Catholic Order Admits Its Founder Abused Boys Over Decades
By RACHEL DONADIO
Published: March 26, 2010
ROME — A powerful Roman Catholic religious order acknowledged in a statement on Friday that its founder, a close ally of the late Pope John Paul II, molested seminarians and fathered several children, and it expressed “sorrow and grief” to anyone “damaged by our founder’s actions.”
The statement was the first official admission by the Legionaries of Christ that its charismatic Mexican founder, the Rev. Marcial Maciel Degollado, who died in 2008, was responsible for many “grave acts.” Around two dozen people had claimed that Father Maciel’s molesting of boys continued for decades.
The statement was viewed as an important development because Father Maciel was a beloved friend of Pope John Paul, and the accusations of abuse against him were vetted personally by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI. The order’s account of the scandal surrounding its founder comes ahead of the recommendations of a recently completed apostolic visitation, a high-level Vatican inquiry, which is expected to render a harsh verdict about Father Maciel, experts said.
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In Mexico, the order reaches the upper echelons of business, the church and government, and for most of his life, Father Maciel was treated as something of a saint. The Legionaries’ acknowledgment that he had fathered at least three children out of wedlock and molested several boys, confirming the worst accusations and long-held suspicions among many Catholics there, seriously damaged the order’s reputation.
Elio Masferrer, a Mexican scholar who heads the Latin American Association for the Study of Religions, said the statement, with its vague plea for forgiveness, still did not address the damages done to victims by Father Maciel, or the civil crimes he committed.
“They think of the sexually abused as if they were people in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Mr. Masferrer said. “The strategy is not to forgive the sinner; it is to protect the sinner.”
Mr. Fair, the spokesman for the order, said the statement had not gone into detail about possible crimes committed by Father Maciel in order to protect the privacy of the victims. He also said that the timing of the statement was not connected to the Vatican’s investigation.
See also:
http://vowsofsilencefilm.com/film.html
Vows of Silence is an anatomy of the Vatican justice system, following the haunting saga of Father Marcial Maciel, who won the favor of Pope John Paul II despite years of pedophilia accusations. The greatest fundraiser of the modern church, Maciel founded the Legionaries of Christ, a religious order with a $650 million budget and history of controversial tactics.The film tracks 1998 abuse charges against Maciel filed with Cardinal Ratzinger. The Secretary of State, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, tries to abort the case. In 2004, with Pope John Paul II dying, Ratzinger takes action.
The film follows a secret investigator as witnesses testify about Maciel’s sexual abuse, psychological tyranny, and the secret vows he imposed to secure Legionaries’ silence.
With location shoots in Rome, Mexico City, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Milwaukee and New Orleans, the film tracks Maciel’s rise from war-torn Mexico, gaining the support of the Spanish dictator, Franco, and cementing ties with Vatican officials. A former Vatican official breaks his silence in an interview criticizing the Legion’s cult-like atmosphere. As the evidence mounts, Ratzinger, as Pope Benedict XVI, must decide the price of justice.
Here's some past articles:
http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=4658963&page=1
Video: Before he became pope, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger became upset when ABC News Chief Investigative Correspondent Brian Ross asked him a question in 2002 about the delay in pursing sex abuse charges against a senior leader of the Catholic church.
Priestly Sin, Cover-Up - Powerful Cardinal in Vatican Accused of Sexual Abuse Cover-Up
Controversial Catholic Group Alleges Critics Stole Inside Info
A trusted ally of Pope John Paul II has been accused of sexually abusing boys a half-century ago at an elite seminary for the Catholic Church.
The alleged victims say the Vatican knew of the allegations against Father Marcial Maciel and chose not to pursue them.
In fact, the pope has continued to praise 82-year-old Maciel, a Mexico native, as an effective leader of Catholic youth, despite detailed allegations sent to the Vatican four years ago saying the man was also a long-time pedophile.
Maciel denies the charges and said the men made them up only after leaving the Legion of Christ.
Maciel is the founder of the little-known but well-connected and well-financed Legion of Christ which has raised millions of dollars for the Church. Operating in the United States and 19 other countries, the Legion of Christ recruits boys as young as 10 years old to leave their families and follow a rigorous course of study to become priests.
"I think Father Maciel is one of the most powerful men in the Catholic Church today and also arguably the most mysterious," said Jason Berry, author of Lead Us Not Into Temptation: Catholic Priests and the Sexual Abuse of Children.
Former members of the order, known as Legionaries, have formed an online community to discuss, among other things, the sexual abuse allegations against the founder, Father Marcial Maciel.
Last year, the Vatican asked Maciel to give up all of his ministry appearances following accusations that decades ago he molested young priests in training.
The Legion has filed a complaint against one of the organizations, Regain Inc., and its president, a former Legionary, John Paul Lennon.
The complaint alleges that "private and proprietary materials have been stolen" and posted on the organization's Web site "as part of a concerted effort to wage a malicious disinformation campaign against the Legion." The items the Legion is seeking include private letters of Maciel's. The Legion estimates the material is worth $750,000.
Along with seeking the seizure of the property, the Legion is also requesting information related to the identities of individuals who have used the message boards using screen names.
Last week, a judge ruled that Lennon must turn over any property of the Legion's within 14 days, following a pre-trial seizure petition by the Legion.
"There was nothing criminal here," Lennon told the Blotter on ABCNews.com. Lennon said some documents circulating among the ex-Legionary community had been posted online, but as far as he knew, nothing was obtained improperly.
He equated the Legion's search for the identities of those posting on the discussion board to McCarthyism.
"It's a witch hunt," he said. "It is proving that the Legion is a cult which controls information, stifles freedom of expression and goes after dissenters."
Wikipedia:
Late in 2009, the year following his death, the Legion announced in an internal memorandum that Maciel had plagiarized a book, El salterio de mis días, which had acquired great importance in the tradition of the Legion.
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During his life, Maciel was the focus of several investigations regarding allegations of drug abuse and sexually abusing children. First in 1956, he was investigated for drug abuse, after which he was exonerated and returned as head of the Congregation. In 2005 Maciel stepped down as head of the order and, a few days before John Paul II died, Cardinal Ratzinger announced his intention of removing "filth" from the Church; many believed he was referring specifically to Maciel.
"a beloved friend of Pope John Paul"
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