Little legacy lost after school wipes former archbishop's name from its history

Former Melbourne Archbishop Frank Little will be erased from the history of his old school for his role in orchestrating a culture of secrecy that allowed scores of children to be sexually abused by Catholic clergy.The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse delivered a withering assessment of the Melbourne archdiocese's handling of clerical abuse on Tuesday, with much of its opprobrium reserved for Archbishop Little.

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/little-legacy-lost-after-school-wipes-former-archbishops-name-from-its-history-20171206-gzzr9f.html 

In Sex Abuse Cases, an Expiration Date Is Often Attached

When John Humphrey was a student at what is now the Pingry School in New Jersey in the early 1970s, he was sexually abused by a teacher, he said. It began when he was 11 years old, and happened several times a week over two school years, until he left the school after the sixth grade

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/04/nyregion/prep-school-sex-abuse-statute-of-limitations.html?emc=edit_tnt_20171204&nlid=63876270&tntemail0=y 

Catholic bishop cared little for children and left them in danger, royal commission finds

Ballarat’s Ronald Mulkearns knew or strongly suspected paedophile priest was sexually abusing children and did nothing, report says,
Children were sexually abused over many decades by notorious paedophile priests within the diocese of Ballarat largely because the bishop at the time, Ronald Mulkearns, had little concern for children, deliberately left them in danger, and failed to investigate or report offenders to police.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/dec/06/catholic-bishop-cared-little-for-children-and-left-them-in-danger-royal-commission-finds 

Archbishop Philip Wilson to face trial on alleged abuse cover up

Archbishop Philip Wilson, the most senior Catholic in the world to have been charged with covering up child sex abuse in the church, has been deemed fit to stand trial after citing health concerns.

The Archbishop of Adelaide, 67, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in recent weeks which his legal team argued significantly impacted his “cognitive function” and meant he wouldn’t be able to face court. 

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/archbishop-philip-wilson-to-face-trial-on-alleged-abuse-cover-up/news-story/6e2d98947b492ad589ba0847bcff1c1c

Church failures led to more abuse: inquiry

The Ballarat Catholic Church's catastrophic and inexcusable failures led to more children being sexually abused by its clergy, a royal commission has found.  The response within the Diocese of Ballarat to abuse complaints spanning at least three decades was driven by a desire to avoid scandal and protect the church's reputation, the commission said.
Priests were moved to another parish if allegations emerged where they often offended again.  The inexcusable failures led to more children being sexually abused by Catholic clergy in the diocese.

https://au.news.yahoo.com/a/38163113/church-interests-put-first-abuse-inquiry/ 

Maine’s Catholic bishop shocks parishioners with details of priest’s affair with employee

Bishop Robert Deeley personally delivered shocking news over the weekend to Roman Catholic church members in Cape Elizabeth, Scarborough and South Portland, telling them that their longtime former pastor and a former parish administrator had started a relationship before he retired in July and are now living together.

http://www.sunjournal.com/maines-catholic-bishop-shocks-parishioners-with-details-of-priests-affair-with-employee/ 

Massage Envy Spas accused of sexual misconduct by over 180 women nationwide

Over 180 women across the United States have accused nationwide massage and therapeutic business Massage Envy Spa of sexual misconduct. The franchising business that reels in over $1.5 billion in revenue a year, has over 1,200 locations nationwide and holds over one million customers took a crushing blow after a local West Chester woman spoke out about her assault.

https://www.wcuquad.com/6009628/news/massage-envy-spas-accused-of-sexual-misconduct-by-over-180-women-nationwide/ 

Child sex abuse inquiry: Priest 'tried to control' investigation

Police raised concerns that the head of a Roman Catholic boarding school tried to "control" a child sex abuse investigation, an inquiry has heard. A former North Yorkshire detective said officers were "excluded" from inquiries at Ampleforth College in 1995 and 2002.
But former head teacher Father Leo Chamberlain denied influencing a boy's parents during a phone call in 1995. He told the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse there had been "no skulduggery".

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-42226648# 

The Australian Church is in desperate trouble

In 2017, the Church has endured an abuse crisis, lost a same-sex marriage vote and failed to stop euthanasia. Can it recover?

This Sunday marks the beginning of a new year (Year B, to be precise) in the Church’s liturgical calendar. That may be a relief for Australian Catholics, who will be glad to say goodbye to 2017 a few weeks early

http://catholicherald.co.uk/issues/december-1st-2017/the-australian-church-is-in-desperate-trouble/ 

The head of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sex Abuse insists it is on track to complete its hearings despite the criticism and loss of its previous chairs

Not long after qualifying as a social worker in Scotland, Alexis Jay took on some of her “most challenging work ever”. That role was to relocate 45 of Glasgow’s homeless family groups into bed and breakfast accommodation.
“It was a very significant experience for me,” she says. At that point, Jay could “not have imagined at all” that one day she’d be heading a multi-million pound inquiry into historic child sex abuse – one that, if all goes according to plan, could uncover institutional failings in some of the UK’s most longstanding establishments, including the NHS, the BBC and Westminster.

https://www.bigissuenorth.com/features/2017/12/interview-alexis-jay/ 

Father John Murphy, 93, jailed for sexually abusing boys

A Roman Catholic priest who admitted sexually abusing four boys over 40 years ago has been jailed.

Father John Murphy, 93, of St George's Court, Maghull, pleaded guilty to 14 counts of indecently assaulting boys at swimming pools, on camping trips and at a church between 1962 and 1974.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-merseyside-42195251#_=_ 

‘A Depraved Heart’: Ex-Priest John Feit’s Murder Trial Begins

The Catholic Church was complicit in covering up the 1960 murder of a South Texas beauty queen to protect a priest who attacked her during confession, prosecutors said on the first day of 85-year-old John Feit’s trial.
“This is a case about betrayal, murder and a cover-up,” Assistant District Attorney Michael Garza told jurors in opening statements Thursday.

https://www.courthousenews.com/a-depraved-heart-ex-priest-john-feits-murder-trial-begins/

Alzheimer's doubt over archbishop facing sexual abuse cover-up trial

A NSW prosecutor has suggested if Adelaide Archbishop Philip Wilson is as demented as it’s claimed, he could not look after his own affairs, let alone keep his job as one of the country’s leading clergymen.
Wilson, 67, is the most senior Catholic official in the world to be charged with concealing child sexual assault. He failed to appear at Newcastle local court this week.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/dec/01/archbishop-to-be-assessed-for-fitness-to-stand-trial-over-sexual-abuse-cover-up 

Child sex abuse inquiry’s stance on recovered memories raises fears as report release nears

In January last year the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse began a wide-ranging public investigation into the Church of England Boys Society, the Anglican Church’s equivalent of the Boy Scouts. On the fifth day of those hearings, in a courtroom of the Commonwealth Law Courts building in Hobart, a 63-year-old man known only as BYA entered the witness box and made disturbing allegations about a pedophile ring in the upper reaches of the South Australian CEBS.

BYA recalled that in 1967, as a shy and religiously inclined 15-year-old, he became leader of his local CEBS group in inner-suburban Adelaide. At about that time, he said, the chief commissioner of CEBS in South Australia, Bob Brandenburg, began sexually abusing him during sleepovers at Brandenburg’s house and on expeditions to look for campsites.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/inquirer/child-sex-abuse-inquirys-stance-on-recovered-memories-raises-fears-as-report-release-nears/news-story/d6deed03a1448507f6344b9bfe92358c 

New laws to act on Royal Commission findings

New laws to implement findings of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse have been introduced by Attorney-General Gordon Ramsay. The Royal Commission was established in 2013 to investigate institutions that have failed to protect children or respond to allegations of child sexual abuse.
“We now know that tens of thousands of children have been sexually abused in many Australian institutions. We will never know the true number. This is a national tragedy, perpetrated over generations within many of our most trusted institutions,” Minister Ramsay said.

https://www.cmtedd.act.gov.au/open_government/inform/act_government_media_releases/gordon-ramsay-mla-media-releases/2017/new-laws-to-act-on-royal-commission-findings