Friday, March 8
Bishop O'Connell of Palm Beach admits to a past incidence of sexual abuse of a minor. (This link will probably expire soon. I'll post a new one as soon as I find one).
Now. Here's the insanity at work here:
This claim was settled by the Diocese of Jefferson City, MO. in 1996. In 1998, O'Connell, who was already a bishop - of the Diocese of Knoxville, my home town - was PROMOTED to be the bishop of Palm Beach. (A promotion because while Palm Beach is not a huge diocese, it has more Catholics and is certainly wealthier than Knoxville).
You know The Powers must have known about this settlement. But they gave him the diocese anyway!!!!
And do you know the kicker? Here it is: In moving to Palm Beach, O'Connell replaced a bishop who'd resigned because of revelations about past sexual abuse of minors!
I'm at a true loss of words with this one. I think our Church has some hard lesson-learning ahead of it. That's what it's going to take, and that's probably what's going to happen.
This article also goes a bit into the relationship and how influential Woroniecki was on Rusty Yates who really should be tried and convicted for something in this horrible crime.
Doesn't think Law should resign:
When there is trouble in a family, the last thing you want to see is the leader of the family abandoned by family. You want that person to stay there and bring about the change and the reform and the stability that a family needs. Cardinal Law is a good man, but he made a big mistake in this particular case, didn't protect innocent young children from pedophile priests.
And look, the easiest thing in the world for Cardinal Law to do now would be to walk away, throw up his hands and say, look, this is too complex for me. I think the more difficult thing to do would also be the most courageous thing for him to do is to stay here in Boston, bring about the level of change and reform, deal with this issue of compensation for victims and bring the Catholic Church back to its always cherished and respected position.
First, a diocese is not like a family. Parents are irreplacable. Bishops are not. Nor are pastors. Christ is the head of the Church, and He sticks around no matter who's coming or going. Maybe, just maybe, Christ's work is being impeded by Law and all his baggage. I like what a reader wrote in a letter to the editor of Our Sunday Visitor: Law should retire to a monastery. That's an excellent idea, and an eminently traditional Catholic solution to this kind of screw-up: Get thee to a monastery and do some penance for the harm you've done.