News Story of the Day

By Bill White, April 9, 2016, The Morning Call

The Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, part of the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese, is seen in Altoona, Pa. Two Catholic bishops who led a small Pennsylvania diocese helped cover up the sexual abuse of hundreds of children by more than 50 priests and other religious leaders over a 40-year period, according to a grand jury report.

We were dismayed to find this letter inserted in our church bulletin this past Sunday," wrote a local Catholic who contacted me last week about a letter from Allentown Diocese Bishop John Barres.

Barres' letter outlined the diocese's child sex-abuse prevention efforts — and then lobbied against state legislation that would change the statutes of limitations for such cases, asking parishioners to contact their legislators about its "detrimental effects."

By Ivey DeJesus, [email protected], April 9, 2016, Penn Live

Three successive grand jury reports between 2003 and 2011 found that church officials in the the Archdiocese of Philadelphia knew about and systematically concealed the abuse of hundreds of children by priests across several decades. The archdiocese suspended scores of priests who were named as child molestation suspects in a scathing grand jury reports. In this 2011 file photo, protestors denounce church officials outside Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke) (Matt Rourke)

By EMMA FOSTER FOR DAILYMAIL.COM, 

8 April 2016, 

• Father Virgilio Elizondo, 80, shot himself in the head after he was accused of molesting a young boy 
• Notre Dame professor was leading Catholic intellectual but faced ruin before he shot himself in the head at San Antonio, Texas, home 
• Now his suicide note is revealed and shows how he admitted being 'a sinner' but said: 'I have lived a life dedicated to serving others'
• Lawyer for the victim tells Daily Mail Online: 'Giving up your life is not a gift to any abused child, it's just a manipulation'

Sex abuse and molestation charges have rocked the Catholic Church for decades. Amid the allegations, one man whose career was tarnished by the scandals was retired L.A. Cardinal Roger Mahony.

On April 29, Mahony will confer the sacrament of confirmation to the teen class at Saint Kateri Catholic Church, and many parishioners and community members are outraged.

By LAURIE GOODSTEIN, APRIL 4, 2016, New York Times

TOM BOGGIONI, 02 APR 2016, RawStory.com

The arrest of a Christian school principal in Port Angeles, Washington for sexually assaulting two pre-teen girls brings to light, once again, what appears to be an epidemic of sexual predators in Christian churches and schools.

According to the Crimes Against Children Research Center, 1 in 5 girls and 1 in 20 boys is a victim of child sexual abuse. The exact number of actual sexual assaults is unknown since many victims never speak up or, in some cases like Florida, the sexual assault is hushed up.

By AFP Staff, March 30, 2016, news.yahoo.com

Lyon (AFP) - French investigators searched the offices of the diocese of Lyon on Wednesday over the alleged cover-up of a paedophile priest, a source close to the probe said.

The diocese said in a statement that the Archbishop of Lyon, Philippe Barbarin, who is under fire over his handling of the affair, "has said repeatedly that he is prepared to cooperate openly with the investigation".

The search of the offices is linked to the prosecution of Bernard Preynat, a priest who has admitted sexually abusing scouts that he was supervising in the Lyon area of central France more than 25 years ago.

By NY Daily News Staff, March 29, 2016, Nydailynews.com

The spotlight at the moment is on a Long Island foster care house of horrors where an accused predator took in dozens of boys over the course of two decades and allegedly subjected many of them to sexual abuse.

The spotlight has shone elsewhere before — many elsewheres.

More than 20 teachers at the prestigious Horace Mann School in the Bronx sexually abused more than 60 students.

By Peter Smith, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, March 28, 2016, Virginislandsdailynews.com   

PITTSBURGH — Even as the leadership of a Hollidaysburg, Pa.-based Franciscan province is called to account in criminal court for its handling of a sex offender, the case is raising a broader question:

Just how accountable are male religious orders for following the U.S. Catholic Church’s zero-tolerance policy adopted in 2002?

Such orders are typically authorized by the pope and consist of priests and brothers who make specific vows, typically to poverty, chastity and obedience, with some orders having additional vows.