Comments on OSV Daily Take Blog: Please, no sordid details

I worked in Hamden, CT where all the money poured ...

2009-04-05T18:32:00.000-04:00

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.

There's something I cant get to understand. Why do...

2009-03-10T00:32:00.000-04:00

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 think this talk of disbanding the LC and RC is a...

2009-03-02T23:03:00.000-05:00

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

Fr Orsi,

The critical issue is not Maciel b...

2009-03-02T16:06:00.000-05:00

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.

It is troubling to see such criticism of Catholics...

2009-03-02T15:53:00.000-05:00

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.

The spirit of Elmer Gantry is alive and well in th...

2009-03-02T14:24:00.000-05:00

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!

Many people want to continue to believe that we sh...

2009-03-02T04:34:00.000-05:00

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.

I always believed that the Church exists for Saint...

2009-03-01T23:13:00.000-05:00

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.

Dear Legionaries, I am grateful that I can share w...

2009-03-01T20:24:00.000-05:00

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

John, I think you miss a large point. Maciel's abu...

2009-03-01T19:25:00.000-05:00

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.

[Taken from a "Father Brian Van Hove’s Blog" writt...

2009-03-01T18:12:00.000-05:00

[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.

for the sake of those involved with the legionarie...

2009-03-01T17:06:00.000-05:00

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.

Though Fr. Orsi' commendation against too much fas...

2009-03-01T16:56:00.000-05:00

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.

MM never even drove a car. How on earth did all t...

2009-03-01T16:54:00.000-05:00

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.

God is Love, Justice and Mercy. It is the role of ...

2009-03-01T13:15:00.000-05:00

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.

As far as people making rash judgments, detraction...

2009-03-01T09:58:00.000-05:00

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.

I have been reading most of the comments here. My ...

2009-03-01T08:45:00.000-05:00

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

The writer's point that prurient details are un-...

2009-03-01T01:41:00.000-05:00

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.

Hello Christians, remember this is the season of L...

2009-03-01T00:07:00.000-05:00

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

There is a lot of talk of "transparency" surroundi...

2009-02-28T19:08:00.000-05:00

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.

Men being canonized are subject to intense scrutin...

2009-02-28T15:07:00.000-05:00

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

Sadly, what Father Orsi misses completely is the m...

2009-02-28T14:42:00.000-05:00

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

Fr. Mike: In the words of the Bard: "More substanc...

2009-02-28T14:23:00.000-05:00

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.

Thank You John. You know, people, especially Amer...

2009-02-28T13:40:00.000-05:00

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!

"Yes he did evil. He sinned. We each have sinned t...

2009-02-28T13:30:00.000-05:00

"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?