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Yes, Gay Men Should Be Ordained By Thomas J. Gumbleton One major fallout of the current crisis of leadership in the Catholic Church is the scapegoating of homosexual priests and seminarians. One bishop was quoted as saying that his “unscientific conclusion is that most sexual abuse by priests is against adolescent boys and therefore is rooted in societal acceptance of homosexuality.” He went on to draw the bizarre conclusion that there are some fields that should not be open to certain people: “I don’t think drug addicts should be pharmacists, I don’t think alcoholics should be bartenders, I don’t think...

The founding chairman of a panel formed by San Francisco's Roman Catholic Archdiocese to look into allegations of priestly child abuse has resigned from the board, accusing church leaders of "deception, manipulation and control'' for refusing to release the investigation's results. James Jenkins, one of six members of the Independent Review Board and its chairman until last December, said Archbishop William Levada has blocked the release of the panel's findings on sexual-abuse allegations involving 40 priests. At least nine of those priests have agreed to refrain from "public ministry," the archdiocese said Thursday without identifying them. "There has been no...

In a recent Viewpoints column, Rod Dreher asked why Catholic laypersons aren't doing more to fight the sex-abuse crisis inside the church. Here's what our Catholic family has done. We recently launched a Web site – www.VictimPower.org – that makes it possible for victims of abuse or harassment to remain anonymous while communicating back and forth with authorities. VictimPower enables crime victims to create a totally Safe Place – a private account on the Web site that only the victim can access, like a post office box. From the Safe Place, the victim can report what happened and ask VictimPower...

A state appeals court delivered a stinging setback to alleged victims of clergy abuse by ruling that 17 adults who said they were molested by priests as children waited too long to sue. A three-judge panel of the Superior Court said Monday that even if officials of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia were guilty of "inexcusable conduct," they were protected by Pennsylvania's strict statute of limitations, which generally requires lawsuits in such cases to be filed within two years. One of the cases dates back to 1957, and the most recent alleges abuse in 1983. The court rejected the...

Attorneys for both sides in molestation dispute will meet for mediation in 33 civil lawsuits. Lawyers for the Catholic Diocese of Sacramento and attorneys representing 33 people who've claimed clergy sexual abuse begin court-ordered mediation today. Citing a significant gap in insurance coverage, diocesan officials say some of the money to pay for the settlements might have to come from other programs. -snip- George would not disclose the amount he will seek on behalf of his clients. "All I can say is it will be substantial," he said. He added that plaintiffs should not be used as "scapegoats" for diocesan...

A Pennsylvania priest who lived at a Catholic church in West Orange in December and January was charged yesterday with possession of child pornography in Monroe County, Pa. The Rev. Virgil Bradley Tetherow, 40, of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Scranton, Pa., allegedly downloaded images of child pornography onto a computer used by a secretary at the St. Ann's Catholic Church rectory in Tobyhanna, Pa., while visiting there in January, authorities said. Tetherow, who lived at St. Ann's for most of 2004, admitted to the allegation, according to detective Kenneth Lanning of the Pocono Mountain Regional Police in an affidavit...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Roman Catholic leaders said Friday they received 1,092 new abuse claims against American priests and deacons last year, even after they had already paid more than $800 million in settlements during the long-running crisis over predatory clergy. Bishops said, however, that the flood of fresh allegations was not a sign abuse was rampant in parishes today. Most of the alleged incidents occurred decades ago and nearly three-quarters of the 756 accused clerics had died, been defrocked or been removed from public ministry before the claims were made in 2004, church leaders said. Still, the financial fallout continues....

A whistleblower Catholic priest who says his bishop is persecuting him because of his activism against homosexuals in the priesthood appeared yesterday in front of an ecclesiastical court near Catholic University. The Rev. James Haley, 48, a priest in the Diocese of Arlington, appeared before a panel of judges and canon lawyers for a final hearing in a case brought against him by Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde. The case has lasted more than three years.

During the height of the U.S. homosexual priest sex abuse scandal several years ago, Catholic News Service writer John Thavis revealed the largely unknown fact that in 1961 Pope John XXIII had approved in writing a ban on homosexual ordinations to the priesthood. Thavis said he was told the ban contained in this 1961 document is still in effect. The document was entiltled "Careful Selection and Training of Candidates for the States of Perfection and Sacred Orders", published by the Vatican's Sacred Congregation for Religious. At the time of its publication, the document was referred to by the Sacred Congregation...