life-after-RC

Oremus, fratres

Pray for Benedict XVI. Prayer for Msgr. Scicluna. 

God's most holy will in all things.

UPDATE: A couple things about the current convergence of events. I wrote a piece here on why there is a pernicious double standard and the Legion story is part of a larger narrative.

Father Zuhlsdorf adds more:

Please note. 

A few days ago a priest who once worked in the Washington DC nuntiature made the unfounded claim that Pope Benedict certainly was involved with the decisions about this abusive priest.  That priest, Fr. Doyle, also said that Pope Benedict is a "micro-manager".

In turn, that same errant claim was picked up by Christopher Hitchens for a truly vile hit piece on Slate.

Fr. Doyle therefore did terrible damage to the Holy Father’s reputation.

First, anyone who knows anything about Joseph Ratzinger personally, knows that he is not a micro-manager.  Quite the opposite is true.  He is the supreme delegator.  Furthermore, and this bears repeating, the role of the Vicar General in German dioceses includes most personnel decisions.  There will be times when the chapter and ordinary are involved, but mostly the VG handles these matter.  This would be particularly the case with then-Archbiship Ratzinger of Munich, who is not a micro-manager, but rather tends to delegate administrative decisions.

It perhaps may be claimed that the future Pope ought to have been more involved in this case because it was such a serious situation. 

However, it is absurd to claim that the Pope was involved based on false judgments about the Pope’s the management style coupled with a misunderstanding of the way German dioceses usually work.

Now, Vows of Silence readers will recognise Father Doyle, to whose story the first half of the book is dedicated. Just as it takes some reflection to see the irony that I noted in the Pewsitter piece, it takes some reflection to figure out the irony in the two halves of the Renner and Berry book. But it's there.

Fr Doyle worked at the nunciature in the critical years awash in the confusion after Vatican II and the sexual revolution. He made no bones about the fact that they were stacking the chanceries with men who would be prepared to usher in the new theology -- once the Church wrapped her head around the silliness of saying no to artificial contraception, etc. Mais, quelle surprise(!) the Church didn't (and cannot) and we were left with a host of bishops who didn't see eye to eye with the "intransigence" of the Eternal View.

While the authors outlined the the story well, they missed the larger point that the very lack of episcopal spine on many key matters opened the door to the Legion in the United States -- because so many of the lay faithful hungered for orthodoxy, which the Legion seemed to provide.

And now we have Fr Doyle adding to the confusion about Benedict XVI, just as he is trying to clean up the mess that was left by the moral vaccuum that Fr Doyle himself exacerbated. Am I making any sense with this? Convoluted maybe, but clear to me. [OK, Pete seems to disagree, so I'm going to go dig up some quotes to clarify my claim.]

UPDATE II: Oh, two details that flesh out the Legion's "orthodoxy."

• Remember that when given a choice between (1) media access and (2) orthodoxy, Fr Morris chose (1) by siding with Sean Hannity against Fr Euteneuer; and
• Earlier last year, the Legion insisted that it had been proactive in starting its own internal investigation, though the details were sketchy and the timeline didn't make sense. That story has recently evolved, so that RC members have been told that the Legion wanted to tell about the perfidies of their own founder, but the Vatican told them to keep it quiet.

This isn't orthodoxy, it's hardball -- and it would seem as though the Legion's plan is to take Benedict down with them (and spread a heap of muck) if he dares to act responsibly about their behaviour.

PROGRAM NOTE: Friday, March 19th at 1pm (EST) WGBH Boston will discuss the Legion scandal. The jumping off point will be the enormous donations "seduced" out of starry-eyed benefactors, and the underlying question: Why has the American media ignored this Congregation and the allegations against it for so long. (Now, gee, I think the men of Regain were asking that same question for years, n'est-ce pas?)

"Mater et Magistra" (the Legion's version)

The rank and file of Regnum Christi (who scrupulously avoid non-approved channels of information) were spoon-fed the in-house version of current events, which reads as a curious tale with no protagonist (or plot):

Rome, Italy. March 15, 2010. A little over a year ago, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Secretary of State for Pope Benedict XVI, announced in a letter to the general director of the Legionaries of Christ that the Holy Father had decided to carry out an apostolic visitation to gain firsthand knowledge of the congregation’s life and work [In other words, you guys are just so awesome that we just want to know what makes you tick!].

The five visitors who began their work on July 15 were Archbishop Charles Joseph Chaput (of Denver); Bishop Ricardo Watty Urquidi (of Tepic, Mexico); Archbishop Ricardo Ezzatti (of Concepción, Chile); Bishop Guiseppe Versaldi (of Alessandria, Italy); and Bishop Ricardo Blázquez Pérez (of Bilbao, Spain), who this past Saturday was named Archbishop of Valladolid, Spain [I wonder if he was a little distracted].

Throughout the past eight months, the bishops visited the 120+ Legionary communities throughout the world. During their interviews, the priests and religious had the chance to speak individually with the bishops to answer their questions and freely express their observations and suggestions about community life and the work they carry out in the apostolates that the congregation directs and guides.

After this first phase of the apostolic visitation, the bishops must finalize their written reports and send them to the Holy See, where they will be studied and evaluated. Since the visitators’ work was extensive, and since the five individual reports were written in different languages, this new phase of the apostolic visitation may possibly take several months [Extensive work, yes, but mostly English and Spanish, no? I'll bet the CDF has crack translators on hand]. It may also require some final exchanges between the Holy See and the visitators before Pope Benedict XVI gives the instructions that he considers suitable and necessary [Do you see? Still no explanation or context. What could the extensive work entail? "Instructions" is such a plastic word , but I'll bet it goes down easier than "correctives." Gee -- they might even be given new responsibilites or select missions!]

In an interview with the Notimex agency this past March 4, the Holy See’s spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi explained: “It is one thing for the visitators’ work to finish, and it is another thing to publish the results. It requires time. It will need to be determined whether the information is sufficient, or if it is necessary to request a supplement to the investigation. I would not expect a short time frame for the definitive decision.” [It almost sounds like there is specific "information" that is being sought, but no one could wager a guess with this superficial ditty of an explanation.]

We ask all of our readers and friends to continue accompanying the visitators, the Holy See authorities, and all the Legionaries of Christ with your prayers [In that, we are your friends, for we share this time of intense prayer--Come Holy Spirit!].

Whatever non-charism that Maciel may have contrived (or that Juan Vaca baptised--pace, Monk) there sure is a generous amount of Pollyanna Icing. (Below is one of the chief sugar manufacturers for that syrupy stuff-- but nota bene that the dicastery which he heads should have handled the investigation but it was taken out of his hands.)

"Mater et Magistra" (and Magister thrown in)

The Legion Awaits a New General. And Trembles

A commissioner appointed by the Vatican will take command of the Legionaries of Christ, orphans of their founder Marcial Maciel, disgraced by scandals. This is the likely outcome of eight months of investigation. Many things should be changed, including the current leaders

by Sandro Magister

ROME, March 16, 2010 – In the thick of the storm rocking the Catholic Church on account of the sexual abuse committed against minors by priests, an end has come to the apostolic visit ordered by the Holy See among the Legionaries of Christ, the congregation founded by Marcial Maciel.

The Maciel case is extreme in every way. It pushes the contrast between image and reality to exaggerated limits. Between the beatified image of the priest founder of an ultra-orthodox, ascetical, devout religious congregation, flourishing with vocations, some of them exemplary, and the reality of a dissolute second life, made up of incessant violations not only of the vows but of the commandments, of continual sinful affairs with women, men, and minors of every age and condition, with children and lovers all over the world, their number still unknown.

A second life that even at the moment of death appeared to sink deeper into the sulfurous fumes. Morbid stories have leaked out about Maciel's last days in Houston, at the end of January 2008, before his burial in Cotija, his birthplace, in Mexico.

The apostolic visit began on July 15, 2009. And the five bishop visitors fulfilled their mandate halfway through this month of March, with the delivery of their report to the Vatican authorities. They were Ricardo Watti Urquidi, bishop of Tepic in Mexico; Charles J. Chaput, archbishop of Denver; Giuseppe Versaldi, bishop of Alessandria; Ricardo Ezzato Andrello, archbishop of Concepción in Chile; and Ricardo Blázquez Pérez, bishop of Bilbao.

It will be the Vatican authorities who decide what to do. The three cardinals charged with the case are Tarcisio Bertone, secretary of state, William J. Levada, prefect of the congregation for the doctrine of the faith, and Franc Rodé, prefect of the congregation for institutes of consecrated life.

But the last word will belong to Benedict XVI, the most prescient of all. Even before he was elected pope and when Maciel still had very powerful protectors in the Vatican, Joseph Ratzinger ordered an extensive investigation of the accusations against the founder of the Legionaries. And as pope, on May 19, 2006, he sentenced him to "a retired life of prayer and penance."

After this sentence, the congregation of the Legionaries bowed to the papal command. But it continued to show veneration to its founding "father," as an "innocent victim" of false accusations.

It was only after his death and the revelation of other scandals that the directors of the congregation acknowledged some of their founder's sins, but without denying the goodness of his work.

Still today, after the eight-month apostolic visit, Maciel's successor as director general of the congregation, Fr. Álvaro Corcuera, and vicar general Luis Garza Medina – who were also for decades, especially the latter of them, very close collaborators of the founder – show no intention of leaving their command. And neither do any of the other high and mid-level directors, central or peripheral.

Their defense is that they were always unaware of Maciel's second life, and that their fidelity to the Church and to the pope, in addition to their leadership experience, are the best guarantees for the congregation's continuity.

Last February 5, in "L'Osservatore Romano," Fr. Luis Garza Medina, unruffled, published an article describing the "virtuous life" of the ideal priest. He who more than anyone else lived side by side with Maciel, knowing all his secrets and managing his money, and who always held him up as a model.

But that the current leaders of the Legionaries should be left at the head of the congregation is entirely unlikely. The more probable decision is that the Holy See will appoint a fully empowered commissioner of its own, and will set the guidelines for a thorough reform, including the replacement of the current leaders.

But rebuilding from the ground up a congregation still deeply influenced by its disgraced founder will be an arduous enterprise.

Priests and seminarians who until very recently were steeped in the writings attributed to Maciel will have difficulty finding new sources of inspiration, not generic but specific to their order. The current leaders of the congregation aren't helping, either. On the contrary. One of Maciel's former personal secretaries, Fr. Felipe Castro, together with other priests of the Legion, has worked in recent months to select from among the founder's many letters a group of letters to be "saved" for the future, to keep a positive image of Maciel alive.

The dependence of the Legionaries on Maciel was – and for many still is – absolute. There wasn't a shred of daily life that escaped the rules he dictated. Absurdly exacting rules. Which prescribed, for example, how to sit at the table, how to use a napkin, how to swallow, how to eat chicken without using one's hands, how to debone a fish.

But this was nothing compared to the control exercised over consciences. The handbook for the examination of conscience at the end of the day was 332 pages long, with thousands of questions.

And then there were – and are – the statutes properly speaking. Much more extensive and detailed than those provided to the bishops of the dioceses in which the Legionaries have their houses. The five visitors went through a lot of trouble to obtain the statutes in their entirety.

From the statutes one gathers that in addition to the three classical vows of religious orders, of poverty, chastity, and obedience, the Legionaries were bound by two other vows – plus a third called "of fidelity and charity" for the select members of the congregation – which prohibited any kind of criticism and at the same time required telling the superiors about confreres seen violating the ban.

These extra vows were supposed to have been removed by order of the Holy See, in 2007. But the rank and file of the Legionaries do not seem to have been notified of this revocation.

The boundary between the spirit of obedience and the spirit of subjection is not always clear in the congregation founded by Maciel.

Among the Legionaries, the competition encouraged by the rules is to see who can make the most proselytes. And the novice immediately enters a collective machine that completely absorbs his individuality. Everything is meticulously overseen and regulated, in a thicket of limitations. From personal mail to reading material, from visits to travel.

Over the eight months of the apostolic visit, this control was relaxed only in part. Some priests told the visitors about the things they believed were wrong. Others have left the congregation and been incardinated into the diocesan clergy. Others have continued to defend Maciel's legacy. Others feel lost. Still others, finally, have faith in the rebuilding on new foundations of a religious congregation that is part of their lives and that they continue to love.

The Ides of March

The date has arrived on which we were led to believe that the AV reports on the Legion will be handed in. Joan Frawley Desmond is a highly respected journalist, so I would give credence to her speculation over the timeline -- though anything is possible given what the Vatican has known for some time, and considering the Pope has been devoting his particular attention to this matter for a while:

[D]espite all the lurid details that continue to surface in the media, It could take months before the reports issued by of the five  apostolic visitators might prompt an official Vatican statement confirming some kind of official course of action.  Over the last year, Vatican insiders have speculated that the Holy See might act to close the Legion, or initiate a  "reforming" that would establish a new charism for the remaining members. But some seasoned Vatican watchers contend that Rome will move very slowly--if ever--to directly intervene in the Legion's affairs.

Is this like a "hemi?"

Girls and engines don't mix -- you all know that, but as I tried to figure out this new kid on the block and where she goes, I thought I'd try my hand at an analogy. The menfolk in our midst will take it in hand fix the comparison, I'm sure.

I've worked with women for years. I began a magazine in 1992 shortly before joining Regnum Christi and what attracted me in particular was their appeal to creating mass media apostolates. "I have a magazine," I piped up. "Great!! Now will you come over here and work on this apostolate?" I did both, then added a few more RC apostolates, plugging away with writing, editing and speaking (never at RC events, of course).

I offered them the magazine as a fundraiser, "We can split the cover price," I piped up. "Great idea! but for now could you help us sell subscriptions to the Register?" (Yup, didn't we all?) I offered to give copies of my magazine away at conferences; "Great! but they haven't been approved, so hold that thought. And can you head up Familia in your state in your spare time?"

And so it went. Over the years, more apostolates for women popped up around the country -- both in RC and out of it. Women were all on fire with the beauty of Mulieris Dignitatem and there were retreats, conferences, congresses, books and study groups all over the place.

I eventually gave my magazine to Johnnette Benkovic for the promotion of her great apostolate, Women of Grace, and turned my attention to putting together a book. I worked a little with Women of Grace, and tried to promote it, but this new group was out there called Endow -- and just as they undermined conferences related to my magazine, they seemed to be playing a little roughly in the sandbox with WOG. The head of it was Terry Polakovic who was unabashedly RC and there were serious signals that her group was an RC apostolate. Later these signals became mixed and then there was a serious campaign to hide that fact, and now they vociferously deny any relationship to RC. Okay.

So there was a conference in Rome in 2008 celebrating the 20th anniversary of that great document. I set up a site here (look at the address, just as an fyi) and from there promoted observances of the anniversary. I was invited to give the address summarising the challenges in North America. It was lovely, of course, but one couldn't help but noticing that RC's were everywhere. I was interviewed for H20 but the clip never seemed to surface (I could have missed it). A website afterwards was created out of Rome that seemed to rely heavily on RC sources. That's fine -- they're legit and interested in the topic. [Please, this is not about me, I'm just giving some background.]

But now, we find an odd article in the Register as though none of this has happened. "Didja know?" it asks breathlessly, "there's a whole different way to look at women. People who really like women are eager to learn more, and the Legion's Regina Apostolorum has come up with a plan to teach them!"

I'm thrilled, I really am. This is the topic I love -- and yet, this new group headed by a long-time RC member (note the address, fyi) will buddy up with Endow (not RC, remember!) to spread the word about women that has evidently been hidden under a rock before the Legion turned their eagle eyes to the problem. Excuse me if my cynicism is creeping through. IPS is the psychological group set up by the Legion -- that same Legion founded by a narcissistic incestuous paederast; Endow and now Avow are RC apostolates set up by the Legion -- that same Legion that averted its eyes from the womanising MM and counted on the generosity of [so-called] consecrated women to promote it despite their own precarious state and lack of canonical protection. Could there be room for any more irony? (It's like, well, asking familes to turn over the formation of their children to people who use manipulation instead of love -- who would ever think of doing such a thing?)

If Endow is the study program (not related to RC, they insist) and Avow is the structure that uses it to promote a certain end, does that make one the engine, the other the hemi? Or is it simply one more yellow brick road to the Oz-like Kingdom of the Legion? Caveat emptor.

"I was an elite bully for Christ"

Dana Kennedy does a very good job here trying to give a comprehensive view of the Legion scandal in view of the AV winding down. You'll see a lot of familiar themes that we've covered here over the last year.

Vaca said 28 other young seminarians were sexually abused by Maciel at the same time he was, and adds that some of them "went on to abuse others as they grew up."

That misuse of sex and power was an undercurrent that helped fuel the growth of the order, according to several former members of the Legion and Regnum Christi. "Maciel always told me to recruit the most handsome boys from the best families," said Vaca. "They were trained to approach rich women. I'm not saying they had sexual relationships with these women but they did know how to charm them."

Kineke and others also said Legion priests are notoriously successful in winning over women to the church. "They are spiritual seducers," said another former Regnum Christi member. "They are the only priests I've seen who have swept people off their feet. These men woo women because they want access to our children and our husbands' wallets."

She spent time talking to Jim Fair, and came up with more disappointing comments:

Fair said the order has "toned down the veneration," such as often removing the photographs of Maciel that adorned Legion facilities. He added that the Legion welcomed the apostolic visitation, which is what the Vatican investigation is called. "He was obviously a very flawed man," said Fair. "It's hard to reconcile the guy we now know with the man who built hundreds of seminaries. But we will go on. The work of the church is bigger than humans. It's a little as if we found out Abraham Lincoln was a serial pedophile after he signed the Emancipation Proclamation."

"Toned down?" "Abraham Lincoln?" Could he really have said that? If not, he needs to either call Ms. Kennedy on it, or clarify. That's an atrocious phrase (as though some veneration is still in order) and an insulting comparison -- the more I think about the juxtapostion, the more I worry about that man's sanity. 

We'll just keep up the prayers and hope that the Holy Spirit prevails.

_______________________

For those new to this site, here is a testimomy of an ex-Legionary, an ex-Regnum Christi member, and one (of many) explanation of the flaws in the theology. Some of the internal strategy is explained here.

UPDATE: As usual, one of the first tidbits of feedback is to insult our faith:

By this overly long thing which I can't begin to finish reading I have to wonder where your time and life of prayer is?? I know several young men from beautiful Families who are in LC and cherish it! I am in my 2nd Familia class and without a doubt it is one of the Best things I've ever taken! The woman who brought it to our Church is truly one of the Most Saintly People I have ever met in my life!

Ooookay, then perhaps it will help to remind folks of two key items: This post is a response to "I don't care about your injuries -- my experience has been great;" and this article is a explanation of where the Familia program came from and how the Legion absconded with it.

Revisiting Legionary "orthodoxy"

Can it really be three years? Boy, we've been at this task a long time. Fr Euteneuer has a sort of "anniversary piece" up on the kerfluffle with Fr Jonathan Morris (who is using his perch at a NYC parish to introduce a "mega mission"). The topic was contraception, a topic on which Sean Hannity disagreed with the Church, but insisted that he had every right to do so.

Perhaps the most disappointing part of that Hannity interview was the way in which Fr. Jonathan Morris, Fox News priest advisor, defended Mr. Hannity in his dissent against a Catholic priest who was actually defending the orthodox teaching of the Church. The priestly sell-out on contraception and church discipline is a painful corollary to Hannity's lay dissent. The shameful silence of the clergy on the issue of Catholic morality in the era when it has been most needed is an insufferable failure of those responsible for being its guardians. We will be for generations digging ourselves out of this clerical mess, and although the tides are indeed turning toward greater orthodoxy in the clergy, the damage has been done, and priests bear the lion'sshare of the blame for the degradation of the moral fabric of our world.

At the time, this is the article I wrote explaining the dust-up. I'm glad Fr Euteneuer brought it up, because it was never addressed and yet taught the rank and file a something about Legionary priorities.

Whither rational thought?

A new Spanish blog about RC (as of last week -- post incest revelations) which welcomes discussion. And then the second entry:

I send [all RC members] a very cordial greeting. I urge you these days to live more intensely the vocation to the RC that God our Lord has given us. Fulfill our commitments as members, pray for all the Legionaries of Christ, consecrated men and women, and give public testimony of all the beautiful things the Legion of Christ and the MRC have given to us. Like all of us and hopefully we can attend these Megamisiones approaching. Entrust ourselves much.

I hope that entrusting is done to the Magisterium, but nothing seems to penetrate.

Righteous anger

Dierdre has ably answered the whiny, obtuse question, "Why do you hate the Legion and RC?" I'm sorry for the impatience with this question, but it's like a teenager asking his parents why they hate him for setting a curfew, or a toddler saying, "I'm not tiiiiired" as he kicks his way down the hallway. There's an inability to step outside one's own head to consider the actions of another. And remember, these are grown-up, "well-formed" Catholics.

Deciphering the obvious

An astute exRC has brought to my attention some paragraphs in the norms by which Legion priests have been formed for decades. This formation was the air they breathed, the water they drank and the foundation of the person to person contact they lived with in-house for years. Remember the complete control over information, the strict barriers to outside influences and the dedication to the "charism" that created a Legionary:

451. During the chapter Our Founder, with particular emphasis, also rejected as historically false the assertion that all religious orders and congregations diminish in spirit upon the death of the Founder and lose a great part of their vitality. And he expressed to us as a fundamental element of his faith and of his confidence the example of what happened to the Church upon the death of its Founder; for it was the death and resurrection that united the cofounders of the Church in love and in obedience to the Holy Spirit, making them remain, as one man, faithful to its mission and dispersing themselves throughout the entire world in order to extend the Kingdom of God. Similarly, this will happen to the legionary cofounders if they remain faithful in love and in obedience to the charism of the Founder.

453. He indicated that he is more concerned about the probable but vain attempt by some of his enemies who, owing to the demise of the Founder, will try from the outside to sow discord and division within the Legion. Because of this, he allowed himself to recommend that starting now, whenever by the will of God this crisis presents itself, a collective behavior of our members characterized by serenity, discretion, harmony, and prayer in the midst of pain be observed.

454. In conclusion, it would be opportune to remember here the words of Paul VI: Religious institutions are vigorous and flourish when, in their discipline, in their works and the customs of life of their members, they integrally reflect the soul of their Founders.

Notice some red flags in there? See some vocabulary words that sound familiar? Recognise the landscape of an integrated mind you may know and love (and pull your hair out over)? This is the world of a cult -- no matter how many times they quote the Catechism, the off-the-cuff remarks of John Paul II, or how much they've suffered and sacrificed for you.

UPDATE: another ex has a scathing reminder --

[Maciel's "charism"] was not a particular and unique service to the Church, other than the naricissism of saving all humanity -- which is what MM has the LC do. Yes, let's remember this [above material] is the objective and factual reference from the founder as to where is the charism of the LC. If you want to keep LC in name, then this is the chalice you must drink from, and I do not think it belongs to Christ.

Just to be clear

This post is directed towards those who are still in RC or on the fence, awaiting the outcome of the AV.

Your new prayer book still uses meditations and prayers attributed to Marcial Maciel, acknowledged to be a womaniser, a paedophile and practicer of incest. Does that bother you?

In fact, the new version includes "a section of traditional Latin prayers of the Church [and] classic forms of many prayers" -- interspersed with those of a total scoundrel, which make it all the more insidious. If there are any RC readers who are lurking, I beg of you to grab a monicker (even the ubiquitous "anon") and explain how you are at peace with this, how you can use this book, and what was said if you asked those in your chain of command about it.

What in particular would it take to make you realise that your Legion isn't taking seriously its need for reform? Thank you.

UPDATE: A reader has provided an example. This is from the English language RC site -- which uses meditations from Centered on Christ. The Spanish version still has the name of Maciel on the meditations. The translations are the same -- although one more verification of that fact couldn't hurt (and Changobeer already explained that it is simply a book of unattributed MM quotes -- though at this point we don't know what he actually wrote). That's not the point; the point is that the charlatans have slipped in the same quotes attributed to MM without his name attached.

Another reader gives more background:

Hence, we have Cristo al Centro which, in the words of a formator in my section, is a work put together "by a few LC's beginning about five years ago (READ: NO CONCRETE AUTHORSHIP) in order to provide people with a description of the RC/LC spirituality."

And this is necessary to integration of members? For $13.95? And those who have the time, perhaps you could tell us what particular charism or unique dimension those quotes add to the flavour of the book.

UPDATE II: mExRC carefully illustrates the catch-22 for Evaristo and Legion --

On one hand, through the decades they've attributed all these letters to Nuestro Fraude, letters that were actually written by either one of his multiple personal secretaries (he had 4 or so at a time and changed them every so often), or by another legendary legion scribe, such as Arumi (the early letters), or Juan José Ferrán (Nuestro Fraude's external brain and Cliff Notes maker), or Evaristo himself. The quotes originally attributed to Nuestro Fraude, although not really his, in theory represented his thought and little by little conveyed and constructed the legion/regnum's so-called charism.

As we know, after the truth started coming out last year, Evaristo started revising and rewriting history, and thus were born Cristo al Centro, the new prayer manual, and so on. Now their dilemma is this: Do they confess to the fact that Nuestro Fraude didn't write a thing and thus they are free to use these writing since they come from "purer sources"? Or do they continue claiming that the writings DID come from Nuestro Fraude and therefore they must be discarded?

If they admit to the former, they are in essence saying that the charism didn't actually come from the so-called founder. In other words, there is no charism. But if they admit to the latter, they will be forced to get rid of it, and will ALSO find themselves with NO charism after all. Ever the crafty pupil, Evaristo seems to have chosen a third route: Keep the writings, just remove Nuestro Fraude's name when necessary.

Sorry, Fr. Evaristo. You can't have it both ways. Your house of cards is about to fall.

Fisking Giselle

For all the unprofessional opinions that I heave around this place, I am deeply grateful for the edits that this woman -- a canon lawyer -- has given to my piece on consecrated life in Regnum Christi (or should I say "consecrated" life). Please read her comments and clarifications, and rest assured that I will amend my piece as soon as possible. For anyone who has ever sent my article to another to read, I would appreciate that you follow up with these essential corrections.

In light of this recent comment on a related thread, we have to be more discriminatory than ever about how we see "vocations" within the Movement:

I heard one consecrated say that she believed everyone had a vocation, and that's how she conducted her recruitment practices. She had no problem telling girls she just met that she was sure they had a vocation, b/c she really believed everyone had a vocation.

Hey, that's now "consecrated" (or "dedicated," if you prefer).

Revisiting that cult thing

People still forget occasionally that we're dealing with YBC (your basic cult) and so we have a new testimony that lifts the veil on how it's done in those early year:

The trouble began when I was dropped off for the summer program prior to the commencement of the school year. I would almost never be allowed to go home. I found out that we got four days off at Christmas and fifteen days off to go home for the summer and at Christmas we couldn't go home until the twenty-sixth of the month. I was thirteen years old and I was heartbroken. First day on the ground there in New Hampshire and the first of many heartbreaks had arrived in full force. I was so homesick I felt physically ill for the first four months or so. To make matters worse the fathers and brothers intercepted phone calls from my parents for the first two weeks, telling them not to call for awhile in order to let me settle in...

See how these years nearly shredded the faith of a teenager who actually loved his Church and was excited by orthodoxy. He seems to have eventually recovered his equilibrium, but it there were some harrowing years. Keep up the prayers for those trapped by the lie that their departure damns others to hell.

UPDATE: To bring this to its logical conlusion, consider this portion of a comment by a sexual abuse victim in the Legion:

The Legion DEMANDED SILENCE of each and every Legionary - present and ex by the instillation of a vow in our hearts and minds to never criticise externally nor internally the acts or person of our superiors. Six years after I left the Legion and reported my LC abuser to the police in Dublin I felt sick because they day i met the police I felt I was betraying my superior when I knew that I had to go ahead with it. I couldn't believe the degree of LC thought control was still there in me. The Vatican press release gives me some hope now, where I didn't really have much before.

Do you want to elaborate on that, Father?

Of all the inane and obtuse quotes possible, Father Thomas Williams, theologian extraordinaire, has come up with a real pearl. There is another sad sex scandal whereby a papal usher used a Vatican choir member as a liaison for a homosexual prostitution ring. Vile, insulting, and a wretched piece of work. And our illustrious padre is quoted in this paragraph:

These allegations are arguably less serious than the recent spate of scandals involving Catholic clergy abusing underage boys and girls. Balducci is said to prefer the company of "older men, above 40 years old," with even 26-year olds being considered "too young." Also, neither Balducci nor Ehiem is a paid Vatican employee or part of the Catholic priesthood. But it's still "really a sordid affair," says CBS News analyst Fr. Thomas Williams, "and we really didn't need this right now."

"We didn't need this right now"? Seriously? With this degradation of human beings taking place right in the heart of our Church, we have a quote that indicates:

• This is a PR problem;
• Our plate is rather full of such things;
• There are better times for scandals [sigh].

Imagine your daughter coming to you distraught over an out-of-wedlock pregnancy and the father looking her in the eye, saying, "Your grandmother has just been diagnosed with liver cancer, I lost my job and your mother hasn't slept for weeks. We didn't need this right now." 

Pastoral? I think not.

 

Clarification of important points

A generous reader has transcribed the essence of this piece, which clears up some facts, and offers new ones:

Highlights from: Legionarios de Cristo, mafia que sigue abusando de niños: Abogado ("Legionaries of Christ, Mafia That Continues to Abuse Children: Lawyer")

José Bonilla talks about the Children of Maciel: Norma (who he says is living in Acapulco, but normally we hear of her posh apartment in Madrid) of the three boys of Blanca, the son in London who owns a high-level clothing shop, his French daughter (called her one of his consentidas -- which means spoiled but in this contexts is more like favorites).

And then he brings up something about a girl in Veracruz, Mexico. This is the first I've heard of this. She's older, and he says they have just learned of her.

Regarding abuse he says that the founder abused "many seminarians" and then he spoke of the second and third generation of abuse: "They are repeating this derelict conduct, there are registered cases in various schools, in South America, in Spain. I assume they work like the mafia, where one or another cover up these acts of sexual abuse against children."

He talked about the problem the Legion will have if it owns up to all these acts, and the money they will have to pay out. "The value held as most important for the religious congregation of the Legionaries of Christ is money, before any other type of value, including evangelical."

He notes that there are good people in the Legion, "but there are people who enter very young, and to these young people, women and men, they do an important psychological work on them in the sense that they don't see, they don't think, they only obey."

"They teach that the one who obeys never makes a mistake, this is the way that they have them, and under this principle they don't know what is happening, they don't see the reality of things, which is lamentable because there comes a time when they have the opportunity to have access to information and they realize the double life of the Legionaries (note he says Legionaries and not just Maciel), which will result in hurting them in their souls and in their hearts."

Bonilla says he left the case because of the extortion attempt of Raul. He would have preferred to go through the proper legal channels, and also he wasn't notified of the decision to go public. Then he says something odd: "I thought that this decision [to not continue with the case of Maciel's sons] would not have had the transcendence that it had, it's been interpreted as if I wanted to say that there was no sexual abuse." [What I found odd is that he's surprised that some would conclude this...] Then he says that he believes what the sons say, and reiterates again that as a professional he can't continue with a case where his client asks for money in exchange for silence.

The paragraph that I put in bold is a layman's experience with a cult. He doesn't name it as such, but indicates the key elements and the ramifications of losing one's critical thinking skills.

Day of Penance

Sweet Jesus: We offer this day of prayer and fasting for a three-fold intention:

• for the purification we need in our words, actions and intentions, being intensely mindful of our own sins, our grave errors and our lack of charity, kindly lead us to Your light;
• for those who have been harmed in any way by Maciel's Movement, by direct sinful action or by scandal emanating from its methodology, kindly heal these wounds with Your touch;
• for the Successor of Peter, that he be guided in wisdom and fortitude to act in accordance with Your Holy Spirit for the greatest good, kindly strengthen Your Church and purify her.

From today's Office of Readings:

	From the book addressed to Autolycus by Saint Theophilus of Antioch, bishop
Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God
If you say, “Show me your God,” I will say to you, “Show me what kind of person you are, and I will show you my God.” Show me then whether the eyes of your mind can see, and the ears of your heart hear.   It is like this. Those who can see with the eyes of their bodies are aware of what is happening in this life on earth. They get to know things that are different from each other. They distinguish light and darkness, black and white, ugliness and beauty, elegance and inelegance, proportion and lack of proportion, excess and defect. The same is true of the sounds we hear: high or low or pleasant. So it is with the ears of our heart and the eyes of our mind in their capacity to hear or see God.   God is seen by those who have the capacity to see him, provided that they keep the eyes of their mind open. All have eyes, but some have eyes that are shrouded in darkness, unable to see the light of the sun. Because the blind cannot see it, it does not follow that the sun does not shine. The blind must trace the cause back to themselves and their eyes. In the same way, you have eyes in your mind that are shrouded in darkness because of your sins and evil deeds.   A person’s soul should be clean, like a mirror reflecting light. If there is rust on the mirror his face cannot be seen in it. In the same way, no one who has sin within him can see God.   But if you will you can be healed. Hand yourself over to the doctor, and he will open the eyes of your mind and heart. Who is to be the doctor? It is God, who heals and gives life through his Word and wisdom. Through his Word and wisdom he created the universe, for by his Word the heavens were established, and by his Spirit all their array. His wisdom is supreme. God by wisdom founded the earth, by understanding he arranged the heavens, by his knowledge the depths broke forth and the clouds poured out the dew.   If you understand this, and live in purity and holiness and justice, you may see God. But, before all, faith and the fear of God must take the first place in your heart, and then you will understand all this. When you have laid aside mortality and been clothed in immortality, then you will see God according to your merits. God raises up your flesh to immortality along with your soul, and then, once made immortal, you will see the immortal One, if you believe in him now.

Vatican press statement

No direct reference, but closely related nonetheless:

VATICAN CITY, 9 MAR 2010 ( VIS ) - Given below is the text of note issued today by Holy See Press Office Director Fr. Federico Lombardi S.J. concerning cases of the sexual abuse of minors in ecclesiastical institutions:

  "For some months now the very serious question of the sexual abuse of minors in institutions run by ecclesiastical bodies and by people with positions of responsibility within the Church, priests in particular, has been investing the Church and society in Ireland . The Holy Father recently demonstrated his own concern, particularly through two meetings: firstly with high-ranking members of the episcopate, then with all the ordinaries. He is also preparing the publication of a letter on the subject for the Irish Church .

  "But over recent weeks the debate on the sexual abuse of minors has also involved the Church in certain central European countries ( Germany , Austria and Holland ). And it is on this development that we wish to make some simple remarks.

  "The main ecclesiastical institutions concerned - the German Jesuit Province (the first to be involved, through the case of the Canisius-Kolleg in Berlin), the German Episcopal Conference, the Austrian Episcopal Conference and the Netherlands Episcopal Conference - have faced the emergence of problem with timely and decisive action. They have demonstrated their desire for transparency and, in a certain sense, accelerated the emergence of the problem by inviting victims to speak out, even when the cases involved date from many years ago. By doing so they have approached the matter 'on the right foot', because the correct starting point is recognition of what happened and concern for the victims and the consequences of the acts committed against them. Moreover, they have re-examined the extant 'Directives' and have planned new operative guidelines which also aim to identify a prevention strategy, so that everything possible may be done to ensure that similar cases are not repeated in the future.

  "These events mobilise the Church to find appropriate responses and should be placed in a more wide-ranging context that concerns the protection of children and young people from sexual abuse in society as a whole. Certainly, the errors committed in ecclesiastical institutions and by Church figures are particularly reprehensible because of the Church's educational and moral responsibility, but all objective and well-informed people know that the question is much broader, and concentrating accusations against the Church alone gives a false perspective. By way of example, recent data supplied by the competent authorities in Austria shows that, over the same period of time, the number of proven cases in Church institutions was 17, while there were 510 other cases in other areas. It would be as well to concern ourselves also with them.

  "In Germany initiatives are now rightly being suggested, promoted by the Ministry for the Family, to call a 'round table' of the various educational and social organisations in order to consider the question from an appropriate and comprehensive viewpoint. The Church is naturally ready to participate and become involved and, perhaps, her own painful experience may also be a useful contribution for others. Chancellor Angela Merkel had justly recognised the seriousness and constructive approach shown by the German Church .

  "In order to complete these remarks, it is as well to recall once again that the Church exists as part of civil society and shoulders her own responsibilities in society, but she also has her own specific code, the 'canonical code', which reflects her spiritual and sacramental nature and in which, therefore, judicial and penal procedures are different (for example, they contain no provision for pecuniary sanctions or for the deprivation of freedom, but for impediment in the exercise of the ministry and privation of rights in the ecclesiastical field, etc.). In the ambit of canon law, the crime of the sexual abuse of minors has always been considered as one of the most serious of all, and canonical norms have constantly reaffirmed this, in particular the 2001 Letter 'De delictis gravioribus', sometimes improperly cited as the cause of a 'culture of silence'. Those who know and understand its contents, are aware that it was a decisive signal to remind the episcopate of the seriousness of the problem, as well as a real incentive to draw up operational guidelines to face it.

  "In conclusion, although the seriousness of the difficulties the Church is going through cannot be denied, we must not fail to do everything possible in order to ensure that, in the end, they bring positive results, of better protection for infancy and youth in the Church and in society, and the purification of the Church herself".

Volunteers?

Another program for your parish. I'm sure they've been doing this for a while (though this pilot looks sort of new), but I wonder how the numbers are shaping up this year.

The K4J parish program releases a lot of positive power within the teaching arena, the kids' learning environment and the parish-home-school connection. Parish K4J is especially designed for Religious Education. With limited time and resources, you need a program that can deliver results.

It's that "parish-home-school connection" that worries people, but as usual the Legion can provide the people and money -- just open your doors. As I said months ago, be careful what you wish for...

Forgiveness everywhere

Surely this flows from today's readings, but still it's frustrating to read, given the undercurrent of the present crisis:

Conversation with Christ: Lord thank you for this time of prayer. I must recognize that you have been merciful with me and forgiven me the great debt I owe. Thank you for the many times you have given me a second chance. During this time of Lent, help me to practice mercy toward those who owe or offend me.

Resolution: I will think of someone who has offended me and say a prayer asking God to help me forgive them.

We've visited forgiveness at length. It's a pity that we still hear it misapplied in the case of Malice MacLie.

Change in Atlanta

From the Legion website:

Dear Friends in Christ,

I am pleased to announce two changes in Legionary assignments.

Father William Serra has been named assistant for apostolate for the Atlanta territory. He replaces Father Emilio Diaz-Torre, who has been named territorial director for the territory of Monterrey, Mexico.

Father William was ordained in 2004, and served as territorial secretary for North America in 2004, becoming territorial secretary for the Atlanta territory until mid-2005. Since that time, he has been working in the Legionaries’ general directorate in Rome.

Father Emilio was ordained in 1993, and has spent most of his priesthood in the United States in various apostolic roles, based initially in the Northeast. Since 2005, he has worked from Atlanta as assistant for apostolate.

Please join me in welcoming Father William to his new assignment. And also join me in prayers for Father Emilio to continue doing in his new assignment what he has done so faithfully during his time with us: bring souls to Christ.

God Bless,

Father Scott Reilly

Territorial Director, Atlanta

Odd time for changes, given it's the late middle of a school year and just weeks before the end of the AV.

Notice for 10 March

Pete Vere has come up with an excellent proposal on behalf of the victims of Malice MacLie: A day of prayer and fasting. It is entirely appropriate, given the decades of frivolity on the 10th of March -- celebrating what turns out to be nothing but fraud and wickedness. Finally, the day can be directed to the proper response when God and His holy things are mocked -- whether it be the children in His image and likeness or the Sacraments for which He shed His blood.

It also closes the latest novena in which many of us took part, and will arm Our Holy Father to do the right thing in wisdom and justice. Kindly join us in any way you can, as we'll pray that this cancer is eradicated from the bosom of Holy Mother Church.

The worst damage has been done

It is true that Jose Bonilla is bowing out, and he is to be commended for how he set forth this case -- especially the timing.

MEXICO CITY — A Mexican lawyer said Monday he has resigned from handling the case of a woman and her sons who claim the males were sexually abused as boys by the founder of a conservative Roman Catholic religious order.

Lawyer Jose Bonilla said he and a team of other lawyers who had represented the family would no longer do so, after one of the sons acknowledged he had asked the order for $26 million to keep quiet about the case.

"I know they were sexually abused by their father. This is a truly grave, lamentable situation," Bonilla said. "I always told them ... that they have a right to damages for moral and sexual abuse, but they have absolutely no right to ask for money from anybody in exchange for their silence."

While saying his team could not be part of that, Bonilla said of the family, "I wish them well in this fight with all my heart."

A sincere question

Has anyone heard from or about Father Richard Gill? He indicated that he had had enough of the Legion and its duplicity and was leaving, but rumours are swirling that he is still associated with Legionary apostolates, which is curious. If he is promoting the Legion's pomps and works, then perhaps the separation was not as final as it sounded, or if he is only working jobs with which he has a familiarity, then perhaps he has rethought his status. Many were relieved when he departed from the Movement, but his whereabouts since have left more questions than answers.

UPDATE: Interestingly, several people have emailed me with the news that Fr Gill will now be ministering to the families of Saint Barnabas Church in the Bronx. This is good news, especially that he will live in community with three other (non Legion) priests and find himself surrounded by excellent people who have lived a deep and rich faith without benefit of the Movement. I wish him every blessing in his new assignment.

Separating from the founder? Not exactly.

The new Regnum Christi handbook is out and it seems to still be full of verbal illustrations of a certain paedophile whose name is an anagram of MacLie (with our deepest apologies to any Scottish readers). Since the old RC prayers had meditations from the founder, they noted that the new book was relying instead on Christo al Centro, but Changobeer noted last year that it was simply an anthology of the writings of Nuestro MacLie:

At the same time, a book recently distributed internally, ‘Cristo al Centro,’ offers an anthology of Fr. Maciel’s writings and sayings – unindexed and sometimes slightly retouched – mixed with quotations from other, less dubious sources as a thinly disguised attempt to revindicate the Founder’s contribution to LC spirituality. Now we can quote the Founder without mentioning his name, read some of the things he said and wrote without that direct and oh-so-uncomfortable reference to his person. They’re already talking about revisiting the writings of Fr. Maciel some years down the road when all this ‘persecution’ has blown over…"

For examples of the new Stations of the Cross, go here. The Spanish site hasn't even removed the old MacLie quotes (perhaps at Lucretia's insistence). Members were assured in a "webinar" that the quotes were "approved by the Church," which sounds sketchy. Either a prayer book has an imprimatur (with a bishop's name) or it doesn't. But "approved by the Church" still doesn't mean much. Heck, even the writings of popes and cardinals themselves don't guarantee much unless their speaking in a particular capacity.

I cannot give you all the specifics I'd like because my copy of the prayer book threatens a lawsuit if used without permission. More of that bubbly charity that Regain and various MacLie offspring have come to know and love.

UPDATE: A critical way to look at the Movement is the way it blurs lines:

Regnum Christi = Church = good work of Founder (pace: Jim Fair).

The troubling new strategy is to say that the Legion's problems are the Church's problems, and since the Church has survived 2000, the Legion will just persevere. (The flip side of this, of course, will be that if the Legion goes down, they'll do their best to take JP2, B16 and any Catholic credibility with them.)

Consider Fr Sada's explanation of the new prayer book:

23 Though the Movement has structures and in¬stitutions to facilitate the formation and apostolate of its members, its true life is synonymous with the Christian life of its members. The degree to which they are authentic Christians, faithful sons and daughters of the Church, and committed apostles, will determine the degree to which Regnum Christi will be a living reality and contribute to establish¬ing Christ’s Kingdom in the world. Everything else –centers, works, institutions, regulations– are only means, and therefore Regnum Christi uses them only in so far as they contribute to the fulfillment of its mission. Regnum Christi uses them only in so far as they contribute to the fulfillment of its mission.

This blurring is deceptive and meant to be confusing to the lay faithful who want to distinguish "the one thing necessary."

HINT: it's not membership in a toxic group founded by an incestuous paedophile.

Intervention may be needed

I stumbled on this blog (in Spanish) that happened to have a short piece in English. After spelling corrections, one reads:

The brother mentioned above (Willy) is thanking for your prayers. He has had his second surgery and is ready to head home (near the seminary) for a few months. His first question to the priest that was staying with him at the hospital after the first surgery was: May I still be a Legionary? That was answered immediatedly by the Priest: "Certainly! As always it is up to you and God." I have been daily in touch with Willy and his family. He plans to be back to the seminary in two months, still not walking and not being able to hold crutches. There are brothers already preparing to be able to take care of him. Please pray. He is only 17 and now he needs all strength to be able to start over.

Start over, um, where? At the Legion seminary? Are his parents delusional? Does the earnest, "May I still be a Legionary?" sound like a question that would come from a young man who has ever interfaced with uncensored writing? He hasn't even graduated from high school and he's deeply imbedded in the bosom of a highly dysfunctional group (under investigation) with his parents' blessing. It beggars belief that these young men haven't been given some breathing room to rethink their path, but perhaps the AV will provide the necessary intervention by closing down the minor seminaries.

Thoughts?

From a concerned father:

I have a concern that won't go away based on two books I recently read entitled "Blessings and Curses" by Derek Prince (not a Catholic) and "I Give You Authority" by Charles H Kraft (also not a Catholic). I am sure there must be Catholic books on this topic and I am hoping that there is someone in this group who has some insights into this issue.

I remember in the statutes (during the time they were posted) being horrified to read that Legion and RC members were required to integrate the spirit of the founder right into their own spirit. And of course they made a vow or solemn promise to be obedient and the chain of command led up to you know who.

If the founder, known simultaneously by his followers, who idolized him as "Our Father" and by many of his non followers as the "Master of Deceit" was evil enough to do what has been reported about him (and probably many other things unreported) and as it seems, never repented (or there wouldn't have been need for an exorcist to be present at his death) then it is very likely that he brought curses upon himself and possibly on all those who had pledged allegiance to him.

We just had a parish mission and the priest distributed a special prayer for healing of the family tree. In scriptures there are a number of curses that can last for at least four generations. The prayer asks for release from the effects of all bondage that may have come from ancestors. I also recently was given a prayer from another source to release people who are descendents of Masons from the effects of curses. Freemasons make blood oaths that are quite gory and as a person progresses through the 33 degrees, he makes oaths that tie him to some false gods and there is some bad symbolism, including I understand, a reenactment of a character named Hiram Abiff, who rises from the dead after three days. My dad was a Freemason, so I was interested in being healed from any lingering effects.

So I have been wondering if there are curses on some or all of those associated with the Legion and Regnum Christi. It could account for some of the mental and emotional distress experienced by ex members after they leave. As well as mental and emotional problems curses can also cause spiritual and physical ailments, even death (apparently Voodoo or black magic can be used to kill people).

I think that this issue should be raised as a serious concern to someone who could have a competent authority (at least someone who has read more than two books about it) look into it and provide some real spiritual guidance for those affected. Does anyone know much about this area or do they know of someone in the Church who has expertise about curses? I am hesitant to say much to anyone without adequate background information but I have learned enough to realize that it could bring improvement to some peoples' lives.

As mainstream as it gets

Time has turned its roving eye towards the Scandal du Legion and offered up a hard-hitting piece:

Disgrace already hung over the Rev. Marcial Maciel when he died in 2008 at the age of 87. In 2005, beset by burgeoning charges that he had sexually abused young seminarians for decades, the Mexican priest had resigned as head of the Legionaries of Christ, one of the Roman Catholic Church's most powerful clerical orders. In 2006 the Vatican — which, under the late Pope John Paul II, had been one of Padre Maciel's staunchest allies — made him give up public ministry and confine himself to a life of "prayer and penitence."

But last week in Mexico, where Maciel founded the ultraconservative Legion in 1941, the scandal took an even unholier turn. On March 3, one of Maciel's mistresses, Blanca Lara, and two of Lara's grown sons, told MVS Radio that Maciel had sexually abused his own children. It "started when I was 7 years old," said one son, José Raúl González, now in his early 30s. "I was lying down with him like any boy, any son with his father. He pulled down my pants and tried to rape me." The abuse, González said, got worse after that and lasted years. His brother, Omar, said he too had been sexually abused by Maciel, starting at age 8. (The sons never took Maciel's surname.) Says Maciel victim Juan Vaca, 72, a former priest and adjunct psychology and sociology professor at Mercy College in New York, "This simply confirms what sort of personality we [were] dealing with: a malignant narcissist."

It wasn't so long ago that an army of conservative Catholics, including such prominent voices as the late theologian the Rev. Richard Neuhaus, would have rushed to defend Maciel, the most high-profile Catholic clergyman ever to be accused of sexual abuse. But at this point, even the Legion has resigned itself to the dark double life of the man its members often called "Nuestro Padre," or Our Father. Last year, the order conceded that Maciel had sired children. And it didn't challenge last week's allegations, posting a message on its website saying, "We share the suffering and shame of [Lara's] family, understanding the difficult circumstances they've lived and are living." Maciel, says Jim Fair, a Legion spokesman in Chicago, was "a guy who lived in two different universes. We're trying to sort out how to deal with this."

The question, though, is whether Pope Benedict XVI is poised to deal with it for them — perhaps by taking over the Legion and installing new leadership from outside the order. A number of U.S. bishops already bar the Legion from operating in their dioceses. This month Benedict is expected to receive the first report of a five-bishop team he sent out last year to investigate the Legion around the world. Sources familiar with the probe say it's meant in part to determine if others in the order besides Maciel have committed sexual abuse, and whether the order's current leadership was aware of Maciel's behavior but covered it up via payoffs to mistresses and abuse victims. Fair said the Legion had no comment in that regard. But Maciel victims like Vaca say Legion bosses such as its general director, the Rev. Alvaro Corcuera, and the Rev. John Devlin, Maciel's private secretary, should step forward with what they knew.

Still, victims are keeping their expectations low: the ultra-secretive order that Maciel built, like some shadowy fraternity from a Dan Brown novel, may be simply too powerful to cudgel. Established in 22 countries, it operates nine universities, 125 religious houses and more than 160 schools. In the U.S. alone it runs 21 élite Catholic prep schools, a university in Sacramento, Calif., and some of the only seminaries for teenage boys in the U.S. at a time when the American priesthood's ranks are thinning exponentially. In Mexico, the children of telecom billionaire Carlos Slim, one of the world's richest people, have attended its academies. [It neglects to mention that CS promised to build fifteen universities for the Legion in Mexico. Wonder what he's thinking now.] In fact, like its rival conservative organization, Opus Dei, the Legion counts some of the world's wealthiest Catholics among its followers — its lay membership, known as the Regnum Christi, or Kingdom of Christ, has some 70,000 members worldwide — and it is one of the Church's top fundraisers. [I still dispute that number -- since no one really "unincorporates" but the fundraising part is very true.]

Just as important, however, is the thorny issue of John Paul II, who died in 2005 and was succeeded by Benedict. The Vatican had investigated Maciel's personal life as early as the 1950s; but John Paul, whose papacy began in 1978, showered praise on the Legion's founder, calling him "an efficacious guide to youth."

Vaca says that remark is what compelled Maciel victims to tell their stories for the book Vows of Silence, published in 2004. They eventually got the Vatican, even under John Paul, to take their allegations seriously, but Church watchers say Benedict's current mission to canonize his predecessor is another reason Rome won't want to punish the Legion too harshly. "The Legionaries of Christ are going to withstand this [latest] blow," says Elio Masferrer, an expert on the Catholic Church in Latin America at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). Rome, he predicts, "will not take any meaningful action" — just as it hasn't, he argues, in widespread clerical sex abuse cases in Ireland and the U.S., despite Benedict's vow to remove the "filth" of sex abusers from the priesthood. [Oremus, friends. Hope springs eternal...]

Analysts like Masferrer do believe, however, that the Maciel scandal, especially in the wake of last week's revelations, is having "a devastating impact" on the Catholic Church in Mexico. The Church is already hemorrhaging congregants to Protestant evangelical sects, and it has seen its clout diminish in areas like the capital, Mexico City, where secular leftists recently passed a law permitting gay marriage. "The politicians can say that the Church officials are in no position to give moral lectures," says Masferrer. [Perhaps not, but all the more reason Benedict has to be firm -- to rebuild on rock, not sand.]

While the Legion's website message last week was sympathetic to Lara and her sons [que??], the order made a point of exposing José Raúl González's private demand earlier this year that the Legion pay him $26 million to keep quiet about his father's sexual abuse. The order insists it did not pay, suggesting that as the motive for the tell-all radio interview. [Perhaps the Legion is kicking itself for not paying enough, as it evidently did with other baby mamas UPDATE: And Aaron reminds us that silence was the mandate in exchange to drop the Legion's suit against Regain a few years ago! UPDATE II: another astute reader brings up the hush money paid to the founders of Familia in their settlement which is now public record.] Masferrer says the Legion has also circulated reports that Maciel was surrounded by exorcists in his final days, suggesting that his immoral acts were the work of demons and not the priest. That's a Hail Mary ploy at best [nice touch]. And it does little to obscure the fact that it's up to Benedict now to decide whether Padre Maciel's Legion is itself possessed of enough demons to warrant more severe penance.
— With reporting by Ioan Grillo and Dolly Mascareñas / Mexico City

I think this rachets up the pressure to do the right thing especially if this makes it to the print edition and every doctor/hospital waiting room in America (not to mention grandma's coffee table). I have already expressed my confidence that Benedict takes cleaning up the Augean stables very seriously. He warned that he would do this if elected, and has proven firm in his leadership. One gets the clear sense that he's weary of the filth and ready to make heads roll. A few more weeks, I believe, and we'll see some indication of his response. Keep up the prayers.

A tsunami of indignation

The Legion mailing lists are still cranking out the usual solicitations, and one reader has offered this as a proper response [the trigger was a K4J VBS promotional email]:

Dear Don, Thank you for the email regarding the K4J VBS. I’m requesting to be taken off of your mailing list. I cannot, in good conscience, promote or be associated with anything connected to the Legion of Christ or Regnum Christi. The revelations over the past year have been extremely disturbing and disgusting. The latest revelation of the incestuous relationship of Maciel with his own son & now the Legion accusing the victim of extortion is beyond evil. I am physically ill over it and, although I know you have nothing to do with it personally, I feel that I must speak out, even if it’s just a tiny bit to make even one person aware of the atrocities. I am sorry that you are involved with them. K4J is a great program, but just as we teach our children virtue, we must always remember that those with whom we associate influence our behavior. Standing up for what’s right is the most important thing we can teach our children. I refer you to http://www.life-after-rc.com/ for more information. Respectfully,

This sort of answer will be especially potent should the Vatican not take decisive action. A wave of repulsion like this will deeply impact an organisation whose "charism" is based on a pyramid scheme -- and mirror what historically has been understood to be the sensum fidei.

UPDATE: Another commenter offers this link, noting:

This is the new article written by Trastevere and it looks like the Legion in Spain is preparing for avalanche of lawsuits that are coming their way.

Well, money is the language that the Legion speaks, so this should impact them in a way they can understand.

UPDATE II: Another example of where our indignation should be directed. Consider this parish, which has many indications of Legion ties. They even invited a Legionary to preach their Lenten mission, which ended up being a sales pitch for Legion affiliates (Walking with Purpose, the Legion art program, ZENIT, Father Bartunek's book, Legionary pamphlets summarising the Catechism, and then they passed the hat taking donations for the Legion seminary). Now of course, mission priests are usually fund-raisers for their communities, but to put a parish in this quandary (their spiritual formation during Lent depending on a Legion priest) is atrocious, given their current status. Then, to top it off, the Seminary choir was bussed over to sing Latin hymns to pull all the right emotional strings.

Then Brother Eric spoke to the congregation and said "I can't wait to be a priest! Then I can give missions, just like Fr. Jason! I'll be able to say Benediction! I'll be able to hear confessions!" Then he said that what the Legion needed more than money was prayers.  But the collection was still passed and the money was taken.

Only by storming the sacristy and confronting the priest will such games stop. Do not let the Legion siphon off any more funds that should go to the Church Militant.

Peering into the Legion mind

Some commenters have collaborated to discuss the way that Legionaries think, by doing a content analysis of their words. I found this brilliant:

“The fact that the Legionaries do not, as it turns out, have a way with words is telling.” [gregorbo March 04 10:20 p.m.]

I agree, gregorbo, it is most telling. Granted, some of the bad style – for example, excessive use of passive sentence construction and preference for abstract language over specific, concrete language– is for a variety of reasons common in official communications issued by organizations, both religious and secular. But the legion's bad writing style is more than a strategy (though it is that too, of course), for it is further evidence of maciel's complete contamination of the order. The legion does not have a way with words because maciel's system does not foster independent thinking.

We've considered odd words used in the past, vague expressions and emotionless responses. Parents have noticed that when their children are exposed to the Movement for long periods of time, they begin to pick up the "sing song" cadences and blank smiles. This thread will give us an opportunity to illustrate examples of the tin-eared convoluted Legion Speak.

The deeper scandal

Two comments in two separate places -- when combined -- underscore the larger scandal, if there is anything worse than paedophilia and incest. First, Pete Vere:

Moreover, I find it absolutely scandalous as an orthodox Catholic layman that despite reportedly knowing of Raul's existence since 2008, the family has been unable to receive justice from the Church in Mexico. No wonder there are so many anti-clerical Freemasons in the Mexican government and media. Bl. Miguel Pro - one of my favorite Jesuits - must be shedding tears from Heaven knowing that the Catholic peasants for whom he gave his life have now been forced to turn to their former persecutors for justice and protection from Churchmen who put their checkbook before the welfare of children.

Next Monk:

Crazy Nut - You ask perhaps the most insightful question among recent comments. If other founders and congregations were subjected to the same scrutiny as LC, who knows what might be revealed? My point is the Church - yes, the Church - is more flawed than we care to admit. It's our job to try and do the best we know how. Your question is thought provoking!

So we have lay faithful so scandalised that they have to turn to the government to reign in the duplicity and corruption in their clergy, and a response from another layman (formed by a corrupt congregation, evidently) that says, hey -- the Church aint all that and a bag of chips. So what? The larger scandal is that no one trusts the hierarchy -- for anything: not guidance, not formation, not revelation of the truths of the faith. Cynicism rots the very fruit on which our eternity depends.

[I've been away, so I beg your pardon if I'm rehashing what's already been covered in my absence. I'll amend this accordingly as I catch up on your insights.]

Whose inheritance?

Interesting, coming on the day we heard in Mass about the Lord's vineyard and it's produce:

He was a very wealthy man and his wealth belongs quite rightly to his natural children. None of it belongs to his spiritual children because he doesn’t have any. (Unless he so thoroughly corrupted someone that he is following in the footsteps. In which case he needs to be put where he won’t need any money.) Simple justice – the assets of the Legion should be liquidated and the funds split, with half going to all his natural children and the other half into a fund to compensate other victims and assist the rehabilitation of those who have given all and spent many years and have no where to go.