The story of the pedophilia problem among the clergy does have several layers…and is a bit more complicated than the usual chorus of church bashers would have us believe. I’ve posted in several threads where I thought a general whitwashing of the church was in progress…so I’m far from an opportunistic clerical basher.
I’ve called for Law to step down before…so my opinion hasn’t really changed…just intensified. The pain he is continuing to cause the faithful (and even non-Catholics) in the Boston area and beyond is increasing.
(FTR… I don’t mean to suggest that this latest scandal is in any way “worse” than other previous scandals in the Boston Archdiocese…just another reason for Law to go)
I agree. It was debatable before, but he just loses more and more credibility every time something else comes to light. He should do the right thing and step down.
No, [Seinfeld]no soup for him![/Seinfeld]. Covering up criminal activity and placing known pedophiles in the congregations where they can cause more lives to be broken? Jail. Just like the criminals he was covering. Priests and Cardinals and Popes who break the law of the land and the law of comman decency should be prosectuted and punished just as if a mechanic had done the same things.
I just meant that I was willing to listen to people defend him up to a point, to see what they had to say in response to the accusations. I no longer am.
Which raises an interesting point, from my perspective. I agree with you 100%, FTR (duh, but still). If I knew for sure that my pedophile grandfather knew what he was doing was a sin, and if I knew for sure that he ever confessed a word of it to a priest, then a few of those priests have some 'splainin to do.
It’s amusing, to a point, watching priests on the news try to deflect criticism that comes their way. “Well, you know, a lot of those priests are dead, and some of the allegations are not quite clear…”. Yes, okay, we get that. Now answer the fucking question instead of trying to be Teflon Man in a priest’s uniform.
I’m not inclined to defend Cardinal Law at the moment, just wanted to point out that this priest admitted to fathering two children, not molesting them. He had two kids with one woman, as far as I can tell.
Of course I didn’t accuse the priest of molesting any children…so I don’t see the point of your post.
Among other things…the priest is accused of a certain amount of negligence in the death of one of the women…
Other reports I have read indicate that the woman has had a frontal lobotomy…had serious mental problems. We’re not talking about a “simple” matter of a priest violating vows of celibacy.
And…Law knew about it. As a matter of fact…until Thursday, the priest still was in active ministry.
Essentially, yes we are. You people in Davenport and Miami may have all the answers, but I don’t yet, it looks like a collective knee-jerk to me until someone explains how a woman with a frontal lobotomy was raising (at least) two kids. Or the ‘calling 911’ suggestion…didn’t know you could do that in 1970. Hmmmm…
[overly pendantic lawyer hat ON] While certainly immoral, in most instances there is no obligation to report crimes. Your accusation that Law covered up crimes is technically incorrect - for a cover-up to occur (i.e. obstruction of justice), there must be an ongoing criminal investigation that you are obstructing.
So it is unlikely that Law broke any criminal laws.
[overly pendantic lawyer hat OFF]
[Pitizen hat ON]
Draw and quarter the little fuck.
[Pitizen hat OFF]
no…just wondering about the certainty (also stated in the local paper) that calling 911 is what he should’ve done, and that the DA will look into the circumstances surrounding that. After all, if he did father two children while in the priesthood, he’s capable of just about anything else…perhaps even buying her the drugs…maybe offing her to keep her quiet?
please.
I was born and raised Catholic but haven’t been a practicing Catholic for years, if it were up to me he could have had both the family and the priesthood, no problem. I’m sorry that the archdiocese can’t distinguish between different kinds of sexual improprieties at this stage in the game, as in pedophilia versus consentual relationships…doesn’t matter, the main concern is ‘don’t bring scandal upon us.’ By all accounts he was respected in the community, loved by his (mostly Hispanic) parish (ethnic parishes tend to be ignored by the archdiocese btw) and was bipolar, not diagnosed until the mid-90s or so, which may or may not have had anything to do with his leading a double life. I’ll reserve judgement on his alleged criminal activities until I see proof of something.
My estimation of Law went even lower because of this issue, but probably not for the same reasons as everyone else. Oh well.
IIRC, the sort of double life this looks like would not be caused by bipolarity (which has to do with depression and mania) but by some sort of DID (known then possibly as MPD); Dissociative Identity Disorder. One girl I knew didn’t smoke and was from England, and her alter was a guy from Iowa, a bit younger, who smoked and went to UCLA.
Interesting situations arose when Amy left and Jordan came in before or during class. I could literally say “Amy’s not feeling like herself today”. Because she wasn’t. She was Jordan, who was male except for his genes and … well,the manifestation of said genes, so to speak.
Or did I misunderstand your phrase “and was bipolar, not diagnosed until the mid-90s or so, which may or may not have had anything to do with his leading a double life.”? I took it to mean that his manic episodes dictated a certain behavior of which his depressed times had no knowledge unless he were told by someone (or something) else.
And to echo what Sua said. My OP is certainly not calling for the criminal prosecution of Law. As others have said in previous threads (maybe Bricker?)…it’s not really evident that he has broken existing local law…(I am not a land shark, yadda yadda ).
The guy has lost any shred of credibility as a shepherd for his diocese. This latest episode is just one of many examples.
If he can’t be prosecuted for shuffling alterboy rapists into the arms of as-of-then unfucked alterboys, can I at least recommend him getting the living shit kicked out of him on a regular basis?
And honestly, if I had personal knowledge of a criminal rapist, and I was his boss, and I moved him to another area, he rapes again, I move him again, he rapes again, ad infinitum, I am not criminally liable for those later rapes? If that is true, that SUCKS! Complicity, at least?
And again, my anger toward Law has little to do with this latest thing.
Is everyone agreed that if a priest is found to have fathered children (or otherwise proven to have had sex / an inappropriate relationship with / another person) - then that priest must be permanently barred from serving with parishioners? Must he be defrocked?
Not defending the priest, or Law - but is there consensus that this sort of crime MUST be punished by un-priesting the priest, for ever and for all time?
For the purposes of my question, if anyone answers it:
Forget the drugs, the mental incapacity, the delayed call for help, the possible lobotomy. THIS priest, it seems to me, is clearly an asshole. But what if the situation had been “cleaner” - “Just” a case of forbidden sex, and no other complications?
Are you asking the opinion of the board or the practice of the church?
The practice of the church would not require that a priest who engaged in sexual activities with an adult of normal competence be defrocked. Discipline would probably be up to the bishop (which is how the church has gotten into the current situation with bishops deciding to take no action regarding pedophiles).
There are now steps being taken to establish specific penalties when a priest misuses his position to engage in sexual activity with a child (and, I hope, with a non-competent adult), but I have not heard (yet) of similar actions being considered for any of the host of other wrongs a priest might commit.