Excommunication of Predator Clergy?

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Tis_Bearself said:
Also, keep in mind that the two priests who were caught having sex in the car were consenting adults. They committed a crime of public lewdness, but their choosing to have consensual sex with each other wasn’t a crime. Doesn’t sound like they were “predators”.
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Not predators like McCarrick, no. I used them as an example of how priests could potentially be left in the clergy and simply bounced around to hide them from their actions, if it wasn’t for the fact that they were caught and shown in the news there’s a good chance they’d still be carrying on.

And even though their actions weren’t a crime, their behavior speaks to the heart of the problem. These men and those who share in their lifestyle have no business in the priesthood. How could they be expected to lead the laity and teach on the sinfulness of homosexuality when they are engaging in the same behavior. .
 
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If McCarrick were truly repentant, he would not deny knowledge of what he has done. He has said he does not remember. That isn’t what someone who has repented does. They acknowledge, seek forgiveness, and attempt to compensate/rectify/etc.
 
One or both may or may not be predators. We don’t know how many priests they have corrupted. What we do know is they very publically broke their vow of celibacy in plain sight of children as well as adults. Excommunicating them seems fitting to me. They obviously don’t care what the Church teaches, asks of them, or what type of example they send their flocks. They don’t care if they steal the innocence of a child walking down the street. “Two consenting adults” is a very secular idea, not a position expected of Catholic clergy.
 
He’s what, 88 years old? At that age you can forget where you left your toothbrush, let alone whether you did something sexually 50 years ago.

You’re not his confessor anyway, so it’s not your place to judge.
 
In Massachusetts, a number of these priests were sent to jail but this was late 1990’s early 2000’s. John J. Geoghan, a serial predator priest(147 accusers) was killed shortly after he entered by a 37 year old prisoner. Geoghan only got a 9 to 10 year prison sentence and was in a limited unit in jail.

I don’t understand why the church waited so long to open cases in other dioceses. (It started in 1992 with the Farther Porter case and went forth.) It kind of shocks me because we were told that in Massachusetts it was one particular seminary not as wide spread.
 
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I don’t remotely buy the claim that McCarrick doesn’t remember what he did. I’ve heard no indication that he’s suffering from anything like Alzheimers and while age might make one forget where he left his toothbrush, I seriously doubt it makes one conveniently forget the sexual assaults he committed. I’m not his confessor. But I am a US citizen and for that reason, I don’t have any interest in listening to his justifications.
 
John Manly, a California-based attorney who specializes in cases involving sexual abuse of minors, said Catholic bishops have often used the phrase “credibly accused.”

“I can tell you what it means — it means they’re going to leave out people they don’t want to give you,” he said.

Manly said a California diocese ignored prior warnings and allegations about a priest in Stockton, Calif. In 2012, a jury in a civil case found Michael Kelly liable for sexually molesting a child. Kelly, however, fled the country; the diocese of Stockton settled the case for $3.75 million.

Paul Petersen, of the Dallas chapter of the victims advocacy group Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, known as SNAP, said in a prepared statement that “credibly accused” is just “a dodge.”

“Church officials are not the arbiters of what is credible and what is not, especially since there have been many cases … where accusations deemed ‘not credible’ actually turned out to be very real,” Petersen said, citing cases in California, Buffalo and Kentucky.
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www.dallasnews.com

What does 'credibly accused' mean? 6 things to know about Texas Catholic dioceses' sex abuse inquiry

The announcement that the dioceses will release names of accused clergy raised further questions about the possible legal implications, the independence of...
www.dallasnews.com
 
Exactly. And it is very possible to judge whether or not someone is unrepentant. It doesn’t take being someone’s confessor to know that.
 
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Whether you or I care about listening to it, it’s a reasonable premise that an 88-year-old is forgetful. If his case goes to court, the jury will be required to listen to it and consider it.

In the future, they need to bust these guys before they are so old that they can have the excuse of age-related memory disorders.
 
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I would say defrocking and casting McCarrick out on the street would be the more apropos justice many believe is due.

Wuerhl is the same; whoopty-doo, he resigned. Very big of him. And he was humble enough to post his resignation letter online, displaying his hubris and arrogance for the entire world. He’s clueless.

Starting telling these men, be the 30 years old or 90 years old that they are now living on the street until the Lord calls them home, and we can talk. Why should they have a support system after all this, when most of us would not be granted such leniency from our respective institutions?

In either case, excommunication seems to be wrong in terms of intent and purpose, in this case.
 
The man was a sexual deviant most of his adult life, preyed on people using the auspices of the Church hierarchy to do so, hid his actions, and we are suprised he’d lie about those same actions?

I am reminded of the scorpion and the frog. Why are we surprised the scorpion stings the frog after he claimed he wouldn’t? He’s a scorpion.
 
Again, this isn’t about what you or I personally think.
In view of the law, it’s a reasonable premise to present to a court. Therefore, it’s presented.

The judge or jury may very well agree with you, or not. The point is that it can be brought up and depending on all the evidence and how it is presented, it could be convincing.
 
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