American priest dismissed for sex abuse still in Bangladesh - ucanews.com

An American priest who was dismissed from the clergy by the Vatican after being accused of sexually abusing as many as 30 teenagers in Bangladesh is still in the country.

William Andrew Christensen, a priest in the Society of Mary, or Marianists, was removed from the priesthood in October 2010 after the Vatican judged allegations against him to be credible.

In January 2011, ucanews.com published a story quoting Catholic human rights activist Rosaline Costa, who claimed that Christensen used the Institute of Integrated Rural Development (IIRD), which he founded in Bogra district in 1987, as a front to sexually abuse at least 30 Muslim teenagers in rural Bangladesh.

He was accused of buying the silence of the youngsters, their parents and local political and community leaders.

Christensen was accused of abusing a pupil at a school in St. Louis, Missouri, before coming to Bangladesh but a lawsuit filed in 2002 collapsed when the complainant died.

Christensen is now running the Poverty Eradication Program, an NGO that he founded in 2012 in Bangladesh. Interviewed at his office in Dhaka on June 11, he denied all allegations of sexual abuse and claimed he had been a victim of Vatican injustice.

American priest dismissed for sex abuse still in Bangladesh - ucanews.com

Vatican recalls priest from US as child porn investigation opens | Angelus

The Vatican announced Friday that after being informed by U.S. officials of a possible breach of child pornography laws on the part of a Holy See diplomat, it has recalled the priest in question and an investigation has been opened. According to a Sept. 15 Vatican communique, on Aug. 21 the U.S. State Department notified the Vatican Secretariat of State, “through diplomatic channels, of a possible violation of laws relating to child pornography images by a member of the diplomatic corps of the Holy See accredited to Washington.”

The priest was recalled and is currently in Vatican City. Information regarding the findings of the U.S. State Department was passed along to the Vatican's Promoter of Justice, who opened an investigation “and has already commenced international collaboration to obtain elements relative to the case.”

The Vatican declined to identify the diplomat, or confirm his nationality. CNA contacted the apostolic nunciature in Washington D.C. for further details, but they declined to comment. According to the Associated Press, the U.S. State Department had asked the Vatican to lift the priest's diplomatic immunity, but the request was denied.

Michael Stone over at Progressive Secular Humanist, I believe sums it up well:

Let’s face it: Pope Francis is a marvelous showman – a genius at public relations and media manipulation who has successfully hustled the media, and the public at large. He says nice things like all animals go to heaven; he chastises creationists and other science deniers by noting that God is not a magician; and in a good natured gesture he asks atheists for good vibrations.

Yet despite the friendly facade, the occasional superficial liberal rhetoric, and a humorous joke now and then, Pope Francis is guilty of perpetuating the institutional immorality of the Catholic Church.

In short, despite pledges from Pope Francis to clean up the church, the horror continues, and the Catholic Church continues to protect and enable clergy members who rape and sexually abuse children.

It is no secret that Catholic priests have been sexually abusing children for decades, if not centuries. This most recent report only serves to confirm what many already suspected: nothing has changed – the Catholic Church continues to protect and enable pedophile priests.

Vatican recalls priest from US as child porn investigation opens | Angelus

Catholic Church linked to child labor in Uganda. | Occupy The Vatican

During his November visit to Africa, the continent which now counts nearly 200m Roman Catholics, Pope Francis said that children were some of the greatest victims of Africa’s historical exploitation by other powers. He also urged young Africans to resist corruption. But should the Vatican be doing more to put its own house in order? A BBC investigation has uncovered evidence that church land in Uganda is being used for child labour.
,,,
Now, aged 32, Mr Turyaritunga’s view on the Catholic Church has changed.

Earlier this year, Mr Turyaritunga made allegations to the BBC about child labour taking place on Church-owned land in Kabale.

He alleged that children as young as 10 were working on a tea plantation on the land, and that the Catholic Church was profiting.

Catholic Church linked to child labor in Uganda. | Occupy The Vatican

Catholic bishops not obliged to report clerical child abuse, Vatican says | World news | The Guardian

They haven't learn a thing!!

The Catholic church is telling newly appointed bishops that it is “not necessarily” their duty to report accusations of clerical child abuse and that only victims or their families should make the decision to report abuse to police.

A document that spells out how senior clergy members ought to deal with allegations of abuse, which was recently released by the Vatican, emphasised that, though they must be aware of local laws, bishops’ only duty was to address such allegations internally.

“According to the state of civil laws of each country where reporting is obligatory, it is not necessarily the duty of the bishop to report suspects to authorities, the police or state prosecutors in the moment when they are made aware of crimes or sinful deeds,” the training document states.

The training guidelines were written by a controversial French monsignor and psychotherapist, Tony Anatrella, who serves as a consultant to the Pontifical Council for the Family. The Vatican released the guidelines – which are part of a broader training programme for newly named bishops – at a press conference earlier this month and is now seeking feedback.

Details of the Catholic church’s policy were first reported in a column by a veteran Vatican journalist, John Allen, associate editor of the Catholic news site, Cruxnow.com.

Allen noted that a special commission created by Pope Francis, the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, had appeared to play no role in the training programme, even though it is supposed to be developing “best practices” to prevent and deal with clerical abuse.
,,,
The guidelines reflect Anatrella’s views on homosexuality. They also downplay the seriousness of the Catholic church’s legacy of systemic child abuse, which some victims’ right groups say continues to be a problem today.

While acknowledging that “the church has been particularly affected by sexual crimes committed against children”, the training guide emphasises statistics that show the vast majority of sexual assaults against children are committed within the family and by friends and neighbours, not other authority figures.

Catholic bishops not obliged to report clerical child abuse, Vatican says | World news | The Guardian

H/T::   In the Name Of god - The Podcast

Vatican fires gay priest on eve of Catholic bishops meeting

The Vatican fired a priest Saturday after he came out as gay and revealed he has a boyfriend on the eve of an important meeting of the world's bishops to discuss church teachings on family life, a topic that encompasses divorce, homosexuality and cohabitation.

Considered a high-ranking Vatican official, Monsignor Krzysztof Charamsa, 43, lived in Rome for the last 17 years and worked at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith since 2003.

In several interviews, Charamsa said he was happy and proud to be a gay priest, and was in love with a man whom he identified as his boyfriend, according to the Associated Press. He said he wanted to challenge the church's "backwards" attitude to homosexuality, the BBC reported.

"It's time the church opened its eyes and realized that offering gay believers total abstinence from a life of love is inhuman," he said, according to the network.

Charamsa also said he knew he would have to give up his ministry but felt he had a duty toward sexual minorities to come out, BBC reported.
,,,
"The decision to make such a pointed statement on the eve of the opening of the synod appears very serious and irresponsible, since it aims to subject the synod assembly to undue media pressure," Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said in a statement.

Vatican fires gay priest on eve of Catholic bishops meeting

How the Vatican investigates miracles | New York Post

In “The Vatican Prophecies: Investigating Supernatural Signs, Apparitions, and Miracles in the Modern Age” (Viking), John Thavis, former Rome bureau chief for the Catholic News Service, describes this 1982 secret exorcism.

The new book shares how the Vatican deals with supernatural — or supposedly supernatural — events, from holy relics to instances of possession.

Thavis makes it clear that events of this sort put the Vatican in a difficult spot. On one hand, they cannot reject such supernatural phenomena outright, as to do so would reject many elements of the religion’s history.

At the same time, every claim of a supernatural or otherworldly presence must be handled with extreme skepticism, to prevent the Church from being taken in by charlatans, any one of whom could deal a blow to the Church’s credibility.

[,,,]

The Church has dealt with fake relics since the Middle Ages, when the “brain of Saint Peter,” which had been “venerated for centuries in the cathedral of Geneva was investigated and found to be a pumice stone,” and the “arm of Saint Anthony,” long “kissed by the faithful on festive occasions, turned out to be part of a stag.”

These days, rather than spend time and money exposing forgeries, the Church sometimes turns a blind eye to relics whose authenticity is in question. In 2011, Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster angered many Catholics when he stated, “If that connection is made through an object which maybe forensically won’t stand up to the test, that’s of secondary importance to the spiritual and emotive power that the object can contain.”

How the Vatican investigates miracles | New York Post

Vatican chief astronomer believes in UFOs and aliens - IrishCentral.com

It seems like once a year the Vatican or one of its representatives has to say something a bit bombastic in regards to aliens or UFOs.  What I find interesting, they will "believe" in something speculative at best, but deny science outright.

The Pope’s chief astronomer Father Jose Funes has confirmed that the Vatican Observatory in Rome believes in life on other planets.

Despite once enforcing the belief that the Earth was the center of the Universe and the sun revolved around our planet instead of vice versa, it appears that the Vatican has now relaxed its view on the role that mankind plays in the universe and acknowledges that further life may exist.

The Vatican Observatory, which has studied the skies on behalf of the Catholic Church since 1582, has said that the discovery of planets, on which it is believed life could exist, in the past number of years has led them to believe that we are not alone.

Writing in the Vatican's daily newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, Fr. Funes said, “Our galaxy contains more than a hundred billion stars.

“Considering the number of exoplanets discovered, it seems that the vast majority of stars in our galaxy, at least potentially, can have planets where life could develop.”

Vatican chief astronomer believes in UFOs and aliens - IrishCentral.com

'Pope Francis effect' leads to exorcism boom - Telegraph

It is no wonder that the Satanic Panic is re-emerging.  Did it ever really go away?  It is back to the Dark Ages where we blame personal and social problems on the supernatural instead of effectively dealing with harsh reality.

A return to superstition and Scriptures aren’t helpful in a time where we need reason, human compassion and science-based treatments that actually work in the long run. It isn’t as easy to fix social problems and psychological issues so we blame the devil? Thanks, Pope Frank!

The “Pope Francis effect” has been credited with encouraging a resurgence in faith among rank-and-file Catholics but it has also had a more unexpected consequence – a boom in the demand for exorcisms.

The Argentinian pontiff’s fire-and-brimstone language and frequent references to the Devil have helped propel belief in Beelzebub back into the mainstream of the Catholic Church, where once it was an embarrassment.

Dioceses in the UK, Italy, Spain and elsewhere have noticed a dramatic increase in the number of people claiming to be possessed and have responded by training more priests in the dark arts of how to perform exorcisms.

A week-long exorcism conference, held this week at the Pontifical University of Regina Apostolorum in Rome and endorsed by the Vatican, is being attended by around 160 Catholic priests from around the world, who insist that demonic possession is very real.

"Pope Francis talks about the Devil all the time and that has certainly raised awareness about exorcisms," said Father Cesare Truqui, a Mexican priest trained as an exorcist. "But all Latin Americans have this sensibility – for them, the existence of the Devil is part of their faith."

[,,,]
During the week-long course, there will be lectures by Catholic prelates on subjects such as “Occultism, black magic and Satanism”, “Angels and demons in Holy Scripture” and “Criminal Aspects of Satanism”.

Addressing the first day of the conference, Monsignor Luigi Neri, the archbishop of Ferrara in the northern region of Emilia-Romagna, attributed the growing demand for exorcisms to atheism and consumerism.

Gesticulating and jabbing with his finger, the white-haired cleric said prayer was central to the fight against the Devil.

"Evil exists and poisons the human experience. It is a challenge and a provocation."

 'Pope Francis effect' leads to exorcism boom - Telegraph

Pope faces gut checks on anti-Christian persecution and the death penalty | Crux

Interesting how two different news sources present the same event.  So in this Vatican approved or not?

First, despite what you may hear, the course is not a “Vatican school” or “Vatican camp.”

It’s offered by the “Sacerdos Institute,” a program of priestly formation operated by the Legionaries, in partnership with a private Bologna-based foundation called the “Group of Socio-Religious Research and Information” that tracks New Age movements and the occult.

For a bit of context, the Roman calendar is always chock-full of seminars, conferences, mini-courses, etc., offered by orders, lay movements, private foundations, Catholic colleges, activist groups, and so on. Walk into any Roman hotel, any day of the week, and you’ll likely find at least one. Though organizers often try to play up their Vatican contacts, even inviting a Vatican official or two to speak, none of that makes these initiatives Vatican events.

The course on exorcism is a case in point. It carries a loose endorsement from the Vatican’s Congregation for Clergy, and a couple of Vatican officials typically make presentations. This year the line-up includes Italian Cardinal Mauro Piacenza, head of the Apostolic Penitentiary, the Vatican’s court for issues relating to the forgiveness of sins in the Catholic Church.

Yet nobody is required by the Vatican to attend, there’s no Vatican certification at the end, and one cannot assume that every word uttered represents the Vatican’s take on things.

Second, because the Rev. Gabriele Amorth’s name appears on the list of past speakers for the course, it’s a good bet that somebody will seek out the 90-year-old Italian priest for an interview this week on the current state of the Satan-fighting business.

When they do, Amorth likely will be identified as “the pope’s exorcist,” a designation that’s appeared so often in media reports over the years he probably should have it printed on business cards. The only problem is that it’s not true, and never has been.

Amorth is the most famous living exorcist in the Catholic Church. His 1994 memoir, published in English under the title An Exorcist Tells His Story, became an instant classic.

Amorth is adept at recounting possession stories that make your toes curl, so he has become an obligatory reference. For the record, he’s a priest in good standing, honorary president for life of the International Association of Exorcists, and since 1986 has been authorized as an exorcist by the Diocese of Rome. A member of the Pauline order, he worked out of a small office in the order’s headquarters in Rome, receiving people who sought his help 365 days a year.

Yet Amorth is not a Vatican official and does not perform any Vatican-licensed activity. In fact, there may be no one on the planet more critical of the Vatican’s approach to exorcism.

When the Vatican issued a revised version of the ritual for exorcism in 1999, Amorth loudly objected that the rules prevent exorcisms to counteract “evil spells,” such as curses or the evil eye, which he said account for 90 percent of the cases an exorcist faces. The new rules also stipulate that exorcisms should only be conducted when there is “certainty” of demonic possession, when Amorth insists that certainty can only be acquired by performing an exorcism.

In an interview with 30 Giorni magazine, Amorth bitterly complained that he had run into a “wall of refusal and disrespect” when he attempted to change the minds of Vatican officials, and said it was clear to him that the so-called experts who prepared the new ritual “don’t have the least idea of what an exorcism really is.”

To present Amorth as a “Vatican exorcist,” therefore, is not only inaccurate, but in some ways Amorth himself might take offense.

Pope faces gut checks on anti-Christian persecution and the death penalty | Crux

Practical help for the demon-possessed: Vatican rolls out new exorcism course :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

This month the Vatican will gather a wide range experts in the field of exorcism with the aim of shedding light on demonic possession from both theological and scientific perspectives.

The annual course, “Exorcism and Prayer of Liberation,” is designed for priests and lay persons interested in learning how to recognize a case of demonic possession when they see one – and what to do about it.

This year's session will run from April 13-18 at Rome's Regina Apostolorum University, and will feature interventions by a wide range of experts in the field of exorcism from priests – including practicing exorcists – medical professionals, psychologists, lawyers, and theologians. It's sponsored by the Vatican Congregation for the Clergy and organized by the Sacerdos Institute.

According to Breitbart News Network, one of the primary objectives of the course will be to help priests and lay people distinguish demonic possession from psychological or medical conditions.

The sessions will also examine a series of other related issues, including occult practices, Satanism, and nihilism among young people.

Practical help for the demon-possessed: Vatican rolls out new exorcism course :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Lawyer: Twin Cities archdiocese may have destroyed porn videos | Star Tribune

Church officials in St. Paul and the Vatican embassy in Washington, D.C., may have destroyed evidence that a St. Paul priest possessed child pornography, a St. Paul attorney charged Thursday.

Church documents released at a news conference describe how the Archdiocese of Minneapolis and St. Paul, as well as the Vatican’s top official in Washington, feared a scandal in the case of the Rev. Donald Dummer. The St. Paul priest was accused of possessing pornographic videos when he was at St. Mary’s Parish in the late 1990s.

Dummer, 77, was added by the archdiocese to a list of priests with credible accusations of sexual misconduct.

[,,,]
They include a copy of a January 2002 letter indicating that in early 1997, a part-time employee at St. Mary’s came across a number of VCR movies in Dummer’s room. The employee was “shocked” by one of the videos, which depicted 10- to 12-year-old boys playing basketball in the nude.

The employee called the archbishop’s office, according to documents, and was referred to then-Vicar General Kevin McDonough. The letter said the employee found more videos depicting child pornography in Dummer’s room in early 1998 and delivered them to McDonough’s secretary.

Other documents include correspondence between the Vatican embassy and local church officials discussing allegedly pornographic videotapes that were turned in by an employee at St. Mary’s.

McDonough, the archdiocese’s point person for clergy abuse complaints, destroyed the tapes, according to a document prepared by an employee at St. Mary’s.

Lawyer: Twin Cities archdiocese may have destroyed porn videos | Star Tribune

Pope Francis launches new panel to speed up abuse cases - Religion News Service

Pope Francis on Tuesday (Nov. 11) created a new Vatican body to deal with the most serious cases of child sexual abuse and to streamline complaints against the clergy.

The Vatican said the pope would nominate seven cardinals or bishops to consider appeals from clergy accused of abusing minors in a bid to speed up the judicial process of clergy who have received an initial assessment by local bishops.


The members of the panel, or “college,” may come from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which currently handles cases, or elsewhere in the church. Members will also be asked to deal with serious abuses of penance in the confessional.

The Vatican’s chief spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, called the pope’s proposal a “good solution” to help alleviate a backlog of cases.

[,,,]
But the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, which has more than 18,000 members around the world, said Tuesday the Vatican was not doing enough to ensure that those accused of sex crimes faced justice.
Archbishop Tomasi

“New procedures aren’t needed,” said Mary Caplan from SNAP, in a statement. “Decisive action is needed. And historically, only bishops who commit child sex crimes face even the slightest discipline while the hundreds more who conceal the crimes are ignored or promoted.”


Pope Francis launches new panel to speed up abuse cases - Religion News Service

Vatican clears former church official of sex abuse allegation - LA Times

"After ten years of exhaustive investigation and canonical trial, a tribunal of the Holy See has definitively determined and ruled that no allegations of sexual misconduct of any kind alleged against Monsignor Richard Loomis have been proven. Monsignor Loomis has always professed his innocence of these accusations," the statement said.

"Now that the allegations against him have been conclusively resolved, Canon Law provides that the temporary restrictions on Monsignor Loomis' public exercise of his priesthood have ceased."



Loomis, 68, the former vicar for clergy of the Archdiocese who oversaw allegations of misconduct against priests, was a top aide to former head of the Archdiocese, Cardinal Roger M. Mahony.

Vatican clears former church official of sex abuse allegation - LA Times

ADDENDUM::Vatican exorcist blames Halloween for increased possessions, calls for 'Holyween' | syracuse.com

The Daily Mail reports the International Association of Exorcists (also known as the AIE) held its first official conference over the weekend in Rome. More than 300 exorcists attended after being officially recognized by the Vatican this summer.

Father Aldo Buonaiuto told the British publication that his organization's emergency number receives hundreds of calls on Oct. 31, up from an average of 40 per day, due to concerns about increased occult activity.

"Many say Halloween is a simple carnival, but in fact there is nothing innocent or fun about it," he said. "There are always more evil rituals, animal sacrifices, desecrations of cemeteries and thefts of sacred bones... From here the door to the devil can be opened."
,,,
"The battle against evil is becoming more of an emergency. We are calling for major vigilance," Cascioli added.

As a result, the Catholic Church in Italy wants to replace the night of costumes and trick-or-treating with a positive event called "Holyween."

"While most people are steeped in zombies and horror we put on our door or windows a light or an image evocative of the saints," Buonaiuto said in a statement. "And then there will be Masses, prayer vigils and worship to celebrate the saints and victory of good over evil."

Vatican exorcist blames Halloween for increased possessions, calls for 'Holyween' | syracuse.com

Pope Blesses Work of Exorcists

I have posted previously about the renewed efforts of the Vatican concerning its "push" for use of exorcisms in battling spiritual malaise. I find it quite disconcerting for numerous reasons, but a point made by Katie Engelhart writing over at Salon really is the crux of the matter for me.

But if we accept, as I do, that there is definitely no such thing as demonic possession — and, therefore, that this all crazy talk — we should take pause, and consider the effect that a push for exorcisms might have on vulnerable Catholics: the mentally ill, the developmentally impaired and the psychologically traumatized.
,,,
In this light, the new exorcism push seems like an effort to demonize (quite literally) mental illness and psychological trauma. Indeed, some of the so-called symptoms of demonic possession — hearing voices, speaking in strange voices, feeling watched or haunted or possessed — seem a lot like psychiatric symptoms,,,

According to Pope Francis, priests devoted to the ministry of exorcism “manifest the Church’s love and acceptance of those who suffer because of the devil’s works.”

Francis wrote these words in a message addressed to Father Francesco Bamonte, the president of the International Association of Exorcists, which is holding a convention in Rome this week. Vatican Radio has reported that more than 300 exorcists from around the world have participated.

This was the first conference to be held by the International Association of Exorcists since the Vatican formally approved its statutes this past June 13.

Father Bamonte said that the approval of the organization was “cause for joy not only for the association, but for the whole Church” and said that “God calls some priests to this important ministry of exorcism and deliverance” to be able to “accompany the persons with humility, faith and charity.”

Pope Blesses Work of Exorcists

Controversial conservative cardinal of St. Louis says he was demoted by Pope Francis

“The pope, more than anyone else as the pastor of the universal church, is bound to serve the truth,” Burke told Buzzfeed. “The pope is not free to change the church’s teachings with regard to the immorality of homosexual acts or the insolubility of marriage or any other doctrine of the faith.”

Burke told Buzzfeed he was being transferred from his position as prefect of the supreme tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura to be patron of the sovereign military order of Malta, though he said he had not received a formal order. He assumed his role as chief guardian of canon law in June 2008, having been appointed by Pope Benedict XVI.

Benedict also appointed Burke to the Congregation for Bishops in 2009. Four years later, Francis removed Burke and 13 other bishops from the 18-man group. Days after he was removed from that post, in December 2013, Burke criticised Francis in an interview with the Catholic broadcaster EWTN.

“One gets the impression, or it’s interpreted this way in the media, that he thinks we’re talking too much about abortion, too much about the integrity of marriage as between one man and one woman,” Burke said. “But we can never talk enough about that.”

Controversial conservative cardinal of St. Louis says he was demoted by Pope Francis

Top Vatican Official: Parents Must Not 'Expose' Children To 'Aggressive Homosexual Agenda' - The New Civil Rights Movement

Raymond Burke is the former Archbishop of St. Louis. He now serves as the Vatican's number two man, the Cardinal Prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura.

The very anti-gay, anti-women, American website LifeSiteNews went to Rome and interviewed Cardinal Burke. When asked about gay family members, Burke had a great deal to say.

Same-sex relationship are, Burke said, "intrinsically disordered," so, he pondered, "what would it mean to grandchildren to have present at a family gathering a family member who is living [in] a disordered relationship with another person?”

Burke adds that the issue of children being in the company of gay people is "made even more delicate by the aggressiveness of the homosexual agenda."

Top Vatican Official: Parents Must Not 'Expose' Children To 'Aggressive Homosexual Agenda' - The New Civil Rights Movement

Vatican Paedophilia Scandal: Archbishop Jozef Wesolowski Stored Over 100,000 Child Porn Videos

Here's what I don't get, it took them 9 months to investigate?  Did they want Wesolowski to delete even more files so they could just say nothing ever happened?  Different Pope same bullshit but with slicker PR.

A former Vatican archbishop accused of paedophilia stored tens of thousands of child porn videos and photos on a computer in his office at the Holy See diplomatic compound in the Dominican Republic, it has emerged.

Details of Jozef Wesolowski's massive child porn stash have been revealed after the 66-year-old was arrested at the Vatican earlier this week.

He is the highest-ranking Vatican official ever to be investigated for sex abuse, and the first top papal representative to receive a defrocking sentence. He has been charged with sexually abusing minors and child porn possession and might face up to seven years in the Vatican's tiny jail.

Vatican detectives analysed the PC Wesolowski used in his office in Santo Domingo, where he served as Holy See envoy from 2008 to 2012 as part of an investigation into the alleged sexual abuse of underage boys. 

Vatican Paedophilia Scandal: Archbishop Jozef Wesolowski Stored Over 100,000 Child Porn Videos

Exorcism is back! Meet the mavericks who will teach you how to cure demonic possession - Salon.com

My bias toward this type of bullshit is no hidden secret.  On a scale of 1-10, this "Institute" rates about a 13.5!!

__

This spring, a new school for exorcists opened in Illinois. The Pope Leo XIII Institute for the “education & training of priests in the holy ministry of exorcism and deliverance” was launched at the Mundelein Seminary in February — when the first cohort of trainees arrived for a 10-day seminar. For just $1,500 (plus $960 room and board; check and credit card accepted; donations welcome and tax-deductible), priests received instruction from some top exorcists — using a curriculum that was reportedly pre-approved by a committee of credentialed bishops.

[,,,]
But if we accept, as I do, that there is definitely no such thing as demonic possession — and, therefore, that this all crazy talk — we should take pause, and consider the effect that a push for exorcisms might have on vulnerable Catholics: the mentally ill, the developmentally impaired and the psychologically traumatized.

Right off the bat, I’d like to know: Where are the psychiatrists who are approving the use of exorcism on patients — and can they please stand up?

[,,,]

According
to the Vatican’s new exorcism guidelines people who claim to be demonically possessed must be examined by doctors — to rule out the presence of physical or mental illness. Many exorcists quoted in newspapers insist that they adhere to this requirement: stressing that they only perform exorcisms on a small minority of the people who seek them. Monsignor Mottet, the Iowa priest, tells me that it took some searching to find a medical professional who would take his referrals:  “Most psychiatrists don’t believe in this. You’ve got to shop around.”

 
Assuming
that priests really do require medical clearance (they are not regulated, so it’s hard to say), who is providing it? Who are these doctors—and are their actions in line with their obligations as medical professionals? We should be asking why and which doctors support the use of exorcism on people who believe that they are possessed by demons.


[,,,]

In this light, the new exorcism push seems like an effort to demonize (quite literally) mental illness and psychological trauma. Indeed, some of the so-called symptoms of demonic possession — hearing voices, speaking in strange voices, feeling watched or haunted or possessed — seem a lot like psychiatric symptoms. One worrisome result: Jennifer Percy’s new book “Demon Camp” profiles American Army veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder who seek out exorcisms at a Pentecostal retreat in Georgia, where a husband-and-wife team perform them by the handful.

Also worrisome are priests like Father Gary Thomas (inspiration for the hit book and then movie “The Rite”), who notes: “Eighty percent of the people who come to see me have been sexually abused … Sexual abuse is a doorway for a demon.” What is this if not theological victim shaming: blaming sexual assault victims for their own abuse?

Exorcism is back! Meet the mavericks who will teach you how to cure demonic possession - Salon.com

Chile: pedophile priest defies Vatican order - The Washington Post

A prominent Chilean priest who was ordered by the Vatican to never again celebrate a public Mass as punishment for sexually abusing altar boys has been photographed apparently defying the order.

Chile’s top church leaders confirmed the Rev. Fernando Karadima’s act of insubordination Friday and sent the case to the Vatican for investigation. The photos were taken Dec. 4, but they were only released this week by Juan Carlos Cruz, a journalist and one of Karadima’s victims.

“It’s a very painful situation that shows that this priest continues to do as he pleases,” Cruz told The Associated Press. “It’s a slap in the face for the victims of his abuse. He should be in jail but instead he’s still being protected by the church.”

[,,,]
The Vatican sanctioned Karadima by ordering him to a life of “penitence and prayer” in 2011. He was also barred from celebrating Mass in public, from hearing confessions or offering spiritual direction and from having contact with his ex-parishioners. A Chilean judge later dismissed a criminal case because the statute of limitations had expired, but she determined the abuse allegations were truthful.

Chile: pedophile priest defies Vatican order - The Washington Post