Priest sues diocesan, college officials for libel

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Spirithound said:
What is the purpose of the suit? The courts cannot force the bishop to reinstate him. Isn’t there a canonical process he can follow?
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That’s what I wonder.
I read awhile back that in California a religious order and a diocese were wrangling over who should pay how much of a child-abuse settlement and they went to an ecclesiastical court.

Sadly for this priest and many others the Church has now had to implement a “one strike” policy, in effect a one-accusation policy.
 
To any and all of you who are placing more shame on Fr. Mark because he’s suing, I say shame on YOU for making premature, uninformed statements so typical of right wing, staunch religious nutbags. And, the comment that the church just has to simply remove any and all priests if there is even a HINT of abuse is ridiculous. With that reasoning, let’s just put everyone in jail and trash the “innocent until proven guilty” system that we pride ourselves on in this country of ours. Maybe take a moment and READ about Fr. Mark’s case, before making these outlandishly narrow-minded statements. I had Fr. Mark in class, know the kind of man he is, and have thoroughly read through every article that has surfaced about him, and had the sense to investigate the statements myself before coming to a conclusion. The church NEEDS to be sued here. This man is being wronged. This is an evil political ploy and Fr. Mark represents EVERYONE who has been manipulated, lied to, and trashed by the right wing, fanatical, republican agenda. Sad but true. SVC used to be so great. I’m ashamed of my alma mater for starting this. They need to be held accountable.
 
The_Old_Medic said:
No, what is really sad is that the Church can NOT take a chance with anyone that could be a pedophile. The Church is in a position where, if there is the slightest chance that a man MAY be guilty, they have to remove him from active service.

They do not have any choice in this, because for way too many years they took the word of very sick people that they would “sin no more”. They believed this was a matter of sin, not of law or the actions of people that placed themselves where they could use their office to abuse children. And, keep in mind that it is not just pedophiles that the church has to worry about.

Far too many priests, men that took a vow of celibacy, were also taking advantage of the vulnerable adults in their parishes. I personally know of a religious priest that targeted mentally disabled women, as well as severely disabled women, in his parish for his sexual gratification. There was nothing illegal about what he did, and his community adamantly refuses to remove him from ministry, because he broke no laws. Of course, he repeatedly broke the laws of God and of the Church, but what does that matter?

I am sorry, but if I were a Bishop, and there was even the slightest possibility that one of my Priests was inclined toward sexual behavior with children, I would be forced to remove him from active ministry. If I did not, and it became common knowledge that I had not done this, the media would splash it all over the world that once again the Church is supporting and helping sexual deviants.

This is NOT an area where the Church has any choice. The press WILL attack, at the slightest provocation (or even none at all), and every such attack drives more people away from the Church.

AND, if this man is seeking any monetary compensation, then this is not really about clearing his name, it is about enriching himself. at the expense of the church.

Jesus told us that if we follow him, we have to help bear the cross. Why can’t this man accept the fact that for a while, he has a cross to bear?

What is truly sad is that this priest can not understand this. He is MUCH more interested in his own welfare, than he is of the Churches.
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I agree. bear the hatch, you dont go outside the Church and sue. what ever happened to humility and acceptance of the Church’s teaching. something is wrong with this guy. if he is a priest and understands hte Faith, he would not be suing the Church.
 
Sue the whole lot of them. Innocent priests are brought down because of the Church’s disgusting handling of sexually abusive priests. The Church had all this money to pay off people to be quiet; it can pay to repair this priest’s reputation.
 
wisdomseeker said:
I agree. bear the hatch, you dont go outside the Church and sue. what ever happened to humility and acceptance of the Church’s teaching. something is wrong with this guy. if he is a priest and understands hte Faith, he would not be suing the Church.
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Wisdomseeker, please take a few minutes and read the articles that I"ve posted.
He’s not suing the Church! He is suing the abbot, the bishop and several admin of the college.
He understands the Faith much better than most of us and no there’s nothing “wrong with this guy.” He is being persecuited. If you can, look up his cival complaint. You would be surprised at what he’s endured this past year. What do you want him to do? Curl up into a ball and rot the rest of his life? No one would hire him, no one would ever trust him again if he let this go. To let it go would be admission of guilt. Would you hire someone who was portrayed as he was? You have no right to pass judgement on him until you’ve completely learned the truth. Wise up, Wisdomseeker!
 
I am ASHAMED to be a graduate of such an institution where other professors, monks, clerics and supposedly Catholic Christians would knowingly calumniate one of their own to the point of utterly destroying him. OK, maybe I only took 3 religion courses during my time at SVC but “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor” comes to mind. Of course I did come to south Georgia after graduating from SVC where the constant posting of the 10 commandments does help one remember them. When I was at SVC we didn’t have big Presidentially recognizable names like President Towey running things, the Fred Rogers Center wasn’t built yet, and there weren’t quite as many amenities as there are now, but what was there was a mission and a sense of purpose to help people develop in the Catholic and Benedictine traditions. Administrators and professors, who may not have massive name recognition or cared about their political ambitions, cared and took a personal interest in you. Instead we see how the higher ups do not evaluate situations involving people based on facts but on their agendas, image and spins, and prehaps even persoanl vendettas. Incidents like this make me doubt whether the College believes in building up PEOPLE as Catholic leaders, spiritual and ethical people who are ready to go forth to extend the mission of Christ throughout the world through further charitable, vocational and spiritual works in His Name. SVC has strayed from its mission, its leaders owe reparations for the sins of calumny wrought against one of their own, and in all sense of justice it deserves all it gets now in civil court after blocking justice in Ecclesiastical courts and venues. Additionally, the alumni and friends of the college owe it to the Church to work to right this injustice, refuse to financially support the college until it’s Catholic mission is reaffirmed, and work to pressure the college to find administrators and faculty they can hire that WILL affirm the development of PEOPLE to become the thoughtful, prayerful Catholic people that will carry the message of Christ’s Church out into the world, in the many forms it may take to spread the Gospel to those who need to experience it, if the current cadre of higher ups refuse to take on this task. SVC needs to get back to their Catholic mission, pronto, and align their actions wih their Catholic mission and what they believe, before more scandal, damage and possibly souls are lost in this total mockery they are making of this Catholic Institition.
 
Was his cross to hard, or did he lose faith in Jesus and His Church ?
 
onenow1 said:
Was his cross to hard, or did he lose faith in Jesus and His Church ?
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So what you’re saying is that we should all just let injustice go on and sit on our hands and wait for the Church to fix it? Why fight for the unborn? Why fight for the sexually abused children? Why give food to the poor? We should just sit and wait for the Church to deliver!

Come on! WE are the Church! WE have responsibility!

If you knew someone was physically abusing your child, would you step in to protect him/her or just let it happen and wait for Jesus to stop it? Don’t you know that WE are the hands and feet and voice of Jesus? If we don’t do anything about it, we’re to blame.
 
fosterjoy said:
Wisdomseeker, please take a few minutes and read the articles that I"ve posted.
He’s not suing the Church! He is suing the abbot, the bishop and several admin of the college.
He understands the Faith much better than most of us and no there’s nothing “wrong with this guy.” He is being persecuited. If you can, look up his cival complaint. You would be surprised at what he’s endured this past year. What do you want him to do? Curl up into a ball and rot the rest of his life? No one would hire him, no one would ever trust him again if he let this go. To let it go would be admission of guilt. Would you hire someone who was portrayed as he was? You have no right to pass judgement on him until you’ve completely learned the truth. Wise up, Wisdomseeker!
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Sorry i dont mean to cause this priest anymore harm. what i am trying to say is this, that the priest should accept his fate and not cause anymore scandals. i know he is innocent but what good does it do for him to go out and try to make the court impose respect? Jesus beared His Cross and it is for us to do the same. the Word says, what good does it do if you suffer for the sins you have commited, but if you are innocent and you are falsely accused, your reward will be great. that is what i am talking about. just think if we all go out suing everybody because someone have falsely accused us? we cant. did watch the Mass this morning on EWTN? it touched this same subject. Fr. Marie is great and he pointed out St Francis said: blessed is the servant who is obedient even when he is not guilt. he accepts and he is not quick to defend himself. he will even do penance. we have a big problem now and days of acceptance. look to our ancestrals, how they did.
 
Wisdomseeker, you said “Sorry i dont mean to cause this priest anymore harm. what i am trying to say is this, that the priest should accept his fate and not cause anymore scandals.”

He did not CAUSE any scandals. He was made the victim of a scandal that STILL is occuring. In order to STOP the scandal and prevent others from being victimized by the scandalers, he is exposing the abusive powers so that correction and healing can take place.

Wisdomseeker, here are some verses from the bible that touch on the matter at hand.

“It is not good to be partial to the wicked or to deprive the righteous of justice.” Proverbs 18:5

“He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous are both alike an abomination to the Lord.” Proverbs 17:15

“Truth is lacking, and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey. The Lord saw it, and it displeased him that there was no justice.” Isaiah 59:15

“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector
Matthew 18:15-17

“To subvert a man in his lawsuit, the Lord does not approve.” Lamentations 3:36

"Whoever will not obey the law of your God and the law of the king, let judgment be strictly executed on him, whether for death or for banishment or for confiscation of his goods or for imprisonment.” Ezra 7:26
 
wisdomseeker said:
Sorry i dont mean to cause this priest anymore harm. what i am trying to say is this, that the priest should accept his fate and not cause anymore scandals. i know he is innocent but what good does it do for him to go out and try to make the court impose respect? Jesus beared His Cross and it is for us to do the same. the Word says, what good does it do if you suffer for the sins you have commited, but if you are innocent and you are falsely accused, your reward will be great. that is what i am talking about. just think if we all go out suing everybody because someone have falsely accused us? we cant. did watch the Mass this morning on EWTN? it touched this same subject. Fr. Marie is great and he pointed out St Francis said: blessed is the servant who is obedient even when he is not guilt. he accepts and he is not quick to defend himself. he will even do penance. we have a big problem now and days of acceptance. look to our ancestrals, how they did.
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wisdomseeker, i think you mean well, but i have to tell you, you are a moron. just because jesus says turn the other cheek, doesn’t mean that we are just supposed to stand back and be walked all over. Fr. Mark has turned his cheek several times and it keeps getting worse and worse. Enough is enough. Nobody deserves this kind of treatment from those in authority positions. In fact, by standing up for himself and trying to clear his name, Fr. Mark is doing exactly what Jesus wants. He wants us to respect others and ourselves. Fr. Mark is trying to stop their bad behavior and is helping them sort their lives out through this ordeal.
 
Father Gruber is doing the right thing. I have met him and know someone who is close to him personally. He is a fine priest without a doubt. There is nothing wrong with him suing to get back his good name. Besides being a monk and professor, Father Gruber is a citizen of the USA with all the rights and privileges that go with that. One of those rights is to use the court system to seek justice when one is wronged. Unless the abbot’s lawyers are brain dead, they will soon be advising him to settle this case. Father Gruber was cleared of all criminal charges and to persist in calling him a pedophile is LIBEL.
The Church no longer says we must avoid the courts of the unbeliever or whatever you want to call them. It is current Vatican policy that bishops must report sex abuse cases to civil authorities. That means the Church has confidence in the civil courts and does not seek to avoid them. It also implies the Church does not have confidence that its own structures are adequate in dealing with the problem. There is nothing in canon law which forbids a priest from suing anyone. Right now there are and have been several similar cases of priests suing their bishop for one reason or another. If you google priest sues or suing bishop, you will see a number of recent and past cases.
Too bad it has come to this, but it’s nothing new.

C.
 
This case has been going on for a long time, this thread only covered a small portion of it.

It also has got more interesting, the student whom found the porn has gone to the press. This student is stating that he had the porn, confessed to Father Gruber, and Father never broke his confessional promise.

If this is true father was never guilty…

Interesting and sad are just a few of my thoughts.

post-gazette.com/pg/10277/1092449-59.stm
 
374mike said:
This case has been going on for a long time, this thread only covered a small portion of it.

It also has got more interesting, the student whom found the porn has gone to the press. This student is stating that he had the porn, confessed to Father Gruber, and Father never broke his confessional promise.

If this is true father was never guilty…

Interesting and sad are just a few of my thoughts.

post-gazette.com/pg/10277/1092449-59.stm
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That was actually discussed in an earlier post but thanks for the link to recent media article.

C.
 
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