But it was indeed. Three weeks later, they broadcast an update. A young Diane Sawyer told the story about how it came about. The exposure of Porter was due to a brave survivor, Frank Fitzpatrick, who had been abused by Porter as a 12-year-old altar boy. Now grown, and a professional investigator, he tracked Porter down and actually confronted him on the phone.

The show even ran bits of the tape. Porter admitted he had abused Frank with an embarrassed chuckle, but that was the most remorse he would show. He claimed he had stopped molesting children in 1967, which of course, was a total lie.

For Diane Sawyer said that just during those three weeks some 60 victims came out. They even showed footage of her camera crew confronting the ex-priest, who reacted like a caged animal. It was electric, overwhelming, like nothing that had been on television before.

Fitzpatrick had not only exposed a fallen ex-priest but a genuine monster, one who molested literally hundreds of kids. Moreover, this was a national story. Porter got around.
In 1967, she said, Porter had been sent from Fall River, Massachusetts, to Jemez Springs, New Mexico, for treatment by the Servants of the Paraclete. Once he had completed enough of their program, he was sent on assignment and promptly molested three altar boys. On his return, the Paracletes did indeed say he was cured and recommended he be reassigned. So he was sent to Bemidji, Minnesota, with similar results.

Back again to the Paracletes. Several years later, he would voluntarily leave the priesthood. He claimed that had really cured him, but not so. Long after the broadcast it was revealed that after he married and became a “real” father, he assaulted his children’s babysitter, and to make a long story short, finally died in prison in 2005.

I taped it and just last night I watched it again for the first time since. It was still as fresh as a raw wound, but there were some big differences. Fifteen years on now, I recognized the lawyers, experts and some of the victims. More importantly, I knew the result of what Frank had started with that phone call.

It was nothing less than the beginning of the scandals. There, at the very beginning, was already revealed the very worst of the predatory priests, the cynical policies of the bishops, and the role of the Servants in enabling the tragedy to happen. Over a decade later, it would culminate in the scandals in Boston exposing another monster, John Geoghan, and the cover-up by Cardinal Law and other high prelates.

And the scandals continue. At the City of Angels blog, for instance, Kay Ebeling continues the posting of evidence of what the Servants were up to. The full story has yet to be told.

It must not have been easy to even begin. According to Wikipedia, Frank started speaking out in 1990 – two years before ABC picked up the story. His outrage had a long way to carry him.

But what Frank accomplished was to not only point out one wolf in sheep’s clothing, he inspired others to look into their own past and do something about it. Case after case started as a direct result. God alone knows how many children have been spared thereby.

True, there was a generation slowly waking up, but we all needed someone with the courage to give us permission to stand up and speak out.

Frank Fitzpatrick, victim and survivor, did that for us.

Wherever you are these days, Frank, many, many thanks, and may God bless you.

“He came, he saw, he conquered.” That would be Pope Benedict all right. I have to say his performance during his US trip was masterful. Though lacking the charisma of his predecessor, he made up for it with a certain folksy charm by so openly enjoying the adulation he received anyway. And he didn’t slip up even once.

He actually talked about the clergy sex abuse crisis, even met with a few victims. And so the word will go out that yes, the nightmare is over at last. “Roma locuta est, causa finita est.”

Yes, Rome has indeed spoken, but is the case really closed? One strong indication it just might not be came from one Richard Sipe, who stood up and fingered Cardinal McCarrick.

Now, not only is Sipe a leading expert like the much more widely-known Tom Doyle, but while Doyle has been dealing with victims and enjoying(?) the media spotlight, Richard Sipe, as a psychologist and former monk, has been quietly talking all this time with perps and enablers and the like. Before now, his public statements have been pretty general, and he’s doubtless had strong professional and ethical as well as personal reasons to be reserved. He’s strongly hinted at times that he could identify abusers high up in the hierarchy, but as far as I know he’s never actually named names before.

So for him to speak out to power, especially now, and openly accuse one of the senior members of the American hierarchy should be very big news. It may not undo the effects of the pope’s PR blitz, but it definitely keeps the ball in play. And now that people are finally concentrating on the hierarchy’s role in all this, it may help take it to a new level altogether.

Because it just occurred to me, if it’s over (whatever the frak that means) then NOW IS THE TIME for all the doors still locked to open, all the skeletons to come out of the closet, all the unspeakable stories still untold to be at last uttered, and thereby laid to rest.

I know that a lot of stuff was deliberately left out of lawsuits to keep them somehow credible enough to win a settlement. Weird stuff. Sometimes really weird stuff. Not just by lawyers either. Many survivors have decided not to mention certain things for their own protection. But if that’s all done with now, now is the time for it to come out.

To Wit: ritual abuse, group activities, Satanism, drug-running, murders. To start with.

Not to mention the longstanding tradition of secular collusion, and the civil authorities co-operating in the cover-up. The Church could only maintain such a powerful secret legal system of its own with support from the State. Though formalized in Canada, it happened here in the United States, too.

For some of us, the crisis will never end. No matter how much healing occurs, for some survivors, Catholicism will be as triggering as fireworks are for some veterans. If it is over, there needs to be watchdog groups to keep an eye on the Church and continue to pressure them for openness and accountability. And the history of this time needs to be written.

What survivors and their families have suffered, the struggles they have endured, must not be forgotten. Otherwise, it will be not as if the scandals never happened, it will be far worse. For fallen human nature has not changed. Children will continue to be abused, women seduced in the confessional, and even worse things will happen and be concealed. And in the end, it is only the collective experience of the people, only history, that will survive to inform and guide future ages.

That is but the tip of the proverbial iceberg, I’m afraid. Recent historical research for a book I’m writing has convinced me that Joseph Ratzinger is largely responsible for the scandals erupting in the first place. And he is directly responsible for their ending. Details can be found here.

That’s right. The scandals are over, folks. You just have not realized it yet.

Why is this important? First of all, they are over because the cover-up is in place even worse than before.

Secondly, it is because of the way it was done – in utter secrecy, privately with no oversight, appeal or remedy beyond the confines of the institution. The Catholic Church has arrogantly undertaken to administer its own brand of justice and to lie to the world about it.

Given the recent history of the Church, there are considerable legitimate doubts that arise should about such “justice.” All too many times priests have been forgiven, transferred to green pastures with clean slates, and let loose to prey again. Historically, it is all too clear that the fear of scandal has not led to more diligent guardianship but merely the cover-up of failure.

But there are even greater issues at stake. These are not rules for private clubs, for instance, subject to secular law. The Roman Catholic Church has its own internal law, not subject to the state, with its own penalties and prescriptions. It has never looked to the state for “justice” only protection of its interests.

Such powerful private laws – “privileges” – are medieval, utterly offensive to modern pluralist society. This is nothing less than a return to the Dark Ages.

If the Catholic Church can impose its own secret penalties on priests for raping children, why shouldn’t Muslim clerics impose Sharia on its members, and mandate death, for instance, even for careless infidel cartoonists? Or rabbis impose the Talmud as they see fit? Or, as in recent days, cult leaders imprison and forcibly marry off underage girls?

Where do you draw the line?

That is why I came up with the BOYCOTT BENEDICT!! campaign. I’ve protested the pope before – I led the only group of clergy abuse survivors demonstrating against John Paul II at World Youth Day in 1993. And I can tell you it just doesn’t work. Not only because of the numbers (in Denver there were 5 of us victims against 500,000 screaming fanatics) but because we couldn’t get within miles. The late Tom Economus, who tried to deliver a petition from victims to the papal party that weekend, had the same experience.

The point is that outsiders can’t force the Catholic Church or any religion to change attitudes, but they can oppose, shame, and ignore them. After all Benedict shamelessly plays the crowd, as these pictures show. Perhaps, just perhaps, if his stadium Masses were ill-attended, if he was criticized at the UN, maybe it would sink in that the world is onto his game. That might do more for real reform of the Church than all the protesters ever could.

I have posted a timeline that touches on the key events. Comments are open, but moderated, which means even if you disagree with me, if it’s a good one (and not too personally insulting) it will be posted. Even if not, I will be reading them, so get your shots in.

“The great feud between the heavenly kingdom and the infernal one is now over,” the Supreme Pontiff proclaimed. “I’m happy to say, the gates of Heaven have now been unlocked and thrown open. Even now, Lucifer and his former followers are being readmitted to Paradise.”

The statement caused instant pandemonium among the press, and the Swiss Guard in their morions and doublets had to use their ceremonial halberds to quell the mob. When order was finally restored, the Pope explained how this happened. “I just used the Power of the Keys,” he said modestly. “As Pope, I was given the power to bind and loose. What I say goes, down here and up there, too, you know. So this morning, while I was shaving, it occurred to me that I could solve everybody’s problems once and for all, just like that. Hey, I thought, why not? All this preaching has gotten us nowhere.”

“Therefore, this morning, in consultation with the bishops and cardinals, in the name of Christ and all the Saints, I formally forgave the Archangel Lucifer, once called Satan, and all his fallen angels, of their rebellion against God and all their sins,” His Holiness said. “And on token of their acceptance, I gave them all plenary indulgences, too. There’s nothing holding them back. The reign of evil is ended.”

In response to a reporter’s question, the Vatican’s leading demonologist, Monsignor Sarducci, explained, “It seems the satanic powers were as unhappy with the deadlock as everyone else. They were just doing their job, but their hearts haven’t been into it since the Reformation. It’s understandable: eternity’s a long time. Even tormenting the damned is bound to get old. And no sin is original these days.”

The Pope refused to speculate on what these developments might mean for the future. “Me, I’m off to Castle Gandolfo,” he said. “I need a break. But I think this job has just gotten a whole lot easier, now that it’s the Age of the Holy Spirit.”

Reports indicate that crime in Rome began to immediately decrease, along with traffic accidents. Mafia members were seen tossing their guns into the Tivoli fountain. Scattered reports indicate Israelis and Palestinians are dancing in the streets, and soldiers from warring factions across Africa have joined together to distribute food to the starving.

Mystics universally speak of great rejoicing in Heaven but that Hell is not empty. According to Monsignor Sarducci, crack volunteer units of the Swiss Guard and Jesuits were already taking up positions recently abandoned by the demons. “Just a peace-keeping precaution,” he explained. “This is a theologically strategically important area, and we don’t want it taken over by potentially hostile forces like Muslims or atheists.” He smiled. “Besides, there will always be troublemakers…”

Meanwhile, clairvoyants report that with the regime ending in Hades, so has the threat of global warming. The latest forecasts predict that it will soon snow in Hell for the first time ever, accompanied by a hard freeze.

— HAPPY APRIL FOOLS DAY!

So is that a rational explanation? What were the rest of the Israelites on then when God landed on Mt. Sinai? Curious, I checked out the actual verses (King James version) and to me, it really does sound instead an awful lot like a rocket landing:

16 And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled.

17 And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount.

18 And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly.

19 And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice.

20 And the LORD came down upon mount Sinai, on the top of the mount: and the LORD called Moses up to the top of the mount; and Moses went up. (Exodus 19, emphasis added)

Further (and here’s something I don’t recall from parochial school OR the Chuck Heston movie), later, after they get the commandments, Moses and the boys go up the mountain, SEE GOD and have some munchies with him!

9 Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel:

10 And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.

11 And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink. (Exodus 24, emphasis added)

I’ve checked all the other English translations I can and they all agree: these 74 guys saw God Himself standing on a blue field and did not get zapped for it.

Of course, if they were all high as kites on dope, that would explain it.

Or did they really physically see a physical being?

I’m sure there’s a some mystical Kabbalistic interpretation to this, or perhaps it could be attributed to lingering anthropomorphism of the Israelite authors that shouldn’t bother anybody, but once again, I can’t shake the feeling that I’ve seen this Star Trek episode before…

This is not the first time I’ve speculated about the possibilities that Biblical encounters with angels, and even the visions with the Virgin of Guadalupe were aliens. But the closer one looks at the ancient stories with modern eyes, one inevitably has to wonder about the rest of revealed religion.

So if we had never seen the Gospel before now, what would we make of it? Wouldn’t we interpret it through contemporary idioms?

Seems to me that in our post-Star Trek universe, we might easily assume “Kingdom of Heaven” (a kingdom “not of this world”) meant a Galactic Empire of some kind. The very phrases used to describe Jesus might take on a whole new high-tech meaning: “Son of God” that he was a human-alien hybrid, while “Son of Man” might mean that as such he was an improvement on humanity.

If Christ were a human-alien hybrid, was his death and resurrection some sort of test? Did his success somehow prove humans were worth preserving?

The whole business of “judging the living and the dead” might even sound to us like separating the population on the basis of genetics… sheep from goats, as Revelations says. Salvation might take on a radical new meaning.

The whole Christian cosmos could be translated into sci-fi terms far more easily than many imagine, or certainly would approve of. And it just might happen sooner than one thinks. There are, after all, strange signs in the sky… and a lot of crazies running around down here.

Is Heaven a planet? Another dimension? I sure don’t know but I personally welcome such speculations. Two thousand years ago some very weird events were interpreted according to the times – a world of gods and demi-gods, crystalline heavens, magic, and superstition – and we’ve been trying to make sense of it all ever since.

I don’t think theology has done so well, especially in adapting the myth to the times. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to wipe the slate clean and start over with fresh, twenty-first century eyes.

Keep watching the skies!

Doubtless the sheeple will be filled with joy. But what about the rest of us?

For those not blinded by the papal aura, this pope is not an attractive figure. Aside from looking as evil as the Emperor in Star Wars, Joseph Ratzinger, whose last job was chief enforcer for the Vatican, has turned the clock back to the Dark Ages.

Gone are any dreams of a truly ecumenical Church, the ordination of women, the inclusion of gays, the use of contraception, or alleviating poverty and class injustice through inspired social activism. He’s subtly insulted non-Roman Catholics of all denominations and sure hasn’t made friends with the Muslims or the Jews, either.

Far worse than that, he has re-instituted the clergy abuse cover-up more thoroughly and repressively than ever before. Secret proceedings have begun again, enforced by automatic excommunication for anyone who breathes a word. While the most infamous offenders are thrown out of the Church, those not tainted by scandal will be kept off public offender lists and out of jail. They could wind up in a parish near you.

But fortunately, we can still express our own distaste for this holier-than-thou troll and have a little fun with it at the same time. Hence, the BOYCOTT BENEDICT campaign!

To participate is easy and fun:

1) Don’t go to any papal events while he’s here.
2) Don’t donate to any papal collections — including Peter’s Pence.
3) Have fun and express yourself!

To help with the latter, I hereby announce a contest! I will create artwork for a bumper sticker, coffee mugs, and T-shirts. The person that contributes the best slogan will not only see theirs used, but be sent a FREE product emblazoned with it. This will be determined by popular vote.

Ten slogans have been selected to start. Others will be added. One month from Benedict’s arrival, the winner(s) will be chosen and the items produced.

Comments have been enabled to allow you to submit your slogan or vote. Keep it around 25 characters to fit.

Oh, sorry to disappoint the Catholic curmudgeons out there, but the comments will be moderated, too.

More info on the the campaign and the reasons why here, and a page of scary pics of the Pope, too.

And keep watching this spot for more exciting news!

For better or for worse, a way of life that began in the deserts of Egypt over seventeen hundred years ago is coming to an end. At least, in its Roman Catholic form. It will mean the end of a legacy that extends from the preservation of literacy itself through the Dark Ages to that most terrible instrument of fanaticism, the Inquisition.

The BBC reports that the number of Roman Catholic religious — that is, monks and nuns, brothers and sisters in both cloistered and mendicant communities — declined by a full 10% in just one year. Worse, the numbers of consecrated women, whose ill-paid efforts actually keep the institution running from day to day, declined by no less than 25% while John Paul II was in office.

That’s not just a decline – that’s a catastrophic crash. The Church is simply bleeding to death in the form of departing members. I’m no math wiz, but just crunching numbers shows that if the Catholic Church loses 10% of its religious per year, then within a mere eight years half will be gone. In a little over two decades, there will be only ten percent left.

Theoretically, it can survive even this, though the priesthood is steadily diminishing, too. But who will staff its schools and hospitals, drum the faith into the young, or devote themselves to unceasing prayer for this sorry planet? Monasticism in all its flavors has been an integral part of Western Civilization; without it, this culture might not have happened. Even if it had, without Francis, Gothic cathedrals, Gregorian Chant, and above all, manuscripts lovingly copied by generations of monkish scribes, it would be a far poorer place.

So adios, Friar Tuck and Brother Cadfael. Goodbye to the Flying Nun and all the real and not-so-real sisters and brothers of popular fiction and literature.

And farewell, too, to all their real-life counterparts, from the Nun of Monza to all those penguins. Some will not be missed — like Sister Domitilla and the other wives of God who tormented so many Catholic schoolkids through the years with harsh discipline applied by rulers and erasers and not a few ear-twisings. Rare indeed are the veterans of parochial schools without any stories of these poor, misused, abused, occasionally murdered, and often more than just a little crazy women.

Rest in peace, Singing Nun and Maria Monk. Though both of you died tragically and reviled by the Church that used and abused you, you have your revenge. Your long-suffering sisters and brothers are voting quietly with their feet to leave their hallowed halls behind.

Soon the cloisters will be truly silent at last.

The main plot woven in among all the silly on-going themes seemed to be about a murdered priest found in a graveyard. There were several dead priests, actually, and the cemetery business was some unrelated graverobbing that was quickly solved. Turns out, though, that one had been rumored to be a pedophile, despite the pretty altar boy’s strenuous claims that their personal interest in him was purely platonic though he knew everyone thought otherwise. The lab showed that the croaked clerics had been poisoned, and one bludgeoned with a chalice for good measure also (!).

Two padres remained, the hunky young wrestling coach whom suspicions immediately focused on, and the gruff old pastor who was being replaced. They showed the young guy grappling with boys in class and revealed he was being poisoned also. Aha! So suspicion falls on the pastor as the killer. He’s just about to take the rap when one of the heroes figure it out.

So they summon the mousy church secretary into the police interrogation room where the pastor’s waiting to set her up. She is easily persuaded to spill the beans: how she was sure they were all bad priests and didn’t the old guy want her to snuff them? He denies it, and repeats that there was no evidence against them. She asks for forgiveness. He gruffly says, “It isn’t that kind of confession,” and leaves. She’s busted by the detectives who’ve watched the whole thing. The end.

Now, aside from the gross misuse of the Sacrament of Reconciliation here, the subtext is very clear and disturbing. The underlying message is that lay reformers are overzealous, in a rush to judgment against good priests on the basis of unfounded rumors that is murdering the Church, and will not be forgiven.

Voices of the Faithful take note!

Papal Letter Blames Atheism for World’s Worst Styles

(PARODY) Pope Benedict XVI strongly criticized modern-day atheism in a major document released today, saying it had led to some of the “worst fashion choices” ever known to mankind.

But in his second encyclical, Benedict also critically questioned modern Christianity, saying its focus on individual salvation had ignored Jesus’ true message that Christians must dress better than the infidel.

“Saved by Hems” is a deeply theological exploration of Christian beauty in the fashion world - that in the suffering and misery of the street, Christianity provides the faithful with beauty secrets straight from the Kingdom of God.

“We must do all we can to overcome bad taste, but to banish it from the world is not in our power,” Benedict wrote. “Only God is able to do this. I realize not everybody gets to wear the fantastic outfits that I do everyday. You should just see my closets! But anyway, all Christians can try. Dress for success, that’s my motto.”

In the 76-page document, Benedict elaborates on how the Christian understanding of fashion had changed in the modern age, when man sought to look smart. Benedict points to two historical upheavals: the French Revolution and the proletarian revolution instigated by Karl Marx.

Benedict sharply criticizes Marx and the 19th and 20th century atheism spawned by his revolution, although he acknowledges that both were responding to the deep injustices of the time.

“A world marked by such excesses of taste, design disasters, and the cynicism of critics cannot be the work of a good God,” he wrote. But he said the idea that man can do what God cannot by creating a new style on Earth was “both presumptuous and intrinsically false.”

“It is no accident that this idea has led to the greatest forms of over- and underdressing and gross violations of chic,” he wrote. “A world which has to create its own fads is a world without hope.”

“Besides, I miss all the lace,” he added wistfully.

“This is not right,” the good children said. “We must help them.”

And so they got together to go on a crusade. “We will fight them,” they said. “We will stop the bad men. We will tell the supreme wizard who will make our leaders listen. Everything will be better, just like it used to be, once again.”

“Baaa-d,” the sheeple said, shaking their heads. “Don’t leave us! There’s only a few bad men and those other children are lying. They only want money. They’re the ones who are baaad.”

But the good children would not listen and so off they went. But arguments broke out among the children along the way. “The sheeple are right,” some said, “you don’t hate just the bad men, you hate the good men, too!”

“No, we only want to stop them,” the others said. “See our banner? It says we are faithful!” And they kept arguing until they reached the temple of the great wizard, shaped like a giant mountain. He came out, wearing white and a big golden ring, and looked down on them and laughed.

“Children,” he said, “don’t fight! Everything is under control. My magic has stopped the bad men.”

“How do we know for sure?” some children demanded.

“Come inside my temple and see for yourself.”

“We don’t need to see,” other children said. “If the mighty wizard said it, it must be true.”

“You are good children,” the wizard said, smiling. “I will give you help to keep the sheeple safe.” He let them kiss his magic ring, blessed them, and sent them home with his prize sheepledogs.

When they had left, he turned to the other children. “Now do you still doubt?”

“No, great wizard, but we must know,” they said stoutly.

“Of course,” he said kindly. “Go on in and see, and help yourself to the refreshments.” The great doors swung open, revealing tables laden with treats.

“Hooray!” the children shouted and rushed inside. He followed behind, pausing only to shut the magic doors of the temple. The wonderful treats suddenly vanished.

“You are very bad children,” he said angrily. “You did not believe me. Now begone!”

And behold, he set his remaining sheepledogs upon them like wolves. Howling and biting, they savagely chased the children out into the wilderness, and the boys and girls were never seen again.

Meanwhile, the other children happily went home with the sheepledogs. “Hoooooray!” the sheeple cheered when they arrived. “Goooood! Now we are protected! See, we told you the great wizard was our friend! Yaaaay!”

And they all lived happily ever after. The occasional disappearance of one of the sheeple or even a sheepleherd was disturbing, but generally blamed on their own bad attitudes. No one ever noticed how fat the sheepledogs grew. And everything was indeed again just like it once was.

THE END