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From [0]: > Rev. Robert Prevost bears responsibility for allowing former Providence Catholic H.S. President and priest Richard McGrath to stay at the high scho

From [0]: > Rev. Robert Prevost bears responsibility for allowing former Providence Catholic H.S. President and priest Richard McGrath to stay at the high school amidst sex abuse allegations that dated back to the 1990s. > That's according to Eduardo Lopez de Casas, a clergy abuse survivor and national vice president of the Chicago-based Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP). [0]: https://willcountygazette.com/stories/671124585-if-he-saw-and-stayed-silent-he-s-not-a https://willcountygazette.com/stories/671124585-if-he-saw-an...

matthewmacleod 1y ago
Yes, but find a catholic priest who doesn’t share that responsibility.
- Boogie_Man 1y ago
  There are several important American bishops who have made serious strides to protect children. This is an ignorant statement.
  - bitshiftfaced 1y ago
    I'm just looking at this out of statistical curiosity: of these bishops you mention, were they in a position in the hierarchy that would be subject to this responsibility during the 80s or 90s? They always select popes that have been high up in the hierarchy for a while. Not that they have to select cardinals, but it takes that much to be a cardinal no less.
  - matthewmacleod 1y ago
    It's not, really; the Catholic Church (among most other religious orders) routinely prioritises self-preservation over the safety of children. If we were to use "was in proximity to allegations of child abuse and didn't act on it" as a barometer for who was permitted to ascent to the papacy, we'd have a pretty small pool to choose from.
    - Boogie_Man 1y ago
      Your statement which I responded to was "find a catholic priest who doesn’t share that responsibility". If you pick a random one, odds are they don't.
    - dfxm12 1y ago
      That's probably a sufficient enough pool though.
    - deleted 1y ago
      [deleted]
    - luckydata 1y ago
      every human organization will do that
    - deleted 1y ago
      [deleted]
  - Henchman21 1y ago
    [flagged]
    - Boogie_Man 1y ago
      I am not Catholic and priests should be permitted to marry. The zeitgeist is inaccurate. Sexual abuse and subsequent cover ups were a massive problem that has largely been addressed, but the numbers of offenders are proportionally lower than those in public schools. From wikipedia: "Hofstra University researcher Charol Shakeshaft, the author of a 2002 report on sexual offenses in schools, said sexual violence is much more prevalent in schools than in the Church.[315] Ernie Allen, former president of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, stated: "we don't see the Catholic Church as a hotbed of this [sexual abuse and pedophilia] or as a place that has a bigger problem [with this issue] than anyone else."[316]"
      - ImJamal 1y ago
        > I am not Catholic and priests should be permitted to marry Doesn't seem likely since none of the Churches that existed prior to the Protestant Reformation allow it. All of the ancient churches, including the Catholic Church, do allow men who are already married to become priests. The rules are more strict for Catholics than the others.
        pqtyw 1y ago
        > All of the ancient churches, including the Catholic Church, do allow men who are already married to become priests. Certainly not in general. You either have to be Eastern or Greek Catholic, Anglican/Episcopal convert etc. Overwhelming majority don't have that option.
        Loughla 1y ago
        Wait what am I missing? Catholic priests who were married before becoming priests is a thing. Our local priest is married with kids and grandkids.
- CalChris 1y ago
  The operative word was amidst.
jordanb 1y ago
[flagged]
- lostlogin 1y ago
  ‘I was only following orders.’
  - anon291 1y ago
    A lot of the church abuse scandal happened during a couple of decades when the church's handling of the cases were the result of following the then scientific consensus on the matter. The church was not alone in this. The scientists told us they could be reformed. Just look up the history of what was going on in Germany following the same advice. It's a relatively new thing where we just declare pedophiles unfixable and jail them. In the past, the social scientists told us that it was the result of the environment. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/07/26/the-german-experiment-that-placed-foster-children-with-pedophiles https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/07/26/the-german-exp...
    - watwut 1y ago
      It was not about them being reformed or not. It was about protecting the institution from bad PR without care for victims.
    - lostlogin 1y ago
      The church following scientific consensus? That would be amazing.
    - magicalist 1y ago
      > A lot of the church abuse scandal happened during a couple of decades when the church's handling of the cases were the result of following the then scientific consensus on the matter. The church was not alone in this. The scientists told us they could be reformed. That is not what happened though. Is there any evidence that the church decided that it would hide and cover up accusations of abuse and move clergy around to avoid them being charged and convicted because that was the "scientific consensus"? Certainly many within the church believed they could reform the abusers in their midst, but that's a wholly different statement than claiming the coverups, which are what's being discussed here, were due to this belief and not that they were merely protecting their own and putting their own judgement above the legal system in which they lived.
BJones12 1y ago
Seeing as he's now head of a religion that believes none of us is perfect (Romans 3:23) it's unsurprising to think someone may allege that he is not perfect.
- eldaisfish 1y ago
  bad faith response. No one, from any religion, should directly or indirectly support crimes against minors. If people really cared about kids, we would protect them from sexual abuse from priests and prosecute priests via the legal system.
  - BJones12 1y ago
    > If people really cared about kids, we would... prosecute priests via the legal system. Prevost has literally said to alleged victims that they should go to the police.
    - Capricorn2481 1y ago
      So he "literally" said he won't do anything about it until children can muster the courage and resources to prove in court they were abused. This is "why didn't she go to the police" for children. The police are not to be trusted, certainly not to against the Catholic Church.
      - anon291 1y ago
        Then who should investigate? The church cannot do anything to anyone they investigate other than 'order' them to remain in a monastery (which, they can leave at anytime since this is a free country and church rules are not law).
        BJones12 1y ago
        [flagged]
pdabbadabba 1y ago
Here's a somewhat different description of the situation, which I found useful: "[A] priest convicted of sexual abuse of minors was allowed to stay at an Augustinian priory near an elementary school and continue functions as a priest until later removed, and then laicized in 2012. However, Prevost is said to have never authorized that particular situation, the priest was not an Augustinian, and it took place before the Dallas Charter." https://collegeofcardinalsreport.com/cardinals/robert-francis-prevost/ https://collegeofcardinalsreport.com/cardinals/robert-franci... Edit: There is also this discussion of an incident in Peru: "More recently, questions were raised about Prevost’s knowledge and handling of abuse allegations in his former Diocese of Chiclayo. Two priests were accused of molesting three young girls, with the allegations surfacing in April 2022 during Prevost’s tenure as bishop. The case has been a source of frustration for local Catholics due to its slow progress and unclear resolution. "Some accusers have claimed Prevost failed to properly investigate the allegations and covered up for the accused priest, but the diocese has firmly denied this, stating that Prevost followed proper procedures. They stated that Prevost personally received and attended to the victims, and reportedly opened an initial canonical investigation. He also encouraged the victims to take the case to the civil authorities. In July 2022, Prevost sent the results of the investigation to the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) for review. His supporters stress that he has documents from the DDF and the Papal Nunciature in Peru which also indicate that he was not only attentive to the presumed victims, but that he did all required in Church law in following procedures set out for these cases.4 "However, in May 2025 allegations emerged that the diocese paid $150,000 to the three girls to silence them. Described as “longtime public critics of Prevost,” the girls reportedly blame Prevost for covering up their sexual abuse by the priest. "The allegations, reported in InfoVaticana, described the Peruvian scandal, which was the subject of a national television report including an interview with the girls last fall, as the “stone in the shoe for Cardinal Prevost.”
- rollinDyno 1y ago
  It's worth mentioning that defenders of Prevost in Peru are saying that those allegations were manufactured by his political enemies. Prevost was active in the fight against the Sodalitium, a catholic society with ample accusations of brainwashing and sexual abuse. This society was recently supressed by Bergoglio.
csomar 1y ago
Wouldn't that make him more aligned with the current US administration? sadly only partly /s. That being said, people in position of power are a high target of such accusations, so I'd wait for something more proofed.

matthewmacleod 1y ago

Yes, but find a catholic priest who doesn’t share that responsibility.

Boogie_Man 1y ago
There are several important American bishops who have made serious strides to protect children. This is an ignorant statement.
- bitshiftfaced 1y ago
  I'm just looking at this out of statistical curiosity: of these bishops you mention, were they in a position in the hierarchy that would be subject to this responsibility during the 80s or 90s? They always select popes that have been high up in the hierarchy for a while. Not that they have to select cardinals, but it takes that much to be a cardinal no less.
- matthewmacleod 1y ago
  It's not, really; the Catholic Church (among most other religious orders) routinely prioritises self-preservation over the safety of children. If we were to use "was in proximity to allegations of child abuse and didn't act on it" as a barometer for who was permitted to ascent to the papacy, we'd have a pretty small pool to choose from.
  - Boogie_Man 1y ago
    Your statement which I responded to was "find a catholic priest who doesn’t share that responsibility". If you pick a random one, odds are they don't.
  - dfxm12 1y ago
    That's probably a sufficient enough pool though.
  - deleted 1y ago
    [deleted]
  - luckydata 1y ago
    every human organization will do that
  - deleted 1y ago
    [deleted]
- Henchman21 1y ago
  [flagged]
  - Boogie_Man 1y ago
    I am not Catholic and priests should be permitted to marry. The zeitgeist is inaccurate. Sexual abuse and subsequent cover ups were a massive problem that has largely been addressed, but the numbers of offenders are proportionally lower than those in public schools. From wikipedia: "Hofstra University researcher Charol Shakeshaft, the author of a 2002 report on sexual offenses in schools, said sexual violence is much more prevalent in schools than in the Church.[315] Ernie Allen, former president of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, stated: "we don't see the Catholic Church as a hotbed of this [sexual abuse and pedophilia] or as a place that has a bigger problem [with this issue] than anyone else."[316]"
    - ImJamal 1y ago
      > I am not Catholic and priests should be permitted to marry Doesn't seem likely since none of the Churches that existed prior to the Protestant Reformation allow it. All of the ancient churches, including the Catholic Church, do allow men who are already married to become priests. The rules are more strict for Catholics than the others.
      - pqtyw 1y ago
        > All of the ancient churches, including the Catholic Church, do allow men who are already married to become priests. Certainly not in general. You either have to be Eastern or Greek Catholic, Anglican/Episcopal convert etc. Overwhelming majority don't have that option.
        Loughla 1y ago
        Wait what am I missing? Catholic priests who were married before becoming priests is a thing. Our local priest is married with kids and grandkids.
CalChris 1y ago
The operative word was amidst.

jordanb 1y ago

[flagged]

lostlogin 1y ago
‘I was only following orders.’
- anon291 1y ago
  A lot of the church abuse scandal happened during a couple of decades when the church's handling of the cases were the result of following the then scientific consensus on the matter. The church was not alone in this. The scientists told us they could be reformed. Just look up the history of what was going on in Germany following the same advice. It's a relatively new thing where we just declare pedophiles unfixable and jail them. In the past, the social scientists told us that it was the result of the environment. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/07/26/the-german-experiment-that-placed-foster-children-with-pedophiles https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/07/26/the-german-exp...
  - watwut 1y ago
    It was not about them being reformed or not. It was about protecting the institution from bad PR without care for victims.
  - lostlogin 1y ago
    The church following scientific consensus? That would be amazing.
  - magicalist 1y ago
    > A lot of the church abuse scandal happened during a couple of decades when the church's handling of the cases were the result of following the then scientific consensus on the matter. The church was not alone in this. The scientists told us they could be reformed. That is not what happened though. Is there any evidence that the church decided that it would hide and cover up accusations of abuse and move clergy around to avoid them being charged and convicted because that was the "scientific consensus"? Certainly many within the church believed they could reform the abusers in their midst, but that's a wholly different statement than claiming the coverups, which are what's being discussed here, were due to this belief and not that they were merely protecting their own and putting their own judgement above the legal system in which they lived.

BJones12 1y ago

Seeing as he's now head of a religion that believes none of us is perfect (Romans 3:23) it's unsurprising to think someone may allege that he is not perfect.

eldaisfish 1y ago
bad faith response. No one, from any religion, should directly or indirectly support crimes against minors. If people really cared about kids, we would protect them from sexual abuse from priests and prosecute priests via the legal system.
- BJones12 1y ago
  > If people really cared about kids, we would... prosecute priests via the legal system. Prevost has literally said to alleged victims that they should go to the police.
  - Capricorn2481 1y ago
    So he "literally" said he won't do anything about it until children can muster the courage and resources to prove in court they were abused. This is "why didn't she go to the police" for children. The police are not to be trusted, certainly not to against the Catholic Church.
    - anon291 1y ago
      Then who should investigate? The church cannot do anything to anyone they investigate other than 'order' them to remain in a monastery (which, they can leave at anytime since this is a free country and church rules are not law).
      - BJones12 1y ago
        [flagged]

pdabbadabba 1y ago

Here's a somewhat different description of the situation, which I found useful: "[A] priest convicted of sexual abuse of minors was allowed to stay at an Augustinian priory near an elementary school and continue functions as a priest until later removed, and then laicized in 2012. However, Prevost is said to have never authorized that particular situation, the priest was not an Augustinian, and it took place before the Dallas Charter." https://collegeofcardinalsreport.com/cardinals/robert-francis-prevost/ https://collegeofcardinalsreport.com/cardinals/robert-franci... Edit: There is also this discussion of an incident in Peru: "More recently, questions were raised about Prevost’s knowledge and handling of abuse allegations in his former Diocese of Chiclayo. Two priests were accused of molesting three young girls, with the allegations surfacing in April 2022 during Prevost’s tenure as bishop. The case has been a source of frustration for local Catholics due to its slow progress and unclear resolution. "Some accusers have claimed Prevost failed to properly investigate the allegations and covered up for the accused priest, but the diocese has firmly denied this, stating that Prevost followed proper procedures. They stated that Prevost personally received and attended to the victims, and reportedly opened an initial canonical investigation. He also encouraged the victims to take the case to the civil authorities. In July 2022, Prevost sent the results of the investigation to the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) for review. His supporters stress that he has documents from the DDF and the Papal Nunciature in Peru which also indicate that he was not only attentive to the presumed victims, but that he did all required in Church law in following procedures set out for these cases.4 "However, in May 2025 allegations emerged that the diocese paid $150,000 to the three girls to silence them. Described as “longtime public critics of Prevost,” the girls reportedly blame Prevost for covering up their sexual abuse by the priest. "The allegations, reported in InfoVaticana, described the Peruvian scandal, which was the subject of a national television report including an interview with the girls last fall, as the “stone in the shoe for Cardinal Prevost.”

rollinDyno 1y ago
It's worth mentioning that defenders of Prevost in Peru are saying that those allegations were manufactured by his political enemies. Prevost was active in the fight against the Sodalitium, a catholic society with ample accusations of brainwashing and sexual abuse. This society was recently supressed by Bergoglio.

csomar 1y ago

Wouldn't that make him more aligned with the current US administration? sadly only partly /s. That being said, people in position of power are a high target of such accusations, so I'd wait for something more proofed.