Dolan
Dolan Sought to Protect Church Assets, Files Show .....
Files released by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee on Monday reveal that in 2007, Cardinal Timothy F. Dolan, then the archbishop there, requested permission from the Vatican to move nearly $57 million into a cemetery trust fund to protect the assets from victims of clergy sexual abuse who were demanding compensation ... files contain a 2007 letter to the Vatican in which he explains that by transferring the assets, “I foresee an improved protection of these funds from any legal claim and liability.” The Vatican approved the request in five weeks, the files show.
Yes, we're talking about the leader of the US Catholic Bishops, a Cardinal. What he appears to have done is a crime - federal bankruptcy fraud. Though many seem to like Dolan because of his apparently jovial nature, I don't. The mean-spiritedness with which he's battled gay rights is well-known (Gay Marriage: New York, not North Korea), he's a signatory of the Manhattan Declaration, his dealings with the sex abuse problem have been checkered at best, and he's no friend to the future possibility of married priests or women's ordination (interview on 60 Minutes).
Some background on Dolan's shifting of the money .... Victims caught up in Milwaukee's 'shell game', NCR
Files released by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee on Monday reveal that in 2007, Cardinal Timothy F. Dolan, then the archbishop there, requested permission from the Vatican to move nearly $57 million into a cemetery trust fund to protect the assets from victims of clergy sexual abuse who were demanding compensation ... files contain a 2007 letter to the Vatican in which he explains that by transferring the assets, “I foresee an improved protection of these funds from any legal claim and liability.” The Vatican approved the request in five weeks, the files show.
Yes, we're talking about the leader of the US Catholic Bishops, a Cardinal. What he appears to have done is a crime - federal bankruptcy fraud. Though many seem to like Dolan because of his apparently jovial nature, I don't. The mean-spiritedness with which he's battled gay rights is well-known (Gay Marriage: New York, not North Korea), he's a signatory of the Manhattan Declaration, his dealings with the sex abuse problem have been checkered at best, and he's no friend to the future possibility of married priests or women's ordination (interview on 60 Minutes).
Some background on Dolan's shifting of the money .... Victims caught up in Milwaukee's 'shell game', NCR
posted by crystal | 3:29 PM
11 Comments:
I visited. No thank you. I'm leaving....to go shower.
I wonder how the media are going to handle this news about Dolan--whether his influential handlers will lean on many media outlets to soft-sell the news. No matter what he does or says, he seems like Teflon. They just keep presenting him as that jovial, avuncular defender of Catholic values who wouldn't hurt a fly!
Sickening.
Hi William,
Yes, I agree. I think what it will take is for Catholics, lay people and clergy, to make him be accountable - non-Catholics will worry about being thought anti-Catholic. Even now in the news, many of the stories on this don't even mention the hiding of the money.
I wonder how close he came to becoming Pope. I think he made a serious run at it.
Scary thought. I think he's still very popular among other clergy.
SNAP EXPOSED: Unmasking the Crystal – on what basis should I believe that S.N.A.P or the NCR is more credible than this organization?
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests
http://www.catholicleague.org/snap-exposed-unmasking-the-survivors-network-of-those-abused-by-priests/
Oops... Pasting error
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Crystal – on what basis should I believe that S.N.A.P or the NCR is more credible than this organization?
SNAP EXPOSED: Unmasking the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests
http://www.catholicleague.org/snap-exposed-unmasking-the-survivors-network-of-those-abused-by-priests/
Henry,
I don't actually know very much about SNAP - I'll read the link - but in this case, Cardinal Dolan is damned by his own letter, a letter among documents released by the church so that they can file for bankruptcy.
Hi Crystal!
Pardon the delay but I was away. I have no doubt that people are capable of doing unprincipled things but my point is, I suggest that if you are interested in trying to understand what might have happened I think it’s wise that a person read both articles from the “left” and from the “right”. Of course, it’s almost impossible to know what actually happened but reading only one side and presuming that they are being completely truthful seems to be unreasonable to me. What do you think.
Here’s some more information on I found about SNAP – I don’t know if it’s any more true that what the NCR says but it certainly is interesting. (Just like reading anti-Catholic literature can be interesting!)
http://www.themediareport.com/2013/05/30/barbara-blaine-exclusive-snap-founder/
http://www.themediareport.com/2012/12/04/david-clohessy-snap-dishonesty/
http://www.themediareport.com/2012/09/28/exclusive-w-court-docs-after-snap-flouts-court-orders/
http://www.themediareport.com/2012/06/11/its-not-really-about-sex-abuse-more-proof-of-snaps-hidden-agenda/
Hi Henry,
Thanks for the links. I looked at them and they do show that SNAP has made some mistakes and that their claims should be carefully examined. I think, though, that overall they've been helpful in the sex abuse crisis, and that the church has made a strong effort to discredit them in order to move the focus from their own crimes .... http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/13/us/catholic-church-pressures-victims-network-with-subpoenas.html?pagewanted=1&nl=todaysheadlines&emc=edit_th_20120313&_r=0
I actually think that the Boston Globe articles published long ago were the most help. And I could agree that SNAP, in the beginning was trying to really help the victims, but I am not sure that's the case now.
And, of course, I do believe it is a possibility that Cardinal Dolan may have done what he did to protect the assets of the diocese but I just don't know.
Regrettably, we human beings are not really interested in justice (or truth) even though we like to pretend that we are because if we were we wouldn't have sweatshops, violation of privacy laws, etc.
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