I don’t know…. to see a man in the rub with his privates COVERED is not sexual abuse…..weird, yes, but sexual abuse, no. There are plenty of real incidents without posting putting out such a weak incident like this. Stick to the damning facts.

April 1, 2010 at 11:36 pm

It’s very sad that mothers are looking for verification on certain priests where their their son’s could have been exposed to harm; but it is wonderful you are coming forward to do this.
Once you all collaborate your stories, run with it as hard as you can.
It is your duty and right as mothers.
Lynne Newington
Victoria.
Australia

April 2, 2010 at 5:13 am

Wow. Just wow.
For somebody not to recognize the difference between a scene of nudity in a play/performance and a priest being “cheered” up by a group of young boys while sitting in a tub with nothing but a washcloth over his genitals is nothing short of astounding.
I might allow my older children to see a movie that had a scene of nudity (depending on the context, of course), but I’d be notifying the authorities if I found out my next door neighbor, or my parish priest, brought same children into their bathroom while they were nearly naked in the tub, to “cheer” them up.
Yikes.

April 2, 2010 at 2:21 pm

From today’s Byzantine liturgy: “Do not let my heart turn toward words of evil, to cover sins with smooth names.”

April 2, 2010 at 4:59 pm

Anonymous, I think the issue is that Legion of Christ and Regnum Christi, until very recently, were considered ‘untouchable’ within the Church. Victims were often sued, threatened with lawsuits and ostracized for speaking out. Maciel was, to a certain extent, protected by Pope John Paul II and several powerful curial Cardinals in Rome. Even Cardinal Ratzinger had to proceed quietly and carefully behind the backs of Pope John Paul II and Cardinal Sodano. The Legion also managed to exempt itself from the Church’s investigation of U.S. seminaries and religious orders that took place during the aftermath of the sex abuse crisis. So one cannot blame the average Catholic for being cautious in speaking out.
Of course the difficulty with making oneself untouchable is that one becomes use to getting away with one’s machinations. One becomes impervious to criticism as one insulates oneself from the popular mood, relying upon underlings who are “yes men”. Some because they buy into the system, and others because they are too scared to speak out against it. Thus one is the last person to discover that one is not only touchable, but fatally wounded.

April 3, 2010 at 7:47 am