Please take a moments and read:
Due Process For Accused Priests by Fr. Gordon J. MacRae
Please let me know what you think in the comment area below.
Send to KindleThe Catholic League Just Published Due Process For Accused Priests
By August 2, 2009 5 Comments
Send to Kindle
“Charity must be kept a secret”, says the Holy Book. However in my case I need it be known as a drive for further aid to priests in distress. I am a 89 year old priest in retirement.
My monthly allowance is a meager $ 610 from my diocese, as I have served it only ten years as the rest of my time has been dedicated to studying the Bible and translate the New Testament from Greek to Vietnamese. So I am unable to help priests in crisis, whom I feel deeply connected with, as I once has been accused (and later exonerated) of minors’ molestation myself.
Fortunately my friends at OLOV Parish of which I once was pastor have sent me some $ 1700, and I have donated all this money to Opus Bono Sacerdotii. Give until it hurts, said John Paul II. Give to answer the call of the Holy Father Benedict XVI who has dedicated this year as the year of the PRIESTS.
I believe in the remission of sin, and my heart breaks at the thought that several priests have committed a sin or two years ago in their human fragility, and have since made penance through an exemplary ministry; yet they have been forcefully laicized, and then are vegetating in their old years, alone, forgotten and covered with shame.
It’s important to realize that the “decades to come forward” idea is largely grounded in Recovered Memory Therapy. This “therapy,” largely discredited, is a means of persuading suggestible people that suppressed memories of abuse are responsible for the problems they are facing in their present lives. It is a life-destroying event for BOTH the person who is falsely accused AND the accuser who has become convinced of a lie.
Dear friends of falsely accused priests. I am a 88 years old Catholic priest. I expected to spent my retirement years in peace and prayers, and enjoyment of leisure.
Instead on Feb 4, I reveived a notice telling me that some one has charged me with sex molestation on a minor. It came to me so suddenly that I still wonder how I had escaped a heart attack. As a trustful man, I did nothing to protect myself except sending a solid ALIBI argument to the Chancellor who enjoined me to be calm, he would protect me.
A trustful person in nature, I waited for a braceful exoneration, and I have been deceived. The Chancelor discoverd too late that the automatic suspension of my priestly faculties might have been too rash, as the accusation had provided him with flimsy substance and he should have dropped the charge from the beginning.
Yet, counseled by my personal enemies the MSGR continued to press the charge. He needed more details from the plaintiff, and to have his hands upon them, he did his best to cajole the scoundrel to be more descriptive, and by doing so he had turned himself into a prosecutor against a fellow priest. During the time, I sat passive, comforted by my Habeas Corpus rights, “Let my accuser give the evidence!”
Fortunately my friends in the location where the misdemanor allegedly had occured, have opened my eye, and have urged me to fend for my life. After several tentatives I was granted the favor of an audience with my bishop and his chancellor. It took only a few minutes for the bishop to realize the many obvious fallacies in the accusation, and only three or four days later I have been exonerted.
My recommendations:
1/ let everyone be compassionate enough to share the suffering experienced by falsely accused priests. Father Gordon MacRae’s experience is illustative enough.
2/ the Conference of the USA Bishops should revise the Dallas Charter to make it more human, and just and American; at least don’t let it rob priests from a preliminary hearing before imposing punitive measures on innocents.
3/ Bishops should not give carte blanche to their chancellors when life ad death cases come for his attention, especially when the chancellor has the Vicar General as counselor, because their clout combined might influence the Diocesan Board of Investigation
4/ Balm must be provided to heal the deadly wounds . My story has ended well, therefore I am at least still master of HALF MY FACULTIES to tell the truth , and to tell the truth is to receive the best balm.
Father,
Aside from this being a complete travesty of justice, Satan seems to begun practicing law! I agree that the target in all of this is the Catholic Church- after all, no priests-no Jesus in the Eucharist.
I like Mary’scomment about not offering cash settlements, but rather help in the way of counseling etc.
I did get a good laugh over the widely held belief of people not claiming abuse just for money. Please- a good deal of people would do a good many things for very little money!
Thank you for this eye-opening article.
My prayers continue to be with you.
Once large sums of money are seen to be easily available human greed will be a powerful motivating factor. Lawyers should combine to push for Law reform which will prevent abuses of the system arising and innocent people being assumed guilty and having no chance of acquittal unless they can conclusively prove the acusations are untrue which in some cases because of the lapse of time becomes impossible.I also find it sad that deceased priests are sometimes cited and their names defamed and it could well be that the said priest was innocent of any such behaviour but the temptation of getting a settlement is too great for some to resist.An undercover detective investigation might by warranted to determine whether an organised sytem of rorting has developed around the cash setlement and repeal of the statute of limitations.
Instead of caving into pressure the Church should be willing to pay any necessary medical ,physchiatric, and educational suport on an ongoing basis to help someone claiming abuse to reestablish themselves in life but not cash handouts This would help eliminate the temptation to make false claims against Church members because they view the institution as a cash cow to be milked.