 1995. He is licensed now by the Adelaide Catholic diocese.
   The allegations involving Father Fleming are the subject of an Anglican Church professional standards investigation. However, the Anglican Church can take no action because it has no jurisdiction over Father Fleming as he is no longer an Anglican. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 8, 2009 8:37 AM

• An abusive Anglican priest, Wilfred Edwin Dennis, became an 'Anglican Catholic' priest

  [1972-77 Rev. Wilfred Dennis*] - Anglican (now "Anglican Catholic"). 41 boys.      
   Broken Rites, By a Broken Rites researcher, ~ November 08, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- An Australian court has heard about a sexually-abusive Anglican priest, Wilfred Edwin Dennis, who left the mainstream Anglican Church to join a breakaway group, called the "Anglican Catholic Church".
   Wilfred Dennis was ordained in 1961 as a priest of the Anglican Church and he ministered first in Brisbane, Queensland. In 1965 he moved to Adelaide, South Australia, where he ministered in Anglican parishes until he resigned in the 1980s. He then joined the "Anglican Catholic Church" – a group of Anglicans who were opposed to the ordination of women.
   In 2003 the South Australian Police established a pedophile taskforce, and in 2005 this unit investigated certain complaints against Father Dennis. The Dennis case – involving alleged offences against two boys in Adelaide parishes in the 1970s – reached the South Australian District Court in 2009, when a trial was held before a judge alone (with no jury). Dennis, aged 74, pleaded not guilty to all charges. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 8, 2009 8:34 AM
   [LOOK BACK: October 01, 2009, August 18, 2009. ENDS.]
   [LOOK FORWARD: Apr 09, 2010 - 20mo prison for second offence. ENDS.]

• Father Peter William Dwyer, Armidale NSW, formerly of St Stanislaus College, Bathurst

  [Dwyer]    
   Broken Rites, ~ November 08, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- Peter Willam Dwyer was a student of St Stanislaus College, Bathurst, New South Wales, in the late 1950s. He later became a religious Brother in the Vincentian order and taught at St Stanislaus College (with qualifications in music) before becoming the college's president in 1980. A St Stanislaus yearbook says that Dwyer was on the college staff for 21 years until he left at the end of 1992 "for two years' study leave".
   By about 1997, Peter Dwyer had become ordained as a priest of the Armidale diocese in north-western New South Wales. He was listed as a priest for the first time in the 1998 edition of the Directory of Australian Catholic Clergy -- as an assistant priest at St Nicholas's parish, Tamworth, in the Armidale diocese.
   In the 2002 edition, Father Peter Dwyer was still listed as belonging to the Armidale diocese but was "working outside the diocese" – he was one of three priests listed at the Good Shepherd Seminary, 50 Abbotsford Road, Homebush in Sydney, where he was director of first-year students. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 8, 2009 8:32 AM

• The Catholic Church harboured this pedophile priest, John Sidney Denham, for 40 years

  [1968-86 Fr John Denham*] - RCC. Millions at risk. 39 boys. [Fr Vince Ryan] - RCC. AUD $6m going. 9 victims. [1998-2008 Vicar-General Tom Brennan] - RCC. Guilty. False written statement. [2007 RCC] - Pretended there is no Church entity to sue!
   Broken Rites, By a Broken Rites researcher, ~ November 08, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- Broken Rites has helped to obtain justice for victims of a pedophile Catholic priest, Father John Sidney Denham. This priest finally pleaded guilty in July 2009 after getting away with his crimes for four decades.
   He committed his crimes under the noses of his superiors and colleagues, while these people looked the other way.
   The church recruited Denham as a trainee priest in the late 1960s and, according to statements made in court, some of his child-sex crimes were committed during his period of training. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 8, 2009 8:30 AM

• Bridgeport Bishop Is An Energetic, Outspoken Defender Of Church

  - RCC. Keeping the guilty secrets.  
   The Hartford Courant, By DANIELA ALTIMARI, November 8, 2009
   TRUMBULL, CONNECTICUT – Bishop William E. Lori stands before 141 married couples in the airy sanctuary of St. Theresa Church on a bright October afternoon.
   In a voice carrying the faintest trace of the Kentucky lilt that his Louisville upbringing suggests, he welcomes the couples, who have come from across the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport to this vast stone church to renew their wedding vows as part of a special service celebrating marriage. …
   He has waged a persistent and forceful legal battle to prevent the disclosure of documents relating to the clergy sex abuse scandal in the diocese and, earlier this year, he helped lead a high-profile campaign against state legislation that would have sharply altered the governance structure of Catholic parishes.
   In both cases, Lori staked out a position as an energetic and outspoken defender of the church in the face of what he and his supporters view as unconstitutional government intrusion.

!!!: Powerhouse Priests Spar Over What it Means to Be Catholic

  - One RC bishop says a cardinal is "under the influence of Satan."
   Time magazine, By Amy Sullivan, Sunday, Nov. 08, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- The leaders of the Roman Catholic Church traditionally couch even the harshest disagreements in decorous, ecclesiastical language. But it didn't take a decoder ring to figure out what Rome-based Archbishop Raymond Burke meant in a late-September address when he charged Boston Cardinal Seán O'Malley with being under the influence of Satan, "the father of lies."
   Burke's broadside at O'Malley was inspired by the Cardinal's decision to permit and preside over a funeral Mass for the late Senator Ted Kennedy. And it has set the Catholic world abuzz. Even more than protests over the University of Notre Dame's decision to invite President Barack Obama to speak, disputes over the Kennedy funeral have brought into the open an argument that has been roiling within American Catholicism. The debate nominally centers on the question of how to deal with politicians who support abortion rights. Burke and others who believe a Catholic's position on abortion trumps all other teachings have faced off against those who take a more holistic view of the faith. But at the core, the divide is over who decides what it means to be Catholic.
   A Bull in a China Shop
   It strikes no one as surprising that the 61-year-old Burke is at the center of the current fight. The former Archbishop of St. Louis made national headlines in 2004 when he became the first Catholic leader to say he would deny the Eucharist to Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry. He led an unsuccessful drive to bar Communion for politicians who support abortion rights. And as Election Day approached in 2004, Burke issued a warning to Catholics in the key swing state of Missouri that they should not present themselves for Communion if they voted for pro-choice candidates.

• Richard Meehan: Employers can be held accountable from workers’ crimes

 
   The Norwich Bulletin, By Richard Meehan, Posted Nov 07, 2009
   CONNECTICUT -- Respondeat Superior and the Catholic Church – part of the Latin Mass from the Church’s rich tradition? No. It’s the doctrine of vicarious liability that has forced the Catholic Church to pay millions to victims of clergy sexual abuse.
   Recently, this sordid chapter made news when the U.S. Supreme Court refused to stay efforts to unseal more than 12,000 pages of court records in the Bridgeport Diocese sexual abuse cases.
   The Diocese fought to keep sealed the records that led to more than $21 million in settlements. Four news organizations battled to unseal the files, citing the public’s right to know. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 8, 2009 8:06 AM]

• Investigation won't impact local congregation

  - RC hq investigating RC nuns.    
   Fond du Lac Reporter, By Sharon Roznik, sroznik@fdlreporter.com , November 8, 2009
   WISCONSIN -- A Vatican investigation into compliance of U.S. Sisters to Catholic doctrine should not impact members of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Agnes.
   "And hopefully, it will not impact our university," said Sister Mary Mollison, acting president at Marian University.
   She addressed Catholic religious women gathered Thursday at the Stayer Center about tension and rising polarization in the church.
   Issues reportedly being investigated include the acceptance of gays and lesbians, the Catholic path as an exclusive path to redemption, and the return of habits. Vatican concerns have also focused on the declining numbers of religious vocations in Western cultures. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 8, 2009 8:01 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Sun November 08, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Mon November 09, 2009 edition:

• First Croatian priest in jail for sexual abuse of children

  [2003-07 Fr Drago Ljubicic - NEW*] - RCC. 5 boys.  
   Croatian Times, November 09, 2009
   CROATIA -- Drago Ljubicic, 65, will be the first priest to go to jail for sexual abuse of children in Croatia.
   Rijeka county court confirmed Ljubicic’s three-year prison sentence last Friday.
   Ljubicic was accused of sexually molesting five boys aged 10 to 12 between 2003 and 2007 on Krk Island.

• Catholic priest faces sentencing for sexual abuse

  - RCC. [1970s Cloutier - ? NEW*] - Altar boys. [1970s Bishop Dionne -NEW*] - Intervened to stop charges re altar boys. [Bishop Lahey]  
   The Globe and Mail, By KIRK MAKIN, ~ November 09, 2009
   CANADA -- Father Bernard Cloutier will stand alone in a Sudbury courtroom today to be sentenced for his sexual abuse three decades ago of a group of altar boys who had idolized him.
   Missing from the prisoner's dock, but present in spirit, will be Bishop Gerard Dionne - named as a culprit in a rare judicial finding that the Roman Catholic Church intervened to forestall criminal charges being laid against Father Cloutier in 1983.
   Coming on the heels of a recent scandal over child pornography charges laid against Nova Scotia Bishop Raymond Lahey, the cases raise new questions about the church's response to sexual misconduct within the clergy. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 7:28 AM

• Jury selection completed in priest abuse trial

  [1962 Now-deceased priest (Salesian) -? NEW*] - RCC. Boy.  
   The News Journal, By SEAN O’SULLIVAN, November 9, 2009
   WILMINGTON (DE) – Jury selection was completed today in the civil trial against the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales by former Salesianum student James Sheehan, who alleges that he was sexually abused by a now-deceased priest at the school in 1962.
   The process to select 12 jurors and four alternates, before Superior Court Judge Calvin L. Scott Jr., began around 11 a.m. and was completed before 3 p.m.
   Opening arguments in the case are set for 9:30 a.m. next Monday.
   This case of alleged priest abuse is one of the few brought under the Delaware Child Victims Act of 2007 that was not affected by the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington filing for bankruptcy because the defendant is a religious order, which is separate from the diocese.

• Priest found guilty of molesting parishioners

  [1960s-70s Rev. Kenneth Gibbs*] - Anglican. Guilty. 5 young females.  
   The Sault Star, By LINDA RICHARDSON, ~ November 09, 2009
   CANADA -- A former Anglican priest was found guilty Monday of molesting five young female parishioners in the 1960s and 1970s.
   Kenneth Gibbs was convicted of eight counts of indecent assault, offences that occurred when he was a minister at churches in Chapleau and Elliot Lake.
   Superior Court Justice Edward Koke found the 76-year-old Belleville resident not guilty of one charge involving a sixth complainant. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 7:35 PM [LOOK BACK: September 10, 2009]

• A Tribute to Pokrov – 10 Years of Courage and Commitment

  - Orthodox Churches.  
   Pokrov, Author: Paul Cromidas, Publication: Pokrov.org , Date Published: Nov/7/2009
   UNITED STATES -- It was the early 90’s when Melanie Jula Sakoda and Cappy Larson thought they had found a home in Orthodoxy at San Francisco’s Holy Trinity Cathedral, part of the OCA – The Orthodox Church in America.
   Instead, they found a nightmare: a place where a layman went about the church wearing black clothes and a large cross, but was molesting children of the parish. This was taking place even though he had admitted to the pastor that he had a history of pedophilia. As many as 11 children were victimized, some were toddlers.
   When parents sought redress and understanding from the church and its hierarchy their nightmare continued. The head of the OCA at the time, Metropolitan Theodosius Lazor, never replied directly to the parents. He did so through his chancellor, who would then direct the parents to deal with their bishop, Tikhon Fitzgerald. The bishop, now retired, at one point admonished parents to "get a life – get a life in Christ". [Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 9:33 AM]

• Another St. Teresa whistle-blower loses job

  [2009 Buffalo Diocese] - RCC. Dismisses third exposer of financial irregularities.  
   The Buffalo News, By Jay Tokasz, Updated: November 09, 2009
   BUFFALO (NY) -- Another whistle-blowing employee who complained to the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo about financial irregularities at St. Teresa of Avila Church in South Buffalo is being removed from her post.
   Karen M. Krajewski, pastoral assistant at St. Teresa, confirmed that she was asked to leave by the current pastor, the Rev. James B. Cunningham.
   Her dismissal follows the removals in August of the temporary administrator, Monsignor Fred R. Voorhes, and the business manager, Marc J. Pasquale.

• Ax falls on different Northampton church: Diocese will close St. Mary's, spare Sacred Heart

  - RCC.  
   Daily Hampshire Gazete, By DAN CROWLEY, Staff Writer, November 10, 2009
   NORTHAMPTON (MA) -- Amid calls from parishioners to think twice about its plans, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield has pulled a switcheroo. The diocese now plans to close St. Mary's of the Assumption Church and spare Sacred Heart Church on King Street, which had been marked for closure.
   The news has stunned many St. Mary's parishioners, who learned of the diocese's plans at services over the weekend.
   "Parishioners are very upset," said Sheila Curtin of Easthampton. "Very upset." [Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 9:07 PM]

• A Lesson To The Diocese Of Fairbanks: It Doesn’t Pay To Be Racist And Then Lie About It

  [Fr James Poole (Jesuit)] - RCC. Girls (lots).    
   Second Rape: The Diocese of Fairbanks and Sexual Abuse, November 10, 2009
   The Story Of Fr. James E. Poole, Birds, Dogs, And A Whole Bunch Of Lying Diocese Of Fairbanks Officials
   ALASKA -- Fr. James E. Poole, SJ, did many, many things while he was a priest. So many things, that even the Alaskana Catholica raves about the molesting priest. Click here to read the entry about Poole.
   He helped found the village of St. Mary’s, ran the Diocese of Fairbanks radio station KNOM, worked in the boarding schools, and molested girls. A lot of girls.
   But in 2005, when Elsie Boudreau came forward and named Poole as her abuser, the Diocese of Fairbanks and the Jesuits lied about it. Over and over and over again. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 7:38 PM]

• No decision on release of diocesan records on priest sex abuse

  - RCC.  
   Connecticut Post, By Daniel Tepfer, ~ November 09, 2009
   WATERBURY, CONNECTICUT -- A Superior Court judge is expected to decide later this week how to release to the public hundreds of documents detailing allegations of sexual abuse by priests in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport.
   During a hearing Monday at Waterbury Superior Court, lawyers for the diocese offered to go through the documents themselves and decide which ones should be made public.
   "I believe we could do it in a day," said Ralph Johnson, one of three lawyers representing the diocese during the hearing. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 7:30 PM
   [COMMENT: They should ALL be made public.]

• The apostolic constitution: a closer look

  - Roman Catholic move to entice Anglicans.  
   Catholic Culture, by Phil Lawler, November 9, 2009
   By releasing the full text of Anglicanorum Coetibus, the Vatican has given us a much better understanding of Pope Benedict's historic effort to reach out to the Anglican communion. And the official commentary, written by Father Gianfranco Ghirlanda of the Gregorian University and released along with the text, helps to highlight the fundamental policies behind the canonical rules.
   Father Ghirlanda notes, for example, that the many petitions from Anglicans seeking entry into the Catholic Church often raised doctrinal questions. The Pope's apostolic constitution opens with a reflection on the nature of Christ's Church and the necessity for repairing breaches in the communion of the faithful. The document goes on to stipulate that the Catechism of the Catholic Church must be recognized by any incoming Anglicans as the official teaching of the Church, to which they are required to adhere. These are doctrinal questions, certainly. Father Ghirlanda rightly observes that "such questions will continue to arise as the time comes for the erection of particular Ordinariates and for the incorporation of groups of Anglican faithful into full Catholic communion through the Ordinariates." Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 7:27 PM

• Diocese Discloses Retainer Fees For Firms

  - RCC. Another US $800k going on legal/financial advice.  
   WJZ, ~ November 09, 2009
   DOVER, DELAWARE, (AP) -- Four professional firms helping the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington in its Chapter 11 bankruptcy case have been retained at an initial cost of almost $800,000.
   Court documents filed Monday indicate that more than half of that amount is for the diocese's Wilmington law firm, Young Conaway Stargatt and Taylor.

• New Flash: Priest sent to jail for five years for molesting boys

  [~ 1984 Cloutier*] - RCC. 5yrs PRISON. 5 young males.  
   Sudbury Star, ~ November 09, 2009
   CANADA -- Roman Catholic priest Bernard Cloutier has been sent to jail for five years for sexually molesting young men a quarter century ago at various church parishes in the Sudbury area.
   Cloutier was originally charged with 16 charges of sex-related offences involving five young men.
   Following a lengthy trial, he was found guilty of 11 of the charges involving four of the five males. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 7:23 PM

• The 'anti-Catholic!' cry is a cheap, easy accusation

  - RCC.  
   National Catholic Reporter (USA), by Tom Roberts, NCR Today, Nov. 09, 2009
   NEW YORK -- It is unfortunate that Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York, new to the national stage and responsible for one of the most visible and potentially most influential sees in the nation, chose to play the tired anti-Catholic card so early in his tenure. His recent blog posting accused The New York Times and the wider culture of indulging in rampant anti-Catholic activity.
   In doing so, he wastes the authority of his office by aligning it with such imprudent screamers as William Donohue and his Catholic League, which exists to raise money so it can continue to scream Fire! in the crowded theater of overcharged religionists.
   The reality is, of course, that it is increasingly difficult to establish an anti-Catholic case of any substance or depth in the culture when so much -- industry, politics, finance, academia, the Supreme Court itself -- is in the hands of high-profile Catholics. …
   Several members of the hierarchy, most notably Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver and now Archbishop Dolan, have attempted to distract our attention away from the severity of the sex abuse crisis in the church by pointing the finger at others -- at teachers, Boy Scouts, the culture at large, the press -- but it is an ineffective strategy. There are several principal reasons the church continues to come under scrutiny for its handling of crises and scandals related to sex, and none of them has to do with the press or an anti-Catholic culture. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 5:31 PM

• Conn. judge weighs release of church documents

 
   New Haven Register, November 09, 2009
   WATERBURY (CT) , (AP) – A Connecticut judge has heard arguments on when Bridgeport's Roman Catholic Diocese must release thousands of documents connected to sexual abuse lawsuits.
   Waterbury Superior Court Judge Barry Stevens but did not immediately issue a ruling after Monday's hearing.

• Louise Akers elevates women's issues at CTA meeting

     
   National Catholic Reporter (USA), By Thomas C. Fox, Nov. 09, 2009
   MILWAUKEE (WI) -- Charity Sr. Louise Akers, telling the story of how she was dismissed, after 40 years of teaching in the Cincinnati archdiocese, for not retracting her support for women’s ordination, held more than 2,000 Call to Action conference delegates spellbound here, and in the process united two women’s issues precious to many Catholics: the ban on women’s ordination and the Vatican’s secretive investigation of U.S. women religious.
   Both, Akers explained, relegated women to lesser roles in the church, and are affronts to human dignity and grave injustices that all Catholic need to confront. …
   The church, Akers said, needs to be more inclusive not just in outreach, but also within its internal structures. … A church that is universal in cultures and inclusive in gender would project a renewed presence. There is also a need for persistence in raising questions or objections to such abuses as the pedophile scandal. The lack of accountability is more and more evident and cries out for a new model of leadership." Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 4:21 PM

• God's Other Banker

  - Machinations of Vatican's banker.      
   Forbes, by Brian Wingfield, November 9, 2009
   When Goldman Sachs boss Lloyd Blankfein told The Times of London recently that bankers are "doing God's work," the cautionary tale of another successful businessman with ties to finance, London and the Almighty came quickly to mind.
   Back in the early 1980s, Roberto Calvi, head of Italy's Banco Ambrosiano, was known as "God's banker," because of his business connections to the Vatican. In 1982, the bank went belly up in the wake of a massive fraud scandal dealing with offshore accounts.
   As the investigation unfolded, a complicated picture began to emerge, involving Calvi, the Holy See, a secretive Masonic lodge, the Mafia and allegations of money laundering. That June, "God's banker" vanished; his body was soon found hanging from the scaffolding beneath London's Blackfriars Bridge.

• Human Sacrifices

  - Documovie "All God's Children".  
   Breakpoint, with audio, By Mark Earley, Published Date: November 05, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- It’s never easy for Christians to look at scandal within the Church. But for the sake of truth, healing, and the integrity of the faith, we must.
   In the new documentary All God’s Children, there’s a lot of talk about sacrifice. Near the beginning of the film, Dr. Bob Fetherlin, vice president of International Ministries for the Christian and Missionary Alliance, says, "The advance of the Kingdom of God historically has always involved some suffering and hardship–We know that there will be sacrifice involved."
   Then we hear two more people, Beverly Shellrude Thompson and Rich Darr, talking about sacrifice. But their perspective is very different. Thompson, Darr, and others in the film say that they themselves were sacrificed when they were children. Sent to a Christian and Missionary Alliance boarding school while their parents served as missionaries in Africa, they claim they were physically, sexually, emotionally, and spiritually abused by their house parents and teachers. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 10:51 AM]

• ANGLICANORUM COETIBUS AND COMPLEMENTARY NORMS

  - RCC inviting Anglicans.  
   Vatican Information Service, NOV 9, 2009
   VATICAN CITY, (VIS) - The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith today published the Apostolic Constitution "Anglicanorum coetibus", which provides for personal ordinariates for Anglicans entering into full communion with the Catholic Church, and some Complementary Norms for the same Apostolic Constitution.
   Both documents are dated 4 November, feast of St. Charles Borromeo, and are signed by Cardinal William Joseph Levada and Archbishop Luis F. Ladaria S.J., respectively prefect and secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 9:40 AM

• Burke's influence is set to grow

  - RCC.    
   National Catholic Reporter (USA), By John L Allen Jr Nov. 06, 2009
   VATICAN CITY -- Archbishop Raymond Burke’s Oct. 17 appointment to the powerful Congregation for Bishops offers an illustration of how in the Vatican, even the ordinary can be extraordinary.
   The appointment means that the 61-year-old Burke, a frequently polarizing figure during his 12-year run as a bishop in the United States, is now in a position to put his stamp on the next generation of Catholic bishops all over the world.
   At one level, Pope Benedict XVI’s decision to tap Burke for the role was the dictionary definition of pro forma. Of the 33 members of the Congregation for Bishops at the beginning of 2009, 25 were current or former Vatican officials, including Burke’s predecessor as prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, the church’s highest court. (Burke was actually appointed on Oct. 17 along with another recently installed curial official, Spanish Cardinal Antonio Cañizares Llovera, who heads the Vatican’s liturgical office.) [Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 9:12 AM]

• Dolan vs. Dowd: the New York Times weighs in

     
   Beliefnet, by Deacon Greg Kandra, ~ November 09, 2009
   NEW YORK -- Last month, New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan took on the New York Times in his blog -- and had some particularly sharp words for columnist Maureen Dowd. Now, the paper's Public Editor, Clark Hoyt, has decided to look into Dolan's charges of anti-Catholicism.
   A snip: Dolan seemed particularly offended by Dowd's column, in which she wrote that the Vatican was hoping to herd nuns "back into their old-fashioned habits and convents and curb any speck of modernity or independence." She said the "über-conservative" Pope Benedict XVI, while a cardinal, had urged women to be submissive partners. She brought up issues like the pope's conscription into the Hitler Youth, and his statement that condoms could make the AIDS crisis worse. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 8:55 AM

• Archbishop Dolan’s "Not Fit To Print" New York Times Editorial

 
   Pew Sitter, by Fr. George Rutler, November 9, 2009
   NEW YORK -- One assumes that The New York Times would have been glad to receive an Op-Ed article from the new Archbishop of New York. The Archdiocese of New York is responsible for a very important part of the city’s educational, medical, and charitable life. The newspaper refused to print it.
   Such censorship only whets the appetite to know what was thought not fit to print. There are many items that the Times, which claims to publish everything that’s fit to print, has printed although they were not fit.
   There were, for instance, its mockery in 1920 of Goddard’s hypothesis that rocket propulsion can take place in a vacuum, a denial of Stalin’s forced famine in Ukraine and a whitewash of his show trials by its Moscow bureau chief Walter Duranty, its advocacy of Fidel Castro, and its benign regard for the Soviet spy Alger Hiss.
   So there had to be some journalistic equivalent of a cerebral stroke to make the editors of the Times unable to print Archbishop Dolan’s words.

• 'Abusive rabbi' won't face attempted murder charges

  [~ 2000s "Rabbi" Chen/Hen*] - Judaist. Cruelty to "correct children's souls."       
   YNet News, by Aviad Glickman, November 9, 2009
   ISRAEL -- Elior Chen, the self-professed rabbi suspected of multiple counts of abuse, will not face attempted murder charges, the Jerusalem District Prosecution said Sunday.
   The prosecution intends to charge Chen, who allegedly instructed his followers to abuse their children, with multiple counts of abuse and assault of a helpless minor. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 8:33 AM

• Elior Chen indicted for abuse

  [~ 2000s "Rabbi" Chen/Hen*] - Judaist. Cruelty to "correct children's souls." 
   YNet News, by Aviad Glickman, ~ Nov. 9, 2009
   ISRAEL -- A harsh indictment was filed Monday morning against Elior Chen, also known as the "abusive rabbi". Chen was charged with abusing a helpless minor and assaulting a minor.
   The 20-page indictment details the severe abuse of eight children from a Jerusalem family. Despite the severity of his actions, he has not been charged with attempted murder.
   The abuse left a three-year-old boy in a vegetative state. The indictment describes how Chen and his accomplices abused the child in an incident which took place during Hanukkah, 2007. Chen and his accomplices allegedly severely beat the three-year-old boy in his face. When the child fell to the floor, Chen and his accomplices picked him up, and continued to beat him harshly.

• Sect leader indicted for child abuse

  [2008 Feb and Mar - "Rabbi" Chen/Hen*] - Judaist. Cruelty to "correct children's souls." 
   JTA, Nov. 09, 2009
   JERUSALEM, ISRAEL (JTA) -- The spiritual leader of a religious sect who was extradited to Israel from Brazil was indicted for child abuse.
   Elior Chen, 29, was indicted by the Jerusalem District Court on Monday. He was charged with eight accounts of abuse, each charge related to a different child from the same family. He was not charged with attempted murder, despite statements by police.
   The abuse occurred in the West Bank settlement of Beitar Illit in February and March 2008.

• Elior Chen's brother: 'Cult-shmult, it's one big bluff'

  [~ 2000s "Rabbi" Chen/Hen*] - Judaist. Cruelty to "correct children's souls."       
   The Jerusalem Post, ~ November 9, 2009
   ISRAEL -- Ya'akov Chen, the brother of Elior Chen, who was charged with eight counts of abusing and assaulting minors, came to his sibling's defense hours after the indictment was served on Monday, dismissing the accusations.
   The self-styled rabbi allegedly influenced some of his followers to abuse their children in order to "correct their corrupt souls. His alleged crimes came to light after two brothers, an unconscious three-year-old and his four-and-a-half-year-old sibling, were rushed to the hospital on March 12, 2008 in serious condition. The younger child suffered severe brain damage and is still unconscious in a Jerusalem-area hospital. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 8:26 AM

• Vatican on Anglicans: celibacy rule unchanged

  - RCC enticing Anglican clergy.  
   Belleville News-Democrat, ~ November 09, 2009
   VATICAN CITY -- The Vatican has confirmed that opening its door to married Anglican priests doesn't mean the Roman Catholic church's requirement for celibacy for clergy is changing.
   The Holy See's press office issued a set of rules Monday as part of its initiative to make it easier for disillusioned conservative Anglicans to become Catholics. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 7:36 AM

• A still acceptable prejudice lingers

  - RCC.  
   The Trentonian, By JAY AMBROSE, Scripps Howard News Service, November 09, 2009
   NEW YORK -- Even though they may remind you of the worst racists you have known, bigoted bashers of religion often get away with it, no matter how nasty-minded or hostile their attitudes are.
   Every now and then, however, someone strikes back – such as Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York. On his Web site, he recently took a swing at anti-Catholicism, particularly as exhibited in The New York Times.
   "It is not hyperbole to call prejudice against the Catholic Church a national pastime," he wrote. "Scholars such as Arthur Schlesinger Sr. referred to it as ‘the deepest bias in the history of the American people.’ – Prof. Philip Jenkins subtitles his book on the topic ‘the last acceptable prejudice.’"
   The archbishop pointed out how the Times, in writing about the sexual abuse of children by Orthodox Jewish rabbis, applies standards different from those it exhibited in coverage of abuse by Catholic priests.

• Canadian bishop thwarted police investigation of abusive priest, judge finds

  [Fr Bernard Cloutier] - RCC. [1983 Bishop Dionne*] - RCC.  
   Catholic Culture, November 09, 2009
   CANADA -- A Canadian judge has determined that retired Bishop Gérard Dionne thwarted a 1983 police investigation into Father Bernard Cloutier’s sexual abuse of five teenage boys. Father Cloutier faces sentencing for his abuse today.
   The judge sided with testimony by the father of one of the victims; the father testified that he, his wife, and parents of another victim were meeting with police when Bishop Dionne and Father Cloutier arrived uninvited and the bishop took over the meeting. Saying "shut up" whenever Father Cloutier attempted to speak, Bishop Dionne spoke with the boys privately, after which they said they did not wish to pursue charges. Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 7:24 AM

• Hearing set on releasing church documents

  - RCC Bridgeport secrecy bid continues.  
   Waterbury Republican-American November 09, 2009
   WATERBURY (CT) -- A Connecticut judge will be deciding when to release thousands of pages of documents connected to sexual abuse lawsuits settled by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport.
   A hearing is set for Monday at Waterbury Superior Court, a week after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal by the diocese to block the release of the documents.
   The Connecticut Supreme Court ruled that more than 12,000 pages from 23 lawsuits against six priests settled by the diocese in 2001 should be unsealed. [Posted by Kathy Shaw on November 9, 2009 7:20 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Mon November 09, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Tue November 10, 2009 edition:

• Catholic priest rapes maid

  [? 2009 Unnamed priest -NEW*] - RCC. Servant girl (17).  
   Sunday News, By Vincent Gono, ~ November 10, 2009
   ZIMBABWE -- POLICE have arrested a 33-year-old Roman Catholic father for allegedly raping a 17-year-old girl who was working for him before asking her to marry him to cover up the offence.
   Police confirmed the arrest.
   The incident occurred at a church in Mwenezi where the man of the cloth and the maid were staying. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:42 PM

• 10 years for polygamist sect member in sex assault

  [Raymond Jessop (38)] - FLDS. 10yrs PRISON. Underage "bride."  
   The Associated Press, November 10, 2009
   ELDORADO, Texas – The first polygamist sect member to face criminal trial following the raid of a West Texas ranch was sentenced to 10 years in prison Tuesday for sexually assaulting an underage girl with whom he had a so-called "spiritual marriage."
   Jurors who last week convicted Raymond Jessop, 38, handed down the sentence that includes an $8,000 fine. His attorneys had sought probation for the conviction that could have brought him up to 20 years in prison. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:49 PM, November 10, 2009]

• Priest sentenced to five years

  [9yrs in 1980s - Cloutier*] - RCC. 5yrs PRISON. 4 altar boys.  
   North Bay Nugget, Posted By BOB VAILLANCOURT, SUN MEDIA, ~ November 10, 2009
   CANADA -- Roman Catholic Priest Bernard Cloutier was sent to prison for five years Monday for sexually assaulting four young boys more than a quarter century ago.
   The five-year term is less than the eight years sought by the Crown but more than the two years suggested by the defence.
   Cloutier, 68, showed no emotion when the sentence was handed down. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:07 AM, November 10, 2009

• No recompense for child victims

  [Decades - Several Churches, and the State governments] - Australian national government apologised. Unaccompanied migrant children, and other children.  
   Sydney Morning Herald, By YUKO NARUSHIMA, November 11, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- A REFUSAL to compensate 500,000 "forgotten" Australians who the Federal Government will apologise to next week has been branded foolish by its own adviser.
   On Monday, the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, and the Opposition Leader, Malcolm Turnbull, will deliver speeches acknowledging the neglect and abuse endured by people taken from their families as children and placed in state care.
   The former senator chairing the Government's advisory group on the parliamentary apology, Andrew Murray, said a financial reparation should accompany it. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:28 AM, November 10, 2009

• Former priest denies child sex abuse charges

  [1959-83 Fr James Robinson] - Roman Catholic. 22 charges. Boys.    
   Birmingham Mail, Nov 10 2009
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A former Roman Catholic priest who was extradited from America to face sexual abuse allegations today denied the charges against him.
   James Robinson, 72, is alleged to have committed a string of offences against young boys between 1959 and 1983 in the West Midlands and Wales. He faces a total of 22 charges, including 12 counts of indecent assault and three of gross indecency.
   The former clergyman, whose full name is Richard John James Robinson, is known to have worked in the Birmingham and Coventry areas up until the mid-1980s, when he moved to California. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:19 PM, November 10, 2009

• Anxiety grows over delays in clerical abuse report

  - RCC.  
   The Irish Times, November 11, 2009
   IRELAND -- ANALYSIS: Victims of clerical sex abuse are concerned at legal arguments behind closed doors which are delaying publication of the Dublin archdiocese report, writes PATSY McGARRY
   DELAYS IN the publication of the report into the handling of clerical child sex abuse allegations in Dublin’s Roman Catholic archdiocese have caused frustration to many of those who hope the report will cast light on what happened to them.
   There is also growing anxiety over what is going on at the High Court.
   Currently, the Dublin report is before the court for a second time, having been cleared for publication initially by Mr Justice Paul Gilligan on October 15th. He ordered the removal of chapter 19 and 21 other deletions prior to publication. This was to avoid prejudicing separate proceedings against a man currently before the courts. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:40 PM, ~ November 10, 2009

• A Haredi Town Confronts Abuse From The Inside

  - Judaists.  
   The Jewish Week, by Steve Lipman, ~ November 10, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- On the night before Yom Kippur in September, Rabbi Ron Yitzchok Eisenman stood before his Orthodox congregation, in a room crowded with men wearing black hats and women wearing sheitels, and moderated a panel discussion among five Orthodox Jews who said they had been the victims of sexual abuse at the hands of other Orthodox Jews. The rabbi regularly uses his pulpit to preach against the evils of sexual molestation.
   On another recent day Michael Lesher, an Orthodox lawyer and author, welcomed four young Orthodox Jews into his home, two men and two women, who told him their stories of sexual molestations committed by Orthodox Jews. For more than a decade he has served as the legal "advocate" for sexual abuse victims and as "their voice," since first handling a custody case that involved a sexually abused child.
   Also not long ago, Brochie Neugarten, an Orthodox mother who works as a purchasing manager, described to a friend her plan to establish an organization that will offer financial support to victims of sexual abuse in the community. Neugarten became an activist a few years ago, after someone she knows became the target of a molester. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:36 PM

• Judge sets Dec. 1 for release of diocesan sex-abuse records

  - RCC.
   Connecticut Post, By Daniel Tepfer, ~ November 10, 2009
   WATERBURY, CONNECTICUT -- A Superior Court judge Tuesday ordered the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport to release thousands of pages documenting allegations of sexual abuse by priests on Dec. 1.
   Judge Barry Stevens ordered the diocese to copy the documents, minus those that are allowed to remain sealed, such as priests' medical records, on a compact disc to be given to lawyers for four newspapers -- the Hartford Courant, New York Times, Boston Globe and Washington Post -- that had filed a lawsuit seeking to force the diocese to open the records to public inspection.
   The newspapers had battled the diocese all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court to win the release of the documentation of priest sex-abuse cases dating back several decades. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:33 PM

• Yakima sexual abuse victims ask others to speak out

  [Frs Duffy and Morse]  
   KNDO, with video, ~ November 10, 2009
   YAKIMA, WASH.- People gathered outside St. Joseph's church to talk about sexual abuse in the Yakima community. Two women, who say they were victims as kids, say they want other victims to know its okay to speak out.
   "We carry this terrible whole in our heart for years because our spirituality was robbed, our innocence was robbed from us, our community was robbed from us and by coming forward and reporting abusers we were able to become whole again," said Joelle Casteix, a sexual abuse victim and the SW Region for SNAP.
   For several years, Fathers Frank Duffy and John Morse worked at St. Joseph's. Now, both face alleged charges of sexual abuse. Members of SNAP, or the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests say more needs to be done to protect the Yakima community. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:28 PM

• Ruling From the Bench: Release the Documents

  - RC diocese wanted to destroy documentation.
   NBC Connecticut, By KRISTIE BORGES, ~ November 10, 2009
   BRIDGEPORT (CT) -- On Tuesday, a Waterbury Superior Court judge ruled thousands of documents must be released by December 1. The Diocese was also wanted to destroy documents and CD-ROMs it had provided to the court.
   The files of the Bridgeport Diocese consist of more than 12,000 pages from 23 lawsuits against six priests settled by the Diocese in 2001. Some expect the release of the documents to shed light on how recently retired New York Cardinal Edward Egan handled the allegations when he was a Bridgeport bishop.
   The New York Times says the papers detail decisions the Diocese made in assigning priests who had molested children in the past to … Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:28 PM

• Court Orders Church To Turn Over Documents

  - RCC still keeping guilty secrets.
   The Hartford Courant, 6:23 p.m. EST, November 10, 2009
   WATERBURY (CT) – - A Superior Court judge has ordered the Catholic Church to turn over documents related to sex abuse allegations involving priests by Dec. 1.
   Judge Barry Stevens of Superior Court in Waterbury ordered the Bridgeport Roman Catholic Diocese Tuesday to turn over compact discs that contain the information the church had sought to keep secret or have destroyed.
   Stevens also denied the church's motion to have returned or destroyed documents it has already provided to the court. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:25 PM

• Conn. judge: Release church abuse papers by Dec. 1

 
   The Associated Press, ~ November 10, 2009
   WATERBURY, Conn. – A Connecticut judge has ordered the release of thousands of documents connected to sexual abuse lawsuits involving Bridgeport's Roman Catholic Diocese.
   A Waterbury Superior Court judge ruled Tuesday that the diocese should release the sealed documents by Dec. 1. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:23 PM

• Ex-stripper, priest ordered to stay away from each other

  [~ 2003-08 Fr David Dueppen*] - RCC. Fathered baby (b. Jan. 2009), grabbed mother by throat. Wanted to watch lesbian lovemaking. Now wants 70% custody of the baby.  
   Miami Herald, BY DAVID OVALLE, dovalle@MiamiHerald.com , ~ November 10, 2009
   FLORIDA -- A Miami-Dade judge on Tuesday ordered a former stripper and a disgraced Catholic priest -- who are involved in a custody dispute over their baby daughter -- to stay away from each [other].
   After a three-hour hearing, former stripper Beatrice Hernandez agreed to dismiss her claim of domestic violence against the Rev. David Dueppen, and both agreed to stay away from each other unless ordered otherwise by the court. Hernandez, 41, claimed in court filings in September that Dueppen choked her during an argument over paternity of their baby.
   Dueppen, 42, has acknowledged that he is the father of little Marilyn Epiphany Hernandez, born in January. In a separate court case, Dueppen is seeking majority custody of the baby girl. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:37 PM

• Dale Fushek trial to start in February

  [Fushek]  
   The Arizona Republic, by Jim Walsh, Nov. 10, 2009
   ARIZONA -- After nearly four years of delays and appeals, a Chandler justice of the peace set a new date for the trial of an excommunicated Roman Catholic priest charged with misdemeanor sex crimes.
   San Tan Justice of the Peace Sam Goodman scheduled a hearing on motions for Jan. 7 and the trial of former Monsignor Dale Fushek for Feb. 19.
   Fushek, once the second-highest ranking priest in the Diocese of Phoenix, would stand trial on one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Previous court rulings established that Fushek is entitled to a jury trial because his potential punishment includes registration as a sex offender. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:35 PM

• Ex-Pines Catholic priest claims woman demanded he have sex with her

  [~ 2003-08 Fr David Dueppen*] - RCC. Fathered baby (b. Jan. 2009), grabbed mother by throat. Wanted to watch lesbian lovemaking. Now wants 70% custody of the baby.  
   South Florida Sun-Sentinel, November 10, 2009
   FLORIDA -- Catholic priest David Dueppen said the former exotic dancer he has admitted having a child with demanded he have sex with her.
   The comments by Dueppen, who was last assigned to St. Maximilian Kolbe Church in Pembroke Pines, came during a videotaped deposition taken last week as part of an ongoing custody dispute, WFOR-Ch. 4 reports.
   They mark the first public comments made by Dueppen since his affair with Beatrice Hernandez became public in August. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:38 PM

• Italy: Vatican sends 'paedophile priest' for therapy

  [Fr Roberto Berti -NEW*] - RCC. 8yrs of RC "cure" ordered. Children.    
   AKI, Nov. 10, 2009
   FLORENCE, Italy, (AKI) - The Vatican has removed an Italian priest from his daily duties and sent him for "spiritual therapy" after allegations that he sexually molested children. The Vatican's doctrinal watchdog, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, ruled that Roberto Berti should face obligatory 'isolation' for eight years and undergo recovery and therapy.
   According to Italian media reports, the Vatican said Berti will "for eight years be obliged to live under supervision and in a structure outside the diocese and follow a path of spiritual recovery and therapy.
   "During this time, the priest is excluded from every pastoral activity," media reports said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:34 PM

• Louisiana Priest Loses Defamation Ruling

  [Fr Roux in courts blaming whistleblower] - RCC.  
   Courthouse News Service, By JEFF GORMAN, November 10, 2009
   LOUISIANA; (CN) - A Louisiana priest was not defamed by his replacement's letter to their supervisor asking about irregularities in the church's finances, the state Court of Appeals ruled.
   Father Randy Roux was the priest of St. John of the Cross Parish Church in the New Orleans Catholic archdiocese. He was replaced in early 2001 by Father Gilmer Martin. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:26 PM, November 10, 2009

• Former priest denies sexual abuse

  [1959-83 Fr James Robinson] - Roman Catholic. 22 charges. Boys.    
   BBC News, ~ November 10, 2009
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A former Roman Catholic priest has pleaded not guilty to 22 charges of sexually abusing young boys.
   Richard John James Robinson, 72, who was extradited from the US in August, denied the charges when he appeared at Birmingham Crown Court. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:17 PM, November 10, 2009

• Betrayal: Door to Death or Key to Life?

   
   Garden of Roses: Stories of Abuse and Healing; by Billie Mazzei, M.Min, November 5, 2009
   Billie Mazzei is a clergy abuse survivor who studied with Marie Fortune of the Faith Trust Institute. She offers spiritual direction and small groups for clergy abuse survivors. She enjoys watching survivors move from victim to survivor to thriver. Billie’s work on helping survivors heal inspired her to write this article. --Virginia
   UNITED STATES -- Your best friend tells everyone the secret you shared with her. Your co-worker takes credit for your fabulous idea. Your precious child leaves the church and seems to be doing everything against the values you teach and live. Your spouse is unfaithful. Public figures, politicians, business people, and even clergy act in ways that shock and dismay. So what’s the deal?
   It is called betrayal. It is a core theme in our faith and a call to grow up. When it happens to us it feels like the worst possible thing. Betrayal breaks trust and puts us at risk emotionally and spiritually.
   Trust is fundamental in our relationship with God and with one another. When trust is broken some people heal and move on; others seem to stay stuck and cannot move. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:21 AM, November 10, 2009

• Testimony in Sentencing for FLDS Member

  [Jessop]
   Fox 13, with video, ~ November 10, 2009
   ELDORADO, Texas - A jury that convicted a member of the Utah-based FLDS Church will begin deliberating his sentence. After a day-long hearing on Monday that included hours of testimony, a judge set closing arguments and deliberations on Tuesday in the case of Raymond Jessop. Jessop, 38, was convicted of child sex assault for fathering a child with a 16-year-old girl who was a polygamous wife. He faces up to 20 years in prison.
   The jury is deciding the sentence. On Monday, testimony included an FBI agent, a pair of Texas Rangers who testified about documents, and two former members of the polygamous church. Carolyn Jessop, who was once Raymond Jessop's step-mother by marriage to his father, testified about her experiences within the FLDS Church.
   "Polygamy was a saving principle of God," she said. "God's laws supersede the laws of man." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:17 AM, November 10, 2009

• Sentencing brings some closure to victims of priest's abuse

  [9yrs in 1980s - Cloutier*] - RCC. Guilty on 11 charges. 4 altar boys.  
   Sudbury Northern Life, By Laurel Myers, November 10, 2009
   CANADA -- Four grown men, with tears streaming down their faces, stood up in a courtroom and told their stories of lifelong pain, feelings of shame and loneliness.
   More than a quarter of a century ago, the four men, between 12 and 17 years of age at the time, each served as an altar boy at their local Catholic church, under the guidance of Father Bernard Cloutier.
   On Monday, the 68-year-old parish priest stood before a Sudbury court and was handed down a five-year prison sentence after being convicted of four counts each of indecent assault and gross indecency, as well as two counts of sexual assault, against the four victims. The events were alleged to have taken place over a period of nine years, while Cloutier was a parish priest in Sudbury, Chelmsford and Espanola. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:30 PM, November 10, 2009

• Aaron’s court-selected lawyer withdraws from case

  [Aaron]  
   Andalusia Star-News, By Stephanie Nelson | Published Monday, November 9, 2009
   ANDALUSIA (AL) -- The court-appointed counsel for former pastor and accused child sex abuser Ralph Lee Aaron submitted a motion to withdraw from the case Monday.
   Aaron, the 54-year-old former pastor of Grace Christian Fellowship, was charged last month with 152 counts of sex-related crimes including the production and possession of child pornography, sexual abuse and torture and sodomy. He is currently in the county jail under a $24.5 million bond.
   Al Smith of Elba was appointed as defense counsel days after Aaron’s arrest. He and Aaron were scheduled to meet county district attorney Greg Gambril on Friday for a preliminary hearing; however that meeting was postponed due to "conflicting schedules." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:00 AM, November 10, 2009

• Former priest charged with sexual abuse of boys

  [1959-83 Fr James Robinson] - RCC. 22 charges. Boys.    
   Birmingham Post, Nov 10 2009
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A former Roman Catholic priest will appear in court charged with allegations of sexual abuse in the West Midlands.
   James Robinson, who is alleged to have committed more than 20 offences against young boys between 1959 and 1983 in the West Midlands and Wales, is due to enter pleas to the charges at Birmingham Crown Court. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:57 AM, November 10, 2009

• Group urges victims of cleric sexual abuse to step forward

  - RCC. Jesuit.  
   Yakima Herald-Republic, by Jane Gargas, ~ November 10, 2009
   YAKIMA, Wash. -- Representatives from a national group that advocates for the rights of sexual abuse victims by clerics are in Yakima today to urge alleged victims to come forward.
   The group, Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, SNAP, is holding a news conference at 10 a.m. outside St. Joseph’s Church on North Fourth Street, contending the Catholic Diocese of Yakima is not doing enough to notify people of a pending deadline for lawsuits.
   Anyone who has a claim against a Jesuit priest from the Society of Jesus, Oregon Province, must come forward this month. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:55 AM

• 'Home was never home to me again'

  [< 9yrs in 1980s - Cloutier*] - RCC. 5yrs PRISON. 4 altar boys.  
   The Sudbury Star, Posted By BOB VAILLANCOURT, ~ November 10, 2009
   CANADA -- The victims of Roman Catholic Priest Bernard Cloutier told a Sudbury court Monday how they turned to drugs and alcohol to try and deal with the fact a trusted family friend had sexually abused them when they were just boys.
   "It took all the courage and strength of my young mind and soul to tell my mother what had happened to me and once I had, my total world as I had known it for 13-1/2 years began to collapse," one of Cloutier's four victims told the priest's sentencing hearing.
   Cloutier was sentenced to five years in prison for sexual assaulting four young boys over a period of nearly nine years, more than quarter century ago. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:52 AM, November 10, 2009]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Tue November 10, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Wed November 11, 2009 edition:

• Priest (81) told to face being extradited on rape charges

  [1968 Fr Francis Markey (now 81) - ? NEW*] - RCC. Boy (15).    
   The Irish Times, By LARA MARLOWE and PATSY McGARRY, November 12, 2009
   IRELAND -- A COURT IN South Bend, Indiana, has given Fr Francis Markey (81) until November 16th to find a lawyer and prepare for his extradition hearing.
   The priest, from the Catholic diocese of Clogher, is wanted in Ireland on charges of twice raping a 15-year-old boy in 1968.
   Fr Markey was on the front porch of his home when US marshals arrested him at about 5pm on Monday, the South Bend Tribune reported. He is being held in the St Joseph county jail. The Irish Government has requested that he not be released on bail. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:05 PM, November 11, 2009

• Oregon Province sexual abuse claims may reach 500

  - RCC. ? 80 Jesuits. ? 500 claimants.  
   Seattle University Spectator, By Joshua Lynch, ~ November 11, 2009
   WASHINGTON Attorneys representing victims of sexual abuse in a case against the Oregon Province of the Society of Jesus are finding they have more clients than they expected.
   As a Nov. 30 deadline for filing claims against the Oregon Province approaches, some plaintiff’s attorneys are estimating that the total between several firms will reach 500 claims alleging abuse by as many as 80 Jesuits.
   "I honestly was stunned," said Patrick Wall, who works as an advocate with a law firm representing victims. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:08 PM, November 11, 2009]

• Minister wants sex abuse report published quickly

  - RCC.  
   The Irish Times, By PATSY McGARRY, Religious Affairs Correspondent, November 12, 2009
   IRELAND -- MINISTER FOR Justice Dermot Ahern has indicated he wants to see the Dublin report into the handling of allegations of clerical child sex abuse in the archdiocese published "as quickly as possible".
   However, the Minister "obviously has to get a ruling from the High Court, which he is currently awaiting", a spokesman for the Minister added last night.
   Mr Ahern hoped this would be "soon", the spokesman said, adding that when the court’s judgement is delivered the report would be published as quickly as possible afterwards. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:03 PM, November 11, 2009

• Control of schools by church to be discussed

  - RCC.
   The Irish Times, By SEÁN FLYNN, Education Editor, November 12, 2009
   IRELAND -- CATHOLIC BISHOPS will be under pressure to identify schools they are willing to relinquish control of at a meeting with Department of Education officials today.
   Over the past 18 months, Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin has repeatedly signalled his willingness to let go of schools in areas where the Catholic Church is over-represented. At present the church controls over 92 per cent of primary schools (3,000 of the total of 3,200) in the State.
   Yesterday, Minister for Education Batt O’Keeffe said it was hoped that an indication of which schools Dr Martin had in mind would be gained at today’s meeting. The department has written to Dr Martin "on a number of occasions asking him to identify areas where he would like to divest. Hopefully we will get some clear indication of what areas and what schools he has in mind." [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:59 PM, Nov. 11, 2009 ]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Wed November 11, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Thu November 12, 2009 edition:

• Student alleges sexual abuse by priest in Kerala school

  [2000s Unnamed priests - NEW*] - Christian. Girl.  
   The Times of India, Ananthakrishnan G, TNN, November 13, 2009
   THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, INDIA : The Church in Kerala has been hit by yet another controversy, this time by allegations from a Class IX student about sexual abuse by priests in their hostel, two weeks after her sister died of suspected poisoning at their school run by the Orthodox church.
   The death of Anu, a 16-year-old girl student of the Catholicate Higher Secondary School in Malappuram district happened on October 24. Anu's sister Anju raised the charges at a news conference with her father.
   The 14-year-old alleged they were made to wash the priests' vehicles and massage them and it often ended with them being sexually harassed. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:10 PM, November 12, 2009]

• Sixth Suspect Arrested in Mohler Child Sex Case

  [~ 2000s Mr Larry Kidd (55) -NEW*] - Mohler family group. Child/ren.  
   Fox 4, November 12, 2009
   LAFAYETTE COUNTY, MO - Authorities say a sixth suspect has been arrested and charged in the ongoing Mohler family child sex case, in which several members of a family face charges of raping and sexually abusing at least two children.
   According to the Missouri Highway Patrol, Larry Kidd, 55, from Kansas City, Missouri, has been arrested and charged with rape of a child less than 14 years old.
   Authorities say that Kidd was identified as an associate of the Mohler family, which faces numerous child sex allegations. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:59 PM, November 12, 2009]

• Five men arrested in rural Missouri sex-abuse probe

  [20yrs Mr Jason Hoyte (37) -NEW*] - Christian. GUILTY. 6 girls.  
   KOLD, This is Local London, By Matt Watts, 6:40am, Thursday November 12, 2009
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A paedophile who abused his position of trust in churches and youth projects to sexually abuse young girls over a 20-year period has been branded "a monster" by a member of his family.
   Married dad Jason Hoyte, 37, was found guilty on Monday of sexually abusing six girls as young as four.
   He would befriend their parents through his senior position in churches in Upper Norwood, West Norwood and Brixton before abusing the children, often in their own homes. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:47 AM, November 12, 2009

• Archdiocese finds evidence priest abused a child

  [1980s Fr Edward Maloney -NEW*] - RCC. 2 schoolboys.
   Chicago Breaking News, ~ November 12, 2009
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago has found credible evidence that a priest on Chicago's West Side sexually abused a child, according to a letter from Auxiliary Bishop John Manz to parishioners.
   The Rev. Edward Maloney, a retired priest who served at St. Mark Roman Catholic Church, 1048 N. Campbell Ave., for 21 years until 1996, was removed from ministry several months ago, according to the letter. He currently resides in Fox Lake.
   The abuse of two male victims, now in their late 30s and early 40s, is alleged to have taken place about two decades ago, when the victims were in junior high school and while Maloney was at St. Mark, said Susan Burritt, a spokeswoman for the Archdiocese. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:13 PM, November 12, 2009

• Racism in Fairbanks: "The Pedophiles’ Paradise"

  [Years - Fairbanks Diocese] - RCC. Native children.    
   Second Rape: The Diocese of Fairbanks and Sexual Abuse, November 12, 2009
   Videos and Letters Expose the Bishop of Fairbanks’ Dirty Fingerprints. He knew kids were being raped and he covered it up.
   Or: Father Jim Poole, The Great Lover of the World (his words, not mine)
   ALASKA -- There’s more to the story of Fr. Jim Poole, SJ, subject of my last post.
   Seattle’s weekly paper, The Stranger, wrote a gripping story about Rachel Mike and other victims of sexual abuse in the Diocese of Fairbanks.
   The story outlines how dozens of child rapists were sent to Fairbanks to "Get them off the grid" and fill jobs where these men could rape hundreds of Alaska Native kids.
   Rachel Mike was one of the kids. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:12 PM, November 12, 2009

• Priest accused of sex abuse of minor, yanked from ministry

  [1980s Fr Edward Maloney*] - RCC. 2 schoolboys.  
   Chicago Sun-Times, November 12, 2009
   CHICAGO (IL) Another Chicago priest has been accused of sexual abuse of a minor and suspended from ministry.
   The accused priest is the Rev. Edward Maloney, who had been pastor of St. Mark Church at 1048 N. Campbell Ave., according to information released Thursday by the Archdiocese of Chicago.

• Archdiocese gives $50K to Maine marriage fight

  - Sodomy opposed by RCC.
   Philadelphia Gay News, by Jen Colletta, ~ November 12, 2009
   PHILADELPHIA (PA) -- Marriage equality suffered a setback last week when voters in Maine overturned the state’s same-sex marriage law in a ballot initiative that drew intense debate and financial contributions from throughout the country – including from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
   According to campaign finance reports, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland donated $553,608.27 toward the passage of Question 1, and $50,000 of that funding came from the Philadelphia archdiocese.
   Donna Farrell, director of communications for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, declined to comment on the source of the $50,000. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:48 PM, November 12, 2009
   [COMMENTS: "Marriage equality" or "licence to pollute"? ENDS.]

• Once every two weeks for Texas Baptists

  - Baptists.
   Stop Baptist Predators, ~ November 12, 2009
   TEXAS -- "Southern Baptist churches in Texas must stop hiding sexual abuse by clergy and provide outreach to victims."
   That’s what Phil Strickland told the delegates of the Baptist General Convention of Texas exactly 10 years ago when they gathered for their annual meeting in El Paso.
   Phil Strickland, who was executive director of the BGCT’s Christian Life Commission, presented a report to the 2000 Texas Baptists gathered there, and said: "There is increasing evidence that clergy sexual abuse is a significant problem among Baptist ministers." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:44 PM, November 12, 2009

• Statement of the Archdiocese of Chicago regarding Rev. Edward J. Maloney

  [1980s Fr Edward Maloney*] - RCC. 2 schoolboys.
   Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago, ~ November 12, 2009
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The following letter from the Most Rev. John R. Manz, Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago and Episcopal Vicar for Vicariate III, was read at all the Masses over the weekend at St. Mark Parish in Chicago.
   ARCHDIOCESE OF CHICAGO, Office of the Episcopal Vicar, Post Office Box 1979, Chicago, Illinois 60690-1979, November 7, 2009
   Dear St. Mark Parishioners,
   I am writing to you so that I can share important information regarding one of your former pastors, Father Edward Maloney. Several months ago, officials at the Archdiocese received an allegation involving sexual abuse of a minor. The independent Review Board of the Archdiocese completed its inquiry regarding the allegations against Fr. Maloney and determined that there is reasonable cause to suspect that sexual abuse of a minor occurred. Cardinal George has accepted the Review Board’s findings and their recommendation that Fr. Maloney not engage in any form of ministry and that appropriate restrictions be imposed in accordance with Archdiocesan policies and procedures.
   Father Maloney’s case will now be sent to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith at the Vatican for its review and determination. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:35 PM,

• Israel, Brazil sign agreements

  [~ 2000s "Rabbi" Chen/Hen*] - Judaist. Cruelty to "correct children's souls."       
   JTA, November 12, 2009
   RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL (JTA) -- Israel and Brazil signed cooperation agreements on extradition, tourism and security.
   The deals were signed Wednesday during Israeli President Shimon Peres' visit to Brazil this week.
   Israel has signed a $350 million deal to supply dozens of unmanned surveillance aircraft to Brazil's national police, a defense official said Thursday. The Heron drones, made by Israel Aerospace Industries, are to be used to monitor Brazil's borders and help prevent the smuggling of arms, drugs and unspecified natural resources. They will also be used to augment security during the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics in Brazil. Brazilian police are currently being trained to use the system.
   The extradition agreement is part of a cooperation on the war on international crime. It was the result of negotiations between Israel's state prosecutor's office and representatives of the Brazilian authorities. This collaboration led to the recent extradition of religious sect spiritual leader Elior Chen to Israel. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:50 AM, November 12, 2009

• Authorities digging at farm in sexual abuse investigation

  [4 Mohlers] - Community of Christ. Children.  
   Missourinet, by Brent Martin on November 12, 2009
   MISSOURI -- Lafayette County Sheriff Kerrick Alumbaugh believes there are more victims out there and that the public can give authorities more information as they attempt to unravel a horrifying tale of widespread sexual abuse in west-central Missouri.
   Authorities are digging up parts of 77-year-old Burrell Mohler, Sr.’s former farm near Bates City. They are searching for glass jars that might contain letters written by children younger than 12 who reportedly were brutalized by Mohler and four of his sons as far back as 20 years ago. They also are searching for a body.
   Mohler is charged with presiding over systematic abuse that included "mock weddings" between young girls and his relatives. Also charged are 53-year-old Burrell Mohler, Jr.; 52-year-old David Mohler, who lives in Iowa; 48-year-old Jared Mohler of Columbia and 47-year-old Roland Monler of Bates City. Three of the men served as members of the Community of Christ lay priesthood. The church reports that their licenses have been suspended. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:28 AM

• John Paul II the pope of apathy to be beatified soon

  [> 26yrs Pope John Paul 2nd] - RCC. Did nothing to stop clergy paedophilia.
   John Paul II Millstone, ~ November 12, 2009
   How can a pope who had no compassion nor compunction for any of the thousands of victims of priest pedophiles in the USA and around the world be beatified? Pope John Paul II had more than 26 years to do somthing to stop the stench of priest pedophilia under his Holy See and holy nose. He was the longest reigning pope who lived well hand-in-hand with priest-pedophilia.
   For a pope to be able to tolerate the most grevious sin that has affected thousands of children, he cannot be called a blessed or a saint. Most of all, children cannot be praying to him for help because when he was alive, he intentionally refused to help them. Now that he is dead, he cannot help them either. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:18 AM, November 12, 2009

• Child sex abuse allegations may turn into a murder case

  - Girls, one boy.
   The Kansas City Star, By DONALD BRADLEY, ~ November 12, 2009
   LEXINGTON, MISSOURI | They said they were just little girls trying to bury their horror in jars around the farm.
   They wanted somebody to know what happened to them. So, according to authorities, the sisters wrote notes about the years of sexual abuse at the hands of older relatives and hid them in the earth.
   Then the children – one was a boy – buried the pain and anguish within themselves. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:58 AM, November 12, 2009

• Extradition bid begins for priest charged with raping child after Galway funeral

  [1968 Fr Francis Markey* (now 81)] - RCC. Boy (15).    
   Galway Advertiser, By Declan Varley, ~ November 12, 2009
   IRELAND -- A Catholic priest living in Indiana is facing possible extradition to Ireland on charges of child sex abuse, including the rape of a child after the funeral of the child’s father in Galway more than 40 years ago.
   Father Francis Markey, 81, is accused of raping a 15-year-old boy on two occasions in 1968, according to the complaint filed in US District Court on Tuesday.
   The Irish government has requested that U.S. officials send Markey back to his home country for trial. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:30 AM

• Child rape accused priest first suspended in 1964

  [≤ 1964, 1968 Fr Francis Markey* (now 81)] - RCC. ≤ 1964, Unidentified victim. 1968, Boy (15).
   The Independent, By Sarah Stack, Press Association, ~ November 12, 2009
   IRELAND -- An elderly Irish Catholic priest facing extradition from the US over charges of child sex abuse was first suspended from service 45 years ago, it was revealed last night.
   Father Francis Markey is accused of raping a 15-year-old boy during a pilgrimage to Lough Derg, Co Donegal, and again in Co Galway, both in 1968.
   The retired cleric had been treated in a top Dublin mental health hospital following an allegation of abuse four years earlier. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:25 AM, November 12, 2009

• Priest sent for treatment in Ireland

  [≤ 1964, 1968 Fr Francis Markey* (now 81)] - RCC. Suspended 3 times, left duties in 1985. ≤ 1964, Unspecified victim. 1968, Boy (15).    
   South Bend Tribune, By KEVIN ALLEN, November 12, 2009
   INDIANA -- A Catholic priest charged with child sex abuse in Ireland had been suspended from his clerical duties three times before absconding from the church in 1985, the bishop of his home diocese said Wednesday.
   The Rev. Francis Markey, 81, was arrested Monday at his home on Miller Court in South Bend.
   He has lived in the United States since 1982, the Most Rev. Joseph Duffy, bishop of the Diocese of Clogher, said in a statement.
   It is still unclear why and how long Markey was living in South Bend. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:21 AM, November 12, 2009

• The friend of my enemy is my enemy

  [Rev. Virgil Tetherow] - RCC, joined a "Catholic Mission". Child porn.  
   Off My Knees, By Michael Baumann, November 11, 2009
   PENNSYLVANIA -- I received a comment to an older post about a week ago that had me a little baffled at first. The comment was from a "D. W. Downey" and it was intended to get me to wonder if Father Virgil Bradley Tetherow, formerly a priest in the Diocese of Scranton, was framed by Bishop Martino. It seems that Father Tetherow, who was ordered to refrain from acting as or presenting himself as a Catholic priest, has joined a "Catholic Mission" located within the Diocese of Harrisburg that is not recognized by that diocese. Father Tetherow is now at Saints Peter and Paul Roman Catholic Mission. This is now a case of a rogue priest that has found sanctuary and acceptance in a rogue church.
   To get you up to speed, Father Tetherow, who also goes by the name Father Gabriel, pleaded out to charges after child pornography was found on a computer he used. To quote from the database of accused priests in the Diocese of Scranton from Bishop Accountability:
   Also known as "Father Gabriel." Tetherow admitted in 2005 that he downloaded child porn while working at St. Ann’s Catholic Church rectory in Tobyhanna, Pa. in 01/05. He was arrested in West Orange NJ while staying at St. Anthony of Padua. Pleaded guilty to one charge of criminal use of a communication facility and was sentenced to two years probation. Case sent to Vatican for review. Privileges were removed when he was found celebrating mass in PA.
   Note I said he pleaded guilty. That will be important in a moment. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:16 AM, November 12, 2009

• Title: Tempest In the Temple - Jewish Communities & Child Sex Scandals

  - Judaists.
   The Jewish Press, By David Morris, ~ November 12, 2009
   Title: Tempest In the Temple - Jewish Communities & Child Sex Scandals, Brandeis University Press; Edited by Amy Neustein
   UNITED STATES -- "I couldn't put it down", "reads like a Dan Brown novel " etc, hardly sound like descriptions of a Brandeis University Publication, an academic analysis of Jewish Communities & Child Sex Scandals.
   Tempest in the Temple is the first-ever comprehensive book on this painful & controversial subject, and as such is important in every sense.
   The most immediate factor I found with Tempest in the Temple was how very readable (user friendly) it is, even to a layman such as myself. With each chapter by a different expert contributor, and written from a different professional angle, on this pretty hair-raising subject, the book itself was compelling to read. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:13 AM

• Diocese Judge Considers Secret Settlement

  - RCC again asking for secrecy.
   WJZ, ~ November 12, 2009
   WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) -- The judge presiding over a Delaware Catholic diocese's bankruptcy is being asked to approve and keep secret the diocese's settlement with an alleged victim of priest sex abuse.
   A hearing was scheduled Thursday on a request by attorneys for the Diocese of Wilmington and James Sheehan to approve the settlement and keep its terms confidential. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:03 AM, November 12, 2009

• PUBLISHERS CORNER

 
   National Survivor Advocates Association, November 12, 2009
   This letter was addressed to the public editor at the NY Times regarding the article in the Opinion section entitled, "The Archbishop’s Blog."
   NEW YORK -- Now you’ve done it! What were you thinking?
   By exposing the thin-skinned New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan’s schemes to cow the NY Times you have only proven, in "clerical-world think," how really anti-Catholic the NYT can be.
   Don’t fret. When Dolan expresses criticism for Maureen Dowd’s "hyperbole" for defending American religious women and disdain for Laurie Goodstein’s reporting about the unbelievable hypocrisy and cluelessness of priest, Franciscan community and bishop abandoning a dying young man fathered by the very same priest in a bizarre illicit relationship, Dolan is just venting a bishop’s disgusted regret of ever having allowed Catholic nuns to teach women like Dowd to even read and write.
   I wish I were joking. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:00 AM, November 12, 2009

• Authorities Investigate Abuse Case

  - Mohler family.
   KOMU, ~ November 12, 2009
   LAFAYETTE COUNTY, MISSOURI - Horrifying details continue to surface after Missouri authorities arrested five family members on an array of child sexual abuse charges. …
   Officials arrested Jared Leroy Mohler of Columbia, his three brothers, and their 77-year-old father on Tuesday. Jared Mohler was described as a good samaritan by church members. He attended church in Columbia.
   The pastor of the church said Mohler was a lay minister and an active volunteer.
   Since the arrest, church leadership say they pray to uphold the Mohler family, but went on to say the church is taking the allegations seriously and have suspended Mohler's priesthood licensee. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:52 AM, November 12, 2009

• Delay in publishing Dublin report criticised

  - RCC.  
   Total Catholic, ~ November 12, 2009
   IRELAND -- The delay in publishing the findings of the Commission of Inquiry into allegations of sexual abuse by priests in the Archdiocese of Dublin have been criticised by two Irish support groups for abuse victims.
   The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre and One in Four groups have called for explanations for the delay. The chief executive of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre, Ellen O'Malley-Dunlop, has described the situation as "inexcusable."
   "To be given some explanation as to why there is this continued delay would go some way towards alleviating the unnecessary distress victims have to endure as a result of being left in the dark", Ms O'Malley-Dunlop said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:40 AM

• Nova Scotia diocese sex abuse settlement gets court approval

  [Lahey]  
   Metro, By PAUL MCLEOD, METRO HALIFAX, November 12, 2009
   CANADA -- Under starkly different circumstances than when it was unveiled, the $13-million class action lawsuit Bishop Raymond Lahey negotiated with victims of sexual abuse was approved this week.
   In August, Bishop Lahey sat side-by-side with Ronald Martin, himself the victim of sexual abuse at the hands of a priest, to announce the settlement. Martin led a charge for compensation after his brother committed suicide, leaving a note that revealed his history of being abused as a youth.
   "I want to express to you in a personal way my most sincere regrets for the abuse that you and other members of your family have suffered," Lahey said at the time. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:38 AM

• Priest at centre of abuse probe first suspended 45 years ago

  [≤ 1964, 1968 Fr Francis Markey* (now 81)] - RCC. Suspended 3 times, left duties in 1985. ≤ 1964, Unidentified victim. 1968, Boy (15).    
   Irish Independent, By Brendan Farrelly, Thursday November 12 2009
   IRELAND -- AN IRISH priest being held in a US jail as Ireland seeks his extradition for the alleged rape of a 15-year-old boy was suspended three times and had other allegations of abuse levelled against him.
   Fr Francis Markey (81) was arrested by US marshals at his home at Miller Court in South Bend, Indiana, on Monday in connection the alleged rape of the boy more than 40 years ago. The alleged victim made the accusations in June 2006, according to court documents.
   He claimed the priest, regarded as a family friend, raped him when he was on a religious pilgrimage with his family in 1968 and after his father's funeral the following November. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:33 AM, November 12, 2009

• Nothing to Hide Anymore

   
   Santa Barbara Independent, By Roger Durling, Thursday, November 12, 2009
   CALIFORNIA -- I was sexually molested when I was 10 years old. It has taken me more than 35 years to be able to write the sentence you just read. It’s taken me just as long to be able to process what happened to me. I’m not over it, and I don’t think I ever will be. It’s part of me.
   I’m an insomniac. I’m anxious every day. I struggle with my self-esteem. I continuously battle feelings of worthlessness. I’m mistrustful of people. For a long time, I had a distorted idea of sex. I suffer panic attacks – most recently last May, when I was rushed to the hospital during a supposedly relaxing trip to Arizona. I have a hard time shaking people’s hands because mine are always sweating. …
   You see, the man who abused me constantly belittled me, saying I would never amount to anything. His authority was tyrannical, both physically and mentally. He was a priest at my elementary school, and his voice is in my head on a daily basis. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:27 AM, Nov 12, 2009]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Thu November 12, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Fri November 13, 2009 edition:

• Church attendant gets 20 years for child sex abuse

  [Acolyte (41) -NEW*] - ? Russian Orthodox. 20yrs PRISON. 5 boys, 1 girl (8-11).  
   Interfax, November 13, 2009
   ULYANOVSK, Russia (Interfax) -- A court in Dimitrovgrad in the Ulyanovsk Region found an acolyte of a local church, aged 41, guilty of child sexual abuse and sentenced him to 20 years in prison, a court official told Interfax.
   "Eighteen episodes exposing him as a pedophile have been proven. The trial proceeded behind closed doors. Among his victims were five boys and one girl, aged from eight to eleven years old," he said.
   The suspect pleaded partially guilty. "He said that he would not reform after confinement and would again engage in child sexual abuse, and requested a life sentence," the official said. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:59 AM, November 13, 2009]

• Advocacy group sets meeting for victims of sexual abuse by clergy

  - SNAP to gather survivors.  
   Sioux City Journal, By Molly Montag | Posted: Friday, November 13, 2009
   SIOUX CITY (IA) -- Two members of a victim's rights organization will host a meeting this weekend for victims of sexual assault by members of the clergy.
   The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests will hold the meeting from 2-4 p.m. Sunday at the Gleeson Room of the Wilbur Aalfs Library, 529 Pierce St., Sioux City. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:27 PM, November 13, 2009]

• Group Asks Church to Help Other Potential Victims Come Forward

  [Mohlers] - Community of Christ Church.
   Fox 4, ~ November 13, 2009
   INDEPENDENCE, MISSOURI -- Activists representing people who have been abused by clergy members traveled to the metro area on Friday to ask the Community of Christ Church to help bring other potential victims of a family accused of multiple counts of child rape.
   Three members of the Mohler family were lay ministers of the Independence-based church. SNAP, the Survivors' Network of those Abused by Priests, says that the church can do much to help other potential victims, and the church says that's a mission that they share.
   "(Abusers) tend to use God as a way to get to their victims," said SNAP regional director Judy Jones, who traveled with the group from their St. Louis headquarters on Friday. "Victims are very afraid to come forward, a lot of times they've been threatened that they'll be sent to hell." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:25 PM, ~ November 13, 2009

• Local group attends 36th annual Call to Action International Conference

  - RCC.      
   The Daily Journal, By LEE GRIM, ~ November 13, 2009
   INTERNATIONAL FALLS (MN) -- A local ecumenical group of 17 priests, a deacon and lay leaders attended the 36th annual Call to Action International Conference in Milwaukee, Wis., Nov. 6-8. The theme of the conference was "Everyone at the Table: Rejoicing as People of God."
   About 3,000 people, from almost all USA states, Canada and some European countries attended the conference at the Midwest Airlines Convention Center.
   When Pope John XXIII addressed the opening of the Second Vatican Council, he warned of "prophets of doom" who only forecast decline when the Church opens to change. But Pope John was convinced that Divine Providence was leading people into a new way of being church. Now, almost five decades after Pope John’s historic speech, Call to Action continues its work in creating an inclusive and just Church.

• Do not replace church as oppressor, bishop tells media

  - Bishop Willia Walsh strikes out on his own!  
   The Irish Times, By PATSY McGARRY, Religious Affairs Correspondent, November 14, 2009
   IRELAND -- A BISHOP warned the media yesterday not to become "oppressive", as the Catholic Church had once been.
   Addressing a meeting of journalists in Dublin, the Bishop of Killaloe Most Rev Willie Walsh also said the Ryan report did not do "full justice" to religious congregations, many of whose members were now "very broken and very sad".
   In his wide-ranging address, the bishop said he "lacks any enthusiasm for the Latin Mass" and was "saddened" that he could not feel free to take part in Communion at Church of Ireland services because of the rules in his own church. This was despite the fact that "in Ennis it was never suggested that Church of Ireland people are not welcome to receive in our church." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:20 PM, November 13, 2009

• One in Four head worried about report delay

  - RCC.
   Ireland Online, ~ November 13, 2009
   IRELAND -- The head of the charity One in Four has said she is very concerned by the delay in the publication of the report into clerical child abuse in the Dublin Archdiocese.
   The High Court ruled last month that a chapter relating to a particular alleged abuser be removed.
   Publication of this chapter has been delayed in order not to jeopardise on-going criminal proceedings. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:18 PM, November 13, 2009

• Agency criticises delay in abuse report

  - RCC.
   The Irish Times, By PATSY McGARRY, November 14, 2009
   IRELAND -- A DELAY in the publication of a report into how allegations of clerical child sex abuse in Dublin’s Catholic archdiocese were handled means there is "a danger that the civil authorities could be seen to be acting to protect themselves from public scrutiny", the One in Four agency has said.
   "This must be of concern to the Minister for Justice, who needs to act in a transparent and accountable fashion to ensure public confidence," said the campaign group’s executive director, Maeve Lewis.
   The report "may be fatally compromised by the delay in publication of fundamental sections". Noting that last month the High Court ruled that publication of one chapter should be delayed in order not to jeopardise ongoing criminal proceedings, she said: "The High Court is now considering whether or not another section ought to be published or withheld." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:15 PM, November 13, 2009

• SNAP Calls For Abuse Victims To Come Forward

   
   KCTV, with video, ~ November 13, 2009
   INDEPENDENCE, MISSOURI -- A victim's advocacy group is asking anyone who saw, suspected or suffered abuse to come forward.
   The group called SNAP is praising the victims who came forward and reported the alleged crimes in the Lafayette County child sex abuse case that came to light this week.
   "Family members have been hurt, and the community is hurt," said Adam Walker. "It’s a sad horrible day." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:11 PM, November 13, 2009

• Police charge sixth member of family accused of child sex abuse

  [Mohler x 6]
   CNN, November 13, 2009
   LEXINGTON, Missouri (CNN) -- Police on Friday charged another member of a Missouri family under investigation for allegations of child sexual abuse, police said.
   The man, Darrell Mohler, who is not in custody, has been charged with two counts of rape, police said.
   Five members of the Mohler family of Lafayette County, Missouri, were arrested earlier this week after six alleged victims, who are relatives of the five suspects, made accusations of sexual abuse. A sixth person, described as an "associate" of the family, was arrested Thursday but released Friday, police said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:08 PM, November 13, 2009

• Same secrecy- slash- confidentiality found with Mormon and Adventist as in Catholic clergy sex crime cases

 
   City of Angels, By Kay Ebeling, ~ November 13, 2009
   (When different churches face charges of clergy sex crimes, they respond in similar ways, Kelly Clark tells City of Angels. A lawyer for plaintiffs in pedophile lawsuits regarding Mormon and Adventist clergy as well as Roman Catholic priests, Clark took time to sit down and answer several questions on video when we were in Portland Oregon last summer. His answers re similarities between religions' responses is transcribed here, with the video embedded at the bottom of this post. We will use Clark's answers to other questions from last summer's interview in future blogs.)
   UNITED STATES -- Here, Clark says: "We find the same emphasis on secrecy slash confidentiality emphasized in Mormon and Adventist cases, as we find in Catholic cases. I call it secrecy, the Churches call it Privacy or Confidentiality. They end up being sued not just for child abuse but for coverup as well.
   "Another common theme is, Our work is too important to have our name smudged with child abuse claims. Another similarity in Mormon, Adventist, and Catholic Church sex abuse cases is institutional blindness. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:36 PM, November 13, 2009

• Accused predator priest now on youth agency's board

  [≤1995 Mons. Brendan Riordan] - RCC. Boy.
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests [SNAP], November 12, 2009
   LONG ISLAND (NY) -- An accused predator priest is now on the advisory board of a Long Island-based non-profit that serves children.
   The website of COPAY, the Community Organization for Parents and Youth, in Great Neck lists Msgr. Brendan P. Riordan as a board member. http://copayinc.com/ExecutiveDirector.php
   A child sex abuse lawsuit against Riordan was settled out-of-court in 1995. He allegedly molested a boy at a controversial and now-closed church-run treatment center for troubled priests in Massachusetts called the House of Affirmation. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:31 PM, November 13, 2009

• Bishops share $$ for politics, not abuse victims

 
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, November 12, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- When it comes to helping colleagues with politics and ballot measures, bishops find ways to share money. When it comes to helping abuse victims with recovery, bishops refuse to share money, claiming they're all 'independent.' Each diocese - large or small, richer or poorer - pretends they're isolated from one another, so abuse victims in many dioceses get chump change despite enduring horrific pain.
   We've never seen a bishop donate to victims in another diocese. We've never even seen a bishop ASK his colleagues for money to help abuse victims. Yet when it comes to political issues, clearly they help one another. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:28 PM, November 13, 2009

• SNAP Urges Church To Look Into Possible Abuse

  [Mohler]
   KMBC, ~ November 13, 2009
   INDEPENDENCE, MISSOURI -- Members of SNAP, Survivors' Network of those Abused by Priests, said they do not want the Community of Christ Church to ignore possible victims of abuse within the church.
   Five members of the Mohler family have been charged for sex crimes in Lafayette County.
   Linda Booth, a spokeswoman for Community of Christ church, said Burrell Mohler Sr., David Mohler and Jared Mohler were lay ministers but were not in positions of leadership or involved with youth. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:24 PM, November 13, 2009

• Diocese to make major announcement

  - RCC.
   WANE, ~ November 13, 2009
   FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - The Fort Wayne-South Bend Catholic Diocese plans to make what is being called "an historic announcement" on Saturday morning.
   Bishop John D'Arcy confirmed for WSBT Radio the announcement does involve the appointment of a new bishop. He said the new bishop is currently serving in another diocese. …
   Bishop D'Arcy has also been very critical of the way the Catholic Church handled the priest sex abuse scandal.
   The announcement is set to take place 10:15 a.m. at the Archbishop Noll Catholic Center located at 915 S. Clinton Street in Fort Wayne. That announcement will be followed by a similar one in South Bend at 2:15 p.m. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:21 PM, November 13, 2009

• The Jesuit Stories Behind The Bankruptcy Of The Oregon Province

 
   Good Jesuit, Bad Jesuit, ~ November 13, 2009
   {includes a list of accused Jesuits}
   His Holiness Pope John Paul II in an excerpt from his homily at
   The World Youth Day 2002 Toronto, Downsview Park, Sunday July 28, 2002
   Even a tiny flame lifts the heavy lid of night. How much more light will you make, all together, if you bond as one in the communion of the Church! If you love Jesus, love the Church! Do not be discouraged by the sins and failings of some of her members.

• New bishop for Fort Wayne-South Bend diocese to be named Saturday

  - RCC.  
   WSBT, ~ November 13, 2009
   SOUTH BEND (IN) – The Fort Wayne-South Bend diocese is expected to announce the appointment of a new bishop Saturday.
   A news release Friday afternoon said there will be "an historic announcement: something that takes place once in a generation."
   Current Bishop John D'Arcy, 77, announced in 2008 that he would be retiring this year. D'Arcy confirmed for WSBT Radio the announcement does involve the appointment of a new bishop. He said the new bishop is currently serving in another diocese.

• Theology must engage with issue of abuse

  - RCC.  
   CiNews, ~ November 13, 2009
   IRELAND -- The first international conference in Ireland for young theologians was held in St Patrick’s College Maynooth last weekend in which 12 young theologians from Ireland, the UK, USA and Holland presented papers on a range of theological issues.
   The conference: ‘Interface: Being a Young Theologian in the World’ was organised by students and alumni of St Patrick’s College and organiser, Francis Cousins told CINews that it had two objectives, viz. "to explore the role of the young theologian and to explore the role of theology in contemporary society".
   Professor Michael Paul Gallagher, SJ, of the Gregorian University, Rome, delivered the keynote address on ‘Mediators of God’s Meaning: A Challenging but Consoling Call’.

• 'Blaming only religious for abuse is a serious injustice'

 
   The Irish Catholic, ~ November 13, 2009
   IRELAND -- A subtle form of denial has come into operation since the Ryan Report which offloads all the blame on religious orders the Bishop of Killaloe, Willie Walsh has said.
   "I believe that in the wake of the Ryan Report a subtle form of denial has come into operation. By offloading the whole blame on religious orders we rid ourselves of any responsibility and can feel united in condemning the cruel treatment of children", he said.
   And Bishop Walsh asks if the bishops participated in this denial. "And have we as bishops and the wider Church participated in this denial by somehow distancing ourselves from the religious in avoidance of blame? It is a frequent sociological phenomenon for a community to find its identity in its exclusion of certain groups of 'unacceptable people'.

• Alamo sentenced to 175 years for sex convictions

  [Alamo]  
  Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, By Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Staff and Wire Reports, November 13, 2009
   TEXARKANA (AR) -- A federal judge sentenced evangelist Tony Alamo to 175 years in prison Friday following his conviction in July of 10 counts of taking underage girls across state lines for sex.
   U.S. District Judge Harry Barnes imposed the maximum sentence after three women who Alamo took as child "brides" testified at Alamo’s sentencing hearing about the damage the convicted evangelist did to them and their families. Barnes indicated he took into account Alamo’s role as pastor and father figure to control the young girls.
   He told Alamo that he will one day face "a greater judge," and said "may (God) have mercy on your soul."

• 175-Year Sentence For Evangelist Alamo On Sex Crimes Convictions

 
   NPR, By Mark Memmott, ~ November 13, 2009
   TEXARKANA (AR) -- Convicted over the summer of taking five underage girls across state lines to have sex with them, evangelist Tony Alamo was today sentenced to 175 years in prison by a judge in Texarkana, Ark.
   "May (God) have mercy on your soul," U.S. District Judge Harry Barnes told Alamo, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports.

• Church facing record payout over sex abuse

  [1968-86 Fr John Denham*] - RCC. Millions at risk. 39 boys. [Fr Vince Ryan] - RCC. AUD $6m going. 9 victims. [1998-2008 Vicar-General Tom Brennan] - RCC. Guilty. False written statement. [2007 RCC] - Pretended there is no Church entity to sue!    
   The Herald, BY JOANNE MCCARTHY, Nov 14, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- VICTIMS of Maitland-Newcastle pedophile priest John Denham took the first steps this week in what could be Australia's biggest compensation payout by the Catholic Church to child sex abuse victims.
   Some victims have sought a meeting with Maitland-Newcastle Bishop Michael Malone, one month before Denham is sentenced for child sex offences from 1968 to 1986.
   The Denham case could produce a total payout greater than the previous known highest Australian payout of $6 million, paid to nine victims of Maitland-Newcastle pedophile priest Vince Ryan. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:21 PM, November 13, 2009]

• Tony Alamo Sentenced To 175 Years In Prison

  [Alamo]  
   KATV, ~ November 13, 2009
   TEXARKANA (AR) -- Evangelist Tony Alamo has been sentenced to 175 years in federal prison for child sex convictions.
   Alamo was sentenced Friday in Texarkana for convictions on a 10-count indictment for taking children across state lines for sex.
   U.S. District Judge Harry F. Barnes listened to testimony from three of Alamo's child "brides" before giving Alamo the maximum time allowed by federal guidelines. He told Alamo that he will one day face "a greater judge," and said "may (God) have mercy on your soul."

• Sex furor over priest with teens

  [Riordan]  
   New York Post, By KIERAN CROWLEY, ~ November 13, 2009
   LONG ISLAND (NY) -- A priest listed on the board of a Long Island nonprofit that counsels drug-addicted teens was once named in the out-of-court settlement of a sexual-abuse suit, says a group made up of victims of abusive priests.
   The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests voiced outrage at Monsignor Brendan Riordan, pastor of St. Aloysius Catholic Church in Great Neck, for being on the advisory board to the Community Organization for Parents and Youth. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:00 AM, November 13, 2009

• Ex-priest's supporters crowd courtroom

  [? 2000s Joao Jose Correira Duarte* (43)] - RCC. 12 charges - children (12-17).        
   The Windsor Star, By Don Lajoie, November 13, 2009
   WINDSOR, Ont., CANADA -- Dozens of supporters and spectators filled a Windsor courtroom Thursday at a bail hearing for a former city priest who has been charged with molesting teenage boys at the mission he founded in Haiti.
   The hearing for Hearts Together for Haiti founder John Duarte, which had been expected to last just a few hours, was adjourned after a full-day of testimony by a single witness. All evidence given at the hearing and the identities of the alleged victims are subject to a publication ban.
   Duarte, 43, is charged under the Criminal Code with nine counts of sexual exploitation of boys between the ages of 12 and 17. The offences are alleged to have taken place in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince and in the fishing village of Labadie, on the nation’s north coast, where the priest operated a charity that included a school, a medical clinic and a sponsorship program for hundreds of impoverished families. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:41 AM, November 13, 2009

• Irish priest was counseling substance abusers

  [≤ 1964, 1968 Fr Francis Markey* (now 81)] - RCC. Suspended 3 times, left duties in 1985. ≤ 1964, Unspecified victim. 1968, Boy (15).    
   WLNS, Associated Press, November 13, 2009
   SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) - The attorney for an 81-year-old Roman Catholic priest who faces possible extradition to Ireland says the clergyman moved to the South Bend area in 1990 to take a job counseling drug and alcohol abusers.
   The Rev. Francis Markey was arrested this week at his South Bend home and faces possible extradition to Ireland on charges that he raped a teenage boy there in 1968. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:33 AM, November 13, 2009

• Priest accused of sexually abusing child

  [1980s Fr Edward Maloney*] - RCC. 2 schoolboys.
   WLS, November 12, 2009
   (CHICAGO) (IL), (WLS) -- The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago says it found "credible evidence" that a priest on the city's West Side sexually abused a child.
   Reverend Edward Maloney is a retired priest who served at St. Mark Roman Catholic Church. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:28 AM, November 13, 2009

• Priest accused of raping boy worked in addiction clinic

  [≤ 1964, 1968 Fr Francis Markey* (now 81)] - RCC. Suspended 3 times, left duties in 1985. ≤ 1964, Unspecified victim. 1968, Boy (15).    
   Irish Independent, By Brendan Farrelly, Friday November 13 2009
   IRELAND -- THE retired Irish priest at the centre of extradition proceedings in the US over the alleged rape of a 15-year-old boy in Ireland worked for years at an clinic that helps people with drug and alcohol addiction.
   Fr Francis Markey (81) will be brought before US District Court in South Bend, Indiana, again on Monday.
   The hearing will determine if he will continue to be held in jail or given bail with conditions. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:25 AM, November 13, 2009

• Judge approves diocese settlement

  - RCC.  
   The Daily Times, November 13, 2009
   WILMINGTON (DE), (AP) -- The judge presiding over a Delaware Catholic diocese's bankruptcy has approved the diocese's settlement with an alleged victim of priest sex abuse and agreed to keep the settlement amount secret.
   The orders were signed Thursday in advance of a hearing that was subsequently canceled. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:22 AM, November 13, 2009

• Victims Set To Testify At Evangelist's Sentencing

 
   CBS 13, By JON GAMBRELL, Associated Press Writer, November 13, 2009
   LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) -- Several of the child "wives" who helped convict evangelist Tony Alamo of federal sex charges were expected to return to the witness stand on Friday during his sentencing hearing.
   The 75-year-old leader of the Tony Alamo Christian Ministries were scheduled to appear in court in Texarkana. A jury convicted him in July on a 10-count indictment accusing him of taking young girls across state lines for sex. Alamo faces up to 175 years in prison Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:19 AM, November 13, 2009

• DHS Seeks to End Parental Rights of Two

  - "Tony Alamo Christian Ministries."
   KATV, ~ November 13, 2009
   LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas -- The Arkansas Department of Human Services is asking a judge to terminate the parental rights of two members of the Tony Alamo Christian Ministries.
   Attorneys for DHS on Monday asked Miller County Circuit Judge Joe Griffin to end the legal rights of the father of a teenager who is in foster care. Griffin did not immediately issue a ruling.
   Another hearing is set for January 26th on a DHS request to end the parental rights of another Alamo follower. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:17 AM, November 13, 2009

• Two former Alamo followers awarded $3 million in judgement for abuse

  [John Kolbek]- Alamo Ministries.
   Texarkana Gazette, By Lynn LaRowe, Published: Oct/22/2009
   ARKANSAS -- A federal judge awarded a total of $3 million to two former Tony Alamo followers in a civil suit against fugitive John Kolbek following a hearing this morning.
   "The damage it has caused emotionally, physically, spiritually, is almost beyond my comprehension," said U.S. District Judge Harry Barnes after listening to testimony from Spencer Ondrisek, a foster mother and Texarkana attorney David Carter. "I don’t think there’s enough money in this world that will wash away the emotional harm this has caused."
   Ondrisek and Seth Calagna, both 19-year-old men who were raised in the Tony Alamo Ministries, each received $500,000 in actual damages and $1 million in punitive damages to be paid by Kolbek. The suit was filed on their behalves last year by Carter. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:11 AM, November 13, 2009]

• Sixth Man Charged in Sex Crime Case

  [Lary King (or Kidd)?] - Mohler group in Community of Christ. Child.
   KOMU, ~ November 13, 2009
   LAFAYETTE COUNTY, MISSOURI - Authorities arrested a sixth man Thursday night in connection with the ongoing sex crimes investigation in western Missouri.
   Officials found Larry King, a 55-year-old Kansas City man, in Jackson County. Authorities accuse Kidd of raping of a child younger than 14, and they call Kidd a friend of the Mohler family, the family at the heart of the controversy. King has now joined the Mohlers in Lafayette County Jail, KSHB-TV in Kansas City reported. …
   Mohler and two of the other men served as Lay Ministers in Community of Christ.
   "Leaders and members of the Community of Christ in the greater Kansas City area are prayerfully upholding those families that are touched by the recent arrests of five members of the Mohler family," said Community of Christ Director of Communications Linda Booth. "The church takes seriously the allegations that have been made and has suspended the priesthood licenses of three lay ministers. Lay ministers are volunteers who do not receive compensation for their service or ministry from the Community of Christ." [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:03 AM, November 13, 2009]

• Archdiocese investigating sexual abuse claims against retired priest

  [1980s Fr Edward Maloney*] - RCC. 2 schoolboys.
   Chicago Tribune, By Manya A. Brachear, November 13, 2009
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago has found credible evidence that a priest on Chicago's West Side sexually abused two children, church officials said Thursday.
   The Rev. Edward Maloney, a retired priest who served at St. Mark Roman Catholic Church, 1048 N. Campbell Ave., for 21 years until 1996, was removed from ministry several months ago, according to a letter from Auxiliary Bishop John Manz to parishioners. Maloney currently lives in Fox Lake.
   The abuse of two male victims, now in their late 30s and early 40s, is alleged to have taken place about 25 years ago, when the victims were in junior high school and while Maloney was at St. Mark, a church official said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:55 AM, November 13, 2009

• Alleged Child Sex Offender Fighting Extradition to Worcester

  [1977-82 Fr Michael Barnes* (64)] - RCC. Boy.
   The Dispatch, By Shawn J. Soper, Originally published November 13, 2009
   OCEAN CITY (MD) -- Over a month after Ocean City Police traveled to North Carolina to help locate and arrest a former Catholic priest implicated in a decades-old child sex abuse case involving an unidentified victim in Ocean City dating back as early as 1977, the suspect has not been extradited to Worcester County to face a possible indictment on the charge.
   Earlier this spring, the Ocean City Police Department received a complaint about the sexual abuse of minor. The alleged incidents were [alleged] to have taken place in Ocean City between 1977 and 1982 and involved a former priest, later identified as Michael Lowell Barnes, 64, of Haywood County, N.C.  At the time of the alleged abuse, the victim was a minor child.
   Ocean City police began investigating the alleged pattern of sexual abuse on the minor and later obtained an arrest warrant for Barnes. In early October, local detectives, in cooperation with the Maggie Valley, N.C. Police Department, located and arrested Barnes in North Carolina. According to police reports, Barnes was taken into custody and held in a North Carolina county jail on a $400,000 bond pending extradition to Worcester County to face charges related to the alleged incident. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:48 AM, Nov 13, 2009] [LOOK BACK: Oct 02, 2009]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Fri November 13, 2009
• Church facing record payout over sex abuse.  [1968-86 Fr John Denham*] - RCC. Millions at risk. 39 boys. [Fr Vince Ryan] - RCC. AUD $6m going. 9 victims. [1998-2008 Vicar-General Tom Brennan] - RCC. Guilty. False written statement. [2007 RCC] - Pretended there is no Church entity to sue!    

Church facing record payout over sex abuse

   The Herald (Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia), http://www. theherald.com. au/news/local/ news/general/ church-facing- record-payout- over-sex- abuse/ 1677053.aspx ; BY JOANNE MCCARTHY, Saturday, November 14, 2009
   VICTIMS of Maitland-Newcastle pedophile priest John Denham took the first steps this week in what could be Australia's biggest compensation payout by the Catholic Church to child sex abuse victims.
   Some victims have sought a meeting with Maitland-Newcastle Bishop Michael Malone, one month before Denham is sentenced for child sex offences from 1968 to 1986.
   The Denham case could produce a total payout greater than the previous known highest Australian payout of $6 million, paid to nine victims of Maitland-Newcastle pedophile priest Vince Ryan
   But it is extremely unlikely to top the known highest individual Australian payout of $2 million, paid by Maitland-Newcastle diocese to a Ryan victim because of the catastrophic impact of the priest's offending.
   Solicitors said this week the Denham matter could be Australia's biggest compensation case because there were 39 victims, and because of the successful prosecution of former Vicar-General Tom Brennan in March.
   Brennan was convicted of knowingly making a false written statement.
   Newcastle solicitor Kate Maher, of Braye Cragg, who acted for a number of the Ryan victims, said evidence that Brennan didn't act after he was repeatedly told of Denham's offending was similar to the failed duty of care issue raised in the Ryan case.
   Evidence that the late Monsignor Patrick Cotter knew of Ryan's sexual abuse and "decided to say nothing" was significant because of the breach of Cotter's duty of care to the children, she said.
   Brennan's conviction is believed to be the first successful Australian prosecution of a priest linked to failing to act over another priest's offending, Ms Maher said.
   But the impact of another church sexual abuse case that went to the High Court in 2007 remained a "significant hurdle", some solicitors and barristers contacted by The Herald this week said.
   Solicitor and sexual abuse victim John Ellis lost his case against the Archdiocese of Sydney, and was ordered to pay the church's $750,000 legal bill, after the High Court refused an appeal to challenge the church case that there was no one to sue because of its internal structure.
   What has become known as the Ellis defence outraged the Australian Lawyers Alliance, which called for legislative changes at its NSW conference in March this year to "hold the Catholic Church accountable for its pedophiles".
   The unique circumstances of the Denham compensation case will keep the spotlight on Maitland-Newcastle diocese over the coming months, lawyers' groups and victims' rights groups said.
   "I think [Maitland-Newcastle Bishop] Michael Malone will have a lot of eyes watching him on this," Newcastle solicitor Nick Dan, who represented some Ryan victims and some victims of pedophile priest Jim Fletcher, said.
   In a statement on Thursday, Bishop Malone declined to answer specific questions about compensation and whether the handling of the case remained within the diocese. "Like any other organisation, I consult with a team of professionals on any number of matters and that requires us to have risk management plans and strategies to deal with issues as they arise," he said.
   People "seeking some response from the church" were "invited to access the church's Towards Healing process", he said.
   Ms Maher said there were significant concerns about Towards Healing.

---

   [COMMENT by BROKEN RITES: News update from Broken Rites Australia regarding a landmark case in the Maitland-Newcastle diocese, New South Wales, Australia (the priest, John Denham, is scheduled to be sentenced in December 2009 after pleading guilty to sexually abusing dozens of boys in the 1970s and 1980s ). COMMENT ENDS.]
   [ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: http://brokenrites.alphalink.com.au  ENDS.] http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm#church_facing_record [Nov 14, 2009]
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Sat November 14, 2009 edition:

• NC pastor charged with sexually exploiting food bank customers

  [2006 Sep to 2009 Oct - Pastor Harley Keough - NEW*, quite new] - Baptist. Women.  
   WIS, ~ November 14, 2009
   BESSEMER CITY, NC (WBTV) - A North Carolina pastor faces several charges of sexually battery for taking advantage of women who came to his church’s food bank for help, police say.
   Harley Michael Keough is a pastor at King James Baptist Church in Bessemer City, NC. Detectives say the incidents happened over a three-year period from September 2006 to October 2009.
   But Keough’s members said Friday the charges are false and that they stand by him. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:33 PM, November 14, 2009

• Teacher resigns because of allegation 'distractions'

  [1992 Gardipee - ? NEW*] - RCC. Misconduct.    
   Star-Bulletin, November 14, 2009
   HAWAII -- Kamehameha Schools has accepted the resignation of a teacher who was banned by his religious order from teaching and ministry with minors after being accused of sexual misconduct in Wisconsin about 17 years ago.
   Thomas Gardipee's resignation was accepted "to eliminate any possible lingering distractions," said Michael J. Chun, president and headmaster of Kamehameha Schools, Kapalama Campus.
   The resignation follows a Sept. 25 story in the Star-Bulletin reporting Gardipee's background and what his order regarded as "inappropriate behavior." [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:20 AM, November 14, 2009]

• Man alleging sex abuse sues diocese

  [Fr Joseph Muench - NEW*] - RCC. Male.  
   State-Journal By Kevin Wheatley, ~ November 14, 2009
   COVINGTON (KY) -- A man who says Rev. Joseph N. Muench sexually abused him as an associate pastor of Good Shepherd Church has sued the Catholic Diocese of Covington and its bishop for an unspecified amount of damages.
   Muench (pronounced "minch") also faces criminal charges in Franklin County of sexual abuse stemming from the same time frame and the lawsuit claims the diocese and bishop didn’t report the allegations to police, a legal requirement.
   The lawsuit also says the defendants created an atmosphere that encouraged Muench’s alleged sexual abuse by turning a blind eye to reported incidents.
   The plaintiff in the lawsuit says he suffers from depression, anxiety, insomnia, post-traumatic … [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:58 PM, Nov 14, 2009]

• Chicago native named archbishop of Milwaukee

  - RCC.
   Chicago Breaking News, ~ November 14, 2009
   CHICAGO (IL) -- A retired U.S. Army chaplain and native of Chicago's Southeast Side has been named archbishop of Milwaukee, the Roman Catholic archdiocese there said today.
   Bishop Jerome Listecki of La Crosse, Wis., was named the 11th archbishop of the archdiocese by Pope Benedict XVI. A news release from the archdiocese says the Vatican announced the selection Saturday.
   The 60-year-old Listecki will lead the archdiocese of some 675,000 parishioners and 211 churches. He succeeds Timothy Dolan, who was named archbishop of New York earlier this year. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:27 PM, November 14, 2009

• New Milwaukee archbishop appears to have USA’s "worst record" in dealing with child sex abuse reports

  [Years - Archbishop Listecki] - RCC. Won't notify police.
   Voice from the Desert, November 14, 2009
   MILWAUKEE (WI) -- New Milwaukee Archbishop appears to have nation’s "worse record" on dealing with child sex abuse reports
   Bishop Listecki’s diocese of La Crosse left higher percentage of priests accused of child abuse in ministry than anywhere in country
   64 percent of accused priests left in ministry in La Crosse as opposed to under 10 percent nationwide
   Listecki also wrote Eau Claire police chief in April he won’t change reporting policy to notify law enforcement Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:24 PM, November 14, 2009

• Contributions for Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland

  - RCC.
   Governmental Ethics & Election Practices, November 14, 2009
   MAINE -- This site lists contributions made to the Diocese of Portland in its successful efforts to defeat same-sex marriage in that state. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:05 PM

• What Other Bishops Helped?

  - RCC.
   California Catholic Daily, ~ November 14, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- It was widely reported that the Roman Catholic diocese of Portland, Maine was a large contributor to the Question 1 campaign against same-sex marriage.
   But Portland, Maine is a small diocese. How did it come up with over $500,000 for this battle? Who donated to the Maine diocese?
   Among the largest donations were from other Catholic dioceses. Phoenix (Bishop Olmstead) and Philadelphia (Archbishop Rigali) gave $50,000 each. Next were Kansas City, Kansas (Archbishop Finn); St. Louis, Missouri (Archbishop Carlson); Providence, Rhode Island (Bishop Tobin), Youngstown, Ohio (Bishop Murry); and Newark, New Jersey (Archbishop Myers) – all at $10,000 each. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:02 PM, November 14, 2009

• Retired military chaplain, Bishop of La Crosse is new Archbishop of Milwaukee

  - RCC.
   Catholic News Agency, November 14, 2009
   MILWAUKEE (WI), (CNA).- The Most Rev. Jerome E. Listecki, until now Bishop of La Crosse and a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army, has been appointed by Pope Benedict XVI to succeed the Most Rev. Timothy Dolan as the new Archbishop of Milwaukee.
   "I am humbled by my selection as the Archbishop of Milwaukee. I will do my best to fulfill the confidence His Holiness Benedict XVI has placed in me," said the Archbishop-elect in a statement. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:57 PM, November 14, 2009

• Victims of Abuse by Clergy Wary of Choice for New Archbishop

  - RCC.
   WUWM, with audio, ~ November 14, 2009
   MILWAUKEE (WI) -- Early Saturday, the Archdiocese of Milwaukee announced that Jerome Listecki has been named archbishop-designate. He will replace Timothy Dolan, who left the post earlier this year.
   Listecki is bishop of the Diocese of La Crosse, where he was installed in March 2005.
   Members of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) are concerned about Listecki's appointment. They have questions about his record in rooting out abuse by clergy in La Crosse.
   SNAP's Midwest Director Peter Isely says Listecki has refused to meet with SNAP in the past, and has encouraged victims to take their allegations to him -- not the police. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:55 PM, November 14, 2009

• Numerous bishops gave money to help defeat same-sex marriage in Maine

  - RCC.
   Catholic Culture, ~ November 14, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- Nearly five dozen bishops and dioceses nationwide contributed to the Diocese of Portland’s successful efforts to prevent the legalization of same-sex marriage in Maine, according to campaign finance records. The largest contributions came from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and the Diocese of Phoenix, each of which donated $50,000 to the effort. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:53 PM, November 14, 2009

• John Paul II went to Pedophiles' Paradise

  - RCC.    
   John Paul II Millstone, ~ November 14, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- John Paul II went to Pedophiles’ Paradise in May 2, 1984, Fairbanks, Alaska. He led a Liturgy of the Word in Fairbanks. It was his third landing in American soil. He said Mass in Anchorage, Alaska in Feb. 26, 1981.
   Ironically John Paul II’s first visit to the USA was here in Boston where he connived with Cardinal Law on how to cover-up the priest-pedophilia in the USA. In 1985, Tom Doyle gave his intensive research about priest-pedophilia in New Orleans to John Paul II (see our earlier articles) and he was fired from his job as Chaplain of the US Navy. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:23 PM, November 14, 2009

• Walsh seeks female ordination debate

  - RCC.    
   RTE News, Saturday, November 14, 2009
   IRELAND -- The Papal ban on discussing the ordination of women has been challenged by Bishop Willie Walsh of Killaloe.
   Bishop Walsh called for the debate on women priests in an interview with RTÉ News following an address to the Association of European Journalists in Dublin.
   He said he would love to see another Pope John XXIII opening up discussion, particularly of exclusion. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:22 PM, November 14, 2009

• Bishop D'Arcy to be replaced by Harrisburg bishop

  - RCC.  
   The Journal Gazette, By Rosa Salter Rodriguez, November 14, 2009
   FORT WAYNE (IN) -- Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of the Diocese of Harrisburg (Pa.) will become the ninth bishop of the Fort Wayne-South Bend Diocese, retiring Bishop John M. D'Arcy announced at a news conference this morning.
   The new bishop would oversee a diocese that stretches across 14 counties in northern Indiana, encompassing 80 parishes. About 13,000 students attend diocesan schools. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:09 AM, November 14, 2009

• Bishop Rhoades to leave the Harrisburg Diocese

  - RCC.
   The Patriot-News, By EMILY OPILO, 10:22AM, November 14, 2009
   HARRISBURG (PA) -- Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of the Diocese of Harrisburg has been transferred to a new post in Indiana.
   An announcement about the move was made by the Vatican early Saturday morning. Rhoades has served as Bishop of Harrisburg since he was appointed in October 2004. Then 46, he was the youngest man to ever be named bishop in the United States.
   Rhoades grew up in Lebanon and served as a priest in the Diocese of Harrisburg for 26 years prior to being appointed bishop. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:03 AM, November 14, 2009

• Archbishop hits out at 'lukewarm' priests

  - RCC.  
   Total Catholic, ~ November 14, 2009
   IRELAND -- The Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Diarmuid Martin has said his diocese is facing huge changes in order to contend with the shortage of priests and he has called for the Year of the Priest to be a moment in which priests seek renewal and repentance. …
   As the Diocese of Dublin awaits the publication of the report on the handling of allegations of sexual abuse by members of its clergy, Archbishop Martin said, "The abuse of children is a heinous crime, especially when it was perpetrated by those entrusted with the mission of the Good Shepherd."
   He added, "The Church and its institutions must repent, but that repentance must result in renewal and in a renewal which may not produce conformity and symbioses with the thought patterns of the day." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:15 AM, November 14, 2009

• Listecki Named Milwaukee Archbishop

  [Bishop Listecki] - RCC.  
   NBC 26, By Annysa Johnson of the Journal Sentinel, ~ November 14, 2009
   MILWAUKEE (WI) -- Seven months after Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan left for New York, the Vatican on Saturday announced his successor, naming Bishop Jerome Edward Listecki of La Crosse as the new spiritual leader of Southeastern Wisconsin's nearly 700,000 Catholics.
   Listecki, 60, will be installed as the Milwaukee Archbishop in early January. …
   The victim advocacy group Survivors Network of Those abused by Priests raised concerns about his track record on the issue, saying Listecki's jurisdiction "boasts the highest percentage rate of siding with the priest and against the alleged victim reporting the abuse of any diocese in the United States." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:12 AM, November 14, 2009

• Pastor charged with sexual battery

  [2006 Sep to 2009 Oct - Pastor Harley Keough* (72)] - Baptist. 5 charges. Women.
   Charlotte Observer, Posted: Saturday, Nov. 14, 2009
   BESSEMER CITY, N.C. -- Gaston County Police have arrested a 72-year-old pastor who is accused of sexual battery.
   Harley Michael Keough, pastor of King James Baptist Church in Bessemer City, is charged with five counts of sexual battery.
   Police say the charges stem from incidents that allegedly occurred over a three-year period from September 2006 through October 2009. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:04 AM, November 14, 2009

• Bishop of Harrisburg diocese transferred to Indiana

  - RCC.
   York Daily Record, Daily Record/Sunday News, Updated 09:40:19 AM EST, Nov/14/2009
   HARRISBURG (PA) -- Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades has been transferred from the Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg to a diocese in Indiana, according to a news release this morning from the Harrisburg diocese.
   Rhoades has been bishop in the Harrisburg diocese since December 2004. In January, he will become bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Ind., the news release said.
   "Naturally, it will not be easy for me to bid farewell to my family and friends, my brother priests and the faithful of the Harrisburg diocese," Rhoades is quoted as saying in the news release. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:47 AM, November 14, 2009

• Reclaiming Spirituality After Abuse

 
   Billie Mazzei's Survival Kit, ~ November 14, 2009
   • Beware of the five sterile choices that lead nowhere – revenge, denial, cynicism, self-betrayal and paranoia. Make choices that lead to life.
   • Begin to reclaim your innocence. You can do that through your senses and the arts.
   • Practice hearing seeing, smelling and touching.
   • Look for ways to express your creativity. It isn’t a contest, and you won’t be graded.
   • Draw, paint, write, garden, cook, work with clay, take photographs, arrange flowers, build something. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:26 AM, November 14, 2009

• Teacher in Wisconsin sex case resigns

  [1992 Gardipee*] - RCC. Misconduct.    
   Honolulu Advertiser, November 14, 2009
   HAWAII -- A Kamehameha Schools teacher who had been accused of sexual misconduct with a student while working on the Mainland more than 20 years ago has resigned his position, the school announced yesterday.
   Thomas Gardipee began teaching at Kamehameha's Kapalama campus in 2002. Yesterday, Michael Chun, Kamehameha Kapalama president and headmaster, said the school has accepted Gardipee's resignation.
   In 1992, Gardipee was suspended as athletic director at St. Lawrence Seminary, a Roman Catholic prep school in Wisconsin after allegations of sexual misconduct. A former student had accused Gardipee of exposing himself and intimidation. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:18 AM, November 14, 2009

• NPA to swoop on church over sex claims

  [2008-09 Unnamed teacher* and perhaps others] - Methodist. Zimbabwean refugee girls and women, and boys. 6 - 20 cases.    
   IOL, By Thabiso Thakali, ~ November 14, 2009
   SOUTH AFRICA -- The National Prosecuting Authority is set to pounce on the Central Methodist Church next week after completing its investigation into allegations of sexual abuse of children living in the refugee centre.
   The NPA was handed a dossier containing serious allegations of abuse against children taking place at the church in July after the head of Methodist Church's public concern committee investigated them.
   The church is home to more than 2 000 refugees, mostly from Zimbabwe, and also houses a number of unaccompanied minors. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:10 AM, November 14, 2009

• Archdiocese donated to defeat Maine gay marriage

  - RCC.  
   Belleville News-Democrat, ~ November 14, 2009
   ST. LOUIS (MO) -- The Archdiocese of St. Louis says Archbishop Robert Carlson used $10,000 in discretionary funds to support the successful effort to prevent legalization of gay marriage in Maine.
   Such money, from private gifts, has been used previously to financially support everything from disaster relief to anti-abortion efforts. Tax-exempt religious organizations can't support a candidate, but they can advocate for issues. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:07 AM, November 14, 2009

• All Rhoades Lead to Dome– and Pope Lifts High La Crosse

  - RCC.
   Whispers in the Loggia, ~ November 14, 2009
   UNITED STATES – Good morning– and, as expected, happy news.
   In an unprecedented double-shot of Saturday appointments on these shores, Pope Benedict has named:
   Bishop Jerome Listecki of LaCrosse as archbishop of Milwaukee. The Chicago native, 60, succeeds Archbishop Timothy Dolan, who was transferred to New York on 23 February…
   … and Bishop Kevin Rhoades of Harrisburg as bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend. A native son of the Pennsylvania capital, the Indiana-bound prelate, who turns 52 later this month, succeeds Bishop John D'Arcy -- the nation's oldest active prelate -- who reached the retirement age of 75 in August 2007. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:02 AM, November 14, 2009

• Listecki Named Milwaukee's New Archbishop

  - RCC.
   WTMJ, By Jay Sorgi, Story Created: Nov 14, 2009
   MILWAUKEE (WI) -- After nearly a nine-month wait, Pope Benedict XVI has made his decision on the head of the Catholic Church in Milwaukee.
   La Crosse Bishop Jerome Listecki will serve the Archdiocese of Milwaukee as its new Archbishop.
   According to the Archdiocesan web site, Bishop Listecki, 60, will take over the role in early January. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:00 AM, November 14, 2009

• Bishop Jerome Listecki Named New Archbishop Of Milwaukee

  - RCC.
   WISN, ~ November 14, 2009
   MILWAUKEE (WI) -- The Vatican has announced that Bishop Jerome Listecki, 60, will be the new archbishop of Milwaukee. He is currently working in La Crosse, Wis.
   There will be a news conference about the selection at about 10 a.m. Saturday. You can watch this live on WISN.com
   Rocco Palmo wrote on Friday that the appointment of the 11th archbishop of Milwaukee was expected on Saturday. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:58 AM, November 14, 2009

• Pope Transfers Bishop Rhoades to Fort Wayne-South Bend

  - RCC.
   Roman Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg, ~ November 14, 2009
   {press release}
   {statement by Bishop Rhoades}
   HARRISBURG (PA) -- The Vatican announced that Pope Benedict XVI has appointed Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades as the ninth Bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana, transferring him from the Diocese of Harrisburg. He will be installed as Bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend on January 13, 2010. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:53 AM, November 14, 2009

• Pope Benedict XVI names Bishop Jerome E. Listecki 11th Bishop of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee

 
   Roman Catholic Archdiocese of LaCrosse, ~ November 14, 2009
   LACROSSE (WI) -- The diocesan website offers full information, including a video, on Bishop Jerome E. Listecki. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:48 AM, November 14, 2009

• BISHOP JEROME E. LISTECKI NAMED AS ARCHBISHOP OF THE ARCHDIOCESE OF MILWAUKEE

 
   Roman Catholic Diocese of LaCrosse, ~ November 14, 2009
   LACROSSE (WI) -- This morning at 5 a.m. Central Standard Time, the Vatican announced that Pope Benedict XVI has named Bishop Jerome E. Listecki as the 11th bishop of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:43 AM, November 14, 2009

• Listecki Named Archbishop of Milwaukee

  - RCC.
   Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee, ~ November 14, 2009
   [en espanol]
   [with links to additional information about Bishop Listecki]
   MILWAUKEE (WI) -- The Most Reverend Jerome Edward Listecki has been named the 11th archbishop of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee by Pope Benedict XVI, the Vatican announced today. Listecki, 60, succeeds the Most Reverend Timothy M. Dolan, who was named Archbishop of New York on February 23, 2009, and installed as Archbishop of New York April 15, 2009. Listecki currently serves as bishop of the Diocese of LaCrosse, where he was installed as bishop on March 1, 2005, succeeding the Most Reverend Raymond L. Burke.
   Bishop Listecki will be installed as Archbishop of Milwaukee in early January by the Papal Nuncio to the United States, Archbishop Pietro Sambi. At that time, he will assume responsibility for the spiritual well-being of Catholics in the 10 counties of southeastern Wisconsin and take on the day-to-day administration of the archdiocese. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:35 AM, November 14, 2009

• Catholic Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend to have new bishop

 
   News-Sentinel, November 14, 2009
   FORT WAYNE (IN) -- The Holy See Press Office in Rome issued a statement today announcing the replacement of retiring Bishop John M. D'Arcy. Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of the Diocese of Harrisburg in Pennsylvania will take over, according to the statement.
   Roman Catholic Church law requires that when a bishop reaches age 75, he must offer a letter of resignation to the pope. D’Arcy eclipsed that milestone Aug. 18, 2007. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:33 AM, November 14, 2009

• La Crosse's Listecki named Milwaukee Archbishop

  - RCC.
   Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, By Annysa Johnson of the Journal Sentinel, Posted 5:48 a.m., Nov. 14, 2009
   MILWAUKEE (WI) -- Seven months after Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan left for New York, the Vatican on Saturday announced his successor, naming Bishop Jerome Edward Listecki of La Crosse as the new spiritual leader of Southeastern Wisconsin's nearly 700,000 Catholics.
   Listecki, 60, will be installed as the Milwaukee Archbishop in early January.
   A Chicago Native and retired military man, Listecki has been described as "Dolanesque" in his dealings with parishioners - an engaging storyteller who mingles well at baptisms and confirmations. But unlike Dolan during his tenure in Milwaukee, Listecki has been more inclined to wade into the political fray, admonishing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her misstatement on Catholic teachings on the beginnings of life and criticizing the University of Notre Dame's decision to honor Barack Obama earlier this year. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:30 AM, November 14, 2009]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Sat November 14, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Sun November 15, 2009 edition:

• Parishioners doubt abuse claims against priest

   
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Chicago Breaking News, November 15, 2009
   Parishioners at St. Mark Catholic Church today expressed disbelief over allegations that a former priest sexually abused two children.
   Mirta Arroyo has attended the West Side church since 1964. She has known Rev. Edward Maloney just as long.
   "He's not a priest -- he's my father," said the 62-year-old who now lives in Alsip but travels north every week for mass. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:05 PM, November 15, 2009]

• One priest per Dublin parish shortly, archbishop warns

   
   IRELAND -- The Irish Times By PATSY McGARRY, Religious Affairs Correspondent,
   DUBLIN’S CATHOLIC archdiocese will soon have barely enough priests to serve its 199 parishes, Archbishop Diarmuid Martin has said.
   "We have 46 priests over 80 and only two less than 35 years of age. In a very short time we will just have the bare number of priests required to have one active priest for each of our 199 parishes," he said in Dublin’s pro-cathedral at the weekend. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:03 PM

• Ordeal of Australia's child migrants

  - Deception by Churches, States.    
   BBC News, By Nick Bryant, BBC News, Australia
   AUSTRALIA -- The story of the British child migrants sent to Australia has been described as a history of lies, deceit, cruelty and official disinterest and neglect.
   Before being shipped out to Britain's distant dominion, many of the children were told their parents were dead, and that a more abundant life awaited them in Australia.
   Most were deported without the consent of their parents, and commonly, mothers and fathers were led to believe that their children had been adopted somewhere in Britain. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:58 PM

• Sins of the Father

    [Bro. Regis Howitz, Fr Charles Newman] - RCC. Male.
   Philadelphia Magazine, By Richard Rys,
   Father Charles Newman, once head of the largest Catholic high school in Philadelphia, sits in jail after stealing nearly a million dollars. But as one family knows, he committed acts of evil far more chilling than that
  [Picture] Father Charles, from the Archbishop Ryan yearbook.  
   PHILADELPHIA (PA) -- WHILE THE FAITHFUL and holy gather in the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul, Art Baselice stands outside, bearing witness in his own way. He isn’t interested in prayers for Bishop Joseph Cistone, who is leaving Philadelphia to run a diocese in Michigan. He isn’t hoping to shake hands with the cardinal and all of the archbishops, who have come together on this summer afternoon for Cistone’s farewell benediction.
   Surrounded by a handful of priest abuse victims and their advocates, he holds a sandwich-board sign bearing photos of his son, Arthur Baselice III, and two clerics, Brother Regis Howitz and Father Charles Newman. As a pair of clergymen head into the service, Baselice raises up his billboard. They look over for a moment, then move on. "See what I get?" Art says. "There’s a man of God. He turns his head." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:56 PM

• Abuse report accuses gardai of delays

   
   Sunday Business Post By John Burke November 15, 2009
   IRELAND -- The long-awaited report into clerical abuse in the Dublin archdiocese has accused gardaí of delays lasting several years in collating key evidence in some child abuse investigations.
   There is no single chapter in the report on the role played by An Garda Síochána, but a "significant number" of its 47 chapters include criticism of the police force, according to a well-placed source who has viewed the report. The chapters which identified major shortcomings in the Garda investigations of persistent child abusers were forwarded to Garda Commissioner Fachtna Murphy by the investigating commission during the summer.
   Among the criticisms in the report is a claim that some senior members of An Garda Síochána had deferential relationships with senior clerical figures in the Dublin area. The publication of the report has been delayed by an examination by the High Court into the case of a former priest whose extradition is being sought from Britain to face claims of child abuse. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:08 PM

• LOSERS OF THE WEEK: 11-15-09

  - RCC ought to support children AFTER they are born, too.  
   Fox4kc ,
   UNITED STATES -- Another week goes by and another collection of special people who contribute in a negative manner to the political discourse that fills our lives. With special attention this week to those that make their negative comments in the name of God. …
   The Catholic Church also made my personal list of LOSERS this week. Not because of the church’s influence in getting the Stupak amendment passed; I might not like the legislation but if you support the Right to Life movement, it’s your right to petition your representatives in Congress.
   However, if you are going to take a stand for the rights of the unborn, you should also be willing to support children AFTER birth as well. For instance, take the case of Nathan Halbach, a 22 year old man who is dying of brain cancer. His mother also has terminal cancer. Nathan’s estranged father is Father Henry Willenborg, a Franciscan priest. When the Church was asked to help pay for medical treatment…they refused!
   Father Henry was never a "Dad" to Nathan, the least he could do for his son is to petition the Order to help make his son’s death a little easier. But he didn’t.
   And the Church also weighed in on gay marriage this week in D.C. by promising to stop all charitable work in the city if the D.C. city council passed a gay marriage ordinance.
   I don’t remember Jesus making everyone take a morality "litmus test" before feeding them bread & fish. I’m sure Jesus would be proud! So for these two actions .. I’ve got the Catholic Church on the LOSERS LIST! Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:07 PM

• Maryville victim says apology won't heal him after years of abuse

   
   The Herald, BY ALISON BRANLEY, Nov 16, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- HE endured 14 years of sexual and physical abuse while in an institution but David Owen says he does not hate the church that ran the orphanage or the government that put him there.
   Mr Owen, of Maryville, will be one of hundreds of thousands of people watching an apology by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to the Forgotten Australians at 11am today.
   The apology will be delivered to Australians and migrants who, as children, suffered abuse and neglect while in institutional care. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:13 PM

• New archbishop named for Milwaukee

   
   MILWAUKEE (WI) -- Wisconsin Public Radio, with audio, by Bob Hague on November 14, 2009
   The Archdiocese of Milwaukee announced Saturday that Jerome Listecki has been named archbishop by the Vatican, an appointment which a group of survivors of priest abuse is voicing concern over. Listecki succeeds Timothy Dolan, who was named Archbishop of New York earlier this year.
   The 60 year-old Listecki has served as bishop of the Diocese of La Crosse since March of 2005, and members of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) say they have questions about Listecki’s record in dealing with abuse by clergy in La Crosse. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:04 AM

• Home Truths

   
   Care Leavers Australia Network,
   AUSTRALIA -- There will be no official order of events at this quiet reunion at the Riverview Training Farm for Boys, though speeches should start soon after the browning of Wally McLeod’s much-vaunted barbecue sausages. What matters is being here: making the turn off Ipswich Motorway, reaching the end of Endeavour Street, even when your stomach wants out; passing through the gates and trudging up that sorry driveway to stand in the places that haunt your dreams: the laundry, the lucerne field, the piggery, the shower block.
   There’s a reason the semi-circle of 50 plastic chairs Bob Toreaux has set up face the entrance to the farm’s recreation hall. It’s the hall he sees in the recurring dream he has of a 12-year-old boy, naked from the waist down and straddling a wooden vaulting horse, blood running down his legs. It’s the hall they all see in their sleep.
   "Hey Bob, look who’s ’ere," calls McLeod. A man with a bushy moustache and tattoos pads warily up to the group gathered around a barbecue outside the hall. Trevor Swifte spent nine months at the farm at Riverview, a suburb ten minutes north of the Ipswich CBD, in 1973. Some of these men spent nine years here, and still they tilt their heads to Swifte. "Aw, mate," says Toreaux, close to tears. "Didn’t expect to see you here." Swifte smiles under his moustache: "Didn’t expect to see me here, either." Toreaux pats his shoulders warmly with both hands. It’s as close to a hug as one can expect from a "homie", the loose term for those who did time in one of Australia’s 500 state-run homes and orphanages. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:00 AM

• "Father" Gabriel Tetherow – "Ultimate Service Provider!"

 
   PENNSYLVANIA -- Off My Knees By Michael Baumann
   An astute reader of this blog provided a website that has a photo of Father Tetherow. While Tetherow is prohibited from presenting himself as a Catholic Priest, he is doing just that. He is also listed as an "Ultimate Service Provider Priest" on Dave Romeo’s Ultimate Service Providers Referral List. I did a screen grab of the site to make sure I had it just in case it somehow changed in the next couple of days. You know how frequently web pages are adjusted after all.
   So here he is folks, Father Gabriel, A.K.A Father Virgil Bradley Tetherow, formerly a priest in the Diocese of Scranton. Father Gabriel pleaded guilty in a case where child pornography was found on church computers at St Ann’s Church in Tobyhanna, Pennsylvania. As a result of an investigation into the incident, Father Gabriel pleaded out to lesser charges and received two years probation. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:52 AM

• Church 'must repent for abuse' as priest numbers fall

   
   IRELAND -- Irish Independent By Don Lavery Sunday November 15 2009
   THE Dublin archdiocese, the Catholic Church and its institutions must repent for the "heinous crime" of sexual abuse of children, Archbishop of Dublin Dr Diarmuid Martin said yesterday in a wide ranging address at a Mass in St Mary's Pro-Cathedral to mark the feast day of St Laurence O'Toole.
   Dr Martin said the diocese must repent for the failings of its members who betrayed their mission of shepherd.
   "Shepherds have failed through a sheer lukewarmness, through negligence, through lack of commitment to Jesus and His message. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:41 AM

• D’Arcy leaves legacy as even-handed leader

   
   INDIANA -- The Journal Gazette by Rosa Salter Rodriguez
   He’s been called "a voice crying in the wilderness" for early alerts on sexual abuse of minors by priests. He became a lightning rod for critics from the left and the right for opposing the University of Notre Dame’s honoring of President Obama at its May commencement.
   But Bishop John Michael D’Arcy also has been called a sincerely spiritual man – and an even-handed faith leader whose outspokenness has been only to uphold traditional Catholicism in communion with his papal superiors and church colleagues. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:39 AM

• The Bishops are Back, For Now, Thanks to the Party and President They Opposed

  - 7th U.S. diocese filed for bankruptcy.
   UNITED STATES -- Politics Daily by David Gibson
   When the nation's 300 or more Catholic bishops gather for each November for their annual fall meeting, there's always a hearty show of clerical camaraderie, much of it deeply-felt, but some of it a charitable mask on the rivalries that are inevitable in any group of strong-willed fellows.
   Through the recent years of abuse scandals and a Catholic credibility crisis, however, the meetings could be glum affairs as the bishops were united mainly by a shared defensive posture toward their critics and often divided among themselves about how to move forward.
   Not anymore. …
   The clergy sexual abuse scandal also haunts the hierarchy, much as they would like to put it behind them.
   Last month the Diocese of Wilmington, Delaware, became the seventh Catholic diocese in the United States to file for bankruptcy protection due to claims by abuse victims. And on Dec. 1, the Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut, will be forced by court order to unseal 12,000 pages of documents relating to its dealings with sexually abusive priests. Many of the documents date from the tenure of retired Cardinal Edward Egan, and are expected to reveal embarrassing details about the church's actions. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:34 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Sun November 15, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.
• Australian national apology.                     

Australian national apology

   Parliament House, Canberra, November 16, 2009
   CANBERRA: In the Great Hall of Parliament House, the Prime Minister Mr Kevin Rudd, the Speaker, and the Leader of the Opposition the Hon. Malcolm Turnbull, apologised to the Forgotten Australians.

---

http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm#australian_national_apology [Nov 16, 09]

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Mon November 16, 2009 edition:

• Priest Removed From Parish For Inappropriate Relationship

  [~ 2009 Fr Luis Margarito (40) -NEW*] - RCC. Female (18).  
   WFMZ, with video, ~ November 16, 2009
   READING (PA) -- The priest of a church in Reading has been removed from his duties, according to officials with the Allentown Diocese. Father Luis Bonilla Margarito, 40, was suspended after he acknowledged having an "inappropriate relationship" with an 18-year-old woman.
   Church officials said the head of the diocese, Bishop John Barres, told St. Joesph's church members about the matter during a Mass on Saturday.
   Church officials said Sunday that Father Margarito would be going to treatment facility for clergy outside the diocese, and will not be allowed to serve publicly as a priest. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:32 PM, November 16, 2009]

• Superintendent sues Christian Brothers over alleged abuse

 
   ST. PAUL (MN) -- Minnesota Public Radio, by Toni Randolph, November 16, 2009
   St. Paul, Minn. – A Minnesota school superintendent has filed a fraud suit against a religious order in the Roman Catholic Church, known as the Christian Brothers of the Midwest.
   In the suit, Tim Caroline says he was sexually abused by Brother Raimond Rose back in the early '70s while he was visiting a Christian Brothers retreat center in Marine on St. Croix.
   The suit claims that the Christian Brothers knew that Rose had sexually abused children in the 1960s, but took no action. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:28 PM

• A priest admits child-sex offences dating back nearly 40 years

  [1969-70s Fr Kelvin Sharkey -NEW*] - Roman Catholic Church. Altar boy.    
   Broken Rites, By a Broken Rites researcher,
   AUSTRALIA -- When did the Catholic Church first discover that Australian priest Kelvin Gerald Sharkey was committing child-abuse? Did the church take steps to find out if any children in his parishes needed help?
   On 16 November 2009, Sharley appeared in the New South Wales District Court at Wollongong, south of Sydney, and admitted raping an altar boy 40 years ago. Sharkey pleaded guilty to one incident of bu**ery and two of indecent assault ("indecent assault" involves indecent touching).
   These were not the only incidents between the priest and the boy. These were merely the three incidents on which the judge will sentence Sharkey. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:25 PM

• John Paul II is the first member of the ‘Catholic Hall of Shame', Cardinal Bernard Law is the second member

     
   John Paul II Millstone,
   John Paul II is the first member of the ‘Catholic Hall of Shame' because he covered-up, for 26 years, the priest-pedophilia in the USA, Ireland, and around the world.
   John Paul II defended the unborn from abortion, but, he never defended the living 12,000 American victims from priest-pedophilia.
   If Catholics are proud to name the John Paul II Generation of Youth and Priests, it also just to call the more than 6,000 American pedophile priests as the John Paul II Pedophile Priests Army see lists in www.jp2army.blogspot.com and http://www.bishop-accountability.org/ Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:23 PM

• 3 brothers file suit in San Francisco against Mormons, Boy Scouts claiming childhood sex abuse

 
   Legal News,
   SAN FRANCISCO (CA) – Three brothers who claim they were sexually molested by their Boy Scout and Mormon youth leader in the 1970s and 1980s have sued both organizations.
   The suit filed in San Francisco Superior Court alleges that church officials in Sunnyvale ignored complaints of abuse from the three boys and failed to notify law enforcement.
   The plaintiffs, identified in the suit only as John Does, say they were molested hundreds of times by the man. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:20 PM

• Bishop apologises as priest pleads guilty

  [1969-70s Fr Kelvin Sharkey*] - Roman Catholic Church. Altar boy.    
   Illawarra Mercury, BY COURTNEY TRENWITH, Nov 17, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- Wollongong Catholic Bishop Peter Ingham has apologised for the sexual abuse suffered by a former altar boy 40 years ago.
   Retired priest Kelvin Gerald Sharkey, 80, who was parish priest at St John Vianney's Church, Fairy Meadow, yesterday pleaded guilty in Wollongong District Court to two charges of indecently assaulting the boy and one charge of bu**ery, dating back to 1969 and the early 1970s.
   Much of the abuse occurred inside the church, as well as at Sharkey's home in Batemans Bay, where he was transferred in 1971. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:42 PM

• No comment from U.S. officials as Irish priest allowed to post bail

 
   South Bend Tribune By JEFF PARROTT
   SOUTH BEND (IN) – In a brief hearing today, the U.S. government reversed its position and agreed not to object to an Irish priest's release from jail on bond, pending the resolution of his extradition proceedings.
   Francis Markey, 81, was arrested last week at his home on Miller Court in South Bend and is facing possible extradition to Ireland on charges that he raped a teenage boy there in 1968.
   At the Irish government's request, the U.S. attorney had filed a memo opposing Markey's release on bail and was prepared to argue that position at today's hearing. But an assistant U.S. attorney for the northern Indiana district, Kenneth Hays, told Magistrate Judge Christopher Nuechterlein that the Office of International Affairs, a division of the U.S. Department of Justice, had subsequently contacted him and asked him to stop opposing bail. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:34 PM

• Accused priest released on bail

   
   RTE News (Ireland), 20:50, Monday, November 16 2009
   SOUTH BEND (IN) -- The American-based Irish priest who the authorities here are trying to extradite to face charges of raping a boy four decades ago is to be released on bail.
   81-year-old Father Francis Markey was arrested last Monday in South Bend, Indiana and was remanded in custody at the request of our Director of Public Prosecutions.
   But the South Bend Tribune newspaper has reported that at a brief hearing this evening, the US government agreed to the priest's release on bail which was set at $10,000 pending the resolution of Father Markey's extradition proceedings. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:31 PM

• Why is the Catholic Church, after its pedophile priest crisis, allowed into the inner circle anywhere in America anymore?

 
   City of Angels
   UNITED STATES -- What other organization could have had five thousand active and aggressive pedophiles identified among its employees since 2002, and still have influence in American politics? These bishops should be being prosecuted right now, not welcomed into Nancy Pelosi's office to write United States law.
   How did an organization that has proven to aid and abet pedophile priests' crimes in almost every archdiocese in America still even be in operation?
   It says a lot, about control of the message from the top, that after the story of pedophile priests broke in city after city across the country the past decade, the average American still does not know the true extent of these crimes. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:27 PM

• St. Louis Archdiocese spent more than twice as much in legal fees than payouts to victims

 
   Fox 2,
   ST. LOUIS (MO), (AP) – The St. Louis Archdiocese has released financial figures showing it spent $352,000 last fiscal year on payments to victims of predator priests, but more than twice that amount on lawyers.
   Numbers released by the archdiocese late last week show more was paid in legal fees than to victims for five of the last 10 fiscal years. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:25 PM

• Priest quits for relationship

  [2000s Fr Sean McKenna -NEW*] - RCC. "Celibate" but had relationship.  
   UTV Monday, 16 November 16, 2009
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- Father Sean McKenna who has been a member of the clergy for 24 years announced his resignation during Mass at Holy Family Church in Ballymagroarty.
   He told those attending Holy Family Church that he faced an agonising decision.
   He had to choose between his priesthood and his relationship.
   At the weekend Fr Sean McKenna read a statement to mass-goers explaining his reasons. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:33 PM

• UPDATE: Trial begins in Wilmington priest abuse case

   
   Daily Times,
   WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) – An attorney for a man who says he was abused as a boy by a priest says the accused pedophile had no business being around school children.
   Attorney Thomas Neuberger said Monday that the Rev. Francis Norris was a suicidal, out-of-control alcoholic, and that the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales were grossly negligent in allowing him to teach at Salesianum School in Wilmington. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:29 PM

• Fairy Meadow priest admits abusing boy

  [1969-70s Fr Kelvin Sharkey*] - Roman Catholic Church. Altar boy.    
   Illawarra Mercury, BY COURTNEY TRENWITH, Nov 17, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- A retired Fairy Meadow Catholic priest has pleaded guilty to repeatedly sexually assaulting an altar boy 40 years ago.
   Kelvin Gerald Sharkey, 80, was too frail to enter the dock or stand yesterday when Wollongong District Court Judge Paul Conlon asked how he pleaded to two counts of indecently assaulting a male and one of bu**ery.
   Sharkey threatened the victim, telling him he would go to hell if he told his parents about the assaults. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:22 PM

• Allentown Diocese removes priest at Reading church

  [~ 2009 Fr Luis Margarito* (40)] - RCC. Female (18).  
   Reading Eagle
   Berks County, PA - A priest at a Reading church who also was chaplain at Central Catholic High School has been removed from both positions by the Allentown Diocese after he acknowledged he had an inappropriate relationship with an 18-year old woman, the diocese said.
   The removal of the Rev. Luis A. Bonilla Margarito, 40, was announced to his parish at Saturday’s Mass at St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church, officials said.
   Margarito had been pastor at the church, 1018 N. Eighth St., since 2006 and chaplain at the high school since 2008. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:17 AM

• The Nation: Pro-Choicers Backing Down? Fat Chance

 
   UNITED STATES -- NPR by Katha Pollitt
   You know what I don't want to hear right now about the Stupak-Pitts amendment banning abortion coverage from federally subsidized health insurance policies? That it's the price of reform, and prochoice women should shut up and take one for the team. "If you want to rebuild the American welfare state," Peter Beinart writes in the Daily Beast, "there is no alternative" than for Democrats to abandon "cultural" issues like gender and racial equality. Hey, Peter, Representative Stupak and your sixty-four Democratic supporters, Jim Wallis and other antichoice "progressive" Christians, men: why don't you take one for the team for a change and see how you like it? …
   For example, budget hawks in Congress say they'll vote against the bill because it's too expensive. Maybe you could win them over if you volunteered to cut out funding for male-exclusive stuff, like prostate cancer, Viagra, male infertility, vasectomies, growth-hormone shots for short little boys, long-term care for macho guys who won't wear motorcycle helmets and, I dunno, psychotherapy for pedophile priests. Men could always pay in advance for an insurance policy rider, as women are blithely told they can do if Stupak becomes part of the final bill. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:08 AM

• US COURT APPEARANCE DUE OF PRIEST FACING GALWAY ABUSE CHARGES

  [? 1964, 1968 Fr Francis Markey* (now 81)] - RCC. ? 1964, Unidentified victim. 1968, Boy (15).  
   Galway News November 16, 2009
   IRELAND An Irish priest facing extradition to Ireland over the alleged rape of a 15 year old boy here over 40 years ago is due in court in the US today. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:05 AM

• Archbishop Robert J. Carlson's Response Regarding Portland, Maine Donation

   
   ST. LOUIS (MO) -- Archdiocese of St. Louis
   In June of this year, Archbishop Richard Malone of Portland, ME, sent a letter to all United States bishops asking for financial support.
   Archbishop Robert J. Carlson approved a donation for $10,000 which was charged to the Special Needs fund. This fund has traditionally been the Archbishop's to be used for discretionary spending--not for normal operations--and is funded by private gifts. Archbishops of St. Louis have made donations in the past to help other dioceses around the world for various causes which the Church regards as moral issues, ranging from disaster relief to pro-life issues. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:03 AM

• Costs of On-Going Church Child Sex Abuse & Cover up Crisis Are Revealed

 
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests [SNAP]
   ST. LOUIS (MO) -- Figures just released by the St. Louis Catholic archdiocese show that the church here spent $352,000 last year on payments to victims of predator priests, but more than twice that amount on its own lawyers.
   This is the third time in the last four years that the archdiocese gave more money to its lawyers than to abuse victims.
   The figures cover the last fiscal year and were provided in the latest issue of the archdiocesan weekly newspaper, The St. Louis Review. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:00 AM

• MN school superintendent brings suit to hold child molesting cleric accountable

 
   Voice from the Desert
   MINNESOTA – WHAT -- At a news conference, a Minnesota school superintendent who was molested as a boy by a cleric will
Speak publicly for the first time about the crimes he suffered as a youngster,
Announce and discuss the new clergy sex abuse and cover up lawsuit he’s filing,
Ask why Christian Brother officials are now endangering kids by letting a known predator live near them
   WHEN -- Monday, November 16, 11:30 AM
   WHERE -- At the law offices of Jeff Anderson & Associates PA, 366 Jackson Street (corner of 5th) in St. Paul, MN Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:57 AM

• Groom death plunge

  - Judaist victim of sex abuse?
   New York Post, By LIZ SADLER and KIRSTEN FLEMING,
   NEW YORK -- A newlywed groom on his honeymoon yesterday plunged to his death from a Brooklyn hotel in an apparent suicide -- as his bride slept, unaware of the tragedy, sources said.
   Motty Borger, 24, died at Lutheran Medical Center after the seven-story plunge from The Avenue Plaza Hotel in Borough Park -- just two days after marrying his love, Mali, in a lavish ceremony, according two sources.
   Borger's bride was sleeping in the room when her husband, who worked with his videographer dad, opened a window, stepped onto the balcony and jumped at 6:45 a.m. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:24 AM

• Tears in Brooklyn for suicide-plunge groom

 
   NEW YORK -- New York Post By REBECCA ROSENBERG
   Friends and loved ones bid a tearful farewell yesterday to the groom who jumped from a Brooklyn hotel room window just two days after his wedding
   "You know what it is for a father to be at his son's wedding and then to be here," said Shmuel Borger, the father of 24-year-old suicide victim Motty Borger. "This wedding was not in vain. It was not in vain. From sadness will come happiness."
   Motty's widow, Mali, arrived on her mother's arm for the ceremony at the Shomrei Hachomos funeral home in Brooklyn. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:22 AM

• Suicide groom twist

 
   NEW YORK -- New York Post
   A Brooklyn newlywed who jumped to his death from a hotel balcony the night after his wedding was tormented by memories of being sexually molested as a Jewish student, sources say
   After joyfully singing and dancing at their lavish celebration in Williamsburg on Nov. 3, Motty Borger, 24, bared his secret anguish to his bride, Mali Gutman, the next day -- and the revelation caused a strain, a source close to the family told The Post
   "That entire day he discussed it with her. He told her the story of his life, how he felt so awful and he couldn't go near her," the source said. The couple had met just last July, after a matchmaker set them up. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:17 AM

• OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

     
   VATICAN CITY -- Vatican Information Service
   - Appointed Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of Harrisburg, U.S.A., as bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend (area 15,200, population 1,262,788, Catholics 158,899, priests 276, permanent deacons 12, religious 869), U.S.A. He succeeds Bishop John M. D'Arcy, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit. …
   - Appointed Bishop Jerome E. Listecki of La Crosse, U.S.A., as metropolitan archbishop of Milwaukee (area 12,323, population 2,287,185, Catholics 681,781, priests 663, permanent deacons 164, religious 2,165), U.S.A. The archbishop- elect was born in Chicago, U.S.A. in 1949, he was ordained a priest in 1975 and consecrated a bishop in 2001. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:53 AM

• Priest removed from duties after admitting affair

  [~ 2009 Fr Luis Margarito* (40)] - RCC. Female (18).
   The Morning Call, by Kathy Lauer-Williams, November 16, 2009
   ALLENTOWN (PA) -- A priest who served in Emmaus until 2006 has been removed from his current assignments in Reading after admitting an inappropriate relationship with an 18 year-old woman, the Diocese of Allentown said in a statement Sunday.
   The Rev. Luis A. Bonilla Margarito, 40, was removed as pastor of St. Joseph Church in Reading, where he served for three years, and as chaplain of Reading's Central Catholic High School, where he was assigned in June 2008.
   The bishop of the Diocese of Allentown, the Rev. John O. Barres, announced Margarito's removal to St. Joseph's parish at the 4 p.m. Saturday Mass. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:49 AM

• Derry priest's shock revelation at Mass

   
   Belfast Telegraph,
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- A priest in Londonderry has sent shockwaves through the Catholic Church by resigning after he became involved in a relationship with a woman.
   Fr Sean McKenna, parish priest at the Holy Family Church in Ballymagroarty, told his stunned congregation during Mass services at the weekend that he had fallen in love.
   The 51-year-old priest, who has been a popular member of the local Catholic clergy for over 20 years, said he had taken the decision to leave after embarking on a "loving" and "beautiful" relationship". Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:46 AM

• Trial To Begin In Delaware Priest Abuse Case

   
   WILMINGTON (DE), (AP)-- CBS 3 AP,
   The first priest sex abuse lawsuit filed under a Delaware law allowing alleged victims to pursue claims for abuse that happened decades ago is set for trial.
   Opening arguments were scheduled Monday in a lawsuit filed against the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales by 63-year-old James Sheehan, who claims he was sexually abused as a boy by one of the order's priests. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:43 AM

• No hand of hope from Texas Baptists

 
   Stop Baptist Predators,
   TEXAS -- The Baptist General Convention of Texas is convening its annual hoopla November 16-17 in Houston. The theme is "Texas Hope 2010" as they focus on how "to bring hope to the people of Texas" next year.
   For the sake of truth-in-advertising, I feel as though they really ought to add some fine print: "Texas Hope 2010 (but not applicable for Baptist clergy abuse survivors)."
   Dee Miller saw the hopelessness of the Baptist General Convention of Texas a long time ago. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:34 AM

• Laypeople form council to increase say in Roman Catholic church in Cape Breton

   
   CANADA -- Amherst Daily The Canadian Press
   SYDNEY, N.S. – Roman Catholic priests in the Sydney area have authorized a new council that will give laypeople more responsibility in various ministries.
   Pat Bates, a layperson and member of the organizing committee, said the Deanery Pastoral Council will also increase the role of women in the church by including a policy that half the council members must be female.
   Bates says the laypeople in the parish "want equality for women."
   He says the idea of forming a council for non-ordained church members was spurred by concerns within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish, including child pornography charges against Bishop Raymond Lahey. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:31 AM

• Priest resigns over relationship

  [2000s Fr Sean McKenna*] - RCC. "Celibate," but had relationship with woman.
   BBC News,
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- A priest in Londonderry has resigned after telling a congregation that he has been involved in a relationship with a woman.
   Father Sean McKenna made the announcement during mass at Holy Family Church in Ballymagroarty.
   Father Michael Canny, the spokesman for the Derry Diocese, said he and Bishop Hegarty were shocked to hear the news. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:26 AM

• Help for 500,000 to find lost families

   
   Brisbane Times, with video, By DAN HARRISON, November 16, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- THE Government will set up a national service to help the forgotten Australians find their families and launch projects to record and preserve their stories, the Prime Minister said.
   Kevin Rudd announced the plan yesterday as he apologised to more than 500,000 Australians who were raised in church or state care.
   He said a "find and connect service" would help people locate their personal and family history files, through a searchable national database that would collate and index existing state records. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:23 AM

• Tears for victims, cheers for their courage

   
   Brisbane Times, with video,
   AUSTRALIA -- Emotions ran high in the Great Hall as the people of Australia said sorry to abused and neglected children, writes Kelsey Munro.
   THERE were tears and heckles, standing ovations and hugs. But one sentiment was voiced by many of the so-called forgotten Australians and former child migrants who came to Parliament House to hear the Prime Minister apologise for the abuse and neglect they suffered in state care.
   The apology was important because their stories were finally believed and their suffering was recognised. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:21 AM

• A moment of dignity, all too rare

 
   Brisbane Times, with video, By PHILLIP COOREY, CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT, November 16, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- ALL too infrequently, dignity descends on the Parliament. It did so yesterday as Kevin Rudd and Malcolm Turnbull apologised to the forgotten Australians.
   Rudd was supposed to speak for 20 minutes but he went for twice that long.
   Nobody minded. He wrote his own speech, doing the bulk of the work through the night on his way home from Singapore. Perhaps that explained the delivery. It was a little flat. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:17 AM

• Australian apology to British child migrants: speech in full

   
   Telegraph (United Kingdom),
   AUSTRALIA -- Kevin Rudd, the Australian prime minister, has issued an apology to the 7,000 former child migrants who were taken from Britain and put into state-run homes in Australia where they suffered abuse and neglect. Here is his speech in full:
   Today, the Government of Australia will move the following motion of apology in the Parliament of Australia.
   We come together today to deal with an ugly chapter in our nation's history.
   To say to you, the Forgotten Australians, and those who were sent to our shores as children without your consent, that we are sorry. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:13 AM

• Paedophile's extra offences surface as twin awaits trial

  [1982-86 Mr Martyn Conway* (49)] - Mormon. Boy.  
   Cambridge News, john.downing@cambridge-news.co.uk ,
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A CONVICTED paedophile has admitted sexually assaulting two more youngsters.
   Martyn Conway, 49, was jailed for seven years in September last year after being found guilty of the rape and attempted rape of a boy.
   Now Conway, formerly of Princess Court, Hills Road, Cambridge, has pleaded guilty to six charges of assaulting another male victim, aged under 14, from August 1982 to May 1986. …
   During Conway's trial last year, the court was told that he acted as a father figure to his victim while a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints, in Cherry Hinton Road, Cambridge. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:11 AM

• Australian apology for history of child neglect

  - Churches, charities, and States.  
   Times LIVE, AFP, 9:01 AM, Nov 16, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- Prime Minister Kevin Rudd made an emotional apology to half-a-million "Forgotten Australians" who faced sexual abuse, violence and forced labour in childcare homes over a period of decades.
   Victims among the 1,000 people who packed Parliament House for the address burst into tears as Rudd detailed heart-rending cases of neglect in Australia's orphanages and institutions from 1930 to 1970.
   "We come together today to offer our nation's apology. To say to you, the Forgotten Australians, and those who were sent to our shores as children without their consent, that we are sorry," he said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:07 AM

• Sex abuse lawsuits will target Mormon Church

  - Mormons
   The News Tribune The Associated Press Published: Nov/16/09
   PORTLAND (OR) -- A former Shelton man will file a lawsuit against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, also known as the Mormon Church, today concerning childhood sexual abuse, according to a news release from his attorney Kelly Clark.
   The news release stated that the case will be filed in King County Circuit Court in Seattle, and stems from the alleged abuse by a Mormon Church-sponsored Boy Scout leader in the town of Shelton. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:04 AM

• Stories of the forgotten children

   
   Stuff,
   AUSTRALIA -- As young children, they had their faces rubbed until the blood flowed for wetting the bed.
   On other occasions, they had their feet placed in boiling water as punishment.
   Sometimes when they were locked under the stairs, they had food thrown to them like they were animals.
   Then there was the unspeakable sexual abuse and teen pregnancies, leading to another generation of suffering.
   For them, a national apology was a chance for them to be believed, a chance to finally feel like they were Australians. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:02 AM

• Child porn collectors feed a growing poison

   
   The Times-Picayune, By Robert Travis Scott, November 16, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- Although he has arrested more than 400 people in connection with child-sex crimes in Louisiana, veteran investigator Toby Aguillard is still flabbergasted by the behaviors he finds in these criminals.
   There was the Hammond man he helped convict for possession of about 7,700 images and videos depicting sexual victimization of children. While recovering evidence from the home, Aguillard found several novels with themes of juvenile abduction and rape, clips from teen magazines and pictures of the young pop star Miley Cyrus tucked into portfolios of sexually graphic material. There also were extensive research materials on the JonBenet Ramsey case and an exotic knife collection, including a glove with hidden razor blades.
   The man talked so openly about his desires that his co-workers knew he was sexually attracted to pre-teens, and he admitted he fantasized about abducting and raping a little girl, said Aguillard, a detective with the Tangipahoa Sheriff's Office and former chief of Louisiana's task force on crimes against children. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:59 AM

• South London church paedo molested girls

  [20yrs Mr Jason Hoyte* (37)] - Pentecostal Church. Convicted. 6 girls.
   South London Press
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A RESPECTED member of South London’s Pentecostal church community is behind bars after being convicted of molesting six underage girls.
   Jason Hoyte, 37, who claims to have performed with Take That and Boyzone, sexually abused children as young as four.
   The paedophile, a director of an events company and a former Lambeth council youth worker, began targeting victims in the 1980s. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:55 AM

• Australia apologises for abuse of child migrants from Britain

     
   Christian Today, By Jenna Lyle, Monday, November 16, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- The Australian Prime Minister has apologised to thousands of British children who were sent to Australia where they suffered abuse at the hands of their carers.
   From the 1930s to 1970s, around 7,000 impoverished British children were shipped to Australia by churches and charities as part of the Child Migrants Programme. The children, some as young as three, were sent to Australia with the promise of a "better life" and to supply the country with "good white stock" but many ended up suffering physical, psychological and sexual abuse in state institutions or on farms.
   Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd delivered an emotional apology to around 1,000 victims at Parliament House in Canberra on Monday, at one point embracing a tearful victim. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:49 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Mon November 16, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Tue November 17, 2009 edition:

• Former Bay priest admits sex charges

  [1969-70s Fr Kelvin Sharkey*] - Roman Catholic Church. Altar boy.    
   Bay Post, BY COURTNEY TRENWITH, Nov 18, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- A retired Batemans Bay Catholic priest has pleaded guilty to repeatedly sexually assaulting an altar boy 40 years ago.
   Kelvin Gerald Sharkey, 80, now of Fairy Meadow, was too frail to enter the dock or stand on Monday when Wollongong District Court Judge Paul Conlon asked how he pleaded to two counts of indecently assaulting a male and one of bu**ery.
   Sharkey threatened the victim, telling him he would go to hell if he told his parents about the assaults.
   "… it’s okay, this is what we do," he told the boy. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:43 PM, November 17, 2009]

• Petition on victims of abuse in North to be presented

  - 6000 sign petition.  
   The Irish Times, By PATSY McGARRY, Religious Affairs Correspondent,
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- A PETITION calling for justice for former residents of institutions run by Catholic religious congregations in Northern Ireland is to be presented to the De La Salle Brothers in Dublin today.
   It will be received by Brother Pius McCarthy at the congregation's provincialate this morning.
   A former resident of one of the institutions, Margaret McGuckin, told The Irish Times yesterday that the petition consisted of approximately 6,000 names collected on the Lower Falls Road in Belfast. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:39 PM

• US Prelate: Church Doing More to Keep Children Safe

  - RCC.  
   Zenit, NOV. 17, 2009
   BALTIMORE, Maryland, (Zenit.org).- In response to a report on child abuse cases by clergy, Bishop Blase Cupich of Rapid City, South Dakota, notes that no other organization is doing as much as the Church to keep children safe.
   The prelate, the chairman of the U.S. bishops' conference Committee for the Protection of Children and Young People, affirmed this today in Baltimore, where the conference is holding its fall general assembly.
   Today's session included an interim report by researchers from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice on a Causes and Context Study regarding sexual abuse of minors by clergy. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:37 PM

• Catholic bishops claim moral authority amidst 'confusion'

  - US $2.6 billion cost since 1950.
   USA Today By Daniel Burke, Religion News Service,
   BALTIMORE (MD) – Responding to scientific advances and widespread "confusion" among their flocks, U.S. Catholic bishops today issued detailed guidelines on marriage, reproductive technologies and health care for severely brain-damaged patients.
   The bishops gathered here for their semi-annual meeting also heard a preliminary report on the "causes and contexts" of the clergy sexual abuse scandal that resulted in some 14,000 abuse claims and cost the church $2.6 billion since 1950.
   Researchers from New York's John Jay College of Criminal Justice told the nearly 300 members of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops that homosexual orientation should not be linked to the sexual abuse, even as some church leaders have sought to make a link between gay priests and sexual abuse. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:31 PM

• Congregation cheers as Irish Catholic priest says he's in love, quits Church

  [2000s Fr Sean McKenna*] - RCC. "Celibate," but loves woman.  
   Irish Central, By DONAL THORNTON, IrishCentral.Com Staff Writer,
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- A popular Irish Catholic priest has quit the priesthood to spend his life with a woman.
   Fr. Sean McKenna, 51, received a standing ovation from his local parishioners in Ballymagroarty in Derry when he made the announcement.
   The congregation wept and cheered when McKenna said he was leaving the priesthood, having embarked on a "loving, beautiful and life-giving relationship." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:43 PM

• Report: Homosexuality no factor in abusive priests

   
   The Associated Press By RACHEL ZOLL
   BALTIMORE (MD), (AP) – A preliminary report commissioned by the nation's Roman Catholic bishops to investigate the clergy sex abuse scandal has found no evidence that gay priests are more likely than heterosexual clergy to molest children, the lead authors of the study said Tuesday.
   The full report by researchers at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice won't be completed until the end of next year. But the authors said their evidence to date found no data indicating that homosexuality was a predictor of abuse.
   "What we are suggesting is that the idea of sexual identity be separated from the problem of sexual abuse," said Margaret Smith of John Jay College, in a speech to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. "At this point, we do not find a connection between homosexual identity and the increased likelihood of subsequent abuse from the data that we have right now." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:35 PM

• Priest who served in Auburn accused of sexual abuse in Rochester

  [~ 1970s-80s Fr Conrad Sundholm -NEW*] - RCC. Minor.
   WSYR,
   ROCHESTER, New York (WSYR-TV) – A Rochester-area priest who once served in Auburn has been accused of sexual abuse of a minor when he was pastor at an Irondequoit parish.
   Sundholm served at St. Mary in Auburn from 1965-1972 and Holy Family/St. Aloysius in Auburn from 1982 until his retirement in 1999.
   The Rochester Diocese says that the alleged sexual abuse charge against the Rev. Conrad Sundholm, occurred when he was at St. Salome Church in Irondequoit. Sundholm served there from 1974-1982. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:23 PM

• Retired priest accused of sexual abuse

  [mid 1970s Fr Conrad Sundholm*] - RCC. Minor.
   Catholic Courier (Publication Date: 11-17-2009)
   NEW YORK According to a Nov. 17 statement by the Diocese of Rochester, Father Conrad Sundholm, a retired priest currently residing in Florida, has been accused of sexually abusing a minor during the mid-1970s.
   The statement said that the allegation has been deemed "credible," and that the abuse allegedly occurred while Father Sundholm was pastor at St. Salome Parish in Irondequoit.
   Bishop Matthew H. Clark has withdrawn Father Sundholm's priestly faculties, meaning he no longer is allowed to exercise public ministry. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:19 PM

• Bishops Elect Chairs-Elect of Five Committees, Members of CRS and CLINIC Boards

 
   BALTIMORE (MD) -- United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
   BALTIMORE–The United States Conference of Catholic Bishop (USCCB), meeting for their Fall General Assembly, elected by simple majority the chairmen-elect of five committees.
   Archbishop Robert Carlson of St. Louis was elected Chairman of the Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocation in a 118-114 vote over Bishop Michael Burbidge of Raleigh, N.C. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:15 PM

• John Jay Researchers Offer Update On Causes And Context Study; Early Findings Confirm Steep Decline In Sexual Abuse Cases After 1985, Emphasizethe Importance Of Seminary Training

 
   BALTIMORE (MD) -- United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
   WASHINGTON–Researchers from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice presented an Interim Report on the Causes and Context Study on sexual abuse of minors by clergy at the November assembly of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). The bishops called for the Study as part of their response to the sexual abuse crisis when they adopted the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People in 2002.
   The Causes and Context research seeks to explain the rise in incidence of sexual abuse by priests in the late 1960s and 1970s and its subsequent decline after 1985. Karen Terry, PhD, the principal researcher on the Study, reported on the synthesis of information from several independent data sources that confirmed the explanation for this variation that was previously reported to the bishops. The Study involves gathering and analyzing archival research and collecting data from priests, psychologists, sociologists, and the U.S. bishops. Funding was provided by the USCCB, the National Institute of Justice, and several foundations.
   The Causes and Context Study was pursued by the bishops in order to understand more fully the problem of clergy sexual abuse and what needs to be done to keep children safe in the Church’s care. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:13 PM

• Pattern of clerical sexual abuse remains unchanged, researchers tell U.S. bishops

 
   Catholic News Agency, 03:43 pm Nov 17, 2009
   BALTIMORE (MD) / (CNA).- Researchers investigating the sexual abuse of minors by clergy presented their interim report at the November assembly of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops on Tuesday. They said new reports of sexual abuse do not alter the pattern of clerical sexual abuse, which peaked in the late 1960s and 1970s before declining in the 1980s.
   The Interim Report on the Cases and Context Study, written by researchers from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, aims to explain the increase of sexual abuse by priests in the late 1960s and 1970s and its decline after 1985. Researchers gathered and analyzed archives and also collected data from priest, psychologists, sociologists and the U.S. bishops.
   According to a USCCB press release, the Interim Report found that cases of abuse reported after 2002 showed the same pattern of a rise of sexual abuse in the 1960s and decline in the 1980s. The researchers do not believe that unreported cases will be brought forward that change the time frame of the abuse. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:11 PM

• Report: No Evidence Between Homosexuality and Priest Abuse

 
   BALTIMORE (MD) -- Fox News Tuesday, November 17, 2009
   BALTIMORE – A preliminary report commissioned by U.S. Roman Catholic bishops finds no evidence that gay priests are more likely to abuse children.
   Researcher Margaret Smith from John Jay College of Criminal Justice said the study so far has found no connection between being gay and an increased likelihood of abuse. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:02 PM

• HAS THE TIDE TURNED? BISHOPS RECORD THEIR BIGGEST VICTORY SINCE ABUSE CRISIS

 
   Spirit Daily,
   When a bishop consecrates a church, he pours chrism oil on the altar and then proceeds around the building making the Sign of the Cross with that oil at various places on the interior walls, often on columns, if a church has columns; afterward, a Cross is etched or placed designating the spot and often a candle is also set there.
   From then on, a church is a holy place -- not just in word, by in a way that is palpable.
   That's Catholicism: real power that transcends any human, a power that lasts, despite human error. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:34 PM
   [COMMENT: Why doesn't this "power" revive Christian numbers in the Near East, Middle East, and north Africa, then? ENDS.]

• Cardinal George: Time to Move Beyond Clergy Scandals

 
   Zenit NOV. 16, 2009
   BALTIMORE, Maryland, (Zenit.org).- The U.S. bishops' conference president is urging his fellow prelates to move beyond the clergy abuse scandals of the past, and look to build unity within the Church.
   Cardinal Francis George, archbishop of Chicago, affirmed this in his presidential address in Baltimore, where the conference's annual fall general assembly began today.
   He highlighted the necessary role of priests, who together with bishops exercise authority in Christ's name over the people. Without priests, he pointed out, the people would be left only to the authority of the civil and secular government. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:32 PM

• Sex abuse allegations against former Rochester priest determined credible

  [mid 1970s Fr Conrad Sundholm* (80)] - RCC. Minor.
   WHEC,
   NEW YORK -- An allegation concerning sexual abuse of a minor dating back to the mid-1970s against a former Rochester priest, has been determined to be credible.
   Reverend Conrad Sundholm, a retired priest who now lives in Florida, was pastor at St. Salome's Church in Irondequoit when the abuse allegedly occurred. Rev. Sundholm is now 80-years-old.
   Rev. Sundholm's priestly faculties have been withdrawn. He cannot exercise public ministry. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:02 PM

• Diocese: Sexual Abuse Allegations Against Former Pastor Credible

  [mid 1970s - Fr Conrad Sundholm*] - RCC. Minor.
   WHAM,
   ROCHESTER, N.Y. – The Diocese of Rochester says that allegations of sexual abuse of a minor against a former Irondequoit pastor are credible.
   According to the diocese, the abuse allegations against Rev. Conrad Sundholm date back to the mid-1970s at St. Salome’s Church in Irondequoit where he served from 1974-1982.
   Sundholm is now 80, retired, and living in Florida. The diocese says he can no longer exercise public ministry. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:59 PM

• Church plans prayer vigil in response to child abuse investigation

 
   The Kansas City Star
   INDEPENDENT (MO) -- A public prayer vigil has been scheduled for tonight by the Community of Christ church in response to arrests last week in the Lafayette County child abuse investigation.
   The vigil is from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Community of Christ Temple, 201 S. River Blvd., Independence. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:04 PM

• Child rape case expands by 15 counts against five men in Mohler family

 
   MISSOURI -- The Kansas City Star By DONALD BRADLEY
   With a new accuser alleging more sexual atrocities were committed against the children of the Mohler family, 15 additional counts were filed Monday against five of the six men already in jail.
   Lafayette County authorities last week charged six men in the family on 16 counts, alleging a torrent of rape, sodomy and bestiality against children.
   The latest filings include allegations that the new accuser was induced to have sexual contact with another minor. Some of the abuses allegedly occurred in a vacant house near the family’s property south of Bates City, Mo., as well as in the home. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:02 PM

• Retired priest accused of abuse; diocese says claim ‘credible’

  [mid 1970s Fr Conrad Sundholm*] - RCC. Minor.
   The Democrat and Chronicle, by Victoria E. Freile – Staff writer, Local News – November 17, 2009
   NEW YORK -- Allegations of sexual abuse of a minor by a priest who has served in several Rochester-area churches over the past five decades have been deemed credible, according to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester.
   "An allegation concerning sexual abuse of a minor dating back to the mid-1970s against the Rev. Conrad Sundholm, a retired priest now living in Florida, has been determined to be credible," diocesan spokesman Doug Mandelaro said in a printed statement.
   Sundholm was pastor at St. Salome Church in Irondequoit when the abuse allegedly occurred. He served there from 1974 to 1982. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:59 PM

• The story of a former Quincy priest gains more national attention

  [Fr Henry Willenborg]
   QUINCY (IL) -- Herald-Whig
   The story of the Rev. Henry Willenborg, a priest who spent a decade at Our Lady of Angels Seminary in Quincy, and the son he had with a woman who came here 26 years ago to a Roman Catholic retreat to try to mend a trouble marriage aired last week on CNN. Their son, Nathan Halbach, now 22, is dying of cancer.
   See the report here.
   The story first gained national attention with a front page New York Times article last month. CNN reporter Gary Tuchman was in Quincy filming part of the report, with footage of St. Peter Catholic Church. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:56 PM

• SNAP News Conference – Pastor/Therapist Sued for Exploitation

 
   HOLLYWOOD (CA) -- Surviving Therapist Abuse
   SNAP (The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) is holding a sidewalk news conference in Hollywood today regarding Jack Michael Loo, a Presbyterian pastor and therapist who allegedly manipulated and exploited a female patient and congregant for many years. Loo is being sued for exploitation and faces charges of clergy sexual misconduct. The victim, Carol Ann Carlson, is speaking publicly for the first time.
   The story is another shocking example of horrific abuses of power by people in positions of authority and trust.
   I’m posting the media advisory for today’s news conference below. I realize that most of you will be reading this after the fact, but I believe it’s important that victims be given the opportunity to give voice to their stories in as many ways possible. I wish Ms. Carlson all the best in her suit and in her recovery. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:46 PM

• A Bit of Context, and a Label

 
   UNITED STATES -- Catholic Sensibility,
   David Gibson clarifies the context of Cardinal George’s remark I blogged yesterday. From Politics Daily: "There are some who would like to trap the church in historical events of ages long past, and there are others who would keep the bishops permanently imprisoned in the clerical sexual abuse scandal of recent years," George said. "The proper response to a crisis of governance, however, is not no governance but effective governance."
   George noted that the "clerical ranks have been purged of priests and bishops known to have abused children" and said that whatever the sins of those abusers, they "cannot be allowed to discredit the truth of Catholic teaching."
   Sad. The cardinal still doesn’t get it. Will someone explain to him that we Catholics have known about abusive clergy for decades. Heck, they still make jokes about nuns going all corporal punishment on kid knuckles and all. 2002 wasn’t news to most people as far as clergy sex abuse was concerned. (If the USCCB had been paying attention to Tom Doyle in the 80’s, it wouldn’t have been news to them, either.) It was the bishops’ crisis (George’s words) of governance. A very ineffective governance. A scandal, if I may borrow a word from the Catholic Right. I don’t think the term misses the mark. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:42 PM

• The Catholic Church's religious blackmail of secular government

 
   UNITED STATES -- Washington Post by Susan Jacoby
   Q: U.S. Catholic bishops are defending their direct involvement in congressional deliberations over health-care reform, saying that church leaders have a duty to raise moral concerns on any issue, including abortion rights and health care for the poor. Do you agree? What role should religious leaders have -- or not have -- in government policymaking?
   Of course the Roman Catholic Church, like every other institution, has a right to uphold and fight for its moral beliefs in the public life of this nation. What the church is doing, however, is attempting to hold Americans who do not agree with its views hostage. The archbishops have made it quite clear that they are going to try to torpedo any health care reform bill that does not severely limit access to abortion. The church has not been successful at this kind of political blackmail since the 1930s and 1940s, when it fought a long, highly successful battle against birth control at both the state and national level--a battle that, like the current battle over abortion, left well-off women free to do what they wanted and denied reproductive choice to the poor. And when anyone criticizes the church hierarchy for its actions on this or any other political front, the bishops cry "anti-Catholic." …
   The church levels charges of "anti-Catholicism" whenever the media air any ecclesiastical dirty linen. The most recent example was New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan's response to a piece by the New York Times op-ed columnist Marueen Dowd on the church's second-class treatment of women and nuns. On his blog, Dolan wrote, "In a diatribe that rightly never would have passed muster with the editors had it so criticized an Islamic, Jewish, or African-American religious issue, she [Dowd] digs deep into the nativist handbook to use every anti-Catholic caricature possible, from the Inquisition to the Holocaust, condoms, obsession with sex, pedophile priests, and oppression of women…." I guess the church had nothing to do with the Inquisition; Pope Pius XII was a courageous fighter against the Nazi extermination of Jews; the present pope and his predecessor have not campaigned agaiast condoms throughout Africa, and the pedophile priest scandal is the result not of a systematic coverup by the church hierarchy but was caused by the sins of a few "bad apples." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:24 PM

• Former Auburn priest accused of abuse

  [mid 1970s Fr Conrad Sundholm*] - RCC. Minor.
   The Citizen, Tuesday, November 17, 2009
   NEW YORK -- A former Auburn priest has been accused of sexually abusing a minor in the mid-1970s while working in Monroe County, officials with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester said Tuesday.
   The Rev. Conrad Sundholm, a retired priest now living in Florida, is accused of abusing the child while working at St. Salome's Church in Irondequoit, the diocese said.
   An investigation has deemed the allegations against Sundholm credible and he has been barred from exercising any public ministries or priestly faculties, the diocese said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:19 PM

• George questions role of independent Catholic media

 
   National Catholic Reporter (USA), By Jerry Filteau Nov. 17, 2009
   BALTIMORE -- Cardinal Francis E. George of Chicago, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said Nov. 16 that Catholic publications, universities or other organizations that insist on complete independence from their bishops are "sectarian, less than fully Catholic."
   In his presidential address at the opening session of the fall USCCB general assembly in Baltimore, George announced that the bishops "have recently begun discussions on how we might strengthen our relationship to Catholic universities, to media claiming to be a voice in the church, and to organizations that direct various works under Catholic auspices." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:10 PM

• Racism in the Diocese of Fairbanks: If I didn’t see it, then it didn’t happen

     
   Second Rape: The Diocese of Fairbanks and Sexual Abuse,
   ALASKA -- How did the Diocese of Fairbanks let child rape thrive? The answer is simple: the racist, molesting priests.
   I found a cherry clip illustrating the whole process in a few simple words.
   About the clip:
   Fr. Henry Hargreaves, SJ, spent most of his 50-year career as a priest in Alaska Native villages in the Diocese of Fairbanks. According to the Alaskana Catholica, he supervised many of the perpetrators who were stationed across the tundra. I use the term "supervised" loosely – he has also been accused of sexual abuse by at least two children and an adult woman.
   In a taped 2004 deposition, Hargreaves was asked about the 1960 letter about Poole (Click here to read). The letter (in Latin, of course) discussed how Poole kept Alaska Native girls in his room late at night, kept them in the confessional for a half hour at a time, and visited the girls dorms and bedrooms at night. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 12:07 PM

• Temple priest on the run surrenders

   
   Express Buzz, by Dennis Selvan
   KANCHEEPURAM, INDIA : The priest of Machcheshwara Peruman temple, Devanathan, who had been on the run for about two mon­ths, surrendered before the Judicial Magistrate-I, Kan­cheepuram, on Monday and was remanded in judicial custody till November 30.
   The Siva Kanchi police got the whiff of his impersonation after his sexual escapades with a few women on the temple premises that were recorded by himself on his mobile phone, became public. A case was register­ed against him but he fled Kanchee­pu­ram along with his wife Ganga and two teenage dau­ghters.
   Inspector Pattabhiraman of the Kanchi police told Express on Monday that they would file a petition before the magistrate on Tuesday, seeking custody of the accused for further inquiry. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:50 AM

• Kancheepuram priest in sex scandal

 
   India today, by M.C. Rajan, Chennai, November 17, 2009
   INDIA -- A sex scandal involving a temple priest in the famed pilgrim town of Kancheepuram has shocked devotees.
   The public is aghast that his sexual escapades took place in the sanctum sanctorum of the Machaesa Perumal temple, a Vaishnavite shrine.
   What's even more scandalous is that the 36-year-old priest, Devanathan, used to engage in sexual acts even as unsuspecting devotees waited outside to perform puja. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:48 AM

• Temple priest surrenders before Magistrate

  [Devanathan]
   Press Trust of India STAFF WRITER Nov 17, 2009
   KANCHEEPURAM, (TN) India, (PTI) -- A priest, allegedly involved in immoral activities with women in the precincts of a temple here, has surrendered before a magistrate after evading the police dragnet for nearly a month.
   Devanathan (39), the priest of Maheswarar temple, surrendered before Judicial Magistrate I V Sudha yesterday. He was remanded in judicial custody for 15 days.
   He had allegedly recorded his "immoral acts" on his mobile phone. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:45 AM

• US bishops meeting starts; SNAP responds to opening speech

   
   UNITED STATES -- Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests,
   Once again, instead of really addressing the church's on-going clergy sex abuse and cover up crisis, the head of America's bishops sidestepped. Instead of reaching out to victims, he patted his brother bishops on the back, effectively rubbing salt into already deep and still fresh wounds.
   Cardinal George is right that US bishops have launched an "unprecedented effort." Unfortunately, that effort is largely smoke and mirrors rather than genuine and effective reforms.
   George spoke of bishops "trapped" in the church's sex abuse scandal. What keeps America's bishops "trapped" in the church's on-going clergy sex abuse and cover up crisis is their own refusal to deal with the root causes. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:42 AM

• Bishop D’Arcy’s legacy

 
   SOUTH BEND (IN) -- Journal Gazette
   Over the last quarter-century, Bishop John D’Arcy was the authoritative, sometimes controversial leader of one of the nation’s key Catholic dioceses. His retirement and the appointment of Bishop Kevin Rhoades as his replacement mark a changing of the guard in one of the most important community positions in northeast Indiana.
   D’Arcy will be remembered for being accessible and clear in confronting significant issues facing the church, earning wide admiration for forcefully addressing child molestation scandals and generating controversy over his reaction to social issues and challenges to academic freedom.
   Rather than hide or transfer priests known to molest children, D’Arcy insisted they be released from the priesthood. In a remarkable admission, D’Arcy announced in 2003 that since 1950, 17 priests in the diocese had molested an estimated 33 people. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:51 AM

• Kancheepuram Priest, Sex Scandal MMS

  [Devanathan]  
   Ganpati News,
   INDIA -- Kancheepuram devotees got shocked by the exposure of temple priest’s indulgence in sexual activities. The surprising element is the fact that offender Devanathan, 36-year-old priest used to indulge in sexual acts at the time when devotees were waiting outside to do puja ceremony. He was running from the custody for a month, now he surrendered before the police on 16th Nov. & his bail got rejected.
   The priest was not only indulged in immoral behavior but he even captured the whole scenario on his mobile phone. A mobile phone mechanic disclosed the mms& [????] the priests’ scandalized deed, when he was about to repair priest’s mobile phone. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:48 AM

• Irish priest allowed to post bail

  [1968 Fr. Francis Markey] - RCC. Boy.    
   South Bend Tribune By JEFF PARROTT,
   SOUTH BEND (IN) – In a brief hearing Monday, the U.S. government reversed its position and agreed not to object to an Irish priest's release from jail on bond, pending the resolution of his extradition proceedings.
   Francis Markey, 81, was arrested last week at his home on Miller Court in South Bend and is facing possible extradition to Ireland on charges that he raped a teenage boy there in 1968.
   At the Irish government's request, the U.S. attorney had filed a memo opposing Markey's release on bail and was prepared to argue that position at Monday's hearing. But an assistant U.S. attorney for the northern Indiana district, Kenneth Hays, told Magistrate Judge Christopher Nuechterlein that the Office of International Affairs, a division of the U.S. Department of Justice, had subsequently contacted him and asked him to stop opposing bail. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:46 AM

• Kanchipuram Priest Scandal Revealed

   
   Breaking News 24/7,
   Kanchipuram, India -- The Kanchipuram priest scandal acts as another eye opener for the hypocrisies that lie behind the faade of celibacy and piety in the places of worship. A priest in Kanchipuram was arrested for indulging in sexual activities in the temple precincts and capturing them live on video. What makes the whole scenario even worse is that all this would take place even while unsuspecting devotees would be outside the temple, waiting to pay their respects and perform puja.
   The culprit, who has been identified as Devanathan in the police records, was the priest at the Manchaesa Perumal temple, a well known shrine at the village of Kanchipuram, a place that attracts millions of pilgrims throughout the year. The activities used to take place in the sanctum sanctoram, the part of a temple where the idol is placed. He used to record the activities in his mobile phone, which finally led to his undoing. A local mechanic whom Devanathan had entrusted to repair the phone, discovered the Kanchipuram priest scandal and began circulating them. The CDs were discovered by the police while they were being sold. Devanathan escaped along with his family, but surrendered four days later. He has not been granted bail. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:44 AM

• Former Auburn priest accused of sexual abuse of minor

  [mid 1970s Fr Conrad Sundholm*] - RCC. Minor.  
   The Post-Standard By Charley Hannagan / November 17, 2009
   AUBURN (NY) -- Catholic churches in Auburn this weekend reached out to possible victims of a priest, whose alleged sexual abuse of a minor was found to be "credible" by a church investigation.
   "An allegation concerning sexual abuse of a minor dating back to the mid-1970s against Rev. Conrad Sundholm, a retired priest now living in Florida, has been determined to be credible," reads the statement from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester.
   The announcement was made this weekend by pastors from the pulpits of churches where Sundholm had served. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:35 AM

• Rant A Wedding and a Suicide

 
   Rant Rave, Written by Rudi Stettner,
   NEW YORK -- It should have been a joyous occasion. But for one young man, the night of his wedding brought back haunting memories of being molested as a young student. The orthodox Jewish world was reeling from reports that a young newlywed committed suicide by jumping off a hotel balcony two days after his wedding in the early morning hours. No one could come up with a plausible reason why a man with a winning personality and a promising future would take his own life. Surveillance videos were a crack in the idyllic picture, as were troubling phrases in police communications such as "emotionally disturbed". It was getting harder with time to dismiss the tragic occurrence as an accidental fall.
   Now it turns out that Motty Borger may have been tormented by memories as molestation that haunted him as he started out life as a married man. The New York Post reported as follows yesterday on the troubling case. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:25 AM

• Following orders: principal denies sex neglect charge

  [2007 Unnamed headmaster] - RCC. Kept it quiet, "obeying orders."
   Brisbane Times By PETER HARDWICK, November 17, 2009.
   AUSTRALIA -- A Toowoomba Catholic primary school principal, charged with failing to report a student’s complaint that she was sexually assaulted by a teacher, claimed yesterday he had followed the instructions of his superiors.
   The principal, who has pleaded not guilty, cannot be named so as to protect the identity of the complainant children.
   He told Toowoomba Magistrates Court he had sought the advice of his immediate superiors in the Catholic Education Office when told of the Year 4 student’s allegations in September, 2007. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:14 AM

• Bishops Try to Reassert Control of a Restive Flock

   
   Politics Daily, by David Gibson,
   BALTIMORE (MD) -- The leader of the Catholic hierarchy in the United States on Monday launched a new effort to rein in Catholic debates and dissidents and to remind the flock that the bishops will be the arbiters of what it means to be a Catholic.
   In remarks at the opening of the hierarchy's annual meeting in Baltimore, Chicago Cardinal Francis George made it clear that after years of repeated questions about the bishops' credibility, it was time for the bishops to clarify just who can and cannot speak for the church. He also confirmed that he had set up three committees of bishops to develop guidelines for determining what will be considered legitimate Catholic entities. …
   There are some who would like to trap the church in historical events of ages long past, and there are others who would keep the bishops permanently imprisoned in the clerical sexual abuse scandal of recent years," George said. "The proper response to a crisis of governance, however, is not no governance but effective governance." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:10 AM

• Mormon Church Official Accused of Molestation

  [1970s Mr Eugene Knox - ? NEW*] - Mormon. 3 boys.
   KCBS,
   SAN FRANCISCO (CA), (KCBS) -- A suit filed in San Francisco Superior Court accuses the Mormon Church and the Boy Scouts of America of covering up sexual abuse. The three men filing the suit are coming forward after three decades of silence.
   The suit claims the three brothers were children when they told the Mormon church that they had been abused hundreds of times by church official, Eugene Bill Knox, who was also their Boy Scout leader. Kelly Clark is their attorney.
   "Most child abuse survivors shove this away and it becomes a secret," he said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:04 AM

• Australia's apology

  - 6 reports exposed Australia's Churches, charities, and States.  
   The Irish Times,
   AUSTRALIA -- THERE is a ghastly familiarity to the stories of the "forgotten Australians", the half a million children, many from abroad, condemned to live in state and church-run orphanages, foster homes and institutions between 1930 and 1970. As in Ireland’s residential institutions, neglect, brutality, humiliation, and, for many, sexual abuse, were routine.
   Many children were wrongly told their parents were dead and siblings were separated when they arrived in Australia. To its shame, like Ireland, Australia ignored or repressed the terrible truth for several generations.
   Since 1997, six reports to government have called for an apology, culminating in a 2004 senate inquiry. It unearthed hundreds of stories of abuse of children placed in care because of family breakdown, because their mothers were unmarried, or because they were considered uncontrollable. And yesterday prime minister Kevin Rudd apologised in the presence of 900 of the victims for the "absolute tragedy of childhoods lost", echoing his historic 2008 statement to Australia's Aborigines. It was a moving and clearly heartfelt speech, well-received, and an important healing step for victims. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:02 AM

• Mormon Church, Boy Scouts Sued For Sex Abuse In SF Court

  [Knox]
   San Francisco Appeal,
   SAN FRANCISCO (CA) -- Three former Sunnyvale residents announced today they have sued the Mormon church, the Boy Scouts of America and their stepfather in San Francisco Superior Court for alleged childhood sexual abuse.
   The three men, who are brothers now aged 39, 41 and 43, claim that William E. Knox, 65, a Mormon church and Boy Scouts leader, molested them repeatedly in Sunnyvale between 1977 and 1987.
   A brother identified as John Doe 2, who now lives in Georgia, said, "I'm a victim and a survivor of childhood sexual abuse. It was devastating to me. I've been abused hundreds of times over several years." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:00 AM

• Mormon Church sued over abuse allegations

 
   KGO, with video, By Wayne Freedman,
   SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Three brothers filed a lawsuit in San Francisco containing allegations against both the Mormon Church and the boy scouts. They claim they were victims of sexual abuse in the 1970's and 80's that the church knew about and ignored.
   Attorneys also filed similar lawsuits in Washington and Oregon, representing other plaintiffs against the Mormon Church and the Boy Scouts.
   The men in the San Francisco case moved away from the South Bay many years ago, but filed here because they claim the crimes happened in Northern California. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:58 AM

• Moose Lake superintendent tells of sexual abuse as teen

  [1970 or '71 Bro. Rose (Christian Brother)] - RCC. 7th suit. Boy.
   Star Tribune By JEFF STRICKLER,
   MINNESOTA -- Tim Caroline taught what he called the most difficult lesson of his 30-year career Monday when he went public in announcing that he was sexually abused in junior high.
   Caroline, 53, the superintendent of the Moose Lake Public Schools, filed a suit alleging that he was molested by Christian Brother Anthony (Raimond) Rose while on a church-sponsored retreat at Dunrovin Retreat Center in Marine on the St. Croix in 1970 or 1971.
   This is the seventh suit filed against Rose since February. He also faces suits alleging abuse while teaching at DeLaSalle High School in Minneapolis and Cretin High School in St. Paul in the late 1960s and early '70s, as well as a suit concerning a North Dakota student. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:54 AM

• I reported sex abuse: Toowoomba principal

 
   CathNews
   AUSTRALIA -- A Toowoomba Catholic primary school principal charged with failing to report a student's complaint of sexual assault by a teacher claimed he had followed the instructions of his superiors.
   The principal, who cannot be named so as to protect the identity of the school and complainant children, told Toowoomba Magistrates Court he had sought the advice of his immediate superiors when told of the Year 4 student's allegations in September 2007, according to the Toowoomba Chronicle.
   He told a packed courtroom that it was his understanding under the legislation that he was obliged to inform his employer of any such allegation and that is what he had done. He had followed their advice on how to proceed, he said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:48 AM

• Caution, ambition mix in Coakley’s methodical journey

   
   Boston Globe By Jonathan Saltzman, November 17, 2009
   MASSACHUSETTS -- It was a cold day in Dorchester when Martha Coakley’s ambition slammed head-on into political reality.
   She was running in a special election for state representative, an entry-level job in the world of elective office, with an eye toward eventually becoming Suffolk district attorney. She had outdebated her four male opponents. She certainly proved she knew more about fighting crime.
   But on that March day in 1997, Coakley, a single, 43-year-old career prosecutor without children and a Dorchester resident of 14 years, could not overcome the stigma of being an unusual outsider in the close-knit district of working-class families. She came in fourth out of five candidates. …
   As district attorney for eight years, Coakley oversaw high-profile prosecutions of Thomas Junta, the Reading father who fatally beat another father at their sons’ hockey practice, and Paul R. Shanley, a defrocked priest accused of sexual abuse. Shanley has challenged his conviction to the state’s highest court, arguing that an alleged abuse victim’s "repressed memory" was junk science. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:35 AM

• One priest's slander lawsuit held up 2nd sex-abuse case

 
   Chicago Tribune By Manya A. Brachear, November 17, 2009
   CHICAGO (IL) -- The sexual-abuse case against the Rev. Edward Maloney hinged on the case against another Roman Catholic priest.
   That priest, the Rev. Robert Stepek, sued two brothers for slander in November 2006 after they said he molested them.
   Nearly a year later, a former parishioner at St. Mark Catholic Church in Chicago's Humboldt Park neighborhood contacted the Chicago Archdiocese with an allegation of abuse against Maloney, the parish's pastor emeritus. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:25 AM

• Historic apology by Australian PM

  - 500k "orphans" abused in Australia.  
   The Times of Malta, November 17, 2009
   MALTA -- When Alfred, Joe, Maria, Rita, Anthony and Frances Cilia were sent to Australia in 1958, their parents thought they were heading to a better life. Instead the six siblings were in for years of heartbreak and abuse.
   "It was like a concentration camp," Alfred Cilia, who was just 13 when he left his home in Vittoriosa, told Australia's SBS Radio.
   The siblings recounted the years of abuse as Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd yesterday apologised to the 500,000 "forgotten Australians" for the abuse and pain they suffered in his country. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:20 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Tue November 17, 2009

• HAWKINS, John; 2009;   The Bush Orphanage:  

  - RCC.             
   Sky News online UK, "Orphan's horrible chapter," as reproduced at http://www. thebush orphanage. com/media. php , By Alex McKinnon, November 18, 2009
   Thousands of children sent to Australia from 1922 to 1967 as part of the forced migration programme from Britain have this week (book review by Sky News, United Kingdom, Nov 18, 2009) received a formal apology from the Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.
   Book cover is from: http://www.thebushorphanage.com/media.php
   One of the children with ties to Geraldton was John Hawkins.
   Mr Hawkins was taken from his adoptive parents in London at the age of seven and shipped to Castledare and then to Tardun College, east of Geraldton.
   Mr Hawkins said being forced to come to Australia in 1954 and placed at Tardun was a horrible and unforgettable chapter in Australia's history.
   "I only wish Mr Rudd knew in detail what this was about.  These were crimes against children," he said on Monday, shortly after hearing the national apology.
   After his birth to a single mother, Mr Hawkins was taken to the Sisters of Nazareth in Southampton who had promised his mother he would be adopted locally.
   Seven years later, after being raised by a local couple, he was sent with 30 or so other young children by ship to Australia.
   "I remember, our names were registered at Australia House that same afternoon – we were instant Australians," he said.
   Mr Rudd told about 900 child migrants at Parliament House on Monday he was sorry for the emotional damage caused to children forced to come to Australia without friends or family.
   Mr Hawkins said he thought the apology was "very sincere."
   The apology coincided with his release of a detailed "forensic" account of the so-called "Lost Innocence" group of children.
   Mr Hawkins has just published The Bush Orphanage, a book in two parts – the first part a personal biography of his life, and the second part a detailed account of the policies and events of the two nations.
   "My book is a forensic account of the crimes against humanity committed by British and Australian Government authorities in the quest to get British children to fill Australian institutions," he said.
   Mr Hawkins' mother-in-law, Margaret Moorhead of Geraldton, said Mr Rudd's apology on Monday was a vital first step to mending the emotional wounds.
   Mrs Moorhead, who went to England to help find Mr Hawkins' adoptive mother, said it had been a very emotional journey for everyone. # http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm#the_bush_orphanage [published 2009] [See also Feb 26, 2010; Nov 18, 2009]
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Wed November 18, 2009 edition:

• Incest pornography found at home of key suspect in Mohler case

   
   INDEPENDENCE (MO) -- The Kansas City Star, By DONALD BRADLEY, ~ November 18, 2009
   A search of the Independence home of the man at the center of Mohler child sex case turned up incest pornography, recording equipment and old tapes with hand-written titles.
   Magazines with titles of "Family Taboo," "Best of Family Secrets" and "Best of Family Touch" were found in a locked file cabinet in the home in the 1300 block of South Dodgion during a Nov. 11 search.
   Burrell Mohler Sr., 77, is in jail in Lexington, Mo., after his arrest last week on allegations of a family child sex case that included rape, sodomy and bestiality. His four sons were also charged for a torrent of alleged sexual assaults in which the family victims were allegedly as young as 5 years old. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:54 PM, November 18, 2009]

• Priest who had sexual escapades in temple

  [Devanathan - ? NEW*] - Temple religion. Photographed his activities. A few women.  
   The Star, Compiled by ZANI SALLEH, BEH YUEN HUI and A. RAMAN, November 19, 2009
   INDIA -- A 36-YEAR-OLD temple priest has sex with a few women in the temple premise in Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu. To make things worse, he had also recorded his activities on his mobile phone, Makkal Osai reported.
   The priest, identified as Deva­nathan, surrendered to a magistrate after being on the run for two months.
   The daily said that the father of two had applied for bail but it was rejected by the Madras High Court. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:48 PM, November 18, 2009

• Gay Groups Praise Report on Gay Priests and Sexual Abuse

  - RCC. US $ 2,600,000,000 in USA so far.  
   Beliefnet
   BALTIMORE (MD), (RNS) --- Gay Catholics and victims of clergy sexual abuse are hailing preliminary results of a study commissioned by U.S. Catholic bishops that says gay priests are no more likely than straight clergy to sexually abuse minors.
   Still, some bishops gathered here for the final day of their semi-annual meeting said it is premature to say whether the church leaders who had asserted such a link were wrong.
   Researchers from New York's John Jay College of Criminal Justice on Tuesday (Nov. 17) presented initial findings from their multi-year study of the clergy sexual abuse scandal, which has resulted in some 14,000 claims of abuse and cost the U.S. Catholic Church about $2.6 billion in settlements since 1950. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:45 PM

• Student on priest sex blackmail rap

  [2000s Unnamed priest -NEW*] - RCC. Male.
   The Standard, http://www. thestandard. com.hk/news_ detail.asp? pp_cat=30&art_ id=90816& sid=26143227& con_type=1 ; by Patsy Moy, Thursday, November 19, 2009
   HONG KONG -- The Catholic Church is facing a new sex scandal after a Chinese University PhD student appeared in court yesterday accused of blackmailing a priest.
   Economics student Cheung Ka-wo, 27, is accused of attempting to extort HK$6.3 million from a Catholic priest identified as "X" by threatening to reveal "intimate images" from their past association.
   Cheung is also charged with conspiracy to blackmail a Catholic churchgoer identified as "Y." [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:52 PM]

• Court upholds seizure of kids from Alamo compound

  - Alamo Ministries.  
   The Associated Press, By JON GAMBRELL (AP),
   LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The Arkansas Court of Appeals has ruled that state child welfare officials properly seized children from the Tony Alamo Christian Ministries after a police raid.
   The appeals court issued three opinions Wednesday dealing with the children taken by welfare officials after a September 2008 raid at Alamo's compound. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:07 PM

• Study investigates clergy sex abuse cases

 
   United Press International, Nov. 18, 2009
   WASHINGTON, (UPI) -- U.S. researchers said initial results of their study on clergy sex abuse shows a decline in such cases in the United States after 1985.
   John Jay College of Criminal Justice researchers said in an interim report while sexual abuse cases involving clergy and minors increased during the late 1960s and 1970s, a steep decline began after 1985, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said in a release Tuesday.
   The bishops group commissioned the $1.8 million study and partially funded the research along with other organizations such as the National Institute of Justice. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:04 PM

• Former priest in Irondequoit faces sex abuse allegations

  [mid 1970s Fr Conrad Sundholm*] - RCC. Minor.
   Inrondequoit Post, By Linda Quinlan,
   IRONDEQUOIT, N.Y. – Sexual abuse allegations against a former priest at Irondequoit’s St. Salome’s and St. Cecilia’s parish have been determined credible by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester.
   According to Messenger Post newspartner News 10NBC, an allegation concerning sexual abuse of a minor dating back to the mid-1970s against the Rev. Conrad Sundholm has been and is being investigated.
   Sundholm, 80, who is retired, now lives in Florida. He was pastor at St. Salome’s on Culver Road – in the Sea Breeze area of Irondequoit – when the abuse allegedly occurred. He may not perform public ministry. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:55 PM

• Sex crime victims are not alone: I KNOW

 
   Cliffview Pilot, by Vicki Polin, 20:13, Monday, November 16, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- SPECIAL REPORT: As a licensed mental health professional who has been advocating for survivors of sexual violence for the last 25 years, I have watched many victims struggling with what they need to do to heal. It can take years just to tell another person you've been victimized, let alone notifying the police. It happened to me. I am still in a state of shock, but for the first time I am speaking out publicly about the fact that I was assaulted this past July.
   Because my case is currently in litigation, I am not at liberty to go into some of the details of the assault. The reason I am speaking out now is because I feel it is important to share the fact that it took me 33 days to make a police report.
   The offender was a relative of a dear and trusted friend, a relative of someone whom I looked up to and respected and someone who has been like a father to me. I don’t know what I was thinking, yet I didn’t do what I would have expected of me… I was confused by my own hesitation to make an immediate call to the police. Instead I found myself taking care of the offender's family instead of taking care of my own personal needs. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:52 PM

• Prominent national figure publicly admits being sexually assaulted

 
   Examiner, by Jerry DeMarco, 4:57 PM, November 16, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- In a shocking, heartfelt declaration, Vicki Polin, who has worked in the field of sexual trauma and is the founder and director of the Awareness Center, established to help assault victims, tells her story publicly for the first time of being assaulted herself this past summer.
   "As a licensed mental health professional who has been advocating for survivors of sexual violence for the last 25 years, I have watched many victims struggling with what they need to do to heal. It can take years just to tell another person you've been victimized, let alone notifying the police.
   "It happened to me," Polin says, in a special report published today on CLIFFVIEWPILOT.COM. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:49 PM

• Should cardinal calm parishioners?

  - RCC.
   Chicago Tribune by Manya Brachear,
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Lest there be confusion about where the Roman Catholic church stands on marriage, reproductive technology and treating chronically ill and dying patients, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops released guidelines for their flock about all three issues this week. In doing so, they seemed to be following the guidance given by their president, Cardinal Francis George earlier this week.
   In his opening address to American bishops meeting this week in Baltimore, George urged his brother bishops not to let the sexual abuse crisis and other past mistakes detract from their moral responsibility and ministry.
   But some are urging George to turn his attention back to the sexual abuse crisis and the related drama unfolding at home. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:45 PM

• SNAP leaders on the John Jay prelim report on pedophile priests

  [< 6000 RC clergy] - The silence of Church people.
   Voice from the Desert,
   UNITED STATES -- Statement by Barbara Dorris, SNAP outreach director, 314 503 0003
   Now that the obvious has been re-affirmed (that pedophile priests molest girls and boys), let’s hope researchers start to focus on the real question: why do thousands of current and former church employees stay silent about clergy sex crimes and cover ups? That’s what really needs to be addressed.
   We have serious doubts about the John Jay project but this conclusion - that the sexual orientation of child molesting clerics isn’t significant - doesn’t surprise us. Roughly half of our 9,000 members are women who were molested as girls by priests, brothers, nuns, bishops and seminarians. We’ve long seen that courts and media tend to minimize the harm done to females who are assaulted by clergy.
   2) Statement by Barbara Blaine, SNAP founder and president, 312 399 4747
   The gender orientation of predator priests is irrelevant. What matters, though, is the church’s deeply-rooted culture of sexual secrecy that stems from most priests’ forbidden sexual activity.
   When all sex by priests is wrong - dating, masturbation, porn, everything - then most priests will have sexual secrets. And they will be very reluctant to ‘rat out’ their brother priests who are known or suspected pedophiles.
   3) Statement by Peter Isely, SNAP Midwest Director 414 429 7259
   Since 2004, since John Jay College began tabulating numbers for the American bishops on priests that have committed sex crimes against children, nearly 1,000 newly identified priests have been reported to dioceses around the country as child molesters, averaging nearly 200 year. In fact, last year a record number of priests were reported to have molested children, a staggering 311 newly identified priest offenders. The grand total of priests who have assaulted children in the United States over the past several decades is now nearing a staggering total of 6,000. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:00 AM

• Derry priest's resignation prompts celibacy debate

  [2000s Fr Sean McKenna*] - RCC. "Celibate," but has relationship with woman.  
   Derry Journal, By Staff reporter
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- A well known County Fermanagh priest says the issue of compulsory celibacy for Catholic priests needs to be examined.
   Father Brian D’Arcy made his comments following the shock resignation of Derry priest Father Sean McKenna who announced to his congregation on Saturday night that he had fallen in love with a woman.
   "The mandatory or compulsory celibacy, I think, is not only a contradiction in terms but has outlived its use by about 1,000 years and it should be changed," said Father D’Arcy. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:36 AM
   [COMMENT: Celibacy is in direct defiance of several scripture texts, so its imposition is and was wrong; so is the ACCEPTANCE of the celibacy promise by those entering the priestly or religious life. ENDS.]

• Priest faces extradition over alleged Lough Derg rape

  [≤ 1964, 1968 Fr Francis Markey* (now 81)] - RCC. Suspended 3 times, left duties in 1985. ≤ 1964, Unspecified victim. 1968, Boy (15).    
   Fermanagh Herald,
   IRELAND -- A CATHOLIC priest, who served in the diocese of Clogher, has been accused of raping a child on Lough Derg. Fr Francis Markey, who appeared in court in the United States this week, is facing extradition from the US to answer a number of rape charges, one relating to an alleged incident at the place of pilgrimage on the Donegal/Fermanagh border.
   Markey (81) is accused of raping a 15-year-old boy on two separate occasions in 1968, according to the complaint filed in a US District Court in Indiana.
   The Republic's government has requested that he be sent back to his home country for trial. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:29 AM

• Parishioners rally in support of accused pastor

  [1980s Fr Edward Maloney -NEW*] - RCC. 2 schoolboys.  
   WGN, with video,
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Parishioners at Saint Mark's Catholic Church on the west side rallied in support of a former pastor, who's accused of sexually abusing two boys about 25-years ago when they were in junior high school.
   The Reverend Edward Maloney was removed from ministry after Cardinal Francis George and an archdiocesan review board determined there was credible evidence supporting the allegations.
   Mirian Dabila, a supporter of Maloney who turned out for the rally, said he married many of the parishioners at Saint Mark's, taught religion to many of them, and said the allegations cannot be true. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:24 AM

• A voice at last for survivor groups

     
   Irish Post, BY ROBERT MULHERN,
   UNITED KINGDOM -- SURVIVORS groups in Britain finally have a voice.
   That’s the conclusion that has been drawn by those in Britain who travelled to Ireland to meet with Minister for Children Barry Andrews.
   The group, including Sally Mulready and Phyllis Morgan from the Women’s Survivor Network, Francis Murphy from Survivors South East and Councillor Mary Murphy from Manchester, met with Andrews and representatives of Batt O’Keefe in Dublin to discuss the recommendations of the Ryan Report.
   Speaking about the meeting, Mulready said: "It was an absolute eye-opener for them to hear from us – it was a powerful message. We’ve finally had the voice of survivors in Britain heard, and our experiences as immigrant survivors and our hopes and aspirations were listened to. Now we have to make sure promises are followed through." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:17 AM

• Coming to NZ changed my life - British child immigrant

  - She came to a better life.    
   Manawatu Standard, By JESSICA SUTTON,
   NEW ZEALAND -- Lice, scabies, starving and a mother in prison.
   England was no paradise for British child immigrant Veronica "Roni" Fitzmaurice, a Palmerston North community identity and local body politician.
   Her life began when she arrived in New Zealand as an 18-year-old, and she does not need an apology from the New Zealand Government.
   This week, post-World War II British child immigrants received an apology from Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd for their mistreatment, which included physical, sexual and mental abuse at state institutions, church facilities and in family homes. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:09 AM

• New Accusations Come to Light in Mohler Case

  - Mohler group.  
   KSHB, with video,
   {search warrant documents}
   LAFAYETTE COUNTY, MISSOURI -– Court documents reviewed by NBC Action News Tuesday unveil details about accusations against a 77-year-old man and his four sons, who are all charged in a child sex crimes case in Lafayette County.
   A search warrant filed for the search of the property once owned by the Mohler family says investigators were combing the farm, just south of Bates City, for evidence that could help them in the investigation into the alleged sex crimes, but also evidence connected to an alleged homicide and a body buried on the property.
   Detectives say they found an unidentified bone, eyeglasses, broken glass jars, half a credit card and the sole of a shoe or a boot. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:03 AM

• Kidnapping, murder, infant burial alleged in Missouri abuse case

 
   CNN, with video,
   MISSOURI, (CNN) -- Three alleged victims of years-ago child sex abuse within a Missouri family told authorities they were forced by one of the accused to kill a man after he was kidnapped, according to new court documents filed in the case.
   In addition, another alleged victim told police that she was held captive in the basement of a home and abused by five of the suspects, and that the suspects buried her baby in the basement after she became pregnant the first of two times, the documents say.
   Six family members are in custody on various charges related to the abuse allegations. The alleged victims -- all now adults -- came to police with stories of sexual performances, mock weddings, rape with various objects and a forced abortion during their childhoods, according to court documents obtained by CNN affiliate KSHB in Kansas City. CNN does not identify alleged sexual assault victims. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:01 AM

• Irish religious to fore in Australian abuse scandal

       
   The Irish Times,
   ANALYSIS: Many of the children abused in Australia, prompting this week's apology by the prime minister there, came originally from Ireland, writes MARY RAFTERY
   AUSTRALIA -- THERE IS always one story that haunts you, so graphic and disturbing it is almost too terrible to contemplate.
   In over a decade of researching the experiences of people all over the world whose childhoods were destroyed by state-sponsored abuse, one of the worst I came across was that of a small, blue-eyed boy at Tardun, an orphanage in western Australia. He was one of the tens of thousands apologised to on Monday by Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd, as that country at last faces up to the savage abuses suffered by so many taken as children into state-funded care. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:58 AM

• Claims of Child Abuse Remembered Divide Town and Lead to Charges Against 6

  [1988-95 Grandfather, father, 3 uncles] - Child/ren.
   The New York Times, By SUSAN SAULNY, Published: November 17, 2009
   BATES CITY, Mo. – On a dead-end dirt road, through frosted crops and bales of hay in this sleepy town about a half-hour east of Kansas City, state investigators spent much of last week excavating the yard around a farmhouse, looking for decades-old evidence of sex crimes against children.
   Their search was prompted, law enforcement officials say, by a 26-year-old woman who went to the police in nearby Independence, Mo., in August and accused her grandfather, father and three uncles of sexually abusing her and her siblings as children, beginning in the winter of 1988 and continuing for seven years.
   According to criminal complaints and other court papers, the woman said she had recovered suppressed memories of mock weddings, sexual acts involving children, rape and a sex act involving an animal that took place in and around the secluded old Bates City farmhouse, a wooded 55-acre property formerly owned by her grandfather, Burrell E. Mohler Sr. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:56 AM

• Study debunks theories on priests' sex abuse

  - Homosexuality, junior seminaries, NOT the causes.
   Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, By Ann Rodgers, Wednesday, November 18, 2009
   BALTIMORE (MD) -- Researchers at New York's John Jay College of Criminal Justice, reporting initial findings in their look into causes of the Catholic church's 2002 sexual-abuse scandal, yesterday said they can't attribute it to gay priests or seminaries for teenagers.
   "We do not have data to support … those assertions," said Karen Terry, lead researcher for the $1.8 million study commissioned by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which is meeting this week in Baltimore.
   Dr. Terry presented her interim report on the same day that the bishops conference also adopted a pastoral letter on marriage and a statement on reproductive technologies and approved the final part of a new translation of the Mass. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:53 AM

• Woman 'raped' during Sydney prayer sessions

  [2001 + Paichogios, Golossian -NEW*] - "Curse-lifting" religion. Woman,    
   Ninemsn, By Ninemsn staff
   AUSTRALIA -- Two men will stand trial in NSW after allegedly posing as spiritual leaders and sexually assaulting a young woman during "prayer sessions".
   Arthur Psichogios, 39, and Tony Golossian, 62, lured the victim to motels on the promise they could cure her family's black magic curse, the Daily Telegraph reports.
   The two men committed more than 100 sex offences against the woman, who was just 23 years old when the alleged assaults began in 2001, as well as a second woman, police say. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:50 AM

• Military experiment seeks to predict PTSD

 
   WSBT,
   TWENTYNINE PALMS, Calif. (AP) – Two days before shipping off to war, Marine Pfc. Jesse Sheets sat inside a trailer in the Mojave Desert, his gaze fixed on a computer that flashed a rhythmic pulse of contrasting images.
   A doctor tracked his stress levels and counted the number of times he blinked. Electrode wires dangled from his left eye and right pinky finger.
   Sheets is part of a military experiment to try to predict who's most at risk for post-traumatic stress disorder. Understanding underlying triggers might help reduce the burden of those who return psychologically wounded – if they can get early help. …
   Studies on veterans and civilians point to some clues. Childhood abuse, history of mental illness and severity of trauma seem to raise a person's risk. Having a social net and a coping strategy appear to offer some protection. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:46 AM

• Field narrowed for R.I. high court post

  - Religious ties stymy chances.
   Providence Journal By Tracy Breton
   PROVIDENCE (RI) -- The Judicial Nominating Commission on Tuesday night chose two Superior Court judges and three lawyers to recommend to Governor Carcieri for consideration to be an associate justice on the Rhode Island Supreme Court, a seat that became open when Paul A. Suttell became chief justice in July.
   After two rounds of voting, Commission Chairman Herbert J. Brennan announced that the names of five of the six candidates interviewed would be sent to the governor: Superior Court Judges Judith Colenback Savage and Gilbert V. Indeglia and lawyers John A. "Terry" MacFadyen III, Samuel D. Zurier and Sandra A. Lanni. Family Court Judge Laureen D’Ambra did not make the cut. …
   The only negative comment came from a survivor of clergy sexual abuse, Mary Ryan, who said that while she commended D’Ambra for the service she’s performed for the state, she questioned her ties to the Catholic Church in Rhode Island. D’Ambra has served on the Diocesan Finance Council since 2006 and, for the past seven years, on the Diocese of Providence Bishop’s Review Board for Child Protection, according to her resumé. "My concern for her is that I think she’d have difficulty separating herself from her religious views," Ryan said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:42 AM

• Catholics eager to get to know new archbishop

 
   Kenosha News BY DENEEN SMITH dsmith@kenoshanews.com and THE ASSOCIATED PRESS,
   WISCONSIN -- Local Catholics are hopeful the new archbishop of the Milwaukee diocese will be a good match for the region.
   The Vatican named Bishop Jerome Listecki, a retired military man who has been outspoken in promoting Catholic issues in political arenas, as the new archbishop Saturday. …
   The archdiocese launched a $105 million fundraising campaign several years ago and expects to hit its target in the spring. But it also faces 14 lawsuits related to clergy sexual-abuse allegations, which could force it into bankruptcy.
   Through June 30, the archdiocese said it paid out $28 million to settle charges related to clergy sexual abuse. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:38 AM

• Allegations of sexual abuse by Rochester priest deemed credible

  [mid 1970s Fr Conrad Sundholm*] - RCC. Minor.
   The Democrat and Chronicle Local News – November 18, 2009
   NEW YORK -- Allegations of sexual abuse of a minor by a priest who has served in several Rochester-area churches in the past five decades have been deemed credible, according to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester.
   "An allegation concerning sexual abuse of a minor dating back to the mid-1970s against the Rev. Conrad Sundholm, a retired priest now living in Florida, has been determined to be credible," Diocese spokesman Doug Mandelaro said in a printed statement.
   Sundholm was pastor at St. Salome’s Church in Irondequoit when the abuse allegedly occurred. He served there from 1974 to 1982. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:35 AM

• New Catholic Sex Abuse Findings: Gay Priests not the Problem

 
   Politics Daily
   BALTIMORE (MD) -- For much of the past decade it has been an article of faith for many, bolstered by the testimony of thousands of victims, that the Catholic priesthood is a haven for child molesters and that the Catholic bishops have been particularly guilty of covering up for those abusers.
   But preliminary results from a sweeping study of sexual abuse in the priesthood show that the Catholic Church has been much like the rest of society in terms of the incidence of abuse and the response by its institutional leaders.
   The data, which was presented to the U.S. hierarchy on the second day of their annual meeting here, also appears to contradict the widely held view that homosexuals in the priesthood were largely responsible for the abuse. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:33 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Wed November 18, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Thu November 19, 2009 edition:

• Former local priest Duarte remains in jail

  [? 2000s Joao Jose Correira Duarte (43)*] - RCC. 12 charges - children (12-17).        
   Windsor Star
   WINDSOR, Ont., CANADA -- A former local Catholic priest charged with molesting teenage boys at the mission he founded in Haiti will remain in jail for another week while a justice of the peace decides whether to release him on bail.
   John Duarte, 43, is charged with nine counts of sexual exploitation involving boys aged 12 to 17 in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince and the tiny fishing village of Labadie. Hearts Together for Haiti, a charity Duarte founded, operated schools, a health clinic and a sponsorship program for impoverished families. Canadian law allows citizens to be prosecuted in Canada for sex offences against children committed elsewhere.
   Duarte was arrested Oct. 20 in the Dominican Republic where he had been living. Canadian authorities picked him up there Oct. 26. He has been held at Windsor jail throughout his bail hearing, which was held Nov. 13 and adjourned to Thursday. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:39 PM, Nov 19, 2009]

• University of Melbourne supports the Forgotten Australians apology

     
   Care Leavers Australia Network
   AUSTRALIA -- The University of Melbourne strongly supports the Prime Minister’s apology to the "Forgotten Australians", and associated government measures to redress wrongs suffered by many people who were in institutional care early in their lives.
   This recognition of injustice is long overdue.
   It is also appropriate the University - a community that aspires to serve the public good in every field of knowledge including medical research - takes this occasion to express its deep regret for the part played by researchers linked to its community in vaccination research trials conducted after World War II using children in orphanages as ‘subjects.’ Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:36 PM

• University supports apology to Forgotten Australians

 
   The Melbourne Newsroom, Nov 17 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- The University of Melbourne's Vice-Chancellor Professor Glyn Davis has written to all staff and students, supporting the Prime Minister's apology to the "Forgotten Australians".
   "The University of Melbourne strongly supports the Prime Minister’s apology to the "Forgotten Australians", and associated government measures to redress wrongs suffered by many people who were in institutional care early in their lives.
   This recognition of injustice is long overdue. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:33 PM

• Edited report on Dublin abuse cleared for release

   
   The Irish Times
   IRELAND -- THE HIGH Court has cleared the way for publication of most of the report on the the handling by Catholic Church and State authorities of child sex abuse allegations against clerics in the Dublin archdiocese.
   Mr Justice Paul Gilligan yesterday said publication could go ahead, except for reference in two chapters to specific persons, and all references to the same persons in the rest of the report.
   Their identification might prejudice criminal proceedings, he said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:26 PM

• Priest Accused Of Misconduct Offered State Job

   
   CBS 3 By RANDALL CHASE, Associated Press Writer
   WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) – An Episcopal priest who was relieved of his duties because of alleged misconduct with a female parishioner has been offered a state government job.
   The Rev. Robert Broesler, pastor of St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in Wilmington, is scheduled to start working Monday for the Department of Health and Social Services. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:44 PM

• Web site chronicles disgraced priest's prison time, offers encouragement

  [Fr John Skehan] - RCC. Huge sum missing.
   Palm Beach Post By Lona O'Connor,
   DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA – During the three years from his arrest to his conviction for stealing from his parish, there was a complete lockdown on personal information about the Rev. John Skehan.
   Now that he has been moved from the rectory of St. Vincent Ferrer parish in Delray Beach to the lockup at the Martin Correctional Institution in Indiantown, friend and foe alike can find out what Skehan, 82, is thinking, reading, praying about and eating, thanks to a Web site set up by his supporters.
   The Web site is written by his friend Michelle Donahue, a former head of the St. Vincent parent organization, who visits him almost every weekend, bearing good tidings from the blog and from friends in Delray Beach. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:40 PM

• Local priest calls on Vatican to consider optional celibacy for priests

  [2000s Fr Sean McKenna*] - RCC. "Celibate," but had relationship with woman.    
   Kilkenny Advertiser, By Kate O’Neill
   IRELAND -- Father Martin Ryan of Muckalee is launching his book this Sunday which is entitled From Muckalee to Mindanao and back, a Missionary Journey.
   After over 50 years in the Philippines as a missionary priest, Fr Ryan has modern and unconventional views about the priesthood in today’s society. …
   Speaking with The Kilkenny Advertiser this week, it is obvious that Fr Martin is very modern in his views on the priesthood. He commended Father Sean McKenna, who this week announced that he was to leave the priesthood to get married.
   "Sean was a very popular priest in Derry. More and more priests are leaving the priesthood because they want to marry, I think it’s close to 130,000. The remaining priests now have a huge work load. I have written a letter to the Pope where I ask that a third general council, Vatican 3, be called so we can address this issue. I believe that there should be optional celibacy for priests." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:36 PM

• Ex-priest jailed in Mason Co. sex misconduct case

   
   Chicago Tribune
   LUDINGTON, Mich. - A Catholic priest who served churches in western Michigan has been sentenced to six months in jail for sexual misconduct.
   The Rev. Johnson Jeyabel Pappusamy (pap-uh-SAH-me), former pastor of St. Mary Catholic Church in Custer and St. Jerome Catholic Church in Scottville, pleaded guilty Oct. 21 to fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:32 PM

• Court clears way for Dublin abuse report

   
   RTE News, Thursday, November 19, 2009
   IRELAND -- The High Court has cleared the way for the publication of the report of the Commission of Investigation into sexual abuse allegations in the Dublin Archdiocese but references which identify another person must be removed.
   Last month, Mr Justice Paul Gilligan ruled that the report could be published but that a specified chapter might prejudice court proceedings.
   He directed that chapter 19 and all references to the person who is the subject of that chapter could not be published until directed by the court. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:11 PM

• Web Site Attempts to Convince Gay Priests To Stop Being Hypocrites

   
   Washington City Paper, Posted by Amanda Hess, 9:49 am, Nov. 19, 2009
   A new Web site hopes to use the oldest trick in the book to combat the Catholic Church’s opposition to same-sex marriage: A good, old-fashioned forced outing!
   At ChurchOuting.org, you’re invited to scroll through a list of every Archbishop, Bishop, and Reverend in the Archdiocese of Washington, zero in on one you know is gay, and then submit your "detailed account of how you know the priest in question is being hypocritical through his silence." (Alternately, get at them via Twitter or Facebook).
   ChurchOuting.Org is the brainchild of self-described "netroots organizing pioneer" Phil Attey. To Attey, publicly detailing your homosexual tryst with a priest is practically a charitable contribution: "Thank you for helping to liberate a closeted gay or romantically involved heterosexual priest from the oppressive anti-marriage equality agenda," the Web site reads. Wait a minute: Since when was a homosexual witchhunt meant to free people from their political agendas? Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:46 PM

• Ex-priest to file motion arguing he isn't sexually violent person

  [Fr Daniel McCormack]
   Chicago Breaking News November 19, 2009
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Attorneys for a former priest convicted of sexually abusing five boys at his West Side parish are expected to file a motion today fighting efforts by the state to label him a sexually violent person.
   In September, when Daniel McCormack was paroled after serving more than two years of a five-year prison term for sexually abusing five boys in the rectory of St. Agatha Roman Catholic Church, the state's attorney and attorney general filed a joint petition to have McCormack confined to a state treatment facility under the Sexually Violent Persons Commitment Act.
   Illinois law allows prosecutors to seek continued incarceration if a psychological exam leads them to believe another sex crime is likely if the inmate goes free. In September, a forensic psychiatrist diagnosed McCormack with pedophilia and recommended civil commitment. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:44 PM

• Victims want abuse report in a week

   
   The Press Association,
   IRELAND -- Survivors of clerical abuse have demanded a damning report on child sex abuse in the Dublin Archdiocese be published within the next week.
   A High Court judge gave the go-ahead for its release, but ruled any reference to a priest who is facing criminal charges be removed amid fears it may prejudice a case. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:42 PM

• A New Site Will Out Gay Priests!

   
   The Village Voice By Michael Musto
   UNITED STATES: And there's a lot of them to out, honey!
   Yes, churchouting.org sets out to expose the hypocrisy of Archdiocese of Washington priests who go along with the church's routine emotional assault on gays while living lives of quiet desperation that involve them having gay sex themselves. (Or even straight sex--the site wants to find ANY priest who's always on his knees for ANYTHING other than praying.)
   And they say their mission is not to drag these guys out of the closet per se, but to get them to work with the site in battling the church's hierarchical antigay stance and to fight for gay marriage equality. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:38 PM

• High Court restricts publication of clerical abuse report

   
   Ireland Online,
   IRELAND -- The High Court has further restricted publication of the Commission's report into sexual abuse by priests in the Dublin Archdiocese.
   Mr Justice Paul Gilligan has ordered the removal of 41 references to a priest and his brother in the report because it could jeopardise criminal proceedings.
   The report was commissioned to look at the Catholic hierarchy's handling of abuse allegations in the Dublin archdiocese between 1975 and 2004. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:36 PM

• Extradition case delayed in South Bend at Irish priest's request

  [≤ 1964, 1968 Fr Francis Markey* (now 81)] - RCC. Suspended 3 times, left duties in 1985. ≤ 1964, Unspecified victim. 1968, Boy (15).    
   South Bend Tribune, By JEFF PARROTT,
   SOUTH BEND (IN) – A judge today postponed an extradition hearing for an Irish priest charged with sexually abusing a minor, giving his attorney more time to research Irish law.
   The Irish government wants to extradite the Rev. Francis Markey, 81, of South Bend, on charges that he twice raped a boy in 1968 in his native Ireland.
   A fact-finding hearing on the extradition request had been set for 10 a.m. today, but U.S. Magistrate Judge Christopher Neuchterlein ordered the hearing continued until Dec. 10, on a motion from Markey's attorney, Robert Truitt. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:33 PM

• Suicide newlywed 'was sex-abused'

  - Orthodox Judaist.  
   The JC, By Ellen Tumposky, November 19, 2009
   NEW YORK -- A report that a Brooklyn man who committed suicide two days after his wedding was a victim of sex abuse has riled the Orthodox community.
   Mordechai (Motty) Borger, 24, jumped from the seventh-floor terrace of his hotel on November 5. His bride, Mali Gutman, whom he married on Nov 3 after they met through a matchmaker, was asleep in the room.
   A spokeswoman for the NYC medical examiner’s office said the death has been ruled a suicide. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:29 PM

• The Rosary of Compassion

 
   The Garden of Roses: Stories of Abuse and Healing, November 18, 2009
   OREGON -- Sharon Burke wears her grey blond hair short….. glasses, loose fitting, comfortable dresses … and gets around her house with a cane or on the arm of her supportive husband, Brad. Multiple Sclerosis short-circuited her career as a teacher twenty years ago. The disease makes life difficult enough that leaving home is a struggle. Sharon faithfully attends Mass at Madeleine Catholic Church in Portland, Oregon, that is she attends every Sunday she is well enough to do so.
   After retiring from teaching, Sharon never gave up trying to create new meaning in her life. She mastered needlework skills and makes layettes for premature babies and Rosaries and undergarments for homeless and at risk women. She feels that helping others is an important part of her own healing process.
   And Sharon has much to give even if her health limits what she can do.
   Through The Rosary of Compassion retreat Sharon is able to give one of the few ways she can. The retreat will be held at Ascension Catholic Church at 7507 SE Yamhill Street in Portland, Oregon, on Saturday, December 5, 2009, from 12:30 to 4 PM. The purpose of the retreat is to pray for the people of the Church and the community wounded by all forms of abuse --physical, emotional, domestic, sexual and clergy abuse -- through meditating on the Mysteries of the Rosary. Sharon wrote the meditations for the retreat along with another Catholic parishioner, Ann Czuba, who will co-lead the retreat with Elizabeth Goeke, a clergy abuse survivor. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:26 PM

• After being banned from church, man threatens to sue town

 
   Darien Times, Written by Susan Shultz, Thursday, November 19, 2009
   NEW CAANAN (CT) -- A New Canaan man has threatened to file both civil and criminal lawsuits against Darien over the police department’s response to his attempt to announce news at the end of a Mass at his parish, St. Thomas More Roman Catholic Church.
   Last month, the parishioner, Michael Nowacki, attempted to take to the church lectern to tell Mass attendees about a priest who has presided over Mass and other events at St. Thomas More. The priest, the Rev. Paul Carrier, has also solicited funds from parishioners for a now-suspended Haitian charity tied to a criminal investigation. Nowacki refused to stop addressing the parishioners until police were called.
   The former director of the Project Pierre Toussaint, Douglas Perlitz, is currently facing charges of child abuse. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:22 PM

• Burrell Mohler Sr. lived in basement after wife found pornography, new documents say

  - Mohler group.
   The Kansas City Star By DONALD BRADLEY
   MISSOURI -- The patriarch at the center of the Mohler child sex case has lived in his basement ever since his wife found his trove of incest pornography, new documents say.
   When investigators showed up recently with a search warrant, she gave them a key to a locked file cabinet. That’s where they found magazines with names such as Family Taboo and Best of Family Secrets.
   Also taken in the search of Burrell Mohler Sr.’s house in Independence were sex toys, video recording equipment and homemade VHS tapes. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:04 AM

• Court Doc: Mohler Family Forced Children to Help Kill a Man and Bury Him

  - Mohler group. Murder allegation.
   CBS News
   LEXINGTON, Mo. (CBS/AP) -- Three alleged victims of what police call a horrible series of familial Missouri sex crimes, say one of the attackers forced them to help stab a man to death and bury him, according to court documents.
   A search warrant, filed Nov. 9, but released to The Associated Press on Tuesday, stated three of the alleged child victims observed "several murders" and were forced to help kill and bury a man in April 1988.
   The warrant said one of the accused, Burrell E. Mohler Jr., and the children followed a large man from a shopping center in Independence, Mo., 20 minutes outside of Kansas City, to his home. They parked outside, and then the children lured the man over to their car by telling him that their father was having a heart attack. When the man leaned over to help, Mohler Jr. allegedly "wrapped his arms around the victim's neck" and subdued him, the warrant said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:59 AM

• Friar tuck sentenced

  [2000s Rev. William Blasingame (66) - NEW*] - Episcopal (Anglican communion). US $84kspent on plastic surgery etc.
   New York Post By ALEX GINSBERG
   STATEN ISLAND (NY) -- A Staten Island priest who admitted swiping $84,000 from his church to fund plastic surgeries and Botox treatments was sentenced yesterday to five years' probation -- and the threat of jail if he doesn't pay it back
   William Blasingame, 66, a former pastor at St. Paul's Memorial Episcopal Church, said nothing before Judge Alan Meyer handed down the negotiated sentence for second-degree grand larceny
   His lawyer, James Hasson, said Blasingame never meant to steal the church's money, but irresponsibly mixed his own funds with those of the church in a church account -- then spent it Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:56 AM

• Hong Kong student charged with blackmail of Catholic priest

  [2000s Unnamed priest*] - RCC. Male.
   Monsters and Critics
   HONG KING -- A Hong Kong student nicknamed the Chinese Warren Buffet has been accused of blackmailing a Catholic priest with intimate images, a court report said Thursday.
   Economics student Cheung Ka-wo, 27, appeared in court facing charges of attempting to extort 6.3 million Hong Kong dollars (813,000 US dollars) from the priest by threatening to reveal intimate photographs showing their past relationship.
   Cheung, 27, was nicknamed after the successful American investor Buffet by the local press after he made more than 1 million Hong Kong dollars (129,000 US dollars) in two days of derivatives trading. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:11 AM

• Young man charged with blackmailing priest

  [2000s Unnamed priest*] - RCC. Male.
   Indian Catholic,
   HONG KONG: A 27-year-old man has appeared in court charged with attempting to blackmail a priest by threatening to release a video that suggests the pair had an intimate relationship.
   The video allegedly shows the man, Cheung Ka-wo, and the priest naked, according to media reports.
   Cheung, a doctoral student, was accused of conspiring with Li Dora Kay, a laywoman, to extort HK$6.3 million (US$826,000) from the priest and a layperson that the priest had sought help from. The identity of the priest and the layperson were not revealed. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:06 AM

• Rabbi denies cocaine for sex charge

  [2000s Rabbi Baruch Chalomish (54) -NEW} - Judaist. Drugs for sex. Girls.
   The Press Association,
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A wealthy rabbi financed a drug dealing business and offered cocaine to girls in exchange for sex, a court has been told.
   Rabbi Baruch Chalomish, 54, of Salford, rented an apartment where he could "relax and have a party", Manchester Crown Court heard.
   The rabbi, of Upper Park Road, Salford, admits two counts of possession of cocaine but denies intent to supply. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:52 AM

• Worse to have a woman

  - State Baptists see more harm in woman leading.
   Stop Baptist Predators,
   GEORGIA -- The Georgia Baptist Convention has disfellowshipped the First Baptist Church of Decatur, Georgia.
   Why?
   Because the church has a woman serving as pastor. Her name is Julie Pennington-Russell. (That's her in the photo.)
   Apparently the Southern Baptist principle of local church autonomy just goes out the window when a church indulges the "sin" of having a woman in the pulpit.
   It’s only for "lesser sins" … like indulging clergy child molesters and cover-uppers … that local church autonomy really matters. Then it’s all up to the local church and whatever they do or don’t do is just fine. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:35 AM

• Ex-husband of priest’s lover stays mum

  [2000s Fr Sean McKenna*] - RCC. "Celibate," but to marry a divorced woman.  
   Belfast Telegraph, Thursday, November 19 2009
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- The former husband of the Derry woman who has taken up with a local priest has refused to comment on his ex’s new relationship.
   Liam Curran has remained in Derry while the whereabouts of his former partner Elaine Curran and Fr Sean McKenna last night remained a mystery.
   Fr McKenna and his lover have gone to ground since he declared to a stunned Mass congregation in Derry on Saturday night that he was hanging up his robes after finding love. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:31 AM

• Boys ranch moves assets before abuse trials’ start

  - Charity moves assets to a trust before sex abuse trial.
   The Spokesman Review, by Kevin Graman
   WASHINGTON -- Morning Star Boys’ Ranch has moved the bulk of its assets, including securities and real estate worth millions of dollars, to a nonprofit foundation in advance of the first trial over sexual abuse lawsuits against it.
   In 2007, the ranch transferred more than $12 million in securities and other assets to the Morning Star Boys’ Ranch Foundation, an organization that supports youth sports and other charities, according to federal tax documents.
   On April 2, the ranch deeded to the foundation 25 parcels of Spokane County real estate with a total assessed value of nearly $3.5 million. The signature appearing on those deed transfers as both grantor and grantee was that of Joe Pickert, a foundation board member who at the time was executive director of both the foundation and the ranch. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:27 AM

• No Link Between Homosexuality and Priest Sex Abuse, Study Says

 
   Opposing Views By Dignity USA
   UNITED STATES -- During their annual meeting this week in Baltimore, the US Catholic Bishops reviewed a preliminary version of a study they commissioned on the reasons for clergy sexual abuse. The study by John Jay College of Criminal Justice researchers found that being gay had no correlation to the sex abuse scandal that has rocked the U.S. Catholic Church for decades.
   "This report confirms many other studies that demonstrate that sexual orientation has nothing to do with the pattern of child abuse by Catholic priests," said Marianne Duddy-Burke, Executive Director of DignityUSA. "We hope that the hierarchy of the Catholic Church will finally accept this finding, since it has been borne out through their own study.
   "We urge the bishops to provide support and compensation to the victims/survivors of sexual abuse by clergy, identify perpetrators, press charges, and permanently remove them from contact with children. It is vital that the hierarchy atone for their own role in multiplying the abuse by moving known abusers from place to place. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:25 AM

• Victims' Advocates Criticize Priest Sex Abuse Study

 
   Chicago Public Radio, with audio,
   CHICAGO (IL) -- An advocacy group for victims abused by priests is criticizing a recent study.
   The study that's underway is trying to determine why there was more priest sexual abuse in the 60s and 70s, and why it fell after 1985. It's being done for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
   Barbara Blaine thinks the study is "illogical." She heads the Chicago-based SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:21 AM

• The Bishop’s Man

   
   Now Toronto, Giller pick, By Susan G. Cole,
   CANADA -- Reporters on The Bishop’s Man’s Giller triumph have described the book as straightforward storytelling, but that’s not quite right. The story goes back and forth in time to track a man’s growing disillusionment with his role as priest, shedding a powerful light on what goes on behind the scenes in the culture of the Catholic clergy.
   Father Duncan is the bishop’s fixer, the guy called on to root out corrupt priests. For years he’s made sure sexual abusers get moved around with no public scandal or personal accountability. When he’s sent to his hometown in Nova Scotia to deal with a growing crisis there, it looks like his personal doubts – he has his own secrets – might threaten his professional duties.
   Veteran CBC journalist Linden MacIntyre expertly conveys the sickening logic of abusers and the Church’s determination to do nothing about the growing influence of that thinking. And although the narrative takes a dip while Duncan checks into rehab, MacIntyre grabs it right back and maintains a breathtaking tension through to the end. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:19 AM

• Social trends, seminary character among issues in abuse causes study

   
   The Georgia Bulletin
   BALTIMORE (CNS) -- An ongoing study of the causes and contexts of sexual abuse by priests delves into a broad assortment of factors, including societal trends, treatment approaches over the decades and the character of seminaries in different generations. An interim report on the "Causes and Context Study" presented to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Nov. 17 during their fall general assembly outlines a complex, multidimensional project. The full study, commissioned by the USCCB in 2002 in response to the sexual abuse crisis, is expected to be completed by late 2010. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:16 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Thu November 19, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Fri November 20, 2009 edition:

• 42 charges in Mohler sex-abuse case

  - Mohler group.  
   Crime Scene KC, ~ November 20, 2009
   MISSOURI -- That's after authorities filed 11 more charges in the case on Thursday, Don Bradley reports. Today's report has more about the allegations:
   The alleged abuse occurred from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s, when the sisters ranged in age from 5 to mid-teens. The case broke when one went to police in August. Her siblings have since supported her version of events. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 4:22 PM, Nov 20, 2009]

• Former church leader knew about Mohler sex abuse allegations, never told police

 
   MISSOURI -- The Pitch By Justin Kendall in News Fri., Nov. 20 2009
   Fox 4 reports that the mother of the alleged sexual abuse victims and a former Mormon bishop in Independence knew about the allegations of sexual abuse inside the Mohler family.
   Ex-bishop Paul Tonga told Fox 4 that Burrel Mohler Jr.'s wife came to him several times and relayed fears that her husband was abusing their children.
   Tonga, who was the leader of the church where Mohler Jr.'s worshiped, explained that he questioned Burrel Mohler Jr. and the children, but didn't learn anything. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:53 PM

• Visiting priest pleads guilty …

  [Fr Richard Ordonez]
   The Journal News By Rebecca Baker, rebaker@lohud.com , November 20, 2009
   WHITE PLAINS (NY) – An Ecuadorean priest who had been visiting a Mamaroneck church pleaded guilty today to a charge that he groped a parishoner who sought marriage counseling from him in 2004.
   The Rev. Richard Ordonez, a 38-year-old member of the Salesians order who had been living at St. Vito’s Roman Catholic Church, will serve no jail time after pleading to a reduced charge of forcible touching, a misdemeanor. He agreed to perform up to 500 hours of community service and to stay away from the victim.
   He will be sentenced Jan. 12 to a conditional discharge, meaning he will not be supervised by probation. He remains free on $50,000 bail. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:45 PM

• VOTF, membership dues, and voting

 
   Voice from the Desert
   UNITED STATES -- Here is an email from my friend Paul Kendrick about Voice of the Faithful’s (VOTF) new dues policy and its role in VOTF’s February, 2010, election of officers.
   Following Paul’s remarks, you’ll find a copy of a letter from the Chair of VOTF’s Board of Trustees about their new dues policy.
   * * * Subject: VOTF announces amendment – new rules that will humiliate its less fortunate members
   TO: VOTF LEADERSHIP
   On October 20, 2009, Voice of the Faithful announced that its members will have to pay $50 ($85 per couple) if they want to vote in VOTF’s national elections. These members will be called "Voting Members". All others will be called "Members," but they will not be able to vote.
   As such, VOTF has created two different classes of members, the "haves" and the "have-nots." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:37 PM

• Hunter Catholics in Mass exodus

 
   The Herald, Nov 21, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- HUNTER-based Catholics are shunning Mass in droves, with irrelevance, abuse at the hands of clergy and disagreement with the Church's teachings on sex among the main reasons.
   According to research carried out by the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, only 10.2 per cent of Catholics in the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle attend Mass.
   The national average for Mass attendance across the Church's 28 Australian diocese was 13.8 per cent. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:56 PM
   [COMMENT: The "irrelevance" reason needs looking at again.  However, the Holy Mass could be thought of in the way that the 1940s, that it was "the same sacrifice as that of the cross," and that it had infinite value.  If so, surely attending once in a lifetime would be enough? ENDS.]

• GAY ACTIVISTS BULLY D.C. PRIESTS

 
   UNITED STATES == Catholic League November 20, 2009
   Catholic League president Bill Donohue addresses a serious issue involving gay activists in the District of Columbia:
   A new homosexual website, ChurchOuting.org, is intent on publicly disclosing who the gay priests are in the Archdiocese of Washington. The goal of this outing is to intimidate gay priests, as well as heterosexual priests who may be "romantically involved," into voicing objections to the Catholic Church’s opposition to gay marriage.
   This initiative is the work of Phil Attey, self-described as "Liberal-Gay-Ardent Obama Supporter"; he was active in the Obama Pride Metro-DC campaign. According to one news report, "Attey is going to approach priests he thinks are gay, and warn them that they better stop lobbying against gay people, seeing how gay they are…or…else?" Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:43 PM

• Priest denies abusing three girls

  [1960s-70s Fr Eugene Lewis -? NEW*] - RCC. 3 girls.
   BBC News
   Dublin-based priest has denied sexually abusing three County Fermanagh girls more than 30 years ago.
   IRELAND -- Fr Eugene Lewis, 75, with an address at Cypress Grove House, Templeogue, was arraigned before Dungannon Crown Court on 11 charges involving three sisters.
   The charges involve allegations of indecent assault on differing dates in the 1960s and 1970s. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:41 PM

• Request To Keep Paying Benefits To Accused Priests

  - RCC.
   WBAL, WBAL Radio and Associated Press, Friday, November 20, 2009
   WILMINGTON (DE) -- The Catholic Diocese of Wilmington, which covers the Eastern Shore, is asking a bankruptcy judge to allow it to continue paying retiree benefits to priests who committed sexual abuse.
   After filing for Chapter 11 protection last month, the diocese told the judge it would not make any payments to priests accused of sexual abuse, even if the abuse had not been substantiated, without a court order. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:38 PM

• Diocese seeks OK for benefits to accused priests

 
   Reuters Nov 20
   WILMINGTON (DE), (Reuters) -- The Roman Catholic Diocese of Wilmington, Delaware, has sought bankruptcy court approval to continue providing pensions and medical coverage to certain priests accused of sexually abusing children, court papers showed.
   The diocese said in a filing on Thursday that it has "an obligation under Canon Law to care for retired clergy" and sought to continue providing medical coverage to the defrocked priest Francis DeLuca.
   "While several priests have been dismissed from the public ministry and have laicization proceedings pending against them, for the time being they remain clergy whom the Debtor (the diocese) supports, and must continue to support," the filing said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:35 PM

• Diocese: Pedophile priests should get benefits

 
   The Associated Press By RANDALL CHASE (AP),
   WILMINGTON, Del. – The Catholic Diocese of Wilmington says it is obligated to keep paying retirement benefits to six priests who church officials have confirmed are pedophiles.
   The diocese filed for Chapter 11 protection last month. Officials had told the judge the church would not make any payments to priests accused of sexual abuse without a court order, even if the abuse had not been substantiated. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:33 PM

• Priest in Tyrone court on sex charges

  [1960s-70s Fr Eugene Lewis*] - RCC. 3 girls.  
   RTE News, Friday, November 20, 2009
   IRELAND -- A Dublin-based Catholic priest has appeared in court in Co Tyrone to face a series of sex charges.
   75-year-old Fr Eugene Lewis, with an address at Cyprus Grove House in Templeogue in Dublin, was accused of 11 charges alleging indecent assault involving three sisters.
   The charges date back to the years between 1963 and 1973. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:24 PM

• PROOF: Santa Barbara was Dumping Ground for problem priests. PROOF: Franciscan sex crime ploys continue in 2009

  [Decades - Franciscan clergy] - RCC.  
   City of Angels, By Kay Ebeling,
   CALIFORNIA -- Part One: The bishop of San Diego used the words "dumping ground" in 1950 when he complained to Rome that too many problem priests were ending up in Banning, Beaumont and other towns in the developing region. By the 1960s the Franciscans had moved 26 priests from San Diego to Santa Barbara, where they then raped dozens of children. The letter to Rev. James T. Booth in Rome April 26, 1950, is Exhibit A attached to two new lawsuits filed Nov. 3, 2009, in Santa Barbara.
   The Francicans continue to hide the crimes of their pedophile priests, other evidence in the Complaints shows. Now Franciscan pedophiles who were removed from the priesthood, are showing up as therapists and teachers - Working with Teenagers, Living near Children - in towns around the Northwestern United States.
   There are so many new charges, so much new evidence, new stories about old pedophile priests and old stories about new ones in the pages of these two new lawsuits filed November 3 in Santa Barbara that City of Angels has to break our reporting into several different parts. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:21 PM

• Response to Father Michael’s Questions

 
   Leon J. Podles: Dialogue
   UNITED STATES -- Father Michael asks some good questions.
   These is no psychological classification of "ephebophile." An ephebophile is just a homosexual who likes teenage boys, just as there are many adult heterosexuals (such as Roman Polanski) who like teenage girls. The term ephebophile is a smokescreen to disguise the fact that some homosexuals have teenage victims.
   I do not know whether homosexuals are more youth-oriented than heterosexuals are. There is some evidence that I cite in my book that they are, but it is not overwhelming. What is firmly established is that homosexuals have far more sexual partners than heterosexuals do, and this means more victims.
   Have the seminaries changed? I do not know. The bishops say they have changed, but the bishops also assured us there was no problem to begin with. I do not believe any fact that a bishop asserts until I have verified it. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:49 AM

• Sexual Abuse and Homosexual Priests

 
   Leon J. Podles: Dialogue
   UNITED STATES -- Very few cases of clerical abuse of minors involved true pedophilia: the sexual abuse of pre-pubertal children. Pedophiles often claim not to be homosexuals, and they may well be correct is this claim, but pedophilia is not the main problem in clerical abuse.
   Most cases involved children at or above the age of puberty, and the vast majority of the reported victims were male. Decades of studies by criminologists and psychologists have shown that boys are far less likely to report abuse than girls are, because boys fear the stigma of homosexuality and because males are supposed to suffer and not complain.
   The John Jay report claims that is the abusive priests had equal access to females, they would have had equal number of male and female victims. This I doubt. I won’t go into the nature of the sexual acts that priest did with boys, but let us say that they were focused on the male genitals. Many abusers seem to have been initiated into the culture of abuse by other priests, often in the seminary. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:46 AM

• Love quit priest says partner is not pregnant

  [2000s Fr Sean McKenna* (51)] - RCC. "Celibate," but to marry a divorced woman.  
   Belfast Telegraph By Brendan McDaid Friday, November 20 2009
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- The priest who quit after falling in love with a nurse today spoke out for the first time to make it clear his partner is not pregnant.
   Fr Sean McKenna – who resigned his Holy Orders over his relationship with separated mother-of-two Elaine Curran – broke his silence claiming the mounting speculation had caused "great distress" to them both.
   The 51-year-old said the rumours that Ms Curran was pregnant or that she had lost custody of her children were "completely untrue". And he called for his peace and privacy to be respected. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:22 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Fri November 20, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Sat November 21, 2009 edition:

• Sacred secrets - Catholic priests, State clash over reporting of 'confessed' crimes

   
   The Gleaner, by Athaliah Reynolds, Staff Reporter, November 22, 2009
   JAMAICA -- The Roman Catholic Church and the State could be on a collision course over the laws regarding reporting suspected incidents of child abuse.
   Under the law, everyone is mandated to report cases of child abuse, even if the information is delivered in a confessional booth.
   But the rules of the Roman Catholic Church say that is a no-no.
   Roman Catholic priest, Monsignor Kenneth Richards, told The Sunday Gleaner that the seal of confession supersedes the law. He said under this seal, priests are bound to keep information they receive during a confession private, even under threat of their own death or that of others. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:26 PM, Nov 21, 2009]

• Cleveland Catholic Diocese's authority to close churches challenged in lawsuit

  - RCC. Case says bishop has no closure right.  
   OHIO -- The Plain Dealer, By Michael O'Malley, November 21, 2009
   An Akron woman legally blocked by the Cleveland Catholic Diocese from holding a protest vigil in a closed church has sued the diocese, claiming it has no authority under Ohio law to close churches without parishioners' consent.
   The case, filed this week in Summit County Common Pleas Court by Nancy McGrath, who leads a newly formed Catholic protest group called Code Purple, sets up a battle between church law and civil law.
   It could decide whether parishioners have property rights in their parishes or whether Bishop Richard Lennon, whose name appears on parish property deeds, has sole control over all assets. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:17 PM

• Child abuse body costs could rise to €136m, PAC told

  - RCC.  
   The Irish Times By PATSY McGARRY, Religious Affairs Correspondent
   IRELAND -- THE COST of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse could be as much as 60 times the original Department of Education estimate, it was disclosed at a hearing of the Dáil Public Accounts Committee (PAC) yesterday.
   Department secretary general Brigid McManus agreed the original €2 – €2.5 million estimate was "somewhat wide of the mark". She told committee members that as of April this year, €71 million in costs had been paid.
   This was expected to rise to €126 – €136 million when all third-party and other costs were covered, based on information available, she said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:15 PM

• How Pedophilia Lost Its Cool

 
   First Things, by Mary Eberstadt
   The reason that the monstrous crime of pedophilia matters is simple: In an increasingly secular age, it is one of the few taboos about which people on both sides of the religious divide can agree. It remains a marker of right and wrong in a world where other markers have been erased.
   And that is also the reason that the questions surrounding the attempted extradition of Roman Polanski for a 1977 child rape briefly became the Rorschach tests of our times. Sophistication vs. prudery, the morality of the 1970s vs. the morality of today, European artistes vs. American law, Hollywood vs. Middle America: Given just how many cultural and moral buttons were punched by the case, it’s small wonder that l’affaire Polanski generated commentary as voluminous and passionate as it did.
   Even so–and to the surprise of many commentators–one singularly interesting fact about the whole wretched matter was that the director and his fate generated little sympathy anywhere in the United States east of, say, Malibu. To the contrary, the Polanski case somehow succeeded in doing what no one actually trying has managed to do in years: uniting practically all Americans, liberal as well as conservative–in this case, against the hapless director. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:12 PM

• Most Rev. Brian Dunn of the Sault diocese, appointed Bishop of Antigonish, Nova Scotia

  [Lahey]  
   Sault Ste. Marie This Week November 21, 2009
   NEWS RELEASE FROM BISHOP JEAN-LOUIS PLOUFFE of Sault Ste. Marie Diocese
   CANADA -- From Bishop's Office - Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury, ON, November 21, 2009 - This morning in Rome, the Holy Father, Benedict XVI announced the appointment of the Most Reverend Brian Dunn, as Bishop of Antigonish, Nova Scotia. Since his episcopal ordination on October 9, 2008 until today, Bishop Dunn has served as the Auxiliary Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie, particularly in the Sault Ste. Marie and North Shore / Manitoulin regions.
   In response, Bishop Jean-Louis Plouffe of the Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie says: "Bishop Dunn will be missed by many in this diocese and personally, I am losing a very competent and dedicated immediate collaborator. This is a real sacrifice for our diocese, Bishop Simard and me. However, I am sure that out of love for our Church in Canada, all will understand this appointment of the Holy Father at this particular time. It makes our loss easier to accept. In just a year, Bishop Dunn has reached out to every single parish from Manitouwadge to Espanola and all of Manitoulin Island. Even though his episcopal ministry among us was brief, we will always remember him for his kind and jovial approach to people. We wish him well as he undertakes his new and very challenging responsibilities and we assure him of our prayers and most sincere gratitude." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:10 PM

• Sault bishop replaces disgraced East Coast spiritual leader

  [Lahey]
   The Sault Star Posted By Brian Kelly,
   CANADA -- An auxiliary bishop with the Catholic diocese of Sault Ste. Marie will replace a disgraced East Coast bishop accused of accessing child pornography.
   Pope Benedict named Bishop Brian Dunn as the new leader of the Diocese of Antigonish, N.S., on Saturday.
   He succeeds Raymond Lahey, who was allegedly caught with graphic sexual images of boys on his laptop computer in September. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:04 PM

• When is too much too much?

  [Lahey]
   GetReligion,
   CANADA -- If you’ve been following the coverage of allegations against Catholic Bishop Raymond Lahey up in Canada, you know that things have not been getting any better for the former leader of the Diocese of Antigonish.
   This leads me to a news story that starts with one of those symbolic details that makes you stop and ponder this question: When is enough, enough? When is too much, too much?
   I have not made up my mind in this case. Also, the lede on a recent story in the Halifax Chronicle Herald is based on documents from the investigation, which means it is based on a rock-solid form of attribution. When critics tell journalists to just "stick to the facts," they usually mean to avoid anonymous sources and to stay close to these kinds of documents and the public officials who produce them. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:02 PM

• New bishop named for Antigonish diocese

  [Lahey]
   The Cape Breton Post
   ANTIGONISH, Canada – Brian Joseph Dunn was named the new bishop for the Diocese of Antigonish, announced Saturday.
   Dunn is presently an auxiliary for the Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. The announcement came from the Archbishop of Halifax Anthony Mancini in a press release.
   "We are grateful to the Holy Father for recognizing the particular needs of our church by naming a new bishop in such a timely manner," said Father Paul Abbass, spokesperson for the Diocese of Antigonish, in a release. "While our diocese is facing times of challenge and struggle, we are also a diocese with a history of deep faith and working together. It is in this spirit that we continue to seek pathways to healing and rebuilding. We are pleased to welcome Bishop Dunn as he joins us on this journey forward and we offer him our co-operation and support. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:00 PM

• Disgraced N.S. bishop Lahey replaced

  [Lahey]
   National Post by Amy Husser, Canwest News Service Published: Saturday, November 21, 2009
   CANADA -- A new bishop has been appointed to lead a Roman Catholic community in Nova Scotia that was stunned two months ago to learn its previous church leader was facing child-pornography charges.
   And Bishop Brian Joseph Dunn said he knows he faces major challenges in dealing with the fallout of a scandal that has outraged some Catholics in the Diocese of Antigonish. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:57 PM

• New Bishop for Antigonish

  [Lahey]    
   Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish, November 21, 2009
   {includes French version}
   CANADA (CCCB - Ottawa) –- His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI today appointed Most Rev. Brian Dunn, Bishop of Antigonish in Nova Scotia. He was previously Auxiliary Bishop of Sault Ste-Marie in Ontario.
   Since thee resignation this past September of Most Rev. Raymond Lahey, Most Rev. Anthony Mancini, Archbishop of Halifax and Apostolic Administrator of Yarmouth, had been appointed Apostolic Administrator of Antigonish for the duration of the vacancy, while continuing with his responsibilities for the Archdiocese of Halifax and the Diocese of Yarmouth.
   Bishop Brian Dunn was born in St. John’s, Newfoundland, in 1955 and ordained to the priesthood in 1980. He was then assigned to a number of parishes in the Diocese of Grand Falls until 1988, when he moved to Ottawa in order to complete his Doctoral studies at Saint Paul University. In 1991, he was assigned to parish ministry and also worked as Vice-Chancellor and Chancellor for the Diocese of Grand Falls while teaching theology in the Maritimes. In 2002, he became a faculty member at St. Peter’s Seminary, in London, Ontario. From 2005 until his appointment as Auxiliary Bishop of Sault Ste-Marie in 2008, he had served as Dean of Studies. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:33 AM

• Pope appoints bishop to Nova Scotia diocese at centre of child porn allegations

  [Lahey]
   The Canadian Press
   SYDNEY, N.S., CANADA – The Pope has appointed a new bishop to a Nova Scotia diocese shaken by allegations that its former religious leader was in possession of child pornography.
   In a statement Saturday, the diocese of Antigonish announced that Pope Benedict named Bishop Brian Joseph Dunn to the post, saying he will start in the new year after he wraps up his responsibilities as auxiliary bishop of the diocese of Sault Ste Marie, Ont.
   Father Paul Abbass of the Antigonish diocese said he hopes the appointment will help the rural congregations rebuild in the wake of revelations that the former bishop, Raymond Lahey, had been charged with possessing and importing child pornography. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:30 AM

• Former Mattawa priest to appear next month

  [1977-93 Mons. Robert Borne*] - RCC. 5 complainants.  
   North Bay Nugget,
   CANADA -- A Pembroke priest facing a number of sex-related charges in relation to five alleged victims will next appear in court Dec. 8.
   The date for Monsignor Robert Borne was set following a prehearing this week between the Crown attorney and defence counsel.
   The 61-year-old Roman Catholic priest is facing 19 charges including gross indecency, sexual exploitation, indecent assault and breach of trust, in connection with incidents that are alleged to have occurred between 1977 and 1993. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:08 AM

• US DIOCESE: PEDOPHILE PRIESTS SHOULD RECEIVE RETIREMENT BENEFITS

  - RCC.  
   The Sudbury Star (Canada),
   WILMINGTON, Del.-- The Catholic Diocese of Wilmington is obligated to pay retirement benefits to six priests who are confirmed pedophiles, church officials argued in a bankruptcy court filing Thursday seeking permission to keep making the payments.
   After filing for bankruptcy last month, the diocese agreed not to make payments to priests accused of sexual abuse without court approval. That agreement was made after objections were raised by attorneys for alleged abuse victims who now sit on a creditors committee.
   Attorneys for the diocese now seek authorization to provide pensions, housing costs and medical coverage to six confirmed child abusers. They cited an obligation to care for retired clergy, including priests dismissed from public ministry and facing laicization, or defrocking. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:06 AM

• 'How can any normal priest go through 40 or 50 years and not fall in love?'

  [2000s Fr Sean McKenna* (51)] - RCC. "Celibate," but to marry a divorced woman.  
   Irish Independent, By Kim Bielenberg, Saturday November 21 2009
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- It is hard to imagine a similar response from the faithful 10 or 20 years ago. Last Sunday, a Catholic congregation actually stood and cheered when their priest Father Sean McKenna announced at the altar that he was stepping down, having embarked on a "loving, beautiful and life-giving relationship".
   It could have been the somewhat corny denouement of a romantic comedy, or a scene from Ballykissangel.
   The Derry priest, who celebrated his silver jubilee earlier this year, has become involved with a local nurse, Elaine Curran. She is a mother of two children, who reportedly separated from her husband before the relationship with Fr McKenna started. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:24 AM

• I Want My Dignity Back !

   
   FARGO (ND) -- YouTube
   [video presentation]
   Fargo, North Dakota clergy sexual abuse press conference, Nov. 19, 2009 - John Doe 135 vs. Christian Brothers, Diocese of Fargo, Bishop Samuel J. Aquila, Shanley High School and Raimond Rose. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:16 AM

• New N.S. bishop named to replace Lahey

   
   The Globe and Mail by Jennifer MacMillan
   CANADA -- A new bishop has been named to lead the Catholic church in a rural Nova Scotia community rocked by a child porn scandal two months ago.
   Bishop Brian Joseph Dunn has been appointed by Pope Benedict XVI to oversee the diocese of Antigonish, starting early next year.
   Bishop Dunn is presently Auxiliary Bishop of the diocese of Sault Ste Marie in Ontario. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:12 AM

• More charges in Moehler case; sex abuse victims respond

   
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests,
   MISSOURI -- We are grateful that law enforcement officials continue to investigate these horrific crimes. They have sent a very strong and important message to any child who is being abused that help is available. By encouraging anyone who saw or suspected these crimes to come forward they have been able to move forward with this case. When predators are behind bars, children are safer.
   Victims of child sex abuse are often trapped in silence and self blame but even more so when the predator is a trusted, respected member of a religious community. We beg anyone who has been hurt to come forward and get the help they need and deserve. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:20 AM

• While feigning ‘poverty,’ Catholic bishop pays PR firm $100,000+

 
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests,
   WILMINGTON (DE) --I n new court filings, Delaware’s Catholic bishop is asking a bankruptcy judge to guarantee that he can keep paying priests, including those who’ve been credibly accused of molesting kids, but seeking no guarantees about counseling for abuse victims. He is also hiring, at a minimum cost of $100,000, a high profile California public relations firm that was also used by the scandal-plagued Los Angeles archdiocese.
   Leaders of a support group for clergy sex abuse victims decried both moves.
   "It's morally wrong for a church official to cry poverty and then pay six figures to a PR firm. And it's morally wrong for a church official to put helping child predators ahead of helping child victims," said Barbara Dorris of St. Louis. She’s the national outreach director for a self help organization called SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:18 AM

• Convicted priest loses title

  - Reformed Catholic Church didn't find his record.
   The Columbus Dispatch By Meredith Heagney
   COLUMBUS (OH) -- The leader of an independent Catholic denomination headquartered in Columbus said he is tightening background checks for clergy after discovering that a priest is a convicted child molester.
   The Reformed Catholic Church ordained the priest, Sean-Michael Lyons, a violation of the church's zero-tolerance policy for sex offenders, said Archbishop Phillip Zimmerman, worldwide leader of the church.
   Lyons lied about his past, and the background check on him in Pennsylvania, where he lived when ordained, turned up no red flags, Zimmerman said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:01 AM

• Mohler Case Over One Year in the Making

  - Mohler group.
   Fox 4 video presentation, by Eric Burke,
   KANSAS CITY, MO - It's been nearly two weeks since charges and startling details about the Mohler child sex scandal became public, as court documents provide almost daily updates on the shocking Lafayette County case. But the investigation actually began long before many people realize. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:58 AM

• More videos are removed from Mohler home in Independence

  - Mohler group.
   The Kansas City Star, By DONALD BRADLEY,
   MISSOURI -- After talking this week with one of the sisters in the Mohler child sex case, investigators returned Friday to the family patriarch’s Independence home and carted off more computers and videotapes.
   "There is a belief that some of these assaults are on those tapes," said Col. Ben Kenney of the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office.
   An earlier search of Burrell Mohler Sr.’s house in the 1300 block of South Dodgion Street house netted magazine incest porn, videotapes and computers, documents say. Mohler’s wife told investigators that the 77-year-old man had been living in the basement since she found his trove above a ceiling tile. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:55 AM

• Ex-Church Member Recalls Mohler Family, Believes Sex Abuse Charges

  - Mohler group.
   Fox 4 with video, by John Pepitone, edited by Jason Vaughn,
   INDEPENDENCE, MO - A former member of the Mormom Church who attended services with the victims in the Mohler child sex case says that she remembers the girls talking about sexual abuse at the hands of their father, and even claims that one of the alleged assaults happened at church.
   "Nicole," 27, who asked that her identity not be revealed because of fears of retribution, says that her memories of the victims fit with the shocking accusations of sexual abuse. Nicole says that one of the victims worked as a babysitter, caring for her and her siblings.
   She says that she remembers the babysitter using Barbie dolls to demonstrate sexual acts. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:51 AM

• Full lawsuit text: Mormons, Boy Scouts sued

  - Mormons. 3 males.
   Renew America By Matt C. Abbott,
   SAN FRANCISCO -- Readers will note that I've covered various aspects of the clergy sex abuse scandal in the Catholic Church rather extensively over the last few years. And, sadly, there's been quite a lot to cover. Too much, in fact.
   But other churches and groups have had to deal with sex abuse lawsuits as well. Case in point: Portland attorney Kelly Clark, who's been involved in legal action against the Archdiocese of Portland (click here), is representing three male plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the Mormons and the Boy Scouts. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:48 AM

• Police search Burrell Mohler's Independence home

  - Mohler group. More videos.  
   Examiner, By Kelly Evenson - kelly.evenson@examiner.net , Posted 12:53 AM, Nov 21, 2009
   INDEPENDENCE, MO – .Jackson County Sheriff’s deputies were once again at the Independence home of Burrell E. Mohler Sr., searching for evidence in a child sex crime case that involves his four adult sons and his brother.
   A shed behind the home in the 1300 block of Dodgion was searched Friday for evidence to prove the claims that have been made by Mohler’s grandchildren. This is the second time this week that law enforcement officials have searched the area. Tuesday, deputies found pornography depicting incest. Mohler Sr. lived in the home for 15 years with his wife and another woman.
   In the search Friday, more videos were collected, some with graphic covers of pornography. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:45 AM

• Churches, govts have failed children: PM

   
   Sydney Morning Herald,
   AUSTRALIA -- Governments and churches have at times failed to live up to the values of compassion, tolerance and the equal dignity of every human being, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd says.
   Mr Rudd addressed delegates at the annual Australian Christian Lobby national conference in Canberra on Saturday.
   During his speech, the prime minister acknowledged the enormous contributions churches had made to Australia's history, which was marked at times by war, depression and political strife. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:44 AM

• Diocese's religious duty holds no sway over court's decision

   
   The News Journal
   WILMINGTON (DE) -- The diocese of Wilmington has an understandable dilemma.
   Centuries of Catholic teaching and traditions require the church to provide for the needs of retired priests, including those who sin. This religious duty, exercised as a moral obligation, is difficult to bear considering that this lifetime provision guarantee is also available to pedophile priests.
   The shameful, indefensible actions of these men have forced the diocese to seek bankruptcy protection as lawsuits against the church multiply.
   After filing for Chapter 11 protection last month, the diocese told the judge it would not make any payments to priests accused of sexual abuse, even if the abuse had not been substantiated, without a court order. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:41 AM

• Teenage boys and girls separated at Central Methodist Church

  [2008-09 Unnamed teacher* and perhaps others] - Methodist. Zimbabwean refugee girls and women, and boys. 6 - 20 cases.    
   Eyewitness News, by Micel Schnehage,
   SOUTH AFRICA -- The Central Methodist Church’s Bishop Paul Verryn says management have gone out of their way to separate boys and girls staying at the Johannesburg city centre mission.
   A Gauteng Legislature fact finding mission at the church last month found teenagers were sharing the same confined living space in the church and were engaging in sexual activities.
   Addressing a special Health and Social Development Portfolio Committee meeting in the legislature, Verryn said he realised this was a problem. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:34 AM

• DC gays to blackmail closeted priests

   
   Beliefnet by Rod Dreher
   WASHINGTON (DC) -- Things are getting hardcore in the Archdiocese of Washington, DC: gay activists have organized to force gay priests out of the closet to protest the Catholic Church's stand against gay marriage. Excerpt from the Church Outing website:
   Lastly, we encourage every Catholic priest to trust in God and in the power of the Christ to help you through this difficult, but important act of truth, faith and love. It is not the intention of this site to complicate the lives of closeted gay priests, rather to help them make the difficult choice to stand up against the hateful and harmful new direction the Church hierarchy is taking the Holy Mother Church. …
   Truth to tell, there are a lot of orthodox Catholics who agree with the liberal pro-gay ones when they say, as the Church Outing site does:
   Even more shameful, is that many of these priests, while remaining silent, actually lead duplicitous lives rich with romantic and sexual relationships -- both homosexual and heterosexual. This hypocrisy must end. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:26 AM

• When Fathers are daddies

  [2000s Fr Sean McKenna* (51)] - RCC. "Celibate," but to marry a woman.  
   The Irish Times,
   IRELAND -- WHEN FR SEÁN McKenna told his parishioners in Derry this week that he was stepping down to pursue "a loving, beautiful and life-giving relationship" in his private life, his parishioners gave him a standing ovation. He didn’t want to live a double life any longer and they understood, writes KATE HOLMQUIST
   Later in the week Archbishop Diarmuid Martin said so few young men were joining the priesthood that Dublin’s 199 parishes can no longer be assured of a full-time priest.
   Momentum seems to be building for the change that the Catholic church has been putting off for a long-time: married priests with families. Many Catholics now accept the notion, and it would be fascinating to see the priest in the pulpit preaching to a congregation that included his children in the front pew. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:20 AM

• Chicago Archdiocese report shows race didn't play factor in abuse settlements

  - RCC.  
   Chicago Tribune By Manya A. Brachear November 21, 2009
   CHICAGO (IL) -- Still reeling from a television news segment alleging racial discrimination in the settlement process for victims of clergy sexual abuse, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago unveiled a report on Friday showing no evidence of such discrimination. The archdiocese's report produced by Chicago law firm Pugh, Jones, Johnson & Quandt, found that the average settlement for African-American claimants is more than 28 percent higher than settlements with white claimants; 19 percent higher than the average.
   "It has never been an archdiocesan practice to compile statistics about abuse claims based on race or ethnicity," the archdiocese said in a statement. "However, it felt compelled to do so when these allegations were made."
   The television news report, which featured Seattle attorney Phillip Aaron and some of his clients, aired on WMAQ-Ch. 5 in August as the preview of an upcoming class-action lawsuit. Interviewees alleged they received lower monetary settlements than white claimants and that African-American claimants were badgered during the review process and offered no counseling services. The same allegations aired 10 days later on WPWR-Ch. 50. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:15 AM, November 21, 2009]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Sat November 21, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Sun November 22, 2009 edition:

• Details of abuse report leaked before publication

  - RCC.  
   Ireland Online, ~ November 22, 2009
   IRELAND -- Survivors of Abuse are calling on the Government to inform them before the report from the Commission to Inquire into abuse in the Dublin Archdiocese is published.
   This comes after details from the report were leaked to the Sunday Independent today.
   The long-awaited report is to be presented to the Cabinet on Tuesday and is expected to be published later in the week. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:43 PM, Nov 22, 2009]

• Report on clerical child abuse claims in archdiocese to be published this week

 
   The Irish Times, By PATSY McGARRY and MARY MINIHAN, November 23, 2009
   IRELAND -- THE REPORT into the handling of clerical child sex abuse allegations by church and State authorities in Dublin’s Catholic archdiocese is now likely to be published on Thursday.
   Plans to publish it earlier this week had to be changed due to tomorrow’s public sector strike, which would mean helplines would not be available for people who had suffered abuse. It is also expected to be discussed at tomorrow’s Cabinet meeting, though this may be brief as it was brought before the Cabinet last month following the High Court clearance of the report for publication on October 15th.
   After that, and following representations by the DPP to the Department of Justice, it was referred back to the High Court on October 21st when it came to light that criminal proceedings had been initiated on October 2nd and 5th last against another priest dealt with in the report. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:41 PM, November 22, 2009

• Rev. Bozek: I might step down

  [Rev. Marek Bozek]  
   St. Louis Post-Dispatch, By Tim Townsend, Nov/22/2009
   ST. LOUIS (MO) -- The Rev. Marek Bozek, pastor of St. Stanislaus church just north of downtown, told parishioners Sunday that he was willing to step down if it would help the parish.
   "I do not want my personal circumstances to impede what is best for St. Stanislaus," Bozek said.
   Bozek was laicized, or defrocked, by the Roman Catholic church in January. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:35 PM

• Statement of Bishop in Response to Congressman's Published Interview of November 22, 2009

  - RCC. Congressman Kennedy, and Holy Communion.
   Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence,
   PROVIDENCE (RI) -- I am disappointed and really surprised that Congressman Patrick Kennedy has chosen to re-open the public discussion about his practice of the faith and his reception of Holy Communion.
   This comes almost two weeks after the Congressman indicated to local media that he would no longer comment publicly on his faith or his relationship with the Catholic Church. The Congressman's public comments require me to reply.
   On February 21, 2007, I wrote to Congressman Kennedy stating: "In light of the Church's clear teaching, and your consistent actions, therefore, I believe it is inappropriate for you to be receiving Holy Communion and I now ask respectfully that you refrain from doing so." My request came in light of the new statement of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops that said, "If a Catholic in his or her personal or professional life were knowingly and obstinately to repudiate her definite teachings on moral issues, he or she would seriously diminish his or her communion with the Church. Reception of Holy Communion in such a situation would not accord with the nature of the Eucharistic celebration, so that he or she should refrain." (Happy Are Those Who Are Called to His Supper, December, 2006) Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:31 PM

• ARLENE VIOLET - Kennedy family in Church's crosshairs

 
   The Valley Breeze,
   RHODE ISLAND -- Recent ecclesiastical developments involving the Kennedy family have brought to light a long-simmering debate among Catholic prelates. The central issue revolves around the prohibition of abortion as the touchstone dogma separating real Catholics from pretenders vs. those in the church hierarchy who take a more holistic view of faith and who view its practice as an amalgam of moral practices, not just one issue.
   The public fissure of the respective schools of thought broke out when Cardinal Sean O'Malley presided over the recent funeral of U.S. Rep. Patrick Kennedy's father, Sen. Ted Kennedy. Archbishop Raymond Burke of Rome, a former head of the St. Louis archdiocese in America, castigated O'Malley as someone under the influence of Satan. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:37 PM

• No winner in Kennedy - bishop abortion standoff

 
   Irish Central, By NIALL O'DOWD, IrishCentral.com Publisher,
   UNITED STATES -- The decision to bar Congressman Patrick Kennedy from receiving Communion by Rhode Island Bishop Thomas Tobin is a step too far.
   Abortion is a complex and incredibly emotional issue, which has divided this country for decades. However, dialogue, not confrontation, is the way forward.
   If we start drawing lines, then it starts to get utterly polarized and nasty. The Catholic Church is against the death penalty. Should Rudy Giuliani be banned also from the altar rails because he supports it? Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:33 PM

• Kennedy Vs The Catholic Church at Twenty Paces

 
   Lawrence Journal-World,
   UNITED STATES -- Hot Diggity Dog. I knew it was coming. I didn't know when. Someone, some where, was going to draw a line in the sand, and call someone out. The gloves are off.
   Roman Catholic Bishop Thomas Tobin has banned Rep. Patrick Kennedy from receiving Communion, because of the Congressman's support for abortion rights according to Kennedy. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:31 PM

• Rep. Kennedy barred from communion in R.I.

 
   The Hill, By Jordan Fabian - Nov/22/09
   WASHINGTON (DC) -- Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I.) on Friday was barred from taking Communion in his home state by a bishop because of his support for abortion rights.
   Kennedy, the son of the late Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.), told the Providence Journal that Bishop Thomas J. Tobin has instructed Kennedy's diocese to not give him Communion and forbade Kennedy to take Communion.
   Kennedy told the Journal that the bishop justified the decision to him by saying "that I am not a good practicing Catholic because of the positions that I’ve taken as a public official," particularly on abortion. He declined to say when or how Bishop Tobin told him not to take the sacrament. And he declined to say whether he has obeyed the bishop’s injunction. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:28 PM

• RI bishop asked Kennedy in 2007 to avoid Communion

 
   The Boston Globe, By Ray Henry, Associated Press Writer / November 22, 2009
   EAST PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND –The Roman Catholic bishop of Rhode Island said Sunday that he asked Rep. Patrick Kennedy in a 2007 letter to stop receiving Communion, the central sacrament of the church, because of the congressman's public stance on moral issues.
   Bishop Thomas Tobin divulged details of his confidential exchange with Kennedy after the Democratic lawmaker told The Providence Journal in a story published Sunday that Tobin had instructed him not to receive Communion. The two men have clashed repeatedly in the past few weeks over abortion. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:20 PM

• A Benefit Staged Reading for Victims of Clergy Abuse

  - "For Pete's Sake."
   Examiner, by David Beck,
   NEW YORK -- Have you ever kept a secret bottled up inside you so long that it cost you your job, your marriage, or any other honest relationship with a potential mate? Well, for Joe Capozzi, writer and leading man of For Pete’s Sake, a suffocating 20 year secret caused him to lose all that and more, but what he earned in return was sacred: living in the truth.
   Mr. Capozzi’s secret? As a teenager and young adult, he was molested multiple times by Fr. Peter ("Pete") Cheplic, pastor of his church in northern New Jersey. Not only was this priest somewhat of a local celebrity, but he was also a close friend and confidante to Joe’s family. Therein lies a small piece of the struggle that is the crux of For Pete’s Sake.
   Translating such a grave yet penetrating topic to the stage is no easy feat. Without belittling or thwarting the issue, Mr. Capozzi deftly incorporates abundant amounts of humor throughout the story, namely in the dialogue between his inner voices, played by three actors, Judy Del Guidice, Bob Marlowe, and Kate Hodge. With the help (and sometimes hindrance) of his inner voices, Joe searches for the truth in this warped universe. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:07 AM

• Bishop gets high marks as a pastor

 
   The Journal Gazette, by Rosa Salter Rodriguez,
   FORT WAYNE (IN) -- Bob O’Hara recalls being told, shortly after the Rev. Kevin C. Rhoades was named bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg (Pa.), that the new bishop had accepted an invitation to be the featured guest on a local call-in radio show.
   It made O’Hara, executive director of the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference, nervous.
   "I didn’t know how he was going to handle it," he says.
   Turns out, O’Hara needn’t have worried. …
   But some are not so sanguine about Rhoades’ role. Anne Doyle, co-director of BishopAccountability.org, which tracks priests publicly accused of sexual abuse, finds the low number of allegations that surfaced during Rhoades’ tenure "unusual" given the diocese’s size. The organization lists six publicly accused priests in the Harrisburg diocese.
   "What it’s saying to me is that he’s suppressed allegations or hasn’t acted or has created an environment that it wasn’t easy for victims to come forward," she says, adding she wonders what happened to victims of the 16 other accused priests. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:49 AM

• Kennedy: Barred from Communion

   
   The Providence Journal, By John E. Mulligan, Journal Washington Bureau,
   WASHINGTON (DC) – Providence Bishop Thomas J. Tobin has forbidden Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy to receive the Roman Catholic sacrament of Holy Communion because of his advocacy of abortion rights, the Rhode Island Democrat said Friday.
   "The bishop instructed me not to take Communion and said that he has instructed the diocesan priests not to give me Communion," Kennedy said in a telephone interview.
   Kennedy said the bishop had explained the penalty by telling him "that I am not a good practicing Catholic because of the positions that I’ve taken as a public official," particularly on abortion. He declined to say when or how Bishop Tobin told him not to take the sacrament. And he declined to say whether he has obeyed the bishop’s injunction. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:17 AM

• Priest abuse claim investigated

  [1970s Fr Paul Symonds - NEW*] - RCC. Former teacher too. Just arrested. Boy.    
   BBC News
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- Police are investigating an allegation of child abuse made against a priest in Ballymena.
   The accusation against Father Paul Symonds, a curate in the parish of Kirkinriola, Ballymena, dates back to the 1970s when he worked in England.
   Dr Noel Treanor, Bishop of Down and Connor, said the diocese and Fr Symonds were cooperating fully with the investigation. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:11 AM

• Church bars Kennedy as war between church and state escalates over health bill

   
   Examiner, by Marc Rubin,
   UNITED STATES -- The Catholic Church, which heavily influenced and even authored language of the anti-abortion language in the health care bill in clear violation of the constitution, has escalated its war over the separation of church and state by barring Rep. Patrick Kennedy from receiving communion by Catholic Bishop of Rhode Island Thomas Tobin.
   Tobin's barring of Kennedy was the result of Kennedy's criticism of the church for threatening to oppose health care reform unless it contained tighter restrictions on abortion. …
   The church claims tax exempt status based on the establishment clause not only from the donations it receives but also from its secular investments in commercial real estate and stocks. But it crosses the line into the affairs of state by filing for bankruptcy protection to avoid having to pay billions in jury awards because of the rampant child sexual abuse which went on for decades for which the church had been found guilty and liable because of its knowledge of the abuse and allowing it to continue. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:07 AM

• Search continues in family sex-abuse case

  - Mohler group.
   News-Leader, November 22, 2009
   INDEPENDENCE, MISSOURI -- Investigators have seized more computers and videotapes as they investigate claims from several family members who say they were sexually abused as children by adult relatives.
   The items were taken Friday when authorities returned to the Independence home of 77-year-old Burrell Mohler Sr.
   Col. Ben Kenney of the Jackson County Sheriff's Office says there is a belief that "some of these assaults are on those tapes." A warrant says the alleged victims remembered having to pose for pictures in "a sexual and provocative manner." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:10 AM

• Deadline near to file church abuse claims

  - Amerindians have 8 days. > US $25m so far.
   Great Fallls Tribune, By TRAVIS COLEMAN, November 22, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- Native Americans sexually abused by Jesuit priests have eight days left to seek damages from the bankrupt church.
   The Society of Jesus, Oregon Province filed for bankruptcy protection in February in the wake of more than 200 lawsuits alleging that priests sexually abused children in northwestern states. One condition was that victims have until Nov. 30 to file an abuse lawsuit against the Jesuits. After that, no claims can be brought against them. The Jesuits have since 2001 paid out more than $25 million to sex abuse victims. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:52 AM

• Kennedy says RI bishop banned him from Communion

 
   Belleville News-Democrat, By RAY HENRY - Associated Press Writer,
   PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND -- Roman Catholic Bishop Thomas Tobin has banned Rep. Patrick Kennedy from receiving Communion, the central sacrament of the church, in Rhode Island because of the congressman's support for abortion rights, Kennedy said in a newspaper interview published Sunday. …
   Kennedy could appeal the decision to officials in the Vatican, but the hierarchy of the Catholic church is unlikely to overturn a bishop, said Michael Sean Winters, a church observer and author of "Left At the Altar: How Democrats Lost The Catholics And How Catholics Can Save The Democrats."
   "It's really bad theology," said Winters, who opposes abortion. "You're turning the altar rail into a battle field, a political battlefield no less, and it does a disservice to the Eucharist." Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:36 AM

• Remember the Alamo--- Tony Alamo

  - Alamo group. 175yrs prison.  
   Beliefnet, by Ben Witherington,
   ARKANSAS -- The story of Tony Alamo is bound, someday, to be made into a movie. It's so bizarre, so improbable, so full of incident and crime and sin that it makes some soap operas look clean! The horrifyingly saddest part of this story is that Alamo was viewed and viewed himself as a conservative Christian minister. In the eyes of the world, it gives all such persons a bad name.
   And on top of everything else it plays on and plays right into the ultra right wing paranoia in America about a "NEW WORLD ORDER' secretly masterminded by the Pope, as an attempt to turn America into a Fascist state. One can only imagine Alamo's reaction to the revelation last week that Catholic bishops aided in getting the health care legislation changed so that abortions wouldn't be funded with federal money. Dan Brown couldn't have thought up a conspiracy story this good, or a nefarious character as amazing as Tony Alamo.
   Tony Alamo makes 'Malakh' in The Lost Symbol look like a regular guy.
   Perhaps however you have been vacationing on the planet Xenon, and have not followed the story of Tony Alamo from the 70s until last week when he was sentenced to 175 years in jail. Since he is now 74, that's a wrap folks. He will not be 'ministering' (and I use the term loosely) again outside of a prison. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:32 AM

• EILEEN FAIRWEATHER: Lost children of the Empire… and how uncovering their story has torn my family apart

  [Christian nuns] - 2wk holiday was really emigration.      
   Daily Mail (United Kingdom), By Eileen Fairweather, Last updated at 7:51 AM, November 22, 2009
   AUSTRALIA -- On a summer's day in 1947, four small children excitedly boarded a huge ship. The O'Rourkes lived at a children's home in Belfast, and the nuns who ran it said they were sending them to England on a two-week holiday.
   Instead, the SS Asturias finally docked at Fremantle, Western Australia, where a new group of nuns stripped and deloused the children, and announced they would never go home: their parents had been killed. It was a cruel lie.
   The family was then split up: the eldest Ellen, aged ten, was sent to an orphanage with her younger sisters - Hannah, six, and seven-year-old Lil. The baby of the family, five-year-old Michael, went to another orphanage, one run by the Christian Brothers. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:29 AM

• Archbishops’ cover-up of child sex abuse revealed

   
   Irish Independent Sunday November 22 2009
   IRELAND -- THE four Catholic archbishops of Dublin who preceded Dr Diarmuid Martin, were aware of complaints against priests for sexually abusing children – a practice that went on for over 35 years.
   But the most senior figures in the Irish hierarchy did not report these crimes to the gardai because of an obsessive culture of secrecy and a desire to preserve the power and aura of the Church and to avoid giving scandal to their congregations.
   The report of the Commission set up to investigate how the Dublin Archdiocese dealt with sex abuse scandals from 1975 to 2004 will find that there was little or no concern for the welfare of the abused children or other children who might come into contact with deviant and even paedophile priests. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:27 AM

• Diocese suits really punish parishioners, not perpetrators

  - RCC.  
   The News Journal, By MICHAEL P. KELLY, November 22, 2009
   DELAWARE -- Most of my colleagues wondered why I so vocally opposed Senate Bill 29, which eliminated the statute of limitations for civil (read, "money") lawsuits for childhood sex abuse cases.
   Instead of extending the statute of limitations for those who could prove a legitimate excuse for an extension (e.g. traumatic memory loss ), our legislature abolished the time limit for all new cases and, if that were not revolutionary enough, created a two-year window to bring claims that arose since the beginning of time.
   No other state has come close to following this path. While it should have been evident that no organization could possibly survive, let alone insure against, such a limitless onslaught of litigation, many rightfully asked the question: "What could be wrong with compensating victims of sexual abuse, and holding pedophiles to account?" Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:24 AM

• Giller Prize-winning novel explores moral dilemmas

  - Fiction book. Re Christian Churches.  
   The Chronicle-Herald, By MONICA GRAHAM, Sun. Nov 22, 2009
   ANTIGONISH, CANADA – Linden MacIntyre did not expect another Roman Catholic Church sex scandal as he penned The Bishop’s Man.
   He figured that once a handful of priestly perpetrators of child sex abuse were caught and convicted, it was safe to explore the subject of moral dilemmas.
   So, in The Bishop’s Man, he aimed to get inside the head of a priest deciding whether to do the right and responsible thing or to serve an employer’s desire to cover up the wrong thing. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:22 AM

• Pope names new bishop following porn charges

 
   Montreal Gazette, By AMY HUSSER, Canwest News Service, November 22, 2009
   CANADA -- A new bishop has been appointed to lead a Roman Catholic community in Nova Scotia that was stunned and outraged after child pornography charges were laid against its previous spiritual leader.
   And newly named Bishop Brian Joseph Dunn says he knows he faces major challenges in dealing with the fallout of a scandal that stretched from the Diocese of Antigonish right across the country.
   "I'm excited about the appointment," Dunn said yesterday. "I am very happy to be able serve the people of Antigonish. But there's also lots of hesitation as I look and see the difficulties that seem to be ahead of me." [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:18 AM]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Sun November 22, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Mon November 23, 2009 edition:

• Former Brother abused 19 schoolboys

  [1967-68 Bro. Sean Drummond* (Christian Brother)] - RCC. Admission. 19 boys.  
   The Irish Times, By KATHRYN HAYES, November 24, 2009
   IRELAND -- A FORMER Christian Brother who indecently assaulted 19 young boys at a national school in the 1960s was moved to another school after the abuse came to light, a court has heard.
   Seán John Drummond, Broadford Drive, Ballinteer, Dublin had his name placed on the sex offenders register last June after he pleaded guilty to 36 separate charges arising out of incidents involving boys as young as eight.
   The 61-year-old admitted indecently assaulting 19 boys at Creagh Lane national school, in Bridge Street, Limerick, on dates unknown between July 1st, 1967 and July 31st, 1968. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:27 PM, November 23, 2009]

• Priest Abuse Support Group Calls Attention To Local Cases

  - Church of the Nazarene.  
   Fox 4, with video,
   MISSOURI -- A group that formed to support victims of priest abuse in the Catholic Church is now calling attention to other abuse cases. They say they're speaking for the victims who are often too ashamed or too scared to speak for themselves.
   Some members of SNAP, Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, protested Monday to call attention to two child abuse cases that have local ties.
   Judy Jones was at the former headquarters of the Church of the Nazarene on Monday to talk about Ryan Wonderly. He was a children's minister with the church and is now serving 35 years in prison for crimes against young girls.
   There's also a civil lawsuit against the Church of the Nazarene, based here in the metro. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:24 PM

• Ulster priest abused teen as he took part in child protection course

  [2000s Fr Michael Molloy -? NEW*] - RCC. 5yrs prison. Filmed the action. Boy. Porn.  
   Belfast Telegraph,
   IRELAND -- An Ulster priest and former hospital chaplain who recorded a schoolboy he sexually abused on his mobile phone has been jailed for five years.
   Michael Molloy (44), who was a chaplain at Cavan General Hospital, pleaded guilty to two counts of defilement of the boy and to a count of possessing child pornography.
   Cavan Circuit Criminal Court yesterday heard he sent the boy sexually explicit mobile phone text messages and showed him pornographic DVDs. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:21 PM

• Former Mother Seton pastor sentenced to probation

  [2001-02 Fr Aaron Cote* (Dominican)] - RCC. Sentenced 10yrs probation. Altar boy.  
   Gazette, by Meghan Tierney | Staff Writer
   MARYLAND -- A former Germantown youth pastor was sentenced to 10 years of probation on Monday for sexually abusing an altar boy in 2001 and 2002.
   The Rev. Aaron Joseph Cote, 58, who was a pastor at Mother Seton Parish at the time of the abuse, was found guilty of third-degree sex offense in July. He is on administrative leave and cannot engage in ministry, according to a statement from the religious order to which he belongs, the Dominican Fathers and Brothers.
   Cote agreed to complete counseling and serve 10 years' probation, five of it supervised, in New York. Cote must also register as a sex offender, complete sex offender treatment and not work or have any unsupervised contact with minors, according to the sentence imposed Monday by Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Louise G. Scrivener. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:00 PM

• Del. Priest Sex Abuse Lawsuit Goes To Jury

  [Oblates of St Francis de Sales] - RCC. Child.
   CBS 3 RANDALL CHASE, Associated Press Writer
   WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) ? A jury was to begin deliberating Tuesday in the first trial stemming from Delaware law allowing alleged victims of child sexual abuse to sue for abuse that happened long ago.
   After a week of testimony, attorneys presented closing arguments Monday in a lawsuit filed by James Sheehan, 63, against the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales and Salesianum School in Wilmington. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:58 PM

• Priest sentenced to five years in jail

  [2000s Fr Michael Molloy*] - RCC. 5yrs prison. (Offended after anti-sin training. And filmed the sin.) Boy.  
   RTE News, with video,
   IRELAND -- A Former hospital chaplain who attended courses run by the Catholic Church in child protection measures has this evening been sentenced to five years imprisonment.
   Fr Michael Molloy from Cavan pleaded guilty to two sample charges of defilement of a child and one of possession of child pornography.
   Cavan Circuit Criminal Court was told this evening that shortly after attending the child protection course he began abusing the son of a friend. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:55 PM

• Sen. hopefuls: Church won’t dictate policy

   
   Boston Herald
   MASSACHUSETTS -- The three Catholic candidates for the late Edward Kennedy’s Senate seat say they disagree with the church on core issues like abortion, but won’t let church leaders dictate their policy decisions.
   U.S. Rep Michael Capuano said his faith is between himself and God. City Year co-founder Alan Khazei said he’s honored the church’s call to care for the poor.
   Attorney General Martha Coakley said the church shouldn’t point fingers given its conduct during the pedophile priest scandal. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:53 PM

• Trenton Roman Catholic Diocese pays $325K settlement in sexual assault case

  [Becker]
   The Star-Ledger, By Jeff Diamant, 5:50PM, November 23, 2009
   JAMESBURG, NEW JERSEY -- The Roman Catholic Diocese of Trenton has paid $325,000 to a 32-year-old woman who says she was sexually assaulted by a former diocesan priest, the late Rev. Ron Becker, who died in January.
   Jenni Franz, who was Becker’s niece, says Becker molested her more than 100 times from when she was 5 until she was 11. She said she first came forward to the diocese in 2004.
   Becker had been the subject of other, similar allegations, and the diocese has settled with at least two other accusers, according to one of Franz’s attorneys, Greg Gianforcaro. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:48 PM

• Coakley criticized for not prosecuting

 
   MASSACHUSETTS -- NECN with video
   (NECN: Brad Puffer) - Attorney General Martha Coakley is being forced to answer questions about actions she took years ago. At issue, why she didn't prosecute a now convicted pedophile priest first time she was presented with the accusations against him.
   As Middlesex District Attorney, Martha Coakley won widespread attention and praise for being the first to prosecute accused pedophile priest John Geoghan. But according to the Boston Globe, Coakley investigated several complaints seven years earlier. An investigation that ended with a probation deal, no formal charges and no criminal record.
   Martha Coakley: "I defy anybody to criticize me as my time as a child abuse prosecutor. Toughest job I have ever had. We had nine hundred cases a year we would agonize over. Do we have enough evidence? Is this child willing to testify?" Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:44 PM

• New sex crime ploy of Franciscans: Only take pedophilia reports in Confession then claim religious privilege: Plus a Phoenix-Santa Barbara connection

 
   CALIFORNIA -- City of Angels By Kay Ebeling
   Part 2: A parishioner walks into Sts. Simon and Jude Catholic Church in Orange County saying he wants to talk about a predator priest. He tells the Franciscan Father Michael Harvey he wants to discuss Gus Krumm. The parishioner barely gets the name Krumm out of his mouth when Father Harvey ushers him into the Confessional to continue the conversation. Harvey’s response "was immediate and premeditated," reads the opening paragraphs of First Amended Complaints in Cases 1337577 and 1338070 filed in Santa Barbara Superior Court, Oct. 5 and Nov. 3, 2009.
   "Before the parishioner could say anything further about Krumm, Harvey insisted that any discussion regarding Krumm be in the context of the confessional, thus rendering the communication penitential," read 1st Amended Complaints in the two civil lawsuits.
   When I first read these briefs, even I could not believe the crimes alleged in the lawsuits, they are so shocking. So I asked Tim Hale, the Santa Barbara attorney who authored the briefs, how he came up with the details in these cases. "Everything alleged in the amended complaints is supported by admissible evidence assembled from investigation and discovery conducted during the last eleven years of litigation involving the Franciscans," emailed Tim Hale of Nye Peabody Stirling & Hale Santa Barbara in reply Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:40 PM

• Priest jailed for 5 years for abuse

  [2006-07 Fr Michael Molloy*] - RCC. 5yrs prison. Filmed the action. Teen boy.  
   The Irish Times By ELAINE KEOGH
   IRELAND -- A priest and former hospital chaplain who sexually abused a schoolboy has been jailed for five years.
   Michael Molloy (44), who had been a chaplain at Cavan General Hospital, pleaded guilty to two counts of defilement of the boy and one of possession of child pornography.
   The offences took place at a number of locations including at a parochial house in 2006 and 2007. The boy was in his early teens at the time. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:38 PM

• Murphy report doesn't have to shock us but it should make an impact

 
   IRELAND -- The Herald By Padraig O'Morain Monday November 23 2009
   Let's not underestimate the importance of Judge Yvonne Murphy's report into clerical child abuse in the Dublin archdiocese, due to be published this week.
   Survivors of abuse will be disappointed that legal reasons prevent the naming of priests who committed crimes against children.
   They will also be disappointed certain sections of the report will not be published because to do so could jeopardise ongoing or forthcoming prosecutions. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:35 PM

• Star report calls out for churches for failing to stop Mohlers

  - Mormons.  
   The Pitch By David Martin
   MISSOURI – The church failed these children. The words went unwritten in yesterday's Kansas City Star. But the 3,400-word, front-page story about the alleged deviance of Burrell Mohler Sr., his brother and his four sons delivered the message to those who wanted to see it.
   The Mohlers face 42 charges. Religion has been an element of the story since the incest allegations became public two weeks ago. Initial news stories noted that some of the Mohlers were active in the Community of Christ, a church that's both familiar (it's headquartered in Independence) and exotic (its history traces back to Joseph Smith, the founder of Latter-day Saint movement) to most residents.
   Written by Judy L. Thomas, Donald Bradley and Brian Burnes, Sunday's story made an effort to assign accountability to the places where the accused and their families worshiped. The story identified the location of the church that Burrell Mohler Sr. attended and named an official in the Mormon church who failed to go to police after the former wife of one of his sons came to him with her suspicions. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:32 PM

• Police: Youth Minister Molested 14 Yr. Old Girl

  [~ 2009 (5 mos) Mr Russell Lewis (28) - NEW*] - "Church by the Glades." Girl (14).
   CBS 4
   CORAL SPRINGS (FL) -- An assistant music and youth minister at a Coral Springs church was arrested for allegedly engaging in a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old girl, Coral Springs police officials said.
   Police arrested Russell Dion Lewis, 28, Saturday morning at his Coral Springs home. Lewis worked at Church by the Glades on the 400 block of Lakeview Drive. His bond amount was set at $110,000.
   According to police, the relationship, which lasted for five months, was consensual, but under Florida law a 14-year-old cannot legally consent to a sexual relationship with an adult. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:12 PM

• Youth Minister Accused of Sexual Relationship with Girl

  [~ 2009 (5 mos) Mr Russell Lewis* (28)] - "Church by the Glades." Girl (14).
   NBC Miami, By JANIE CAMPBELL
   CORAL SPRINGS (FL) -- Broward County Sherrif's Department Coral Springs police arrested the assistant music and youth minister at Church by the Glades this morning for allegedly engaging in a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old congregant.
   Russell Dion Lewis, 28, has been charged with one count of custodial sexual battery and ten counts of lewd and lascivious molestation. He is being held at the Broward County jail in lieu of $20,000 bond.
   Police say the relationship between the two was consensual, but illegal because of the girl's age. It lasted five months, and authorities believe all sexual contact occured on church property. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:09 PM

• Arrest stuns Coral Springs congregation

  [~ 2009 (5 mos) Mr Russell Lewis* (28)] - "Church by the Glades." Girl (14).
   Miami Herald, BY MIKE CLARY, Sun Sentinel
   CORAL SPRINGS (FL) -- At the bustling Church by the Glades in Coral Springs, pastor David Hughes usually preaches the gospel, the good news. But Sunday, the news was bad.
   "There is brokenness, anger and a lot of hurt. This is an ugly story," Hughes told a sanctuary packed with several hundred worshipers for the 11:15 a.m. service.
   The story broke Saturday when Coral Springs police arrested one of the church's youth pastors, Russell Dion Lewis, 28, and charged him with custodial battery and 10 counts of lewd and lascivious molestation. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:06 PM

• Youth minister charged with molestation

  [~ 2009 (5 mos) Mr Russell Lewis* (28)] - "Church by the Glades." Girl (14).
   United Press International Nov. 23, 2009
   CORAL SPRINGS, Fla., (UPI) -- A former church youth minister has been charged with molesting a 14-year-old parishioner in Coral Springs, Fla., police said.
   Russell Lewis, 28, was arrested Saturday and charged with custodial battery and 10 counts of lewd and lascivious molestation, The Palm Beach (Fla.) Post reported Monday.
   Sources close to the investigation said the contact between Lewis and the girl may have been consensual, but nonetheless was illegal because the girl was a minor. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:03 PM

• Monsignor Bevan is permanently removed from ministry

  [1970s Mons Thomas Bevan*] - RCC. 4 children.  
   The Catholic Review, by George P. Matysek Jr. gmatysek@CatholicReview.org
   BALTIMORE (MD) -- Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien has permanently revoked Monsignor Thomas Bevan’s faculties to function as a priest as a result of what the archbishop called “credible allegations of child sexual abuse made against him.”
   The longtime former pastor of St. Patrick in Cumberland was first removed as pastor and barred from public ministry in August after two individuals alleged they were abused on a number of separate occasions in the mid-1970s while they were students at St. John School in Frederick and Monsignor Bevan was associate pastor of the parish.
   In a letter that was read at St. Patrick’s Nov. 21-22 weekend Masses, Archbishop O’Brien said that since the earlier allegations were announced in August, two additional individuals came forward alleging they were sexually abused as children by Monsignor Bevan in the early- to mid-1970s. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:55 AM

• Archbishops protected priests in sex scandals

  [35 yrs - 4 archbishops] - RCC. Failed to tell law enforcement.  
   The Herald By Fiona Dillon Monday November 23 2009
   IRELAND -- Four Dublin archbishops were aware of complaints against priests for sexually abusing children over 35 years, a damning report has revealed.
   The four Catholic archbishops who proceeded Dr Diarmuid Martin -- John Charles McQuaid, Dermot Ryan, Kevin McNamara and Desmond Connell -- did not reveal their knowledge of widespread sexual abuse by the clergy to the gardai.
   Yet the Archbishops, who presided over the Dublin diocese from the 1960s, were aware of allegations of sexual misconduct by priests of the diocese. The Child Abuse Commission Report reveals that a desire to protect the Church meant the horrific crimes were not reported to the gardai. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:57 AM

• Gov.Cuomo:warning to Cath bishops

  - RCC.  
   CBS 6 November 23, 2009
   ALBANY, NEW YORK (AP) -- Former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo (KWOH-moh) says church leaders should be cautious about pressuring Catholic politicians over issues such as abortion because people might not vote for someone they think is guided by religion.
   Cuomo's comments come as Rhode Island Rep. Patrick Kennedy spars with a bishop over his public stance on moral issues including abortion. Kennedy says Bishop Thomas Tobin has asked him not to receive communion. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:44 AM

• Admitted RI predator priest works in MA around kids; SNAP responds

 
   Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests
   MASSACHUSETTS / RHODE ISLAND -- Once again, a dangerous predator priest gets access to kids because current and former employers are irresponsible.
   The real culprits here are America’s Catholic bishops, who for decades recruited, educated, ordained, hired, transferred and protected predator priests but who now are content to merely suspend them and warn almost no one about these pedophiles.
   More than 15 bishops (a small minority) have posted on their websites the names of proven, admitted and credibly accused child molesting clerics. Sadly, bishops in Rhode Island and Massachusetts resist even this simple, inexpensive, proven method of alerting parents about and protecting kids from dangerous predators. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:42 AM

• More Proof OC Diocese's Covenant with the Faithful is a Sham

   
   ORANGE COUNTY (CA) -- Orange County Weekly By Gustavo Arellano in Ex Cathedra
   –Okay, okay, okay: to have ever put hope in the Covenant with the Faithful--a 2004 PR trick by Bishop Tod D. Brown of the Catholic Diocese of Orange that swore to create a more transparent group of pedo-priests and their apologists but cost the county faithful nearly half a million dollars--was an exercise in stupidity. But the way Brownie and his crew continue to make a mockery out of its seven bullet points, placed near the entrance at all Orange diocese parishes, keeps getting more and more laughable with every passing year.
   Consider the latest folly, found in a civil lawsuit filed in Santa Barbara Superior Court against a group of Franciscan friars that includes former Sts. Simon and Jude pedo-priest Gus Krumm. Buried in it is a fascinating passage involving Krumm and Michael Harvey, the current pastor at the Huntington Beach parish. Seems that last year, a former parishioner wanted to speak with Harvey about Krumm and unknown incidents that happened while he terrorized Surf City. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:31 AM

• Former school teacher John Blackman jailed for sexually abusing boys

  [1970s Fr John Blackman -NEW*] - RCC. 2 boys.  
   Kent Online, November 23, 2009
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A former school headteacher has been jailed for 12 months for sexually abusing boys almost 40 years ago.
   After leaving Penshurst CE Primary School, John Blackman moved to the north and became a Catholic priest. He has since retired.
   His crimes finally caught up with him when his two victims complained about the abuse that took place in the early 1970s. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:23 AM

• Apology Opens Wounds of British Migrant Program

       
   The New York Times, By JOHN F. BURNS, Published: November 22, 2009
   LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM – Laurie Humphreys, at least, had the advantage of being a teenager – if anything about being uprooted from family and homeland in 1940s Britain and sent 12,000 miles to brutal and often sexually abusive orphanages in western Australia could be called advantageous.
   Mr. Humphreys was 14, old enough to understand at least some of what was happening to him.
   Others among the boys and girls known in Australia as the “lost innocents” were as young as 3, children abandoned by single mothers or impoverished families, placed into institutional care in Britain, then transported across the world, often without parental consent, with certificates bearing wrong names and birth dates, and falsely noting that they had no living parents or siblings. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 10:13 AM

• Child abuse claims over Catholic priest

  [1970s Fr Paul Symonds*] - RCC. Former teacher too. Just arrested. Boy.    
   Yorkshire Post,
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- A Catholic priest in Northern Ireland was asked to leave his post over child abuse claims dating back to the mid-1970s, it was announced yesterday.
   Police launched an investigation into the conduct of Fr Paul Symonds when he was working in England, church authorities revealed, although they refused to disclose where he was based.
   Fr Symonds is now a curate in Ballymena, Co Antrim, and Dr Noel Treanor, Bishop of Down and Connor, addressed parishioners yesterday. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:51 AM

• Little children were neglected to uphold the Church's name

  - RCC and the Irish State.  
   Irish Independent, By Michael O'Brien, Monday November 23 2009
   IRELAND -- IT was a cover-up, plain and simple. Although we don't know exactly what the report has said because we are still waiting for it to be published in its entirety, all indications are that successive archbishops knew about the abuse.
   And not only were they aware of it, they knew the extent of it.
   They knew which priests were involved, the parishes they served in, and the children who they took advantage of in the most horrific way. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:48 AM

• 'He washed his hands in the altar bowl after abusing girl'

 
   IRELAND -- Irish Independent Monday November 23 2009
   The report of the Dublin Diocese Inquiry does not name the majority of abusers. However, some of the most notorious have faced the courts for their crimes or have died:
   Fr Bill Carney
   ONE of the most heinous sex offenders, Carney took a keen interest in visiting children at their homes, and even expressed an interest in fostering children of his own.
   In 1983 he pleaded guilty to indecently assaulting two boys and was given the probation act. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:45 AM

• Another chapter of vile abuse

 
   IRELAND -- Irish Independent Monday November 23 2009
   AFTER the Ferns report, the Ryan report and all the other hideous disclosures of clerical sex abuse, we await the publication of the report on the Dublin Archdiocese, expected on Thursday. It has been well signalled that this will be the most horrifying document yet to appear on the subject.
   At its core will be the finding that four successive archbishops engaged in covering up terrible crimes of the clergy, including rape -- crimes that continued for generations, and blighted the lives of thousands of victims.
   To a very great extent, disclosures of cover-ups are not new. We have known for many years about the practices in which senior clergy engaged, and why they behaved as they did: to protect the institution, the Catholic Church, at whatever cost. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:43 AM

• Paedophile priests can't be named and shamed

 
   IRELAND -- Irish Independent By Fionnan Sheahan, Edel Kennedy and John Cooney Monday November 23 2009
   MOST clerical abusers in the Dublin archdiocese will not be named in the damning report of the expert group investigating child abuse, the Irish Independent has learned.
   The report, due to be published on Thursday, has found that four Catholic archbishops of Dublin were aware of complaints of child sex abuse involving priests in the diocese.
   But a desire to protect the Church meant a horrific litany of crimes was not reported to gardai, the Child Abuse Commission Report will reveal. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:40 AM

• Child abuse report leaks slammed

   
   IRELAND -- Irish Health,
   Fine Gael has criticised the ‘selective release’ of the clerical child abuse report, saying it should be published without further delay.
   Details of the report of the Commission Investigating Clerical Child Abuse in the Archdiocese of Dublin were printed in yesterday’s Sunday Independent in spite of the fact that the report has not yet been published.
   “The investigation has taken nine years and until today the integrity of the process involved was preserved. The shocking revelation contained within the report will inevitably cause enormous stress to the many victims and it is essential that all necessary arrangements are in place to provide counselling to those in need of help on the report’s publication,” said Alan Shatter, Fine Gael spokesperson for children. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:32 AM

• Looking at America's dirty little secret

  [Mr Kevin Peninska] - Indigenous Americans.  
   The Huffington Post By Tim Giago (Nanwica Kciji) 2009 Native Sun News November 23, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- There seems to be a consensus among several tribal elders that there is trauma impacting Native Americans as the residue of the boarding school era. They believe that anyone speaking publicly about the sexual abuse of Indian children at Indian mission and Bureau of Indian Affairs boarding schools better have thick skins because they will be publicly chastised for expressing those views.
   Several tribal members from Montana decided that it is not too late to do something about it. They formed a committee and set about planning a conference in which they would bring Native American speakers, psychologists, health care providers, teachers, leaders of women's organizations, and survivors of sexual trauma together.
   Elrae Potts said, "We had a meeting to discuss the terrible things Kevin Peniska, who was just sentenced to 110 years in prison, did while pretending to be an advocate for Indian children. This is the worst kind of hypocrite and what further damage did he do?" To the committee, Peniska's actions angered and disgusted them, but it also opened the door to bring the dirty little secrets of the Indian boarding schools out of the closet. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:20 AM

• Many back Missouri incest suspect

 
   MISSOURI -- St. Louis Post-Dispatch By Judy L. Thomas, Donald Bradley and Brian Burnes MCCLATCHY NEWSPAPERS Nov/23/2009
   KANSAS CITY – In June, Burrell E. Mohler Sr., 76, seemed a perfectly reasonable choice to give the Father's Day sermon at his tiny Bates City Community of Christ Church.
   After all, he was a family man. Proud of his four sons. Loved all those grandchildren.
   But months later, Mohler's reputation as the strict but good patriarch would come crashing down.
   He's in jail now, after allegations from at least three grandchildren that "sleepovers" on his farm often meant incestuous rape, and that when granddaddy sang "Itsy-Bitsy Spider," his hands ended up in wrong places. After allegations that their uncles wedded and bedded first-graders in a chicken coop and that their father did unspeakable things to them less than a mile from that little white church. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:16 AM

• Clergy are accused of continuing to stonewall the claims of victims

   
   Irish Independent, By Edel Kennedy, Monday November 23 2009
   IRELAND -- BISHOPS are continuing to stonewall victims of clerical sex abuse, support agencies claimed last night.
   One in Four director Maeve Lewis said the public are unlikely to be surprised by the Catholic Church's cover-up of sex abuse crimes.
   But she said they may be surprised to read that some gardai often dismissed abuse claims or said it didn't fall under their remit. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:14 AM, Nov 23, 2009]

• Internet child porn targeted

   
   The Chronicle-Herald, By STEPHEN MAHER, Ottawa Bureau, Mon. Nov 23, 2009
   OTTAWA, Canada – The federal government plans to crack down on child pornography with a proposed law that will require Internet service providers to report web surfers who download illegal material.
   "Internet service providers will be compelled to notify police and safeguard evidence if they believe a child pornography offence has been committed," a senior government official said Sunday.
   The proposed law will also require Internet service providers to report any tips they receive about websites. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:12 AM

• Pedophile Priest Working Near Kids

   
   Fox 25, with video,
   BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS (FOX25, myfoxboston) - Even if an employer checks someone's criminal record, it's no guarantee that person's past is unblemished.
   Fox Undercover has discovered a disturbing example: a former priest who admitted sexually abusing boys who is working in a place where he has access to children. …
   Roland Lepire walks the lot at Boch New to You, a used car dealer in Norwood. Two customers, who brought along their young child, have no clue about their salesman's past. That past includes an admission that he molested five boys while he was a priest at different parishes in Rhode Island. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:06 AM

• Sexual abuse charges against priest deemed ‘credible’

  [1970s Mons. Thomas Bevan - NEW*] - RCC. Four students.
   Cumberland Times-News,
   CUMBERLAND, MARYLAND – The Archdiocese of Baltimore plans to appoint a new pastor for the Church of St. Patrick after determining that allegations of sexual abuse against Monsignor Thomas Bevan were "credible," the congregation learned over the weekend.
   In a letter that was read to parishioners during weekend masses, the Archbishop of Baltimore announced that Bevan "will not be permitted to return to active priestly ministry in the Catholic Church" because of claims by four individuals that they were abused by Bevan in the early and mid-1970s when he was serving at parishes in Frederick and Middle River.
   Bevan was removed as pastor of St. Patrick’s in August, after two individuals who attended St. John School in Frederick claimed they’d been abused as minors. In the months since then, two other individuals who attended Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School in Middle River have come forward with similar allegations, Archbishop Edwin O’Brien’s letter states. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:02 AM

• Archbishops put church honour before children

   
   Irish Independent, By John Cooney, Monday November 23 2009
   IRELAND -- AT the height of Ireland's clerical child sexual abuse scandals, American canon lawyer Fr Tom Doyle predicted the archdiocese of Dublin rated "at the top of the heap" on a world scale for its appalling quota of rapist offenders whose heinous crimes were blithely covered up by the church authorities.
   Confirmation of the accuracy of Fr Doyle's assessment has appeared in the first leak from the report of the Commission of Investigation into the Dublin Archdiocese which is with the Government for edited approval at tomorrow's Cabinet meeting.
   Its damnable and sordid details of how pervert clergy preyed on children -- while four successive archbishops of Dublin failed to inform the gardai of indictable crimes -- also confirms what for almost a year now Archbishop Diarmuid Martin has lost no opportunity in warning "will shock us all". Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:59 AM

• Cardinal Connell's actions were just 'too little, too late'

  [Fr Ivan Payne] - RCC. Boy.
   Irish Independent, By John Cooney, Monday November 23 2009
   IRELAND -- TOO little, too late is likely to be the judgment by the Commission of Investigation on how Cardinal Desmond Connell handled clerical child sex abuse allegations during his troubled 16-year reign as Archbishop of Dublin.
   Plucked in 1988 by Pope John Paul II from his ivory tower at University College Dublin, where he had taught metaphysics for 35 years, Cardinal Connell inherited an insurance scheme to shield the archdiocese financially from escalating abuse compensation claims.
   A hugely unpopular Archbishop of Dublin, he found himself at the centre of numerous public controversies -- including providing a glowing job reference to an American diocese on behalf of one priest abuser, and for giving a loan to the convicted paedophile Fr Ivan Payne. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:57 AM

• Coakley made deal in 1995 priest case

   
   The Boston Globe, By Michael Rezendes, Globe Staff / November 23, 2009
   MASSACHUSETTS -- When Martha Coakley was the Middlesex district attorney, her office prosecuted the Rev. John J. Geoghan based on an allegation that he squeezed the buttocks of a 10-year-old boy a single time at a public swimming pool. The highly publicized 2002 conviction won Coakley widespread praise for bringing the first successful criminal case against the widely accused pedophile, a priest many had called "Father Jack."
   But seven years earlier, Coakley, then the head of the Middlesex child abuse unit, had Geoghan in her sights and took a dramatically different approach. Back then, three grade-school brothers told investigators that Geoghan had inappropriately touched them during numerous visits to their Waltham home, and had made lewd telephone calls to them. Rather than prosecute, Coakley agreed to grant Geoghan a year of probation in a closed-door proceeding that received no media attention at all.
   Because of the deal, Geoghan faced no formal charges and no criminal record. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:54 AM

• Medb Ruane: The devil is in the detail of this depraved vision of hell

  - 4 archbishops covered up.  
   Irish Independent, By Medb Ruane, Monday November 23 2009
   IRELAND -- Visions of hell have long been used to control human behaviour, but no Dante or Hieronymus Bosch could paint the depravities described in the report of the Dublin Archdiocese Child Abuse commission, which will be released on Thursday.
   Coming just seven weeks after the anniversary of Pope John Paul II's 1979 visit, the report will state that four successive Catholic Archbishops of Dublin consistently covered up allegations of child sexual assault and rape by priests for a period of at least 40 years.
   Archbishops Connell, McNamara, Ryan, and McQuaid exempted themselves and their priests from proper scrutiny by civil authorities while preaching vocally about the wrongfulness of sex before marriage, divorce, homosexuality and women priests. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:49 AM

• New Nova Scotia bishop has 'broad shoulders'

   
   National Post, by Charles Lewis, Published: Monday, November 23, 2009
   CANADA -- Brian Dunn said he could not have been more surprised about his new appointment, which came on the weekend from Pope Benedict, naming him the new bishop of one of the most troubled Catholic dioceses in Canada.
   But one man who taught Bishop Dunn moral theology said the Vatican picked the right person because "he has the broad shoulders to carry the weight of all that pain people are feeling."
   Bishop Dunn, the current Auxiliary Bishop of Sault St. Marie, will be in charge of the Diocese of Antigonish in Nova Scotia. He replaces Raymond Lahey, who was forced to resign earlier this fall after being charged with possession of child pornography. [Posted by Kathy Shaw at 6:44 AM, Nov 23, 2009]
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Mon November 23, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Tue November 24, 2009 edition:

• Sex abuse report out tomorrow

 
   IRELAND The Irish Times By STEPHEN COLLINS and PATSY McGARRY
   THE CABINET was briefed yesterday by Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern on the report into the handling of clerical child sex abuse allegations by Church and State authorities in Dublin’s Catholic archdiocese.
   A Government spokesman said the 750-page report would be published tomorrow.
   Plans to publish it earlier were changed because of yesterday’s public sector strike. There were concerns that helplines would not be available for people who had suffered abuse. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:18 PM

• Diocese reaches abuse settlement

     
   The News Tribune By LISA DEMER ldemer@adn.com
   ALASKA -- Alaska victims of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and volunteers with the Fairbanks diocese could finally receive payments early next year for the damage done.
   A $9.8 million settlement announced in U.S. Bankruptcy Court Tuesday amounts to a big step toward resolving hundreds of claims against the church for abuse, some of it dating back decades, said a lawyer for the victims. And the size of the fund could grow considerably, depending on the results of efforts to extract up to $100 million from two insurance carriers that are not part of the settlement, said Ken Roosa, an Anchorage attorney who represents 240 victims trying to collect through the bankruptcy case.
   The Catholic Bishop of Northern Alaska, the formal name for the diocese, turned to bankruptcy in March 2008 after efforts to settle sexual abuse lawsuits failed. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:16 PM

• Former Western Mass. priest Aaron Cote found guilty of sexually abusing altar boy in Maryland

  [2001-02 Fr Aaron Cote (59)* (Dominican)] - RCC. 10yrs probation. Altar boy.  
   The Republican By Patrick Johnson November 24, 2009
   SPRINGFIELD (MA) -- A former Western Massachusetts priest with ties to Westfield and South Hadley was sentenced to 10 years of probation after he was found guilty Monday in a Maryland court of sexually abusing an altar boy seven years ago.
   Aaron Cote, 59, was found guilty of third-degree sex offense in Montgomery County Circuit Court after Judge Louise G. Scrivener heard an agreed upon statement of facts, according to the Frederick News-Post, the daily newspaper for Frederick County, Md.
   The 10-year sentence and probation was part of a plea deal with prosecutors. As part of the deal, Cote must also register as a sex offender, must undergo evaluation and treatment, and is unable to minister publicly or have any contact with minors. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:13 PM

• Jury awards no damages in Salesianum priest-abuse suit

  [Fr Francis Norris]
   The News Journal By SEAN O’SULLIVAN, November 24, 2009
   WILMINGTON (DE) -- A former student of Salesianum School who alleged he was molested by a priest there in 1962 lost his civil suit seeking damages today.
   A jury ruled that the operators of the school -- the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales -- were liable under the Delaware Child Victim’s Act of 2007, but their actions were not the proximate cause of the harm to James Sheehan.
   Two jurors who did not want to give their names said they found Sheehan’s story about being molested by the late Rev. Francis Norris to be credible, but said “the law” didn’t allow them to make an award in his favor. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:07 PM

• Diocese in Fairbanks, Alaska, agrees to $10M abuse settlement with alleged sex abuse victims

     
   Los Angeles Times, By RACHEL D'ORO Associated Press Writer
   ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) – The Catholic Diocese of Fairbanks in Alaska and representatives of almost 300 alleged victims of sex abuse by clergy have agreed on a settlement of almost $10 million.
   The agreement was discussed at a status hearing Tuesday in federal bankruptcy court and will need to be finalized. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:03 PM

• Support teams set for fallout from archdiocese report

  - RCC.  
   IRELAND -- Irish Examiner By Juno McEnroe Tuesday, November 24, 2009
   ABUSE victim support services will join forces this week to respond to the massive outpouring expected from the publication of the Dublin Archdiocese report.
   Five support services will run one helpline in a bid to enhance the provision of assistance for victims of clerical sexual abuse.
   One central phone line will be manned from dawn until the late hours seven days a week, it was confirmed last night.
   The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre (DRCC) said it had specifically trained support staff to help run the line. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 9:01 PM

• Statement of the Diocese of Bridgeport

 
   CONNECTICUT -- Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport Tuesday, November 24, 2009
   Michael Reck, attorney for the Estate of Mr. Michael Powel, has issued a press release today making accusations about circumstances two generations ago in order to engender bias in present judicial proceedings and to create false impressions regarding the Diocese of Bridgeport.
   After making accusations in his press release regarding priestly misconduct in a particular parish, Mr. Reck artfully identifies himself as an attorney, who "represents the family of Michael Powel, a Connecticut man who was allegedly sexually abused at the parish between 1968 and 1972." While never so stating, he seeks to leave the impression that Michael Powel’s primary allegation is that he was a victim of priestly sexual abuse.
   This is a false impression. In 2002, six years before he died, Mr. Powel sued a man, alleged to have owned a lawn mowing business serving many customers, by accusing him of sexual molestation. This resulted in a widely reported judgment in 2005. After he realized he could not collect this judgment, Mr. Powel filed a new lawsuit in 2006, then alleging that the lawn man was an employee of a Catholic parish; that Mr. Powel was an employee of the lawn man; and that the Diocese of Bridgeport should somehow be responsible because the lawn man injured his employee. His allegations regarding the lawn man’s misconduct, 37 years ago during the 1968 to 1972 time period, were based upon, as Mr. Powel admitted, a "memory" that he said he "recovered" in 2000. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:32 PM

• Ruling In Del. Priest Abuse Lawsuit Favors Church

 
   WJZ, By RANDALL CHASE, Associated Press Writer,
   WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) ? The first trial under a Delaware law allowing alleged victims of child sexual abuse to sue for offenses that happened long ago ended with a mixed message from the jury.
   A New Castle County jury deliberated about eight hours Tuesday before finding the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales liable in a lawsuit filed by 63-year-old James Sheehan. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:27 PM

• Pastor accused of child-sex crimes can't live in home with kids, judge rules

 
   Star News, By Shelby Sebens, Shelby.Sebens@StarNewsOnline.com
   LELAND (NC) -- A Leland pastor accused of child sex abuse is not allowed to live with children under 18 years old, a Brunswick County Superior Court Judge ordered Tuesday.
   James T. Johnson will likely have to move out of his home by Monday because he lives with young children.
   Johnson, 46, has been charged with three counts of indecent liberties with a child, two counts of first-degree sex offense with a child and one count of attempted first-degree rape of a child. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:55 PM

• Diocese fights lawsuit alleging abuse by St. Theresa's priests

 
   Connecticut Post By Daniel Tepfer
   BRIDGEPORT, CONNECTICUT -- Even as the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport moves to comply with a court order to make public thousands of documents detailing abuse by its priests since the 1960s, it is fighting an order to turn over information in an unresolved lawsuit alleging that priests at a Trumbull church abused children.
   In a recent motion filed in Waterbury Superior Court, the diocese asks to block release of information about priests at St. Theresa's Parish dating to the 1970s.
   The motion was made in a lawsuit filed against the diocese by Michael Powel, who claimed he was abused by the Rev. Joseph Gorecki in 1971 at the church. Gorecki died in 1988 and Powel died of cancer last year, but the case is still being pressed by Powel's sister, Margaret Jensen, the administrator of his estate. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:44 PM

• After Kennedy flap, clergy abuse victims say RI bishop not doing enough to protect kids

 
   Newser By MICHELLE R. SMITH | Associated Press
   PROVIDENCE (RI) -- Clergy sex abuse victims and their supporters said Tuesday that Rhode Island's Roman Catholic bishop is not doing enough to protect children from pedophile priests even as he's taken on Democratic Rep. Patrick Kennedy for his stance on abortion rights.
   A small group of protesters gathered outside Bishop Thomas Tobin's office in Providence two days after news broke that the bishop had asked Kennedy in 2007 not to take Holy Communion because he supports abortion rights.
   "He claims that it's important that we protect the unborn. But it's equally as important to protect those who have been born and those young children who have been raped and sodomized by clerics and priests. But yet he seems to protect those clerics," said Ruth Moore, of Hull, Mass. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 5:38 PM

• Bridgeport Diocese: One Parish, 32 Allegations Of Sex Abuse

  - 8 priests from one parish molested minors.
   The Hartford Courant By DAVE ALTIMARI
   [Bridgeport Diocese's Motion To Prevent Disclosure Of Documents]
   [statement from the Diocese of Bridgeport]
   CONNECTICUT -- The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport -- in a legal brief filed in Waterbury Superior Court -- admitted that they have secret files detailing 32 allegations of sexual abuse of children by eight priests assigned over the last 40 years to a single parish -- St. Theresa's in Trumbull.
   The diocese acknowledged the allegations in an attempt to avoid turning over the files, contained in 126 boxes, to attorneys for Michael Powel, a Connecticut man who was allegedly sexually abused at the parish between 1968 and 1972, first by a landscaper/maintenance man and then allegedly by the Rev. Joseph Gorecki.
   "I've never seen this many sexual abuse claims against priests out of one parish," New York attorney Michael Reck said Tuesday. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 3:37 PM

• Abuse allegations 'credible,' pastor removed

  [1970s Mons. Thomas Bevan]
   Baltimore Sun,
   BALTIMORE (MD) -- The Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore has concluded that allegations of child sexual abuse against a Cumberland pastor are credible and will not allow him to return to active ministry, Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien said.
   Monsignor Thomas Bevan, pastor of St. Patrick Church from 1997 until August, has denied the allegations of four individuals who say he abused them in the 1970s, O’Brien wrote in a letter to parishioners delivered at Mass over the weekend.
   The archdiocese removed Bevan in August pending an investigation into allegations by an individual that Bevan abused him on a number of occasions when he was a student at the parish school of St. John Catholic Church in Frederick during the mid-1970s. In 2005, the archdiocese had investigated a similar allegation by a different individual, but concluded that there was not sufficient evidence at the time to remove him. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:48 PM

• Clerical sex abuse report cleared

  - RCC and Irish State.  
   Ireland Online, Nov 24, 2009
   IRELAND -- The Government today cleared for publication an investigation exposing sickening child sex abuse by Catholic priests in the Dublin Archdiocese.
   The 700-page report will be publicly released on Thursday although it will be censored in parts so as not to prejudice ongoing or potential criminal cases.
   Justice Minister Dermot Ahern briefed Taoiseach Brian Cowen and his ministerial colleagues on the findings of the inquiry before it was signed off during a Cabinet meeting this morning. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 2:39 PM

• Priest arrested on suspicion of child abuse at East Lancashire college

  [1970s Fr Paul Symonds*] - RCC. Former teacher too. Boy.    
   Lancashire Telegraph, By Sam Chadderton,
   UNITED KINGDOM -- A ROMAN Catholic priest who used to teach at an East Lancashire college has been arrested on suspicion of child abuse.
   Detectives from the Metropolitan Police Force’s Child Abuse Investigation Team investigating the alleged sexual abuse of a boy in the 1970s, have arrested former Stonyhurst College teacher Father Paul Symonds.
   Fr Symonds, a curate in Ballymena, Co Antrim, Northern Ireland, has already been asked to leave his job while the probe into the sex abuse claim is carried out. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:49 PM

• Abuse report presented to Cabinet

  - RCC and Irish State.  
   RTE News, Tuesday, November 24, 2009
   IRELAND -- The interim report of the Commission of Investigation into clerical sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Dublin has been presented to Cabinet.
   It is expected that the report will be published on Thursday.
   The report details how the Catholic Church and State authorities responded to allegations of clerical child abuse made against a sample of 46 priests. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:16 PM

• Women religious not complying with Vatican study

  - RCC.  
   National Catholic Reporter (USA), By Thomas C. Fox Nov. 24, 2009
   UNITED STATES -- The vast majority of U.S. women religious are not complying with a Vatican request to answer questions in a document of inquiry that is part of a three-year study of the congregations. Leaders of congregations, instead, are leaving questions unanswered or sending in letters or copies of their communities' constitutions.
   "There's been almost universal resistance," said one women religious familiar with the responses compiled by the congregation leaders. "We are saying 'enough!' In my 40 years in religious life I have never seen such unanimity."
   The deadline for the questionnaires to be filled out and returned to the Vatican-appointed apostolic visitator, superior general of the Apostles of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Mother Mary Clare Millea, was Nov. 20. On that day, according to an informed source, congregation leaders across the nation sent Millea letters and, in many cases, only partial answers to the questionnaire. Many women, instead of filling out the forms, replied by sending in copies of their Vatican -approved orders' religious constitutions. A religious order's constitution states its rationale, purpose and mission. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 1:09 PM

• Court Documents Show 32 Child Sex Abuse Claims Related To 8 Molesters At Trumbull Parish

 
   CONNECTICUT -- Manly & Stewart
   In new court documents, the Diocese of Bridgeport admitted they have secret files detailing how a single parish housed at least eight molesting clergy tied to 32 child sex abuse claims. Despite the revelation, diocese officials recently filed a motion in an attempt to keep the files secret.
   The documents in question concern St. Theresa, a Trumbull parish where at least one civil sex abuse trial is pending. Documents filed by diocese lawyers state that they have documents chronicling eight molesting clergy who lived or worked there and the 32 sex abuse allegations against them. The revelation was contained in a motion asking the court to keep the records sealed, including all sex abuse claims after 1973.
   "This is a public safety nightmare," said J. Michael Reck of Manly and Stewart, New York City, an attorney for victims in the Bridgeport Diocese. "First, the Diocese went all the way to the Supreme Court to keep their files secret. Now, even though their own documents show that their parishes were networks of child sexual abusers, they don't think it's important to alert the communities of the danger." Reck represents the family of Michael Powell, a Connecticut man who was allegedly sexually abused at the parish between 1968 and 1972. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 11:20 AM

• And we're back …

 
   MISSOURI -- Pitch Weekly By Justin Kendall
   –Let's pick up where we left off last week.
   Incest porn isn't enough to ding the Mohler family's reputation in the eyes of their friends and family. The Kansas City Star asked allies of the Mohler men what they thought of the charges of sexual abuse against the six family members and found a chorus of people questioning the credibility of the alleged victims and defending men accused of sexually abusing their own blood. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:54 AM

• When Charged with Raping Your Granddaughters, You Should Probably Get Rid of Your Incest Porn

 
   MISSOURI -- Riverfront Times By Keegan Hamilton
   Consider yourself lucky if you've been able to avoid the sick, sad tale of the family of incestuous hillbillies from Independence, Missouri.
   In what has to rank as the most stomach-turning story since Jaycee Dugard, 76-year-old Burrell "Ed" Mohler Sr. is accused of repeatedly raping his elementary school-aged granddaughters and videotaping the acts. Oh yeah, five of his sons and his brother allegedly took part too.
   It gets worse. We'll spare the icky details but just know that there's a chicken coop, "mock weddings," and the "Itsy Bitsy Spider" song involved. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:41 AM

• Bail application of temple priest rejected

   
   Press Trust of India STAFF WRITER Nov 24, 2009
   Kancheepuram, INDIA, (PTI) A local court here has rejected the bail application of a temple priest, who was arrested last week for allegedly being involved in immoral activities in the precincts of the temple.
   The prosecution, however, told Judicial Magistrate G Sudha yesterday that the accused did not cooperate with them and that police were not able to elicit information on the women allegedly involved. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:39 AM

• Fair Lawn priest sued for sexual misconduct

  [2007 Fr Edson Costa -NEW*] - RCC. Woman.  
   Daily Record, BY KAREN SUDOL, Tuesday, November 24, 2009
   NEW JERSEY -- An elderly woman has filed a lawsuit against a Fair Lawn priest who has admitted in court that he forced her to touch him in a sexual manner in 2007.
   The woman claims in the lawsuit that the actions of the Rev. Edson Fernando Costa, an assistant pastor at St. Anne’s Church at the time, caused her "emotional distress, trauma, humiliation and degradation."
   She also names as defendants the St. Anne’s pastor who supervised Costa, the church, the Archdiocese of Newark and the archbishop of Newark in the lawsuit filed on Nov. 10. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:36 AM

• Parish shocked by Priest Probe

  [1970s Fr Paul Symonds*] - RCC. Former teacher too. Boy.    
   Ballymena Times, By Elinor Glynn, November 24, 2009
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- BALLYMENA'S Catholic community was left stunned and shocked on Sunday to learn that one of their serving priests had been asked to leave his post over a claim of child abuse.
   Many parishioners of Kirkinriola, which includes All Saints, Crebilly and Harryville, left Mass looking visibly shocked and some were in tears after hearing that Fr Paul Symonds was the subject of a police investigation.
   The accusation made against Fr Symonds, a curate in the Kirkinriola Parish, dates back to the 1970s when he worked in England. - Church authorities have refused to reveal where he was working on the mainland at that time. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:33 AM

• Catholic official calls for end to celibacy for priests

  - RCC.  
   The Local,
   GERMANY -- Alois Glück, the new head of Germany’s main Catholic association, on Tuesday called for an end to celibacy vows for priests.
   “I would welcome allowing established married deacons to be ordained as priests,” the president of the Central Committee of German Catholics told daily newspaper Bild.
   But Glück said such a decision could not be made only for Germany. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:31 AM

• Former Vermont resident charged with molesting girls

  [2006-07 "Priest" Paul Cool -NEW*] - Breakaway LDS. 2 female minor relatives.  
   Burlington Free Press, By Sam Hemingway, Tuesday, November 24, 2009
   VERMONT -- A former Vermont resident and purported priest with a spin-off Mormon church organization has been arrested in Missouri on charges he fondled two female relatives while living in Vermont several years ago.
   Paul Cool, 49, of Blue Springs, Mo., is facing two charges of lewd and lascivious conduct. One charge involves alleged fondling incidents with a teenage relative at a home in South Royalton in 2006 and 2007; the other alleges he touched a pre-teen relative at a home in Cornwall in 2007 and 2008.
   According to a police affidavit on file at Vermont District Court in White River Junction, police were alerted to Cool's alleged conduct when the mother of the two victims contacted police in February and said Cool had inappropriately touched her teenage daughter in 2006 and 2007. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:29 AM

• Mo. man charged with Vt. sex offense

  [2006-07 "Priest" Paul Cool*] - Breakaway LDS. 2 female minor relatives.  
   Rutland Herald,
   ROYALTON, VERMONT – A Missouri man will face sex charges in Vermont.
   Authorities in Missouri were investigating allegations of inappropriate sexual contact with an adult and a child against Paul Cool, 49, of Amity, Mo., when their investigation led to another in Vermont. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:27 AM

• Group Asks Victims to Step Forward

  [2006-07 "Priest" Paul Cool*] - Breakaway LDS. 2 female minor relatives.
   KSHB, with video, Reported by: Keith King, king@nbcactionnews.com ,
   KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI -- An organization aimed at helping victims of sexual abuse committed by church leaders now asks for any potential victims to step forward following the arrest of a Missouri man.
   SNAP stands for Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. The organization says Paul Cool has past leadership roles in churches with Missouri ties.
   Cool lives in Amity, Mo. He is charged in Vermont with two counts of lewd and lascivious crimes, including one count against a child. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:22 AM

• Cabinet to discuss abuse report

  - RCC and Irish State.  
   The Irish Times,
   IRELAND -- The report into the handling of clerical child sex abuse allegations by church and State authorities in Dublin’s Catholic archdiocese is expected to be discussed at today's Cabinet meeting.
   The report is now likely to be published on Thursday. Plans to publish it earlier this week had to be changed due to tomorrow’s public sector strike, which would mean helplines would not be available for people who had suffered abuse.
   After the High Court gave clearance for the report for publication on October 15th and following representations by the DPP to the Department of Justice, it was referred back to the High Court on October 21st when it came to light that criminal proceedings had been initiated on October 2nd and 5th last against another priest dealt with in the report. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:19 AM

• Court date slated for convicted murderer priest

  [1980 Fr Robinson]  
   PhillyBurbs,
   OHIO -- An Ohio Roman Catholic priest convicted of murdering a nun will make a court appearance in January, his first since his 2006 trial.
   Seventy-one-year-old Rev. Gerald Robinson maintains his innocence in the 1980 killing of Sister Margaret Ann Pahl. He won't be physically in the courtroom for the Jan. 22 oral arguments scheduled Monday by a county judge in Toledo but will instead appear through video. Robinson is serving a 15 years to life prison term at the Hocking Correctional Facility in southeast Ohio. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:12 AM

• Priest arrested over abuse claim

  [1970s Fr Paul Symonds*] - RCC. Former teacher too. Boy.    
   BBC News,
   NORTHERN IRELAND -- A Catholic priest has been arrested on suspicion of child abuse.
   The accusation against Father Paul Symonds, a curate in the parish of Kirkinriola, Ballymena, dates back to the 1970s when he worked in England.
   The 65-year-old was arrested by the Metropolitan Police on Monday on suspicion of indecent assault. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:59 AM

• Precious years were lost in Mohler investigation

  - Mohler group.  
   The Kansas City Star,
   MISSOURI -- The courts will eventually determine what happened on Burrell Mohler Sr.’s rural Bates City farm. But one thing has become abundantly clear as this horrifying story unfolds: The investigation into alleged sexual abuse of children is a decade or more overdue.
   There is no excuse for the lack of serious investigation of accusations of this nature once they passed beyond the family.
   Sunday’s Kansas City Star said accusations went outside the family as early as 1995. Complaints made their way to legal authorities by 2000. These allegations should have been taken more seriously by state agencies, law enforcement, court and church officials. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:56 AM

• Ireland braces for another Catholic clergy sex abuse report

   
   Reuters Posted by: Tom Heneghan
   IRELAND -- A damning report on sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests in Dublin is due out later this week, only six months after another report on abuse in industrial and reformatory schools across the country accused priests and nuns of flogging, starving and, in some cases, raping children in their care.
   “It will not be easy reading,” Dublin Archbishop Diarmuid Martin said of this new report back in May when the uproar over the first report prompted so many calls to counseling services for abuse victims that the advice centre had to close temporarily because it couldn’t handle all the inquiries.
   The Sunday Independent newspaper, which broke the news, said the report will accuse the four archbishops who preceded Martin of covering up the abuse “to preserve the power and aura of the Church and to avoid giving scandal to their congregations.” Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:50 AM

• Group faults response by Nazarene church to sex abuse lawsuit

  - Church of the Nazarene said the 5 girls were to blame.  
   The Kansas City Star
   MISSOURI -- An advocacy group for child victims of sexual abuse by clergy on Monday criticized the Church of the Nazarene’s response to a lawsuit.
   The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests points to the lawsuit in Oklahoma that accuses the church of complicity in the sexual abuse of five girls by an elementary church pastor in that state. Specifically, SNAP decries a church response that asserted, in part, that any injuries or damages suffered by the plaintiffs were caused or contributed to by their own conduct.
   “This is just despicable,” SNAP spokeswoman Judy Jones said Monday in front of the former Nazarene headquarters at 6401 the Paseo. “This is just re-abuse of those victims.” Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:47 AM

• Probe may partly restore Cardinal's reputation

  - RCC.  
   Irish Independent By JOHN COONEY Tuesday November 24 2009
   IRELAND -- THE reputation of Cardinal Desmond Connell could be partially rehabilitated by the publication of the report of the Commission of Investigation into clerical sex abuse in the archdiocese of Dublin.
   The cardinal, who bitterly complained that the abuse issue had devastated his 16-year stewardship of one of Europe's biggest dioceses, is to be credited with reintroducing internal Church tribunals designed to put rapist clerics on secret trial leading to their removal -- or so-called defrocking -- from the priesthood.
   Two priests were reduced to the lay state at a Dublin ecclesiastical tribunal conducted in 1992, which involved two bishops with canon law expertise -- Bishop Willie Walsh of Killaloe and John McAreavey of Newry. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:45 AM

• Audits to reveal how dioceses dealt with child-abuse claims

 
   IRELAND -- Irish Independent By Fergus Black and Grainne Cunningham Tuesday November 24 2009
   MORE details about how Catholic Church dioceses dealt with allegations of child abuse are to emerge within the coming weeks, the Irish Independent has learned.
   As abuse victims await the report of the investigation into the Dublin archdiocese on Thursday, the Health Service Executive (HSE) confirmed that another report of an audit of each diocese was expected to be completed over the coming weeks.
   It will then be forwarded to Children's Minister Barry Andrews. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:43 AM

• Support groups refused cash to deal with fallout

 
   Irish Independent By Dearbhail McDonald Tuesday November 24 2009
   IRELAND -- FRONTLINE groups supporting victims of abuse have been refused exceptional funding from the Government to deal with the fallout of the Dublin Diocese abuse report.
   The Irish Independent has learned that several victim support groups -- who are bracing themselves for a peak in calls from victims -- requested modest additional funds to deal with the fallout of the Dublin inquiry report.
   The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre requested €30,000 in one-off funding to provide additional trained counsellors to man its helpline, which helps callers nationwide and is the country's only 24-hour helpline. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:41 AM

• School let Brother teach after sex attacks on 19 boys

  [1967-68 Bro. Sean Drummond* (Christian Brother)] - RCC. 19 boys.
   Irish Independent By Barry Duggan Tuesday November 24 2009
   IRELAND -- A FORMER Christian Brother who indecently assaulted 19 boys aged between seven and nine was moved to another school after a principal was informed of one of the crimes, a court was told yesterday.
   Sean John Drummond (61) remained silent in Limerick Circuit Criminal Court yesterday as Judge Carroll Moran heard harrowing evidence of the abuse he inflicted upon the second class pupils at a national school between between July 1 1967 and July 31 1968.
   Many of Drummond's former pupils were in court and provided testimony of the impact he had had upon their lives. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:39 AM

• Five-year term for priest who taped abused child

  [2006-07 Fr Michael Molloy*] - RCC. 5yrs prison. Filmed the action. Teen boy.  
   Irish Independent By Elaine Keogh Tuesday November 24 2009
   IRELAND -- A PRIEST and former hospital chaplain who recorded a schoolboy he sexually abused on his mobile phone has been jailed for five years.
   Michael Molloy (44), who was a chaplain at Cavan General Hospital, pleaded guilty to two counts of defilement of the boy and to a count of possessing child pornography.
   Cavan Circuit Criminal Court heard Molloy sent the boy sexually explicit mobile phone text messages and showed him pornographic DVDs. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:36 AM

• Church's bill to hit €20m after latest sex claims

 
   IRELAND Irish Independent
   By Sam Smyth, John Walshe and Edel Kennedy
   Tuesday November 24 2009
   THE compensation bill for victims of child abuse in the Dublin diocese is set to double to more than €20m, the Irish Independent has learned.
   The total is likely to soar after shocking details of abuse by paedophile priests were made public over the weekend.
   The report of the Commission of Investigation into child abuse -- which will be presented to the Cabinet today -- will detail further evidence of horrific abuse involving priests in the Dublin diocese. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:33 AM
  
  

• Diocese pays $325,000 in sex abuse case

 
   TRENTON (NJ) The Times of Trenton
   Tuesday, November 24, 2009 STAFF WRITER The Roman Catholic Diocese of Trenton has paid $325,000 to a 32-year-old woman who says she was sexually assaulted by a former diocesan priest, the late Rev. Ron Becker who was pastor of Incarnation Church in the 1970s and 1980s.
   Jenni Franz said Becker, who was also her uncle, assaulted her in various locations on the Ewing church grounds and at other churches Becker was associated with.
   In a lawsuit, Franz said Becker, who died in January, molested her more than 100 times from when she was 5 until she was 11. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:31 AM

• Priest sentenced to 10 years probation for sex offense

  [2001-02 Fr Aaron Cote (59)* (Dominican)] - RCC. 10yrs probation. Altar boy.
   News-Post By Ron Cassie
   ROCKVILLE (MD) -- A Roman Catholic priest was sentenced Monday in Montgomery County Circuit Court to 10 years probation for sexually abusing an altar boy at a Germantown church more than seven years ago.
   In July, the Rev. Aaron "A.J." Cote pleaded not guilty and was convicted of third-degree sex offense after Judge Louise G. Scrivener heard an agreed upon statement of facts. Employed at the Church of St. Vincent Ferrer in New York City, Cote must register as a sex offender and undergo court-ordered evaluation and treatment.
   The 10-year suspended sentence and probation was part of a plea deal reached by prosecutors. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:28 AM

• Archdiocese: Allegations against former St. John pastor Bevan are credible

 
   BALTIMORE (MD) News-Post
   By Ron Cassie News-Post Staff
   The Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore said an investigation has determined allegations of child sexual abuse against a former Frederick pastor are credible.
   Monsignor Thomas Bevan, 73, was removed from his position at the Church of St. Patrick in Cumberland in August after two people said Bevan abused them as minors in the 1970s while he served at St. John the Evangelist.
   In a letter to parishioners read Sunday at St. Patrick's, Archbishop Edwin O'Brien wrote that two other people have subsequently come forward alleging Bevan abused them while he served at a Middle River church in the 1970s. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:26 AM
  
  

• Jury to begin deliberations in priest-abuse suit

 
   WILMINGTON (DE) The News Journal
   By SEAN O'SULLIVAN • The News Journal • November 24, 2009
   WILMINGTON -- Attorneys for a man who claims he was molested by a priest at Salesianum School in 1962 told a Superior Court jury Monday that the school and the religious order that operates it "put a wolf in sheep's clothing" into a classroom.
   Stephen and Thomas Neuberger's client James Sheehan, now 63, was 15 when the Rev. Francis L. Norris molested him, he alleges. Sheehan claims the school and the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales, which operates it, were "grossly negligent." Norris was a suicidal alcoholic who could not control his actions, his attorneys argued.
   Norris, who died in 1985, had issues with depression and alcoholism, the Oblates' attorney, Colleen Shields, said, but those problems were irrelevant to the allegations of sexual abuse. She said that for as long as he lived, the school had no evidence that Norris abused students. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:23 AM
  
  

• Abuse report to be seen by Cabinet today

 
   IRELAND RTE News
   Tuesday, 24 November 2009 The interim report of the Commission of Investigation into clerical sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Dublin will be presented to Cabinet later today.
   It is expected that the report will be published on Thursday.
   The report details how the Catholic Church and State authorities responded to allegations of clerical child abuse made against a sample of 46 priests. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 7:20 AM
  
////////// End of Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker Tue November 24, 2009
Abuse Chronology: http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/ethics/ethcont166.htm
For good teachings to be heeded, a big clean-up is needed.

#### Clergy Sex Abuse Tracker, www.bishop- accountability. org/ abuse tracker , Wed November 25, 2009 edition:

 

• DUIN: Priest sex abuse study eyes 'context'

 
   UNITED STATES Washington Times
   By Julia Duin
   Last week, at the annual business meeting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, there was the oddest presentation at their Tuesday morning session.
   Maggie Smith and Karen Terry from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York were giving an update on a long-awaited "causes and context" study of sexual abuse by priests. The USCCB contributed $1 million to fund it and an additional $915,000 came from donors, foundations and a federal agency - the National Institute of Justice - which gave $283,000.
   Ms. Terry began with a timeline of the worst periods of sex abuse, which spiked in the early 1960s, peaked in the late 1970s, then fell in the 1980s. Sex abuse by priests was consistent with the "pattern of social change in the United States between 1950 and 2002," she said. Posted by Kathy Shaw at 8:18 PM