Render Unto Rome_ The Secret Life of Money in the Catholic Church - Jason Berry [215]
16. Ed Housewright and Brooks Egerton, “Kos Jury Awards $119 Million,” Dallas Morning News, July 25, 1997. On the settlement particulars, see the 1998 Statement of Windle Turley, Attorney, & The Plaintiffs, at www.bishopaccountability.org. Bishop Charles Grahmann issued an apology by the Dallas diocese to Kos’s victims and agreed to a sex abuse risk audit. In 1999 the Vatican sent a coadjutor bishop, Joseph Galante, to take Grahmann’s place. But Grahmann refused to leave. A November 16, 2002, Dallas Morning News editorial called for Grahmann’s departure:
His misjudgments have cost the diocese millions of dollars in payments to abuse victims and in legal fees, and they threaten to cost it still more. It has become apparent that many Catholics feel alienated from the church and are reacting by withholding financial contributions to it … Bishop Grahmann’s most recent misstep is his handling of an incident involving the rector of the cathedral, about which the Dallas Morning News reported on Monday. A 58-year-old man alleges that the rector sexually abused him 11 years ago. Bishop Grahmann allowed the rector to continue in ministry even though the rector acknowledged “inappropriate contact” with the man and resumed psychological counseling about “boundary issues,” according to a diocesan spokesman. He allowed him to continue even though a policy that he installed to prevent and to manage such scandals, and that he touts as a model, declares that sexual misconduct “will not be tolerated under any circumstances” and defines sexual misconduct as “any kind of sexual interaction between a celibate cleric and an adult, whether initiated by one or the other, and whether or not consensual.”
But that’s not all. Bishop Grahmann allowed his representatives to publicly assign to the man impure motives for his accusation, thereby possibly discouraging other possible victims from coming forward. He did not ask lay and personnel review boards to review his handling of the matter. And he did not consult with co-adjutor Bishop Joseph Galante, who has criticized his handling of the matter.
17. McDaid was not alone in his attitude about the sex education films. In 1988, when I interviewed people at St. Luke Institute, the films had stirred a minor controversy; the hospital director refused to let me view the films. The late Reverend Michael Peterson, M.D., the hospital founder, was emphatic about their benefits. So were staffers. See Jason Berry, Lead Us Not into Temptation (New York, 1992), p. 202.
18. Richard Owen, “Archbishop of Vienna Accuses One of Pope’s Closest Aides of Abuse Cover-up,” Times (London), May 10, 2010.
19. On the Groër scandal and Vatican response, see Berry and Renner, Vows of Silence, pp. 227–32.
20. George Weigel, Witness to Hope: The Biography of Pope John Paul II (New York, 1999), p. 282.
21. Conde and Murray, The Legion of Christ, p. 269.
22. Torres Robles, La prodigiosa aventura de los Legionarios de Cristo, p. 60.
23. Jose de Cordoba, “With Elite Backing, Catholic Order Has Pull in Mexico,” Wall Street Journal, January 23, 2006.
24. Brian J. Lowney, “The Mystery in Rhode Island,” Rhode Island Catholic, July 30, 2009.
25. Objection of Mary Lou Dauray to Motions to Quash, In Re: Estate of Gabrielle D. Mee, no. 20090029, Probate Court, the Town of Smithfield, State of Rhode Island, Providence, SC, July 31, 2009.
26. Dave Altimari, “Will Has Heir of Secrecy: Legionaries of Christ,” Hartford Courant, June 28, 2009.
27. Ibid.
28. Estate of Gabrielle D. Mee (A/K/A Gabrielle Malvina Mee), no. 20090029, Probate Court, the Town of Smithfield, State of Rhode Island, Providence, SC, 2008.
29. John L. Allen Jr., Opus Dei: An Objective Look Behind the Myths and Reality