....Most cardinals leave the college in just two ways: by death or by election to the papacy. Though highly unusual, it is possible to resign. The last to do so was French Cardinal S.J. Louis Billot in 1927. The rub is that the pope has to accept such a resignation, so it's not known if any cardinal has tried to step down during these decades of the church's sexual-abuse scandals or at any other time during the last 85 years.
But, as a small gesture toward acknowledging these enormous crimes against over 500 Angeleno parishioners, Mahony ought to offer his resignation. And Pope Benedict XVI ought to accept it.
The files at the Los Angeles Archdiocese site aren't there voluntarely, but are made public only under the court order of Judge Emilie Elias. It took two years, and a court order, to get Gomez to do something about Mahony. But two years ago, Gomez was singing a different tune:
At the transition Mass, Archbishop Gomez graciously thanked the cardinal for his leadership of the archdiocese over the course of 26 years. Cardinal Mahony's legacy, he said, is “a Church that radiates the love of God and the truth of the Gospel.”“He has shown us what Christ wants his Church to be – a communion of cultures and a communion of saints, one family of God drawn from every country, race, and language.” The archbishop said that Cardinal Mahony “has helped us open our hearts, to love God and to love our brothers and sisters.”
-- from the thread Cardinal Mahony retires, passes leadership in LA to Archbishop Gomez
The priest started out staring at women's breasts and being real touchy with them.
The guy looked like a cross between Elvis and an offensive end. He was also a gifted speaker and when people in the parish like my mother who was head of the prayer community complained everywhere Baker was protected. From Mahony down to the other parishioners. Some parishioners had Baker in their will and he also inherited millions and a couple of houses or so.
The priest started out staring at women's breasts and being real touchy with them.
The guy looked like a cross between Elvis and an offensive end. He was also a gifted speaker and when people in the parish like my mother who was head of the prayer community complained everywhere Baker was protected. From Mahony down to the other parishioners. Some parishioners had Baker in their will and he also inherited millions and a couple of houses or so.
But, as a small gesture toward acknowledging these enormous crimes against over 500 Angeleno parishioners, Mahony ought to offer his resignation.
And Pope Benedict XVI ought to accept it.
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And any sane person should never give another dime to the RCC.
Typical anti-Catholic bigotry from the MSM.
The new Archbishop has done as much as he is empowered to do. And he did it fairly soon after assuming office, presumably after first taking the time to examine the facts first-hand, as best he could, as was right and proper.
If, as I suspect but don’t know, Cardinal Mahony was criminally guilty of complicity or encouragement in the earlier crimes, then it is up to the justice system to do something about it. But the justice system is conflicted. The liberals who control it in places like L.A. whine and complain about pederast priests from one side of their mouths, even while they excuse similar behavior by public school teachers out of the other side of their mouths, and even as they actually teach it in grade school to innocent children.
Yes, things got badly out of hand in that archdiocese. The Church has been repairing the damage that was done within it, mostly back in the 70s, by dissident bishops and priests, some out of ignorance and a few knowingly complicit in the evil. Yet the justice system that should deal with it is at the same time saying that homosexual marriage, homosexual adoption, and even man-boy love are good things, and it is discriminatory or illegal to suggest otherwise. Church adoption agencies have been forced out of business because they refuse to let homosexual couples adopt children. Not back in the 70s, but right now.
Plenty of evil to go around. So why criticize a new bishop for doing his job as best he can?
Thanks for posting this. It’s sickening. The entire hierarchy needs to be flushed down the toilet and replaced by decent men.
This falls prey to a common logical flaw.
That this person was molested is not a fact, it is a claim. While there is extremely good evidence that the RCC had a coverup of much such abuse over the years, any individual claim can still be true or untrue. It is not at all unlikely that some of the claims are invented or delusional.
Innocent till proven guilty applies even to child molesters, conspirators and cardinals. Or should.
I’m not sure what more they think Abp Gomez should do. Unlike, e.g., disciplining Nancy Pelosi, this really is a situation where Rome holds most of the cards (and the responsibility to play them)
Jesus said “The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field:
Mat 13:32 Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.” a mustard is not a tree but this one grew to be a tree. and Jesus interpreted the fowls being ministers of Satan in a previous parable of the sower. My suggestion is for people to know their bible. Since the printing press people do not have to rely on the church to learn what the bible says. This sexual abuse was known by the lay people too and they should not rely on the “hierarchy” when became apparent nothing was being done by the church (Roman Catholic). Other church ought not think they are exempt from this problem too. I’m sure the press will build this up to be much bigger than it is but the mistakes are done now.