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The Catholic response to the clerical abuse crisis has not been Catholic enough. It has not been Catholic enough because it has failed to draw upon the Church’s own sacred traditions of reform and renewal, as embodied by figures like St. Peter Damian. For too long, the language of bureaucrats and businessmen has been allowed to supplant that of the saints—of sackcloth and ashes, of bell, book, and candle. And while recent expressions of shame and sorrow are good, they are not substitutes for righteous anger and mortification.
Cardinal Mahony: unprofitable servant
Roger Cardinal Mahony, Archbishop emeritus of Los Angeles, has announced a new photographic portrait of himself and offered to send a signed copy to any priest in the archdiocese who requests one. One wonders why anyone would want a signed photograph of a man who is universally acknowledged to have covered up clerical sex abuse on multiple occasions, but His Eminence appears to believe that there is a demand for this memento:
Franciscan University of Steubenville, the Third Order Regular of Saint Francis, and Fr. David Morrier
In March of this year, Fr. David Morrier, a Fransciscan priest and former chaplain at Franciscan University Steubenville was sentenced to probation after pleading guilty to sexual battery (i.e. rape) of a female student. As detailed in the statement provided by Morrier’s victim at the sentencing hearing, Morrier had sexually abused the unnamed young woman while conducting a “deliverance ministry.” There are several important points to take away from the victim statement and all that is currently known about the case, much of which is ably summarized in an article from the Pillar.
An update on the card mailings
We are pleased to announce that as part of this effort we have mailed a St. Peter Damian holy card to every Latin Rite bishop in the United States. A few may have been missed because of recent changes in office.
The Abuse Crisis and Antinomianism
On May 23 of this year, Pope Francis released the Apostolic Constitution Pascite gregem Dei, which formally changed Book VI of the Code of Canon Law as it relates to sanctions in the Church. Notably, the changes to Book VI strengthen Church discipline regarding clerical abuse and other crimes, requiring that bishops initiate penal proceedings in instances where the previous law did not.
St. Peter Damian and focusing on God more completely
St. Peter Damian wrote a letter in 1062 or 1063 to his sisters Rodelinda and Sufficia. In what is referred to as letter 94, St. Peter Damian exhorts them to personal holiness.