Posted on 01/25/2019 4:58:42 PM PST by piusv
COVINGTON, Kentucky, January 25, 2019 (LifeSiteNews) – Amid mounting pressure, Bishop Roger Joseph Foys of the Diocese of Covington issued a new statement Friday apologizing to a group of pro-life students the Diocese initially condemned over a confusing video from the March for Life.
The Diocese was among those that condemned a group of Covington Catholic High School students after reports claimed a video showed them harassing an elderly Native American veteran at the March for Life last weekend. But additional extended video and firsthand accounts soon revealed the man, Nathan Phillips, was the one who waded into the group waiting for its bus and decided to beat a drum inches from student Nick Sandmann’s face, and other adults who accompanied Phillips shouted racial taunts at the kids. The kids had been performing school cheers in an attempt to drown out the harassment, and did not respond to adults’ insults and abuse in kind.
On January 19, the Covington Diocese and the high school issued a joint statement that the students’ behavior was “opposed to the Church’s teachings on the dignity and respect of the human person.” The statement also suggested the students faced expulsion. After the original narrative fell apart, Foys issued a new statement stating that an “independent, third-party investigation is planned to begin this week” and that it was “important for us to gather the facts that will allow us to determine what corrective actions, if any, are appropriate.”
Many have criticized the community’s Catholic authorities for condemning the boys in the first place and for not simply retracting and apologizing for the original statement. An attorney has threatened libel suits for any public figures that refuse to retract false statements, a conservative group has targeted Foys in radio ads, and LifeSiteNews has delivered more than 25,000 petition signatures calling on him to apologize.
Late Friday afternoon, the Diocese of Covington released a new, more apologetic letter signed by Foys, WCPO reports.
“We are sorry that this situation has caused such disruption in the lives of so many. We apologize to anyone who has been offended in any way by either of our statements which were made with good will based on the information we had,” Foys writes in the letter. “We should not have allowed ourselves to be bullied and pressured into making a statement prematurely, and we take full responsibility for it.”
“I especially apologize to Nicholas Sandmann and his family as well as to all CovCath families who have felt abandoned during this ordeal,” he continues. “Nicholas unfortunately has become the face of these allegations based on video clips. This is not fair. It is not just.”
Foys expresses hope that the results of the investigation “will exonerate our students so that they can move forward with their lives.” Covington parents have expressed concern that the investigation, which has not been called off, is seeking permission to interview their children and that they were barred from entering the school without an appointment while Foys met with the students this week.
Message From the Most Rever... by on Scribd
Many journalists quickly retracted their initial reactions, which have fed a liberal fervor that has included death threats. Covington Catholic closed down Tuesday due to safety concerns and reopened Wednesday with police protection. The Diocese main office was evacuated Wednesday due to a suspicious package. Yet some media outlets have attempted to keep the false narrative alive, and others have suggested journalists themselves are the real victims.
The president of the March for Life initially released a statement saying the boys behaved in a “reprehensible” manner. It released two tweets on January 20 saying, “Given recent developments regarding the incident on Friday evening, March for Life has deleted its original tweet and removed our statement on this matter from our website. It is clear from new footage and additional accounts that there is more to this story than the original video captured. We will refrain from commenting further until the truth is understood.”
Nearly a week later, the March for Life has not commented further.
President Trump has come out in support of the boys, saying the media “smeared” them and made them “symbols of Fake News and how evil it can be.” A number of other pro-life politicians, such as Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul and Rep. Thomas Massie, and Sen. Ted Cruz have come to the students’ defense.
More information has also come to light about Nathan Phillips, including that he did not actually serve in Vietnam as he and multiple media outlets reported he did, has a violent criminal record, and attempted to lead protestors in disrupting Mass at the Basilica of National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception – where many pro-life events take place around the March for Life – just one day after he confronted Sandmann.
we…allowed ourselves to be bullied’
“Bishop Roger Joseph Foys of the Diocese of Covington issued a new statement Friday admitting that he’s a feckless douchebag.”
That’s how this headline SHOULD read!!!!
There are certain wounds that belated apologies can never heal. The boys at the center of this mess should transfer to other Catholic Schools. The students will forget, but the teachers won’t. Those who agreed with the Lib condemnation will be biased in their treatment and in their grading.
Too little too late. Bishop off the board.
Translation: “Please don’t sue us. The Church already has enough legal trouble, what with all the sodomy and all.”
Not good enough. Bishop needs to resign.
Screw you, Bishop, its too late. Resign in shame.
If appearances are the first thing he trusts, he would have been in the crowd shouting “crucify him!” at Jesus’ trial.
Yes. “We were complete jerks and it is just now occurring to us the lawsuits are coming.”
Well... better late than never.
They don't "feel" abandoned, they ARE abandoned. Both the church and the March for Life abandoned these kids. They are a bunch of cowards.
The church should be teaching these kids to resist evil, stand up for those who can't stand up for themselves. Call out racism and bigotry, and we will have your back. Instead, these kids learned that they are on their own, the church won't lift a finger for them.
Bishop Roger Joseph Foys must resign immediately. He is incompetent to hold the position.
What kind of "catholic" bishops allow themselves to be bullied by public histeria / opinion?
Who needs such "men"?
Bullied? You allowed yourself to be suckered. And it took you long enough to do a little basic vetting of the story. One would think you’d do that before tossing your own under the bus.
I’m guessing money talks. When parents and alumni start withholding money, it brings some people back to their senses. That’s probably the case in this instance.
No, you had your head up someplace that is dark and smelly.
What the heck are they still ‘investigating ‘?! Everyone knows, from video evidence, that the boys were never at fault!
Weak-@ssed, so called apology. Let me help you, Bishop...
"Our actions were reprehensible. At a time when these teens should have felt support from their church, we instead joined the mob. We spoke in ignorance."
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