The Roman Catholic Church in the US is in crisis, with senior clergy coming under intense scrutiny for shielding paedophile priests. Elaine Lafferty reports.
What has happened in the Roman Catholic Church in the US during the last few weeks is either a witch-hunt, mass hysteria, or a long-running scandal that has belatedly come to the fore. Whatever ones believes, or wherever the truth lies, a few things are clear: the priesthood is under a criticism and a scrutiny, both legal and moral, that is more intense and disturbing than ever before.
From Boston to Miami to New York, thousands of cases of paedophilia and sexual misconduct have been levelled at priests. Cases have emerged in Tucson, St Louis and Pittsburgh in what seems like an epidemic.
The bishop of Palm Beach, Florida, has been removed. But the real focus has been on the fact that many churches and Archdioceses knew about certain priests for years, and simply reassigned them to other parishes. In many cases, large secret financial settlements were made to the families of young victims, on the condition that the charges would never be made public.
The most gruesome and disturbing case emerged from a court trial in Boston.
John Geoghan, a Catholic priest for 30 years, molested 130 boys. By his own admission, he twice raped a 10-year-old boy. Geoghan is currently in prison in Massachusetts, but the pattern of Geoghan's career and the responses of his mentors is what set off a firestorm of protest.
In 1977 and 1978, he molested seven boys in the same family. The church settled the case, sealed the records and Bishop Thomas Daly, now head of the Brooklyn and Queens diocese, put Geoghan on sick leave.
He underwent counselling for a year and was assigned to St Brendan's in Dorchester.
He was removed after molesting several boys there in 1984. But two months later he was assigned to St Julia's in Weston where his duties included, believe it or not, being in charge of altar boys.
In New York, the district attorney Robert Morganthau has asked the Archdiocese of New York to report all abuse charges to his office for criminal prosecution. Stepping into the scandal, Mr Morganthau also called for a new state law that would compel the church to report charges of sexual abuse to authorities. Currently in New York, only doctors, teachers and social workers are required to report such cases, but clergy are not.
Clergy are required to make reports in Connecticut and New Jersey, two other states that are currently focal points.
Cardinal Edward Egan in New York is under particular scrutiny for his role in covering up several cases under his jurisdiction when he was bishop of Bridgeport, Connecticut. An investigation by the Hartford Courant, a respected newspaper, found that between 1988 and 2000, Cardinal Egan fought lawsuits against six priests until the cases were settled for between $12 million and $15 million last March.
At least nine other priests faced accusations but their names were not released in court documents. The newspaper, which obtained court papers, found that Cardinal Egan did not aggressively investigate abuse charges, made no reports to authorities, and suggested that 12 people who complained of rape, molestation and beatings by a particular priest were lying.
The Cardinal, according to the court documents, also allowed priests who were accused of molesting children to continue working, simply reassigning them. In some instances, he only removed priests when lawsuits were filed.
Cindy Robinson, a lawyer who represented several victims in the Connecticut cases, said the diocese covered up the abuse.
"There was a continuing pattern of basically transferring priests," she said. "Perhaps the most disturbing thing was allowing priests who were accused of sexual misconduct to continue to have access to other children."
In some instances, the diocese advised parents that there were no other complaints against a certain priest when in fact there were.
Cardinal Egan has refused to comment and has remained silent about the whole matter. That stance contrasts with other Catholic leaders in the US.
In Boston, Cardinal Bernard Law has publicly apologised for the mishandling of sexual abuse cases and has met with victims. Bishop Wilton Gregory, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, issued a broad apology and expressed "profound sorrow."
Even the Pope commented this week. "Grave scandal is caused, with the result that a dark shadow of suspicion is cast over all the other fine priests who perform their ministry with honesty and integrity and often with heroic self-sacrifice," said Pope John Paul in his Easter address to priests.
So Cardinal Egan's silence, coming from the largest diocese in the US, has caused concern.
THE Rev. Walter Modrys, pastor of the Church of St Ignatius Loyola in Manhattan, told the New York Times: "This is something that I think is shaking the Catholic Church in the United States, certainly in New York it is. The people in the pews are going to require and need responses."
Among the saddest consequences of the scandal has been the suspicion being cast now over all priests.
Rev Lawrence Quinn of the Church of our Lady of Mercy in the Bronx, told the New York Post he felt "funny" after attending a funeral this week.
"Two or three people looked me in the face like I was involved. It didn't make me feel right and when I got back to the church, I took my collar off."
Other priests have reported being spat upon in restaurants and other public places.
One thing is certain - while the issue of a questionable priests has been around forever, this time the matter is so public, and so pervasive that the church will not be able to ignore the problem. The solution, however, will be much more elusive.