Falsely Accused Priest Felt "Cut Loose" by Cloyne Diocese

[mdgspencer]

see irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/religion-and-beliefs/falsely-accused-priest-felt-cut-loose-by-cloyne-diocese-1.2673804
He had been falsely and anonymously accused of child sex abuse, then after he went to court his accuser admitted he lied and apologized, after six years. Though the accusation was anonymous, the diocese gave his name to the police, then, “hung him out to dry,” and had a “total lack of cooperation” as he prepared his case. It seems that after he was exonerated, the diocese has remained silent.

 

[ClearWater]

How tragic this happened, but it was also incredible the accuser finally apologized.

 

[Petaro]

Imagine how Jesus felt as he was taken away to be crucified. Where were all the people waving palms before His feet. How many of us, given the recent scandal, would throw themselves behind a priest accused of pedophilia. How many of us would remain loyal, or would we abdicate saying “Let the authorities handle this. We don’t want to get involved. We will only be judged as protecting him.” The Diocese may have been between a rock and a hard place. Let us not be the first to pick up the rock. The Diocese may be suffering the well known silence of shame.
Rather, let us support him rejoicing in his reward:

Matt 5.10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. 12Rejoice and celebrate, because great is your reward in heaven; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets before you.…

 

[otjm]

It is at best difficult to make any reasoned judgment on a matter when we know little or nothing about the facts surrounding the case.

We have no idea of the dynamics of the interaction between the priest and the diocese, and speculation is just that - speculation, based on nothing more than whimsy and wishing. The diocese may be failing to support the priest, or there could be other issues of which we have no knowledge.

Prayers for both sides should be given.

 

[Paganus]

*He felt “totally abandoned by ‘my church’. *

We all feel that way sometimes. God is always there, even if the Church does not seem to be.

 

[dochawk]

It is at best difficult to make any reasoned judgment on a matter when we know little or nothing about the facts surrounding the case.

We have no idea of the dynamics of the interaction between the priest and the diocese, and speculation is just that - speculation, based on nothing more than whimsy and wishing. The diocese may be failing to support the priest, or there could be other issues of which we have no knowledge.

The Church is in a no-win situation here.

To protect the children it it’s care from this great evil, the accused must be immediately removed from contact with children.

But a substantial amount of the time (a third? half? two-third? I have no idea), the accused is innocent, and was accused for any of a variety of reasons (revenge, malice, financial).

And clergy are as much in need of the Church’s mercy and love as the laity.

It was a real eye-opener to me the first time that, as a lawyer, a woman nonchalantly explained to me that she’d learned when fighting to threaten to call the police and claim her husband had hit her . . . and I dealt with cases in both Southern California and Southern Nevada in which men had been brutally beaten, called for help, and been arrested for battery (striking the iron with his face, apparently).

I really can’t give an answer other than that all need prayers and mercy.

We need a way to protect and reinstate falsely accused priests–but being cleared criminally, or even civilly, doesn’t rule out, for example, that there’s a 30% chance it happened, but that the standard of proof can’t be met.

 

[Trader]

How tragic this happened, but it was also incredible the accuser finally apologized.

It is unusual for an accuser to apologize, but not unique. I personally know of a case where a very fine priest was accused falsely and the accuser even agreed to pay the legal expenses for the priest and the diocese, although I doubt he ever followed through on that promise. The accuser was a scam artist looking for a quick payoff, but not very good at his art, because he had already been convicted of fraud twice before. A third felony conviction for perjury in this case could have meant life in prison as an habitual offender, so the diocese had some leverage.

There were other factors involved that made any priest in that diocese a target because the bishop had a really bad history of not dealing with real cases of sexual abuse, and the vicar general was himself a chronic alcoholic and promiscuous homosexual who used psychological testing to ensure we would have more homosexual priests. That vicar general was eventually forced to resign as bishop of another diocese when it was discovered that one of the many prostitutes he used was only 15.

I also know personally that there is no justice in this world for those falsely accused of other things. If it happened even to Jesus, who are we to expect better treatment from evil people?

 

[JimG]

Some accuser’s never apologize. Father Gordon MacRae has spent 20 years so far in prison for what seems to have been a purely fabricated crime. He was never allowed to speak in his defense, and the judge seems to have been disposed to treat him as guilty because he is a priest.