But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh! Matthew 18:6-7

ARTICLES OF INTEREST
Diocese's policy is just plain wrong On the state level, we need laws to compel these actions. "The clergy is not above the law. A crime is a crime,'' Albany diocese keeps problem priests on the job The Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany has allowed priests to remain working even though an internal investigation determined they were guilty of sexual misconduct with minors, diocesan officials said. In addition, the diocese acknowledged it has paid out hundreds of thousands of dollars to settle abuse claims. Child abuse priest housed by Church "It is absolute hypocrisy that the Church should be giving solace to this man and yet his victims like myself have had to fight tooth and nail for everything. Paedophile priest to be freed The Church came under fire when it was revealed Father Hill had been allowed to work as a priest in 1985 at Gatwick, although his licence had been revoked due to concerns over his behaviour. UK Church 'ignoring rules' on abuse Since 1996, six priests have been convicted of child abuse. In each case, the church knew of previous allegations. Paedophile cases haunt the church Following these and other allegations made during the 1990s, the Christian Brothers, the Oblates of Mary Immaculate and the Sisters of Mercy have issued public apologies for abuse inflicted over the years in their institutions. UK Nuns facing abuse claims A BBC documentary has revealed that an order of Roman Catholic nuns is facing more than 250 claims for compensation from former children's home residents who allege they were abused. UK Priest raped schoolgirl in confession box, court told But he insisted the allegations of sexual assault were "total and absolute rubbish." UK Priest jailed for indecent assault Passing sentence at Cardiff Crown Court, the judge Mr Justice Rougier said: "There can be few grosser breaches of trust than when a priest sexually abuses a young child while exercising his pastoral function. "And I find the description of what you did to that girl almost unbelievable." Cowardly pols join the church's ring of silence So police could not arrest them. Prosecutors could not jail them. Parents of small children in Pocasset or Peabody or Harwich or Malden could not know that the seemingly nice enough ex-priest across the street was in fact a dangerous deviant let loose upon the world. What more do we need to know? In the name of God In Australia and Ireland, many cases have come to light of nuns abusing children. The impression builds up that the Catholic church is riddled with abusing nuns and paedophile priests. Pope apologizes for clerical abuse �Sexual abuse by some clergy and religious has caused great suffering and spiritual harm to the victims.� � JOHN PAUL II Catholic Church 'must act to root out child abusers' The Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales has been urged to become a leading light in the prevention of child abuse in the final report of an independent inquiry into paedophile priests. FindLaw Forum: Massachusetts tackles clergy and reporting child abuse Reports indicate that a priest who allegedly abused dozens of children in Boston was not relieved of his duties, but rather shifted from church to church. The switch, it is claimed, only gave him in effect a fresh crop of children to abuse. Church blocks sex priest's transfer He was found guilty of sexually abusing a total of 14 children in Cork and Galway during this 12-year period. However, his sentenced was reduced once he had agreed to move to a nursing home in England. It is unclear whether, if that move is blocked, he would be released into the community. If you've been abused don't tell a priest, call the police Since 1994 every diocese has appointed a priest (called a delegate) to look at any allegation of clergy abuse. The decision to have a priest may be a deliberate attempt to intimidate victims. Catholic 'failure' on child abuse 'If there is a problem with a priest and someone makes a complaint, it is hushed up and the priest is moved until it happens again.' He said in some cases the church had tried to pressurise the victims of abuse not to report it to the police. 'The problem with families whose children are abused by priests is that they find it very difficult to take on the church hierarchy,' he added. Good and evil in the Catholic church Are we now to assume that the Catholic church believes that victims are liars and that all priests and nuns are innocent? I find this attitude wholly unchristian and, for the victims who endured the cruelty, a further abuse and humiliation.

This site is dedicated to Gilbert Bonneau by his brothers - who never were able to be a part of his life.