Among the most disturbing details in the 884-page Pennsylvania grand jury report was that then-Bishop Donald Wuerl of Pittsburgh gave a priest involved in a child porn ring extra money in exchange for the priest’s silence. Not only that, Wuerl gave the priest a glowing eulogy at his funeral in 2001, even posthumously restoring him to full priestly … Read more
San Diego Bishop Robert McElroy was told of Abp. Theodore McCarrick’s sexual predation as early as July 2016, but remained silent. Richard Sipe, the renowned expert in clerical sex abuse who passed away Friday, published his private correspondence with McElroy proving that the bishop was made aware of McCarrick’s sexual harassment of seminarians. The 13-page letter, dated July 28, 2016 … Read more
As the nation awaits the release of the bombshell Pennsylvania grand jury report, some are wondering whether Washington, D.C.’s Cdl. Donald Wuerl will be the next cleric to fall after Cdl. Theodore McCarrick. Wuerl was bishop of Pittsburgh for nearly two decades, from 1988–2006 — one of the six dioceses investigated in the grand jury report. As … Read more
It was the feigned ignorance and shock of Cdl. Kevin Farrell that finally caused my confidence in the American hierarchy to completely collapse. Arriving in Rome at the North American College towards the close of Benedict’s papacy, the homosexual priest scandal seemed a distant memory. From my perspective, a new generation of bishops had corrected … Read more
When New Jersey Abp. John J. Myers retired in 2017 — with a career scarred by sex abuse settlements and protection of predator priests — he went to live in a lavish estate in upscale Hunterdon County — a 4,500-square-foot home on 8.2 wooded acres, with five bedrooms, two elevators, a swimming pool, whirlpool, three-car garage, three fireplaces, and a … Read more