Greeley's Dirty Little Secret? [why hasn't he given this information to authorities?]

www.tcrnews.com ^ | Matt C. Abbott

[Brian Kopp DPM]

Greeley's Dirty Little Secret?

By Matt C. Abbott

When one mentions the name "Fr. Andrew Greeley" among faithful Catholics, one will almost certainly get one of three reactions: a cringe, a laugh, or the proverbial eye-roll. Or, one might get all three.

Greeley is most known for his disgusting "soft" porn novels and dissident rants. Oh, and lest I forget, his seemingly ardent support of pro-abortion Democrats.

Now, some give Greeley credit for his speaking out against the problem (now crisis) of pedophile/actively homosexual priests through the years. And he has. Consider the following column in the April 5 edition of the "Chicago Sun-Times":

"Why did so many American bishops think they could get away with stonewalling and cover-up tactics to protect abusive priests? They thought they could get away with it because they did get away with it for a long time. They had carved out for themselves an immunity not unlike that which canon law envisages in a country where there is a union of church and state.

"In many, if not most American cities with a large Catholic population, the criminal justice system ignored abusing priests; it was the church's problem. When a case did come to its attention, it almost never found a reason to prosecute. In some places it still doesn't.

"Usually, the parents of the victim would go to the church. At first they would be fended off. The priest absolutely denied the charge. He was a good priest. Their son had a vivid imagination. If this didn't work, a phalanx of higher-up priests descended on the family, accompanied by the church's expensive lawyers (who had the deep pockets of the church behind them). They offered the family a deal. They would give the family a certain amount of money (not very much) for medical costs and psychological counseling (based on how high the lawyers figured they had to go to keep the family quiet).

"They would send the priest to a psychiatric screening and then off to an institution. No one wanted a public lawsuit. That cost everyone a lot of money. If the parents would sign off on the deal, everything would be fine. Somehow the parents, whom one high-priced lawyer defined as ''the enemy,'' had become the bad guys. If they hired lawyers of their own and threatened suit, the church's lawyers would beat them into the ground by running up big legal bills. They would threaten countersuits.

"The media paid no attention. Families were torn apart, marriages were destroyed. The parents finally caved in and settled. Another victory for the church.

"The priest would be sent off somewhere, return in a few months and be approved for reassignment by the church's psychiatrists (although they might not have quite said that exactly). Then he would show up at a new parish without the pastor being warned of his past. Fellow priests would say, 'he really denies it strongly' and 'the cops and the shrinks cleared him.' That was that.

"It worked. It worked for a long time. Only when a few brave journalists began to report the stories did the whole game fall apart. Yet many dioceses continued to play it. They blamed all their trouble on the media.

"Thus in his pastoral letter, Cardinal Edward Egan does not admit that his lawyers beat up on families in Bridgeport, Conn., with the absurd argument that priests really didn't work for the church. Another hierarch, now apologizing profusely, does not admit that his lawyers are still pushing a countersuit against the victim's parents. They allege that the parents are responsible for the abuse because they didn't raise their son to be cautious of males who were too friendly.

"So confident were they that the system was still working that Cardinal Bernard Law did not even bother to destroy the documents on the case involving former priest John Geoghan (which he could legally have done before litigation began and easily, if illegally, after it had begun). It was unthinkable that the Boston Globe would ever spread his private files over its front pages.

"Not having the gift of reading hearts, I cannot say how sincere the various actors were in his familiar charade. I admit, however, that it would have taken a monumental ability at self-deception to carry it off in good faith.

"So are their abject apologies to be taken seriously? In most cases I would say that they seem phony to me, though they may be able to deceive themselves about their own sincerity, whatever of that quality might remain.

"I would begin to believe them if they took seriously their remaining moral responsibility to the families whom they crushed. I won't hold my breath until that happens.

"As for the recent implication of Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos that it is an American problem caused by our 'pan-sexualism' and his excuse that the pope is more worried about world peace than American victims of clerical abuse, he may be sincere too. Or rather, he may have convinced himself that he is sincere. He may be the next pope. If he is, folks, Katie, bar the door!"

Hmm. What courage. What straightforwardness. Yadda, yadda, yadda.

Now, take a look at the following passage from Greeley's 1999 non-fiction book, "Furthermore! Memories of a Parish Priest" (p. 80):

"...But even in Chicago, the ring of predators about whom I wrote in the paperback edition of 'Confessions remains untouched. There is no evidence against them because no one has complained about them and none of their fellow Priests have denounced them. Those who have been removed are for the most part lone offenders who lacked the skill to cover their tracks. The ring is much more clever. Perhaps they always will be. But should they slip, should they get caught, the previous scandals will seem trivial...

A footnote says:

"They are a dangerous group. There is reason to believe that they are responsible for at least one murder, and may perhaps have been involved in the murder of the murderer. Am I afraid of them? Not particularly. They know that I have in safekeeping information which would implicate them. I am more of a threat to them dead than alive."

Now, if Greeley is telling the truth, and he ostensibly is so interested in justice, why on earth hasn't he given this information he has in "safekeeping" to the authorities?

This is a question that even Francis Cardinal George, Archbishop of Chicago, seemingly can't answer. When Yours truly asked the Cardinal last year about Greeley's aforementioned allegation, the Cardinal responded that he did ask Greeley twice about it, and that all Greeley told him was to talk to two priests - the names of which Greeley apparently gave to him. (The Cardinal didn't say who they were, and, for obvious reasons, I didn't ask.) But no evidence was provided.

So, what gives? Does Fr. Andrew Greeley have a "dirty little secret"? I guess only time will tell.

[Brian Kopp DPM]

More pieces of this evil puzzle...

[Cicero]

Because the press has taken hold of these scandals in hopes of damaging the Church, and they are doing a pretty good job of it. It's a real Goebbels-type propaganda campaign. It's far too late to try to sweep it under the rug. You won't read it in the press, because it contradicts their agenda, but the real problem is that the Church has accommodated itself too much to the world--that very world of sexual perversion, abortion, and the rest of the liberal agenda, that is governed by the media establishment and their friends. If the Church doesn't deal with the problem and turn it around, someone else will, and that would be a disaster.

[Brian Kopp DPM]

Why oh why do Catholics have to keep piling on this scandal?

Because faithful Catholics know the truth of the matter, that this is a problem of rampant dissent and criminal activity regarding homosexual abuse, and our hierarchy refuses to admit it, let alone address it. The Vatican addressed it, and the hierarchy still refuses to follow their lead and admit the problem. So its up to us laity to fight for our Church against those in the priesthood and hierarchy undermining our Church. We will not be silent until the Church faces the aweful truth, that this IS a homosexual abuse problem.

[Catholicguy]

Correct. On that same tcrnews website, click on News Extra and scroll down to "Bishop Committee Members Accused." Three out of the five Bishops on this Ad Hoc Committee created to address the issue of sexual abuse have themselves been accused of complicity in the sexual abuse evil.

One of the Bishops even advised others that while they shouldn't destroy documents (evidence) they could send them to the Apostolic Delegate and he has immunity (the evidence could be concealed).

Such is the seriousness with which this demonic evil is being confronted by the Bishops

For a long time I have acknowleged I have been abandoned by the Bishops. Others are beginning, finally, to come to a smiliar conclusion.

Prepare for the Vatican whitewash, fellow Catholics. The probelms within the Catholic Church are monumental and the responses are relatively inconsequential.

We are on our own....

[dighton]

Now, if Greeley is telling the truth, and he ostensibly is so interested in justice, why on earth hasn't he given this information he has in "safekeeping" to the authorities?

Good question.

[Catholicguy]

I forgot to add that the whitewash will be the promulgation of new "norms" but there will be no action taken against those responsible for making the new norms necessary.

Nope, in our "compassionate Catholicism," such prelates that are complicit in the demonic homosexual molestations are not punished; oh no, they are placed on Committees to dream-up ways to "handle" sexual abuse issues.

That makes as much sense as the Senate forming an Ad Hoc Committee on Political Probity and putting Ted Kennedy, Robert Packwood and Christopher Dodd on the Committee.

[FourtySeven]

(The Cardinal didn't say who they were, and, for obvious reasons, I didn't ask.)

I guess you don't really care to find out "the truth" either.

[Orual]

I am more of a threat to them dead than alive."

Is it just me, or does this make no sense to anyone else?

[nickcarraway]

What is Greeley's status, and why isn't he subject to the same obedience other priests are?

[history_matters]

My guess is that upon his death a massive expose memoir by Greeley will be published.

[history_matters]

I suppose blackmail can buy one a certain amount of liberty to do one's own thing, so to speak....

[malakhi]

Now, if Greeley is telling the truth, and he ostensibly is so interested in justice, why on earth hasn't he given this information he has in "safekeeping" to the authorities?

Good question.

If what Greeley says is true, the deterrent value of the information he possesses disappears if he turns it over to the authorities. If these people really are as he describes, he could expect them to retaliate for his releasing the information.

[Palladin]

What are you implying here? Every word of Greeley's quoted in that article about the sex scandal in the American Church is absolutely true. The facts, as stated, are bolstered by Cozzens, Sipe, Doyle, MacLeish, and the numerous victims and their families.

As far as being afraid for his life, Greeley has reason to be, depending on what information he is sitting on. Does anyone really believe that Thomas Merton died accidentally, by an electric fan falling into his bathtub? Or that Malachi Martin fell down the stairs and broke his neck?

Stop trying to impugn Greeley's truthfulness just because you don't like his racy novels.

Go to rcf.org and read about the conspiracy of silence, and what happens to those who speak out forcefully.

[Canticle_of_Deborah]

Agreed. Perhaps Greeley would have been/would be sent off to some isolated place if he did not possess incriminating evidence against higher ups. I do believe he is benefiting from this in some way. He has a lot to lose himself.

Before I continue, I want to say that I am 100% Catholic and not against the Church in any way. But I am also for the Truth, and anyone who is not IMO is not spiritually aligned properly and answering to their own selfish needs or worse. Yes, I am one of those who believes that Pope John Paul I was murdered. By all accounts he was preparing to "clean house" and some members of the Curia were going to lose their jobs. I believe that the tentacles of Evil have made their way into our Church and like a cancer we must extract every single one at ALL levels. I believe Pope Paul VI knew it, and I often wonder if our current Pope knows it too. There is too much going on behind the scenes. As painful as this is, we have to talk about it and something must be done about it. Now is the time. Facing it is not anti-Catholic, it is the most pro-Catholic and pro-Christ thing we can do.

I'll end my small rant here. Flamesuit on. Remember, God is watching.

[HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity]

The media also refuses to acknowledge that it is a homosexual problem and that it is active homosexuals (and their liberal dissenting buddies) who are hurting the church and costing it hundreds of millions of dollars.

[Brian Kopp DPM]

I guess you don't really care to find out "the truth" either.

Not sure how you could jump to such an assinine conclusion. There are laity in the Church fighting tooth and nail behind the scenes to purge these SOB's from the priesthood.

[history_matters]

The smoke of Satan must be driven from the sanctuary of God. All that is evil must be exposed in the marvelous light of Christ. If spiritual chemotherapy is what we need to rid us of this evil cancer, then so be it.

[Brian Kopp DPM]

Stop trying to impugn Greeley's truthfulness just because you don't like his racy novels.

Go to rcf.org and read about the conspiracy of silence, and what happens to those who speak out forcefully.

C'mon, I didn't write this, I just posted it. And I've spoken at length with Steven Brady from RCF and I'm quite aware of the dangers involved. One of Fr. Kuntz' (the priest murdered after gathering info on the lavender mafia and co-founder of RCF) classmates from seminary is a close personal friend here. I believe every word Greeley says here. I just don't agree with his otherwise liberal positions.