Diversions

The Vatican has finally decided to forgive The Beatles for their satanic messages in such songs like "All You Need is Love." An ungrateful Ringo said "...they've got more to talk about than the Beatles." Doesn't he realize that it took the Vatican 359 years to pardon Galileo? Comparably The Beatles were fast tracked.

But Ringo may be onto something. This could be a diversion from discussing the cover-up of the sexual abuse scandal reaching the Pope's door. I think some other topics are also diversions.

Celibacy

Some have suggested that celibacy is the problem for the clergy sexual abuse of children. So are the proponents of this theory suggesting that if a man does not get laid for ten years, one day he will wake up and say, "Gee, I think I'll boink a kid"? Haven't they heard of craigslist?

I can't even begin to connect these dots. I worry about those who do. I think we need to create a registry for people who come to this conclusion. The creepy logic registry.

Allow Priests to Marry

Some are suggesting, as an offshoot from the celibacy argument, that allowing priests to marry will stop the sexual abuse of children. Because we all know married men never sexually abuse children.

Okay maybe they do.

The notorious serial abuser from the Fall River Diocese, Father James Porter, was married after he left the priesthood.  As a priest he has admitted to abusing over 100 kids. He was arrested and prosecuted for abusing his kids babysitter.

I guess his marriage didn't protect children.

Gays

Recently the Vatican has been saying that gay priests are the reasons for the sexual abuse of children.

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone said "Many psychologists, many psychiatrists have demonstrated there exists no relationship between celibacy and pedophilia." So far so good.

"But many others have demonstrated, and have told me recently, that there is a link between homosexuality and pedophilia. This is true, this is the problem."

As it is with the celibacy argument, if a gay man wants to have sex he doesn't need to go to college, get accepted to seminary school and get ordained as a priest to do so. He can use craigslist. A pedophile would take the other route.

And how does the gay argument explain female victims? It seems to me the Vatican only seems to think sexually abusing little boys is the problem. But little girls?

Suddenly they become Maurice Chevalier singing "Thank Heaven for Little Girls"

The sexual abuse of little girls by priests still seems to be a secret. Or tolerated.

Prayer

One of the best solutions the Vatican and Catholics seem to be offering is prayer. It seems as if they pray hard enough, priests will stop abusing children.

The Knights of Columbus are even sponsoring a Novena.

V/ Let us pray for Benedict, the pope.R/ May the Lord preserve him, give him a long life,
make him blessed upon the earth,
and not hand him over to the power of his enemies.
V/ May your hand be upon your holy servant.
R/ And upon your son, whom you have anointed.

Uh oh. I think I'm the enemy.

And all I'm suggesting we do is prosecute criminals. Including the Pope.

A kind of secular solution.

Recently I've been feeling this heavy weight on my back and I couldn't quite figure it out. Until I received an email from Voice of the Faithful saying they were having Vigils of Sorrow on Good Friday to "stand in solidarity with victims of clergy abuse."

Really? They want to stand with us again? Why it seems like only yesterday that we were standing on the streets of Providence, in the rain, as they held their convention without much concern for the victims, on whose backs they built their organization.

Heck, because of all of the news about the Pope, VOTF's President Dan Bartley has even appeared on CNN. That should help raise some money for them.

I know I sound a little cynical. I do understand that this is reflective of the organization on the national scale. I also know that there are many local affiliates of Voice of the Faithful with integrity.

Apparently these vigils will be held at major cathedrals in Boston, New York and Washington D.C. I'm not sure I see this as the right PR move. It is Good Friday and the church will be discussing nothing but forgiveness. That is what the church is all about.

Unless you are the New York Times. Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio of Brooklyn has gone as far to say, "I might even suggest canceling our subscriptions to The New York Times, but we need to know what the enemy is saying." That's not very forgiving.

Let alone the likes of our friend Bill Donohue at the Catholic League. When he forgives Larry David, Bill Maher and Kathy Griffin, then I will start to believe the church is about forgiveness.

They used to go willingly and humbly to the lions to profess their faith, now they can't even take a joke.

Is forgiveness what we are looking for anyway? How about justice first?

If you want to protest, why not start with the offices of federal prosecutors, attorneys general and local DAs? They are the only agents who can promote real change. Resignations won't solve anything, but prosecution will.

The question "Will the Pope resign?" is irrelevant.

From Boston to Australia to Ireland to Germany and everywhere in between, the handling of clergy sexual abuse worldwide has been the same. We should be looking at why.

The abuse is reported to the Bishop, and he either sends the priest to another Diocese or to a "treatment center" and then reassigns him, without ever notifying the authorities. Are we to believe this is all a coincidence? That they have acted individually and independently from each other? Not likely.

Let's look at how the Dioceses of Worcester and Fort Worth handled Fr. Tom Teczar. He served for a little while at St. Mary's in Uxbridge prior to this. That's where he got to know me.

Here is an article written by Richard Nagle from the Worcester Telegram, April 21, 2003.

In a letter:
Monsignor Raymond J. Page, vicar general of the Worcester diocese, wrote to Bishop Reilly, then in charge of the diocese serving Norwich, Conn., "Father Teczar is a priest of this diocese. Bishop Harrington has granted him a leave of absence with the suggestion that he seek a benevolent bishop.

"Tom's difficulties came to a head two years ago when a 16-year-old boy accused Tom of soliciting him," the letter continued.

Monsignor Page also wrote Bishop Reilly that "Bishop Harrington says there has long been a cloud of suspicion over Tom. Bishop Harrington knows a trail of damaged youngsters he left in one town. The police there were far from pleased. In that town, the police threatened to find a reason to arrest him if he returned there." Bishop Reilly declined to take on Rev. Teczar, and the Worcester diocese began to focus on Fort Worth.

With the knowledge of this risk, Bishop Delaney of Fort Worth still wanted Tom to serve in his Diocese. In a letter to the Worcester Diocese he wrote:

The letter went on, "Bishop Rueger sent me a copy of the letter you received from Mr. James Reardon, the diocesan attorney, with his opinion that Father Teczar should be excardinated from the Diocese of Worcester immediately. While respecting Mr. Reardon's expertise in civil law, I want to raise with you other questions about this matter involving both justice and charity." 

Bishop Delaney said he believed Rev. Teczar would perform well for the Fort Worth diocese. "Let me be clear about the three-year wait," he wrote. "It is not due to concern about Tom's past problem. If I had serious concern in that regard I would not be dealing with the matter at all! ... In Tom's case there is the past problem that you and he have fully shared with me. But that is not the reason for the wait. If I had any fear that the problem would ever arise again I could not and would not accept him at all for any length of time. "

You told me both times we talked that you believe Tom can do effective priestly work and that you do not want to see him laicized. I can offer him that chance ... I am willing to provide the Diocese of Worcester with a document absolving you of any responsibility for Father Teczar's conduct during this time."

That document absolving  Worcester cost Fort Worth $4.15 million in settlements. It ultimately gave Teczar a 50-year prison sentence. Not to mention the children that were abused.

There was full disclosure between these two Bishops. It is time for the full disclosure of the policy of the cover.

It is clear they knew what they were doing. Just like they did Germany and everywhere else. I wish I could say April Fools, but I can't. This is no joke.

The only fools are those who believe the Catholic Church will police themselves.