Former Boston archbishop to lead a Mass of mourning for pope

Boston Herald ^ | Thursday, April 7, 2005 - Updated: 01:45 PM EST | By Associated Press

[sinkspur]

Your defense of Law is admirable and understandable, given that you're in Boston.

Let's work and pray to put this regrettable episode in the Church behind us.

[rockabyebaby]

Anyone can say they are sorry and those of us who live in Boston and witnessed the whole thing, know law never repented, you'd have to know him to understand this.

[vox_freedom]

Don't think so.
Geoghan and Shanley, two of the worst abusers in the history of the Church, were in Boston. Law knew all about Shanley's background, and never told any of the bishops of dioceses where Shanley served after he got out of town two steps ahead of the sheriff.
Law praised priests who were abusing young men even as he praised them.
And the two of you ought to be ashamed for trashing The Globe. Were it not for their diligent stories, priests would still be preying on children, Law would still be moving them around, and we wouldn't know anything about it.
Law cooperated in a criminal conspiracy to conceal felonies. Ignorance of the law is no excuse. The bishops have mostly cleaned out the predators in their dioceses, but Catholics still have to watch them like hawks.

Perfectly stated and correct, Sinkspur. I greatly respect the courage of The Globe (and many other newspapers in the US) to publish these stories in their full depth and scope. The TRUTH was, and continues to be, the most valuable commodity in the abuse crisis.

[Radix]

I suppose that we will not likely agree concerning the issue of Cardinal Law and the accuracy of the charges against him. I am no great supporter of him, but I am and have been for many years a staunch critic of that rag known as the Boston Globe. The persons who manage that enterprise clearly are agenda driven and it makes perfect sense that they would use their position to undermine ANYTHING that Law and the archdiocese would attempt to accomplish.

The Globe resurrected a ten year old story concerning Priest Geoghan a few years ago. They apparently got the goods on a few other deviants and then they launched their unrelenting assault on the one institution in this area that actually provided decent education to ordinary folks at an economical price. 

When the scandal broke open in force people began to come out of the woodwork looking for a piece of the action that the church was going to pay to the victims. Are you seriously suggesting that thousands of children were molested by a few perverts and it never came out over forty or so years until the Globe began blaring the few allegations of it on their front page for weeks straight? 

The Globe is one of the most radical left wing newspapers that this nation has ever seen. They are beginning to pay a real price for their iniquities with a declining circulation which among other things is being driven by a backlash for their very unpopular positions on numerous social issues.

The Globe's attacks on Cardinal law and the church have resulted in  the closing of many schools and entire parishes just in this area alone. I know many people living in Boston who have children of school age. I do not know anyone who sends their children to the Boston Public Schools. The Globe along with social engineers have destroyed the system with the help of federal interlopers such as the late Judge Garrity.

The Boston Globe is a great threat to the Catholic Church, and to the nation itself in my opinion. They won a big battle this time, and they are working on a few other matters. 

http://business.bostonherald.com/businessNews/view.bg?articleid=76909

[sinkspur]

Are you seriously suggesting that thousands of children were molested by a few perverts and it never came out over forty or so years until the Globe began blaring the few allegations of it on their front page for weeks straight?

There were than a "few" perverts. There were over 4,000.

And, no, the extent of the problem did not emerge until The Globe blew the corruption in Boston wide open.

It's ok to dislike The Globe. But it did great work in the case of clerical sexual abuse.

[JohnnyZ]

Please cite.

I already cited your post 75. All lies and attacks.

[Stone Mountain]

It's really not the symbol that the professional victims make it out to be. Life goes on, and Law is still a Cardinal. He was actually a good Cardinal in many ways but his negligence regarding the abuse was a terrible failure, to say the least.

Yeah, except for that child abuse condoning thing, he was a great Cardinal. Isn't that a little like saying, "Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how did you like the play?" It's very hard for a lot of us to accept that Law was a "good" cardinal when we think of the children who could have avoided being molested were it not for Law's coverups.

[Stone Mountain]

Cardinal Law may be guilty or he may have been hoodwinked

Really? Who says he was hoodwinked?

[JohnnyZ]

If you weren't an idiot and could read, you would be agreeing with me.

[Stone Mountain]

, A.A. Cunningham wrote: Law never repented, he never admitted he did anything wrong. Incorrect. While Laws' behavior was inexcusable there's no need to bear false witness. "To all those who have suffered from my shortcomings and from my mistakes, I once again apologize, and from them I beg forgiveness," Law said.

So Law said he was sorry but he didn't say for what or whether he had done anything specific wrong. Just for "shortcomings and mistakes." That's something any of us could say at any time too - but it's not that meaningful and it's certainly not the way my mother taught me how to apologize. He issued a pro-forma statement - call me cynical but I don't think that was a heartfelt repentence.

[Stone Mountain]

If you weren't an idiot and could read, you would be agreeing with me.

If you would explain your point instead of making pointless ad hominem attacks, maybe I would...

[DBeers]

Really? Who says he was hoodwinked?

It is a secret. shhhh....

[JohnnyZ]

If you would explain your point

Okay, I'll spell it out: I ALREADY SPELLED IT OUT IN MY POST GO BACK AND READ IT. You quote me, then impute things that I didn't say, and disagree with that. It's bizarre. Try again.

[Stone Mountain]

If you weren't an idiot and could read, you would be agreeing with me.

Ok, let's look at what you said:

It's really not the symbol that the professional victims make it out to be. Life goes on, and Law is still a Cardinal.

It is that much of a symbol to the victims. And most of them weren't professional, just molested kids. But it's nice of you to attempt to diminish them that way.

He was actually a good Cardinal in many ways but his negligence regarding the abuse was a terrible failure, to say the least.

As I was trying to point out to you, it doesn't matter to most of us that he was a good Cardinal other than the child abuse condoning thing - the child abuse thing alone is enough to make him a failure at his position.

IMO too many people spend their time consumed with hatred for him when Jesus said we should love even our enemies, never mind a fellow sinner.

You mean like calling people who disagree with you an idiot?

[Renderofveils]

"The Boston Globe is a great threat to the Catholic Church, and to the nation itself in my opinion. They won a big battle this time, and they are working on a few other matters. "

Ya know, I really haven't read anything the Globe has written, and I'm relatively uneducated as to what really went on in the Catholic Church regarding anything pedophilia related. The one thing that occurs to me after reading a great number of these posts is that some don't realize that even an enemy of yours coming to you with something that could help you clean up an internal mess shouldn't be ignored. Oftentimes it takes someone else scrutinizing you (especially someone who doesn't care for you) to point out things you really need to change. Egocentrism is a dangerous thing.

[JohnnyZ]

it doesn't matter to most of us that he was a good Cardinal

Do you even stop to read your own posts?

The gist of it is that you don't give a damn, you just think Cardinal Law is evil and you won't be satisfied until he's dead. Well pardon me if I still think you're an idiot.

[Stone Mountain]

Oops - forgot about this part of your post:

St. Mary Major is a major church in Rome. That's where they stuck Law, right under the eye of the Vatican. But since they're having a Mass there, Law would be the natural choice to preside, since it's his new turf.

Many of us had a problem with someone who failed as badly as law getting such a high position in a major church in Rome, and thus he shouldn't have had the chance to lead such an important mass. Are we supposed to believe that the church believes that Law has done anything wrong when he is given these kinds of powers and responsibilities now?

[JohnnyZ]

In the 1980's there was a big spate of child sex abuse cases that I believe the Globe helped uncover.

A decade later the Globe ran a series on all the people who had been falsely accused and spent all that time in jail because they'd been caught up in the abuse hysteria.

Think about that.

[JohnnyZ]

Many of us had a problem with someone who failed as badly as law getting such a high position in a major church in Rome,

Like I said, you won't be happy until you see his rotting corpse.

Just take your $200k and get out!

[Stone Mountain]

The gist of it is that you don't give a damn, you just think Cardinal Law is evil and you won't be satisfied until he's dead.

Nope. I would be satisfied if he wasn't given such a position of responsibility and visibility in the church. I don't think this man should be honored for what he has done.

Well pardon me if I still think you're an idiot.

I can live with that. You haven't done anything to support your contention, though. Do you really believe that repeatedly calling me an idiot ties in with what you say about "when Jesus said we should love even our enemies, never mind a fellow sinner."