Tag: Catholic Church

Posted on

News Round-Up: December 26, 2018

Do not forget to watch the Kennedy Center Honors tonight on CBS at 8pm as Cher, Philip Glass, Reba McEntire, and Wayne Shorter receive the 41st Annual Kennedy Center Honors. Hamilton co-creators Lin-Manuel Miranda, Thomas Kail, Andy Blankenbuehler, and Alex Lacamoire receive a special Honors for groundbreaking work.
The 2018 Kennedy Center Honors air tonight on CBS at 8pm

Some news items you might have missed:

• Do not forget to watch the Kennedy Center Honors tonight on CBS at 8pm as Cher, Philip Glass, Reba McEntire, and Wayne Shorter receive the 41st Annual Kennedy Center Honors.

Hamilton co-creators Lin-Manuel Miranda, Thomas Kail, Andy Blankenbuehler, and Alex Lacamoire receive a special Honors for groundbreaking work.

• An unhinged Catholic priest claimed Satan designed the Pride flag.

• Legal pot was a popular Christmas gift in California this year as cannabis businesses reported up to 5x normal foot traffic in the days leading up to the holiday.

• House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi trolled Donald Trump and his infamous wall telling USA Today he’s now shifted from a concrete structure to “a beaded curtain or something.”

• The transgender teen who was bullied by an assistant principal in a bathroom speaks to the press about the hideous experience.

• A new USA Today/Suffolk University poll asked Democratic and Independent voters who would excited them the most in the 2020 presidential race.

“Someone entirely new” garnered 59%, followed closely by former Vice President Joe Biden (who is the exact opposite of that) at 53%.

Posted on

Priest Fired For ‘Liking’ A Facebook Photo Of Same-Sex Wedding

Keith Kozak (screen capture)

Keith Kozak, the now-former outreach minister for the Catholic Discese of Cleveland, finds himself unemployed after liking a photo of a same-sex wedding on Facebook.

Showing up for a Human Resources appointment, Kozak though the meeting would be about a promotion. Instead, he got quite the opposite.

“When they called me in, I was thinking it had something to do with that,” Kozak said. “They sat me down and they said we had seen some things on Facebook and Twitter and that would like to talk to you about that.”

The next day he received a termination letter.

The 39-year-old admits he wasn’t out at work. “I didn’t feel comfortable doing it, but I also thought it wasn’t important at the time,” said Kozak.

Saying the Church had been “very discriminatory,” Kozak took his case to the Ohio Civil Rights Commission.

Keith Kozak (screen capture)

Just last month, Cuyahoga County added sexual orientation and gender identity to its protected classes.

But in this case, it appears the Catholic Church may be exempt from following those laws.

From the local ABC news affiliate:

While the organization didn’t specifically comment on his case, a spokesperson told News 5 the Cleveland Diocese might be within its rights, citing “ministerial exception.” It prohibits clergy members from bringing claims under federal discrimination laws because the relationship between an organized church and its ministers is its lifeblood.

“It’s a wake-up call for me, it’s a wake-up call that I didn’t really realize the Catholic Church would act like this,” said Kozak.

For its part, the Catholic Church issued a statement saying it doesn’t make public comments on personnel decisions, but is confident Kozak’s firing was “appropriate.”

Posted on

Diocese Of Brooklyn To Pay $27.5 Million To 4 Men In Sex Abuse Settlement

The New York Times reports that the Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn will pay out $27.5 million to four men who were sexually abused as children by a religion teacher. Each of the men will receive $6.8 million according to the settlement.
(image via Wikimedia)

The New York Times reports that the Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn will pay out $27.5 million to four men who were sexually abused as children by a religion teacher.

According to the settlement, each of the men will receive $6.8 million.

That amount ranks as one of the highest figures paid to survivors of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church.

According to New York Law Journal, Angelo Serrano, a volunteer and director of religious studies at St. Lucy-St. Patrick’s, allegedly abused the plaintiffs between 2003 and 2009 when they were between the ages of 8 and 12 years old.

Serrano pleaded guilty in 2011 and is currently serving a 15 year prison sentence.

This comes in the aftermath of a stunning grand jury report in Pennsylvania which found more than 1,000 children had been the targets of sexual misconduct by hundreds of priests over decades.

Sparked in part by that grand jury report, the New York State attorney general announced two weeks ago a statewide civil investigation into sex abuse allegations within the Catholic Church and its possible cover-up by church leaders. The New York AG has reportedly issued subpoenas to every Catholic diocese in the state.

Posted on

To Avoid The Gays, Catholic Charities Of Buffalo Ends Adoptions

 The Catholic Charities of Buffalo has announced the organization will end its adoption and foster care services because Jesus.

New York state law bans discrimination against same-sex couples when it comes to adoption or foster care, but the Catholic Church’s position is that marriage is only between a man and a woman.

“We’re a Catholic organization, so we have to practice what we do consistent with the teaching of the church,” Dennis C. Walczyk, the chief executive officer of Catholic Charities, told The Buffalo News.

The issue came to a head when a same-sex couple recently filed an application to become adoptive foster parents. Rather than place a homeless child with a loving couple, Catholic Charities chose to shut down.

It’s worth noting that this is the same Catholic Church which is currently facing enormous scandal in neighboring Pennsylvania where a two year grand jury investigation revealed over 300 priests sexually abused over 1,000 children across 7 decades.

The state issued a statement underscoring its commitment to allowing ALL families to take part in foster care and adoption programs.

“In New York State, we welcome all families who are ready to provide loving and nurturing homes to foster or adoptive children,” said Children and Family Services spokeswoman Monica Mahaffey. “There is no place for providers that choose not to follow the law.”

There are currently 34 children in 24 of the the Catholic Charities certified foster homes. Those children will eventually be transferred to the auspices of another agency.

Sadly, those couples in the middle of the adoption process will be forced to begin again with a new agency.

In this day and age, its utterly ridiculous that an organization that alleges to care for children can’t somehow find a middle ground on this issue.

The editorial board of The Buffalo News agrees, writing:

It is a shame that the church cannot find a way to bridge this chasm, which will eventually open in every state. Does placing a child with a same-sex couple necessarily mean that the church endorses same-sex marriage? Surely there are differences between approving of such unions and simply acknowledging the fact of them. And isn’t any child better off with a loving family that wants to provide its support?

It’s clear the Catholic Church’s answer to those questions is ‘no.’

It seems it’s better to leave children homeless than allow a same-sex couple to offer their love and shelter.

Because… that’s what Jesus would have wanted?

Posted on

Pennsylvania: Clergy Abuse Hotline Calls Surge In Aftermath Of Catholic Church Report

In the week since the release of a damning grand jury report asserting Roman Catholic Church officials worked to protect hundreds of priests accused of sexual misconduct, calls to a clergy abuse hotline in Pennsylvania have surged.

In the week since the release of a damning grand jury report asserting Roman Catholic Church officials worked to protect hundreds of priests accused of sexual misconduct, calls to a clergy abuse hotline in Pennsylvania have surged.

Josh Grace, a spokesman for Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro, told USA Today that that the hotline has received over 300 new calls since the release of the report.

Grace added, “We’re answering every call and following up every lead.”

According to the grand jury report, which included claims of abuse stretching back 60 years, over 1,000 abuse victims were discouraged from reporting claims of abuse to prosecutors in an effort to shield hundreds of priests.

AG Shapiro tweeted recently that the investigation was “active and ongoing,” and would not end with the grand jury report.

The grand jury report, the result of a two year investigation, was presented to the press last Wednesday by AG Shapiro who deemed the report an “honest and comprehensive accounting of widespread sexual abuse.”

According to the report, the alleged abuses stretched across the Keystone state from the dioceses of Allentown, Erie, Greensburg, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh and Scranton. Those dioceses regularly minister to more than 1.7 million Catholics.

Despite the statute of limitations, two priests have now been charged with sexually abusing children. One of the priests admitted to misconduct with a 10-year-old boy more than 20 years ago.

The Vatican has since condemned the alleged abuses detailed in the report on as “criminal and morally reprehensible.”

“Those acts were betrayals of trust that robbed survivors of their dignity and faith,” said spokesman Greg Burke in a statement for the Vatican. “The church must learn hard lessons from its past, and there should be accountability for both abusers and those who permitted abuse to occur.”

Posted on

Archdiocese Declares Bankruptcy Saving Assets From Molestation Abuse Lawsuits

The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis has filed for bankruptcy protecting millions in assets from molestation abuse lawsuits.

Via the Star Tribune:

The move freezes lawsuits against the church, protecting the archdiocese from creditors while allowing it to develop a reorganization plan. It also halts three abuse trials scheduled to begin Jan. 26.

The archdiocese is facing more than 20 lawsuits, with another 100 pending.

[snip]

Not everyone welcomed the move, including Twin Cities victims’ attorney Patrick Noaker, whose client’s lawsuit against the Rev. Thomas Stitts was to go to trial Jan. 26. He said he was disappointed “the archdiocese chose to file bankruptcy rather than have the facts exposed at trial.”

“Bankruptcies do not protect kids,” said Noaker in a written statement. “Trials and disclosures help protect kids. The Archdiocese’s bankruptcy filing just one week before officials would have to testify in a public court with television cameras is not the conduct of an organization committed to transparency and protecting kids.”

Posted on

News Round-up: October 16, 2014

Billy Porter authors new off-Broadway play to strong reviews

Some stories you may have missed:

• Tony Award winner Billy Porter (Kinky Boots) debuts first play off-Broadway to strong reviews

• Shia LaBeouf says he was arrested at Broadway’s Cabaret because he couldn’t stop himself from grabbing star Alan Cumming’s ass saying “He’s the sexiest man I’ve ever seen”

• The Vatican calls for the Catholic Church to welcome and accept gays

• Stephen Sondheim says he’s working on a new musical based on two surrealist films by late Spanish director Luis Buñuel

• Out pro soccer player Robbie Rogers get sitcom based on his life green-lit by ABC

• HBO announced plans to allow streaming video subscriptions to the network in 2015 via internet without cable or satellite service

• New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner released the findings of it’s report concluding Joan Rivers died due to brain damage from to lack of oxygen.

• After going public with his Alzheimer’s diagnosis a few years ago, Glen Campbell has released his last single, “I’m Not Gonna Miss You”

Posted on

Stephen Colbert On Alaska’s Same-Sex Marriages

Stephen Colbert covered the recent news regarding marriage equality last night highlighting the latest state to join the majority – Alaska.

“Gay marriage is legal in Alaska! Gay couples will have the right to celebrate the traditional Alaskan way – by having Bristol Palin cold-cock one of their guests.”

Colbert also covered the new attitude the Vatican seems to have about the gays.

Posted on

Archdiocese of Cincinnati throws cold water on ALS Ice Bucket Challenge

The Archdiocese of Cincinnati says it doesn’t have an issue with the ice bucket challenge that’s currently raising millions for ALS research.

The problem is the organization that’s receiving the funds:

“The beneficiary of the ice-bucket challenge funds a study using embryonic stem cells, which can only be obtained by destroying embryonic life. For that reason, we have determined that our schools should not raise money for the ALS Association, and should instead – if they wish – donate to another organization doing ALS research,” the Archdiocese wrote in a prepared statement.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a disease that leaves the victim’s mind unaffected, but attacks the nervous system leaving the victim unable to move.

Participants in the ice-bucket challenge film themselves pouring buckets of ice water over their head, post the video to social media websites and challenge others to do the same, or to donate money to the ALS Association.  Over $31 million has been raised in recent weeks since the viral craze began.