Recently in Legion of Christ/ Regnum Christi Category

I don't normally respond to anonymous commentators who leave false email addresses while engaging in whisper campaigns. However, Anonyman (aka "Nothanks@youdonotcare.atall") provides me with an opportunity to re-visit a piece Jacqui Rapp and I co-authored after the marriage breakdown of several celebrity Catholic couples. Anonyman writes, in response to my post asking whether LC/RC can repent, the following:

The adulterous "professional" never will have to repent. He can divorce his wife with the blessing of the Church, knock up his little baby girl and stay with her for the good of the children and even apply for nullity, which some canonist quack like Vere or his ilk can't wait to grant. [cut]

I know this to be true. I am living it. Pete knows this to be true as well, but I am sure has some lame excuse. All canonists do.

This story is stupid.

I'm on record several places as to why the surge of annulments among Catholics who did not practice Church teaching in Humanae Vitae: it's the consequences of theCulture of Death. For instance, see this Catholic Light post from 2003.

But what about the breakdown (or major strain) in marriages among Catholics who accept Church teaching in Humanae Vitae? What about the breakdown in marriages between couples who practice NFP and are active in pro-life and Catholic apostolate (Which I imagine describes most of you reading this blog)?

Some whisperers will find it lame, but here's my excuse: It's taken from my experiences watching the breakdown of such marriages... As married laypeople, some people lose sight of the fact God called them to the married state, and not the consecrated or clerical state.

It's that simple. It's also tempting to overlook when one believes oneself engaged in God's work. Yet it's the reason I've dropped off the Catholic circuit and slowed down my writing apostolate since God blessed us with child number four last year. It's the reason I will blog two or three times a day for a month, then stop for months at a time. As much as I love you, dear readers, my first duty is toward my wife and children.

A couple years ago, Jacqui Rapp - who often co-authors with me on issues concerning marriage, family life, and annulments - and I, noting the breakdown of marriages involving several people in high-profile Catholic and/or pro-life apostolates, wrote the following article: Family Before Apostolate: Pro-Life Activism Begins at Home.

The article was written (originally for Catholics United for the Faith) as a conversation between Jacqui and me. One of Jacqui's more important points is the following:

As our Lord teaches in the Gospels, "The harvest is bountiful but the workers are few." It is not unusual for the few to find themselves overworked. Given the persecution of marriage and family within modern society, we can become so committed to combating the culture of death that we lose sight of our own marriages and families. This is one of the reasons the Roman Church has traditionally required her clergy to remain celibate.

Now, this is not to say that the married state is incompatible with ministry or apostolate. Personally, having a family has helped me become more compassionate, while at the same time remaining faithful to the Church's teaching in my work as a lay canonist. Being married and having children often opens us to graces and personal discoveries not previously experienced. As lay judges, both Pete and I understand certain nuances of marriage and family life that can easily be overlooked by our peers in the world of canon law who are celibate priests..

To which I responded:

In contrast, as married laymen we cannot devote the same time and effort to spreading the Gospel as that devoted by our ordained colleagues. Spouses have needs, as do children. Each of us undertakes these responsibilities toward our respective spouses and future children when we get married. The legitimate needs of spouse and children must come before the needs of our apostolic work.

Coincidentally, given that it just arrived back from the printer yesterday and is being shipped out to bookstores this week, Jacqui and I expanded this essay into the last chapter of our new book on marriage and annulments, which you can order from publisher Saint Anthony Messenger Press here.

So yes, changing diapers and plunging a toilet after my three-year-old flushed his rubber dolphin is rather lame when compared to the cloak-and-dagger excitement of taking on a codename and engaging in whisper campaigns for the Kingdom of God. But as lame as it is, it's my vocation as one called to the married state.

One of Genevieve's readers has translated an early report concerning the apostolic visitation to the Legion of Christ. You can read it here. If this report is accurate, then I find it significant for two reasons:

1 - The reason Maciel's earlier victims have not received an apology is because LC/RC leadership reportedly don't want to admit the probability of Maciel's guilt.

2 - The Holy Father is reportedly concerned that LC/RC are still following the "vow of charity" in spirit, even though His Holiness has suppressed it in law.

If both these allegations (reportedly alleged by LC rank-in-file troubled by their superiors' response to crisis) are true, then we're looking at a deeper question. Namely, are LC/RC leadership capable of repentance?

I cannot claim credit for the question. It comes from a friend of mine who asked me to preserve his anonymity, citing his ecclesiastical status as a local ordinary. He has been following the LC/RC meltdown with great interest because of the effect he feels the movement has had on the people of his diocese.

The question arose as he was telling me about about a pastoral situation he found himself in as a young priest. A successful professional wanted to divorce his wife of several years, abandon their children, and run off with his much younger assistant. My friend asked the professional to think it over, reminding him of his marriage vows and explaining the after-effect this would likely have on the couple's children. "Can you face God on Judgment Day knowing full well that you have torn your family apart for selfish reasons?" my friend asked.

However, the professional was obstinate. The spark had died in his marriage, he protested, and he was madly in love with his young assistant. "Besides," the man said, "I'm basically a good person. I volunteer at the food bank and donate my time and money to many local charities. God sees the good things that I do in this community. And speaking of God, you priests are always preaching God's forgiveness. Are you telling me now that it's a lie? That God cannot forgive me if I follow my heart, despite all the good things I do?"

My friend was stumped. How to explain to a man looking for any excuse to bolt his marriage that God could forgive him, without appearing to retreat on the importance of remaining faithful to one's marriage vows and seeking marital counseling. My friend sought advice from a more senior pastor who was experienced with these types of pastoral intervention.

The more senior pastor said: "Tell him that God can forgive him if he follows through with his plan. Then add: 'But in making this decision with full knowledge of the consequences it will bear on your family, will you be capable of repenting?'"

That is the question. (Although he could have added the following as well: "Or will you spend your life denying the consequences of your intended actions, refusing to admit you were at fault? Digging in to salve your conscience as you try to justify yourself to your children when they turn against you?")

This is the situation in which members of the LC/RC now find themselves. The good works to which they appeal does not justify the grave evil they appear to gloss over by their actions. Maciel's earlier victims are still waiting for an official apology, in public and in private. And can anyone show any attempt on the part of LC/RC officials to restore the good name of Maciel's victims?

Like many other orthodox Catholics, I was prepared to cut the Legion some slack when news first broke last January. This was a great shock to those who had previously believed Maciel to be a living saint. People needed time to absorb the news and understand its implications. However, over nine months have passed since this broke. Moreover, it now seems probable that LC/RC leadership knew about this beforehand. That's plenty of time to apologize in accordance with one's Catholic obligations, and obligation in justice as taught in every orthodox Catholic children's catechism.

And thus my question is as follows to those who, with knowledge of Maciel's probable guilt and the injustice done to his victims, continue to promote and defend the movement, citing its reported good works, while refusing to acknowledge the gravity of the injustice to Maciel's victims and the movement's responsibility to correct the situation: "If you continue along this road, will you be capable of repenting?"

And as an added question to fellow parents, should your children clue in and turn away from the movement before you do, will you be able to keep them from turning against the Church as well? Or will you be too busy engaging in apostolate, promoting your "good works" despite the naysayers?

Thanks for everyone's prayers. They're much appreciated!

I've managed to sneak away and find a location where I can access the Internet unrestricted a couple times a week. Usually my wife and I message back and forth, but tonight I wish to respond to Michelle's recent comment to this old thread. The reason being, she brings up a couple of points I have heard from other apologists of LC/RC, including a few high-profile ones.

Michelle writes:

[God] led me to RC. I joined because I fell in love with FAMILIA training.

Here's the thing. FAMILIA wasn't invented by the RC. Rather, it was taken over by the RC - the programme's founders given the boot - as reported here.

So what if the founder Maciel fell from grace? He won't be the first or last.

If it was just a matter of the founder falling from grace, this controversy would be over by now. As we have seen over the past nine months, there's some deeper issues troubling orthodox Catholics:

1 - It's become more-and-more clear that the LC/RC is an embodiement of the mindset that allowed Maciel to live his "double life". Thus the movement's charism and methodology are suspect.

2 - The lack of adequate apology or recognition of Maciel's earlier victims by the movement's leadership is very troubling, especially since the victims were for years made out to be liars by members of the movement. So orthodox Catholics recognize that the movement still owes a dept of justice to Maciel's victims.

Until these two issues are resolved, orthodox Catholics will continue to hold the entire movement as suspect. So will the world. Hence any good the LC/RC tries to accomplish will be overshadowed by the great evil perpetuated by Maciel and those who covered up for him and defended him.

Thus to answer LC/RC apologists asking: "Why can't we just focus on the movement's good works?" Good works alone won't cut it. We're Catholic, not Pelagians. As long as grave evils remain unaccounted for, the good is poisoned.

[Final update before I leave: Thank-you for your prayers and well-wishes. If you will allow me to impose upon you one last time, let us resolve to pray a Hail Mary and the traditional prayer to St. Michael whenever we hear 'charity' about why someone has left a movement, or that Fr. Berg never truly had a vocation, etc. It requires only a minute of your time and it yields innumerable graces - for the victims, for the Church, for ourselves, and for friends and family in the movement.]

This will be my last blog entry until December.

A small controversy erupted in the combox yesterday after I hastily edited a couple of comments from readers, removing words that I felt had come close to the line when describing certain clergy. I can understand why this happens. We are upset with a situation in which children were potentially endangered, victims wrongfully maligned, and embarrassment brought upon Catholics in general. We should be upset. Thus I apologize to Juana and other readers for not offering an immediate explanation, and I thank Richard Chonak for taking control of the situation.

I made the edits for reasons I had intended to explain at the time in a subsequent comment. However, a minor family emergency (howling baby with a cold threatening to wake older siblings with a cold - those of you who are parents know the drill) drew me away from the computer. I forgot what I had been doing, having come down with the cold myself, and I simply resumed packing.

And there's lots to pack.

My employer has offered me, on short notice, a two-month assignment starting next week. This is on top of a weekend assignment. Internet access will be limited and irregular during this time, as I discovered during month-long assignments for May and July. (This is why I was silent on Fr. Berg's departure from the Legion, and his subsequent interview with Chiesa, until weeks after the fact.) Meaning I will miss the results of the preliminary reports from apostolic visitators.

So this is my last posting until December.

Many of us are angry and hurt with the situation. I'm a parent, I think of my own children every time a new allegation surfaces. I met some of the victims personally in 2004 and found them credible. When I returned from this meeting, I was subjected to what I felt were high-pressure phone calls (from individuals hinting certain impressions, without stating it directly, of Giselle and her marriage). So yes, I've been there. In fact I was there when John Paul II was still pope.

I also followed closely the lawsuit against ReGAIN, where the Legion forced the discussion board shut down, imposed a gag order (I am told), and reportedly attempted to subpoena the identities of the board's contributors. I need not remind you of how litigious the LC/RC has been in the past.

Of course, now that the truth is out about Maciel (with more likely to come), the movement can neither sue nor silence every critic. I suppose they can try if they really wanted to. However, this would likely consume a tremendous amount of resources at a time when the economy has forced the average person to tighten one's belt. There's also potential negative publicity which the Legion can hardly afford.

Nevertheless, this is not permission to cross certain boundaries without providing evidence. Yes, it's okay to call Maciel a pederast. On the balance of probabilities he probably was. We have testimony after testimony from his alleged victims, and the Holy See isn't in the habit of retiring older priests to a life of prayer and penance - especially not founders of large movements - without strong evidence of serious wrongdoing.

We have a moral duty as Catholics to hold the Legion accountable and seek justice for Maciel's victims. This needs to be done in charity. Not charity as Marcial Maciel defined it, but charity as Christ and the Church define it. As we hold the Legion accountable, we must remember that our goal is truth and justice - not vengeance.

If the LC/RC collapses completely or goes into schism, let it be because of the consequences of their own actions. Our actions, as Catholics, must remain consistent with the teachings of Christ. (Even if we fall short on occasion - myself included.) We must continue to preach repentance and urge our LC/RC brethren to do better. We must continue to seek justice for Maciel's victims.

So here are our goals in what I believe to be their order of priority:

1 - Truth

2 - Justice for Maciel's victims, including a public apology and restitution (insofar as restitution is possible).

3 - The welfare of our children and our families.

4 - Assistance for friends and family who have been adversely affected by the founder or the movement.

Continue to speak out for victims. Pray regularly for all Catholics affected by this scandal. God will see us through these rough times

God bless you all!. Please keep my family and me in prayer..

UPDATE: Eric Sammons has blogged an entry from a reader explaining how the vocation to the priesthood and the vocation to the Legionaries are intertwined in the minds of many, which is why one often sees collateral damage to one's faith after leaving. It's worth reading, along with Eric's subsequent commentary (click here).

Initial post

I was suspicious when the pseudonymous poster "Edmund Ritter" showed up on the ExLC blog a few months ago, claiming to be a Legion priest in Rome studying psychology. (Although it wasn't clear from what I read whether he was claiming to do so privately, or within an academic context). However, ExLC vouched publicly for Fr. Ritter's authenticity. He also reassured me privately that the two know each other well. (In non-lawyer speak, I'm passing the buck to ExLC).

That being said, I was heartened by Fr. Ritter's following response on the ExLC blog to my recent Catholic Light posting (which ExLC reposted) explaining why we should not write-off a reconstitution of the Legion:

Your position seems to be identical to my own. If the Pope wants to suppress the LC, then let the damned thing be suppressed! But if he sees it has a chance reconstituted in new form or with a new management, then let's go for it, those of us inside who can.

[Not] everyone here is insane. Many are simply uninformed, and they must be informed by authority. The Pope must speak clear to his Legionaries if they are to understand what has happened to them, and why. Then a reconstitution is possible and feasible -- once elementary truth and justice has been established.

God has done this sort of thing before: it's Salvation and Redemption. Adam and Eve -- both insane in their rebellion and sin -- beyond redemption? Not even they. Now the Church sings their ruin as the "Happy Fault that obtained for us such a Redeemer" each year at the vigil mass of Easter Sunday. I do not believe I am abusing analogy. I believe God reapplies this same method every time a sinner walks out of the confessional absolved. If God wants it, and if the Legionaries are not totally insane but respond generously and humbly, why cannot the same happen for their stricken institute?

Let's all pray a decade of the Rosary for Fr. Ritter and other Legionaries in his position.

Someone please page Fr. Damien Karras.

[Update: According to readers with a lot more Spanish expertise than me, it appears that Espinosa was using an offer of DNA testing as a rhetorical device to call into question the paternity of recent individuals claiming to be Maciel's children. It also appears that Espinosa is the son of Maciel's cousin. Anyway, this is why I avoided providing a translation or analysis on this article.]

Initial post

Religion Digital has just published an explosive interview with Alejandro Espinosa, Maciel's nephew who claims to have been molested by his uncle as a young seminarian. The allegations are numerous, serious and specific. Given my poor grasp of Spanish, I am not going to attempt translation. However, Espinosa has offered a sample of his own DNA to help establish the credibility of those claiming to be Maciel's children [See update above for clarification on this last point].

There's an old expression among canon lawyers, taken from Roman legal principles: Semel malus semper praesumitur esse malus. "Whoever has been convicted of evil is always presumed to be evil." This principle comes to mind as I consider Richard Sutcliff's following objection vis-a-vis the LC/RC scandal: "It seems as though you are very willing to publish and believe anything bad about the Legionaries, yet subject anything that might make them look at all good to the most rigorous scrutiny."

Let's look at this from another angle. For decades we believed the LC/RC when they told us Maciel was a living saint, that he had never said no to God, that the victims were inventing allegations against him, that they were motivated by jealousy and anti-Catholic agendas. Only we know now that the victims were telling the truth vis-a-vis the crux of this controversy, namely that Maciel was a serial pervert.

So the question arises: What else were these victims, long denounced as liars, telling the truth about? Whether or not LC/RC leadership wishes to acknowledge it, the benefit of the doubt has now shifted to the victims from Maciel and his movement. As one former RC apologist said to me recently, "Pete, we cannot tell after all these years which [alleged] victims are telling the truth and which are not. But we'd be in a much better position to face this scandal if we just assumed they're all telling the truth."

A second thing to keep in mind when reading this blog. I have both a telephone number and a private email address. So does Giselle. We're quite accessible to folks inside RC/LC who share our concerns, but who don't feel tin a position to speak out publicly. Perhaps they rely on the LC/RC for their paycheck, perhaps they have a son with the Legion or a daughter with the 3gf. Perhaps they themselves are LC or 3gf. The same is true of those who comment in our comboxes. As blog hosts, Giselle and I see the email addresses and many are recognizable from inside the movement.

The point being? Many still inside the movement find themselves frustrated by their leaders' response to this crisis. These insiders now believe the evil they hear, in some cases claim to have witnessed it themselves, and many are alleging even more serious accusations that have not yet been reported. I can vouch that Giselle and I are sitting on several such allegations that we won't blog about until some other media source reports it, the individual making the accusation agrees to go public, or some other credible source corroborates it. So Giselle and I keep it quiet until we can attribute it. Nevertheless, this private information often pans out.

Along the same lines, more than one high-profile member of LC/RC has copied me or summarized for me their correspondence with the apostolic visitator for their region. Other bloggers and journalists report receiving similar inside information shared with the apostolic visitators. (I suspect many readers would be surprised to learn just who inside the movement has joined the throng of bloggers expressing outrage over the leadership's handling of this scandal.) And some of this correspondence requests that the movement be shut down completely or reconstituted with new leadership. So while pontifical secrecy binds the visitators, who can be disciplined by the Holy See for leaking information, it's much more difficult to control the flow of information leaked by those being visited.

So to answer Richard's question, I find many of the new allegations surfacing in the media to be credible because I'm hearing similar stories from people still highly active in the movement. Some of these people played a role in the persecution of Maciel's victims, doing so in the mistaken belief that Maciel was a living saint incapable of such moral perversion. They feel horrible about what they perpetuated on the victims. And they're angry about having been misled into misleading others.

Which is another reason why I believe the movement's only shot at survival is reconstitution under a new leadership. It appears that the current leadership lacks the confidence of many of its current members, including some in high-profile positions. A movement cannot survive for long if its rank-and-file and middle management lack confidence in its leadership.

How could I forget Catherine de Hueck Doherty and her Madonna House community in my earlier posting about authentically Catholic resources? The reminder came as I glimpsed through Giselle's thread discussing how to be a better Catholic parent after leaving LC/RC (click here). I cannot speak within the context of the LC/RC, but I know several Catholic parents who found Catherine's books most helpful after their families left one of several schismatic manifestations of Catholic tridentinism. As a Russian Orthodox baroness who converted to Catholicism after fleeing the communist persecution in Russia, and who subsequently dedicated her life to serving Christ and the poor, she brings some deep spiritual insights when explaining the connection between Catholic Tradition, Catholic spirituality, and our daily lives as Catholics.

Unfortunately, it appears that Catherine's Dear Parents book is out-of-print. However, here are several other excellent selections for parents seeking to rediscover their Catholic spirituality in family life:

- Living the Gospel Without Compromise
- Welcome, Pilgrim (scroll down to backlist, must be ordered by phone)
- Poustinia
- Sobornost
- On the Cross of Rejection

And written by other affiliates of her apostolate:

- Mothering
- The Power of Love

One of the things that distinguished Catherine early on among new religious movements is that she always preached submission not only to the Holy Father, but to the diocesan bishop as well. You can read about her cause for canonization here.