Exlcblog

I guess the Pope gets the last word

2010-05-01T21:39:00.002-04:00

Vatican Statement on Apostolic Visitation of Legionaries of Christ

(01 May 10 – RV) Below we publish a Vatican Radio translation of the Press Office Statement released Saturday May 1, at the conclusion of a two day meeting in the Vatican on the outcome of the Apostolic Visitation of the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ:

1. On the days April 30 and May 1, the Cardinal Secretary of State chaired a meeting in the Vatican with five bishops in charge of the Apostolic Visitation of the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ (Bishop Ricardo Blazquez, archbishop of Valladolid, Msgr. Charles J. Chaput OFM Cap., Archbishop of Denver, Mgr. Andrella Ricardo Ezzati SDB, Archbishop of Concepción, Mgr. Giuseppe Versaldi, Bishop of Alexandria; Mgr. Ricardo Watty Urquidi, M.Sp.S., Bishop of Tepic). It was attended by the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life and the Substitute for General Affairs of the Secretariat of State.
One of the sessions took place in the presence of the Holy Father, to whom the Visitors presented a summary of their report, which had been previously submitted.
During the visitation over 1,000 Legionnaires were met in person and hundreds of written documents were examined. The Visitors have visited almost all the religious houses and many of the works of the apostolate directed by the Congregation. They heard, orally or in writing, the opinion of many diocesan bishops of the countries where the congregation operates. The Visitors also met several members of the "Regnum Christi" Movement, although it was not the subject of the visit, especially men and women religious. They have also received considerable correspondence from laity and family members of the Movement.
The five Visitors testified to a sincere reception and a constructive spirit of cooperation shown them by the congregation and individual religious. While acting independently, they have reached a widely convergent evaluation and a shared opinion. They testified that to having met a large number of honest and talented religious individuals, many of them young, who seek Christ with genuine zeal and offer their entire lives to spread the Kingdom of God

2. The Apostolic Visitation was able to ascertain that the behaviour of Fr. Marcial Maciel Degollado has caused serious consequences in the life and structure of the Legion, so much so, to require a journey of profound re-evaluation.
The serious and objectively immoral behaviour of Fr. Maciel, supported by incontrovertible evidence, at times constitutes real crimes, and manifests a life devoid of scruples and of genuine religious feeling. The large majority of Legionaries were unaware of that life, particularly because of the system of relations created by Fr. Maciel, who had skilfully managed to build up an alibi, to gain the trust, confidence and surrounding silence and strengthen his role as a charismatic founder.
Not infrequently the lamentable disgracing and expulsion of those who doubted his upright conduct, and the misconception of not wanting to harm the good that the Legion was doing, had created around him a defence mechanism which made him untouchable for a long time , thus rendering knowledge of his real life difficult.

3. The sincere zeal of the majority of the Legionaries - which also emerged from the Visitation of the congregation houses and their many works, and which is appreciated by many - led many in the past to believe that the charges, which gradually became more insistent and widespread, could only be slander.
Therefore the discovery and knowledge of the truth about the founder resulted in surprise, dismay and deep sorrow among members of the Legion, as clearly evidenced by the Visitors.

4. From the results of the Apostolic Visitation it has emerged clearly, among other elements:
a) the need to redefine the charism of the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ, preserving the core truth, that of "Militia Christi", which characterizes the apostolic and missionary action of the Church and which is not identifiable with efficacy at any cost;
b) the need to review the exercise of authority, which must be conjoined to the truth, in respect of conscience and to develop in light of the Gospel as an authentic ecclesial service;
c) the need to preserve young people's enthusiasm of faith, the missionary zeal, the apostolic dynamism, through appropriate formation. Indeed, disappointment about the founder could call into question the core of this vocation and charism that belongs and is specific to the Legionaries of Christ.

5. The Holy Father would like to assure all Legionnaires and members of the "Regnum Christi" Movement that they will not be left alone: the Church has a strong desire to accompany them and help them in the path of purification that awaits them. It will also mean sincere confrontation with all those who, inside and outside the Legion, were victims of sexual abuse and of the power system devised by the founder. It is to them, at this time, that the thoughts and prayers of the Holy Father go, along with his gratitude to the many who, even in the midst of great hardships, had the courage and perseverance to demand the truth.

6. The Holy Father, in thanking the Visitors for the delicate work which they competently carried out with generosity and deep pastoral sensitivity, assured them that he will soon indicate the modalities of this process of accompaniment, starting with the appointment of a Delegate and a Study Commission on the Constitution.
The Holy Father will send a Visitor to the Regnum Christi Movement, in response to insistent requests from consecrated members thereof.

7. Finally, to all Legionaries of Christ, their families, committed lay people in the Regnum Christi movement, the Holy Father renewes his encouragement during this difficult time for the Congregation and each one of them. He urges them not to lose sight that their vocation, which originated from Christ’s call and is animated by the ideal to witness his love to the world, is a true gift from God, a treasure for the Church, the indestructible foundation on which to build their personal future and that of the Legion.

My Last Word

2010-04-02T09:35:00.001-04:00

Please click here to see Brian Ross take the issue head on. Nightline, ABC.

Uncomfortable....

2010-03-31T13:23:00.002-04:00

AOL NEWS

Dana Kennedy Contributor

(March 30) -- To many, the charismatic Pope John Paul II represented much that is lacking in the dour, scholarly Pope Benedict XVI, who was once nicknamed "the Rottweiler" and is under worldwide siege for the child sex abuse scandals sweeping the Roman Catholic Church.

But even as more questions swirl around Benedict and his alleged role in the cover-ups of pedophile priests, John Paul's stellar reputation is suddenly taking a subtle beating.

A miracle ascribed to John Paul that is a prerequisite for his canonization has been questioned, and one of church's highest-ranking officials has said that John Paul ignored Benedict's pleas to mount a full investigation into sex abuse accusations against the archbishop of Vienna.

Franco Origlia, Getty Images

Questions about a miracle attributed to Pope John Paul II that is needed for his sainthood may prevent the former pope's canonization.

A Polish newspaper, Rzeczpospolita, reported that the former head of the Vatican's saint-making office, Cardinal Jose Saraiva Martins, has said that doctors may have doubts about a nun who said she had been cured of Parkinson's disease after praying to John Paul. They are investigating whether she might have had a similar condition that can go into remission. (Martins, who remains one of Benedict's top aides, also told reporters there was "a conspiracy" against the church, without specifying who was responsible.)

And in another blow to John Paul's legacy, the controversial order the Legion of Christ formally apologized last week for the behavior of its founder, the late Marcial Maciel Degollado, whom John Paul staunchly defended despite allegations of abuse dating back to the 1950s. Maciel is believed to have sexually abused young seminarians and fathered at least three children.

As doubts were being raised about the spotlessness of John Paul's 26-year reign, a Vatican spokesman on Tuesday responded forcefully to those calling for Benedict to resign, saying that they clearly did not understand how the church operates.

"This is not some multinational company where the chief executive is expected to take responsibility," Federico Lombardi told The Washington Post. "The pope is not personally directing the actions of priests around the world. He is their spiritual leader, and he is one who has acted very clearly to confront this problem."

Lombardi's statement meshed with remarks made by Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn of Vienna. On Sunday, Schoenborn told Austrian TV that Benedict, then Joseph Ratzinger and head of the Vatican office in charge of clerical sex abuse, pressed John Paul in vain to fully investigate then-Archbishop of Vienna Hans Hermann Groer, who stepped down in 1995 after being accused of sexually molesting a schoolboy.

After Groer resigned, allegations that he had also sexually abused monks surfaced.

Reuters reported that Schoenborn said other curia officials persuaded John Paul not to investigate Groer because of the bad publicity it could bring.

"The other side won," Schoenborn said. He added that Benedict is not "someone who covers things up. Having known the pope for many years, I can say that is certainly not true."

Recent reports involving the current scandals also note that John Paul seemingly rewarded Cardinal Bernard Law after he was implicated in some of the cover-ups of clerical sexual abuse in Boston when cases there exploded in 2002.

After Law's resignation, John Paul appointed him in charge of the grand Basilica St. Mary Major's in Rome, where he remains part of the Roman curia and lives in a nearby palazzo.

A troubling order for the Catholic Church

2010-03-31T13:17:00.002-04:00

Opinion LA Times

March 31, 2010

The resolution of the Legionaries of Christ case also will be a test for its conservative American supporters.
By Tim Rutten

One of the decisions confronting Pope Benedict XVI as he struggles to contain an abuse scandal whose tendrils now appear to extend into the Vatican may have a particular resonance in the United States.

That decision involves what to do about a wealthy and influential order, the Legionaries of Christ, and the worldwide lay movement it operates, Regnum Christi. The former includes 800 priests and the latter as many as 75,000 members. Around the globe, the Legionaries operate 120 seminaries, universities, schools and Catholic newspapers. Their ability to recruit future priests in an era of declining vocations has impressed the Vatican; today 2,600 are preparing for ordination in their seminaries.

The Legionaries were founded in Mexico in 1941 by a seminarian, Marcial Maciel, who went on to lead what quickly became the church's fastest-growing religious order and one of its most powerful. That power came from the socially well-connected Maciel's ability to raise astonishing sums of money, and from his insistence on unquestioning loyalty to papal authority.

All of this made Maciel and the Legionaries great favorites of Pope John Paul II, who believed new, traditionalist orders -- like the Legionaries and Opus Dei -- would provide a bulwark against secularism. The pontiff publicly called Maciel "an efficacious example to youth" and took him along as a key adviser on his trips to Latin America.

This papal approval tended to obscure the Legionaries' creepy internal organization, which involved a cult of personality built around Maciel, internal spying and demands for absolute obedience. At ordination, Legionaries swore a vow -- since abolished by Benedict -- never to speak ill of a superior and to report anyone who did.

In retrospect, it all seems perfectly designed to shield Maciel from scrutiny -- something he desperately required because he was a lifelong sexual predator who molested numerous seminarians and fathered at least one child.

Allegations of molestations circulated for years but broke into the open in 1997, when two reporters from the Hartford Courant produced a series that exposed Maciel's misconduct. The Legionaries denied everything and hired top-drawer law and public relations firms to discredit the Courant and its reporters. An investigation was opened by the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, then headed by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, but went nowhere, reportedly because John Paul didn't believe the charges.

By the time Ratzinger became Pope Benedict XVI, further revelations had occurred, including the exposure of Maciel's mistress and daughter in Spain. The investigation was reopened, and Maciel was ordered to retire from public life and spend the rest of his days in prayer and penance. He died in 2008 at 87, still a priest.

The new pontiff also ordered five bishops to look further into the Legionaries. Earlier this month, they reported back to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, now headed by Los Angeles-born Cardinal William Levada. Levada is expected to recommend that Benedict either dissolve the order or, more likely, completely reorganize it under new leadership.

What's interesting about all of this is that a list of Maciel's most vociferous defenders reads like a who's who of the conservative Catholic intellectuals who, in recent years, have insisted that Catholicism and membership in the Democratic Party are all but incompatible. Among Maciel's defenders have been the late Father Richard John Neuhaus, whose journal, First Things, is a bible for conservative Catholics; William Donohue of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights; Harvard law professor Mary Ann Glendon, who refused to accept an award from Notre Dame because it invited President Obama to speak at its commencement; former Secretary of Education William J. Bennett, now a talk-show host and commentator; and Deal Hudson, President George W. Bush's Catholic liaison.

In fact, when the Vatican ordered Maciel into retirement, Neuhaus -- who earlier had written that he knew the man's innocence as "a moral certainty" -- told the New York Times: "It wouldn't be the first time that an innocent and indeed holy person was unfairly treated by church authority."

Do Bennett, Glendon, Donohue and Hudson still agree with Neuhaus? The resolution of the Legionaries of Christ case will be a test not only for Benedict but also for those conservative American intellectuals who have yet to explain how they came to give such unstinting support to a malevolent sexual predator.

Jason Berry

2010-03-30T14:42:00.004-04:00

Arguably, Jason is one of the foremost experts on the crisis in the US, having published "Lead Us Not Into Temptation" in 1992. From Amazon Books--

"In a shocking, graphic expose, New Orleans journalist Berry documents scores of cases of sexual abuse of boys by Roman Catholic priests across the U.S. Tracking this tragic story from Louisiana to Washington, D.C., and then to New York, Berry reports that most child-molesting priests are simply reassigned to a different parish. He accuses the Catholic bishops of evasion and cover-up, compounded by moral myopia and an appalling indifference to the victims of pedophilia. He also cites cases of women seduced and discarded by their pastors. Further, Berry probes the homophobia within a clerical culture which, he maintains, allows ample freedom to gay clergy provided they keep their sexual orientation a secret. He describes the organized movements of women and men within the Church who are challenging the bishops' silence. Berry ends with a plea to abolish mandatory celibacy for priests. Greeley, in his foreword, notes that sexual abuse "may be the greatest scandal in the history of religion in America."
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc."

What Pope Benedict Must Do

Posted:

03/30/10 on Politics Daily

Pope Benedict faces an epic scandal as victims of clerical sex abuse in Ireland, Western Europe and America raise the issue of justice denied by secret tribunals that allowed predators to remain priests. Yet an editorial in the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, scored the media for "an ignoble attempt to strike at Pope Benedict and his closest aides at any cost."

Benedict is grappling with an unfinished crisis that drew media coverage in America in 1992; victims' lawsuits revealed bishops who had sheltered predators from prosecution. By 1994 the coverage had ebbed. Then, in 2002, The Boston Globe gained access to voluminous documents, exposing a vast clergy sexual underground. Pope John Paul II called the American cardinals to Rome for an emergency conference. In June, the U.S. bishops enacted a youth protection charter. Lay review boards would comb clergy files and investigate new accusations. Bishops began weeding out sex offenders.

The Vatican drew the line, however, at giving these review boards the authority to investigate bishops. That decision has come back to haunt the church.

Cardinal Bernard Law, who resigned in disgrace as archbishop of Boston in late 2002, remains today part of the Roman Curia and pastor of a great basilica, St. Mary Major. In recent years, at least 16 bishops who sexually abused children quietly "stepped down." One was a cardinal, Hans Hermann Groer of Austria, who has since died. A Vatican double-standard -- priests subject to defrocking, bishops quietly moving on -- has made the pope vulnerable to even greater criticism amid a new round of investigative reports.

Benedict's most immediate task is to change the Vatican's archaic system of closed tribunals, which prize secrecy. The pope is final arbiter on canon law, a sovereign who has the power of a one-man Supreme Court to intervene, halt or change a canonical decision. But changing that system is a much tougher reform than meets the eye.

Ironically, for all the bad press he is getting, Benedict has done more to confront the abuse crisis than anyone else in the Vatican. But he must choose between governing and upholding his theological vision as a moral absolutist. As many a president and prime minister has learned, the shift from an ideological stance to a pragmatic one can be laden with risk.

The root crisis lies in the church's view of apostolic succession. The pope and bishops consider themselves descendants in a spiritual lineage from Jesus's apostles. Apostolic succession is as much a part of Catholicism as icons and stained glass windows. But Judas was also an apostle -- a reminder that all humans, regardless of proximity to the Word, are capable of betraying the faith. Apostolic succession has fallen victim to hubris, the pride and entitlement of a religious elite who consider apology or penance a substitute for human justice.

Bishops answer directly to the pope, also known as Supreme Pontiff. But this monarchical system of governance is colliding with two pillars of democracy, a court system and a free press. As abuse victims clamor for the punishment of bishops, information from America holds a stirring of hope. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops released data that show a 32 percent decline in reported cases of clergy abuse from last year. Most involved priests were deceased or out of ministry. The USCCB reported six victims in 2009 who were younger than 18. Six too many, yes; but after an estimated $1.8 billion in losses from payouts to victims, legal fees and therapy for sex offenders, the youth protection charter is taking hold. Moreover, 96 percent of Catholic school students have "safe environment" training to warn against improper adult behavior.

The Vatican has no youth protection charter, nor binding procedures for the world's bishops. Some church leaders, however, now see a crisis in that aloofness. Cardinal Walter Kasper of Germany bravely distanced himself from the Roman Curia in telling Italy's La Repubblica, "We have to seriously clean up the church."

Benedict faces a stark dilemma. To "clean up," he must challenge apostolic succession, start a process of sacking bishops who abused children, and demote prelates who grossly betray the trust. Such as:

- Frank Rodimer, who as bishop of Patterson, N.J., used church money to pay $250,000 after he was personally sued in a case with a priest who for several summers had sex with a boy in a beach house they shared with Rodimer. The priest went to prison. Rodimer stepped down, on reaching the retirement age at 75, and simply moved into a house the diocese bought.

- Archbishop Rembert Weakland of Milwaukee, who used church money to pay $450,000 in 1998 to silence a former male lover. When ABC News broke the hush money story in 2002, Weakland resigned his office -- but not his title. As archbishop, he was high-handed toward victims while playing musical chairs with pedophiles.

- Anthony O'Connell, who resigned as bishop of Palm Beach, Fla., in 2002, admitting that he abused a seminarian years before. He moved into a South Carolina monastery.

To defrock bishops who abused children would send a vital signal to all Catholics that Benedict is serious about reform. His recent letter to Irish Catholics, which followed lengthy government investigations of the church, was strongly worded. Citing "grave errors and failures of leadership," he said: "I can only share in the dismay and the sense of betrayal that so many of you have experienced on learning of these sinful and criminal acts and the way church authorities in Ireland dealt with them." His words evince a deeper struggle: "I openly express the shame and remorse we all feel."

Still, his delay on the offer of four Irish bishops to resign spurred more outrage, as did his role as archbishop of Munich, decades ago, in approving treatment for a pederast. Will Benedict demote bishops for "grave errors"? That would mean a new juridical standard.

As Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, he was decisive in running the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which is housed in a 17th-century palazzo where Galileo the astronomer was convicted of heresy. On issues ranging from the Vatican prohibition of birth control devices to Liberation Theology of Latin America, the C.D.F. used anonymous investigators to critique the works of suspect scholars. In closed tribunals, Ratzinger and his assistants interrogated those out of step with doctrine, punishing some by excommunication or orders to keep silent for periods of time. Catholic liberals were aghast as Ratzinger clashed with some of the church's leading thinkers. The Swiss theologian, Father Hans Küng, famously called him "The Grand Inquisitor," after Dostoevsky's religious persecutor in "The Brothers Karamazov."

Ratzinger's belief in absolute moral truth drove him to confront the pedophilia scandals when just about every other Vatican leader recoiled from it.

John Paul, so brilliant a geopolitical figure, stood passive as scandals jolted America, Ireland, Canada and Australia in the 1990s. In 2001, Ratzinger persuaded the pope to take the authority for such cases from scattered Vatican offices and consolidate them in his tribunal. Insisting on secrecy from bishops sending the files, the C.D.F. began defrocking scores of priests.

Küng wrote in a March 18 essay for National Catholic Reporter: "Honesty demands that Joseph Ratzinger himself, the man who for decades has been principally responsible for the worldwide cover-up, at least pronounce his own 'mea culpa' " -- Latin for "my fault."

Küng is an esteemed scholar, but this opinion is off base. The Roman Catholic Church is the largest organization in the world, and as split as Congress in its warring tribal camps. Who could orchestrate a global cover-up of anything? The crisis arose in countries that share a base in English common law with surgical discovery procedures for secret documents. Italian law is more restrictive; Italy has reported far fewer cases. Most cardinals in the Curia look to Italy as a base line, which has created a huge myopia, to put it charitably.

In a 2005 Good Friday sermon, Ratzinger decried the "filth" that had crept into the priesthood. Several days later, in a sermon opening the conclave that would elect him pope, he gave a cri de coeur on Europe: "We are building a dictatorship of relativism that does not recognize anything as definitive."

The crisis of moral relativism he faces now is internal. Consider the dean of the College of Cardinals, Angelo Sodano, 82. As secretary of state under John Paul II, Sodano defended to the hilt the notorious Father Marcial Maciel. Maciel, who died in 2008, was a Mexican who founded the Legion of Christ, a small religious order known for militant spirituality, papal loyalty and a $650 million budget. The Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, who lent The New York Times $240 million, was a major benefactor.

In 1997, nine ex-Legionaries opened their lives for the Hartford Courant, telling me and Gerald Renner how Maciel had sexually abused them in seminary. Asserting his innocence, Maciel refused to be interviewed. The Vatican was utterly silent on our questions about victim accusations against Maciel that went through church channels to Paul VI in 1976, John Paul II in 1978 and 1989. In 1998, the men filed a prosecution request in Ratzinger's tribunal. Sodano pressured Ratzinger to halt the case. Maciel and Sodano were close friends for years. As secretary of state, Sodano was effectively John Paul's prime minister. Finally, with the pope dying in 2004, Ratzinger broke ranks with Sodano and ordered an investigation. In 2005, Sodano's office stated, falsely, that the investigation was over. In 2006, Benedict banished Maciel to "a life of prayer and penitence."

The Legion then compared Maciel to Jesus for refusing to defend himself. When he died in 2008, the Legion Web site said Maciel had gone to heaven. In 2009, the Legion revealed with "surprise" that Maciel had a grown daughter. On March 4, in Mexico City, Maciel's three grown sons (by a second woman) publicly accused the Legion of denying them financial compensation. Two of the sons said Maciel had sexually abused them as boys.

A new investigation of the Legion, ordered by Benedict, is under way. If he follows his theological bearings, Benedict has the capacity to engineer radical reforms (from the Greek, meaning roots or primary things). He should disband the Legion of Christ. If he holds listening sessions with a representative group of victims, he will dramatize reconciliation to a scandal-wearied church that aches for moral leadership.

He should also convene a group of legal scholars to create a Vatican criminal court system. By forcing bishops and cardinals who have done the most damage out of the hierarchy, he can restore integrity to the concept of apostolic succession. It is probably beyond him to make the celibacy law optional; but if he takes these other hard steps to reverse the scandal, he will put himself on the right side of history. To stall or continue making merely symbolic gestures will produce an even worse spectacle.

In the context of scrutinizing the required "miracle", the Legion of Christ gets in the way

2010-03-29T10:13:00.005-04:00

But recently, new questions have been raised about John Paul's record in combating pedophile priests. John Paul presided over the church when the sex abuse scandal exploded in the United States in 2002 and the Vatican was swamped with complaints and lawsuits under his leadership. Yet during most of his 26-year papacy, individual dioceses and not the Vatican took sole responsibility for investigating misbehavior.

But John Paul himself had long championed the founder of the Legionaries of Christ, the conservative order that fell into scandal after it revealed that its founder had fathered a child and had molested seminarians.

The Vatican began investigating allegations against the Rev. Marcial Maciel of Mexico in the 1950s, but it wasn't until 2006, a year into Benedict's pontificate, that the Vatican instructed Maciel to lead a "reserved life of prayer and penance" in response to the abuse allegations — effectively removing him from power.

"Subsequently, Benedict ordered a full-on investigation of the order since its entire existence was so closely intertwined with that of its discredited founder.

Saraiva Martins said historians who studied the pope's life as part of the sainthood process didn't find anything problematic in John Paul's handling of abuse scandals.

"According to them there was nothing that was a true obstacle to his cause of beatification," he said.

The OK from historians led to Benedict's decree last December that John Paul had led a virtuous life. As a result, all that's needed for him to be beatified is for the miracle to be confirmed."

From AP on Yahoo news. Read the whole article here.

No wonder she tore up the pope's photo

2010-03-29T09:14:00.001-04:00

Sinead about the Pope's pastoral letter to Irish people regarding sexual abuse issue

A little known fact is that until 2001 there were explicit rules in place, issued by The Vatican, to every bishop in the world, on how to deal with allegations of abuse.

These rules included a vow of the utmost secrecy under threat of excommunication, to be sworn by clergy receiving complaints AND sworn by victims.

In 2001 then Cardinal Ratzinger, sent another set of instructions to every bishop in the world, stating that allegations were to be dealt with "exclusively" by the church

and were subject to "The Pontifical secret", which means one risks excommunication by discussing matters of abuse outside of the church.

If you are interested in copies of these documents they can be found here:

1922 an 62 instructions from rome to all bishops in the world which remained rules until 2001
Letter from Ratzinger regarding abuse and "pontifical secret"
Text of the oath sworn by clergy and victims: "I will never for any reason directly or indirectly, by gesture, word,writing or in any other way and under any other pretext, even that of a greater good, or of a highly urgent and serious reason, do anything against this fidelity to secrecy, unless special permission or dispensation or dispensation is granted to me by the supreme pontiff".

Ouch. Sandro Tells it Like it Is

2010-03-28T21:39:00.002-04:00

Legionaries. The "Nomenklatura" That Must Disappear

Name by name, all the top leaders of the congregation. Their extremely close connection with the founder and with his scandal. The impossibility of any real renewal, as long as they remain in power

by Sandro Magister

Click here to read it and weep.

CNN Calls it a Sect [sic?]

2010-03-28T07:36:00.002-04:00

Mexican Catholic order's founder abused boys, sect admits

By the CNN Wire Staff

March 26, 2010 5:16 p.m. EDT

The Rev. Marcial Maciel celebrates Mass in Rome, Italy, in August 2005.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

NEW: "We have to recognize the facts as they are," spokesman says
Legionnaires of Christ ask forgiveness for "reprehensible actions of our founder"
Vatican concluded in 2006 that Rev. Marcial Maciel was guilty of sexual abuse
Priest allowed to retire; he died in 2008

Rome, Italy (CNN) -- The founder of a Mexican Catholic order sexually abused minor-age seminarians and fathered three children with two women, the religious sect has revealed.

The Legion of Christ order and its lay Regnum Christi Movement asked for forgiveness Thursday for "the reprehensible actions of our founder," the Rev. Marcial Maciel.

"We express our sorrow and grief to each and every person damaged by our founder's actions," said a communique signed by the Rev. Alvaro Corcuera and 15 other Legion of Christ leaders.

The abuse allegations surfaced in 1997. The Vatican started an investigation into Maciel's actions in 2004 and concluded in May 2006 that he was guilty of sexual abuse, the group said.

"We had thought and hoped that the accusations brought against our founder were false and unfounded, since they conflicted with our experience of him personally and his work," the order's statement said.

As a result of the Vatican investigation, however, officials at the Legion of Christ "reached sufficient moral certainty to impose serious canonical sanctions related to the accusations made against Maciel, which included the sexual abuse of minor seminarians. Therefore, though it causes us consternation, we have to say that these acts did take place," the group said Thursday.

Law enforcement officials apparently were not informed.

The Vatican, "mindful of Father Maciel's advanced age and his delicate health, decided to forgo a canonical hearing and ask him to retire to a private life of penance and prayer, giving up any form of public ministry," the communique says.

Pope Benedict XVI approved the decision.

Although leaders at the Legion of Christ knew of the abuse since May 2006, they kept it quiet until this week. As of Friday, Maciel's biography on the order's Web page merely said, "In May 2006, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith invited Father Maciel to 'a reserved life of prayer and penance, renouncing all public ministry.' "

Maciel died January 30, 2008.

Javier Bravo, spokesman for the sect in Mexico and Central America, said Legion leaders did not reveal the accusations sooner because "it has been a very difficult process. We weren't ready to assimilate it before."

Now, he told CNN en Español, "we have to recognize the facts as they are."

Legion leaders acknowledged the delay, saying in Thursday's communique, "It's taken us some time to assimilate these events of his life. For many -- above all the victims -- this time has been too long and painful."

In addition to sexually assaulting young seminarians, Maciel fathered at least three children, Thursday's statement said.

The priest had a daughter from a stable relationship with a woman, and two men said they are his children from a relationship with another woman.

Maciel, born in March 1920, founded the Legion of Christ in January 1941.

According to the order, the Legion of Christ has a presence in 24 countries.

The first Legionaries arrived in Spain in 1946, and the order established a center in Rome in 1950. In the 1960s, the Legion established itself in Ireland and the United States. In the 1980s, the order expanded into more countries in South America and Central Europe. The Legion says it recently began pastoral projects in Eastern Europe and Philippines.

The announcement about Maciel comes against a deepening crisis in the Catholic church, which is investigating complaints of abuse in Ireland, Germany, Britain and several other countries.

Stay Tuned for Jason Berry

2010-03-27T11:35:00.001-04:00

A note from NCR's editors

The late Fr. Marcial Maciel Degollado personified some of the ugliest realities of the Catholic church’s clergy sex abuse crisis. Maciel, a long-time favorite of Pope John Paul II, who once declared him “an efficacious guide to youth,” was actually a sexual predator who abused young seminarians and who also had a secret life as a father of several children by at least two women.

The acknowledgment and apology by current Legion officials puts an end to the long denial of the order that Maciel had done anything wrong.

On Monday NCR will post the first of two parts of a story by Jason Berry on how Maciel insinuated himself into influence in Vatican circles with lavish cash gifts and how he retained control over the order during more than half a century. Berry, who wrote the first national story on the sex abuse scandal in the United States in 1985, also broke the earliest stories on the Legion and accusations against its founder, Maciel.

Now that some dust has settled

2010-03-27T07:38:00.003-04:00

This blogger waited for some dust to settle and decided to sleep on things- "consultar la almuada" as they say in Spanish- before commenting on the recent statements by the Legion. A line by line analysis could be done, and has been done on other blogs, but I have some points to make on a the big picture.

Readers of this blog will know how I feel about apologies, that I find them somewhat naive if they area simply apologies for what others have done. An apology is intimate and personal. If sincere, then the very person, each person, says that they are sorry for what that person has done. The comments on the posts below show that many readers are waiting to hear words of sorry from those who particularly harmed them.

We are ignoring the facts, folks. The fatal flaw in all of this is that the Legion wants to hold on to the hopeless idea that God used a flaw instrument like Maciel. There is no comparison in the history of salvation for the evil of Maciel, the trickery and the deceit of this man knew no bounds. Why the carve out for the Legion? If he lied all along and "founded" families and situations of continued abuse, what saves the Legion from being one of those? You can't just assume that the Legion is good. That needs to be proven. And all the good works? Well, we have a whole blog here and many others, and much testimony, which show that there are an inordinate number of bad works, too. Just take a look at the knowledge that high Legionary officials - superiors, from which flow the methodology, the will of God and all that crap- had of Maciel's life and sins, and have still not admitted to, preferring to lie about when and what they knew.

Bottom line: you can't just assume that the foundation is from God. You have to prove that. We have already seen that Church officials blew it big time in their support and praise of Maciel and his life and times.

There is no comparison to Christ and to Mary. That is blasphemy (and coming from me, that is a hefty charge indeed).

Until someone takes this bull by the horns, the suffering will not end.

Gnats speak

2010-03-26T14:50:00.003-04:00

The worst possible response would be to assume a charism can be cobbled together by retaining parts of Maciel's mission, vision, teaching, and methodology. Rather than focusing on what can be saved, the Legion must be willing to lose all of the limbs Maciel provided them with.
If any group in the Church in 50 years time traces its history back to this sorry mess, it must be contemplative not conquering, humble not ambitious, and must serve the laity not enroll them into it's mission.

From May Contain Gnats

Thanks, Mommy

2010-03-26T14:44:00.002-04:00

From MommyWrites

In his communique, Corcuera says: "For his own mysterious reasons, God chose Fr Maciel as an instrument to found the Legion of Christ and Regnum Christi, and we thank God for the good he did."

Ok. Yes, it is VERY hard to understand how God would choose Maciel as an instrument to found LC/RC. Even if you look at it from the perspective of taking care of Maciel, knowing that he had a particular vice (pedaphilia), why on earth would an all-knowing, loving God call him to a life where he would be constantly surrounded by young boys? It truly is mysterious....

Just like it's mysterious that God would call Madoff to start a financial company, or a flawed character like Margaret Sanger to start a charity organization.....

Of course, there is another possibility. Perhaps God DIDN'T choose Maciel to start LC/RC. Perhaps Maciel just started it on his own, as a convenient way to get victims and money.....

hmm.... why do I have the sudden urge to shave my legs?

Communique

2010-03-26T09:58:00.003-04:00

Thy Kingdom Come!
COMMUNIQUÉ
regarding the current circumstances of the Legion of Christ and the Regnum Christi Movement
March 25, 2010Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord

Introduction
As we are gathered for the annual meeting of the territorial directors with our general director, we wish to write to our brothers in the Legion of Christ, to the consecrated and all the members of Regnum Christi, our families and friends who accompany us at this juncture in our history, and also to all those who have been affected, wounded, or scandalized by the reprehensible actions of our founder, Fr Marcial Maciel, LC.
It has taken us time to come to terms with these facts regarding his life. For many, especially the victims, this time has been too long and very painful.

We have not always been able, or found the way to reach out to everyone in the way we should have, and in fact wanted to. Hence the need we feel to make this communiqué.

1. Regarding some facts in the life of our founder, Fr Marcial Maciel, LC (1920-2008)
We had thought and hoped that the accusations brought against our founder were false and unfounded, since they conflicted with our experience of him personally and his work. However, on May 19, 2006, the Holy See’s Press Office issued a communiqué as the conclusion of a canonical investigation that the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) had begun in 2004. At that time, the CDF reached sufficient moral certainty to impose serious canonical sanctions related to the accusations made against Fr Maciel, which included the sexual abuse of minor seminarians. Therefore, though it causes us consternation, we have to say that these acts did take place.

Indeed, “the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, […], mindful of Father Maciel’s advanced age and his delicate health, decided to forgo a canonical hearing and ask him to retire to a private life of penance and prayer, giving up any form of public ministry. The Holy Father approved these decisions” (Communiqué of the Press Office of the Holy See, May 19, 2006).

We later came to know that Fr Maciel had fathered a daughter in the context of a prolonged and stable relationship with a woman, and committed other grave acts. After that, two other people surfaced, blood brothers who say they are his children from his relationship with another woman.

We find reprehensible these and all the actions in the life of Fr Maciel that were contrary to his Christian, religious, and priestly duties. We declare that they are not what we strive to live in the Legion of Christ and in the Regnum Christi Movement.

2. The Legion of Christ and the Regnum Christi Movement in the face of these facts Once again, we express our sorrow and grief to each and every person damaged by our founder’s actions.

We share in the suffering this scandal has caused the Church, and it grieves and hurts us deeply.

We ask all those who accused him in the past to forgive us, those whom we did not believe or were incapable of giving a hearing to, since at the time we could not imagine that such behavior took place. If it turns out that anyone culpably cooperated in his misdeeds we will act according to the principles of Christian justice and charity, holding these people responsible for their actions.

We also ask our families, friends and benefactors to forgive us, and all other people of good will who have felt that their trust has been wounded.
In addition, as members of the Mystical Body of Christ we feel the need to expiate his sins and the scandal they caused, making reparation with a Christian spirit. We ask all the members of our religious family to intensify their prayer and sacrifice.

It is also our Christian and priestly duty to continue reaching out to those who have been affected in any way. Our greatest concern is for them, and we continue to offer them whatever spiritual and pastoral help they need, hoping thus to contribute to the necessary Christian reconciliation. At the same time, we know that only Christ is able to bring definitive healing and “make all things new” (cf. Rev. 21:5).

For his own mysterious reasons, God chose Fr Maciel as an instrument to found the Legion of Christ and Regnum Christi, and we thank God for the good he did. At the same time, we accept and regret that, given the gravity of his faults, we cannot take his person as a model of Christian or priestly life.

Christ condemns the sin but seeks to save the sinner. We take him as our model, convinced of the meaning and beauty of forgiveness, and we entrust our founder to God’s merciful love.

3. The apostolic visitation
We wish to express our gratitude to the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, not only for renewing “his solidarity and prayers in these delicate moments” (cf. Letter of Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, SDB, to Fr Alvaro Corcuera, March 10, 2009), but also for offering us the Apostolic Visitation as a means to help us “overcome the present difficulties” (ibid.). Thus we hope to take the necessary steps to reinforce our foundations, formation and daily life as Legionaries of Christ and Regnum Christi members.

We thank the five apostolic visitators, Bishop Guiseppe Versaldi, Archbishop Ricardo Blázquez, Archbishop Charles Chaput, OFM Cap., Archbishop Ricardo Ezzati, SDB, and Bishop Ricardo Watty, MSSP, for all the work they have done with such dedication and fatherly concern.
We will embrace with filial obedience whatever indications and recommendations the Holy Father gives us as a result of the apostolic visitation, and we are committed to putting them into practice.

4. Looking toward the future
In the time since January 2005 when we held our last General Chapter and Fr Alvaro Corcuera, LC, was elected as our general director, we have striven to guide the Legion of Christ and Regnum Christi in fidelity to all we have received from God and has been approved by the Church. Humbly and gratefully we acknowledge the blessings and fruits that the Lord has granted us up to now, and we accept our responsibility to deepen our understanding of our history, charism, and spirituality.
We face the future with hope, knowing that our one support is God. We trust totally in him and in his all-powerful love which, as St Paul says, “makes all things work for the good of those who love him” (Rom. 8:28). We know that as we follow this path we will be aided by the Holy Spirit and the Church’s motherly guidance.

Our purpose as individuals and as an institution is to love Christ, live his Gospel, and extend throughout the world his Kingdom of peace and love. We know that if we are to do this we must constantly renew ourselves as individuals and as a community, in fidelity to the tradition of consecrated life, the better to serve the Church and society. The past months have helped us to reflect on our identity and mission, and they have also moved us to review various aspects of our institutional life, humbly and in all simplicity.

We are resolved, among other things, to:- Continue seeking reconciliation and reaching out to those who have suffered,- Honor the truth about our history- Continue offering safety, especially for minors, in our institutions and activities, both in environments and in procedures- Grow in a spirit of unselfish service to the Church and people- Cooperate better with all the bishops and with other institutions in the Church.- Improve our communication- Continue our oversight to insure that our administrative controls and procedures are implemented on all levels, and to continue demanding proper accountability- Redouble our dedication to the mission of offering Christ’s Gospel to as many people as possible- And above all, seek holiness with renewed effort, guided by the Church.

Conclusion

We cannot end this communiqué without thanking the thousands of Legionaries, consecrated men and women and all Regnum Christi members who have given and continue to give their lives to God in the service of the Church and society with absolute generosity, and all those who work in our centers and works of apostolate. Thanks to you and your work, we can say that today Christ is more known and loved in the world. We also express our gratitude toward every person that has always been there to support us with their faith, prayers and suffering united to Christ’s.

Signed today, March 25, the solemnity of the Annunciation of Our Lord. Through the intercession of his Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary, may the Lord grant us the grace to enter ever more deeply into the mystery of the Love of God made man, and to live and share it with renewed fervor.
Fr Álvaro Corcuera, LC, general director
Fr Luis Garza, LC, vicar general
Fr Francisco Mateos, LC, general counselor
Fr Michael Ryan, LC, general counselor
Fr Joseph Burtka, LC, general counselor
Fr Evaristo Sada, LC, general secretary
Fr José Cárdenas, LC, territorial director for Chile and Argentina
Fr José Manuel Otaolaurruchi, LC, territorial director for Venezuela and Colombia
Fr Manuel Aromir, LC, territorial director for Brazil
Fr Rodolfo Mayagoitia, LC, territorial director for Mexico and Central America
Fr Leonardo Nuñez, LC, territorial director for Monterrey
Fr Scott Reilly, LC, territorial director for Atlanta
Fr Julio Martí, LC, territorial director for New York
Fr Jesús María Delgado, LC, territorial director for Spain
Fr Jacobo Muñoz, LC, territorial director for France and Ireland
Fr Sylvester Heereman, territorial director for Germany and Central Europe

UPDATE: From Associated Press
VATICAN CITY – A conservative religious order favored by Pope John Paul II is apologizing to the victims of sexual abuse by its founder.
Leaders of the Legionaries of Christ said in a statement on its Web site Friday that at first they couldn't believe the accusations against the late Mexican prelate Marcial Maciel, including molestation of seminarians and that he had a long relationship with a woman and fathered a daughter with her.
The order is expressing pain and regret to all who were hurt by Marciel's actions.
Vatican investigators have completed their probe into the order, including inspections by five bishops. The Legionaries also thanked Pope Benedict XVI for his solidarity. Unrelated sex scandals in the United States and Germany are threatening to tarnish his papacy.

Take a Read, and see what is says.

2010-03-26T09:54:00.002-04:00

Thy Kingdom Come!
REGNUM CHRISTIMOVEMENT
GENERAL DIRECTOR
Rome, March 25, 2010
Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord
To the members and friends
of the Regnum Christi Movement

Very dear friends in Christ:

Today, the solemnity of the Annunciation, offers me the occasion to send you my warm greetings. We are celebrating the mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God, who wished to take for himself our human nature to expiate our sins and open for us the way back to the Father. Mystery of God’s infinite love. He could have redeemed us by simpler paths, but he chose to have his Son laid low and humiliated to show us that if the mystery of iniquity is great, that of his merciful love is greater still. We are practically on the threshold of Holy Week. Within a week we will enter the Sacred Triduum to accompany Christ in his so scandalously incomprehensible “hour.” The “hour of the powers of darkness” (cf. Lk. 22:53). The hour of his exaltation on the cross. The hour also, of his triumph and glorious resurrection.

As we contemplate these ineffable mysteries we discover a hushed, motherly presence: Mary most holy. In Nazareth, Bethlehem and on Calvary, Mary is present not as a spectator but fully immersed, playing an active role in the mystery. Mary invites us to enter in, like her, accepting the part Christ wants to assign to us, because we too are co-protagonists.
This is the context in which I want to present to you the communiqué that is being released along with this letter.

1. As you will see, the communiqué is devoted almost in its entirety to topics that in one way or another we have been talking back and forward on for over a year now. We have done so with some of you individually, and with others in larger meetings and gatherings. On several occasions I have also made sure to write to all of you together. We have prayed together many times. I also know that the Legionaries and consecrated members who serve you have done their best to be available to you, and to answer your questions and concerns as we got a better understanding of what was happening.

It has been a very painful time for everyone, even traumatic. The sudden uncovering of some facets of our founder’s life that were so removed from what we lived by his side, was a totally unexpected surprise for us all. We were not prepared for it. We all had to go through a process of gradual assimilation, in many cases a necessarily slow one, requiring an uncommon store of human and spiritual resources, which each one has been finding in prayer, in conversation with Christ in the Eucharist, by staying close to the Blessed Mother, and in conversations with your directors, spiritual guide or your section members, family members and friends.

As is natural, in this process of facing the historical reality and its consequences, each one has followed his own path depending on his sensitivity, cultural background and spiritual foundation. And it is just as natural that everyone is not at the same point. Some, having received a special help from grace, can say that this is now behind them, while another will still need time and prayer to finish processing and give closure to this chapter in their conscience. We have to be very considerate in respecting and understanding each one’s individual pace.

2. In recent days, I have been thinking through all of this with the general counselors and the territorial directors. Together, we have seen that once we have all read and assimilated this page in the life of the Legion of Christ and Regnum Christi, our task is to take a step forward, individually and as an institution, to close this chapter of our history and open a new one.

It is true that we are still awaiting the results of the apostolic visitation, whose operative phase has ended. Undoubtedly, our attitude is one of complete openness, and we will embrace supernaturally and with docility whatever the Holy Father sees fit to ask of us. But until that moment comes, which is presumably still some months away, we want to get moving, so to speak, to set out again on our way with faith and humility, and throw ourselves back into working with all our ardor in the mission the Lord has given to us at the service of the Church. The attached communiqué, besides what it means in itself, is also in function of this goal of institutional re-launching.

3. I think that if we contemplate the Blessed Mother’s example we will find in her the attitudes that ought to be ours in this historic time in which it is our lot to live. From the Annunciation in Nazareth to the mortal scene on Calvary, we see that Mary’s soul is filled with theological faith, hope, and love. These are the three virtues that God asks us to cultivate intensely. Faith that sheds light on the past. Hope that arms us with courage for the future. Love that commits us in the present.

4. Faith that sheds light on the past
So many things happened that turned Mary’s life upside down, without her being able to understand them. Beginning with the angel’s message itself, passing through countless surprises, setbacks, mishaps and adversities, and ending in the tragic denouement – foretold certainly, but nevertheless defying all understanding, so contrary to what you could reasonably expect would be the destiny of one who was nothing less than the Son of God. What did she do? How did she react?

“His mother carefully kept all these things in her heart” (Lk. 2:51). She meditated on them. From the angle of faith. She meditated without understanding. She talked them over with God, not asking for reasons or explanations. She simply knew that everything was part of his plan, that he knew what he was doing and why. That was enough for her, even if she understood nothing. She meditated on it all, not to lock herself in fruitless moaning or to give herself to self-pity. It was to understand God’s plan better. To ask him for the strength to accept it. And to give herself docilely, humbly, and joyfully to fulfill it.

On Calvary, at the foot of the cross: silence and trustful prayer. Once again, she understood nothing. It was so cruel, so degrading, so impossibly evil. But though her eyes were fogged with tears and her mind stunned with confusion, her soul radiated faith. She knew that God was carrying out his plan. And once again, she answered, “Yes.” And she went on meditating. She meditated, believing. She believed, trusting.
I think this is the kind of faith God is asking of us. Perhaps we will never come to understand the reason for so many things that have come to light. Nor why God chose such an instrument to establish the Legion of Christ and Regnum Christi. Why will the Legion and Regnum Christi not be able to present the figure of its founder like other congregations and movements? God knows. We have to accept it with faith. And with faith and humility recognize that, in spite of such a great mystery, God is wiser than we are. Once again, his warning is proven true: “My ways are not your ways” (Is. 55:8).

God asks us for faith to believe firmly that “all things work for the good of those who love God” (Rom. 8:28), and therefore, that he is preparing us for a special outpouring of grace. We have to trust that he, who has allowed things to happen this way, is sufficiently good and powerful to draw greater benefits from them. In part, we already see them. I am sure we will see many more. The Catechism teaches us that “In time we can discover that God in his almighty providence can bring a good from the consequences of an evil, even a moral evil, caused by his creatures” and that “from the greatest moral evil ever committed - the rejection and murder of God´s only Son, caused by the sins of all men - God, by his grace that ‘abounded all the more’ (cf. Rom. 5:20), brought the greatest of goods: the glorification of Christ and our redemption.” At the same time, it warns us that “but for all that, evil never becomes a good” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 312).

With faith, we must discover and accept that above all the vicissitudes that shape our past history, it is divine Providence that is really guiding our destiny. Faith helps us to truly believe it, though at times it might seem we are moving in the wrong direction, though at times our eyes might see no more than the often clumsy action of human freedom. In this past year, many factors have determined the course that the Legion and the Regnum Christi Movement have followed. One of these factors has been the actions of their directors. From a human perspective, you might think that they were more or less appropriate, or inappropriate. As I examine my own actions, given the responsibility I have, I can assure you that at all times I have tried to proceed with greatest purity of intention and maximum prudence. I have asked the Holy Spirit daily for the gift of counsel which, as you know, enlightens and perfects the virtue of prudence. I have used the help of my general counselors, of many men of the Church, and yours. We have tried to make every decision and take every step in the presence of God, trying to discern how Jesus Christ would act. But I am not infallible. I don’t know if I got it right. For certain, not in everything. The other directors also may very well have committed some mistakes among countless wise actions. But what is without doubt is that God can write straight with crooked lines. In spite of the great limitations and defects of his instruments, God has guided our trajectory in the past, and he will continue to guide us in the future. Mary’s faith assures us it is so.

5. Hope that arms us with courage for the future.
Mary also gives us an example of hope. She never gave in to the temptation not to trust. There were terrible moments in which the future seemed to offer no way out. The angel told her she would be a mother and virgin, and she was well aware of the suspicions that this could stir up. She was told that they had to leave in haste for Egypt, fleeing from Herod’s hatred; and it is easy to guess the uncertainty and anxiety that flooded her spirit. She was told that a sword would pierce her soul and she must have endured many years under the anxiety of the prophecy that would be fulfilled. Below her Son’s cross, she was told of a new, universal motherhood…. But she learned to place herself time and again in God’s hands, with limitless hope. And God did not disappoint her hope.
Like the Virgin Mary, we too must look to the future with great hope in God, letting no storm rob us of the optimism which is proper to the one who knows, like St Paul, that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ and that all is loss compared to the experience of Christ’s love, which is the only reason for our existence. Trust follows faith. If we truly believe in God, his Providence, his infinite wisdom and goodness, we cannot but grasp his hand and place all our trust in him, only in him. Nothing in the future can make us fear.

Looking to the future with theological hope means facing it with a deep sense of responsibility. It is God who willed to bring forth the Legion of Christ and Regnum Christi, so as to give the Church a group of apostles to humbly and passionately cooperate in the great mission of evangelization. He is not going to abandon us. He will not let us down. All he asks of us is to be holy, consistent, and responsible, so as not to let down him, the Church, society and souls.

6. Love that commits us in the present.
Mary did not only believe and hope. Above all, she loved God. Out of love, she accepted his will at all times and she gave herself to fulfill it diligently, never thinking of herself, her comfort, her reputation, or her welfare. She cared only about loving God and doing his will.

This is the commitment God is asking of us too, at this time. If faith shows us that all things work for the good of those who love God we have to love more, we must love without limits. And we will see how much good God will put into this world. This is what he asks of us, that we not limit or dilute our love, that we nourish it more and more every day in prayer. Let this be one of our main resolutions: to be prayerful men and women, people with a deep interior life.

Love moves us to continue serving the Church. Unselfishly, not for the benefits it brings us.

Love moves us to continue making a reality of the beautiful and fruitful charism that God gave us. Out of love, we seek to make it bear fruit. Out of love, we want to share it so that many others will be spiritually enriched with the gifts that we have received from him, and we will thus reach the final goal of our lives: heaven.

Love moves us to continue walking together, supporting each other, giving our mutual understanding. Out of love, we seek to strengthen even more our unity and family spirit, the priceless treasure that gives such peace and serenity to our communities and teams.

Love moves us to remain beside all our companions in Regnum Christi, our friends, families, benefactors, and all those whom God places on our path, so that we will be for them a Simon of Cyrene to help them carry their cross as they follow Christ.

7. Dear friends and Regnum Christi members, these thoughts are the fruit of long and deep reflection done together with the general counselors and the territorial directors, and I invite you to take them to Christ who is present in the Eucharist. There, with our hand in Mary’s, let us meditate on these things, renew our “yes” – one that is clearer, more consistent, more long-suffering and also more joyful. And let us pray that he will grant every one of us, like Mary, the grace to accept his plans with luminous faith, to look toward the future with unbreakable hope, and to commit ourselves to living in charity in every present moment.

Very united in prayer and in the mission entrusted to all of us, I remain your affectionate servant in Christ,
Fr Álvaro Corcuera, LC

The Plot Thickens: Two Normas, Maciel, Consecrated and Quirce and de Andres

2010-03-25T05:46:00.010-04:00

En Familia

EN FAMILIA. El padre Marcial Maciel con su supuesta hija Norma Hilda Rivas Baños (blanco) y la mamá de ésta, Norma Baños (azul).
Fr. Marcial Maciel with his supposed daughter, Norma Hilda Rivas Baaos (in white) and her mother, Norma Baños (in blue) [with consecrated women]
Note the date on the photo - 3/5/2005.

La cosecha de imágenes, nunca se acaba. Ahora mi Cisen se aplicó como nunca y me mandó un par de fotitos que, estoy seguro, van a hacer fruncir el seño de muchos.

The harvest of photos never ends. Now my "spy" worked like never before and sent me a pair of pics which, I am sure, are going to make lots of people cringe.

En la primera imagen –que mi contacto me autorizó reproducir ya que tiene los derechos– supuestamente aparece el padre Marcial Maciel, en el 2005, con su presunta hija Norma Hilda Rivas Baños, la cual está junto a él vestida completamente de blanco. No olvidemos que Normita salió físicamente a la luz pública por primera vez, con otras fotos, en la portada de la revista Quién del pasado 19 de marzo. En esta nueva entrega se distingue mucho mejor su cara que, vale la pena mencionar, no es na-da fe-a.

In the first picture -which my contact has authorized me to publish and has all of the rights to do so- supposedly Marcial Maciel appears, in 2005, with his presumed daughter, Norma Hilda Rivas Baños, who is next to him dressed totally in white. Let's not forget that Norma Hilda first appeared on the scene, in other photos, on the cover of Quién magazine on March 19. In this new photo, her face is seen much better, and, it is worth noting that she is certainly not ugly.

Aunque nunca los habíamos visto juntos, ya conocíamos a Maciel y a su tentativa hija. Así que la verdadera nota es la mujer morena, de pelo negro largo, vestida de traje azul que se localiza en la extrema derecha. Según mi fuente es nada más y nada menos que Norma Baños, la mujer que se dice que el padre Marcial Maciel conoció en la década de los 70 en Acapulco –donde ella vivía y trabajaba como mesera–, y con la que presuntamente el fundador de los Legionarios de Cristo procreó a Norma Hilda. Ufffff.

Even though we have never seen them together before, we now meet Maciel and his supposed daughter. Also there is the darker woman, with black hair, dressed in blue and at the extreme right of the photo. According to my source, this is none other than Norma Banos, the woman who Maciel is said to have met in the 70s in Acapulco - where she lived and worked as a waitress 0, and with whom the founder of the Legion of Chirst conceived Norma Hilda. Uffff.

A decir del integrante de mi Cisen, el resto de las mujeres que aparecen en la foto son Consagradas. Todos estaban en Cotija, Michoacán, en una de las casas de retiro que tienen los Legionarios.

My "spy" tells me that the rest of the women in the photo are consecrated in the Regnum Christi. All are in Cotija, Michoacán, in one of the Legionaries' retreat houses.

En la segunda imagen aparecen los personajes antes mencionados con el adicional de los padres Legionarios de Cristo: Jesús Quirce Andrés, rector de la Universidad Anáhuac (junto al padre Maciel) y Marcelino de Andrés (al fondo del lado derecho), hoy asistente del apostolado en España.

In the second photo, we find the same people with the addition of the following priests of the Legion of Christ: Jesús Quirce Andrés, rector of the Anahuác University (next to Fr. Maciel) and Marcelino de Andrés (in the back on the right), currently the assistant for the apostolate in Spain.

Después de ver estas imágenes hay una parte que no me cuadra. El 13 de septiembre de 2009 la periodista española Idoia Sota publicó en El Mundo una entrevista con Norma Baños en la que la supuesta mujer de Maciel dijo: “Yo nunca habría elegido este camino para mi vida…Ni mi hija ni yo supimos quién era realmente (el padre Maciel) hasta el final”. ¿Entonces qué hacía Norma con Maciel en una de las casas de retiro de los Legionarios, donde todo mundo sabía que él era el fundador de la Legión de Cristo?

After seeing these images there is something that does not make sense. On September 13, 2009, the Spanish journalist Idoia Sota published an interview with Norma Baños in El Mundo in which the supposed wife of Maciel said: "I never would have chosen this path for my life... neither my daughter nor I knew who he really was (Fr. Maciel) until the end." So, what is Norma doing with Maciel in a Legion retreat house, where everybody knows that he was the founder of the Legion of Christ?

EN COTIJA. El padre Jesús Quirce, el padre Maciel, varias Consagradas y atrás a la derecha el padre Marcelino de Andrés.

Fr. Jesús Quirce, Fr. Maciel, various Consecrated, and in the back at right, Fr. Marcelino de Andrés.

Note the date on the photo - 3/5/2005.

Above: Cover of Quién Magazin from Mexico, March 19th, 2010.

UPDATE:

The lady in yellow, Paulina Garza, is Luis Garza Medina's sister.

Maciel seems not to mind that his daughter's dress does not meet the standards of Pure Fashion.

If only they had known. (I just threw up a little in my mouth)

2010-03-24T16:32:00.002-04:00

Magee, Legion friend, resigns

2010-03-24T10:32:00.002-04:00

BIG TIME Legion ally and Maciel friend, Bishop John Magee of the diocese of Cloyne said he tendered his resignation to Pope Benedict XVI on March 9 and that the resignation was accepted.

Private secretary for Paul VI and John Paul I, he remained for a time in the same capacity with Pope John Paul II, elected on 16 October 1978, but was in 1982 made papal Master of Ceremonies and continued in this post until on 17 February 1987 when he was appointed Bishop of the Diocese of Cloyne, in Ireland. He was consecrated bishop on 17 March 1987, St. Patrick's Day, by Pope John Paul II at St. Peter's Basillica in the Vatican.

His resignation comes amid calls for him to resign due to the sex abuse scandal, rumors of continued poor health, and 1 1/2 years before it is required due to age.

From a Mexican Blogger

2010-03-19T17:11:00.002-04:00

18 Marzo 2010

Los cómplices de Marcial Maciel

Archivado en: Columnas — hituco @ 11:57 pm

100305, EPIGMENIO CARLOS IBARRA, MILENIO

… Imposible resulta ahora para mí, y luego de escuchar la entrevista que Carmen Aristegui hiciera a la mujer y los hijos de Marcial Maciel, no ocuparme en este espacio de los muchos crímenes —que no pecados— cometidos por ese hombre indigno y también por aquellos que sabiendo callaban y los otros muchos que, pese a la evidencia, no querían oír ni ver ni dejar que esos crímenes salieran a la luz.

El manto de impunidad tejido por sus “hijos” y “hermanos” de la Legión de Cristo, que hoy se dicen sorprendidos y contritos, por la alta jerarquía eclesiástica, cuya voz ni siquiera se ha alzado, permitió a ese hombre seguir destruyendo vidas.

Otro tanto hizo la influencia desplegada por sus muchos y muy poderosos amigos que le permitió sortear o callar las muchas acusaciones que, desde muy temprano en su carrera religiosa, le fueron hechas.

No se trata sin embargo, como dicen hoy los Legionarios, de esperar mansamente a que sobre Marcial —“que ya está frente al Señor”— caiga la justicia divina por su “conducta impropia de un sacerdote católico”, sino de exigir que el peso de la ley de los hombres, que ya no puede castigar sus delitos, caiga sobre sus cómplices.

He tenido la fortuna, el privilegio, de conocer sacerdotes como los jesuitas Ignacio Ellacuria, Segundo Montes y Martín Baró que tuvieron la valentía de ser consecuentes, hasta el martirio, con su fe cristiana, que es —diría Serrat— también la fe de mis mayores. En ella crecí, de ella abrevé los principios de equidad y justicia.

Vivos en mi corazón están todavía monseñor Sergio Méndez Arceo y el arzobispo mártir Óscar Arnulfo Romero. Es en su nombre, en el de su memoria mancillada por Maciel y sus cómplices, que escribo y también en el de mi anciana y luchadora Madre para quien la fe, esa fe en nombre de la cual Marcial se hizo de tanto poder e influencia, es motor, aliento, esperanza y a quien hoy indigna, duele y avergüenza saber de los crímenes de Maciel.

Muchos sacerdotes se han comprometido, a lo largo de la historia de nuestro continente, con la causa de los más pobres, los más humildes. Han sabido ser —como lo fue Romero en El Salvador— la “voz de los sin voz” y han sido y son por ese motivo reos de inquisición, carne de presidio.

Marcial Maciel jugó siempre del lado contrario. Esclavo del dinero hizo todo, dando la espalda a los principios elementales de su fe, para servirlo y para servirse de él. Fue lo suyo, como lo es de la alta curia, el fasto y la opulencia.

Imposible resulta creer, oyendo de las andanzas de Maciel, que sus más cercanos en la Legión no supieran —siendo que se desaparecía continuamente— de su doble y hasta triple vida. Imposible pensar que la información de sus crímenes, los lamentos de sus víctimas no hayan corrido por los vasos comunicantes de la orden.

El voto de obediencia que ahora esgrimen como coartada no los exime en absoluto de responsabilidad. Le han fallado a Dios y le han fallado al César.

Al primero, a Dios, han de responder por sus pecados; allá ellos y su conciencia. Que hagan pues penitencia y que las puertas del paraíso se cierren ante ellos.

Al segundo, al César, han de responder por delitos que, a cualquier otro, debería poner a las puertas de la cárcel.

Otro tanto tendría que suceder con cardenales y obispos que en Roma, México y tantas capitales, y siendo tan duchos en el arte de la intriga y poseedores de tan vastos y eficientes aparatos de inteligencia, hoy se dicen ignorantes de “los pecados” de su hermano Maciel.

Con el dinero, poder e influencia que, a manos llenas hacía llegar Marcial a la alta jerarquía, compraba no sólo su silencio, sino también su absolución incondicional y las prebendas y privilegios que le volvieron figura prominente de la corte vaticana y la curia mexicana y tanto que, a punto estuvo, de ser beatificado.

Se hizo el papado de enormes riquezas vendiendo a los pobres e incautos indulgencia. Traficantes del reino de Dios los altos prelados han medrado siempre con la esperanza de obtener accesos directos al paraíso. Otras veces, en nombre de la extensión de ese reino en la Tierra, es decir de “su propio reino”, han organizado guerras y masacres.

Marcial no buscó a los pobres; dejó a otros, toda la iglesia para él era una orden mendicante, medrar con los centavos. Persiguió el oro puro, buscó a los ricos y les ofreció hacerlos pasar, con rumbo al cielo, por el ojo de una aguja asegurando a la Legión mientras tanto una buena tajada del botín en la Tierra.

Murió Marcial Maciel; sus crímenes, sin embargo, me temo, seguirán vivos mientras su red de complicidades se mantenga. Esos que antes negaron sus delitos hoy, para sobrevivir a la debacle, intentan negarlo a él.

Mommy's words. MM=Lots of noise

2010-03-18T15:21:00.003-04:00

Words are great, but they don’t guarantee Wisdom. According to his followers, Marcial Maciel wrote (or plagiarized) many beautiful things. He must have been a wise man, worthy of emulation, because of the way he talked. He said that he never said no to the Holy Spirit! What wisdom, what holiness!

But while words can lie, deeds don’t. Maciel lied. He stole. He raped and sodomized. He was not a wise man. He was not worthy of emulation. He cannot teach you how to follow Christ. His writing is a resounding gong, because he did not have love.

Read it here.

Postponed by Health Care Debate, New Date to Come

2010-03-18T06:33:00.004-04:00

Jason Berry will be on Anderson Cooper 360 tonight, Thursday, March 18th on CNN, 10 pm EST to talk about the Legion of Christ case.

Fr. Amorth on Pedophiles and Don Satanás

2010-03-17T11:28:00.003-04:00

"But cases of pedophilia exorcised, no. ... Pedophiles are not possessed by the devil, they are tempted by the devil," he said.

"They don't need exorcism, they need to be converted, to be converted to God, that's what they need. They need to confess, they need true penitence, true repentance, that's what they need. They're not possessed."

There is no sign at all that Maciel was repentant. We cannot judge, but we need to look at the signs. If there were signs that he was repentant, we could hang our hat on them. Bottom line: no demonic possession, just plain horrid sin.

Vatican completes probe of Legionaries scandal

2010-03-17T09:00:00.001-04:00

By NICOLE WINFIELD (AP) – 20 hours ago

VATICAN CITY — Vatican investigators have completed their probe into the Legionaries of Christ, the conservative order that was once hailed by Rome but fell into scandal after it revealed that its founder had fathered a child and had molested seminarians.

The Vatican said Tuesday its five investigators are to report back to Rome this week about their examination of the Legionaries' 120 seminaries, schools and communities around the globe. In a statement, the Legionaries said the first phase of the inquiry was over and that a final report would still take several months for Rome to complete.

While the Vatican's recommendations are unknown, Vatican analysts have speculated that the Holy See would at the very least appoint new leadership for the order and outline a series of reforms. Its recommendations will be closely watched, given the current focus on the Vatican's handling the growing sex abuse crisis convulsing the church in Europe.

Pope Benedict XVI ordered the probe last year after prominent Legionaries members acknowledged its late founder, the Rev. Marcial Maciel of Mexico, had fathered a daughter and had sexually abused seminarians. Since then, a Mexican woman has come forward saying she had a lengthy relationship with Maciel, that he fathered her two sons, adopted a third and sexually abused two of them.

The disclosure of Maciel's double life has caused enormous turmoil inside the Legionaries and its lay affiliate, Regnum Christi, particularly because the leadership has been less than forthcoming with information. The order had essentially created a personality cult around Maciel, teaching that he was a hero whose life should be studied and emulated.

In the wake of the revelations, the order has taken down pictures of Maciel that used to adorn its institutes, edited its Web sites and reviewed editions of books that heavily quoted from Maciel's writings, the Legionaries' New York and Atlanta directors wrote in a letter to Regnum Christi members in September.

Still, several U.S. dioceses have either restricted the Legionaries' work or set limits on its recruitment practices. The archdiocese of Miami has barred Legionaries priests from exercising any ministry whatsoever.

The Vatican investigation was extraordinary since it only launches a so-called "apostolic visitation" when it considers a group unable to correct a major problem on its own.

In 2002, at the height of the clergy sex abuse scandal in the United States, the Vatican ordered an evaluation of all U.S. seminaries. More recently, it has ordered one for U.S. women's religions orders.

Five bishops appointed by Rome spent eight months visiting Legionaries communities to get firsthand knowledge of the order and its work. In a statement Tuesday, the Legionaries said over the next several months there may be further communications between the investigators and Rome before the pope "gives the instructions that he considers suitable and necessary."

Even after the revelations came out, questions remained about whether any current leaders covered up Maciel's misdeeds and whether any donations were used to facilitate the misconduct or pay off victims.

One of the Mexican sons allegedly fathered and abused by Maciel, Jose Raul Gonzalez, has said he asked the Legionaries of Christ for $26 million because Maciel had promised him a trust fund when he died and as financial compensation for the alleged sexual abuse.

The Legionaries was formed in 1941 and became one of the most influential and fastest-growing orders in the Roman Catholic Church. Pope John Paul II championed the group, which became known for its orthodox theology, military-style discipline, fundraising prowess and success recruiting priests at a time when seminary enrollment was generally dismal.

The group says it now has some 800 priests and 2,600 seminarians worldwide, along with 75,000 Regnum Christi members.

Yet the order and Regnum Christi had detractors throughout its rise. Critics condemned the group's secrecy vows, revoked in 2007, that barred public criticism of a superior, and its practice of limiting contact between seminarians or Regnum Christi members and their families.

The Vatican began investigating allegations against Maciel in the 1950s, and again in 1998 after nine former seminarians said Maciel had abused them when they were boys or teenagers in Catholic seminaries in Spain and Italy from the 1940s through the 1960s. Later, others came forward.

But it wasn't until 2006, a year into Benedict's pontificate, when the Vatican instructed Maciel to lead a "reserved life of prayer and penance" in response to the abuse allegations.

Maciel died in 2008 at age 87.

In the wake of the revelations, many people — both critics and Legionaries supporters alike — have questioned how an order built so firmly around the calling of its founder can survive now that he has been so discredited.

So far, at least two prominent Legionaries priests have quit the order and begun the process of joining the New York archdiocese. In a letter announcing his departure, the Rev. Richard Gill, who headed the Regnum Christi movement in New York, said he was leaving in part because of the way the scandal had been handled by the order's current leadership.

And from the Legion

2010-03-16T16:19:00.006-04:00

New Stage of Apostolic Visitation Begins

The Holy See will study the reports and suggestions of the visitators. The final results will be communicated in the upcoming months.

Rome, Italy. March 15, 2010. A little over a year ago, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Secretary of State for Pope Benedict XVI, announced in a letter to the general director of the Legionaries of Christ that the Holy Father had decided to carry out an apostolic visitation to gain firsthand knowledge of the congregation’s life and work.

The five visitors who began their work on July 15 were Archbishop Charles Joseph Chaput (of Denver); Bishop Ricardo Watty Urquidi (of Tepic, Mexico); Archbishop Ricardo Ezzatti (of Concepción, Chile); Bishop Guiseppe Versaldi (of Alessandria, Italy); and Bishop Ricardo Blázquez Pérez (of Bilbao, Spain), who this past Saturday was named Archbishop of Valladolid, Spain.

Throughout the past eight months, the bishops visited the 120+ Legionary communities throughout the world. During their interviews, the priests and religious had the chance to speak individually with the bishops to answer their questions and freely express their observations and suggestions about community life and the work they carry out in the apostolates that the congregation directs and guides.

After this first phase of the apostolic visitation, the bishops must finalize their written reports and send them to the Holy See, where they will be studied and evaluated. Since the visitators’ work was extensive, and since the five individual reports were written in different languages, this new phase of the apostolic visitation may possibly take several months. It may also require some final exchanges between the Holy See and the visitators before Pope Benedict XVI gives the instructions that he considers suitable and necessary.

In an interview with the Notimex agency this past March 4, the Holy See’s spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi explained: “It is one thing for the visitators’ work to finish, and it is another thing to publish the results. It requires time. It will need to be determined whether the information is sufficient, or if it is necessary to request a supplement to the investigation. I would not expect a short time frame for the definitive decision.”

We ask all of our readers and friends to continue accompanying the visitators, the Holy See authorities, and all the Legionaries of Christ with your prayers.

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We ask all of our readers and friends to continue accompanying the visitators, the Holy See authorities, and all the Legionaries of Christ with your prayers.

Sandro Magister's Latest: The Legion Trembles

2010-03-16T10:23:00.005-04:00

The Legion Awaits a New General. And Trembles

A commissioner appointed by the Vatican will take command of the Legionaries of Christ, orphans of their founder Marcial Maciel, disgraced by scandals. This is the likely outcome of eight months of investigation. Many things should be changed, including the current leaders

by Sandro Magister

ROME, March 16, 2010 – In the thick of the storm rocking the Catholic Church on account of the sexual abuse committed against minors by priests, an end has come to the apostolic visit ordered by the Holy See among the Legionaries of Christ, the congregation founded by Marcial Maciel.

The Maciel case is extreme in every way. It pushes the contrast between image and reality to exaggerated limits. Between the beatified image of the priest founder of an ultra-orthodox, ascetical, devout religious congregation, flourishing with vocations, some of them exemplary, and the reality of a dissolute second life, made up of incessant violations not only of the vows but of the commandments, of continual sinful affairs with women, men, and minors of every age and condition, with children and lovers all over the world, their number still unknown.

A second life that even at the moment of death appeared to sink deeper into the sulfurous fumes. Morbid stories have leaked out about Maciel's last days in Houston, at the end of January 2008, before his burial in Cotija, his birthplace, in Mexico.

The apostolic visit began on July 15, 2009. And the five bishop visitors fulfilled their mandate halfway through this month of March, with the delivery of their report to the Vatican authorities. They were Ricardo Watti Urquidi, bishop of Tepic in Mexico; Charles J. Chaput, archbishop of Denver; Giuseppe Versaldi, bishop of Alessandria; Ricardo Ezzato Andrello, archbishop of Concepción in Chile; and Ricardo Blázquez Pérez, archbishop of Valladolid.

It will be the Vatican authorities who decide what to do. The three cardinals charged with the case are Tarcisio Bertone, secretary of state, William J. Levada, prefect of the congregation for the doctrine of the faith, and Franc Rodé, prefect of the congregation for institutes of consecrated life.

But the last word will belong to Benedict XVI, the most prescient of all. Even before he was elected pope and when Maciel still had very powerful protectors in the Vatican, Joseph Ratzinger ordered an extensive investigation of the accusations against the founder of the Legionaries. And as pope, on May 19, 2006, he sentenced him to "a retired life of prayer and penance."

After this sentence, the congregation of the Legionaries bowed to the papal command. But it continued to show veneration to its founding "father," as an "innocent victim" of false accusations.

It was only after his death and the revelation of other scandals that the directors of the congregation acknowledged some of their founder's sins, but without denying the goodness of his work.

Still today, after the eight-month apostolic visit, Maciel's successor as director general of the congregation, Fr. Álvaro Corcuera, and vicar general Luis Garza Medina – who were also for decades, especially the latter of them, very close collaborators of the founder – show no intention of leaving their command. And neither do any of the other high and mid-level directors, central or peripheral.

Their defense is that they were always unaware of Maciel's second life, and that their fidelity to the Church and to the pope, in addition to their leadership experience, are the best guarantees for the congregation's continuity.

Last February 5, in "L'Osservatore Romano," Fr. Luis Garza Medina, unruffled, published an article describing the "virtuous life" of the ideal priest. He who more than anyone else lived side by side with Maciel, knowing all his secrets and managing his money, and who always held him up as a model.

But that the current leaders of the Legionaries should be left at the head of the congregation is entirely unlikely. The more probable decision is that the Holy See will appoint a fully empowered commissioner of its own, and will set the guidelines for a thorough reform, including the replacement of the current leaders.

But rebuilding from the ground up a congregation still deeply influenced by its disgraced founder will be an arduous enterprise.

Priests and seminarians who until very recently were steeped in the writings attributed to Maciel will have difficulty finding new sources of inspiration, not generic but specific to their order. The current leaders of the congregation aren't helping, either. On the contrary. One of Maciel's former personal secretaries, Fr. Felipe Castro, together with other priests of the Legion, has worked in recent months to select from among the founder's many letters a group of letters to be "saved" for the future, to keep a positive image of Maciel alive.

The dependence of the Legionaries on Maciel was – and for many still is – absolute. There wasn't a shred of daily life that escaped the rules he dictated. Absurdly exacting rules. Which prescribed, for example, how to sit at the table, how to use a napkin, how to swallow, how to eat chicken without using one's hands, how to debone a fish.

But this was nothing compared to the control exercised over consciences. The handbook for the examination of conscience at the end of the day was 332 pages long, with thousands of questions.

And then there were – and are – the statutes properly speaking. Much more extensive and detailed than those provided to the bishops of the dioceses in which the Legionaries have their houses. The five visitors went through a lot of trouble to obtain the statutes in their entirety.

From the statutes one gathers that in addition to the three classical vows of religious orders, of poverty, chastity, and obedience, the Legionaries were bound by two other vows – plus a third called "of fidelity and charity" for the select members of the congregation – which prohibited any kind of criticism and at the same time required telling the superiors about confreres seen violating the ban.

These extra vows were supposed to have been removed by order of the Holy See, in 2007. But the rank and file of the Legionaries do not seem to have been notified of this revocation.

The boundary between the spirit of obedience and the spirit of subjection is not always clear in the congregation founded by Maciel.

Among the Legionaries, the competition encouraged by the rules is to see who can make the most proselytes. And the novice immediately enters a collective machine that completely absorbs his individuality. Everything is meticulously overseen and regulated, in a thicket of limitations. From personal mail to reading material, from visits to travel.

Over the eight months of the apostolic visit, this control was relaxed only in part. Some priests told the visitors about the things they believed were wrong. Others have left the congregation and been incardinated into the diocesan clergy. Others have continued to defend Maciel's legacy. Others feel lost. Still others, finally, have faith in the rebuilding on new foundations of a religious congregation that is part of their lives and that they continue to love.

New Opinions: May Contain Gnats

2010-03-16T09:07:00.002-04:00

Maciel's Counterfeit

"You impose on people burdens hard to carry, but you yourselves do not lift one finger to touch them". (Luke 11:46)

The more the Legion binds its members the more they imagine that the Church is a command and control center in the image of the Legion.

"Rome hasn't TOLD us, so business as usual". "I'm waiting for Rome". "I'm not leaving, because I am obedient". "Whatever Rome want us to change we'll change it"

Or as one good soul misled by the Legion wrote:

"I would gladly leave RC and the Legion in disgust (because I don't want to be associated with sin and scandal anymore than anyone else) if God gave me leave to do so, but He has not. Just like He never gave me leave to abandon my husband or my children."

What could be more destructive than re-imaging the Church in the image of the Legion?

1) The Legion binds where the Church doesn't.

2) The Legion hides from its members the freedom that is fundamental to the life of the Church.

3) The Legion's obedience is like a blank check to a fictitious entity. Rome does not proscribe like the Legion does, so Maciel knew his imaginary check would never be cashed.

4) Maciel's survivors imagine they are bound to implement what never existed.

5) Those outside the Legion falsely conclude that this all proves that christian obedience is unhealthy.

This false notion of the Church Militant as a command and control center is the great scandal of the Legion.

Reality Check

2010-03-15T10:21:00.001-04:00

What Apologies and Real Men (and Women) are Made of

2010-03-14T16:06:00.003-04:00

From Pete Vere

I will let you read it for yourselves here but it starts out like this:

"It finally came together after Mass today. Our pastor had touched upon the need to apologize for one's sins - both of commission and of omission - during the homily. For the past year I have been urging LC and RC to come clean and apologize to Maciel's victims. Yet I have never apologized for my own sins toward them."

Oh, there's something in a Sunday...

2010-03-14T15:34:00.002-04:00

From AOLNews

Secretive Catholic Order Founded by Accused Pedophile Under Fire

by Dana Kennedy

(March 14) -- As sex abuse scandals rock the Vatican, the results of an investigation into a rich, ultra-conservative and secretive Roman Catholic order founded by a priest accused of pedophilia and incest are due to be filed in Rome tomorrow.

The sordid story of the Legion of Christ, whose late founder, the Rev. Marcial Maciel Degollado, was a close ally of Pope John Paul II before being forcibly retired by the Vatican in 2006, is a microcosm of the crisis currently enveloping the church.

At stake is whether Pope Benedict XVI will decide to take over the Legion and install new leaders from the outside or allow it to continue with its same hierarchy. Five bishops from five countries are expected to submit their reports about the Legion Monday.

Courtesy Jene Newsome / AP

Pope John Paul II gives his blessing to Rev. Marcial Maciel Degollado, founder of the Legion of Christ, at the Vatican in a November 2004 file photo. The late pope once called Maciel "an efficacious guide to youth."

The controversy over the Legion, which is now barred or severely restricted from operating in six U.S. dioceses, is especially awkward for Benedict because he wants to have John Paul, a staunch defender of the order, canonized.

"Maciel was a sexual criminal of epic proportions who gained the trust of John Paul II and created a movement that is as close to a cult as anything we've seen in the church," said author Jason Berry, one of two reporters who broke the Maciel story in 1997 and who directed a 2008 documentary about the priest called "Vows of Silence."

"But he got away with it for years and still in a sense he's getting away with it."

The Vatican ordered a worldwide investigation into the Legion, founded in Mexico in 1941, last year. But its response to decades of allegations involving Maciel has been as slow and often reluctant as its reaction to the long-festering sex abuse scandals now erupting in Ireland, Germany, Austria and the Netherlands.

In 1997, nine former high-ranking seminarians accused Maciel, who died in 2008, of sexually abusing them when they were boys training for the priesthood. Last year, it was discovered Maciel had an illegitimate daughter born in 1986 in Spain. Two Mexican men who say they are Maciel's sons claim he also sexually abused them as children.

With a leader said to be a manipulative monster who built a shadowy but powerful organization for elite, wealthy Catholics with schools in 22 countries – and a tradition of grooming handsome, clean-cut priests who all wear their hair parted on the left and black double-breasted suits -- the Legion of Christ sounds straight out of a Dan Brown novel.

But while Opus Dei, the other controversial conservative Catholic order, was made famous in Brown's "The Da Vinci Code," the Legion of Christ is virtually unknown to most Americans – at least on the surface.

Two of the most visible priests in America are Father Thomas Williams, a movie-star-handsome CBS News analyst, and Father Jonathan Morris, who is sometimes referred to as "Father Knows Best" on the Fox News Channel. They belong to the Legion of Christ but rarely identify themselves as such on camera.

"Dan Brown got the wrong group," said Genevieve Kineke, an orthodox Catholic who was a member of Regnum Christi, the legion's lay movement, from 1992 to 2000 and writes a blog about her experiences. "The Legion of Christ is the scary cult embedded in the bosom of the mother church. Not Opus Dei."

Though the Vatican knew of improprieties involving Maciel as far back as 1956, he was praised and protected by John Paul II, who became pope in 1978 and once called Maciel "an efficacious guide to youth."

Even when the former seminarians went public in 1997 about Maciel's sexual abuse and filed a formal complaint with the Vatican, the church at first did nothing while the Legion and other high-profile conservative Catholics called them liars.

A book, Vows of Silence, written by Hartford Courant reporter Gerald Renner and writer Jason Berry, was published in 2004 with what one reviewer called "horror stories... of brainwashing, manipulation, pederast seduction rituals, character assassination, bribes, drug abuse, gulag-type threats -- you name it."

Shortly after that, then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who would succeed John Paul, ordered an investigation that ended with Maciel being consigned to a life of "prayer and penitence" after John Paul's death in 2005. But the Legion itself was not condemned nor the victims acknowledged.

It wasn't until the discovery that Maciel had a daughter living in Spain that the Vatican ordered the worldwide investigation, reportedly to find out who in the Legion knew about Maciel's behavior and how it was covered up.

"Of course we're shocked and disappointed by all of this," said Jim Fair, the spokesman for the Legion of Christ in North America. "It's as if Father Maciel lived in two different universes, like some old science fiction movie. And now it's all blowing up."

Fair said the order has "toned down the veneration," such as often removing the photographs of Maciel that adorned Legion facilities. He added that the Legion welcomed the apostolic visitation, which is what the Vatican investigation is called.

"He was obviously a very flawed man," said Fair. "It's hard to reconcile the guy we now know with the man who built hundreds of seminaries. But we will go on. The work of the church is bigger than humans. It's a little as if we found out Abraham Lincoln was a serial pedophile after he signed the Emancipation Proclamation."

Interviews with former members of the Legion and Regnum Christi paint a chilling picture of Maciel as a sociopathic master salesman who knew how to charm the upper echelon at the Vatican as well as enlist the wealthy and elite to his fast-growing order, all while using cult-like techniques.

"He created a structure that allowed sexual abuse, financial fraud and spiritual improprieties to go completely unchecked," said Kineke. "Believe me, the best and the brightest got sucked into this scam. I was one. I was an elite bully for Christ."

Kineke said part of Maciel's allure was that he represented an old-school alternative in a modern, post-Vatican II world.

"But these recent incest claims have rattled even the sturdiest of cages," she said.

Paul Lennon, 66, was a member of the order from 1961 to 1984 and directs ReGAIN, an organization founded by ex-Legionaries.

"It was nothing short of mind control," said Lennon, who wrote a 2008 book about Maciel called Our Father Who Art in Bed. "He conned everybody."

Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, 70, who was named the world's richest man by Forbes last week, has long been a supporter of the Legion. His children attended Legion schools in Mexico.

Harvard professor and former U.S. Ambassador to the Vatican Mary Anne Glendon has also been a staunch supporter of the Legion.

But the man whom all Legionaries venerated as a near-saint and called "Nuestro Padre" (Our Father) allegedly led a double life as a pedophile and had at least two mistresses and three children.

"He destroyed my life," said Juan Vaca, 73, a former superior of the Legion of Christ who said he was molested by Maciel for ten years beginning when he was 12. "I dreamt of being a good priest. He killed all my dreams."

Vaca, like many interviewed by AOL News, doubts that the Vatican will make any lasting changes to the Legion of Christ, despite the investigation.

"The Vatican may distance itself a bit but the Legion is too powerful to shut down," Vaca said.

Vaca who left the order in 1978, is an adjunct professor of psychology and sociology at Mercy College. He remembers the first night he was summoned to Maciel's room. He said he found the man who was "a holy man, my mother and my father, everything to me," masturbating in front of him.

"I turned into a block of ice," said Vaca, who had left his family behind in Mexico to move to the order in Spain. "I was petrified."

Vaca said 28 other young seminarians were sexually abused by Maciel at the same time he was, and adds that some of them "went on to abuse others as they grew up."

That misuse of sex and power was an undercurrent that helped fuel the growth of the order, according to several former members of the Legion and Regnum Christi.

"Maciel always told me to recruit the most handsome boys from the best families," said Vaca. "They were trained to approach rich women. I'm not saying they had sexual relationships with these women but they did know how to charm them."

Kineke and others also said Legion priests are notoriously successful in winning over women to the church.

"They are spiritual seducers," said another former Regnum Christi member. "They are the only priests I've seen who have swept people off their feet. These men woo women because they want access to our children and our husbands' wallets."

In an interview not long before his death in 2007, "Vows of Silence" author Gerald Renner said Maciel was not the only priest in the Legion who led a double life. Renner referred to one priest who he said was known as "the horndog of Rome" for his many affairs with women.

"The Legion by its very nature spawns people who lead double lives," said Lennon. "Maciel was certainly not the only hypocrite in the Legion but he was definitely the worst one."

Scicluna: headed up the investigation of Maciel

2010-03-14T08:03:00.002-04:00

Interview with the Promotor of Justice at the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith, Msgr. Charles J. Scicluna, Regarding Clerical Sexual Abuse Cases

(13 Mar 10 - Avvenire) Below is the full English Translation of a print interview with the prosecutor of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Msgr. Charles J. Scicluna, regarding cases of clerical sexual abuse. The interview was originally published in the newspaper of the Italian Bishops' Conference, Avvenire.

Msgr. Charles J. Scicluna is the "promoter of justice" of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. He is effectively the prosecutor of the tribunal of the former Holy Office, whose job it is to investigate what are known as delicta graviora; i.e., the crimes which the Catholic Church considers as being the most serious of all: crimes against the Eucharist and against the sanctity of the Sacrament of Penance, and crimes against the sixth Commandment ("thou shall not commit impure acts") committed by a cleric against a person under the age of eighteen. These crimes, in a motu proprio of 2001, Sacramentum sanctitatis tutela, come under the competency of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. In effect, it is the "promoter of justice" who deals with, among other things, the terrible question of priests accused of paedophilia, which are periodically highlighted in the mass media. Msgr. Scicluna, an affable and polite Maltese, has the reputation of scrupulously carrying out the tasks entrusted to him without deferring to anyone.

Monsignor, you have the reputation of being "tough", yet the Catholic Church is systematically accused of being accommodating towards "paedophile priests"
It may be that in the past - perhaps also out of a misdirected desire to protect the good name of the institution - some bishops were, in practice, too indulgent towards this sad phenomenon. And I say in practice because, in principle, the condemnation of this kind of crime has always been firm and unequivocal. Suffice it to recall, to limit ourselves just to last century, the famous Instruction Crimen Sollicitationis of 1922.

Wasn't that from 1962?
No, the first edition dates back to the pontificate of Pius XI. Then, with Blessed John XXIII, the Holy Office issued a new edition for the Council Fathers, but only two thousand copies were printed, which were not enough, and so distribution was postponed sine die. In any case, these were procedural norms to be followed in cases of solicitation during confession, and of other more serious sexually-motivated crimes such as the sexual abuse of minors.

Norms which, however, recommended secrecy...
A poor English translation of that text has led people to think that the Holy See imposed secrecy in order to hide the facts. But this was not so. Secrecy during the investigative phase served to protect the good name of all the people involved; first and foremost, the victims themselves, then the accused priests who have the right - as everyone does - to the presumption of innocence until proven guilty. The Church does not like showcase justice. Norms on sexual abuse have never been understood as a ban on denouncing the crimes to the civil authorities.

Nonetheless, that document is periodically cited to accuse the current Pontiff of having been - when he was prefect of the former Holy Office - objectively responsible for a Holy See policy of covering up the facts...
That accusation is false and calumnious. On this subject I would like to highlight a number of facts. Between 1975 and 1985 I do not believe that any cases of paedophilia committed by priests were brought to the attention of our Congregation. Moreover, following the promulgation of the 1983 Code of Canon Law, there was a period of uncertainty as to which of the delicta graviora were reserved to the competency of this dicastery. Only with the 2001 motu proprio did the crime of paedophilia again become our exclusive remit. From that moment Cardinal Ratzinger displayed great wisdom and firmness in handling those cases, also demonstrating great courage in facing some of the most difficult and thorny cases, sine acceptione personarum. Therefore, to accuse the current Pontiff of a cover-up is, I repeat, false and calumnious.

What happens when a priest is accused of a delictum gravius?
If the accusation is well-founded the bishop has the obligation to investigate both the soundness and the subject of the accusation. If the outcome of this initial investigation is consistent, he no longer has any power to act in the matter and must refer the case to our Congregation where it is dealt with by the disciplinary office.

How is that office composed?
Apart from myself who, being one of the superiors of the dicastery, also concern myself with other matters, there are the bureau chief Fr. Pedro Miguel Funes Diaz, seven priests and a lay lawyer who follow these cases. Other officials of the Congregation also make their own vital contribution depending upon the language and specific requirements of each case.

That office has been accused of working little and slowly...
Those are unjustified comments. In 2003 and 2004 a great wave of cases flooded over our desks. Many of them came from the United States and concerned the past. Over recent years, thanks to God, the phenomenon has become greatly reduced, and we now seek to deal with new cases as they arise.

How many have you dealt with so far?
Overall in the last nine years (2001-2010) we have considered accusations concerning around three thousand cases of diocesan and religious priests, which refer to crimes committed over the last fifty years.

That is, then, three thousand cases of paedophile priests?
No, it is not correct to say that. We can say that about sixty percent of the cases chiefly involved sexual attraction towards adolescents of the same sex, another thirty percent involved heterosexual relations, and the remaining ten percent were cases of paedophilia in the true sense of the term; that is, based on sexual attraction towards prepubescent children. The cases of priests accused of paedophilia in the true sense have been about three hundred in nine years. Please don't misunderstand me, these are of course too many, but it must be recognised that the phenomenon is not as widespread as has been believed.

The accused, then, are three thousand. How many have been tried and condemned?
Currently we can say that a full trial, penal or administrative, has taken place in twenty percent of cases, normally celebrated in the diocese of origin - always under our supervision - and only very rarely here in Rome. We do this also in order to speed up the process. In sixty percent of cases there has been no trial, above all because of the advanced age of the accused, but administrative and disciplinary provisions have been issued against them, such as the obligation not to celebrate Mass with the faithful, not to hear confession, and to live a retired life of prayer. It must be made absolutely clear that in these cases, some of which are particularly sensational and have caught the attention of the media, no absolution has taken place. It's true that there has been no formal condemnation, but if a person is obliged to a life of silence and prayer, then there must be a reason...

That still leaves twenty percent of cases...
We can say that in ten percent of cases, the particularly serious ones in which the proof is overwhelming, the Holy Father has assumed the painful responsibility of authorising a decree of dismissal from the clerical state. This is a very serious but inevitable provision, taken though administrative channels. In the remaining ten percent of cases, it was the accused priests themselves who requested dispensation from the obligations deriving from the priesthood, requests which were promptly accepted. Those involved in these latter cases were priests found in possession of paedophile pornographic material and, for this reason, condemned by the civil authorities.

Where do these three thousand cases come from?
Mostly from the United States which, in the years 2003-2004, represented around eighty percent of total cases. In 2009 the United States "share" had dropped to around twenty-five percent of the 223 cases reported from all over the world. Over recent years (2007-2009), the annual average of cases reported to the Congregation from around the world has been two hundred and fifty. Many countries report only one or two cases. There is, then, a growing diversity and number of countries of origin of cases, but the phenomenon itself is much reduced. It must, in fact, be borne in mind that the overall number of diocesan and religious priests in the world is four hundred thousand, although this statistic does not correspond to the perception that is created when these sad cases occupy the front pages of the newspapers.

And in Italy?
Thus far the phenomenon does not seem to have dramatic proportions, although what worries me is a certain culture of silence which I feel is still too widespread in the country. The Italian Episcopal Conference (CEI) offers an excellent technical-juridical consultancy service for bishops who have to deal with these cases. And I am very pleased to observe the ever greater commitment being shown by Italian bishops to throw light on the cases reported to them.

You said that a full trial has taken place in around twenty percent of the three thousand cases you have examined over the last nine years. Did they all end with the condemnation of the accused?
Many of the past trials did end with the condemnation of the accused. But there have also been cases in which the priest was declared innocent, or where the accusations were not considered to have sufficient proof. In all cases, however, not only is there an examination of the guilt or innocence of the accused priest, but also a discernment as to his fitness for public ministry.

A recurring accusation made against the ecclesiastical hierarchy is that of not reporting to the civil authorities when crimes of paedophilia come to their attention.
In some English-speaking countries, but also in France, if bishops become aware of crimes committed by their priests outside the sacramental seal of Confession, they are obliged to report them to the judicial authorities. This is an onerous duty because the bishops are forced to make a gesture comparable to that of a father denouncing his own son. Nonetheless, our guidance in these cases is to respect the law.

And what about countries where bishops do not have this legal obligation?
In these cases we do not force bishops to denounce their own priests, but encourage them to contact the victims and invite them to denounce the priests by whom they have been abused. Furthermore, we invite the bishops to give all spiritual - and not only spiritual - assistance to those victims. In a recent case concerning a priest condemned by a civil tribunal in Italy, it was precisely this Congregation that suggested to the plaintiffs, who had turned to us for a canonical trial, that they involve the civil authorities in the interests of victims and to avoid other crimes.

A final question: is there any statue of limitation for delicta graviora?
Here you touch upon what, in my view, is a sensitive point. In the past, that is before 1898, the statute of limitations was something unknown in canon law. For the most serious crimes, it was only with the 2001 motu proprio that a statute of limitations of ten years was introduced. In accordance with these norms in cases of sexual abuse, the ten years begin from the day on which the minor reaches the age of eighteen.

Is that enough?
Practice has shown that the limit of ten years is not enough in this kind of case, in which it would be better to return to the earlier system of delicta graviora not being subject to the statue of limitations. On 7 November 2002, Venerable Servant of God John Paul II granted this dicastery the power to revoke that statue of limitations, case by case following a reasoned request from individual bishops. And this revocation is normally granted.

From a comment on life-after-rc

2010-03-12T12:43:00.003-05:00

Concerning Evaristo Sada's attempt to re-write LC/RC history and publish a new prayerbook still full of Maciel's writings:

On one hand, through the decades they've attributed all these letters to Nuestro Fraude, letters that were actually written by either one of his multiple personal secretaries (he had 4 or so at a time and changed them every so often), or by another legendary legion scribe, such as Arumi (the early letters), or Juan José Ferrán (Nuestro Fraude's external brain and Cliff Notes maker), or Evaristo himself. The quotes originally attributed to Nuestro Fraude, although not really his, in theory represented his thought and little by little conveyed and constructed the legion/regnum's so-called charism.

As we know, after the truth started coming out last year, Evaristo started revising and rewriting history, and thus were born Cristo al Centro, the new prayer manual, and so on. Now their dilemma is this: Do they confess to the fact that Nuestro Fraude didn't write a thing and thus they are free to use these writing since they come from "purer sources"? Or do they continue claiming that the writings DID come from Nuestro Fraude and therefore they must be discarded?

If they admit to the former, they are in essence saying that the charism didn't actually come from the so-called founder. In other words, there is no charism. But if they admit to the latter, they will be forced to get rid of it, and will ALSO find themselves with NO charism after all. Ever the crafty pupil, Evaristo seems to have chosen a third route: Keep the writings, just remove Nuestro Fraude's name when necessary.

Sorry, Fr. Evaristo. You can't have it both ways. Your house of cards is about to fall.
Source.

Quotes from a tumultuous week

2010-03-12T12:30:00.003-05:00

"In Rome, some fear this is just the beginning.

This fear is not idle, as the internet and world press are already full of reports that these crises may cast a shadow over the entire pontificate.

The battle occurring right now is over how history will judge Benedict’s papacy."

(Inside the Vatican’s Moynihan)

"Soy de los que cree que la maldad, de alguna forma, existe, es real. Todos la hemos conocido arropada en ocasiones, en intenciones supuestamente filantrópicas o humanitarias. Pero pocas veces se la puede personificar en forma tal evidente como en la historia de Marcial Maciel. Esa es una historia de profunda maldad escudada en la fe. Las denuncias sobre Maciel trascienden, sin lugar a dudas, el ámbito religioso, de la fe. El fundador de la orden de los Legionarios de Cristo sumó en vida una larga serie de atropellos y delitos que deben ser investigados no sólo por las autoridades eclesiásticas y la propia orden sino también por las autoridades civiles."

"I am one of those who believe that evil, in some form, exists and is real... The accusations against Maciel transcend, without a doubt, the realm of religion and faith. The founder of the Legion of Christ has accumulated a large list of sins and crimes which must be investigated, not only by church authorities and the order itself, but also by civil authorities."

Jorge Fernandez Mendez of Zocalo)

Al término de la misa dominical, el Cardenal se trasladó junto a algunos fieles a presenciar los festejos por el Día de la Familia que organizó la Arquidiócesis de México en el costado izquierdo de la Catedral Metropolitana.

Mientras el cardenal inauguraba las actividades, Klug llegó corriendo y comenzó a gritar desde afuera de la reja del atrio: "¡Juicio a los padres violadores y a sus encubridores!".

El arzobispo primado de México continúo su discurso y agradeció la presencia de más de 80 representantes de asociaciones civiles religiosas.

También defendió al matrimonio como núcleo de la familia, pero entonces otras tres personas se sumaron a los gritos contra el prelado.

"¡El caso Maciel no debe quedar impune!", gritó Graciela Mejía, una de las inconformes.

Cat calls in a protest against Archbishop Rivera of Mexico City: "Justice for priest rapists and their enablers!" "The Maciel case should not go unpunished!"

(El Siglo de Torreon)

The Mexican Bishops’ Conference (CEM) released a brief statement today saying that the latest revelations involving the founder of the Legion of Christ, Fr. Marcial Maciel, should not derail the Apostolic Visitation of the congregation that is being carried out by five bishops on behalf of the Holy See....

The statement issued by the Mexican bishops was signed by its Secretary General, Bishop Víctor René Rodríguez Gómez, and says that 'in response to the demands for a statement from the Mexican Bishops Conference … we are united to the desire of the members of the congregation of the Legionaries of Christ to … know the truth regarding the different situations of their Founder’s life, which as Church we find sad and painful'

The bishops also said that 'we are close to the persons who have suffered these abuses and we demand that justice be made both in the cases related to the Church as well as other sectors of civil society.'

Nevertheless, the Mexican bishops cautioned that 'to find the truth does not mean to poison the Apostolic Visitation' of the Legion of Christ that will end later this month."

(CNA)
On this last one, Landon Cody says: Wha?!

Channel 11, Mexico. Good Summary. Creepy Images.

2010-03-11T12:01:00.000-05:00

Infection

2010-03-11T10:22:00.004-05:00

From an IPS article here.

“La patología de Maciel es la de la propia orden religiosa. Contaminó a la congregación. (Ésta) no sólo solapó su doble vida, sino que toleró su comportamiento desenfrenado. Le rindió culto, exaltando una imagen falsa de un ser que nunca existió y encubrió al monstruo abominable”, señaló a IPS el experto en temas religiosos, Bernardo Barranco.

"Maciel's pathology is the same as that of his own religious order. It infected the congregation. It (the Legion) not only hid his double life, but it also tolerated his unbridled behavior. It worshiped him, exalted a false image of a being which never existed and hid an abominable monster" the religion expert Bernardo Barranco told IPS"

Certainly, the myth of Maciel is what attracted so many young men and women to the Legion of Christ and the consecrated life in the Regnum Christi. But this is a Maciel who never existed at all, a figment, a charade. This is not what a vocation is built upon. The Legion can cry "Christ-centered" all they want, but that even came from Maciel. We were always told to follow Christ the way that Maciel followed Christ. How can you just undo all of that, especially when it was a cult-like mantra for years? [Landon C.]

BTW, Why am I posting this?

2010-03-11T03:42:00.000-05:00

It is just comically familiar, I guess.

Legion: The Buzz review

Let us not pretend that Legion is some kind of brainy art-house job. Legion is a gloriously daft B-movie with a comically audacious pitch: Take the basic premise of Terminator but remove all the stuff about science. Instead of killer robots from the future you have killer robots from Heaven. Instead of Skynet you have God. Yes, God. The Lord Of Hosts. That God.

Obviously, what with this being a B-movie (albeit a particularly ambitious one) we can’t afford to show the Lord God Almighty laying waste the whole Earth.

Instead we have a bunch of mismatched strangers holed up in a diner called Paradise Falls (geddit?) and giving it the full Assault On Precinct 13. Or, if you prefer, Tremors.

Now, if a mighty host of immortals showed up at the diner in person to off the one child who can lead humanity to freedom, the film would be shorter than its magnificently loopy trailer.

Consequently the angels possess the bodies of a random selection of locals and turn them into shambling killer zombies who don’t know how to use firearms.

Now, you of course already know that demonic (or in this case angelic) possession gives you freaky contact lenses but did you also know that it gives you freaky little teeth and makes you get all bitey? Well it does.

Who would have known that they already made a movie out of my blog?

From Today's Milenio: Destruction of the Media by Maciel Defenders in the Legion

2010-03-10T11:38:00.002-05:00

The history: Pan Bimbo (huge bakery company and TV sponsor in Mexico). Brought Channel 40 to its knees reporting on the Maciel mess back in 1997 by boycotting advertising at the bequest of the Legion of Christ, and tried to strong-arm them into not going ahead with the story. Will there be justice done now, finally for Javier Moreno Valle and Canal 40?

Read it here.

Carta de Javier Moreno Valle a Lorenzo Servitje

Sobre el caso del padre Marcial Maciel recibo copia de la carta que Javier Moreno Valle (presidente de CNI/Canal 40) le dirige a Lorenzo Servitje. Están por cumplirse 13 años del programa de CNI y del boicot publicitario, en el que Bimbo jugó un papel significativo. La carta está fechada en Houston, 5 de marzo de 2010:

“Muy estimado Don Lorenzo: A raíz de que se han hecho públicos los últimos descubrimientos sobre la vida privada del fundador de los Legionarios de Cristo, recordé lo que ocurrió hace cerca de 13 años y lo que aprendí después de esos acontecimientos.

“Al paso del tiempo puedo decirle que en aquel entonces, mis motivos para transmitir ese reportaje (que revelaba hechos muy graves sobre la conducta del sacerdote) eran tan válidos como hoy lo prueban los hechos que conocemos. Se trataba de algo muy simple: develar una historia de abusos sexuales y de autoridad de un personaje poderoso y su encubrimiento durante muchos años, lo cual permitió que siguiera actuando con impunidad, agravando con ello la pena de sus víctimas.

“Mi decisión tuvo consecuencias inmediatas y de largo plazo, casi todas previsibles. Con sosiego he observado lo que ha venido ocurriendo. Primero, cuando por inevitable, el Vaticano hizo público que estudiaba el caso que durante tantos años había ocultado; después, lo que siguió hasta la muerte del personaje y, por fin, las revelaciones que han desnudado de argumentos a sus encubridores, protectores y protegidos y han culminado con el fin del mito.

“Con la misma serenidad espero ver el momento en que se desmoronen los prestigios, riquezas indebidas y cotos de poder que siguen aprovechando otros personajes igualmente condenables a los que me he enfrentado, y que han torcido leyes y voluntades a fin de destruir un medio de comunicación que les resultaba incómodo, con la complicidad de otros malhechores, sus iguales, que se han beneficiado con estos hechos.

“Ahora, como entonces, reciba con estas líneas mi afecto y mejores deseos.”

gomezleyva@milenio.com

More credibility loss from the defenders of the Pope

2010-03-10T10:39:00.002-05:00

From Bill at Advent Hope:

But it’s [the Maciel Scandal] causing the Catholic Church to lose credibility, particularly in Mexico, the home of the Legion; Time suggests that the loss of moral authority is having both political impact and is helping to accelerate the movement of individual Mexicans from Catholicism to evangelicalism.

This is serious stuff.

2010-03-10T08:35:00.007-05:00

Karol Wojtyla siempre fue el gran protector del sacerdote mexicano, hoy, eso podría costarle su beatificación ya que el fundador de los legionarios de cristo fue pederasta, tuvo hijos con varias mujeres y plagió el libro de cabecera del grupo. Marcial Maciel soñaba con ser proclamado santo universal y acabará en los infiernos más profundos de su iglesia. Los últimos descubrimientos sobre la doble y exagerada vida del famoso fundador de los Legionarios de Cristo y del grupo sacerdotal Regnum Christi no dejan lugar a dudas, y eso que aún no ha concluido la investigación ordenada hace un año por Benedicto XVI.

Juan G. Bedoya/ el país.

Karol Wojtyla was always the great protector of the Mexican priest, but today, it could cost him his beatification, since the founder of the Legionaries of Christ was a pedarast, had children with various women, and plagiarized a principle book of the group. The latest discoveries concerning the double and exaggerated life of the famous founder of the Legion of Christ and the priestly [sic] group Regnum Christi leave no room for doubts, and this is even when the investigation ordered a year ago by Benedict XVI has not yet concluded.

Much talk in the Legion of creations of the enemies of the Church and attacks against the pope. Well, my dear Legion, you are now the Church's worst enemy. And your founder, from the grave, is leading the attack. [Landon C.]

From Aol News

2010-03-10T08:29:00.002-05:00

So much love for the Vatican and the Church, and the Legion of Christ is cutting the Church to the quick.

Vatican Faces Widening Sex Abuse Scandals

(March 9) -- Sexual abuse scandals mired the Catholic Church on Tuesday as inquiries in Germany, Austria and the Netherlands intensified and the Vatican digested allegations that the Mexican founder of one of the church's most favored sects sexually molested his illegitimate sons.

[...]

The most recent accusations against Maciel involve a woman, Blanca Lara Gutierrez, who told officials she had a long relationship with a man she knew as an "employee of an international oil company, a private investigator and a CIA agent" before she found out his true identity.

She said Maciel fathered two sons with her and adopted a third. Two of the sons said Maciel molested them as children. The case grew more complicated Tuesday when the attorney representing the family resigned when it became known that one of the sons had asked the Legionaries of Christ for $26 million in return for his silence.

Jim Fair, a spokesman for the Legionaries of Christ in North America, said Tuesday that the order is still reeling from the allegations against the founder.

"We are still in those five stages of grief outlined by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross," Fair told AOL News. "It's as if Father Maciel lived in two different universes, like some old science fiction movie. And now it's all blowing up."

Fair said that Legionaries priests and lay members "have a tough row to hoe" with their faith but added that that the priests are "first and foremost Roman Catholic priests and they are part of a church that has survived 2,000 years with some flaws and will no doubt continue."

Fair said Maciel was clearly a "very flawed man" who nevertheless did "a lot of good."

According to Fair, the order has more than 800 priests and 2,500 seminarians worldwide, along with 50,000 members of the associated lay group Regnum Christi.

Church critics have pointed out that after years of turning what many call "a blind eye" toward clerical sexual abuse, the Vatican is now in what can only be described as crisis management mode.

New Twists Among the Trists

2010-03-09T08:15:00.004-05:00

Jose Bonilla, the Mexican lawyer involved in representation of Maciel's family in that country has withdrawn from the charge. In a radio interview with Bonilla, who was in Madrid, the attorney says that his former clients' interview with Carmen Aristegui was done against his advice.
Also, Raul's admission of asking for hush money is unacceptable and distinct from asking for money for pain and suffering. Bonilla reiterates that the sons were abused by Maciel. But he says that he had to withdraw for the the aforementioned reasons.

No legal case had been filed in the affair.

There is also a new accusation that the Legion took out multiple death certificates to assure that they were in possession of all of Maciel's personal assets in the names of all of his identities.

UPDATE:

Lawyers sever ties with accusers of Maciel

Mar. 08, 2010

By David Agren Catholic News Service

MEXICO CITY -- The lawyers representing the supposed children and former partner of Legionaries of Christ founder Fr. Marcial Maciel have severed their relationship with the complainants, a Spanish news agency reported March 8.

The lawyers' spokesman, Jose Bonilla, said in a statement to the news agency, EFE, that the supposed family of Maciel went public March 3 with the story of their lives with the Legionaries of Christ founder and allegations of abuse against the late priest without first notifying their legal advisers.

Bonilla said the family -- Blanca Estela Lara Gutierrez and her three sons, Jose Raul, Omar and Cristian -- told MVS radio host Carmen Aristegui "a different version in some substantial points" than was told to the lawyers.

The family, the statement said, "decided to make public statements without consulting at any time on the decision or content with the legal team."

"We expressly separate ourselves from any link that could exist with the mentioned family," the legal team said.

In the March 3 radio appearance, Lara said she spent 25 years as Maciel's partner and they raised three children -- one of whom was not his biological son. Jose Raul and Omar, who said the Legionaries founder was their father, said the priest sexually abused them as minors.

The Legionaries of Christ issued a letter the following day that acknowledged the pain and suffering of the victims, but added that Jose Raul Gonzalez Lara had met with Fr. Carlos Skertchly, the order's general procurator, in January and requested $26 million -- $6 million for an inheritance and $20 million in compensation for the abuse.

According to the letter, Jose Raul allegedly told Skertchly, "If you give me the money, I will keep quiet about the truth." No money has been paid, according to the Legionaries.

Jose Raul acknowledged March 5 on MVS radio that he had approached the Legion of Christ about money to "close this chapter" of their lives.

"I commented to [Skertchly], I told him paying that amount, [was] $10 million for the sexual abuse committed against Omar and $10 million for the sexual abuse committed against me over nine years by my father," Jose Raul said.

He also expressed dissatisfaction with the Legionaries' response.

"We very much regret this type of response from the Legionaries of Christ. The only thing we said or did was tell the story of our lives, which was the truth and, besides, we didn't choose to be the victims of a sexual predator," Jose Raul said.

In their statement to EFE, the family's previous lawyers' expressed dismay with the Legionaries' response, too.

"Insinuating that the young men, Omar and Jose Raul Gonzalez Lara, tried to extort money from the Legion of Christ is folly," and it comes "from the necessity this religious congregation has, once again, to evade its responsibility," the lawyers' spokesman told EFE.

The Legionaries of Christ has expressed remorse for the actions of Father Maciel. On Feb. 22, its general secretary, Father Evaristo Sada, publicly asked for forgiveness from Father Maciel's victims.

After an investigation, the Vatican stripped Father Maciel in 2006 of the right to practice his ministry in public and ordered him to live a life of prayer and penitence. He died in January 2008 at age 87 and barely a year later, the Legionaries acknowledged their leader had fathered a child -- who reportedly lives in Spain.

A five-member apostolic visitation team is investigating the Legionaries and is expected to submit its findings to the Vatican in March.

Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water...

2010-03-08T16:48:00.005-05:00

The past few days have provided us with more information than we may have cared to know concerning the life and times of one Marcial/Juan/Raul Rivas/Gonzalez/Maciel Degollado. The polygamist, incestuous, child raping, religious congregation founding flim-flam man continues to leave a stream of sludge and human misery in his wake.

Recent revelations of his "family life" from his victims in Mexico have sent a tsunami throughout that country, with after-effects felt around the entire world. The tale is simply awful, filled with disgusting details of this creepy man's modus operandi of manipulation -- right down to using medical excuses and physical pain to get his rocks off, i.e., to have children masturbate him.

While on camera his children flashed letters and cards sent to them by papa under his aliases; any former member of Maciel's "Movement" who watched felt their hearts skip a beat upon seeing the easily recognizable penmanship and characteristically poor spelling.

Even the most casual observer breathed out relief as the mother of the monster's children explained how her now 17 year old son escaped being raped by his father, Our Father.

Son Raul admitted to asking a hefty sum from the Legion in exchange for silence. Carlos Skertchly, posing as the Procurator General of the Legion of Christ, roundly refused, saying, "we don't do that." Huh? They obviously have been doing just "that" for years to keep Maciel's Spanish wife and daughter quiet living in luxury in Madrid, all the while using the donations from good Catholics (garnered by the hard work of Legionary "road teams" who search for funding for the "good works" of the congregation) for this nefarious purpose. Why deny "that" to Raul and his family?

Once again, the pivotal questions arise: the very questions which must be answered by the Visitation:

Who knew?
It is virtually impossible that Maciel was able to keep his secrets from all those involved in his cash cow operation, the Legion of Christ. This was his only source of income for his affairs and families. Who covered for him? Who knew of his sexual exploits and his insatiable lust for under-aged flesh? And, maybe most importantly, who knew in the Church hierarchy, when did they know and why did they wait so long to investigate and act?

What of Maciel's Legion?
Where did the lies and deception end? Does "Church approved" in whatever form, and how ever garnered, simply make it all good and worthy? Which Maciel was the real and true Maciel and how can we ever distinguish his various plots? Why do some insist that the Legion is somehow automatically exempt from his lies and somehow good in itself when its foundation has clearly been shown to be a sham?

How far do the effects of this mess reach?
Clearly, Maciel has been protected by high church officials for many years. Where they all duped? And even if we can assume that they were, did they fail in their duty to be absolutely sure when dismissing criticism of Maciel or the Legion and giving their unqualified support? Has there been a massive failure of proper discernment?

What role has money played in all of this?
Extravagant gifts, secret bank accounts, hush money... and suddenly the Legion would never pay to keep someone silent? How much money has gone to whom, inside and outside ecclesiastic walls?

Believe it when I say it, as chum continues to fill the waters, the sharks will come and there will be hell to pay.

Time Magazine Spotlights Maciel and His Legion

2010-03-08T09:32:00.002-05:00

Maciel Scandal Puts Focus on a Secretive Church Order

Read the article here.

Disgrace already hung over the Rev. Marcial Maciel when he died in 2008 at the age of 87. In 2005, beset by burgeoning charges that he had sexually abused young seminarians for decades, the Mexican priest had resigned as head of the Legionaries of Christ, one of the Roman Catholic Church's most powerful clerical orders. In 2006 the Vatican — which, under the late Pope John Paul II, had been one of Padre Maciel's staunchest allies — made him give up public ministry and confine himself to a life of "prayer and penitence."

But last week in Mexico, where Maciel founded the ultraconservative Legion in 1941, the scandal took an even unholier turn. On March 3, one of Maciel's mistresses, Blanca Lara, and two of Lara's grown sons, told MVS Radio that Maciel had sexually abused his own children. It "started when I was 7 years old," said one son, José Raúl González, now in his early 30s. "I was lying down with him like any boy, any son with his father. He pulled down my pants and tried to rape me." The abuse, González said, got worse after that and lasted years. His brother, Omar, said he too had been sexually abused by Maciel, starting at age 8. (The sons never took Maciel's surname.) Says Maciel victim Juan Vaca, 72, a former priest and adjunct psychology and sociology professor at Mercy College in New York, "This simply confirms what sort of personality we [were] dealing with: a malignant narcissist."

Continued at link above.

We are totally forsaken

2010-03-06T08:02:00.002-05:00

More abuse allegations against Legionaries' founder surface in Mexico

Friday, March 5, 2010

By David Agren, Catholic News Service

MEXICO CITY (CNS) -- Many in Mexico -- and beyond -- know Father Marcial Maciel as the founder of the Legionaries of Christ, an influential Catholic order famed for its elite schools and well-heeled followers.

Blanca Estela Lara Gutierrez came to know him in Tijuana by the alias "Raul Rivas," who, she said, "wanted to have a family" and, at various times, masqueraded as either a private detective or a CIA agent.

Her three sons, Jose Raul, Omar and Cristian, came to know Father Maciel as "Dad."

On March 3, the family went public with unflattering details of their life with Father Maciel. Lara told Mexico City radio host Carmen Aristegui of MVS Radio that she and Father Maciel were a couple for some 25 years and raised three sons -- one of whom, Cristian, was not his biological child. Jose Raul and Omar, meanwhile, tearfully said they had been sexually abused by their dad, Father Maciel.

The allegations threaten to further cloud the legacy of Father Maciel, who founded one of the most successful Catholic orders of the 20th century and gained enormous respect among Catholics worldwide, but lived a double life in violation of church teaching.

After an investigation into allegations of sexual abuse against Father Maciel, the Vatican in May 2006 ordered him to stop practicing his ministry in public and live a life of prayer and penitence. Father Maciel died in January 2008 at age 87. Barely a year later, the Legionaries acknowledged its founder had fathered a daughter.

The latest revelations of impropriety come as a five-member apostolic visitation team investigates the Legionaries of Christ.

Jose Raul Gonzalez Lara -- he and his brothers were not given Father Maciel's family name -- dismissed a recent public apology by Father Evaristo Sada, general secretary of the Legionaries, as "very embarrassing."

On Feb. 22, Father Sada asked for forgiveness "from the persons that our founder has affected because of immoral acts in his personal life." He also called on Legionaries to become more "humble" in their behavior and attitudes.

The Legionaries in Mexico responded March 4 by releasing a Jan. 12 letter from Father Carlos Skertchly, the order's general procurator, to Jose Raul. The order said releasing the letter was done "with absolute respect for the person of Raul Gonzalez Lara, bearing in mind that he himself published it on March 3."

The letter recapped a meeting and a phone call in January between Jose Raul and Father Skertchly in which he asked the order for $26 million.

The two met for an hour Jan. 6, according to the letter, and discussed the request, which included $6 million "in fulfillment of what you say was your father's will, expressed orally to you in a conversation." The letter also said Jose Raul asked for "another $20 million as compensation for your sufferings."

Father Skertchly said in the letter that Jose Raul called him Jan. 8, repeating his financial requests and "affirming that 'if you give me the money, I will keep quiet about the truth.'" The letter said that Jose Raul wanted a response from the order by Jan. 13.

"However in no way can we accede to your request for money in exchange for silence," Father Skertchly wrote. "While we value all of the pain and suffering that you have shared with us, and we deplore the evil of scandal that may follow, we will never accept petitions of this sort, which are also illicit. We prefer to seek and face the truth, no matter how painful it may be."

Father Skertchly also told Jose Raul in the letter that the order was willing to "accompany" him and offer "the pastoral support you are willing to receive, since you told me, the deepest solution to your difficulties is not economic."

Father Skertchly also wrote that the order remained committed to "uncover the truth" about Father Maciel's life.

Lara said her relationship with Father Maciel began in Tijuana toward the end of the 1970s, when she was 19 and he was 56. Father Maciel, she said, told her he wanted a family, but didn't want to get married. He also told her he worked as a private detective, but at other times said he worked for the CIA.

Jose Raul was born two years later. He said beginning at age 7 he was sexually abused when his father "tried to rape me" while they were visiting Colombia. Omar said he suffered sexual abuse at the hands of Father Maciel, beginning at age 8. Cristian said he was not sexually abused.

The three young men spoke glowingly at times of their father, however. They described him as "very loving" and "the patriarch" of the family. Neighbors would say, "He should be a saint," a reflection, they said, of his easy manner with people.

Lara also spoke glowingly of Father Maciel.

"I idolized him," she said. "One time I told him, 'You're my god.'"

He traveled frequently, but would call daily and send letters, Lara said.

Lara said she had no idea of his double life. She raised few questions about Father Maciel's line of work or questioned suspicious happenings, such as Father Maciel registering Jose Raul with the surname "Gonzalez" even though the priest had used the alias "Rivas." Even people -- described as the "elites" of Mexico -- greeting him as "Father," failed to raise red flags.

"When we were eating breakfast, there were some that would say, 'Good morning, Padre,' and we had orders to withdraw ourselves," Omar said.

"We never asked ourselves why they called him 'Padre.' We supposed it was because he had many children."

The charade was exposed in 1997, when the family saw Father Maciel's image on the cover of the Mexican magazine Contenido, which ran a story on allegations of sexual abuse against him. He denied the contents of the story and Jose Raul said the family was sent money to buy all the copies in Cuernavaca, the city near Mexico City where they resided.

Lara believed him.

"I was totally blind," she said. Previous to the story, she said, "I never suspected a thing. I didn't know who I was living with."

She said she stopped believing him in 1999, when Jose Raul told her that he was sexually abused. "I didn't ever not believe my sons," she said.

Jose Raul and Omar were sent to Spain by their father to receive psychological treatment.

Before he died, the Gonzalez Lara family said Father Maciel promised them an inheritance that had been deposited in a trust fund, but that money has not been located. Legionaries' officials have not been of assistance, Jose Raul said.

"We're totally forsaken," Jose Raul said.

Is this extortion? judge for yourselves.

2010-03-05T21:15:00.001-05:00

So you chose who to believe.

Mexican priest's alleged son admits seeking money

By E. EDUARDO CASTILLO (AP) – 6 hours ago

MEXICO CITY — A man who says he is the abused son of the founder of a conservative Roman Catholic religious order acknowledged Friday he asked the group for money to keep quiet.

Jose Raul Gonzalez said he asked The Legionaries of Christ for $26 million because the Rev. Marcial Maciel had promised him and his brothers a trust fund when he died and as financial compensation for Maciel's alleged sexual abuse.

Gonzalez's admission to MVS radio's Carmen Aristegui came a day after the Legion distributed statements by two prominent members saying they had met with him. One of the priests said Gonzalez had demanded money in exchange for his silence.

Gonzalez's mother, Blanca Lara Gutierrez, earlier told MVS that Maciel led a double life for almost 20 years, having two children with her, adopting another and abusing two of the three. It is one of the most damaging allegations yet against Maciel, who before his death had been the subject of a Vatican probe into multiple allegations he sexually abused seminarians.

"The only thing we did was to tell the story of our lives, and besides we didn't choose to be the victims of a sexual predator," Gonzalez said.

He said the family decided to ask the Legion for money "to end that chapter (because) we were tired of that situation."

Legion leaders last year acknowledged that Maciel had a daughter in Spain, but they have not directly accepted allegation by several seminarians that he molested them.

Maciel died in 2008 at age 87, more than a year after Pope Benedict XVI disciplined the ailing priest by sending him to "a reserved life of prayer and penance, renouncing every public ministry."

Lara Gutierrez said that she was 19 when she met Maciel, then 56, who passed himself off as "Jose Rivas," an employee of an international oil company, a private investigator and a CIA agent.

She said she didn't discover his real identity until 1997, when she saw a magazine article about previous allegations.

The family's accusations could not be independently verified but the order took them seriously enough to acknowledge several meetings with Gutierrez.

A few quick notes re the "Legion Defense"

2010-03-05T11:10:00.002-05:00

Raul testifies to the fact in the interview that Bishop Watty Urquidi told him the Alvaro Corcuera could not meet with him but that the Legion would send its General Procurator to the Vatican in his place. Carlos Skertchly does not hold that position, according to Raul.
Why would the family risk going public if their plan really had been one of extortion? Extortionists do not go public, their victims do.
This meeting with Sketchly only took place at Watty's insistence. The family had been trying for two years to speak to someone of importance in the Legion, and had first tried by approaching Jesus Quirce of the Anahuac.

Legion Response

2010-03-05T11:09:00.001-05:00

Response to Media Programs Appearing in Mexico

INTERNATIONAL | NEWS | NEWS

Press release of the Legionaries of Christ in Mexico.

March 4, 2010

In response to a radio and television program that appeared March 3 in Mexico, the Legion of Christ is releasing the letter that Fr Carlos Skertchly, LC, wrote to Mr. Raúl González Lara this past January 12. We publish it with absolute respect for the person of Raúl González Lara, bearing in mind that he himself published it on March 3. The attached letter shows the Legion of Christ’s position toward Mr. González and this complex situation, which we have come to know about through him after the death of our founder, Fr Marcial Maciel, LC. Fr Carlos Skertchly is currently in Rome, replacing Fr Cristóforo Fernández in his functions as general procurator of the congregation.

We share the suffering and pain of the members of the González Lara family, understanding the difficult circumstances they have lived and are living.

In recent years, the Legionaries of Christ have gradually come to know, with surprise and great sorrow, hidden aspects of the life of Fr Maciel. We confirm our commitment to act in truth and charity. We renew our request for forgiveness from the affected people for all of the suffering this has caused and for the ensuing scandal.

Communications office of the Legionaries of Christ, Mexico

***

Fr Carlos Skertchly’s letter to Mr. Raúl González Lara:

Thy Kingdom Come!

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Mr. Raúl González Lara

Present

Dear Raúl:

I would like to leave a written record of our meeting this past January 6, according to your wish for a first response to your requests. With the intention of being precise and formal, I preferred to do it in writing. I also confirm my availability to continue dialoguing with you.

At this time, it is impossible for Fr Álvaro Corcuera to come to Mexico to meet with you as you requested, so he asked me as his representative to be available to meet with you and listen to you.

Our intention as members of the congregation of the Legionaries of Christ, is to do whatever is possible to uncover the truth about our founder’s life, to look for the best solutions—in a spirit of gospel charity—to the complex situations that are presenting themselves, and to reach out pastorally to all of the people who have suffered or who may be affected by it. It is in this spirit and with these intentions that I met with you.

In our meeting this past January 6 at the Anáhuac University North, we had the opportunity to talk for an hour. During that time, you mentioned some aspects of your life in relation to your father, whom you identified as Fr Marcial Maciel. You also informed me of your intentions and the petition that you are presenting to the superiors of the Legion of Christ: you are asking them to give you a sum of 6 million dollars in fulfillment of what you say was your father’s will, expressed orally to you in a conversation. You also ask for another 20 million dollars as compensation for your sufferings.

On January 8 in the afternoon, I received your phone call, in which you confirmed your request, affirming that “if you give me the money, I will keep quiet about the truth,” and you asked for a response by January 13 at the latest.

In response to your petition, I can tell you the following:

1. As I affirmed in our meeting and on the phone call, we want to understand your situation, try to shed light on the still obscure aspects we are facing, seek the truth, and reach out to people. However, in no way can we accede to your request for money in exchange for silence. While we value all of the pain and suffering that you have shared with us, and we deplore the evil of scandal that may follow, we will never accept petitions of this sort, which are also illicit. We prefer to seek and face the truth, no matter how painful it may be.

2. In fulfillment of the responsibility I have received, I informed Fr Álvaro Corcuera of the content of our conversations, and I will tell you his comments and answers. From now on, I can confirm our desire and availability to accompany you and offer you the pastoral support you are willing to receive, since, as you told me, the deepest solution to your difficulties is not economic. I would also like to take this opportunity to mention that we have heard that a Mexican journalist will soon be publishing a book on topics related to Fr Maciel. We have not had any contact with the author and we have yet to know the book’s content. We are deeply sorry for the suffering and moral damage that this writing may cause you, your relatives, and us as well. We are also sorry for the public and ecclesial scandal it will generate.

I ask you once again to reflect on your position, and once again, we are always ready to work together to seek the truth, the evidence, and the best solutions to this situation which is so painful for everyone. This will surely be a difficult process that will take time.

With the assurance of my prayers for you and your family, yours sincerely in Christ,

Fr Carlos Skertchly, L.C.

Loan me Cristian. From the interview

2010-03-05T10:22:00.003-05:00

Blanca:
When her son Cristian was 6 years old in early 1999, she had already separated from Maciel, but he asked her if she could "loan" him Cristian for a couple of years when he turned 8 or so. She said yes, since this is what he had done with Omar, taking him to Europe and especially to Ireland for "preparation", to learn English and such for two years. (This seem to correspond to the first instance of the sexual abuse of Omar in Madrid by Maciel when he took him to Europe). After finding out about him abusing my other two sons later that year, Blanca refused.

This is how Cristian, now 17, escaped being raped by Maciel.

Aristegui: "this family is living a jigsaw puzzle of a life"

Despicable.

2010-03-04T17:52:00.002-05:00

From a.m.com.mex

It is disturbing [outrageous (ed.)]: Father Patrick
LUIS MIGUEL LOPEZ

This is "exceedingly disturbing" said Patrick O'Connell, a priest of the order of the Legionaries of Christ and head of the Men’s Section in Leon, referring to the sexual abuse of children that was committed by the order's founder, Marcial Maciel.

"I only heard the last 10 minutes of the interview (...) but it was enough to open my eyes, if I had any illusions that many of the things about Father Maciel are true or half true, I think what came out today is exceedingly disturbing [una “aberración impresionante”] and I think for us as Legionaries, we have the last nail in the coffin of this man”, he said.

O'Connell, who met Marcial Maciel in the seventies and was his cook while studying in Rome agreed with what was said in the interview of José Raúl González Lara, one of the sons of Maciel: that on the outside, people did not suspect the "other side" of this priest.

"He was always very kind to us, but this double life (...) we cannot deny what is surprising is the baseness, the disgusting manner in some way, of all his conduct with other young people, with women and in this case, his own children, " he said.

The priest acknowledged that the Legionaries have lost credibility as an institution, but noted that the witness will be the individual work of every priest of the order.

"Certainly I do believe that our credibility is badly damaged," he said.

He thought that the order would not disappear after the investigation by the Vatican, although it may have to change its name after all the loss of credibility it faces.

(translation in comment by anonymous)

Es aberrante: padre Patrick
LUIS MIGUEL LÓPEZ
NOTA PUBLICADA: 3/4/2010

Como una “aberración impresionante” calificó Patrick O’Connell, sacerdote de la orden de los Legionarios de Cristo y director de la Sección de los Señores en León, los abusos sexuales que revelaron los hijos del fundador de la orden, Marcial Maciel.

“Sólo escuché los últimos 10 minutos de la entrevista (...) pero fue suficiente para desengañarme, si tuviera alguna ilusión de que muchas de las cosas sobre el padre Maciel fueran verdad o medio verdad, yo creo que lo que hoy salió es una aberración impresionante y creo que a nosotros como Legionarios es el último clavo del ataúd de este hombre”, señaló.

O’Connell, quien conoció a Marcial Maciel en los setentas y fue su cocinero cuando estudiaba en Roma, coincidió con lo que comentó en la entrevista José Raúl González Lara, uno de los hijos de Maciel: que al exterior, la gente no sospechaba de la “otra cara” del sacerdote.

“Siempre fue muy gentil con nosotros, pero esa doble vida no la podemos negar (...) lo que sorprende es lo bajo, lo asqueroso de alguna forma, toda su conducta con otros jóvenes, con mujeres y en este caso, con sus propios hijos”, señaló.

El padre reconoció que los Legionarios han perdido credibilidad como institución, pero señaló que quedará el testimonio del trabajo individual de cada sacerdote de la orden.

“Ciertamente yo sí creo que la credibilidad nuestra está muy dañada”, reconoció.

Consideró que la orden no desaparecerá luego de la investigación que realiza el Vaticano, aunque es posible que cambie de nombre por el desprestigio que padece.

“De alguna forma tenemos que admitir que hemos sido formados por un hombre enfermo, y esa enfermedad dentro de nuestros seminarios puede ser que nos ha afectado en cierta manera a todos”, dijo.

A disturbing pattern: "Lowlights" from the Interview

2010-03-04T14:41:00.006-05:00

Son Raul had grave feelings of sexual confusion by the time he turned 17 and wanted to see a psychologist in Cuernavaca, Mexico. He told this to his father, Maciel. Maciel told Raul that seeing a psychologist could destroy his life. So Maciel said, "Don't worry, I will send you to a good psychiatrist in Madrid, Dr. Francisco Lopez Ibor, who I know." So Maciel sent Raul to live with his Auntie Norma (another of Maciel's wives who he presented to his Mexican children as "Auntie") in Madrid. Lopez Ibor told him "how good it is for you to come with a recommendation from father."

The doctor prescribed a powerful battery of medications to Raul, which he took for over a year. Back in Mexico, at home, he feel into a near catatonic state and his mother took him off the medications.

Five years later, without having asked for it, Dr. Lopez Ibor sent Raul a letter with a diagnosis of extreme obsessive disorder.

Any of this sound familiar to anyone out there?

More Highlights (graphic!)

2010-03-04T13:25:00.004-05:00

Raul-- was raped by his father for the first time on a trip to Colombia when he was 8 years old. This began a long history of rape. Maciel used to make them take pictures of them masturbating him, so that Maciel could keep the photos. Maciel had an uncle who taught him how to do it all, he told Raul.

Omar-- Maciel told him to masturbate him and would feign sleep.The first time was on a trip to Madrid. Maciel made the kids sleep with him to warm up his leg. He often complained of pain in his leg.

Both men break down crying and Aristegui has to call for a commercial break.

Blanca: Really, I never knew. I never really knew who it was I was living with. I loved him... I was blind. The boys told me in 1999 that they had been molested by him. (she had "separated" from him by that time.

Highlights from the Aristegui Interview below

2010-03-04T11:49:00.000-05:00

Aristegui: Do you have anything to say or to ask?

Raul oldest son: How can the Catholic Church continue to let these things happen?

Blanca (the mother): To the pope: Are you going to continue to allow the Legion of Christ to turn their backs on us as they have done up until now?

Cristian (youngest son): To Pope Benedict: is the Legion going to continue to turn their backs on us?

Omar (adopted son): To the Mexican society: D0 not let it happen. We are not the only ones. This has to be made public. We have to learn to live with this, but it cannot go unpunished. Justice must be done. We invite you to dialogue with us, our email is hijosmaciel@hotmail.com.

Pack your bags, Evaristito

2010-03-04T11:14:00.000-05:00

La cúpula legionaria empieza a preparar las maletas

21/02/2010

Evaristo Sada pide nuevamente perdón, con un sutil reconocimiento, sólo indirecto, de los abusos sexuales cometidos por su fundador. Es un paso más en el lento camino legionario hacia la realidad, pero no es un paso sincero: los superiores de la Congregación se preparan para su cese forzoso. Saben que el Vaticano ya lo ha decidido.

El perdón del Secretario General debería haber salido del Director General, Álvaro Corcuera, y la referencia a las víctimas debería haber sido clara y sin tapujos. Por eso, esta nueva declaración legionaria parece más que otra cosa un intento de preparar a la Congregación para la decisión Vaticana que pronto se hará pública: el cese de la cúpula y la elección de un Comisario Pontificio que convocará un Capítulo General cuya misión será refundar la Congregación.

Sada es todavía hoy Secretario General, cargo que ocupa desde hace más de veinte años. En realidad, durante años su oficio consistió en interpretar la mente de un fundador casi siempre ausente para dar órdenes en su nombre. Algunos legionarios llegaron a llamarle “Nuestro Padre Evaristo”. Era el Legionario de Cristo más cercano al fundador, sin embargo, no tiene reparos en aprovechar la petición de perdón para exculparse:

“…cuando viví con nuestro fundador, no vi las cosas negativas que ahora conocemos; no las vi, sólo fui capaz de ver lo bueno y no me di cuenta de lo malo.”

Este sacerdote no tiene ninguna credibilidad: si no las hubiera visto, por ser tan ciego; pero como sí las vio, por mentir. Si los que fuimos mucho menos cercanos a Maciel pudimos comprobar tantos aspectos de su vida que se nos hacían incomprensibles y sospechosos, qué no habrá visto su más cercano colaborador.

Las palabras de Evaristo Sada han sido:

“De todo corazón quiero pedir perdón a las personas a las que nuestro fundador haya afectado a causa de los actos inmorales en su vida personal y a las personas que se hayan sentido heridas por sus consecuencias. El P. Álvaro lo ha hecho y lo está haciendo en público y en lo personal, pero de nuevo pedimos perdón porque nos pesa sinceramente lo que la Iglesia y estas personas han sufrido”.

English Article is out: a monster through and through founded your freaking congregation

2010-03-03T20:05:00.003-05:00

Mexican woman: 2 kids with scandal-tainted priest

By E. EDUARDO CASTILLO (AP)
And on the NY Times World page.

MEXICO CITY — A Mexican woman charged Wednesday that the deceased, scandal-tainted founder of a conservative Roman Catholic religious order led a double life and fathered two children with her.

Blanca Lara Gutierrez said she met the Rev. Marcial Maciel in the border city of Tijuana in the 1970s, but didn't know he was a priest. She said he passed himself off as an employee of an international oil company, a private investigator and a CIA agent.

The Legionaries of Christ, the order founded by Maciel, acknowledged in February 2009 in connection with other cases that he had fathered a daughter and molested seminarians.

During a radio interview Wednesday, Lara Gutierrez charged that Maciel, who died in 2008 at age 87, sexually abused one of his two sons with her as well as a son she had from a previous relationship. The sons, now adults named Jose Raul and Omar, said the abuse went on for years.

The Vatican, which has been investigating the order over the earlier allegations against Maciel, did not have any immediate comment on what Lara Gutierrez and her sons told MVS radio Wednesday.

The order's Mexican headquarters did not answer its phone. Jim Fair, a U.S.-based spokesman for the Legionaries, said he didn't know anything more than what was broadcast in Mexico about the woman, her children and Maciel.

"I'm shocked and disappointed at what I've heard," Fair said in a telephone interview. "We want to act responsibly and get to the bottom of things and correct what needs to be corrected. We're going to be in the process of doing that."

The accusations could not be independently verified. A short official biography posted on the Legionaries' Mexico Web site did not say where Maciel might have been posted in the 1970s, but he apparently did move around a lot.

Jason Berry, author of the book "Vows of Silence," an investigation of the claims against Maciel, said that by 1976 Maciel traveled so much that he wasn't really based anywhere.

"He was building an international religious order and he flew often and spent periods of time in different countries. He moved most frequently between Mexico City, Madrid and Rome," Berry said. "He was always in Mexico for periods of time. He would come back for events. Mexico was his financial base."

The accusations that Maciel lived a hitherto unknown double life, in which the priest passed himself off as "Jose Rivas," a widower, follow a long series of allegations that he engaged in sexual misconduct in several cities.

Lara Gutierrez said she met Maciel when she was 19 and he was 56. She said she didn't find out his real identity until 1997, when she saw a magazine article about previous allegations made against him.

Asked how she was able to sustain a relationship with a man for around two decades without realizing who he really was, Lara Gutierrez suggested she was blinded by love.

"I never knew who I was living with, I never suspected." she said. "I loved him very much."

Pope Benedict XVI took the extraordinary step last March of ordering a Vatican investigation of the Legionaries of Christ. Church leaders are visiting and evaluating all seminaries, schools and other institutions run by the order around the world.

After its founding by Maciel in 1941, the Legionaries of Christ became one of the most influential and fastest-growing orders in the Roman Catholic Church.

Pope John Paul II championed the group, which became known for its orthodox theology, military-style discipline, fundraising prowess and success recruiting priests at a time when seminary enrollment was generally dismal.

The order says it has more than 800 priests and 2,500 seminarians worldwide, along with 50,000 members of the associated lay group Regnum Christi.

Associated Press Religion Writer Rachel Zoll in New York contributed to this report.

Part 1 of Aristegui interviewing Maciel's kids

2010-03-03T12:18:00.003-05:00

UPDATE: you can find all the parts on youtube by clicking here.

Here is part 2 of the interview

2010-03-03T12:16:00.001-05:00

El fundador de Los Legionarios de Cristo abusó también de dos de sus hijos

2010-03-03T12:12:00.001-05:00

Maciel also abused two of his sons.

Read it here in Spanish, CNN Mexico.

Aristegui and Maciel's Son

2010-03-03T10:17:00.001-05:00

Carmen Aristegui is interviewing Maciel's son on Mexican radio right now (10 am)
Monterrey 97.3 FM
Guadalajara 95.5 FM

Click here for live feed.

The Cow Strikes Again

2010-03-01T20:30:00.003-05:00

I mean, Peter Vere....

The cow that stole the monk

A long time ago, an Abbott set out on his travels accompanied by his assistant, a Brother, and a cow. Night was falling when the Abbott told the Brother to go on ahead to find lodging. The Brother found a humble trailer, in the middle of nowhere, which he ignored. The family was obviously poor since they lived in a trailer. And from the statue of St. Peter Claver standing beside the doorsteps, the Brother discerned that the family was probably of darker complexion.

This was hardly suitable lodging for the Abbott, who suffered from a rare allergy to eumelanin - the pigmentation that causes darker skin tones in humans. In fact, the Pope had secretly dispensed the Abbott from ministering to Catholics with dark complexions. Now the Brother had never actually spoken to the Pope or read the letter of dispensation (after all, it was so secret it could only be passed on through the confessional!), the Abbott had assured the Brother that this was the case. Of course, an exception was made for Catholics of African ancestry who possessed a lot of gold (since the metal's bright glistening reflected sufficient light from other sources to neutralize the darkness of their skin tone) or those who wore special red hats given to them personally by the Pope.

However, the Brother noticed a heard of cows nearby, which meant the family were probably migrant farm hands working a nearby dairy farm. So the Brother continued up the road until he notices a large, stately, country manor.

The mother, father and children were dressed in the latest styles usually found only among the big city bourgeoisie. It was pure fashion! And the Abbott, having received a vision of clerical fashions in the 1950's, required his Brothers to conform to his vision, despite the fact the 1950's were still several centuries away. Some would call this the Abbott's charism.

So the Brother asked if he and the Abbott could spend the night in their dwelling. "You are most welcome to spend the night," said the father of the family. They prepared a feast of expensive hams, fine cigars, and brought in some Mariachi minstrels for entertainment. The Abbott's cow was put out in the pasture with the other cows.

The next morning, the Brother and the Abbott said their good-byes and set out to continue their journey. They had an important meeting in Rome and far was their journey. They were even a little behind schedule as it would be several centuries before the invention of airplanes.

"Could we borrow a horse and carriage from you?" said the Abbott.

"Sure," said the Mother. She trusted the Abbott and Brother were holy men of God who would remember her in prayer once they got to Rome, despite the Abbott having been too tired to preside over grace during the visit.

"That's very charitable of you," said the Abbott. "But what about our cow? She could hardly keep up with this horse and carriage. And I have important business with the Pope."

"We could keep her here with the other cows," said the Mother. "I'm sure my husband doesn't mind."

"That's been your vocation since before eternity," said the Abbott. "I knew you would not say no to God. So understand that my cow requires extra care. She has been personally blessed by the Pope. So she is a sacred cow, who due to delicate health has required golden treatment since a young calf. You must massage her three times a day, feed her only the best grains and at specific times, and milk her gently in the morning and in the evening. She requires her stall cleaned daily, and fresh straw to sleep on. Here's the checklist. Plus, because it would be sinful to waste her milk, you must promise me you will feed only her milk to your family. This may sound like a lot, but I know you won't say no to God."

The woman promised and the Abbott headed off in the coach with the Brother. Years later, a Bishop ordained the Brother a priest. So he too became a Monk. One day he found himself on the same road where he found lodging so many years ago. Remembering the comfortable digs and the special treatment, he decided to visit the family. He rounded the curve in the road and to his surprise, he saw the mansion reduced to rubble, surrounded by gardens that had been taken over by weeds. In the middle of the field, flies buzzed around the rotting carcasses of an entire herd of cows.

The Monk knocked on the door. A poorly-dressed man answered. The Monk asked, "What ever became of the family who used to live here? Did they sell the property to you?"

The man looked surprised and said he and his family had always lived on the property. The Monk told him how he had stayed in a nice mansion on the same spot, with his master the old Abbott. "What happened to the family that lived here?" he asked.

The man pointed a pike at the Monk's throat. "You know Father, we used to have a herd of cows. They kept us alive. Quite comfortably, I might add. But then my wife invited your cow into our field, as an act of charity toward you and the Church. Your cow required a lot of care - my wife started spending all her time in the barn, to the neglect of our children, me and the household. The effort burned her out. I tried to reason with her, but you had her convinced the cow was sacred and that God would punish her if she did not put your sacred cow before everything else."

"Moreover, our kids - who had always been of strong constitution - fell ill most of the time, and could no longer help out around the farm. Either they were helping Mom keep up with your checklist, or they were suffering from the effects of their sickness. At first I thought the sickness was due to them and their Mother spending too much time in the barn, stressing out over your cow. I called the doctor. He informed me that my wife and children had Mad Cow disease, which we traced back to your cow. But by then it had spread to my herd. Our family is ruined is because of the charity you extracted from us!"

"How dare you say such uncharitable things," said the Monk. "That cow was blessed by the Pope!"

"Well this morning my farm hand Cyrene Porres came over to the farm, roped your cow, and at my instructions pushed it over the cliff," said the father. "Although it is too late for my family and herd, your golden cow will not be infecting any more families or herds."

And with that the Monk rushed over the cliff attempting to save his sacred cow.

Apologies. Enough Already!

2010-02-27T22:21:00.006-05:00

I really hate quoting the dictionary. But I am going to do it anyway. Apology: a written or spoken expression of one's regret, remorse, or sorrow for having insulted, failed, injured, or wronged another.

So what the hell is going on with the avalanche of Legionary and Regnum Christi apologies for what Maciel did? I am not even going to bother listing them all. These "possum" apologies are all over the internet.

We don't apologize for other people. "I am so sorry for what Jimmy Carter did to all the people who were damaged by his economic policy". Big deal. Even if the current president says it. Now if some economic advisor from that time says it, then he is just skirting responsibility for his own actions.

How much longer area we going to have to hear about people saying they are sorry for what Maciel did? I'm not sorry. I didn't do it. I did do some pretty shady things as a Legionary, but I have apologized personally to the people who were on the other end of my behavior.

But, you say, "Maciel is dead, so someone has to apologize for him." Bullshit. The apology that is needed is from those who have wronged others to those who were wronged. Even apologies from high church officials to victims of clergy abuse make no sense, unless the apology if for what these officials did or did not do.

I don't want any apology, half or full hearted for what Maciel did to me. He did not rape me, but he surely manipulated me and psychologically abused me. I want an apology from those who helped him do it. I want an apology from those who did me wrong.

That is what justice demands.

MOO

2010-02-23T12:57:00.005-05:00

The monk, the cow and the apology

By Pete Vere on February 23, 2010 10:54 AM

Over the past couple weeks I've been debating back and forth, in the comboxes of several blogs, with former LC priest Jack Keogh. He's an Irishman who runs The Monk Who Stole the Cow blog. The name of his blog refers to a folk tale which is posted in the right margin of his blog.

Mr. Keogh is calling upon LC critics to show more charity toward those who remain in LC. Here's my take on the situation:

A monk and his abbot were passing through a poor farming village atop the cliffs of Ireland when they came across a humble cottage owned by an impoverished Catholic family with three children. Nevertheless, the family took the monk and abbot in for the night. The family shared with the religious what meager milk and cheese the family had, produced from a single cow. This was the only farm animal the family could afford, and they relied upon the cow for their subsistence. Nevertheless, despite their poverty, the family was happy, knowing God was with them and provided for their daily needs.
The following day, as the "good" religious left the village, the abbot ordered the monk to return to the cottage and push the cow off the cliff. The abbot was widely reputed for his "holiness" and claimed "never to have said no to the Holy Spirit." Therefore the monk obeyed as an ever-obedient co-founder. After all, being pushed off the cliff was the cow's vocation "from all of eternity."

About five years' later, at a village two counties over, villagers discovered that the abbot had a certain unnatural affection for cows. What the penitential books at the time referred to as "unspeakable" sins involving farm animals. Given that this was medieval times - not the modern era where folks are somewhat more civilized - the villagers responded by pushing the abbot over the cliff. But that's a story for another time...

The monk narrowly escaped the peasant uprising. He made his way back to the initial village under the cover of darkness. Seeing the cottage where he had stayed five years ago, and given the cold wet snow outside, he knocked on the door to request shelter and food for the night. He could not help but notice, as he waited for someone to answer the door, that the cottage was even more beaten up and weather-worn than he remembered it five years ago.

An older man answered in threadbare clothing. He had lost some weight, most of his hair, and his skin was wrinkled with worry. Yet the biggest change was in his eyes: Gone was the spark that had made the family happy, despite the poverty in which they found themselves.

"What do you want?" the old man grumbled.

"I'm a poor monk seeking food and shelter for the night," the monk said. "You hosted my abbot and me several years ago."

"Oh, you," said the poor man.

"Look, I have nothing to give. It seems that everywhere you went cows kept falling off cliffs," the peasant continued. "After our cow fell off the cliff, the baby died for lack of milk. This broke my wife's heart, and she died about a year later. She died angry at God for having taken away our baby after showing you and your abbot some Catholic hospitality."

"That's blasphemy!" the monk said. "Your wife should have been more charitable with God, not to mention forgiving of our abbot. Then God would have blessed her with the serenity not to give in to the sin of bitterness."

"Well she might have endured this crisis," said the farmer, "but for the fate of our middle son. See, he was over in the next village begging for moldy and half-rotten potatoes - of which we ate a steady diet after our cow died - when he witnessed you pushing another cow over the cliff. You did so at the urging of your abbot. Horrified, my son ran to the bishop's house only to catch your abbot offering the bishop a gift of freshly butchered steak."

"My son reported what he had seen to the bishop. But your abbot denied everything and both you and your abbot claimed my son was lying out of jealousy for your meal of steak and fresh milk. It was his word against yours. That of an impoverished young boy against two men of the cloth. So the bishop believed you. He reported everything to the Prince, who also believed you and the bishop. The Prince then ordered my son's cheeks branded with a red hot poker ending in the letter 'L' - a sign to all who come across him that he was a liar. Additionally, my family was ordered to turn over our remaining possessions - minus this cottage - to you and the abbot, as restitution for having accused you of pushing cows over cliffs. We never ReGAINED these possessions."

"Well let's not talk about past misunderstandings," said the monk. "Let's talk about happier things. How is your oldest daughter doing? The Abbot sensed God had called her from all of eternity to a vocation as Consecrated Wench. She would not say no to God, would she?"

"I don't know," said the farmer. "After speaking with other consecrated wenches who had left the village, she decided that a more merciful fate awaited her as a galley slave to Moorish pirates. Unlike your abbot, their lust is satisfied in the afterlife by 72 virgins. That's more than twenty but less than a hundred - in case you can't count. Anyway, it's just me left in this hut now."

"Well let me in and I will keep you company," said the monk. "It is your duty as a Christian to forgive."

"Let's make a deal," said the farmer. "I'll forgive you, and offer you room and board for the evening, if you apologize for pushing my cow over the cliff and the pain it caused my family."

"That's not fair!" said the monk. "I was only following orders."

"Those orders brought much evil on my family," said the farmer. "So you can freeze outside in the snow until you apologize."

"Okay," said the monk, whose was feeling the chill of the wind against his soaked habit. "I apologize for the abbott's 'unfortunate orders,' which I cannot explain, and the pain they're now causing me as I try to find room and board for the night."

"Well what about the living hell you caused my family?" said the peasant.

"How dare you act this uncharitably!" said the monk. "I know other peasants whose cows were pushed over cliffs and they don't describe their experience as 'living hell'."

"Oh look, here comes a follower of St. Ignatius. I wonder if he needs room and board?" said the peasant. "After all, it's cold and wet outside."

"Okay, you're twisting my arm. Although I am grateful for all the good my abbot passed on to me and others who received his charism, I... uh... apologize ... for whatever pain his unfortunate orders, which I find difficult to reconcile with the good I saw while following him from village to village, caused you and your family."

"A little better," said the peasant. "But what about the pain YOU caused our family by following his orders. What about the pain your lies caused my son in having him branded a liar when he reported the truth about you, your abbot and cows were falling over cliffs?"

"How dare you judge me!" said the monk. "Only God can judge. Where's your faith in the Church?"

"Behind you," said the peasant, pointing to the Jesuit walking up the alley to investigate the situation. "Fr. Ignatius, can I offer you room and board for the evening? It's a cold night out, I need good spiritual direction to overcome the spiritual pain that has cursed our family for the last five years, and this monk was just leaving."

Anybody's Guess?

2010-02-19T23:15:00.002-05:00

Sandro Magister's opinion gives much credibility to this.

Ciudad de México (19 febrero 2010).- El Papa Benedicto XVI pedirá la refundación de los Legionarios de Cristo, señalaron expertos consultados por REFORMA a un mes de que se conozca el informe de un año de investigaciones realizadas sobre las faltas del Padre Marcial Maciel.

"Todo apunta a que el Papa pedirá el cese de quienes están al frente de la legión y luego nombrará un comisario pontificio. La tarea de éste será hacer un capítulo general, y a partir de ahí podría hablarse de una refundación de los Legionarios", adelantó José Martínez de Velasco, periodista experto en el tema que revelara en 2002 los escándalos de la congregación y de su fundador.

El Padre Maciel, quien fuera acusado de pederastia y de quien, en febrero del año pasado, se revelara que tuvo una hija, murió en enero de 2009, a los 87 años.

Sandro Magister, uno de los expertos más respetados de Roma en temas de religión y autor del blog Séptimo Cielo, coincidió en que la Santa Sede se inclinará por la refundación de los Legionarios, empezando por cambiar su cúpula.

"La refundación es una hipótesis con fundamento. Es importante una renovación total porque quienes ahora dirigen la legión son los mismos que trabajaron junto a Maciel durante su largo periodo al frente de los Legionarios", indicó Magister refiriéndose al director general, Álvaro Corcuera; al vicario general y encargado de asuntos económicos, Luis Garza, y al procurador general, Cristóforo Fernández.

Giancarlo Zizola, autor de libros como "Santidad y Poder" y "La Otra Cara de Wojtyla", advirtió que la decisión que tome el Papa revelará la verdad sobre las acusaciones contra Maciel.

"Si refunda a la orden y designa a un comisario pontificio, que es lo más probable, será el equivalente a una admisión de que lo que ha pasado dentro de los Legionarios de Cristo fue muy grave", opinó.
Clarification: Cristoforo Fernandez is just a useful idiot, a poor little pawn. Evaristo Sada is a devil in prada who has to go.

Has the News Finally Come?

2010-02-19T13:07:00.002-05:00

Reforma seems to be reporting in Mexico that the Pope will refound the Legion of Christ.

Stay tuned.

Division and delusion

2010-02-16T22:38:00.004-05:00

From El Trastevere

P. Julien Durodié: “… ”He creído, especialmente viviendo con el Padre Maciel durante tres años en la Dirección General, que él era también santo. ¿Por qué no? Pero nunca he puesto mi confianza sobrenatural en su persona humana. Mi fe no está afectada por su vida desordenada. Al contrario, está purificada. Por supuesto, estoy afectado por el escándalo, y el grito de las víctimas me hunde en el dolor. Pero todo esto no pone en entredicho el llamado de Dios”…

Fr. Julien Durodie: "I have come to believe, especially living with Fr. Maciel for three years in the General Direction, that he was also a saint. And why not? But I have never placed my supernatural confidence in his human person. My faith is not affected by his disordered life. On the contrary, it is purified. Of course, I am affected by the scandal, and the cry of the victims plunges me in sorrow. But all of this does not put the call of God into doubt..."

P. Douglas Barry: “… Después de un proceso de discernimiento que comencé en México tras conocer la impostura de nuestro fundador (múltiples vidas, engaños, y todo lo que ustedes saben o deberían de saber de sus actos de pedofilia, abuso de niños, homosexualidad, vicios, etc. que no me corresponde juzgar, pues Dios ya lo ha hecho) fui dándome cuenta que la mente deforme del fundador no sólo afectó su vida personal, sino que no pocas costumbres, procedimientos, estilos de vida, normas, y diversos aspectos de la congregación también estaban contaminados por resabios de esa mentalidad…”.

Fr. Douglas Barry: "...After a process of discernment, which I began in Mexico after learning of the deceit of our founder (multiple lives, fraud, abuse of children, homosexuality, vices, etc. which I cannot judge, since God has already done so) I began to realize that the deformed mind of the founder dis not only affect his personal life, but also not a few customs, procedures, lifestyle, norms, and diverse aspects of the congregation were also contaminated by the bad habits of this mentality..."

Madrid, 16 de febrero de 2010 (Por trastevere).- Dos nuevas cartas escritas por el P. Julien Durodié LC, Superior de la comunidad legionaria de París (Francia) y que continúa dentro de la Legión, y la segunda por el P. Douglas Barry que ha abandonado la congregación fundada por Marcial Maciel, han reabierto hoy el debate hacia el exterior de la situación que está atravesando la Legión de Cristo y el Regnum Christi en estos momentos en que se enfrenta a la “Visita Apostólica” ordenada por la Santa Sede y que deberá concluir el próximo mes de marzo.

Madrid, February 16, 2010 (By Trastevere). Two new letters written by Fr. Julien Durodie, LC, superior of the legionary community in Paris (France) and who continues within the Legion, and the second by Fr. Douglas Barry, who has left the congregation founded by Marcial Maciel, have reopened the debate today of the situation of the Legion of Christ and the Regnum Chrisit in these moments when they are confronting an "Apostolic Visitation" ordered by the Holy See and which should conclude next month.

Image source.

Who CAN we trust?

2010-02-15T20:16:00.005-05:00

When Trust Isn’t Easy

Fr Thomas Williams, LC, speaks about the challenge of trusting in God in difficult times.

January 22, 2010. When suffering hits where it hurts, we naturally want answers. But, says Fr Thomas Williams, sometimes we ask the wrong questions.

In a one-hour video (click here to view), Fr Thomas Williams talks about his new book Can God Be Trusted? More specifically, he expands on the difficulty of trusting God in tough times.

Fr Thomas discusses the natural human reaction to betrayal, and comments on how some respond to suffering by downsizing their hope in God and becoming “realistic”

Addressing this problem, he says that this loss of trust sometimes results from a case of misplaced expectations, as we hold God accountable for promises he never made. At the same time, he says, we may also fail to grasp the greatness of God has promised.

Part of the key to trust, then, is to understand God’s place in our lives a little better—and to ask the right questions.

For anyone who has ever struggled with trust, this is a must-view video that is realistic, insightful, and encouraging.

_____

Hmmm, now it's our fault because we think it is God's fault?

Yeah, let's take a look at Fr. Thomas....

UPDATE: Remember this quote in the video: Interviewer: "So you think all these men are lying?"
Fr. Thomas: "Yes, I do"

So he called them liars. This is a bit beyond issues of betrayal, high expectations, and trusting in God. This requires restitution of the good name of others. And it has not been done.

They will probably sue the Legion. For a change the Legion will be the defendant.

2010-02-15T15:06:00.005-05:00

Luis Aguiló Lucia: ´Mi abuelo nos legó un sentido de la ética y ni un solo bien material´

Photo: Aguiló, en su despacho de la Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua. manuel molines

Secretario de la Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua. El que fue letrado mayor de las Corts Valencianes durante demasiado tiempo, según dice, es uno de los 31 nietos de Luis Lucia, líder de la Derecha Regional Valenciana en la República, condenado a la pena capital por el franquismo, que le cambió la condena por cadena perpetua poco antes de morir desposeído de todos sus bienes y sin poder legar a sus descendientes más que "el orgullo del apellido y un sentido de la ética para la vida".

JULIO MONREAL VALENCIA
Los Legionarios de Cristo han reconocido que su líder, Marcial Maciel, plagió hasta en un 80% el libro de Luis Lucia 'El salterio de mis horas' editándolo en 1993 como 'El salterio de mis días'. ¿Ha emprendido la familia ya alguna acción legal contra el plagio?
Está ya en manos de abogados tanto en España como en Méjico. Hemos sabido luego que este libro era el de la espiritualidad interno de los Legionarios de Cristo. Ha tenido bastantes ediciones en inglés en Estados Unidos y en Méjico en español. De todo esto nos hemos enterado por casualidad y estamos haciendo la reclamación correspondiente porque nos parece justo y necesario. Mi abuelo lo escribió en la cárcel Modelo de Barcelona cuando estaba condenado a muerte en los años 40 durante el régimen franquista. Son poesías que permanecían desconocidas, de manera privada, y que a través de mis padres llegaron al arzobispo de Valencia Marcelino Olaechea. Él quiso publicarlas y la censura impuso como condición que no podía aparecer que habían sido escritas en la cárcel. Unas poesías religiosas no podían aparecer como escritas en la cárcel en aquel contexto.
¿Ha pensado la familia en editar otras obras personales o menores de Luis Lucia que aún permanecen sin publicar?
A raíz del libro de Vicent Comes 'Al filo de la navaja', que es una biografía magnífica sobre él, se recogieron algunos trabajos. Nosotros tenemos recopiladas bastantes de estas obras, poesías. Unas son religiosas, otras más festivas, y está en nuestra idea poderlas editar. Justamente el día 18 de febrero se presenta en Castelló una antología de obras de autores castellonenses y yo he aportado unas poesías escritas en valenciano por mi abuelo y entre ellas hay unas muy cortitas dedicadas a la Virgen de los Desamparados.
Su abuelo fue condenado a muerte en un proceso sin garantías. ¿Se ha planteado la familia reclamar la anulación del juicio al amparo de la Ley de Memoria Histórica?
Nos costó mucho conseguir la sentencia en Barcelona. La verdad es que no nos hemos planteado eso. Mi abuelo, en el 'Salterio', dice algo así como 'Señor perdónalos aunque sepan lo que hacen'. Siguiendo un poco ese espíritu, mi abuelo habría perdonado todo eso y creo que es mejor dejarlo ahí.
¿Ha sido reconocida la figura de su abuelo de forma suficiente?
Muy poquito. No lo suficiente. Se han acordado en tres momentos. Cuando se constituyó el Consell del País Valencià en El Puig en el régimen preautonómico, en 1978, se le mencionó por primera vez en un acto público. Luego el Ayuntamiento de Valencia, no sin cierta polémica dentro de la UCD, le dedicó una plaza, y más recientemente las Cortes Valencianas por unanimidad le dedicaron una placa conmemorativa. Pero no ha habido un gran reconocimiento. En mi familia, los que hemos vivido en Valencia (otros están en Zaragoza y en Barcelona) hemos vivido en los años 50 y 60 mucho la marginación de un sector de la sociedad valenciana que no le perdonó nunca que el 18 de julio se adhiriera a la República y cooperara contra el golpe que acabó en la Guerra Civil por responsabilidad democrática y por un comportamiento ético. A lo mejor sus 31 nietos nos planteamos alguna acción ahora. Él hizo su papel en aquellos tiempos y no nos legó en absoluto ningún bien material, si acaso mensajes espirituales. Perdonó todo lo que le pasó y nos transmitió aquella filosofía a través de nuestras madres.
¿Qué queda del abuelo Luis Lucia en la familia?
En primer lugar está el orgullo de todos los primos de llevar como segundo apellido el de Lucia y sobre todo un sentido de una familia muy unida, y ser descendientes de una persona que transmitió que había que comprometerse con la vida. Casi todos los primos están metidos en temas como la Fundación San Vicente Ferrer, ONG..., en una actitud de responsabilidad. Nuestras madres nos insistían en que todo lo que la familia tenía que hacer en política lo había hecho ya el abuelo. Tenían miedo a que participáramos en política, lo cual no impidió que durante el franquismo muchos lo hiciéramos. Hemos heredado sobre todo un sentido de la ética. En lo religioso mi abuelo fue muy avanzado para su época. Preconizó lo que luego fue la democracia cristiana, ya que distinguía el ser católico y la acción política de los católicos, sin mezclar y con separación iglesia-estado.
¿Y además del orgullo y el sentido de la ética, algunos bienes?
Las propiedades que no se perdieron en la Guerra desaparecieron al acabar la Guerra. Les quitaron todo, hasta los muebles de la casa. Mi madre, que murió el año pasado, nos contaba sin decirnos de quién hablaba que comprobó que todos los muebles que había en la casa de mis abuelos en la plaza de Tetuán, al lado de donde ahora está el Colegio de Abogados, se los había quedado una conocida familia de Valencia y que no se les permitió reclamar.
Pero él no murió allí después de que le conmutaran la pena de muerte por cadena perpetua.
No. Murió en un pisito en Fernando el Católico. En la Guerra se había escondido de la persecución en Cantavieja. Allí es detenido, pasa brevemente por Valencia y luego permanece a la espera de juicio en la Modelo de Barcelona. El expediente que tenía para su defensa a la espera de juicio en la zona republicana se convirtió en prueba de cargo para los franquistas, que lo condenaron a muerte en 48 horas. Por presiones del arzobispo de Valencia Prudencio Melo y la Embajada británica le conmutan la pena y la cambian por confinamiento en la isla de Mallorca. Cogió un cáncer y volvió a Valencia, ingresó en la Casa de la Salud pero ya no se pudo hacer nada por él, y murió en un entresuelo que había comprado mi tío o algún familiar junto a Àngel Guimerà. Siempre con un policía dentro de la casa. De las propiedades que había antes de la guerra, como una finca cerca de Nules o unos campos de naranjas hubo que malvenderlas o se perdieron. No pudieron recuperar nada. Mi madre, sus tres hermanas y mi tío apenas heredaron nada de sus padres.
¿Esa circunstancia está en el origen de que buena parte de la familia se haya marchado de Valencia?
En Valencia se quedaron mi madre y su hermana pequeña. Las otras dos se casaron y se trasladaron a Zaragoza y Barcelona, y mi tío, el director de cine, no tuvo hijos y acabó en Madrid cuando Cifesa se trasladó. Mi madre sí estaba muy enfadada con la sociedad valenciana. Recuerdo que ella nos decía que había gente que había tardado años en saludarnos por la calle. Pero eso es un poco como somos los valencianos.
[Como ya se ha informado en este diario, los descendientes directos de Luis Lucia no tienen vinculación alguna con la finca de la calle Aben al Abar de Valencia, compuesta por una casa y un gran patio ajardinado, que el Ayuntamiento de Valencia se ha visto obligado a expropiar recientemente por unos dos millones de euros en cumplimiento de los derechos de sus anteriores propietarios, entre los que hay al menos ocho que comparten el apellido Lucia].
¿En qué figura política de la actualidad reconocería a su abuelo Luis Lucia?
Es difícil. Cada persona vive su época y es difícil trasladar de una época a otra. Mi abuelo responde a una mentalidad que hoy parecería muy carca en algunas cosas y muy avanzada en otras. El sistema de partidos actual no tiene nada que ver con el de la República, con partidos valencianistas, valencianos y estatales que hoy no se da. La fuerza política que pudo recoger en los primeros momentos de la Transición el espíritu político de mi abuelo fue Unió Democràtica del País Valencià (UDPV), que formaba parte de la Democracia Cristiana en torno a Ruiz Giménez, pero ya sabemos lo que pasó con esa fuerza política. En los años 30, las relaciones mejores de mi abuelo eran con el PNV y con UDC, que evolucionaron de forma diferente.
De la abundancia de partidos regionalistas de los años 30 se ha pasado a la práctica inexistencia.
La sociedad valenciana no tiene un sistema de partidos como el que funciona a nivel de Estado. ¡Qué pocas veces han coincidido las fuerzas políticas gobernantes en un lado y en otro! Las fuerzas políticas valencianistas por un lado están bastante integradas en los partidos estatales y sin embargo han tenido mucha más fuerza en el debate político de lo que le correspondía según las urnas. Su peso en la sociedad valenciana es mucho mayor que el que demuestra cuando llegan las elecciones. Un partido con un 3% no tenía que tener el peso que luego tiene

Thoughts from a fellow blogger

2010-02-13T21:52:00.003-05:00

"Twenty eight years after leaving the congregation, I've decided to publish my memoirs. My memoirs - in other words, I'll tell my stories, share my experiences and emotions and maybe give some insight into why guys like me joined the youngest founder in the history of the Church to 'establish the Kingdom of Christ.' Actually, deciding to join a religious congregation was the easy part. Staying the course and eventually deciding to leave was the hard part. The Legion becomes the 'family' of the Legionaries - they do not make it easy to leave. For those of us who did move on to a new life and career, I think it is fair to say that 'leaving' is a harrowing and gut wrenching experience.

The now disgraced founder, Marcial Maciel was a masterful manipulator of people. Charismatic and narcissistic. A deadly, powerful combination. The web is replete with blogs mostly criticizing him and the congregation he founded. Knowing what we now know about Maciel he is indefensible. Those who did not personally experience his charisma must struggle mightily to understand those of us who did. How could we possibly not have had some glimpse of the double life he led? How can we possibly hope that there is still some good in the congregation he founded? How can we wonder if the Church can 'afford' to simply disband one of the most vibrant forces it has produced in recent years?

My experience with Maciel began in 1962, when he was 42 years old. He was still relatively unknown at the beginning of his journey. When he sent me to Mexico in 1965, there were no more than 20 Legionaries in Mexico. By the time I left the congregation, the Legion had gained the enthusiastic support of Popes, politicians, business people, world leaders, entertainers, and tens of thousands of committed Christians who joined Regnum Christi the world-wide lay movement which is part of the Legion. I want to contribute what I believe is an 'untold story' in those early years - the personal story of an Irish Legionary who was close to Maciel trying to relate personal experiences of what it was like before the awful revelations about Maciel.

The priests and seminarians who continue in the Legion must be heart-broken, furious, disappointed, bewildered, sad and totally disoriented. I am sure the same goes for the tens of thousands in the Regnum Christi. Even though they (the Legionaries) turned their backs on those of us who left the congregation my heart goes out to the good guys who remain. The rank and file mostly have limited and controlled access to the media and the internet. They have trained themselves to be impervious to 'outside' opinion. Despite considerable pressure from advisers, the media and public opinion they have not reacted pro-actively to the scandals. Thus they compound the notion that they are robotic, brain-washed people. I still believe that they are much better than the image they project.

They will do what the Pope tells them to do after the Apostolic Visitation. Of this I feel very sure. Therein lies a different story - the Vatican ultimately pulls the strings and I have no doubt the Vatican is advising the Legionary brass. There is a sad case to be made that the Vatican is coming across as out of touch with common Christians. The hierarchical structures of the Church made it easy to conceal scandals. Religious arrogance and paranoia persuaded the powers that be that scandals should be concealed. This does not justify the attitude of current Legionary leadership - but they are so imbued with loyalty to the establishment it is easy to see how they struggle to react.

Maybe we have reached a moment in history when we need to reexamine our notion of "ministry." I've always supported the notion of celibate priesthood. Today, I'm not so sure. The model, from where I sit, no longer seems to be working. I don't pretend to know the solution. But I do know it's time to wake up, smell the coffee and do something meaningful. Marcial Maciel could not have done the good he did without the Vatican. How was the Vatican so royally duped and, more importantly, what if anything has it learned?"

Source is here.

Yeah, but just how sick, and how serious an operation?

2010-02-12T22:52:00.004-05:00

Miguel Ángel Cativiela: «La Legión está como un enfermo al que le acaban de operar»
The Legion is like a sick person who has just had an operation

RELIGION EN LIBERTAD
CAMINEO.INFO.-Sat, 13 Feb 2010 11:48:00

El secretario territorial de la Legión de Cristo en España, Miguel Ángel Cativiela, LC, ha descrito la actual situación de la congregación religiosa como la de un enfermo que acaba de ser operado. La crisis que vive la institución desde que se hicieran públicos los excesos de su fundador, Marcial Maciel, ha sido, reconoce, «un "palo" bastante grande».

The territorial secretary of the Legion of Christ in Spain, Miguel Angel Cativiela, LC, described the current situation of the religious congregation as that of a sick person who just had an operation. The crisis that the institution is living since the excesses of its founder, Marcial Maciel, were made public, have been, he admitted, "quite a great blow".

Es la primera vez que alguien de peso dentro de la estructura directiva de la congregación de los Legionarios de Cristo en España realiza un diagnóstico de la complicada situación por la que atraviesa, a excepción de la carta hecha pública por su director general, Jesús María Delgado en septiembre de 2009.

It is the first time that anyone of any weight within the command structure of the congregation of the Legion of Christ in Spain has made a diagnosis of the complicated situation which it is going through, with the exception of a letter made public by the director general [sic], Jesus Maria Delgado in September, 2009.

El padre Miguel Ángel Cativiela, LC, que desde hace seis años trabaja como secretario territorial de la Legión de Cristo en España, ha asegurado en el último boletín bimensual que edita la propia congregación que «estamos muy bien», aunque matiza. Porque es evidente que la respuesta sorprende de primeras, habida cuenta la complicada situación actual de la congregación tras descubrirse el escándalo de la doble vida de su fundador, el padre Marcial Maciel, y la visita Apostólica que se está llevando a cabo desde hace meses.

Fr. Miguel Angel Cativiela, LC, who has been working as territorial secretary of the Legion of Christ in Spain for six years, assured in the latest bimonthly bulletin edited by the congregation itself, that "we are very well," but he clarifies. Because it is evident that the response is surprising at first, given the complicated situation that the congregation finds itself in after uncovering the scandal of the double life of the founder, Fr. Marcial Maciel, and the Apostolic visit that has been taking place now for several months.

Todo lo que cura escuece
Everything that heals stings

El matiz de ese bienestar del que habla el padre Cativiela es claro: «Cuando a un enfermo que le acaban de operar le preguntan "¿qué tal estás?" y te dice "bien", se supone que está bien dentro de que es una persona a la que la acaban de operar». Vamos, que hay dolor y que no está curado del todo, se entiende; y que todo lo que cura escuece y molesta.

The nuance of this well-being of which Fr. Cativiela speaks is clear: "When a sick person who has just been operated on is asked, 'how do you feel?', and he says 'good', one can assume that he is well within the limits of a person who has just had an operation". That there is pain and that the healing is not complete is understood; and that everything that heals stings and is painful.

Porque el recién operado «no puede saltar por ahí, correr y hacer vida normal y nosotros, en una situación delicada por los hechos que hemos ido conociendo, pues estamos bien, dentro de que sí, es un "palo" bastante grande».

Because a person recently operated "cannot jump around, run, and live a normal life, and we, in a delicate situation given the facts which we have come to know, we are well, within the limits that yes, it is a very great 'blow'"

Mirando al futuro
Looking to the future

Una vez hecho el diagnóstico, el secretario territorial de los Legionarios de Cristo en España, entiende que «la mayoría lo ha asumido y que lo que está haciendo es mirar hacia delante», aunque reconoce que «no estamos reaccionando todos de la misma manera». Y remacha: «Nos lo han dicho muchos eclesiásticos, todavía nos queda mucho bien por hacer».

Once he made the diagnosis, the territorial secretary of the Legionaries of Christ in Spain, understands that the "majority have absorbed it and what they are doing is looking forward", even though he recognizes that "we are not all reacting in the same way". And he reiterates: "Many churchmen have told us, we still have much good that we must do."

El padre Miguel Ángel Cativiela, en consonancia con la actitud general de espera y confianza en ver «qué quiere el Santo Padre de nosotros», asegura que «estamos en las manos de Cristo, a través de su Vicario» y se muestra confiado: «Las disposiciones para cumplir fielmente lo que el Santo Padre nos diga son muy buenas, por lo que yo puedo ver».

Fr. Miguel Angel Cativiela, in agreement with the general attitude of awaiting with confidence "what the Holy Father wants of us," assures everyone that "we are in Christ's hands, through his Vicar" and is confident: "There are very good dispositions to comply faithfully with what the Holy Father will tell us, as far as I can see".

________________

1. Legionaries are notorious for using inept analogies to make themselves look good and to divert further inspection. This is not a case of a sick person after an operation. The operation has not taken place yet. The Vatican has not pronounced. Medicine has not yet been prescribed.

2. "Good dispositions to comply faithfully with what the Holy Father will tell us"? Well, the last time, when the Holy Father dissolved the private vows, the Legion obeyed in letter only, continuing to enforce the spirit. So what evidence is there that this time will be any different?

3. There is no consideration made about the cause of the malady. And how it effected the whole organism.... Damn, am I the only one who thinks that these people are delusional?

Fatal Flaw

2010-02-11T13:08:00.002-05:00

From Pete Vere's blog, Catholic Light

A fatal flaw in Legionary formation
By Pete Vere on February 11, 2010 11:33 AM | No Comments

I received the following email from a former Legionary who had been ordained with the order. I've removed the names of individual Legionaries to protect confidentiality:

Hey Pete, hope you are well.

I want to comment personally with you on your comment [over at Ladon Cody's ExLC blog] that "Holiness comes from the inside. God alone knows who is holy and who is not. Externals can be deceiving. For instance, how many of us thought at one time that Maciel was holy?"

When I was still in the Legion, I commented with [John Doe], who was still in, and he told me that he commented with [another Legionary] back then and they agreed. The point is that Legion formation essentially was set up to work from the outside in. It made use of externals to build what they called the charitable or priestly heart. The idea was to practice external things: kneeling for meditation, opening doors for others, making little sacrifices at meals and tons and tons of other things, with the aim of internalizing them. The idea was not that those things would come from the heart, but that they would change the heart through simply doing them.

So many actions of every day and every moment were like magic formulas to be recited or practiced and, voila, a charitable heart! A holy priest! It is a huge internal flaw of formation in the Legion of Christ. A fatal flaw.

There is no recovering from something like this. There is nothing to save in LC formation because it is backwards.

Unfortunately, there is a whole sector of people in the Church who fixate on this type of externalization and are caught up in it, and call it holiness. It is only worth something if it does come from the heart, and then, if it produces no real fruit, it is still just a noisy gong, a clashing cymbal.

They asked for it

2010-02-11T08:23:00.001-05:00

Whatever you may think of the comedy, any sacrilege is a direct responsibility of the Legion. If you play with fire like they have, then you deserve what you get.

The Heart of the Matter, yet again

2010-02-10T08:26:00.003-05:00

From 'and sometimes tea'

"I will freely grant that I have no idea what the journalistic standards of El Mundo are or whether this account can in any way be taken without a very large grain of salt. But the problem is: it has been a year since the world learned that Marciel Maciel was living a double (at least!) life. We still know almost nothing more than that, and while no one needs salacious details or to wallow in the immorality of the tale, it is not at all asking too much to ask to know if there was ever a time when the Legion was not seriously tainted beyond repair by its strong association with this man.

It is my hope that this is exactly what those conducting the apostolic visitation have been asking, with serious diligence and attention to the details (which, whatever they may be, as yet have not appeared in any American media source). A clear pattern, though, is emerging, a pattern of a man who was willing to pass off another's spiritual writings as his own, who was able to create a climate of secrecy so strong that even after his death and disgrace it still surrounds the Legion he founded, and who may well have been engaged in sinful and deceptive behaviors from the earliest days of the Legion. What that pattern will mean to the organization which he not only founded but influenced deeply in ways that may be impossible to measure is not yet clear, but as the pattern is revealed, the picture of the Legion's future--if any--will begin to be seen with the utmost clarity."

In What Alternate Universe?

2010-02-09T20:57:00.003-05:00

From a comment below:

Anonymous said...

"'A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit.' ~ Matthew 7:18

Contrasting the works of the Legion, there's no way you can have a monster found it and be in charge of it, etc. I think Fr. Maciel will one day be canonized a Bigtime Saint."

February 9, 2010 7:52 PM

Will He Dare Cast Them Into the Sea?

2010-02-09T18:41:00.002-05:00

"Los que escandalizan a los pequeños merecen que les cuelguen una piedra de molino al cuello y los tiren al mar". Valiente, decidido, como lo viene siendo desde siempre en esta dura cuestión, profundamente evangélico, Benedicto XVI volvió a lanzar un mensaje de "tolerancia cero" hacia los pederastas en el seno de la Iglesia.

Condena tajante, sin tapujos, y sin excepciones. Venga de donde venga. Un gran gesto del Papa, y un interrogante que, en muy pocos días, comenzará a ser desvelado: ¿Se atreverá a echarlos al mar? ¿Lo hará la próxima semana, cuando entregue a los obispos irlandeses la carta de disculpas y de reglas de actuación ante el escándalo de los abusos sexuales en este país? ¿Será ejemplar en la condena de las actitudes de Maciel y quienes conocían, aprobaban o silenciaban los abusos en la Legión?

Aunque después alguien nos acuse de ingenuos, estamos convencidos de que el Papa no va a dar un paso atrás en su decidida defensa de los derechos de los niños, y en la persecución y la condena a estos maltratadores.

"Those who scandalize the little ones should have a mill stone tied to their necks and be cast into the sea." Valient, decided, and, as it has come to be in this difficult question, profoundly evangelical, Benedict XVI again launched a message of "zero tolerance" against pederasts in the heart of the Church.

A categorical condemnation, without beating around the bush, without exceptions. Where ever it may come from. A great gesture from the Pope, and a question, which, in very few days, will be unveiled: "Will he dare cast them into the sea?" Will he do it next week when he gives the Irish bishops the letter of pardon and rules of action regarding the scandals and sexual abuses in that country? Will he set an example in condemning the attitudes of Maciel and those who knew, approved, or silenced the abuses in the Legion?

Even if afterwards we are accused of being naive, we are convinced that the Pope will not back down in his firm defense of the rights of children, and in the prosecution and punishment of those who would mistreat them.

From Religion Digital. Jesus Bastante

A Kingdom Divided. New Take on Old News

2010-02-09T11:46:00.002-05:00

Real divisions, or the Legion's way of trying to send up a smoke screen and pretend that this is a "gringo problem"?

El superior general prohíbe el debate interno
Lucha interna de la Legión de Cristo

José Manuel Vidal | Madrid
Actualizado sábado 30/01/2010 13:12 horas

"Todo reino dividido queda asolado" (Lc. 11,17). Perfecto conocedor de esta máxima evangélica, el superior general de la Legión de Cristo, Álvaro Corcuera, llama a sus miembros a cerrar filas y les prohíbe el debate interno y, por supuesto, externo sobre los pecados del fundador, Marcial Maciel, de cuya muerte se cumplen hoy dos años, y sobre el futuro de su Obra. Al tiempo que intenta silenciar a las voces más críticas con los actuales responsables de la congregación.

A un mes de que los visitadores nombrados por la Santa Sede entreguen el informe correspondiente a Benedicto XVI, el director general de la Legión de Cristo ha enviado varios escritos a los miembros de la congregación, para que cesen las discusiones internas que abundan entre ellos. Discusiones que escapan al control de la dirección, porque se suelen realizar por medio del correo electrónico y de comentarios en diversas páginas web.

Por lo que de esos intercambios se desprende, en estos momentos hay dos corrientes enfrentadas en el seno de la Legión: la de los que reclaman un profundo cambio interno y la de los que optan por un cambio cosmético que se limite a pasar página en el asunto de los pecados del fundador, Marcial Maciel.

A ambas corrientes, que están dividiendo a la Legión, Álvaro Corcuera les pide caridad y llama a todos sus miembros a "consolarnos y acompañarnos mutuamente; ser cirineos unos de otros y vencer nuestras penas, fortaleciendo a nuestros hermanos".

Porque, para el director general de la Legión, lo que tiene que primar, ahora, entre sus miembros es "vivir el don de la paz". Y hasta les dice cómo: "Animándonos mutuamente, comprendiéndonos, queriéndonos de corazón, perdonándonos mutuamente, no recriminándonos ni juzgándonos, ni mucho menos humillándonos".
Norteamericanos contra españoles

Las propias fuentes de los Legionarios reconocen que, en estos momentos, hay desunión y diferencias de criterio decisivas en el seno de la Legión de Cristo. Por un lado estarían los anglohablantes que, muchos más críticos y radicales desde el principio, solicitan una discusión abierta sobre los pecados del padre Maciel y un cambio de la "cultura interna" de la propia Obra. Hablan incluso de una refundación.

En este bando se encuentran los que más abiertamente acusan de complicidad con Maciel a algunos de los actuales dirigentes de la Legión. También es entre ellos donde se están produciendo más abandonos por "diferencias irreconciliables" con la actual cúpula dirigente. El último en irse fue el norteamericano Richard Gill, uno de los legionarios con mayor prestigio en la zona.

El otro frente, constituido mayoritariamente por los Legionarios de habla hispana o lusa, se muestra partidario de que la Legión se olvide de su fundador y corrija los problemas actuales de la congregación por medio de una mayor fidelidad al espíritu fundacional. En definitiva, los primeros quieren renegar del fundador y del pasado, mientras los segundos optan por una conversión que no condene ni su memoria ni su pasado.

Pero el debate es tan doloroso y tan intenso en el seno de la Legión que, tras una primera misiva, Álvaro Corcuera se vio obligado a enviar una segunda, con fecha del pasado día 24 de enero. En ella, como cuenta ACI, la agencia peruana de información religiosa, asegura que el intercambio de opiniones entre los Legionarios es "una muestra de confianza y de que nos queremos todos", pero pide mucha prudencia.

Y Corcuera añade: "Pienso que por esta vía quizás no terminaríamos nunca e incluso se podrían generar malentendidos y contraposiciones. Tenemos que seguir todos trabajando y también buscaremos los mejores caminos para que todos, y especialmente los sacerdotes, puedan aportar serenamente sus dones y sus reflexiones para responder a lo que Dios nos pide en este momento, de manera especial por medio de las indicaciones que esperamos de la Santa Sede". El director general concluye así su segunda misiva: "Por ahora lo dejamos madurando en el corazón de cada uno, en familia, ayudándonos a purificar y construir esta obra a la que Dios nos ha llamado".

Marcial Maciel and Fr. Alvaro, a promotional video

2010-02-08T20:41:00.003-05:00

Totally stolen from Pete on life-after-rc

And below, um, Landon's personal translation. Is it accurate enough for you, Jack?

A tale of two vicars. You make the call.

2010-02-07T22:08:00.004-05:00

Vatican daily publishes article on priesthood by Legionaries of Christ vicar

Rome, Italy, Feb 5, 2010 / 05:16 pm (CNA).- L’Osservatore Romano published an article on Thursday by Father Luis Garza Medina, the Vicar General of the Legionaries of Christ, in which he reflected on what priests should do in response to the challenges “that confront humanity” and the “drama of modern man.”

In his article, Father Garza provides a series of reflections on the Year for Priests. The Legionaries' Vicar General notes that “the priest, animated by the awareness that Christ is the only Savior of the world and that he has been made a minister of redemption by means of the Sacrament of Orders, is called to live in today’s world, amidst the challenges that this presents for the Gospel of Christ, with confidence and holy audacity.”

Father Garza said the priest must be “a man of God” and that “his will and faculties must be imbued with the sentiments of Christ.”

He also said that the priest “should be a man of prayer, a man who listens to and meditates on the Word in order to lovingly comply with what God wants of him. He should celebrate the sacraments with the fervor and anointment proper to the sacred things he is charged with, knowing that because he is a man of God he should make a special effort to resist the dizzying and constant rat-race of the modern world.”

After pointing out that “the priest is a man profoundly aware that salvation comes from God,” Father Garza wrote, “The priest seeks the good of the person, he doesn’t seek to reduce him to a number or a statistic” and should be a sign of communion for his peers and for the entire Church.

COMPARE TO

From the article below:

The Legionary priests, alarmed by Maciel's attitude, immediately called Rome. The then number three person of the institution, Luis Garza, knew right away that this was a grave problem. He consulted with the highest authority, Alvaro Corcuera, hopped on the first plane to Miami and when directly to the hospital.

His indignation could be read on his face. He faced the once all-powerful founder and threatened him: "I will give you two hours to come with us or I will call all the press and the whole world will find out who you really are". And Maciel let his arm be twisted.

The Whole Article

2010-02-04T19:41:00.004-05:00

ANNIVERSARY / TWO YEARS WITHOUT MARCIAL MACIEL

The Legionary who died four times and did not want to go to confession. Up until now, thanks to the "Cronica", it is known that he had at least six children and various identities. On the second anniversary of the death of the founder of the Legion of Christ, we reveal his last hours, in the presence of an exorcist.

IDOIA SOTA | JOSÉ M. VIDAL

The day that Marcial Maciel died, like in Pedro Paramo, a insistent whisper was heard as that which the wind makes when it whips the branches of a tree in the night. When we tune our hearing, just like in the above mentioned novel by Juan Rulfo, this murmur, pressed like a swarm of insects, comes together as words almost empty of sound, and full of piety: "Pray for us".

The day that Marciel Maciel died (yesterday it made two years), the luxurious Legionary house in Jacksonville (Florida) was converted into a constant flow of cassocked men. Even to this day, they have a strange look on their faces. A sign in which we can guess that the Marcial Maciel's end does justice to an excess laden existence, lived totally on the margin of any civil or divine law. Something horrible happened in the room where the founder of the Legionaries of Christ died.

More than a dozen people were chosen to accompany him in his last moments, and, from that day on January 30, 2008, they were left with only one certainty - and for some even a consolation - that the founder of the Legion of Christ was dead. What was the cause, what happened or even when did it happen are questions that have given rise to more than one answer.

Marcial Maciel was one, triune, or even quadruple. He had, at least, five different identities. He was Raul Rivas, Norma Hilda's lover and father of little Norma (both live comfortably in Madrid) and Jaime Alberto Gonzalez Ramirez, the partner of a Mexican woman and father of three children in Switzerland. Sometimes he was Juan Rivas. And he was always Marcial Maciel, founder of one of the most powerful religious congregations, fundraiser of incalculable fortunes of doubtful origin, and pederast punished by the Pope in 2006 with retirement and prayer. They all died on January 30, 2008, two years ago. His personal secretaries were in charge of killing them all. How, if they didn't, were they going to update all of the documents of "Nuestro Padre" as they still called him? There were million dollar accounts, properties scattered throughout the world, trust funds in the Bahamas.... An empire calculated at some 20,500 million euros between what he had in himself, in all of his versions, and what he had put in the name of his Legion.

This is how his gift of being in many places at the same time can be explained, and how Marcial Maciel died, at the same time, in Houston (Texas); Washington; Cotija, his hometown in Mexico; and in Jacksonville (Florida). A few hours after he left this world and much before the media came to know the news, Wikipedia reported his death in Florida. Just minutes later, suspiciously, the on-line encyclopedia eliminated the place of Maciel's death in his biography. Two days later, the first obituaries appeared in the press. The Denver Post and the El Paso Times reported that the founder of the Legion died of natural causes in Houston (Texas).

Were they natural causes? Some Legionaries affirm that he had liver cancer. Others talk of open heart surgery in Houston in 2003, And there are those who dare to say that he suffered from dementia. "They had to invent different ailments, each with its own cause, for each one of his identities", explains Jose Bonilla, attorney for the Mexican children of the Legionary.

MACIEL'S "STATEROOM"

Whatever the cause, the real Marcial Maciel died in a chalet in Jacksonville (Florida), but his remains were taken to Cotija (Mexico), the city where he was born. It was a small house with some 10 or 11 Legionaries, organized ad hoc for the founder to rest in a year before he was to go into "heavenly glory", the exact term used on the official website of the ultra-catholic congregation. On January 30, 2008, the inhabitants of the house saw a sudden increase in their numbers, by at least 8 people. The following met together in Maciel's room: Alvaro Corcuera, the current General Director of the Legion of Christ; Luis Garza Medina, Vicar General; Evaristo Sada, General Secretary; Marcelino de Andres, who Maciel left as trustee of the fund for his children; Alfonso Corona, a superior; John Devlin, the founder's personal secretary, and the two Normas. And, as if this conclave were not surreal enough, there was even an exorcist present in his rooms to assure that the soul of the father was not taken by some demonic spirit.

Why? It seems that for the previous two years, the founder had lost the faith. He did not go to mass, did not pray... The Legionaries who took care of him came to know that he felt "repulsed by religion". And aversion to religious objects is an unequivocal sign of possession. In fact, they say that from as early as 1946, the first Legionaries witnessed rare phenomena of the mephistophelian type. The father had at that time "a room in the house of the Sacred Heart", un chalet con a statue of this devotion. A "strange room". First, it had no bed. "Maciel slept in a coffin". Second, it was strange due to the odd phenomena that occurred there. One night, his companions heard strange noise in Maciel's room and, upon entering, they were met with "balls of fire which circled the founder's room and then the fire vanished".

Others attest that, one day in the sacristy, fierce dogs appeared. Maciel ordered the young men that were with him to leave the room and, the same way that the dogs appeared, "the dogs disappeared from the room whose door was closed". Another time, he was in the chapel. Upon hearing a noise, the Legionaries "opened the door and found the pews thrown about and Maciel under one of them". Presence of the Evil One?

Maybe many of these stories are mere fables. A hint of magical realism in a life filled with fantastic episodes.

Whatever the case may be, someone must have seriously considered possession and had an exorcist called to his deathbed. Luis Garza himself had already had to deal with the founder's rebellion. According to Legion sources, Maciel became quite ill six months before he died. The Legionaries took him from Jacksonville to a hospital in Miami "which was very discrete". The disgraced founder arrived there accompanied by three priests and a consecrated woman (lay women with a vow of chastity).

"I WILL STAY WITH THESE WOMEN"

He was in the Miami hospital for three days. On the second day, the Normas appeared in his room and stayed by his bed, taking care of him, much to Maciel's pleasure and creating scandal for the Legionaries.

-Father, you have to come with us- they told him when he was to be discharged.

But, by then, Maciel was much closer to being Raul Rivas than the founder of a religious congregation and he indicated the two women, responding firmly: "I want to stay with them".

The Legionary priests, alarmed by Maciel's attitude, immediately called Rome. The then number three person of the institution, Luis Garza, knew right away that this was a grave problem. He consulted with the highest authority, Alvaro Corcuera, hopped on the first plane to Miami and when directly to the hospital.

His indignation could be read on his face. He faced the once all-powerful founder and threatened him: "I will give you two hours to come with us or I will call all the press and the whole world will find out who you really are". And Maciel let his arm be twisted.

His physical stature had been deteriorating a lot since 2005. "He did not walk well. He had the illnesses of old age. In the last months, he experienced various organ failures. I imagine that a medical report could say that he died of cardio respiratory failure. He was 87 years old: he was an old man", a Legion of Christ spokesman told the Cronica.

But the few elect who were with him at the end of his life had a hard time seeing him as an old man. For them, the last hours of the founder were a real calvary. Marcial Maciel refused to confess his sins. He did not want to and did not believe in God's pardon. Maybe he had spent too many years accostomed to fooling the divine representative in the confessional. How to suddenly declare him a pederast, he has relations with both men and women, he had at least six children who he never took care of like a real father, the abused drugs, he coveted and obtained great quantities of money, he plagiarized the spiritual guidelines of his congregation, he lied and damaged hundreds of people without it bothering him in the least way, and God knows what more. This, God does know. So, why confess his sins? "I said no!" he blurted out to Alvaro Corcuera, who was trying to anoint the dying man with holy oils.

OFFICIAL VERSION

In the end, Corcuera could have made Maciel do a profound examination of conscience. He explained more to his subjects. "Nuestro Padre" died in front of an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe and his last works were written on a paper: "et verbum caro factus est" (and the word was made flesh). Actually, he just gave him a piece of paper conveniently scribbled. The two versions are compatible. Maciel could have denied confession and been forced. He could have confessed what he considered appropriate and been absolved. He could have died in sin and written something to console the future generations of Legionaries. The truth is know only by those at Maciel's bedside as he died. Outside, the Legionaries of Jacksonville waited impatiently. Some entered and exited. "It was awful", said one of them. "I can't say more. Awful."

Would Fr. Alfredo Torres say this, one of the founders of the Legion, about Maciel's end? "You have done well seeking out my opinion. In your article, you can write 'I have tried to get Torres to comment, but he did not wish to'". At 83, Torres is the only one of the first Legionaries still alive. He runs the Hispanic-Mexican school which the Movement has in Madrid, and, in the midst of the crisis that the institution is passing through, he has become a reference point. "Many priests come to speak to me. From Rome, Mexico, Italy... All of them are not content with writing me and come to speak to me and I put them on the straight road". This is because, in his view, the congregation is at a crossroads. "There are two roads; that of the Church, and that of the street. I will always go by the road of the Church which is Christ. I will accept what the Pope says. Whatever that may be".

Concerning the appropriateness of going public with the fact that Maciel refused to confess and that there was an exorcist at his bedside, Fr. Torres advised: "Publish it. You have to make a living, and, it will also serve to make those involved reflect on their actions".

Reflect? At the moment, the directors of the Legion have faced the visitation with a certain opaqueness.

The superiors sent every center a list of answers to give to journalists, curiosity seekers, and the emisories of the Vatican. The guide offers, mostly, the answer "no" and "nothing" to many questions. "What did Fr. Maciel do? Were there financial irregularities? What do you say about the accusations from past years [concerning pedastry]? Did the superiors know of these things?... But, as well, the formulary offers an argumentative thread for conversations which result from these questions. It suggests that members of the Legion and the Regnum Christi (the lay branch) ask forgiveness for the damage caused by Maciel, that they show consternation that the scandal may have contaminated the Church, and that they manifest that those who may have suffered are in their prayers and that they be sure to try to act according to what Christ would do in their place.

FIRST ACKNOWLEDGMENT

In mid March, a decision is expected from Benedict XVI. Right now, there are between 100 and 150 Legionary priests awaiting this report to define the there path within or outside of the congregation. For the moment, it seems that the most plausible option for the Pope is to appoint a representative of confidence who will give a new direction to the movement. But it is possible that Benedict XVI could order a re-foundation, or directly opt that the Legion of Christ be dissolved.

Meanwhile, the legal counsel for the three children who Maciel left in Mexico, Jose Bonilla, continues with the fight for recognition for the three young people who are desendants of the founder. The first step, as the Cronica was able to uncover, is a letter that Alvaro Corcuera, General Director of the Legion, sent to the lawyer. In it, he recognizes the middle one of the three, Jose Gonzalez, as son of "Our Father". Two more are left. On top of the trust fund in the Bahamas, that Maciel devised him and which has been handed over, the descendants of the founder would have a right in a part of the property that the founder left dispersed all over the world. And, in less than 30 days, the children will file suit to reclaim that property. "The children speak every week with Bishop Ricardo Watty, the visitator in Mexico, who is very worried by the whole affair. More, perhaps, than Maciel ever was. In fact, the father founder of the Legionary of Christ never said goodbye to his three children. They were not even told of his death.

The day that Marcial Maciel died was a coming and going of cassocks which prayed for the soul of he who they called "father". But three of his children were missing. Those who Jaime Alberto Gonzalez Ramirez, his third identity, had with a Mexican woman. If he confessed his sextuple paternity and his multiple sins, it is known only to those who were in the room with the dying man. On that 30th of January in 2008, which many recall with a twist on their face, a incesant and pious whisper of "Pray for us" could be heard, it is said.

"Four Lives" Continues

2010-02-03T20:37:00.005-05:00

VERSIÓN OFICIAL
OFFICIAL VERSION

Al final, Corcuera habría logrado que Maciel hiciera un profundo examen de conciencia. Ha explicado más a los suyos. «Nôtre père» feneció frente a la imagen de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe y las últimas palabras que escribió en un papel fueron «et verbum caro factum est» (y el verbo se hizo carne). De hecho, presentó una hoja convenientemente garabateada. Las dos versiones son compatibles. Maciel pudo negarse a la confesión y ser obligado. Pudo confesar lo que considerase apropiado y resultar absuelto. Pudo morir en pecado y escribir algo para consuelo de las futuras generaciones legionarias. La verdad sólo la conocen los que ocuparon el camarote de Maciel antes de exhalar. Fuera, los legionarios de Jacksonville esperaban impacientes. Algunos entraban y salían. «Fue tremendo», refiere uno de ellos. «No te puedo decir más. Tremendo».

In the end, Corcuera could have made Maciel do a profound examination of conscience. He explained more to his subjects. "Nuestro Padre" died in front of an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe and his last works were written on a paper: "et verbum caro factus est" (and the word was made flesh). Actually, he just gave him a piece of paper conveniently scribbled. The two versions are compatible. Maciel could have denied confession and been forced. He could have confessed what he considered appropriate and been absolved. He could have died in sin and written something to console the future generations of Legionaries. The truth is know only by those at Maciel's bedside as he died. Outside, the Legionaries of Jacksonville waited impatiently. Some entered and exited. "It was awful", said one of them. "I can't say more. Awful."

¿Pondría este calificativo el padre Alfredo Torres, uno de los fundadores de la Legión, al final de Maciel? «Ha hecho usted muy bien en querer saber mi opinión. En su artículo puede poner: "He intentado que el padre Torres se pronunciase, pero él no ha querido"». A sus 83 años, Torres es el único de los primeros legionarios que sigue vivo. Dirige el colegio hispano-mexicano que el movimiento tiene en Madrid y, en medio de la crisis que vive la institución, se ha convertido en un referente de las esencias. «Vienen muchos sacerdotes a hablarme. De Roma, México, Italia... Todos los que no están contentos me escriben o acuden a hablar conmigo y yo los enderezo por el buen camino». Porque, a su juicio, en estos momentos la congregación se encuentra ante una encrucijada. «Hay dos caminos: el de la Iglesia y el de la calle. Yo siempre iré por el de la Iglesia, que es el de Cristo. Y acepto lo que diga el Papa. Sea lo que sea».

Would Fr. Alfredo Torres say this, one of the founders of the Legion, about Maciel's end? "You have done well seeking out my opinion. In your article, you can write 'I have tried to get Torres to comment, but he did not wish to'". At 83, Torres is the only one of the first Legionaries still alive. He runs the hispano-mexican school which the Movement has in Madrid, and, in the midst of the crisis that the institution is passing through, he has become a reference point. "Many priests come to speak to me. From Rome, Mexico, Italy... All of them are not content with writing me and come to speak to me and I put them on the straight road". This is because, in his view, the congregation is at a crossroads. "There are two roads; that of the Church, and that of the street. I will always go by the road of the Church which is Christ. I will accept what the Pope says. Whatever that may be".

Sobre la conveniencia de hacer público que Maciel se negó a la confesión y que en su lecho de muerte hubo un exorcista, el padre Torres aconseja: «Publíquelo. Usted tiene que ganarse la vida y, además, servirá para que reflexionen las personas implicadas».

Concerning the appropriateness of going public with the fact that Maciel refused to confess and that there was an exorcist at his bedside, Fr. Torres advised: "Publish it. You have to make a living, and, it will also serve to make those involved reflect on their actions".

¿Reflexionarán? De momento, los dirigentes de la Legión se enfrentan a la visitación con cierta opacidad en sus declaraciones.

Reflect? At the moment, the directors of the Legion have faced the visitation with a certain opaqueness.

Los superiores hicieron llegar a todos los centros un argumentario para responder a periodistas, curiosos y enviados del Vaticano. La guía ofrece la respuesta -en su mayoría, «no» y «nada»- a muchas preguntas. ¿Qué hizo el padre Maciel? ¿Hubo irregularidades financieras? ¿Qué dice de las acusaciones de años anteriores [sobre pederastia]? ¿Estaban los superiores al tanto de estos hechos?... Pero, además, el formulario ofrece un hilo argumental para las conversaciones que se salgan de estas cuestiones. Sugieren a los miembros de la Legión y del Regnum Christi (su rama laica) que pidan perdón por el daño causado por Maciel, que se muestren consternados por que el escándalo haya podido contaminar a la Iglesia, que manifiesten que los que están sufriendo están en sus oraciones y que aseguren que tratan de actuar según lo que Cristo habría hecho en su lugar.

The superiors sent every center a list of answers to give to journalists, curiosity seekers, and the emisories of the Vatican. The guide offers, mostly, the answer "no" and "nothing" to many questions. "What did Fr. Maciel do? Were there financial irregularities? What do you say about the accusations from past years [concerning pedastry]? Did the superiors know of these things?... But, as well, the formulary offers an argumentative thread for conversations which result from these questions. It suggests that members of the Legion and the Regnum Christi (the lay branch) ask forgiveness for the damage caused by Maciel, that they show consternation that the scandal may have contaminated the Church, and that they manifest that those who may have suffered are in their prayers and that they be sure to try to act according to what Christ would do in their place.

More on "Four Deaths" (The F*&#er was a Bastard)

2010-02-03T06:57:00.000-05:00

«ME QUEDO CON ELLAS»
"I WILL STAY WITH THESE WOMEN"

En el hospital de Miami estuvo tres días ingresado. Al segundo día, se presentaron las Normas en su habitación y permanecieron a su cabecera, cuidándolo, con el beneplácito de Maciel y para escándalo de los legionarios.

He was in the Miami hospital for three days. On the second day, the Normas appeared in his room and stayed by his bed, taking care of him, much to Maciel's pleasure and creating scandal for the Legionaries.

-Padre, tiene que venir con nosotros- le dijeron éstos cuando le dieron el alta.

-Father, you have to come with us- they told him when he was to be discharged.

Pero, para entonces, Maciel estaba más cerca de ser Raúl Rivas que el fundador de una congregación religiosa y, señalando a las dos mujeres, respondió tajante: «Quiero quedarme con ellas».

But, by then, Maciel was much closer to being Raul Rivas than the founder of a religious congregation and he indicated the two women, responding firmly: "I want to stay with them".

Los sacerdotes legionarios, alarmados por la actitud de Maciel, llamaron inmediatamente a Roma. El entonces número tres de la institución, Luis Garza, supo al instante que les rondaba un grave problema. Lo consultó con el máximo responsable, Álvaro Corcuera, subió al primer avión con destino a Miami y fue directo al hospital.

The Legionary priests, alarmed by Maciel's attitude, immediately called Rome. The then number three person of the institution, Luis Garza, knew right away that this was a grave problem. He consulted with the highest authority, Alvaro Corcuera, hopped on the first plane to Miami and when directly to the hospital.

La indignación podía leerse en su rostro. Allí se presentó ante el otrora todopoderoso fundador y le conminó: «Le doy dos horas para venirse con nosotros o llamo a todos los medios para que todo el mundo se entere de quién es usted de verdad». Y Maciel dio su brazo a torcer.

His indignation could be read on his face. He faced the once all-powerful founder and threatened him: "I will give you two hours to come with us or I will call all the press and the whole world will find out who you really are". And Maciel let his arm be twisted.

Su estado físico se había deteriorado mucho desde 2005. «No caminaba bien. Tenía afecciones propias de la edad avanzada. En los últimos meses le fueron fallando varios órganos vitales. Imagino que un informe médico diría que murió de parada cardiorrespiratoria. Tenía 87 años: era un ancianito», detalla a Crónica un portavoz de la Legión de Cristo.

His physical stature had been deteriorating a lot since 2005. "He did not walk well. He had the illnesses of old age. In the last months, he experienced various organ failures. I imagine that a medical report could say that he died of cardio respiratory failure. He was 87 years old: he was an old man", a Legion of Christ spokesman told the Cronica.

Pero a los pocos elegidos que lo acompañaron al final de su vida les costaba verlo como un ancianito. Para ellos, las últimas horas del fundador fueron un verdadero calvario. Marcial Maciel se negaba a confesar sus pecados. No deseaba o no creía en el perdón de Dios. Quizá llevaba demasiados años acostumbrado a engañar al representante divino en el confesionario. Cómo declarar de golpe que fue pederasta, mantuvo relaciones con mujeres y hombres, tuvo al menos seis hijos de los que nunca se encargó como un verdadero padre, abusó de las drogas, deseó y obtuvo grandes cantidades de dinero, plagió la guía espiritual de su congregación, mintió e hizo daño a centenares de personas sin alterarse en lo más mínimo, y Dios sabe qué más. Eso, Dios lo sabe. Entonces, ¿para qué confesarse? «¡Qué no!», espetaba a Álvaro Corcuera, empeñado en ungir al moribundo con los óleos sagrados.

But the few elect who were with him at the end of his life had a hard time seeing him as an old man. For them, the last hours of the founder were a real calvary. Marcial Maciel refused to confess his sins. He did not want to and did not believe in God's pardon. Maybe he had spent too many years accostomed to fooling the divine representative in the confessional. How to suddenly declare him a pederast, he has relations with both men and women, he had at least six children who he never took care of like a real father, the abused drugs, he coveted and obtained great quantities of money, he plagerized the spiritual guidelines of his congregation, he lied and damaged hundreds of people without it bothering him in the least way, and God knows what more. This, God does know. So, why confess his sins? "I said no!" he blurted out to Alvaro Corcuera, who was trying to anoint the dying man with holy oils.

Another installment of "Four Deaths"

2010-02-02T15:09:00.002-05:00

«EL CAMAROTE» DE MACIEL

MACIEL'S "STATEROOM"

Sea como fuere, el verdadero Marcial Maciel murió en un chalé en Jacksonville (Florida), aunque sus restos fueron trasladados a Cotija (México), su ciudad natal. Se trataba de una pequeña casa con unos 10 u 11 legionarios, organizada ex profeso para el descanso de su fundador un año antes de que éste partiera «a la gloria celestial», como rezaba su despedida en la web oficial de la congregación ultracatólica. El 30 de enero de 2008, la población de la casa se vio repentinamente incrementada en, al menos, ocho personas. En el cuarto de Maciel se juntaron Álvaro Corcuera, actual director general de los Legionarios; Luis Garza Medina, vicario general; Evaristo Sada, secretario general; Marcelino de Andrés, a quien Maciel dejó el encargo de entregar el fideicomiso a sus hijos; Alfonso Corona, uno de los superiores; John Devlin, secretario personal del fundador; y las dos Normas. Y, por si el cónclave no era suficientemente surrealista, en los aposentos de Marcial Maciel no faltó un exorcista para asegurarse de que el alma del padre no estaba tomada por algún espíritu demoníaco.

¿Por qué? Hacía más de dos años que el fundador parecía haber perdido la fe. No iba a misa, no rezaba... Los legionarios que lo cuidaban llegaron a comprobar que sentía «repulsa por la religión». Y la aversión a los objetos religiosos es un signo inequívoco de posesión. De hecho, cuentan que, ya en 1946, los primeros legionarios asistieron a «fenómenos raros» de tipo mefistofélicos. El padre tenía por aquel entonces «una habitación en la casa del Sagrado Corazón», un chalé con una estatua de esa advocación. Una «habitación rara». Primero, porque no tenía cama: «Maciel dormía en un ataúd». Y segundo, por los insólitos fenómenos que, dicen, allí sucedían. Una noche, sus compañeros oyeron ruidos extraños en la habitación de Maciel y, cuando entraron, se toparon con «unas bolas de fuego que circulaban por la habitación del fundador hasta que desaparecieron».

Why? It seems that for the previous two years, the founder had lost the faith. He did not go to mass, did not pray... The Legionaries who took care of him came to know that he felt "repulsed by religion". And adversion to religious objects is an unequivocal sign of possession. In fact, they say that from as early as 1946, the first Legionaries witnessed rare phenomena of the mephistophelian type. The father had at that time "a room in the house of the Sacred Heart", un chalet con a statue of this devotion. A "strange room". First, it had no bed. "Maciel slept in a coffin". Second, it was strange due to the odd phenomena that occurred there. One night, his companions heard strange noise in Maciel's room and, upon entering, they were met with "balls of fire which circled the founder's room and then the fire vanished".

Otros atestiguan que, estando un día en la sacristía, aparecieron unos perros rabiosos. Maciel ordenó a los jóvenes que lo acompañaban que dejaran la habitación y, del mismo modo que llegaron, «los perros desaparecieron de la estancia con la puerta cerrada». En otra ocasión, se encontraba en la capilla. Al oír un estruendo, los legionarios «abrieron la puerta y encontraron los bancos tirados y a Maciel bajo uno de ellos». ¿Presencias del Maligno?

Quizá muchas de estas anécdotas no dejen de ser fábulas. Un tinte de realismo mágico en una vida cargada de episodios rocambolescos.

Maybe many of these stories are mere fables. A hint of magical realism in a life filled with fantastic episodes.

Sin embargo, alguien debió de considerar seriamente la posesión e hizo llamar al exorcista a su lecho de muerte. El propio Luis Garza llevaba algún tiempo lidiando con la rebeldía del fundador. Según fuentes de la Legión, Maciel se puso muy enfermo seis meses antes de morir. Y los legionarios lo trasladaron desde Jacksonville a un hospital de Miami «de toda confianza». Hasta allí llegó el ya entonces «amonestado» fundador acompañado por tres sacerdotes y una consagrada (laicas con voto de castidad).

to be continued...

More on "Four Deaths"

2010-02-02T01:17:00.002-05:00

Continued from below

Poco más de una docena de personas fueron las elegidas para acompañarlo en sus últimos momentos y, de aquella jornada del 30 de enero de 2008, sólo les queda la certeza -y en algunos casos hasta el consuelo- de que el fundador de los Legionarios de Cristo ha muerto. Cuál fue la causa, cómo sucedió o incluso dónde ocurrió son preguntas que admiten más de una respuesta.

More than a dozen people were chosen to accompany him in his last moments, and, from that day on January 30, 2008, they were left with only one certainty - and for some even a consolation - that the founder of the Legion of Christ was dead. What was the cause, what happened or even when did it happen are questions that have given rise to more than one answer.

Marcial Maciel era uno, trino y hasta quíntuple. Tenía, al menos, cinco identidades diferentes. Era Raúl Rivas, amante de Norma Hilda y padre de Normita (ambas en viven holgadamente en Madrid), y Jaime Alberto González Ramírez, pareja de una mujer mexicana y padre de tres hijos en Cuernavaca. Pero también era el progenitor de un chico en Inglaterra y el de una joven en Suiza. A veces era Juan Rivas. Y siempre era Marcial Maciel, fundador de una de las congregaciones religiosas con más poder, conseguidor de incalculables fondos monetarios de dudosa procedencia y pederasta castigado en 2006 por el Papa a la oración y el retiro. Todos ellos murieron el 30 de enero de 2008, hace ahora dos años. Sus secretarios personales se encargaron de matarlos. ¿Cómo, si no, iban a poder poner al día todos los documentos de «nôtre père», como aún lo llaman? Había cuentas millonarias, propiedades repartidas por medio mundo, fideicomisos en Bahamas... Un imperio calculado en unos 20.500 millones de euros entre lo que conservó para sí, en todas sus versiones, y lo que puso a nombre de su Legión.

Marcial Maciel was one, triune, or even quadruple. He had, at least, five different identities. He was Raul Rivas, Norma Hilda's lover and father of little Norma (both live comfortably in Madrid) and Jaime Alberto Gonzalez Ramirez, the partner of a Mexican woman and father of three children in Switzerland. Sometimes he was Juan Rivas. And he was always Marcial Maciel, founder of one of the most powerful religious congregations, fundraiser of incalculable fortunes of doubtful origin, and pederast punished by the Pope in 2006 with retirement and prayer. They all died on January 30, 2008, two years ago. His personal secretaries were incharge of killing them all. How, if they didn't, were they going to update all of the documents of "Nuestro Padre" as they still called him? There were million dollar accounts, properties scattered throughout the world, trust funds in the Bahamas.... An empire calculated at some 20,500 million euros between what he had in himself, in all of his versions, and what he had put in the name of his Legion.

Así se explica su don de la ubicuidad y que Marcial Maciel falleciese a la vez -y que se sepa- en Houston (Texas), Washington; Cotija, su pueblo natal en México, y en Jacksonville (Florida). A las pocas horas de dejar este mundo y mucho antes de que los medios de comunicación conocieran la noticia, Wikipedia recogía su muerte en Florida. Aunque minutos más tarde, sospechosamente, la enciclopedia en la Red eliminó el lugar de la muerte de Maciel de su biografía. Dos días después, aparecieron los primeros obituarios en la prensa. The Denver Post y El Paso Times informaron del deceso del fundador de la Legión por causas naturales en Houston (Texas).

This is how his gift of being in many places at the same time can be explained, and how Marcial Maciel died, at the same time, in Houston (Texas); Washington; Cotija, his hometown in Mexico; and in Jacksonville (Florida). A few hours after he left this world and much before the media came to know the news, Wikipedia reported his death in Florida. Just minutes later, suspiciously, the on-line encyclopedia eliminated the place of Maciel's death in his biography. Two days later, the first obituaries appeared in the press. The Denver Post and the El Paso Times reported that the founder of the Legion died of natural causes in Houston (Texas).

¿Fue por causas naturales? Algunos legionarios aseguran que padecía cáncer de hígado. Otros informan de una operación en 2003 a corazón abierto en Houston. Y hay quienes se aventuran a decir que padecía demencia senil. «Había que emitir diferentes partes de defunción, cada uno con su motivo, para cada una de sus identidades», explica José Bonilla, abogado de los hijos mexicanos del legionario.

Were they natural causes? Some Legionaries affirm that he had liver cancer. Others talk of open heart surgery in Houston in 2003, And there are those who dare to say that he suffered from dementia. "They had to invent different ailments, each with its own cause, for each one of his identities", explains Jose Bonilla, attorney for the Mexican children of the Legionary.

Trust me, you are going to want to read this.

2010-02-01T17:31:00.006-05:00

A new article appeared last week (January 31, 2010) in the Spanish newspaper, El Mundo. It is entitled "The Legionary who died four times and did not want to go to confession". I am going to try to translate it little by little. Be patient, please. It is long and a difficult translation, but I will do my best and post it a bit at a time before joining it together.

And it is gut wrenching for me that I ever believed any the bull-shit of the Legion of Christ.

In the mean time, you can read the original in Spanish here.

Here goes:

ANIVERSARIO / DOS AÑOS SIN MARCIAL MACIEL
ANNIVERSARY / TWO YEARS WITHOUT MARCIAL MACIEL

El legionario que murió cuatro veces y no quiso confesarse Hasta ahora se sabía, gracias a «Crónica», que tuvo al menos seis hijos y varias identidades. En el segundo aniversario del fallecimiento del fundador de los Legionarios de Cristo revelamos sus últimas horas, con la presencia de un exorcista

The Legionary who died four times and did not want to go to confession. Up until now, thanks to the "Cronica", it is known that he had at least six children and various identities. On the second anniversary of the death of the founder of the Legion of Christ, we reveal his last hours, in the presence of an exorcist.

IDOIA SOTA | JOSÉ M. VIDAL

El día que Marcial Maciel murió, se oyó, como en Pedro Páramo, un murmullo insistente como el que hace el viento al azotar las ramas de un árbol en la noche. Al afinar el oído, al igual que en la obra de Juan Rulfo, aquel bisbiseo apretado como un enjambre se definió en palabras casi vacías de ruido y llenas de piedad: «Ruega a Dios por nosotros».

The day that Marcial Maciel died, like in Pedro Paramo, a insistent whisper was heard as that which the wind makes when it whips the branches of a tree in the night. When we tune our hearing, just like in the above mentioned novel by Juan Rulfo, this murmur, pressed like a swarm of insects, comes together as words almost empty of sound, and full of piety: "Pray for us".

El día que Marcial Maciel murió (ayer se cumplieron dos años), la lujosa casa legionaria de Jacksonville (Florida) se convirtió en un ir y venir de hombres ensotanados. Todavía hoy conservan un rictus extraño en su rostro. Una mueca en la que se adivina que el final de Marcial Maciel hace justicia a una existencia vivida con exceso y fuera de toda ley, civil o divina. Algo horrible ocurrió en la habitación donde el fundador de los Legionarios de Cristo expiró.

The day that Marciel Maciel died (yesterday it made two years), the luxurious Legionary house in Jacksonville (Florida) was converted into a constant flow of cassocked men. Even to this day, they have a strange look on their faces. A sign in which we can guess that the Marcial Maciel's end does justice to an excess laden existence, lived totally on the margin of any civil or divine law. Something horrible happened in the room where the founder of the Legionaries of Christ died.

No Discussions in the Legion of Christ

2010-01-28T20:40:00.002-05:00

Once again, more control and a gag order in place. Their own fault. More horrible management and mind control. No surprises here.

Fr. Corcuera urges charity as Legionaries discuss future

Mexico City, Mexico, Jan 28, 2010 / 10:52 am (CNA).- In a recent letter sent to members of the Legion of Christ, Director General Father Alvaro Corcuera, L.C., urged members to be charitable towards each other during their internal discussions regarding the future of the congregation.

In response to a growing exchange of emails between Legionaries about two main issues: the role their founder should play in the future of the congregation, and also the measures that should be put in place to prevent similar situations from happening, Fr. Corcuera called on members to “console each other and accompany each other mutually,” as Simon of Cyrene did for Christ.

Fr. Marcial Maciel founded the Legion of Christ in 1941. Though he died in 2008, revelations of his inappropriate behavior as a priest and leader surfaced early in 2009.

Responding to criticism by some in the Legion who accused their current leaders of being accomplices in the misconduct of their founder, Fr. Corcuera asked members to help one another “live this gift of peace, mutually encouraging one another, understanding one another, truly loving each other, mutually forgiving one another, without recriminating or judging each other, much less humiliating each other.”

A veteran Legionary who spoke with CNA to provide the context of the letter, explained that Fr. Corcuera has asked that the email exchanges, which express “charitably but energetically” conflicting positions regarding the future of the congregation, come to an end.

“These are differences that more or less run along cultural and linguistic lines,” he said, with some English-speaking Legionaries calling for an open discussion about the errors of Fr. Maciel and a change to the “internal culture” of the order. On the other side, many from Spanish-speaking countries think the sins of the founder should be left in the past and that the evils should be corrected “by the faithfulness of the members to the foundational spirit.”

The email exchanges, which have been ongoing for a month, motivated Fr. Corcuera to send a second letter on January 24, calling for an end to the email debates.

“I believe the exchange of opinions through emails between numerous groups of priests, as has taken place recently, is a display of trust and the love we have for each other. But I think that it will never end if we continue like this and we may even cause misunderstandings and opposing positions,” Fr. Corcuera wrote.

“We must all continue working, and seek the best path to allow everyone, especially priests, to calmly contribute with their gifts and reflections to responding to what God is calling us to at this time, especially through the direction which we expect to receive from the Holy See. For now we must let it mature in the hearts of each one of us, as a family, helping each other to purify and build up this work to which God has called us,” the letter stated.

At the beginning of the year, renowned American Legionary, Fr. Richard Gill, announced he was leaving the Legionaries of Christ over irreconcilable differences with his superiors about the direction the congregation is taking following the revelations of Father Maciel’s double life.

Currently, five bishops are conducting an Apostolic Visitation of the Legion and are expected to conclude in March 2010.

Strong words for the Regnum Christi

2010-01-21T11:24:00.002-05:00

Stolen from a comment on Life-After-RC

To all in Atlanta,
I trust no one here at all.I put my THICKEST WALL up when I enter a Catholic Church.Anyone that approaches me in Church I assume they are INFECTED and I put on my surgical MASK.
I was BEFRIENDED at the TABERNACLE and at ADORATION so it has been like a SPIRITUAL RAPE.

I have learned SO MUCH and am in healing as I post but NEVER AGAIN WILL I TRUST ANYONE.
We were used and SUCKED dry of all we had and DISCARDED when we questioned some VERY IMMORAL dealings.So that was when we were treated like DISSENTERS to L/C practices.It is all ROTTEN/EVIL AND A CULT

Posted by: IN REMISSION IN ATLANTA | January 20, 2010 at 03:22 PM

No Freedom

2010-01-16T12:41:00.005-05:00

Individual Legionaires may have given up this freedom, but you cannot give up the duty to be informed when making decisions about your vocation that the Church requires you to make knowingly and freely.

LOS LEGIONARIOS SE QUEJAN DEL CONTROL EPISTOLAR
From
AAAEGRLC: ASOCIACION DE AYUDA A LOS AFECTADOS POR LAS ENSEÑANZAS DEL GRUPO RELIGIOSO LEGIONARIOS DE CRISTO

Recientemente un hermano o padre recién salido de la Congregación, se ha puesto en contacto con esta Asociación.

Se ha quejado del control que tienen los superiores sobre las comunicaciones electrónicas, es decir, los e-mail. Al parecer, los superiores tienen claves de acceso al correo de sus súbditos, pero no solo eso, todos los correos que reciben del exterior (incluidos los familiares) son revisados por los superiores, incluso antes mismo de que el hermano los reciba. De modo que si el superior lo juzga oportuno, el correo es borrado del sistema, y nunca llega al destinatario.

Por medio de este control, los superiores evitan que los religiosos reciban información completa o alternativa, sobre lo que está pasando en la Legión, al tiempo que coaccionan a sus súbditos, para que no manifiesten “preocupaciones” o “disensiones” a sus familiares, y al tiempo que siguen fomentando aquello de “no preocupar a los familiares con problemas que sólo incumben a su relación con Dios y con la Legión”.

En esta misma página, se ha denunciado ya al art 383 de las Constituciones que dice literalmente: “El Rector o Superior del Centro, u otro religioso designado por él, revise todas las cartas y entregue sólo las que juzgue oportuno”.

Taking Issue with Thomas Peters

2010-01-13T15:19:00.003-05:00

Minor stuff, or major difference?

Thomas Peters stated the following on his blog concerning Maciel when reporting Fr. Richard Gill's departure from the Legion of Christ:

What is clear is that [Maciel] was a gravely sinful man, and what matters at this point, when it comes to the future of the movement he founded, is who knew about his sins and colluded with him to hide them, especially if these persons have any ongoing involvement in the Legion.

Although an important question in the grand scheme of things, this blogger thinks that the key question when it comes to the future of the movement he (Maciel) founded is more along the lines of what Fr. Gill says in his letter:

I have believed that a rigorously honest approach to this terrible series of events was the only way to proceed. Furthermore, I felt that if done so, and counting on the help of the Holy See, it could even lead to true healing and renewal for the Legion and the Movement, even in spite of the truly serious questions it raises about the charism of the congregation.

The first question to be answered, and the one that will determine what future the Legion of Christ may or may not have, is "What or who was this man from the very first moment of the foundation of the Legion, and what did he really found?"

Faith does not answer this question. Neither does backward looking logic.

And it is going to take a lot of balls to face the answer on the part of the Legion and the Church, as well as every Catholic out there.

Gill's Words, History's Judgement

2010-01-13T09:25:00.003-05:00

From Fr. Richard Gill's letter below:

But anything the Holy See can do depends also on the willingness of the Legion to examine itself and work on its own problems.

History has shown that this is one of the many reasons for the downfall of the Legion: they are simply not capable of self examination (which is so much demanded of individual members) as an organization. They can never admit that they were wrong. That would violate the private vow, lived and enforced as much today as it was before being abolished by the Pope. (But they will tell you that they don't profess it any more. Big deal. They still enforce it.)

Fr. Richard Gill leaves the Legion of Christ

2010-01-12T13:20:00.000-05:00

Dear Regnum Christi Friends,

With my greetings for a very happy New Year for 2010 and assurance of my continued prayers and Masses for you and your families, I have some news to pass on to you.
I’m writing to inform you that after 29 years, I will be leaving the Legionaries of Christ and will apply to become a priest of the Archdiocese of New York.

I leave with a heavy heart and as you can imagine, it is a very sad experience for me. But after long conversations and correspondence with superiors, and after having consulted with prudent and widely respected priests, I believe in my conscience it is the right thing to do.

The news of the various scandals regarding Fr. Maciel was truly shocking and horrendous for us and the whole the Church. In dealing with them I have tried my best to be honest and candid whenever I have spoken to you all about them and never knowingly misled anyone. I have believed that a rigorously honest approach to this terrible series of events was the only way to proceed. Furthermore, I felt that if done so, and counting on the help of the Holy See, it could even lead to true healing and renewal for the Legion and the Movement, even in spite of the truly serious questions it raises about the charism of the congregation.

I’m leaving more because the manner in which the Legion has handled the revelations since the Vatican took action against Fr. Maciel in 2006 has left me often frustrated and totally distracted. I’ve tried my best to communicate with the superiors over this past year, and they have been gracious and generous taking the time to listen. I believe I have had the opportunity to get my point of view across to them.

I have participated extensively in the Apostolic Visitation and gave my best input to Abp. Chaput on multiple occasions. He has been gracious, fair and objective. I feel I have done all I can in that regard.

My conclusion is that the reforms needed in the Legion (which the scandals have made clear) simply won’t happen in the foreseeable future with the current leadership’s approach to the matter.

I hope and pray the Apostolic Visitation somehow does bring about the needed changes, and remain ready to do whatever I can to help. But anything the Holy See can do depends also on the willingness of the Legion to examine itself and work on its own problems. Even in the most optimistic of scenarios, reform will take a great deal of time and will continue to be a very absorbing and frustrating experience. I don’t want to live my priesthood in frustration, but serve the Church as best I can in another capacity.

Nothing I have said should be understood to take away in the least the gratitude I feel for all the good I have received from the Legion over these many years. There are so many things about the Legion and the Movement that are extraordinarily unique and wonderful. It has been a privilege to serve among so many talented and holy brothers and priests, who have treated me with such kindness and charity. There are so many treasured memories and many fruitful apostolic works I have had the privilege to be associated with, as well as generous and loving lay people who have always edified me with their example of faith and love. Those are true blessings from God for which I will always be grateful.

I hope to keep in touch and I encourage you all to continue in your own vocation, attentive to the Holy Spirit and growing every day in love for the Lord and his will in your life. I will have you and your families very close in my prayers and Masses.

Please let me know if there is ever anything I can do for you.

Sincerely in Christ,
Fr. Richard Gill

Opinions (stay on topic, it is just a comparison)

2010-01-09T08:02:00.003-05:00

[Arzobispo de la Ciudad de Mexico] Rivera llegó al extremo de emitir un comunicado donde habla a nombre de toda la Iglesia católica –que es diferente a la jerarquía conservadora dominante-- para sentenciar que “la Iglesia considera una aberración equiparar las uniones entre personas del mismo sexo con el matrimonio, pues éstas son incapaces de alcanzar los fines que dieron origen a esta imprescindible institución”.

Rivera advierte que “las uniones entre individuos del mismo sexo no tienen futuro, toda vez que son pocas las personas que desean unirse bajo este esquema con su pareja, lo cual puede observarse en los países que ya cuentan con esta ley”.

Bajo el amparo de citas de San Pablo (Epístolas a los Romanos y Corintios), el arzobispo primado advierte que “los actos homosexuales son intrínsecamente desordenados”.

¿Por qué no opinó lo mismo cuando muchas de sus víctimas denunciaron los abusos del fundador de los Legionarios de Cristo, Marcial Maciel? ¿Acaso porque Maciel nunca asumió su opción homosexual y prefirió ejercerla en el clóset, abusando de su autoridad en contra de menores indefensos?

Processo, 22 deciembre, 2009

Religion Story of the Decade?

2010-01-08T04:01:00.000-05:00

Gary Stern offers suggestions on the Relgion Story of the Decade, and suggests the abuse scandal. While commenting on fading interest while the situation seems to remain unchanged, Stern offers an example:

*****

Even [Hartford's Trinity College Religion professor Mark] Silk doesn’t mention the surest proof that the scandal has faded from public consciousness: the lack of media coverage given the demise of the Legionaries of Christ.

In a small nutshell: Pope John Paul II was enamored with the Legionaries, a fast-growing, very traditional Catholic order of priests that was founded in 1941 in Mexico by Marcial Maciel. The pope ignored allegations by about a dozen former seminarians that Maciel had sexually abused them.

In 2006, Pope Benedict XVI publicaly retired Maciel from ministry, without saying why. But it was obvious.

This past February, the Legion itself disclosed that Maciel had fathered children and lived a “double life.” The Vatican is now investigating the order.

The whole story is set out in journalist Jason Berry’s video “Vows of Silence.”

One can argue that the tale of Maciel and the Legionaries is a microcosm of the larger sex-abuse scandal. Allegations of abuse were made and the church—in this case, the POPE—either looked the other way or ignored the evidence. What did he know? When did he know it?

I keep wondering whether the Maciel case will affect John Paul’s otherwise glowing reputation as the late pontiff zooms toward sainthood. It sure seems to be a dark stain on his pontificate. But hardly anyone knows about it.

The religion story of the decade still inspires curiosity, but no more.

Make or Break

2010-01-07T05:27:00.000-05:00

As we wait and speculate,

Le Monde says:

"Mais l'emprise de Maciel a été telle, confie une source proche du Vatican, qu'il sera très difficile d'aider ces gens à s'en libérer sans les casser."

Mas Humor: More Humor. Gotta laugh at such a disaster.

2010-01-06T11:16:00.001-05:00