September 03, 2018
By Daniel Burke, Rosa Flores and Kevin Conlon, CNN, September 3, 2018
Wuerl, who faces accusations that he mishandled clergy sexual misconduct while he was a bishop in Pittsburgh, addressed Washington's Annunciation Catholic Church, where the cardinal was installing a new pastor. In a short speech after the Mass, Wuerl asked the 200 or so people in the congregation to forgive his "errors in judgment" and "inadequacies."
Wuerl also urged the parish to pray for and remain loyal to Pope Francis, as "increasingly it is clear that he is the object of considerable animosity."
September 02, 2018
By Ted Slowik, Daily Southtown, August 21, 2018
A defensive mindset known as “protect the house” often seems to take hold when an institution feels threatened.
Last week’s release of a Pennsylvania grand jury report helps show that no institution went to greater lengths to protect the house than the Roman Catholic Church in that state.
“The main thing was not to help children, but to avoid ‘scandal,’” the grand jurors wrote. “It’s like a playbook for concealing the truth.”
September 01, 2018
By Daniel Burke, August 30, 2018, CNN
"They have plenty of evidence," said Peter Isely, spokesman for the group Ending Clergy Abuse. "Let's launch this investigation. Let's do it now."
August 30, 2018
By Ed Mahon, York Daily Record, Aug. 27, 2018
Prosecutors in Illinois, Florida, Missouri and New York are considering or pursuing investigations into Catholic dioceses.
The moves come on the heels of a Pennsylvania grand jury report that described more than 300 "predator priests" and more than 1,000 victims in six Roman Catholic dioceses in the state.
August 29, 2018
By WES VENTEICHER AND NATASHA LINDSTROM, Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2018, TribLive
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro accused Pittsburgh Bishop David Zubik of lying about an alleged cover-up of child sex abuse in his diocese and said bishops in Greensburg and Harrisburg fought to block the release of a grand jury report detailing abuses.
“Those insinuations are false,” Matt Haverstick, legal counsel for the Greensburg and Harrisburg dioceses, told the Tribune-Review late Tuesday. “The dioceses of Greensburg and Harrisburg have always supported the release of an accurate grand jury report. I’m not sure I can say the same thing about the Attorney General’s office.”
August 28, 2018
By Benjamin DODMAN, France24, August 25, 2018
Once a bastion of Catholicism, Ireland has changed dramatically since the last time a pontiff visited back in 1979 – when divorce and contraception were banned, gay marriage was unheard-of, and the Church’s grip on a deeply conservative society was near total.
August 24, 2018
By KENNETH LOVETT and LARRY MCSHANE, NEW YORK DAILY NEWS, AUG 24, 2018
New York state’s 62 district attorneys are “ready and available” to work with the state Attorney General in a Pennsylvania-style probe of sexual abuse by Catholic priests.
“The horrific findings in Pennsylvania show the need for a similar investigation in New York state,” said David Soares, the Albany County DA and president of the District Attorneys Association of the State of New York.
August 22, 2018
By Susannah Cullinane and Madison Park, CNN, August 21, 2018
And for decades, the church has been accused of protecting itself rather than the victims of child sexual abuse.
Here are some major scandals and revelations involving the Catholic Church and allegations of abuse.
A Pennsylvania grand jury released a report in August 2018 detailing decades of alleged sexual abuses by priests and cover-ups by bishops. Report details sexual abuse by more than 300 priests in Pennsylvania's Catholic Church
August 18, 2018
By MARC LEVY, AP News, August 17, 2018
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Attorneys general around the U.S. have been largely silent this week about any plans to conduct an investigation like Pennsylvania’s that uncovered widespread child sexual abuse in six Roman Catholic dioceses, although New York’s top prosecutor is an exception, saying she is exploring teaming up with the local district attorneys.
The comments by the New York attorney general’s office Friday come on the heels of a sweeping grand jury report that also accused a succession of bishops and other church leaders of helping to keep quiet allegations against 300 “predator priests” who had victimized more than 1,000 children.
