Replies

In the course of his open letter to Archbishop Gomez, Cardinal Mahony did land one solid blow. (It is revealing, and characteristic, that he buttressed his own case by undermining his successor.) He called attention to the fact that while internal archdiocesan files have only recently been made public, Archbishop Gomez had the opportunity to peruse those files months ago, when he first arrived in Los Angeles as a coadjutor:
Not once over these past years did you ever raise any questions about our policies, practices, or procedures in dealing with the problem of clergy sexual misconduct involving minors.
Here Cardinal Mahony was strongly hinting that Archbishop Gomez took action only because the truth was already out—that his decision to relieve the cardinal of public duties was motivated by public-relations concerns. If that is the case, then Archbishop Gomez was responding the same way so many other bishops had responded: taking action only when it was no longer possible to keep the lid on the scandal.

Phil Lawler nails it again.

Gee, you just have to wonder. Did (the wonderful) Archbishop Gomez have anything else on his plate the minute he took over Los Angeles Archdiocese? Talk about a mop-up operation.

Mahoney left a long and tawdry path of destruction in his long tenure here in LA. Gomez is slowly, methodically, and with a great deal of inexorable care cleaning up a large mess.

So, you’re so desperate to attack the Church that now you’re taking Cardinal Mahony’s side?

Archbishop Gomez was not Cardinal Mahony’s superior back then. He was a coadjutor.

Wikipedia gives what I believe is a correct definition:

‘A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) is a bishop in the Roman Catholic or Anglican churches who is designated to assist the diocesan bishop in the administration of the diocese, almost as co-bishop of the diocese. The coadjutor (literally, “co-assister” in Latin) is a bishop himself and is given authority even beyond that ordinarily given to the vicar-general (although a coadjutor is also appointed a vicar-general), making him co-ruler of the diocese in all but ceremonial precedence. In modern times, the coadjutor automatically succeeds the current bishop of a diocese upon the latter’s retirement, removal or death.’

So, Myers had a good deal of authority, and was slated to take over when Mahony died or retired. But it was not within his capacity to remove Mahony’s facilities, as he has done now.

Perhaps he could have spoken out, and started a royal food fight, but what good would that have done? Mahony’s sins were in the past, and he wasn’t committing them in the present under Myers’ eye. So, better to wait a little while and remove Mahony relatively quietly—and certainly. If Myers had tried to act earlier, who knows which one of them would have won the struggle—with the press no doubt siding with the liberal.