Madison priest was tabbed to escort teens on Rome trip despite reports of abuse
Despite reports of abuse involving a priest in the Madison Diocese, officials were planning to allow him to escort a group of teens to Rome next year, according to the diocese's social media.
Andrew J. Showers' arrest in Clintonville last month on suspicion of child sex crimes came after the diocese had already received complaints about his behavior, including a report of an assault of a young woman in Chicago last year.
At a Sept. 4 media conference, Patricia Moriarty said Showers approached her and her friends at a social event, introduced himself as a priest, then groped her underneath her clothes before sharing his business card with her.
Moriarty's father, John Moriarty, said he called the diocese at least five times reporting the abuse, but was unable to speak directly with Bishop Donald Hying. John Moriarty did reach someone at the diocese and reported the abuse, he said. The family reported the incident to the Chicago Police, who conducted an investigation.
Patricia Moriarty said she wanted to share her story after hearing of Showers' arrest to hold the diocese accountable and show others they knew the priest had assaulted others before.
Prosecutors charged Showers Aug. 27 with attempted second-degree sexual assault of a child, attempted child enticement and attempted use of a computer to facilitate a child sex crime. The criminal complaint against Showers, 37, says he sent sexually explicit online messages and traveled to Waupaca County to meet someone he believed to be a 14-year-old girl to have sex with her, unaware he was actually corresponding with a Clintonville police officer.
According to a now-deleted Facebook post from Aug. 7, Showers was set to lead a small group on the trip to Rome and Siena.
"The pilgrimage is geared towards young adults in the Madison Diocese and will be led by Fr. Andrew Showers," the post said. "They are working to keep the pilgrimage group small (13 people total) to create a strong communal essence to the trip."
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/loca...970162007/
Here's a news from The Catholic Herald from two days ago that was removed and this is all I could retrieve:
Washington DC Cardinal Robert McElroy is seeking to laicize Father Michael Briese, a whistleblower archdiocesan priest, for refusing to take down blog posts detailing allegations that two priests sexually abused seminarians; as well as allegations of a cover-up of the allegations by both McElroy and his predecessor, Cardinal Wilton Gregory.
https://thecatholicherald.com/article/wa...e-cover-up
Despite reports of abuse involving a priest in the Madison Diocese, officials were planning to allow him to escort a group of teens to Rome next year, according to the diocese's social media.
Andrew J. Showers' arrest in Clintonville last month on suspicion of child sex crimes came after the diocese had already received complaints about his behavior, including a report of an assault of a young woman in Chicago last year.
At a Sept. 4 media conference, Patricia Moriarty said Showers approached her and her friends at a social event, introduced himself as a priest, then groped her underneath her clothes before sharing his business card with her.
Moriarty's father, John Moriarty, said he called the diocese at least five times reporting the abuse, but was unable to speak directly with Bishop Donald Hying. John Moriarty did reach someone at the diocese and reported the abuse, he said. The family reported the incident to the Chicago Police, who conducted an investigation.
Patricia Moriarty said she wanted to share her story after hearing of Showers' arrest to hold the diocese accountable and show others they knew the priest had assaulted others before.
Prosecutors charged Showers Aug. 27 with attempted second-degree sexual assault of a child, attempted child enticement and attempted use of a computer to facilitate a child sex crime. The criminal complaint against Showers, 37, says he sent sexually explicit online messages and traveled to Waupaca County to meet someone he believed to be a 14-year-old girl to have sex with her, unaware he was actually corresponding with a Clintonville police officer.
According to a now-deleted Facebook post from Aug. 7, Showers was set to lead a small group on the trip to Rome and Siena.
"The pilgrimage is geared towards young adults in the Madison Diocese and will be led by Fr. Andrew Showers," the post said. "They are working to keep the pilgrimage group small (13 people total) to create a strong communal essence to the trip."
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/loca...970162007/
Here's a news from The Catholic Herald from two days ago that was removed and this is all I could retrieve:
Washington DC Cardinal Robert McElroy is seeking to laicize Father Michael Briese, a whistleblower archdiocesan priest, for refusing to take down blog posts detailing allegations that two priests sexually abused seminarians; as well as allegations of a cover-up of the allegations by both McElroy and his predecessor, Cardinal Wilton Gregory.
https://thecatholicherald.com/article/wa...e-cover-up
teachings of the Bible are so muddled and self-contradictory that it was possible for Christians to happily burn heretics alive for five long centuries. It was even possible for the most venerated patriarchs of the Church, like St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas, to conclude that heretics should be tortured (Augustine) or killed outright (Aquinas). Martin Luther and John Calvin advocated the wholesale murder of heretics, apostates, Jews, and witches. - Sam Harris, "Letter To A Christian Nation"
