DreamWorks to Make Film About Catholic Church Sex Abuse Scandals; 5 Past Movies that Dealt with the Clergy Child-Abuse The story will be made into a movie to be directed by Tom McCarthy and co-written by Josh Singer. Holly Bario, the president of production at DreamWorks, said the Boston Globe story is extremely important for the Massachusetts and global community. It would be recalled that at the March conclave, Scottish Cardinal Keith O'Brien was barred from participating and even forced to resign after he admitted having sexual relations with priests during his younger days. "The Boston Globe's coverage of the Catholic priest scandal opened the door to a bigger story that had worldwide ramifications. The story of how this team of editors and reporters came to uncover the truth will make a dramatic and compelling film, especially with the talent of our director Tom McCarthy and his co-screenwriter Josh Singer on board," Ms Bario said in a statement. Ahead of the film showing, Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights President Bill Donohue forecast the film will bomb at the tills. "Films about the sexual abuse of minors have all flopped - there is no market for such fare. People want to be entertainment when they go to the movies, and there is no entertainment value in these flicks," The Christian Post quoted Mr Donohue. The Boston Globe story of documented cover-up of pedophile priests by the Boston archdiocese, won for the newspaper the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service in 2003. It opened the door for more reportage of similar stories, including the revelation that Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI left a thick folder of an investigation on clergy abuse of minors for his successor to deal with. It is not the first time that clergy sex abuse was the subject of films. In an article in 2010, The Week listed five such films. 1. Deliver Us From Evil (2008) - A documentary on the defrocked priest, Oliver O'Grady who admitted molesting 25 boys and girls in California from the late 1970s to 1991. The film implicated Cardinal Roger Mahony, the Archbishop of Los Angeles. 2. The Boys of St Vincent (1992) - The film revolves around a 10-year-old orphan and a Christian brother in a Newfoundland orphanage, with focus on the sexual and physical abuses the male wards suffered from the hands of the orphanage head. The movie implicated the Christian brothers at the Mount Cashel Orphanage and the Newfoundland diocese in Canada. 3. Hand of God (2006) - An investigation of how the Boston archdiocese mishandled its probe on Fr Joseph Birmingham, accused of molesting a boy named Joseph. It implicated Bishop John McCormack of Manchester and Cardinal Bernard Law, former Archbishop of Boston. 4. Sex Crimes and the Vatican (2006) - A documentary on how Pope Benedict covered up sex abuse cases as doctrine enforcer in Vatican under Pope John Paul II. Besides the pope emeritus, the film implicated retired Bishop Brendan Comiskey of Fern, Ireland. 5. Twist of Faith (2004) - It is the story of Toledo firefighter Tony Comes who had to deal with his sexual abuse during his adolescent years while living just five houses away from his alleged abuser, former priest Dennis Gray. The movie implicated Bishop James Hoffman of Toledo who died in 2003.
North Carolina may declare an official state religion under new bill April 3, 2013 By Deacon Greg Kandra http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/03/north-carolina-religion-bill_n_3003401.html Details: Republican North Carolina state legislators have proposed allowing an official state religion in a measure that would declare the state exempt from the Constitution and court rulings. The bill, filed Monday by two GOP lawmakers from Rowan County and backed by nine other Republicans, says each state “is sovereign” and courts cannot block a state “from making laws respecting an establishment of religion.” The legislation was filed in response to a lawsuit to stop county commissioners in Rowan County from opening meetings with a Christian prayer, wral.com reported. The religion bill comes as some Republican-led states seek to separate themselves from the federal government, primarily on the issues of guns and Obamacare. This includes a proposal in Mississippi to establish a state board with the power to nullify federal laws. The North Carolina bill’s main sponsors, state Reps. Carl Ford (R-China Grove) and Harry Warren (R-Salisbury), could not be reached for comment on Tuesday, The Salisbury Post reported. Co-sponsors include House Majority Leader Edgar Starnes (R-Hickory). Another is state Rep. Larry Pittman (R-Concord), who in February introduced a state constitutional amendment that would allow for carrying concealed weapons to fight federal “tyranny.” The bill says the First Amendment only applies to the federal government and does not stop state governments, local governments and school districts from adopting measures that defy the Constitution. The legislation also says that the Tenth Amendment, which says powers not reserved for the federal government belong to the states, prohibits court rulings that would seek to apply the First Amendment to state and local officials. Republican North Carolina state legislatorshave proposed allowing an official state religion in a measure that would declare the state exempt from the Constitution and court rulings. The bill, filed Monday by two GOP lawmakers from Rowan County andbacked by nine other Republicans, says each state "is sovereign" and courts cannot block a state "from making laws respecting an establishment of religion." The legislation was filed in response to a lawsuitto stop county commissioners in Rowan County from opening meetings with a Christian prayer, wral.com reported. The religion bill comes as some Republican-led states seek to separate themselves from the federal government, primarily on the issues of guns and Obamacare. This includes a proposal in Mississippi to establish a state board with the power to nullify federal laws. The North Carolina bill's main sponsors, state Reps. Carl Ford (R-China Grove) and Harry Warren (R-Salisbury), could not be reached for comment on Tuesday, The Salisbury Post reported. Co-sponsors include House Majority Leader Edgar Starnes (R-Hickory). Another is state Rep. Larry Pittman (R-Concord), who in February introduced a state constitutional amendment that would allow for carrying concealed weapons to fight federal "tyranny." The bill says the First Amendment only applies to the federal government and does not stop state governments, local governments and school districts from adopting measures that defy the Constitution. The legislation also says that the Tenth Amendment, which says powers not reserved for the federal government belong to the states, prohibits court rulings that would seek to apply the First Amendment to state and local officials. The bill reads: SECTION 1. The North Carolina General Assembly asserts that the Constitution of the United States of America does not prohibit states or their subsidiaries from making laws respecting an establishment of religion. SECTION 2. The North Carolina General Assembly does not recognize federal court rulings which prohibit and otherwise regulate the State of North Carolina, its public schools, or any political subdivisions of the State from making laws respecting an establishment of religion. The North Carolina state constitution disqualifies those who do not believe in God from public office. The provision has been unenforcible since the 1961 Supreme Court decision in Torcaso v. Watkins, which prohibited such bans.
Saudi Arabia declares destruction of all churches in region Earlier this month news reports surfaced out of Saudi Arabia that raised the red flag for Christians, reports MNN. Todd Nettleton, a spokesman for the Voice of the Martyrs USA, says, "The Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia--the top Islamic official in the country of Saudi Arabia--has declared that it is "necessary to destroy all the churches of the region.'" Nettleton goes on to note that the report hasn't surfaced anywhere except on the Council on Foreign Relations Web site, which was then picked up by The Atlantic. Ranked second on the Open Doors World Watch List (a compilation of the 50 countries where persecution of Christians is the most severe), the news is not really a surprise. There is no provision for religious freedom in the constitution of this Islamic kingdom. All citizens must adhere to Islam, and conversion to another religion is punishable by death. Public Christian worship is forbidden; worshipers risk imprisonment, lashing, deportation, and torture. Evangelizing Muslims and distributing non-Islamic materials is illegal. Muslims who convert to Christianity risk honor killings and foreign Christian workers have been exposed to abuse from employers. Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah, the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, created an implication with his assertion. Nettleton explains, "This was in a meeting with Kuwaiti officials who came to Saudi Arabia. They were asking this Islamic official ‘What should we do about the churches?' His statement was, ‘There should be no Christian churches on the Arabian peninsula.'" According to the report, the delegation wanted to confirm Sharia's position on churches. Essentially, Nettleton says, "If you have churches in Kuwait, which they do, they should be destroyed. The interesting thing about this is that there are no churches in Saudi Arabia. There are no church buildings that are allowed to exist there. So he clearly wasn't talking only for his own country: he was trying to export this ideology to the surrounding countries." This proclamation could affect churches in Kuwait, Oman, Yemen, Bahrain, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. Nettleton observes that "in most of these countries, we're not talking about a lot of churches; we're talking about a few that are allowed to exist primarily to serve foreigners that are living in that country." However, the UN Human Rights Council has yet to take a stand on such blatant violations of freedom of religion. How the governments implement this declaration is yet to be determined. "Most of these countries would consider their native population to be 100% Muslim. We could see more persecution, we could see churches closed or destroyed. We just kind of wait to see now." The concern raised by this view has not escaped notice of the U.S. Government, though. The most recent International Religious Freedom report (annually issued by the State Department) remarks, "Freedom of religion is neither recognized nor protected under the law and is severely restricted in practice.... The government officially does not permit non-Muslim clergy to enter the country to conduct religious services, although some do so under other auspices and are able to hold services. These entry restrictions make it difficult for non-Muslims to maintain regular contact with clergy. This is particularly problematic for Roman Catholics and Orthodox Christians, whose faiths require that they receive sacraments from a priest on a regular basis." For the most part, says Nettleton, the Mufti's statement will be buried in the mainstream media. However, he's encouraging believers to ask God to continue to intervene. There are Christ followers in Saudi Arabia who "take great risk to follow Jesus Christ. They take great risk to even talk about their faith with another person.
Students try to banish Catholic chaplain from campus for anti-gay stance The Daily Caller – 4 hrs ago Two gay seniors at George Washington University say they feel alienated because the chaplain at George Washington’s Newman Center rejects homosexuality, and they aren’t going to take it anymore.The seniors, Damian Legacy and Blake Bergen, have announced a coordinated campaign to rid the campus of the Roman Catholicpriest, reports The GW Hatchet, the school’s independent student newspaper. They also assert that 12 or more students have quit the Newman Center in recent years because they can’t tolerate Father Greg Shaffer’s ardent anti-gay �“ and, for the record, anti-abortion — beliefs. Shaffer has worked for five years at George Washington’s Newman Center. He told the Hatchet that religion and unrestricted speech “play a vital role at a diverse university like GW.” Legacy and Bergen say they are primarily upset about the counseling Shaffer offers. They say he urges students who have homosexual feelings to lead a life of celibacy. Catholic Church doctrine maintains that homosexual desire isn’t a sin, but acting on that desire is,according to the website Catholic.com. Legacy told the Hatchet that he spent considerable time at the Newman Center during his first two years at George Washington. He was an altar server at mass. He believed that he would become a Catholic priest after graduating. All that changed, though, when Legacy told Shaffer that he and Bergen had entered a homosexual relationship. Shaffer allegedly charged Legacy with being immoral and lacking in faith. “To have my faith leader view me that way, just because of one piece of the way that God made me, and to think that one part is responsible for the destruction of my human dignity, it just didn’t…I can’t even begin to describe the mental conflict that it creates,” Legacy told the Hatchet. The two gay seniors are also unhappy about a blog post Shaffer authored back in May 2012, just after President Barack Obama publicly endorsed gay marriage. “As Vatican II states, God is the author of marriage. He has defined marriage as between a man and a woman,” Shaffer then wrote. “Every single rational person knows that sexual relationships between persons of the same sex are unnatural and immoral. They know it in their hearts.” The plan to oust Shaffer includes the creation of a video containing the statements of several students who have left GW’s Newman Center. That video, Legacy and Bergen hope, will surely arouse the generally left-leaning campus to anger, thus forcing school officials to act. Other aspects of the proposed GW Newman Center insurgency include filing a formal complaint with the administration and conducting a series of prayer vigils outside the center. Legacy and Bergen will also distribute a letter to high-ranking administrators. According to The Hatchet, the letter will cite academic studies connecting homophobic behavior to loss of appetite, insomnia and other detrimental psychological consequences. Finally, Legacy will request that GW’s Student Association defund the Newman Center (which is affiliated with the school but officially part of the Roman Catholic Church). This year, the Center reportedly collected $10,000 in funding. Last semester, Legacy presented a report to the school’s Office for Diversity and Inclusion explaining that other schools, such as New York University, vet and evaluate religious leaders before allowing them to work with campus-affiliated groups.
Chicago are about to close 54 schools for lack of pupils. The Teachers' Union is very unhappy about this. The Teachers' Union is also a strong supporter of abortion rights! Nice to see people prepared to suffer for their convictions, or (more probably) are they just stupid? Turkeys voting for Christmas comes to mind but they might be excused for lack of intelligence.
Well George Washington, like 98% of all Catholic named colleges are very liberal. They most likely will sensor the good priest for teaching the faith in this matter.
That film won't do any good at all, for priests or victims. This is a terrible thing. There has been absolutely no thought for these victims at all.. You know, this is the crucifixion of the Church. Christ went through this and his Bride must follow. Judas betrayed his role as priest and betrayed Christ in the process handing him over to death. pedophiles have betrayed their priestly roles and the Bride of Christ.. The Church will be brought to her knees, she is been swept clean in the process. She will rise triumphant again. Catholics everywhere will get a really difficult time after this film.
Reverend Franco Decaminada stole $4.9m from hospital From:AP April 05, 2013 5:42AM Increase Text Size Decrease Text Size Print Rev. Franco Decaminada, second right, leaves an Italy's financial police barrack after being questioned in Rome. Source: AP ITALIAN police arrested a priest accused of pocketing 4 million euros ($4.9 million) from a Catholic hospital he ran and forced it into bankruptcy. Italy's financial police placed the Reverend Franco Decaminada, who until 2011 was the CEO of the IDI dermatological hospital in Rome, under house arrest. They also detained two other people while seizing a Tuscan villa that police say Rev Decaminada built with stolen money. He is also accused of helping to run up 600 million euros ($769 million) in debts. The plight of 1500 IDI workers who haven't received paychecks for months had prompted Benedict XVI in one of his last acts as pope to name a delegate in February to take over the religious order that owns the hospital to try to bring it back to financial health. But in the end the Vatican refused to provide any financial assistance and last week a Rome court certified the hospital as insolvent. IDI workers have occupied the hospital's management area and are buying food to help needy co-workers while continuing to work without pay in hopes of saving their jobs. "After years of suffering and eight months without salary, we at least have the satisfaction of seeing that justice is starting to work," Bartolomeo Di Gregorio, 56, a biomedical lab technician, said. He welcomed the arrival of Cardinal Giuseppe Versaldi as the papal delegate to head the religious order - the Congregation for the Children of the Immaculate Conception - which runs the hospital, but said in the end it didn't help "because we went into bankruptcy anyway." The problems at the IDI are the latest in a series of financial scandals at Catholic-run health facilities in Italy that, while not directly involving the Vatican, have links to its No. 2, the secretary of state Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone. According to leaked Vatican correspondence, Cardinal Bertone looked into investing money from the Vatican bank into a failing Milan hospital, the San Raffaele, in 2011 after it accumulated millions in debt because of mismanagement. In the end, the hospital went to outside investors. But Cardinal Bertone's apparent interest in building up a Vatican health care network in Italy has been cited as evidence of his own administrative failings in running the Holy See by focusing too much on small Italian problems and not on global church issues. On Thursday, Rev Decaminada's order sought to distance itself from his crimes, saying it was a victim in the case and it was cooperating with investigators. It stressed that "no member of the congregation ever saw or visited the home in Tuscany built by Father Decaminada" and its construction was never authorised.
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