Posted on 02/07/2013 6:59:54 AM PST by Alex Murphy
In the midst of renewed public outrage over its handling of clergy sex abuse, the Los Angeles Archdiocese is considering a $200-million fundraising campaign that could erase debts brought on by the scandal.
[SNIP]
The archdiocese's $660-million settlement in 2007 with more than 500 victims was the largest in U.S. history. According to a December financial report, the archdiocese is still paying down loans it used to cover the settlement, and its liabilities now outstrip its assets by $80 million.
[SNIP]
If the new fundraiser occurs, it would place Archbishop Jose Gomez in the potentially difficult position of seeking large contributions from people whose anger at the abuse scandal has been stoked anew. Files released in a court case last month showed how Gomez's predecessor, Cardinal Roger Mahony, and a high-ranking church official, Thomas J. Curry, plotted to hide molestation from police in the 1980s and 1990s.
[SNIP]
But fellow parishioner Frank Penunuri, 85, said the scandal would not affect whether he gives to the church he has been attending for more than 50 years.
"I'm a Catholic," he said, laughing. "I do what I'm told."
[SNIP]
Under Mahony, the archdiocese agreed to two major abuse settlements: the $660-million payout in 2007 and a $60-million agreement in 2006. Although insurance companies and religious orders picked up about half that amount, the church has paid at least $360 million to compensate victims. The amount does not include legal fees for church lawyers who negotiated settlements and then spent years fighting unsuccessfully in court to keep the church records confidential.
Despite the archdiocese's debt, the church's spokesman said auditors verified church financial reports that concluded that "the archdiocese is financially sound." The church has liabilities of $551 million, and assets, including an investment portfolio and property holdings, of $471 million
(Excerpt) Read more at articles.latimes.com ...
....fellow parishioner Frank Penunuri, 85, said the scandal would not affect whether he gives to the church he has been attending for more than 50 years. "I'm a Catholic," he said, laughing. "I do what I'm told."
Give us money so we can pay for the crimes of homosexuals we allowed in our midst
No thanks.
I’m glad you mention homosexuals. A big number of the abuse cases involved homosexual priests abusing boys and young men. Yet the MSM always refers to this as child abuse in general terms, without specifying who the perpetrators and victims were.
I can only think that this is because the MSM does not want to report anything which reflects badly on the homosexual community.
The MSM cannot stand to refer to it as homosexual priests preying on young boys. “Pedophilia’ - a nice substitute.
I think Mahoney and (Curtis?) should run the fundraiser.
I think that's a brilliant idea. I'd like to see Gomez assign them to the task, and require them to complete it. Make them clean up their mess!
Indeed. Over 90% of abuse cases were "man on boy" - if that is not the definition of "homosexual," I don't know what is. Also, homosexuality encompasses many types of perversion, but pederasty is the largest sub-set.
The Buffalo News, by no way a Catholic paper, some years ago printed an article that a prestigious group of psychiatrists said they could cure a man of unmarried sex. They told the Church to send them their priests to be cured. The Church did. Then, said the same newspaper, the psychiatrists admitted there was no cure. Sue the psychiatrists.
"Studies" have show that the number of illegals in California has declined. At the same time the number in Texas has risen.
Fewer jobs in California and more jobs in Texas?
Agreed. Why should anyone give the church a dime for paying off the victims of butt pirates with roman collars? If they'd simply allowed the justice system to deal with the bunghole buccaneers, then they wouldn't be in the hole (financially I mean). You have to figure about half of the claimants are probably lying to get some money there are still an awful lot of real cases out there.
Knowing the LA Times, they’re probably disappointed in Archbishop Jose Gomez. He’s an excellent bishop and I wish him and his diocese well. God bless him.
Raising taxes to cover for our criminal behavior.
Sound familiar?
Your quote comes from Wikipedia, not from the article. Wikipedia has two footnotes to source the claim: an LA Times poll from 2002, and an America magazine article from 2000, which itself sources the number back to Donald B. Cozzens' book The Changing Face of the Priesthood.
There's a disturbing review of the book over on Phil Lawler's website "Catholic Culture", disturbing in hindsight because the reviewer was Father Benedict Groeschel, who has recently claimed that "a lot" of Catholic molestation victims actually seduced the accused priests, and not the other way around.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.