By Father Michael Orsi
Chaplain and Research Fellow, Ave Maria School of Law
Over the past few weeks, the Catholic Church has once again been roiled in scandal. This new controversy was sparked by revelations of a double-life led by the late Father Marcial Maciel Degollado (1920-2008), founder of The Legion of Christ. After an internal investigation, the congregation discovered that Father Maciel had fathered a child, a daughter now in her twenties. Other reports from a former financial officer of the order tell of the founder taking large sums of money with him, for unexplained reasons, whenever he left Rome.
All of this follows years of accusations about sexual improprieties and the Vatican’s 2006 “invitation” to Father Maciel to retire from leadership of the order and lead a life of “prayer and penitence.”
The Legionaries have issued a very terse official statement: “We have learned some things about our founder’s life that are surprising and difficult for us to understand. We can confirm that there are some aspects of his life that were not appropriate for a Catholic priest.”
The statement’s lack of specificity in even confirming details of the charges has led to widespread calls for greater transparency, about both Father Maciel and the operations of the organization itself. Catholic media, in particular, have been aggressive in calling the Legion to task, perhaps because of the order’s high-profile presence on the religious-communication scene as owner of The National Catholic Register and other Catholic information outlets.
This story raises three critical questions which need to be explored: (1) Should more be revealed? (2) What does Father Maciel’s life teach us about God? (3) What does it teach us about ourselves?
Somehow it has become a common assumption that putting every aspect of a person’s life up for public scrutiny is a good thing. Especially so those aspects that have to do with sexual matters — the stuff of tabloids and “reality” TV — concern for which, in former times, would have been dismissed as voyeurism. Who can forget the coverage Prince Charles and Princess Diana received over their extramarital sex lives, or for that matter, the media frenzy about what Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinski were up to in the Oval Office?
The question is: Are we better off for knowing all such sordid details? I think not. Those revelations hurt the individuals involved, their families, and their respective nations. They also led to interminably salacious and less-than-edifying conversations, tempting us all into the sin of gossip.
There is much speculation about the identities of Father Maciel’s mistress and daughter. But for them to be “outed” could be a devastating experience. It could also cause needless and unfair suffering to others not directly involved in the situation but close to it. Relentless probing would certainly bring further hurt to the many excellent Legionaries and all the men and women of Regnum Christi, the lay apostolic movement associated with the Legion.
I have often reflected on the words of a pastor who, when confronted with information about the foibles of others, would ask, “How does knowing that bring me closer to Christ?” There are some things we don’t need to know.Transparency in governance would undoubtedly be a good thing for the Legion as a religious community. An investigation of the order’s protocols by a Vatican appointed visitator is appropriate. This should include careful attention to accountability for Legion finances. Donors have a right to know how their money is being spent. But, the extent of a person’s sins and the sordid details of a person’s sex life (whether that individual is alive or dead) is never necessary, and more often than not, merely promotes the sin of detraction.
The Legion’s founder may indeed have been a radically flawed person, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the Legion itself is flawed. God often works through very weak and sinful human beings — a truth which the Legionaries may want to emphasize as part of their reflection for renewal. St. Paul was painfully aware of this when he preached on God’s grace, which as he said, acts through earthen vessels to deliver God’s message and bring about good.
Scripture is replete with examples of how God works through some very unsavory people. For example, King David, an adulterer and a murderer, was beloved by God and, to this day, is honored as the greatest of the Jewish Kings. The late Scripture scholar Raymond Brown astutely pointed out that there are some very tainted women in Jesus’s genealogy: Tamar, who had a sexual relationship with her father in-law, Judah; Ruth, who was a despised Moabite; Rahab, who was a prostitute; and Bathsheba, an adulteress. From these came the Christ!
The old saying, “God writes straight sentences with crooked lines,” comes to mind. Just because Father Maciel was flawed, doesn’t mean the charism of the Legion must be. In fact, the proverb most applicable in this situation is: “By their fruits you will know them.” My experience with the Legion (and the experience of many others) has been greatly rewarding spiritually. The work of Legionaries with priests and laity has borne much fruit. In particular, their defense of Catholic doctrine and the life issues is most commendable (in this regard I highly recommend the work of Legion priest, Father Thomas Berg, LC, director of The Westchester Institute for Ethics and the Human Person).
I have a cousin who became addicted to researching his genealogy. He spent a fortune seeking information from a variety of resource groups, most of which charged fees for their forensic services. Although the findings rarely matched, one theme appeared consistently in their reports: My cousin was descended from royalty, and his ancestors were all heroes. Common sense might confirm the lie, but they told him what he wanted to hear.
The fact is that we all have some monkey on the family tree (or a screwy Uncle Looey). That doesn’t mean we’re tainted by our ancestors’ presence in our genealogy, that we’re responsible for their wrongdoing, or that we’re doomed to repeat their questionable behavior. In some instances we may even profit from it. The life of Old Joe Kennedy still has many questions surrounding it, yet his clan is considered American “royalty.” There is one thing we do inherit through our family line, however: Original Sin. But God knows our human weaknesses. That’s why he sent Jesus, who gave us the sacraments to help overcome the proclivity to sin.
The sexual concerns that sent Father Maciel into retirement before his death were related to allegations of pedophilia during the 1950s. Because of the time lapse, charges could not be proven beyond doubt, but the reports seemed plausible enough to require intervention by the pope. I think Benedict acted wisely and pastorally. He gave Father Maciel an opportunity to make things right with God before he died. One can only hope he made the most of it — in which case, we should all be so graced.
It would appear that Father Maciel committed acts that were horribly wrong. But, his life and legacy were (and still are) valuable to the Church and to the order he founded. Like my cousin, we all wish to believe we come from a long line of wonderful people. Similarly, those in religious life would like to call their community’s founder a saint. We have no way of knowing that Father Maciel isn’t one. The penances he performed at the end of his life might have been efficacious in ways we will never know.
Perhaps this strange, sad episode is part of God’s plan for reconstituting the Legion of Christ into a more effective ministry. In the end, it may turn out to be a moment of grace for all of us.
[Father Orsi penned this essay for the OSV Daily Take. This viewpoint offered differs from some of our previous coverage on this blog of the Legion scandal, and we welcome its contribution to the conversation. Don't hesitate to leave a comment below.]
Update: A moral theologian replies and says, yes we do need some sordid details.
Posts
Please Vote! Please Vote!
28 minutes ago
42 comments:
John, no one's asking the Legion to "name names" of victims or out anyone. However, the fact that Maciel led a double life (confirmed by the Legion) on the heels of the earlier allegations of pederasty and the Holy See's decision for disciplinary action in '06, rightly begs for more clarity about Fr. Maciel. Members of Regnum Christi and the Church in general have a right to know, for instance, whether Fr. Maciel sexually abused minors. Why? Because the Legion and Regnum Christi have a variety of youth apostolates. There is no risk of the sin of detraction to disclose this, honestly and forthrightly. Furthermore, the Legion owes the Church complete assurance that it isn't "covering up" for highly placed LC's (which is what looks to be the case now given all the silence). Finally, doesn't the Legion owe Maciel's victims an acknowledgement as well as an apology?
When this news first broke, the initial reaction was sympathy and assurances of prayers. It was only after the strong impression that the Legion was "stonewalling" in providing sufficient facts that caused the general clamor for "more detail". Let's face it, it's time for the Legion to come clean now. Continued silence only tempts everyone to speculate and, in fact, just gives the Legion more to answer to when it finally does make a statement.
I am not too concerned about the fate of the Legionaries in general, as I trust in the Church hierarchy to sort this all out and fulfill the Lord's Holy Will, but I do think that Fr. Orsi has made an interesting point. He highlights an aspect of the faith that goes largely unnoticed most of the time, an aspect that I find myself forgetting much too often:
“I think Benedict acted wisely and pastorally. He gave Father Maciel an opportunity to make things right with God before he died. “
We live in a time of some very great saints. Take Mother Theresa for example, whose life reflected God so brilliantly that none could deny her holiness. Unfortunately, my experience tells me that many men of our time look at such a woman and, putting her on an unreachable pedestal, say to themselves, “I could never be like her”. Making such a concession, they give up the enterprise of conversion all together. Now consider if Fr. Maciel did take the opportunity presented him by the Pope to reflect, repent, and do penance for the actions of his life. While I'm not ready to canonize Fr. Maciel, nor do I condone in the slightest any of his actions before the Pope intervened, there is a possibility that he may yet turn out to be an inspiration for the men of our time. These men, who look at a holy life such as Mother Theresa's and give up hope, can look at the life of a man like Fr. Maciel and think that maybe there is hope for them too. If God is going to reach the men of our era, he has to also work with the ugly and imperfect. It all reminds me of Flannery O'Connor, who understood this better than anyone, and set out to reach such men through her writing. She summed up her project as this:
“The Catholic writer insofar as he has the mind of the Church, will feel life from the standpoint of the central Christian mystery: that it has, for all its horror, been found by God to be worth dying for. “
My request then to the Catholic media is this: do some research on the time that Fr. Maciel spent after the Pope's request. It could be that Fr. Maciel was so hardened in his sin that he wasted his last few years and died with his gaze away from God. But after reading so many conversion stories, I recognize the distinct possibility that Grace of God was directed at this man, to bring about repentance and conversion. Research and see if he did indeed repent and come back into the fold. If he did, perhaps his story might lead a few other lost sheep to feel worthy of approaching the Shepard again.
I agree that there is no need to be prurient. However Jesus warned that a bad tree cannot bear anything but bad fruits. Also Saint John tells us that while the Children of darkness walk in the dark the children of the light do their deeds openly.
If the child abuse scandals in the Church have taught us nothing else it has surely taught us the need for transparency.
Holiness of a ministry begins with holiness of the leadership. Jesus has told us that no disciple can be above his master. The disciples of Maciel are likely leading Jekyl/Hyde lives. There is no holiness without the abiding presence of the holy love of Jesus Christ. There is no holiness without emotional and psychological wholeness.
How very sad to write this article. I had several dealings wtih LC and their lay organizaton and I have to say there was ALWAYS a spirit of deceptioin. You never really go the full story and I did not feel it was the work of the Holy Spirit and clearly it was not. A mistress and 20 year old daughter; where is everybody! I think the details should be made available for those who wish to know and if someone is not interested they need to read.
I feel the same about Opus Dei. Very sad for the Church. There are Catholic priests and lay organizations (Legion of Mary) - I have never once heard a scandal. This is the Holy Spirit. Anyway alot of duped families with LC and it is very sad. These are peoples lives and families who are destroyed.
We continue to pray!
SHUT THE LEGION DOWN, PERIOD!
Please disband The Legion Of Christ & Regnum Christi, Pope Benedict XVI th; it is a cult (not my words, but those of many dozens of cardinals, bishops, and superiors).
Excluding proven criminality in the serial sexual assault of minors, or the double life of the founder, The Legion continues to be a major conduit of laundering illegal monies, from major Mexican Drug Cartels, organized crime, and individuals like Carlos Slim Helu, through the Congregation Of Works (Vatican Bank), to create a large stream of 'off the books' income condoned, and endorsed, by John Paul II, and with proven criminal intent of international fund authentification FRAUD.
The failure of The Holy See to shut The Legion down, speaks LOUDLY to their concern that this directly implicates John Paul II, as a pedophile enabler, which at least tacitedly, he was, jeapordizing the already highly dubious fast track canonization of the former pontiff.
Fiat Lux & Veritas!
Albino Luciani,
MURDERED POPE,
NOT Smiling, From Heaven
When the person is a public figure, trading on his name and supposed good reputation like Maciel his life is public and an "open book".
THAT IS THE PUBLIC WITNESS.
As a priest he commitment to celibacy was a public one.
The Legion and the Holy See need to face the fact that LC is a corrupt institution and has been since its beginning.
It should be suppressed.
Sordid details are unfortunately necessary. Secrecy is what allowed this abuse to occur in the first place.
It is through full disclosure that any sort of healing can take place. A good surgeon does not let an infection metasthesize, only cleaning the surface of a wound, but rather opens the tumour it to clean out everything. The Legion of Christ has long been a kind of tumour for the Church, attracting young men with a desire for the disciplined,militaristic/ascetical life of the triumphant christianity, many of whom were suspicious of liberal seminaries. Once they take the bait they are conformed to an unrealistic portrayal of Christ, and told that their talents must be subjected to strict, nearly blind obedience. It is a cult-like mind-manipulation misusing theology to establish autocratic regulation and submissive adherence to authority. Seminarians are forbidden to peruse a wide variety of readings and the library is restricted. Any variety in devotionalism is restricted. The seminarian's must study for fourteen years and then, maybe then he will be ordianed, but many are thrown away like refuse. The Church could have helped these men grow in a normal atmosphere had it not let the liberalism take over. But the Legionaries are not the answer. They should be disbanded permanently. TAKE THE AXE TO THE ROOT. It is what the Legionaries would have ajudged for other corrupt orders, is it not? They are waiting for the Church to end it. This cult-like mentality was not Christ's intention for his followers. Also, Lay workers are treated with distrust in the schools. I have heard many horror stories over the years. There are many who have seen this, clerics like myself, and even bishops as well.
Certainly any further measure of cover up would damage the Church.
Please...let us pray. Our world is entering...or rather it is in the time of purification. We must keep our eyes...and heart fixed on Christ. Satan would like nothing better than for us to cannibalise one another. Prayer is the ONLY answer.
God's Peace.
An RC Member - no, it's time the Legion leadership came fully clean on this or they will be losing even more trust and credibility to the point of having none whatsoever. All this hush-hush is detrimental to the Movement, sorry. If they don't provide all relevant Truths then we will be watching more shoes drop, and most will bolt. It is unbelievable to me that Maciel, knowing all these evil acts, would choose to never come clean publicly when he clearly had many chances to do so. Instead, he chose to stick the Legion and RC with his bill and to clean up the mess. That's not Christian leadership, in fact it's cowardice, the exact opposite. At this point I'm embarrassed to call myself an RC member thanks to his actions and inaction. May God have mercy on his soul.
We need to remember that Judas - chosen by Our Lord - also was part of the Apostles who baptized, who forgave sins, and who healed the sick. Judas too was a very flawed human being, but the works of God still manifested through him. We are never happy with the way God works in the world, but He does so to humble the proud and raise up the humble - in this case, good and holy priests who are dedicated to Christ and to His Church regardless. It is a true work of the Holy Spirit.
God bless Father Orsi. My experience with the Legionnaires was very positive and saved the faith of one of my children.
Having said that, I am very disappointed to hear about Fr. Macial; however, I think we become part of the problem when we endlessly seek out the lurid details of one's personal sins.
The Church has a moral obligation to weed out individuals who harm themselves and the Church; however, the Church has NO obligation to then make public every actual sin and/or accusation for public consumption. Only the people directly involved need be concerned. As to the rest of us, we must pray for God's grace for all of our brothers and sisters. There, BUT for the grace of God, walk any one of us...
When forming an opinion of this case, it is easy for us to concentrate exclusively on the perpetrator and to be sucked into his narcissistic world. Some will condemn him, others will argue in his favor. These attitudes may be important but they miss the main point, which is the damage untold victims have undergone. The perpetrator may have been so fully sociopathic that he is subjectively not responsible, although objectively imputable, for his crimes. (God alone can judge anyone's conscience). On the other hand, the victims should always be allowed center stage. We need to help the victims overcome the unspeakable damage they have suffered. In order to do this, we need to evaluate what they went through. We all like to remain in denial. In this case, I believe the phrase of St. Gregory the Great can be safely applied: "It is better that scandals arise than that truth be silenced." It is better to avoid scandalizing those who do not need to know about this. But those involved, and those who have a responsibility for taking action, Jesus Himself said: "The truth shall set you free." How many victims (some of sexual abuse, others at least of mental cruelty) within the Legion and the Regnum Christi could be liberated by knowing the full truth. Only after the full extent of the damage is determined, can the healing process can begin. In the wake of this tragedy, we will distinguish better between what being Catholic really means from what it definitely does not mean: social climbing, media control, and money power. On the outside, it all looked so good. But when one little detail is missing (the validity of the founder as an example of Christian discipleship), it is very risky to claim that the fruits are good. If the fruits were good, why do we have innumerable ex-Legionaries and ex-Regnum Christi people claiming their lives have been permanently damaged? On their website it appears they number in the thousands.
We must look at what is happening with the seemingly accelerated pluralism that is leading to stress fractures in the Church as the great challenge of our time.
It destroys the unity of the Body of Christ and its solidarity, the courageous witness that we must give to a fallen world.
Does “divide and conquer” ring a bell?
We must advance Absolute Truth that can only be found in the Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ and in the official teachings of the Church founded upon St. Peter. Unfortunately, we are being distracted in this critical mission, in this age of the “dictatorship of relativism” because we fail to focus on what is truly important—Unity in Truth.
We are called to bind up the wounds of broken relationships by going to the Wellspring of Truth, Jesus in the Holy Eucharist. To do this we must imitate His mother, Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament. We must ponder more and talk less. We must be more and do less. We must live in the mystery of the Mystical Body and seek to be of one heart and mind, especially in prayer, fasting and almsgiving. We must trust that God will do the rest.
For three years 2001-2003 my family served Regnun Christi summer campers at the SOLT Ark of the Covenant Retreat Center in N.W. Florida. I would like to relate a little miracle story of what happened there. It convinced me of God's special favor for the consecrated young women and how He blesses all those who seek to serve Him.
I could try to narrate it here but I would rather tell it verbally to anyone who thinks they might benefit from it. You can contact me at (361) 767-9417. Leave a short message and I will return your calls as they are received at the SOLT Holy Family Center here in Texas.
I still believe the Holy Spirit has great plans for both the Legionaries of Christ and Regnum Christi.
God bless all of Holy Mother Church, and Pope Benedict, our courageous chief shepherd.
All of the goals, charisms, peculiarities of the Legion should be examined in light of the personality of Maciel who founded the order.
For example, the Legion has often criticized the extraordinary rite of the Catholic Church. In the Legion newspapers Legion priests have told the faithful that they are in SCHISM even if they attended an indult Holy Mass. Does this error reflect Maciel's view?
I knew a young Legion priest in St Louis circa 1994 who was forbidden by his superior to assist at the indult Holy Mass at St Agatha's church with some new friends. These incidences always disturbed me as I continued to hear that the Legion was "conservative", meaning, faithful to the Magisterium.
One wonders if the guys in charge there have the same weaknesses as their founder. Were they aware of the hypocrisy he was living as the founder of an order that was "close" to the Holy Father? About 8 years ago I took a course of study with other women. It was led by a Regnum Christi woman and relied much on the writings of Pope JP II -- grabbing little tidbits and putting them in various contexts. The whole course disturbed me being disjointed theology which somehow led one to form some cult of self -- some new age exploration of one's "feelings" in relation to some scatterings of quotes by JP II. It was no help to my spiritual growth.
I'm thinking if the order survives it must have an overhaul or a couple more generations would have to pass. Many say my son might have a priestly vocation. If he asks for my counsel I'd steer him away from this order based on my own experiences.
The writer DESERVES TO BE LISTENED TO AND HEEDED.
IF each of us who has stood in line for confession and confessed mortal sins stood in danger of the kind of focus this is receiving, we'd all be in deep trouble -- and this is double for those who carry the extra burden of being consecrated. It only causes more scandal to keep focusing on the fact that some have sinned -- in this case, it is justified to report the facts, period. WHAT CHRIST HAS FORGIVEN IS FORGIVEN. Only reason to out such past sins is for public safety. Beyond that, we enter into sins ourselves, usually scapegoating our own guilts by a show of horror and outrage at some other poor sinner. In God's eyes, this is not holy or good or right. The saints tell us that holy people point the finger at their own breasts and strike it saying "Oh God be merciful to me a sinner" rather than at others.
The world, flesh, and devil, however, keeps trying to take away its own massive unrepented guilt by pounding on the sins of others who were outed. This does not take their own sins away. This does little good. I look at so many situations where the press is guilty of massive and unnecessary scandal to millions, and shudder.
It is the lousy catechesis in the past 40 years that makes so many Catholics think it is virtue to jump on the bandwagon screaming and stomping and denouncing. Yes he did evil. He sinned. We each have sinned too. He also was forgiven by God.
"Yes he did evil. He sinned. We each have sinned too. He also was forgiven by God."
Isn't a requirement of being forgiven by God our own acknowledgment of sin and repentance? Do we know that this happened in this case?
Thank You John. You know, people, especially Americans, seem to think that the Roman Catholic Church is run as we run America (as a Democracy) - sorry, the Church is NOT a democracy and as such is under NO obligation to diclose the details as AMERICANS so often demand - the initial statement is enough as immortal souls are involved and disclosing much beyond the initial statement gets into the are of GOSSIP! By not feeding into this SIN the church helps maintain spiritual health over the whole affair!
Once again John... thank you for your charity!
Fr. Mike: In the words of the Bard: "More substance, less art." Oh, and these words: It seems to me and many others that this was a man with an entrepreneurial genius who, by systematic deception and duplicity, used our faith to manipulate others for his own selfish ends,” Archbishop O’Brien told The Catholic Review in a telephone interview following his Feb. 20 Rome meeting with Father Alvaro Corcuera, director general of the Legion.
Sadly, what Father Orsi misses completely is the methodology that (1) allowed MM access to young children with no boundaries, and (2) forbid his private behaviour from being scrutinised in any way.
It's not prurient details that people are asking about, but proof that the mechanism the founder set up was not inherently flawed because of his dubious ends.
As Archbishop O'Brien of Baltimore pointed out, the theology isn't the concern, it's the methodology -- and that is still in place in every centre of formation.
www.life-after-rc.com
Men being canonized are subject to intense scrutiny.
This priest was intentionally portrayed as 'a saint', but was corrupt.
Only open candor (like confession) as well as purification of existing leaders are the Legion's paths to wholeness (and survival/renewal).
Bill
There is a lot of talk of "transparency" surrounding this topic. Many lay people call for it, apparently with a desire to see specific facts themselves.
I think Fr. Orsi is pointing out that there are some people with a need to know, and to most of the rest of us, the sordid details are only a temptation to the sins of detraction and speculation.
Members of the Holy Roman Catholic Church should be content in their role as members. We should all trust the Church to take steps with regard to the Legion in accord with the will of God. The Church is not a democracy, and it is a dangerous spirit of modernism that pushes us to treat with the Bride of Christ as we do with a human institution such as a public university or political movement.
Finally, to underscore Fr. Orsi's wonderful article in yet another way, let me quote from the Catechism (2477 - 2799):
2477 Respect for the reputation of persons forbids every attitude and word likely to cause them unjust injury. He becomes guilty:
- of rash judgment who, even tacitly, assumes as true, without sufficient foundation, the moral fault of a neighbor;
- of detraction who, without objectively valid reason, discloses another's faults and failings to persons who did not know them;
- of calumny who, by remarks contrary to the truth, harms the reputation of others and gives occasion for false judgments concerning them.
2478 To avoid rash judgment, everyone should be careful to interpret insofar as possible his neighbor's thoughts, words, and deeds in a favorable way:
Every good Christian ought to be more ready to give a favorable interpretation to another's statement than to condemn it. But if he cannot do so, let him ask how the other understands it. And if the latter understands it badly, let the former correct him with love. If that does not suffice, let the Christian try all suitable ways to bring the other to a correct interpretation so that he may be saved.
2479 Detraction and calumny destroy the reputation and honor of one's neighbor. Honor is the social witness given to human dignity, and everyone enjoys a natural right to the honor of his name and reputation and to respect. Thus, detraction and calumny offend against the virtues of justice and charity.
So, to avoid sinning ourselves, let's quiet our imaginations and our tongues. The Lord will take care of things through the proper channels, and how he does it is not our business as the lay faithful.
Hello Christians, remember this is the season of LENT. What are you all doing, or thinking that makes you believe you are just judges. God help us. Remeber who each of you are that are so critical about the Legion situation? You r NOT perfected yet either, becuse God is not done with you either, or myself. I pray for each who are thinking they are JUST JUDGES. There is only ONE< JUST JUDGE and WE all will face HIM, we will be accountable for the words that come out of our own mouth and our own actions. The priest will answer to HIS ALMIGHTY JUST JUDGE. Pray for his soul and those that have to suffer as a result of the actions of his human weaknesses.
Christ said, and says today. It is not what goes into the mouth of man that is unlawful, but what comes out of the mouth, that is evil. How true. Amen
The writer's point that *prurient* details are un-necessary, voyeuristic, and do not lead one to God is a good one. However, given that Maciel was a public figure (not a private one) and that his deceptiveness must have been covered up by the Legion, there is considerable merit in calling for a full investigation by an objective 3rd party to ensure no further cover-ups and making the results of that investigation known---in broad strokes, but details and names are not necessary. This applies to financial irregularities as much as to the allegations of sexual misconduct. Those who participated in covering-up should be removed from their posts of authority. Good governance of any organization calls for honesty at the top. Apparently the Legion did not have that from Maciel. It is not that knowing of the mess will bring people closer to God, but right now the cover-up is driving people away. Knowing that the mess has been cleaned up will help not to alienate any more people from any actual good that the Legion can do.
I have been reading most of the comments here. My thoughts are that LC should be studied in depth as to its teachings and loyalty to the Magesterium and those findings, whatever they are, be revealed. Maybe it is call by God to consider if there are many in sheep's clothing. I remember here in Sri Lanka there were two young men calling themselves Heralds of the Gospel. Many supported their work and many young people used to go to their home for various gatherings. Suddenly the two of them left and subsequently there were revelations that the Heralds of the Gospel was not all that it claimed to be. It is sifting time in our church. The chaff has to be driven away and the productive seeds allowed to grow. May we all before committing ourselves to groups who call themselves Catholic, ask the Holy Spirit to help us discern well and seek His guidance. We all are in desperate need of the wisdom of God. Yours in Christ, Marianne Johnpillai
As far as people making rash judgments, detraction and calumny, one only has to look to what articles have been written, some by those who are clergy and former LC members, to decide what comments are to be here. People are just echoing what they read. I highly doubt anyone is making this stuff up. Truth is stranger than fiction, as they say. No one is judging Maciel as to his eternal reward, only by what has been written by those who know and by his actions. The fact that Maciel was a public figure , not some recluse monk, people have a right to know because his actions have affected so many and puts the church in an ever so bad light to the world. This subject matter shouldn’t be left to the squeamish, especially in light of the ‘recent’ pederasty news in the church and the fact that the church tried to conceal these events from the public, catholic and otherwise. I think this pope has his feet on the ground and has suspected about Maciel and his legion for a while, unlike his predecessor.
God is Love, Justice and Mercy. It is the role of our Holy Father, the vicar of God's only Son, to resolve this through his priests. I agree with the author - we don't need more lurid details.
Alas, the Church is filled with us sinners. Perhaps one of us was a priest guilty of having a mistress, child and financial abuses. Perhaps some of us have sinned more greatly (or less so).
I am part of both corporate America and a holy parish. Both are filled with loving and Godly people, but also with politics, naysayers and crooks. We are asked to pray for all of them and try not to disparage any, as all are children of God. From my corporate experience, I prefer more transparency from LC. But from my parish experience, I seek to love and let go. God has helped restrain my need for transparency in favor of His love and justice.
Some of us assume the LC leaders are covering up. I wonder how I might I act in their shoes? I have experienced difficult situations among friends, family and the business world. These LC leaders surely must be in a state of shock about what they have learned and the awesome responsibility they have to be accountable. They need to deal internally before they can deal externally.
They surely must be angry about the sins of this deceased man, sins that are confessional-between man and God and none of their business. They must be sad and curious. They surely feel it would be wrong for them to show their anger. They are in stages of grief, and time will help them. They need our prayers.
Present and former LC members who saw abuses, and even reported them, are justifiably angry. How they direct their anger must be controlled or it will lead to bullying, depression or both. They can't say their anger is not as sinful as the sins of those to whom they direct it. That varies by person and situation. The LC leaders are trying to unravel and resolve these concerns in the spirt of God's love, justice and mercy. That's not to say they shouldn't be encouraged to request outside (Vatican) help.
I wonder how Jesus might act? We often quote how he was angry at the Temple, but in this current situation that stage has passed-the news is out. What else did Jesus do? I often wonder what he wrote in the sand that day? I find it loving that He didn't stand up and shout through the public streets-He dealt with it quietly, and people walked away knowing their own guilt.
It's easier to say than to practice, but here is a request (or a challenge?) to those who scorned by LC: pray for God to handle this, handle the sinners justly and with love, then be silent in your suffering. Take legitimate concerns to proper authorities, then let go and let God. Do not allow this to destroy you by placing your suffering above your faith in God's actions. This may be your scourging-or your crowning with thorns. Jesus blesses those who suffer for Him. He loved His Cross. He said we should clothe the naked-right now the LC leaders are naked and need our prayers.
God sees all and will protect we who trust Him. Protection may not be visible on earth, but we will cry in joy when we feel it in Heaven. The LC founder may have suffered greatly his last 2 years-it's highly possible he saw God's beautiful face shining at him as he passed away. I hope I get that same view. We need to pray for him and others in this situation-living or deceased.
May God, through his holy vicar, root us in peace. That process has begun, with disclosures made. Let the tabloid fervor leave us alone.
Sometimes our greatest sufferings are gifts from God-His way of helping us discover ourselves and finding His Love for eternity.
MM never even drove a car. How on earth did all this happen FOR SO LONG?
How many others at the top were complicit?
The confessional will not suffice for changes in the "Movement's" MO that need to be made.
More and more you see a genuis who duped thousands, formed a system to support his own unhealthy ends, and created a system whose MO has hurt rank and file along the way.
There is a lot of spiritual carnage (and vocational casulties) that has resulted from "the movement." And that's a result of the unhealthy MM elements blended into otherwise sound orthodox theology.
Though Fr. Orsi' commendation against too much fascination with scandal, he goes on in his article to argue that though Maciel may have been flawed, that doesn't mean the Legion is flawed. This is where Fr. Orsi goes wrong in his analysis.
Fr. Orsi says "By their fruits you will know them," and that there are many good fruits coming from the Legion. I recognize that there are many good fruits, but there are some bad fruits too: the injuries suffered by Maciel's victims, both at the time of the initial abuse and since, with the victims being scorned and their pleas for justice disparaged; the complaints of former members of the Legion and Regnum Christi; and of course, the current scandal and its effect on the faith of many members of the Church. Fr. Orsi also says "God writes straight sentences with crooked lines," and that good can come from flawed sources. Of course, God is all powerful and can bring good out of evil. But that doesn't mean that we should just accept flaws and fail to correct what is evil or flawed. Institutions which are flawed must be fixed, and if the flaw is sufficiently large or deep-set, then the institution may have to be entirely dissolved.
Then, Fr. Orsi weakly argues that Maciel is like King David, because David was also flawed, being an adulterous and murderous person from whom much good came and who is now honored. The comparison of Maciel to King David is entirely wrong for two reasons. First, King David publicly repented of his sin, corrected his sinful ways, and lived the rest of his life as a generally virtuous man. Maciel did not. Though it is possible that Maciel may have made a death-bed conversion, Maciel never publicly repented of his sin. Moreover, Maciel (with the help of the Legion) lived the last few years of his life as a hypocrite claiming that the allegations of wrongdoing were baseless and that he was imitating Christ on the Cross by suffering the ignominy of untruthful accusations. This difference between Maciel and David is significant - the very reason why David is honored by the Church is because he repented. For Maciel, at the current time, there is no evidence that Maciel repented and tried to make amends for his sins, and so there is no reason to honor him.
A second important difference between King David and Maciel is that during the sinful period of his life, David never created an religious institution with followers who would look to the words and example of David during his life of sin. Maciel created the structure and mission of the Legion while he lived a life of duplicity and sin. Members of the Legion can no longer look back to Maciel as a man whose life is to be honored and who is to be held as an example of living the mission of the Legion. The words and writings of Maciel (though some of them appear helpful when considered separate from their source) can no longer be considered as being the thoughtful reflections of a holy man - instead, they are hypocritical statements a man who did not sincerely believe them. This is the reason why I think that the Legion may need to dissolve itself and be refounded. I don't know how the Legion can continue holding Maciel's ideas, words, and writings with special regard.
for the sake of those involved with the legionaries the whole truth must be reveled.For complete light to enter into this order a complete houisecleaning must take place,only then will it be clear if they can continue to serve the body of christ.Fr. marciel did not publicly confess or apologize for his sins, so he cannot be compared to other saints and religious founders from the past. We should pray for wise leadership from the vatican for the whole church and especially the order in regards to this matter.
[Taken from a "Father Brian Van Hove’s Blog" written by Steve Skojec. This should put an end to where the legion stands]
I’m a little relieved today, but I’m even more angry.
Yesterday morning, I received an email from someone I trust, indicating that a big, damaging story about the Legionaries of Christ was about to break. Something that went beyond the scandals we’d already heard. Patrick Madrid hinted about it on his blog. So did Thomas Peters.
I started networking. Checking in with contacts who are closer to “the movement” than I am, since I parted ways with them 12 years ago this month.
The information began trickling in. In an unusual twist, it was percolating up and out of the movement itself. The culture of deceit, denial, and diversion was finding itself compelled to be honest with its own members. This alone was damning evidence. Why? Because that’s not how the Legion works. Let me back up a little bit.
I’ll never forget how two days after Thanksgiving in 1996, I was flown on less than 24 hours’ notice, along with every other full-time worker in the Regnum Christi and Legion apostolates, back to the seminary in Cheshire, CT (we had just left from a retreat) to be briefed on the revelation of the first public accusations of sexual abuse against Fr. Maciel. Only we weren’t told that. We really weren’t told anything. We were simply told that something was coming, that it was categorically untrue, and that we were to deny it if asked.
But the allegations didn’t go away. And after I had run the gauntlet of lies, manipulation, and calumny and come out the other side, a contemptible Catholic who eschewed his “vocation” and wasn’t “generous enough”, I ran into them again. And then again. And finally, in 2006, the Vatican did something about it. Entirely lacking in justice to either Maciel’s followers or his alleged victims, it should be noted, but something.
But the Legion continued as if it were nothing. In response to the removal of Fr. Maciel from public ministry, the Legion issued a statement, which struck those of us who knew better as hubris-riddled nonsense:
Communiqué from the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ
The Legion of Christ and the Regnum Christi Movement in response to the communiqué of the Holy See renew their commitment to serve the Church
In reference to the news regarding the conclusion of the investigation of the accusations made against Father Marcial Maciel, our beloved father founder, the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ offers the following statement:
1. Father Marcial Maciel has received during his life a great number of accusations. In the last few years, some of these were presented to the Holy See so that a canonical process would be opened.
2. Facing the accusations made against him, he declared his innocence and, following the example of Jesus Christ, decided not to defend himself in any way (*see footnote).
3. Considering his advanced age and his frail health, the Holy See has decided to forgo a canonical hearing and to “invite him to a reserved life of penitence and prayer, relinquishing any form of public ministry”.
4. Father Maciel, with the spirit of obedience to the Church that has always characterized him, has accepted this communiqué with faith, complete serenity and tranquility of conscience, knowing that it is a new cross that God, the Father of Mercy, has allowed him to suffer and that will obtain many graces for the Legion of Christ and the Regnum Christi Movement.
5. The Legionaries of Christ and the members of Regnum Christi, following the example of Father Maciel and united to him, accept and will always accept the directives of the Holy See with profound spirit of obedience and faith. We renew our commitment to work with great intensity to live our charism of charity and extend the Kingdom of Christ serving the Church.
*Note: Since 1997, the accusations against Father Maciel have been often published by the means of communication. Father Maciel, after affirming his innocence, chose not to engage on a public debate regarding these allegations.
These words depict Fr. Maciel as a white martyr, suffering innocently (with “complete serenity and tranquility of conscience”) these horrific accusations.
But that wasn’t the end of it. No, this week, the story finally surfaced that Fr. Maciel had done something else:
It’s Out. Maciel is Out.
Today, Fr. Scott Reilly, LC, Territorial Director in Atlanta, Georgia, announced to all those who work in the Territorial Direction of the Legion of Christ, that Marcial Maciel had a mistress, fathered at least one child, and lived a double life. For this reason, the Legion is renouncing him as their spiritual founder.
That’s right. This man who the Legion describes as having “the spirit of obedience to the Church that has always characterized him” had “had a mistress, fathered at least one child, and lived a double life”, after he had already been accused by “more than 20 but less than 100″ of his own priests and seminarians of sexual abuse, and had been described in terms depicting a disordered addict by his own trusted LC priests as early as the 1950s.
I vaguely recall being told when I was with the Legion that Fr. Maciel made it clear that he had “…never said no to Christ.” Wish I could find that quote. Whether or not it was what he wrote, they certainly acted like it was true.
And now, with this bombshell dropped, are they owning up? Not in any official capacity:
Responding to unconfirmed revelations of misconduct by the Legionaries of Christ Founder Fr. Marcial Maciel, the U.S. spokesman for the Legionaries of Christ has acknowledged unspecified actions that “weren’t appropriate for a Catholic priest.” However, he insisted that Fr. Maciel “was and always will be the father of the Legion.”
The blog “Exlcblog” claimed that Fr. Scott Reilly, the Legionaries of Christ Territorial Director in Atlanta, Georgia announced to those in the Territorial Direction that Fr. Maciel had a mistress, fathered a child, and lived a double life. The blog claimed that the Legionaries of Christ is therefore renouncing Father Maciel as their spiritual father.
CNA contacted Legionaries of Christ spokesman Jim Fair, but received no specific confirmation of any allegations.
“We’ve learned some things about our founder’s life that are surprising and difficult to understand,” Fair told CNA on Tuesday.
“We can confirm that there are aspects of his life that weren’t appropriate for a Catholic priest.
“Obviously he had human feelings but it remains true that through him we received our charism, which has been approved by the Church.
“Our commitment remains and we‘re going to go forward and love Christ and serve the Church,” he remarked.
Asked to verify the specific allegations, Fair replied:
“Fr. Maciel died over a year ago and obviously whatever has happened is between him and God and God’s judgment and mercy, so we’re going to let him take care of that.”
I suppose a group so constitutionally unable to exhibit even the vaguest shred of honesty or integrity, woven as they are into their web of lovingly-programmed sophisms of conscience (they call it “formation”) would be incapable of admitting that their entire order, founded as it is on a spiritual charlatan and sexual pervert who has been protected for half a century by a program of rules and lies that kept him immune from criticism and shrouded in both secrecy and celebrity, has finally been revealed as a sham.
I am angry because I allowed myself to be sucked into this group, like so many of the good people I met there. They turned my love of God into an asset for their own purposes, and when they were done with me they stabbed me in the back. The damage this did to my faith persists even today. I made an act of the will to completely trust God through this charism, and I was betrayed. I was made to believe that the rest of the Church wasn’t good enough, and when I left, I found no solace in a faith devoid of my elite purpose, my sense of mission, my fellowship with those who were chosen.
Through the prayers of many, I retained my belief, and I strengthened my Catholicism with education and an appreciation of tradition. But I have been cynical since those years, harboring a secret anger even I was no longer aware of. I trusted no one. I refused to seek spiritual direction again after it had been used against me. I saw God as antagonistic, temperamental, unreliable - helping sometimes and hurting others as it pleased Him. I avoided committing myself to any subgroup of the Church. I was wary of any but the most common devotions. I became even more risk-averse than I had been by nature, and spent years feeling residual vocational anxiety and hurt.
It’s taken a lot for me to get to where I am now, and I find that the vestiges of these things are all still here. I never got closure, never received an apology, never got a response to my request for answers. And when I tried to warn people of the dangers inherent in this group, they often ignored me, or at least refused to believe me. New recruits who knew me were told that I hadn’t been (again) “generous enough” and that it was a case of “sour grapes” and that they should avoid me. I had given years of my life to these efforts, had put my heart and soul into it, and had only left because my struggles with vocational anxiety were choking me. It was only later that I learned the truth, and I was not going to lay down and take it while they suckered other people in only to hurt them in the same way.
With the news today, it would seem that an end should at last be at hand. That I can close this chapter in my life and walk away. But I’m finding that the old emotions are still there. I want accountability. I want the priests who covered this up, who used my friends and me (and used us to use others) to face the music. I want those who were not complicit to admit that it’s all based on a lie. I want all the innocent people in the movement who are reeling today from the news and in danger of losing their way to be put at ease, to be told the truth, and set free. But they won’t be. It seems clear that instead, the Legion will hide what they can, spin what they can’t, and do all in their power to mitigate the damage - to themselves..
It’s what they do. It’s what they’re best at. Self-preservation.
And if the Vatican doesn’t push this, they might get away with it for a while. But either way, the whole thing is coming down. It is, after all, a house of cards.
John, I think you miss a large point. Maciel's abuses and the cover up of his crimes did a LOT of damage. John Paul II's inaction in addressing the complaints against Maciel was violent. I don't use that word lightly. I firmly believe that what happened to the victims over the decades by the official church after their initial abuse by an individual priest, is worse than the original crime. I think the denial of the abuse, and the way Maciel was upheld by John Paul II as a friend and church leader is an assault on the dignity of the victims.
It simply can't be written off. Now that the truth has finally come to light BIG changes must happen. Sympathy is not enough.
Perhaps dismantling of the Legionaires is the right answer. The use of their assets to set up a fund to aid clergy abuse victims would be actions I could support.
Dear Legionaries, I am grateful that I can share with you my sentiments. Don't you ever doubt your personal vocation. "It is good, o, Lord, that you have humbled me"! God allowed all that - not for your destruction, but for your best. I was very much upset... but at the same time, these thoughts came to me.
The founder of my own congregation had a similar experience and had to relinguish the leadership. But, there was nothing hidden about his sin and our founder did severe penance. I visit his grave whenever I am nearby. Who am I to judge? I love you, my dear Legionaries! Carry on bravely. The beginning was most noble and courageous. Pray for your Father!
Your Sister in Christ
I always believed that the Church exists for Saints and Sinners, and may be more for sinners than for Saints; as Our Lord said "I have come to call the sinners." Fr. Marciel accepted and obeyed the Church when it asked him to step aside. I cannot see why God cannot work good things through Fr. Marciel's work, after all there have been some sinful Popes in the past but God still worked through them to preserve his Church; not through the sinfulness of the Popes but in spite of their sinfulness which showed God's great mercy and compassion to his sinful people.
Many people want to continue to believe that we should "protect the system" and expect that the victims get on with their life. Before any such articles are written, I would strongly encourage writers/journalists to do more research. It is too easy to write an article or a blog without first doing any research. The evidence of sexual abuse is disgusting - both in the church and outside. Nobody wants to face the truth and most of the victims are so damaged they are not deemed credible. In our great age of statistics does any one wonder why there are no real statistics about the depth of this horror. The only comment with any substance is that from Steve Skojec. He makes all the right points because he is a victim and understands why things are covered up (to protect the order/system..). He cares about ensuring this does not happen again. The idea that we have "transparency" today is really a joke. Everyone that has any power that is given to them by God (politicians, church leaders, etc) claims we must first and foremost protect the "system" so that people don't lose their Faith. I pray that one day the young generation has the courage to force transparency. Perhaps with the failure of the newspapers we can have a generation of reporters and news sources that won't be responsible for the lack of transparency.
The spirit of Elmer Gantry is alive and well in the Roman Catholic Church in particular and in all organized religions in general. Hallelujah! Clap your hands! And let the bling continue to ring in the Judas purse!
It is troubling to see such criticism of Catholics by Catholics, for the whole world to see, making us look petty and divided as members of Christ's body. And it is contrary to the Gospel. We are to be light and salt, not dogs devouring each other for all the world to see. The Legion is in complete submission to Rome. They brought their findings forward of their own free will. I don't see why they need to "reveal all" to everyone else who asks. Those who need to know all, do. The rest, are they not scandal-mongers stirring up controversy rather than praying for the victims, the Legion, and the Church in general. We are called to love, not to blame.
Fr Orsi,
The critical issue is not Maciel but rather the systemic structure of the Legion that is the real issue....Would you agree that "ecclesia semper reformanda est"...the church needing reform....well as Maciel structured the Legion, it is a closed body that does not easily lend itself to healthy critique...and thereby unhealthy behavior.
I think this talk of disbanding the LC and RC is all wrong. I see good fruits from both organizations.
With this logic to disband good organizations because of the sinfulness of it's founder is like saying 'kill the baby because the mother was a prostitute'.
God can bring grace out of anything.
However, saying that, I do think a full and open audit of everything pertaining to Fr. Maciel is very appropriate. It may be that our Holy Father can temporarily take away the official status of the two groups, put them through a new review, then appoint new founders and reconsecrate them, as you would a church where a murder had taken place.
Just my thoughts.
dina
There's something I cant get to understand. Why do so many people seem to assume so confidently that the revelations about Fr. Maciel fathering of a child confirm the allegations against him concerning homosexual pedophilia ??? This is simply beyond me, both psychologically and legally. With anyone else, to discover that a guy was a womanizer would normally remove the other suspicions, not aggravate the charges. That I am an adultery does not prove that I am a rapist, and that I am a thief is no proof that I am a murderer, etc. I have no connection wahtsoever with the Legion of Christ, but I dont understand this kind of treatment for an accused. Are we catholics lions in the arena or what?
I worked in Hamden, CT where all the money poured in. You are all so ignorant of the truth. Now, going on 60, I can look back on my religious life and realize that I had a veil before my eyes my whole life. It nearly killed me. Living in denial of certain behavior will drive someone to madness. This is a worldwide disaster. This will affect christendom all over the world. Transparency will only be a temporary bandage to a very deep problem in the entire organized church. We must each take full responsibility for our actions and prayers. Our relationship with God is a very personal and individual experience. We need not to have a man translate anything for us. We do not have to pay a man for the sacred words of our heavenly Father. God speaks to our heart exactly what we as individuals need to hear. If all these leaders of the past actually listened to God, none of this mess would have ever happened. This was about power and money which leads to secrecy and abuse of timid human beings. Endeavor, my friends to find happiness and peace within yourself where God dwells. Every day we breath is another blessing from God. Let us not waste them away with all this bickering and anger. Men that hurt and fool people will eventually pay the price of death and misery. Sadly, the people they fool and hurt will be miserable as well unless they wake up. I was there on Oak Avenue in Cheshire, CT when the spies were mounting the cameras on the telephone poles across from the Legion at 475 Oak Ave. The men doing the installation said they were sworn to secrecy and that in due time, the truth would come out. I felt terrible since I spent so much of my time working for the Legion and wanted to believe that I was serving God. Today was the day I learned of all this mess. I am disgusted to say the least. I realize that hoping for the best was nothing but a waste of time. Forgiveness is no longer a part of my vocabulary. I am reminded of a Priest in Connecticut that picked me up and brought me to West Haven one day. He learned that my Father had recently died. While we were on I-95, he reached over and began stroking my leg with his gentle but firm hand. I looked at him in shock and implored him to pull over on the highway to let me out. I ran from the car to Exit 42 and cried all the way. I screamed as I felt tortured and betrayed by a church that I was told to trust. I thought I healed from that experience, but I guess I am wrong. This experience was the second phase of ruining just another life. My life has affected others as well. I will try to begin to find some closure now that all this is coming out. I pray and ask God to please totally shut down the Legion of Christ. They are slick and they are out to harm peoples' bank accounts in the name of Catholicism I am so sorry to say. Protect yourself and your loved ones. Never be caught alone with a priest. Guard your children when it come to any person. The pain you will suffer if anything goes wrong will make you sick and hateful for the rest of your life.
Post a Comment