An anonymous poster brought some interesting news published by the Vatican Insider in Rome. His/her comment can be found here. The news report is written in Italian. However, I have found the English version. The English version is found here. Apparently, someone in the Vatican Insider has been doing some research on the Apuron case and even collected documents and testimonies from witnesses. This is worth reading!
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The Guam problem, a diocese rocked by financial and sexual scandal
Vatican Insider reconstructs the story leading up to the trial of Archbishop Anthony Apuron, now awaiting his verdict by the Tribunal presided by Cardinal Burke in the coming days. An island in the midst of corruption, intrigues, abuses, and power plays
VATICAN CITY
Corruption, revenge, lobbies, financial scandals, and sexual abuses. Everything seems to intertwine in Guam, the largest island of the Mariana Archipelago in the Western Pacific Ocean, most recently under the international spotlight because of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un’s threats to bomb the island’s US military bases. The threat of nuclear annihilation is one more worry to be laid on the faithful of Guam, a flock already deeply disturbed by the scandals engulfing the Archdiocese of Agaña—scandals which have paralyzed a church which in the landscape of the Pacific distinguished itself for its liveliness, making up about 85% of the island’s 160,000 inhabitants: a data not irrelevant in a part of the world where every trace of Catholicism is gradually disappearing.
Right now, the island is awaiting the verdict of the canonical trial of their archbishop, seventy-two year old Capuchin Anthony Apuron, who has suspended himself from any office after being charged with sexual abuses of minors following allegations relating to his time as a priest over forty years ago.
But what might seem at first glance like another sad story of a pedophile priest on closer inspection becomes a much more complex account of rivalries, plotting, power games, and sex scandals (real or invented) and media campaigns. All this played out on a tiny island where most of the population is related by blood. It is, in short, a feuilleton much darker than what up to now has emerged on the media, which Vatican Insider has sought to reconstruct in details through statements gathered by local witnesses, records, and documents which we have been granted access to.
Guam and the project to transform it into the "Las Vegas of the Pacific"
Everything began in 2002, when a group of Chinese entrepreneurs first laid eyes on the Accion Hotel in Yona, built as a Japanese resort in 2000 but soon ended up in bankruptcy and set among 20 hectares of seaside property. When it first opened, the property was valued at between $60-80 million. David Lujan, their local lawyer, was authorized to offer $5 million for the site. The idea was to transform the hotel into a grand casino; this was part of a larger strategical project aiming at turning the island of Guam into a “Las Vegas of the Pacific” which would attract gamblers from China, Russia, Japan and Korea. It was an ambitious project, one which came to involve Mark Anthony Brown, the former Chairman of Trump Hotels & Casinos Inc., which would have produced millionaires earnings but also would have imported into the island crime, prostitution, and drugs, as Archbishop Apuron said and who always opposed the project because casinos “don’t bring money but moral misery.”
The Japanese owners refused Lujan’s offer. Meanwhile Archbishop Apuron, under advice of close collaborators, bid $2 million (raised from donations) for it, to turn the bankrupt Hotel into a Redemptoris Mater seminary, whose vocations and formators would come from the Neocatechumenal Way, an ecclesial reality widely present on the island since 1996 and of which Apuron was a strong supporter. The Archbishop’s hope was to offer a point of reference for the formation of young future priests for the area of the Pacific to solve the crisis of the religious orders traditionally present in the different and serve as a bulwark against the increasing investments of people and resources being poured into the Pacific by the Church of Latter-day Saints and Jehovah’s Witnesses.
The Birth of the Redemptoris Mater and the Theological Institute
Apuron’s offer for the property was accepted. After signing a contract establishing the restriction of usage of the premises for a educational purposes, the new Redemptoris Mater Seminary formally opened in 2004. One year later, the “Blessed Diego Luis de San Vitores S.J.” Theological Institute was born. It was sponsored by 31 bishops of the Pacific and affiliated with to he Pontifical Lateran University by the decision of its former rector, Archbishop Rino Fisichella, and its dean of the Faculty of Theology, Ignazio Sanna. The birth of the Institute—which houses a library with over 30,000 books, was greeted with enthusiasm by many Australian, Filipino and American prelates who visited it over the years. The seminary was home to more than forty students who came from all over the world to train for service in the Pacific. Seventeen of these men were ordained to the priesthood and entered ministry in Guam or served as missionaries on the nearby island of Saipan, China, and the mainland United States. But today, both the seminary and the theological institute are going to be shut down by Archbishop Michael J. Byrnes, who has been serving as coadjutor archbishop of Guam.
A Very Powerful Monsignor
But to understand the decisions taken in recent months, it’s necessary to take a step back and consider the figure of the influential Msgr. James Benavente, known in Guam for his threefold role as rector of the Cathedral in Agaña, chief administrator of the archdiocesan cemeteries, and director of the prominent St. Thomas Catholic School. Benavente, who boasts a close friendship with Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, has been the subject of considerable criticism (and more than a little speculation) for some of his behaviors and especially for the luxury with which he surrounds himself, including cars, houses (three acquired for himself) and a whole compound for his family, first-class air travel, expensive restaurants and exclusive parties. Among the official archdiocesan documents shown to Vatican Insider, invoices and receipts are kept ranging from $9,000 to $17,000 for accommodations in five-star resorts and hotels like the Saipan World Center and the Makati Shangri-La in Manila.
Benavente is also head of the Finance Council of the Archdiocese of Agaña, which in 2002 was overwhelmed by a super-typhoon causing millions of dollars in damages. Under Apuron’s management, the debts incurred by the Archdiocese following the disaster had been reduced to a manageable level. However, several financial holes emerged in three archdiocesan entities: the cathedral, the archdiocesan cemeteries, and St. Thomas Catholic School. These three institutions accounted for outstanding debts of $7 million and a half, as documented by the Agaña Archdiocese’s Finance Council report.
In 2011, these issues were submitted to the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, the Vatican department responsible for Guam. The Congregation’s prefect, Cardinal Fernando Filoni, asked for a full audit to clarify the matter but the audit was blocked. There were “significant accounting deficiencies” and difficulty detecting income and expenditures in the entities managed by Monsignor Benavente.
Apuron Reforms the Archdiocesan Finance Council
Following the unsuccessful audit, Apuron summoned the six members of the Archdiocesan Finance Council, asking them for an explanation and solutions. Benavente—regarded as a “godson” of lawyer David Lujan—submitted a proposal to sell the Redemptoris Mater Seminary and use the proceeds to cover the financial holes and thus avoid public scandal. “Over my dead body,” Apuron replied, dismissing the plan from further consideration. Despite the decision of the archdiocese ‘s head, members of the council attempted to pass the plan. In response, Apuron dismissed the Council already out of term, ousting member such as Richard Untalan—whose presence on the council was expressly requested by Benavente—a lawyer disbarred in the late 1980s for “moral turpitude” after he was condemned by the Washington DC Court of Appeals for “criminal facilitation of a felony of second degree, theft by deception.” One of Apuron’s collaborators—present at the time of the events and a direct witness—reported that the archbishop, his vicar general and his chancellor received threats following this decision by Msgr. Benavente, who claimed to have important friendships within the FBI and powerful figures in the Vatican.
Deloitte & Touche fail to produce a financial report
In 2012, a blog called “Jungle Watch” was created online, attacking Archbishop Apuron and the Neocatechumenal Way, accusing them of manipulating the prelate and “colonizing” the entire Agaña diocese. The site is managed by Tim Rohr, a real estate agent employed by Msgr. Benavente and involved in the projected sale of the seminary. The online attacks became more and more violent; Apuron again appealed for help to the Congregation to the Evangelization of Peoples, which commissioned well-known independent auditing service Deloitte & Touche to conduct a review of the disarrayed finances of the Guamenian church. Also this time it is practically impossible to conclude the audit, as stated in a document from Deloitte & Touche dated January 8, 2014, declaring it was impossible to draw “satisfactory results” from the financial statements that were analyzed. Some documents have disappeared. According to witness testimonies collected by Vatican Insider, the documents relating to Benavente’s financial administration were promptly destroyed to avoid any verifications or findings.
Heavy accusations against Monsignor Benavente
Some details are still emerging, of which civil lawyer, Jacque Terlaje, former secretary of the Finance Council of Guam Catholic Cemeteries tells Vatican Insider: “As an official member of a non-profit company, I have seen countless abuses of cemetery funds that have led to great injustices against the dead and their families,” she says. “For example, in cemetery funds there was no presence of ‘perpetual care’, responsibility in the long term to finance the care of niches sold. During the change of administration, it was discovered that there were undue appropriations and thefts that occurred within the Catholic Cemeteries. For example, unauthorized donation of 380 thousand dollar lands of cemeteries for families and friends of Monsignor James Benavente. One of them is back to repay the amount received. Benavente also used 13,000 dollars of the institution's own funds to pay for the celebrations of its 20th anniversary as a priest in July 2014.”
Not only, “The review of funding from the period of 2009 to 2014 - again emphasizes the lawyer – showed that a credit card was issued to the Board of Cemeteries but intended solely for the use of Monsignor Benavente for expenses of meals in luxury restaurants, first class airfares, overnight stays in 5-star hotels. A further $23,000 expense was tracked onto another credit card, always using cemetery funds. In a period of five years, Benavente also paid himself sums of $326,913.61, mixing and transferring funds between the Cemeteries and the Basilica "Dulce Nombre de Maria" (the entities of which he was director) without complying with restrictions; in the sense that cemetery funds were used to pay salary employees of the Cathedral or to pay Basilica loans, or, worse, to repay personal credit card payments. This made it impossible for Deloitte & Touche to conclude the audit. "
The accusations of the legal - immediately removed from the Financial Council and has ended up in the midst of threats and complaints - have been made public on the website of the Archdiocese also www.aganaarch.org (currently, the page was obscured).
Benavente is then dismissed from his post and Archbishop Apuron forms a new board for the management of the funds of the Cathedral and Cemetery (the school has since gone bankrupt).
Propaganda Fide intervenes again
To avoid the worsening of tensions, Cardinal Filoni intervened again by sending the secretary of the Dicastery, Salesian archbishop and Hong Kong native Savio Hon Tai-Fai on an “information-gathering visit” in January 2015. The prelate remained on the island for fifteen days. In these two weeks, he made several changes in the Church of Guam and carried out interrogations on his own initiative in collaboration with the Apostolic Administrator of the Pacific and nuncio Martin Krebs, a German from Essen.
In the meantime, while the online accusations against Monsignor Apuron continued, Deacon Steven Martinez, a member of the Financial Council, created together with other fellow members a group called Concerned Catholics of Guam whose main goal—among other things—was to “monitor the corruption” of the Archbishop. To this end sit-ins were organized in front of the Cathedral through a website updated in real time, where signs were shown asking for Apuron’s resignation or his dismissal from the clerical state. The leaders of the group were Gregory Perez, president, and David Sablan, vice president, whose name has recently made headlines for an embezzlement case currently being investigated by the US Federal Government.
Sexual abuses
After a brief respite of a few months, in May 2016 an ad by Tim Rohr appeared in every newspaper on the island inviting anyone who had been a victim or had knowledge of abuse perpetrated by Apuron in the years 1976-77, when he was pastor of Our Lady of Mount sCarmel parish to “come forward”. The ad appeared over the course of a month in every newspaper. After a few days, four people came forward, among them Roy Taitague Quintanilla, who alleged having been abused forty years earlier when, at the age of 12, he was an altar boy for Father Apuron who, according to his allegations, had taken him by night in his own home to rape him. However, Vatican Insider has learned that statements were made by multiple former altar boys to the tribunal who maintain that they had never seen Quintanilla in the parish and that the parish activities were always carried out in groups and never alone.
Together with Quintanilla other people came forward who, crying in front of the cameras, claimed to have been molested. Tim Rohr, as heard in the recording of an interview by Patti Arroyo on the K57 Newstalk radio, publicly boasted, “it took me four days to publish an ad to find Roy and to pay a ticket for him from Hawaii” and to coordinate the group of victims and relatives suggesting to them “what to say and when to cry”, as well as encouraging them to hire David Lujan as their lawyer.
“Your Holiness, I am innocent”
Not even five hours after the release of the accusations, Nuncio Krebs called Apuron from abroad—as he kept doing for the entire following week—to ask him to tender his immediate resignation at the behest of the Pope. However, it is precisely to the Pope to whom Apuron wanted to turn to in order to discuss the situation. He left for Rome to ask an audience to the Pontiff and met him in St. Peter’s Square at the end of the General Audience of May 24th, 2016. During the kissing of the hand, Apuron told Pope Francis: “Your Holiness, I am innocent; I would like a private audience with you.” Bergoglio called an aide asking to set a date. That audience though, would never take place.
The archdiocese tries to defend its bishop
In the meantime, the archdiocese tried to intervene in defense of its bishop and contacted the Denver based law firm “Lewis Roca”, one of the most important in the US in the field of sexual abuses related to the Catholic Church, often consulted by the US Bishop’s Conference. The firm “Lewis Roca” accepted to represent the archdiocese and Apuron for free, agreeing on a potential percentage of the damages just in the case of a judicial victory. At the same time Mr. David Lujan, Esq. filed suit against the bishop and the archdiocese for slander because they declared that the abuse accusations were false.
Apuron suspends himself, Hon Tai-Fai arrives as apostolic administrator “sede plena”
At this point Apuron decided to suspend himself from all his duties and asked the Holy See to name an apostolic administrator to bring back peace and order on the island and give him the possibility to defend himself from the accusations. The Vatican granted the request and on June 6, 2016 a bulletin of the Vatican Press Room announced the appointment of the secretary of Propaganda Fide, Monsignor Savio Hon Tai-Fai, as apostolic administrator sede plena of Guam. For the moment Apuron has been kept in his post as archbishop, although deprived of any authority. He sent a video message to the faithful in which he reaffirmed his innocence and announced the imminent changing of the guard by inviting them to receive “with open arms” the new apostolic administrator representing a sign on the part of the Pope of his will to “reestablish the truth” and which would “allow me to defend myself from the false allegations made against me.”
The general restructuring
Monsignor Hon arrived in the Marianas a few weeks after his appointment and in his first move asked that all priests, especially those formed in the Redemptoris Mater seminary, to resign as “proof of loyalty to me and to the Church.” Some accepted, others resisted. Accusations began to be thrown against those who didn’t give in immediately, some even of sexual nature, or else they were sent back to their countries of origin. Two Samoan bishops were forced to recall the seminarians they had sent to study in Guam. David Quitugua, the vicar general who was appointed by Apuron rector of the cathedral in place of Benavente, was removed. The same fate befell then-chancellor Adrian Cristobal (a Chamorro, native of Guam) and his deputy Alberto Rodriguez. The pastors of the four biggest and most populous parishes of the archdiocese of Agana lost their posts. Among them was Monsignor Brigido Arroyo, old and already near retirement, much loved by the parish community of St. Anthony which knew him as “Father Bibi.” Hon also altered the board charged with sorting out the cemetery funds and in place of Quitugua, entrusted the cathedral to Fr. Paul Gofigan, who had been removed two years earlier.
Father Gofigan and the convicted felon
At this point we need to take a step back and recall that Archbishop Apuron had dismissed Father Gofigan after having received complaints and pressure regarding the fact that the priest was living in the parish together with a former convict, Joseph Lastimoza, 54, who had been sentenced to life for raping and killing a 25-year-old flight attendant from New York in 1981 and to have tried to do the same with other women. Released on parole in 2002, Lastimoza had the keys of the neighboring kindergarten “Santa Barbara Catholic School” where he was head of maintenance. Several parents had voiced to Apuron, in person, by letter or email, their objections to the fact that a convicted felon had such freedom of movement in a place attended by women and children. Moreover, it is the same law of Guam that states that any person convicted of serious sexual crimes “cannot be employed, directly or through an independent contractor” in a sector such as “a school or an education institution while children are present.”
In 2004 Lastimoza’s name had been entered for life in the first level of the Sex Offenders Register of Guam’s judicial system, following an impassioned letter written to the local press by military veteran David Mills, now living in New York, who had followed the case at the time. At that point Apuron, after having given a warning already two years earlier, asked Gofigan repeatedly to send off Lastimoza, given that his presence was in violation of current laws. The priest did not comply with the bishop’s indication and hence, under counsel of Archdiocese’s lawyer Edward Terlaje, decided to remove him.
The removal of this priest, who was also the founder of the movement “Rainbow Mercy” for young gay Catholics, has often been characterized by “Jungle Watch” commentators as an outcome of the Neocatechumenal Way manipulations.
Hon’s “reform”
Meanwhile, even before the trial was set in motion, Hon granted interviews and issued declarations in press conferences declaring Apuron guilty even before trial began(insert link), and accusing the archbishop of being a “liar” for denying the abuses. Then he publicly rehabilitated Benavente and reinstated him as pastor of the most populous parish in Guam, member of the Financial Council (with him also Richard Untalan is reappointed) and as member of the committee for cemetery funds. Furthermore, the Apostolic Administrator sede plena rescinded the contract with the Lewis Roca and in its place hired “Swanson & McNamara”, a very expensive law firm from San Francisco. He also started a series of interrogations of priests and seminarians from the Redemptoris Mater during which seminarians were placed before a crossroads: to obey Apuron or “an archbishop invested by the powers of God.” As a consequence, the Redemptoris Mater underwent a dramatic reduction in numbers: from 40 to little less of 15 seminarians.
Hon Recalled to Rome, Replaced by New Coadjutor, USA Byrnes
During Hon’s five month stay in Guam, Pope Francis received three letters updating him on the situation. They never received a direct response. But on October 31st of 2016—after having asked Filoni to quickly find a candidate to replace him—Francis recalled Savio Hon to Rome and appoints an archbishop coadjutor, American prelate Michael Jude Byrnes, then auxiliary bishop of Detroit, to guide the diocese, which was by now falling apart. Before departing, Hon gave a lengthy interview to Pacific Daily News suggesting the course of action his successor should take. Four days before Byrnes’ arrival on the island, he also submitted a packet containing a series of documents on the island’s finances and a letter insisting that the Redemptoris Mater’s statutes be modified and that the restriction of use be eliminated. This choice, which was taken to safeguard a diocesan good, but which instead, according to its detractors, would take away any right Apuron had over the property (accusations disproved by the fact that with a simple signature, Byrnes has eliminated the restriction of use).
The Redemptoris Mater is going to be closed, the Theological Institute affiliated to the Lateran suspended
In Rome monsignor Savio Hon went to the Congregation for Catholic Education – according to the Congregation’s officials account – to ask for the suspension of the renewal of the affiliation of the Theological Institute with the Pontifical Lateran University, which had been already renewed for another ten years. Last news report that on August 29, 2017, Byrnes announced the closure of the Seminary and the Institute. Again, in the last few weeks Byrnes has removed four priests from the diocesan Presbyteral Council accusing them of insubordination for having written a letter to cardinal Filoni informing him of the intention to sell the building in Yona, an information requested by the same cardinal. Monsignor Benavente instead was given all previoiusly held assignments with an added appointment as delegate for the Archdiocese Patrimony.
Cardinal Burke’s Investigation
Regarding the sex abuse allegations against Apuron, the world awaits the verdict from the “First Instance Tribunal” presided by Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke— an outspoken critic of Pope Francis and one of those who signed the so-called “dubia” published in the wake of Amoris Laetitia. When on February 17 of this year Francis sent the cardinal to the Marianas to investigate the Guam case, many read the move as a “punishment” or “exile.” But in light of the facts, it seems more likely that the Pope’s pick was actually rooted more in the cardinal’s remarkable competence shown over the years as Prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Segnatura. In about two weeks’ time, the American prelate gathered the documents and statements to be submitted to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, personally travelling not only to Guam but to Hawaii, San Francisco, Phoenix and the East Coast to listen to alleged victims, many of whom—as reported by local media at the time—refused to meet the cardinal if not in the presence of their lawyer David Lujan.
Waiting For The Verdict
Burke and four other judges—all bishops—are expected to issue the verdict on Msgr. Apuron’s innocence or guilt soon—a decision which should have been issued last August 4th but which appears to have been delayed. Maybe because of the outside pressures on the cardinal himself, who is said to have privately expressed surprise at the influence of external lobbies on the island. If Apuron were declared guilty, the decision will have canonical—not civil—consequences. “The fact that the Pope granted this process to a bishop indicates that the Church wants to reestablish due process,” explains one canon lawyer to Vatican Insider. If he is declared innocent, it won’t be easy for him to return to the head of Guam’s archdiocese, given the damage to his public image. Nevertheless the archbishop has privately confided his willingness to do so, albeit with the help of an auxiliary bishop. In any case, it’s hard to imagine the words “The End” marking any kind of conclusion to this turbulent story.
This is very very interesting. Fascinating really.
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous at 10:30 pm,
DeleteI agree. It is very interesting that Vatican Insider has obtained witness testimonies testifying that documents were destroyed relating to Monsignor James' financial administration. Who else would have a motive to destroy those documents? Certainly, not Father Adrian or Monsignor David. As for Father Paul, it is interesting that Tim Rohr left out some pertinent facts in his book "Target", such as the many complaints to Archbishop Apuron from several parents who felt uncomfortable having a convicted sex offender near women and children. Instead, he blamed the Way for Father Paul's removal. It is also interesting that Vatican Insider has obtained the testimonies of multiple former altar servers in the Agat parish. They testified that they have never seen Roy Quintanilla in the parish and that no one was ever left alone. All participated in group activities.
Anyone know sources of Vatican insider? Who gave documents to the insider?
DeleteDear Anonymous at 12:01 pm,
DeleteIt was not just documents. Statements from local witnesses were obtained by Vatican Insider. According to the article:
" However, Vatican Insider has learned that statements were made by multiple former altar boys to the tribunal who maintain that they had never seen Quintanilla in the parish and that the parish activities were always carried out in groups and never alone."
It seems that these former altar servers in Agat not only spoke to the Tribunal, but also to someone at Vatican Insider.
They might have also taken the statements of the hotel owner who refused the 5 million dollar offer by attorney David Lujan for the Yona property.
DeleteDear Anonymous at 1:02 pm,
DeleteApparently, there is someone at the chancery who knows something and has witnessed it. According to the Vatican Insider article:
"According to witness testimonies collected by Vatican Insider, the documents relating to Benavente’s financial administration were promptly destroyed to avoid any verifications or findings. "
Whoever saw or knows about the destruction of these records obviously did not trust Archbishop Hon or Archbishop Byrnes since he/she did not confide in them. Rather, he/she felt more secure turning to someone in the Vatican Insider.
I'm sorry to say, but I wouldn't trust Hon too. He's the one who cleared Mon. Benavente and Fr. Gofigan despite the overwhelming evidence. As for Byrnes, he's surrounded by Rohr's disciples so you can't even confide in him without them eavesdropping.
Delete"According to witness testimonies collected by Vatican Insider"
DeleteIts not enough to say this. Who are the supposed witnesses? without details you can say anything.
Dear Anonymous at 1:25 pm,
DeleteThe important thing is that there are witnesses who testified. I believe that their identities should be kept anonymous. The jungle has been known to threaten people, so it is safer that be kept anonymous until the civil trial.
This is already in the Vatican news. This needs to get out to our local media.
ReplyDeleteWitness Testimonies.
ReplyDeleteManila's Cardinal Archbishop used by a powerful Monsignor from Guam. Interesting.
Who are these external lobbies?
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteVatican best to delay any verdict concerning Archbishop Apuron. Evidence shows possible foul play.
The Vatican Insider said they have collected statements from witnesses, records and documents. Then AB Apuron should be found not guilty. And he needs to return to file a libel and defamation lawsuit against all the accusers. His public image, name, and reputation has been severely damaged. It's also possible that criminal charges can be filed. If what the Vatican Insider has uncovered is true, then the intention of JW Nation was also to defraud the Archdiocese of millions of dollars.
DeleteStarting with>>>>>>>>>>T I M>>>R O H R
DeleteScandalous!
ReplyDeleteIn the article, the source of All these intrigues point to theee characters:
1. A corrupt monsenieur.
2. A very cunning lawyer.
3. A disbarred lawyer.
Take a guess who they are.
And more, we can appoint a vice for each:
- Money
- Sex
- Power.
Now, which vice goes to which personality?
TaDa!!!!
Tim Rohr MUST BE SENT TO PRISON for aiding and abetting Msgr. Benavente and for willingly participating in the defamation of Archbishop Apuron.
ReplyDeleteTrue that....you can't do something like this and think its just for fun....if all tue?? Its a sin that can have absolution but has its consiquence...
ReplyDeleteOohh myyyy.......
Dear Anonymous at 8:31 am,
DeleteI agree that this is not for fun. If this is all true, a man's name and reputation has been destroyed. If all this is true, an innocent man was destroyed, and this is a most despicable and evil act.
Monsignor gifted Cardinal Tagle huge amounts of money to campaign for him in Rome.
ReplyDeleteDear Readers,
ReplyDeleteFrom the Vatican Insider: "In 2004 Lastimoza’s name had been entered for life in the first level of the Sex Offenders Register of Guam’s judicial system, following an impassioned letter written to the local press by military veteran David Mills, now living in New York, who had followed the case at the time."
On October 11, 2014, David Mills wrote the PDN about Joseph Lastimosa. That letter no longer exists on the PDN website. However, I had copied and pasted Mr. Mills' letter onto my blog when it was published in the PDN. You can find his letter in the following weblink:
https://neocatechemunal.blogspot.com/2014/10/in-todays-pacfic-daily-news.html
all those thousands and thousands of church monies from the people. in good faith they gave money to the cemeteries thinking that it willl be used according to the intention of the one giving and according to the standing policies of the cemeteries! These funds were not the personal monies of the monsinoeur. He should not have stolen them! Is this ethical and legal for him to do so, or is it criminal?
ReplyDeleteWhat about the destruction of documents? What's that about?
And NOW he's in charge of diocesan finances! Say WHAT? Blows my mind what goes on in Guam!
People of Guam.
Open your eyes!
Say something!!
Shouldn't the attorney General be notified? How much more of our monies will fill the priest's private pocket!
Diana,
ReplyDeletePlease send this article to the attorney general of guam. They must act.
If they refuse to act, then send it to the federal government for an investigation.
Dear Anonymous at 11:34 and 11:39 am,
DeleteJackie Terlaje had already submitted evidence to the Attorney General and GPD. I am certain that she will do a follow up on it. I suspect that Archbishop Hon was probably one of Monsignor James' ally in the Vatican. Right now, I prefer that this article hit our local media. The people of Guam need to know what the Vatican Insider has uncovered.
It's bad enough that we have prison guards at DOC committing crimes. It's all an inside job at DOC, and they want to get strict on the visiting policies?????? HELLO!!! The problem was not the visitors! It was the guards! And now here is another inside job being done inside the church!!! Holy Cow!!!! 😨
DeleteDiana Timmy is now accusing father pius for the article
ReplyDeleteDear God is one,
DeleteLet us hope that the junglefolks will be brave enough to question Rohr. What proof does he have that it was Father Pius....especially when we all know how Rohr bragged that Vatican City has been visiting his blog.
Deletewhat proof does Rohr have that it was Fr.Pius? Thank God for real journalists who search for truth to defend truth.
Typical Timmy disinformation. Who cares if it fr. Pius or not? Instead of providing answers to the facts in the article he immediately looks for a scapegoat to turn the attention of the mob away from him. Yuck.
DeleteNotice that Timmy is using Frenchie to speak for him? Now, why do you think that is......hmmmmm. Timmy was buddy buddy with SNAP. He admitted that SNAP was useful to him until SNAP was exposed. Then Timmy turned against SNAP. And Frenchie doesn't realize that Timmy can turn around and say, "It ain't me that call them a liar. It was Frenchie." Didn't Frenchie find it strange that He has to speak for Rohr?
Deletecalling people prostitutes liars really does not win friends influence others.
DeleteI'll send Timmy a box of Kleenex tissues. He's gonna need it!
ReplyDeleteDiana,
ReplyDeleteCan you make sure Bishop Byrnes gets a copy of this article?
He is cooperating with evil by his actions: destroying the work done there by the Holy Spirit, persecuting innocent priests and seminarians, negatively commenting on Apuron, surrounding himself with Benavente's friends... but above all... HIS SILENCE on this matter speaks volume on his character.
We are called to confront JW hatred - not with more hatred but with love.
ReplyDeleteAnd Diana do you hear what Tim says about the victims he only talks about Walter and not the others because he knows that it's a attack on the church
ReplyDeleteextraordinary turn of events how things are changing in the last hours.
ReplyDeleteJW Fake News.
ReplyDeleteWow, an in-depth reporting of our situation on Guam. Did this reporter come to Guam and interview people from the NCW and the other Catholic organizations? Maybe, the local media can investigate on their own.
ReplyDeleteLocal Media?
DeleteYou mean the local FAKE News???
Local media doesn't investigate, they just commentate their bias thoughts.
DeleteReporter conducted research interviews study of documents to give an informed opinion. Mr Salvatore Cernuzio highly respected journalist in Rome.
Dear Anonymous at 10:51 am,
DeleteI agree. He even has written statements from eye witnesses. Very impressive.
ReplyDeleteMr Cernuzio is invited to a dinner party at the Aldrovandi Villa borghese as a personal guest.
I live a quiet life but 6pm each day I invite others to join me for coffee. Members business community arts culture politics church. Recently I invited a NCW priest to coffee. He said something which I would like to share on this page.
ReplyDeleteHe said it is very easy to get caught up in Church politics. But it is refreshing to simply ponder on the mystery of God. Just wondering what God is like. This is what people want to hear not some ranting drunk bitching about the church and the good people of this world.
What is God like? What does he mean to you? Tell us how to find God? There was a time I disliked NCW. Now I never cease to be amazed that they want to sit with me and join my happy hour. They bring a spiritual message to the world. They share gift of time with others.NCW priests quench the thirst of others who seek presence of God. They bring a personal experience of God to those they meet with. This is evangelization they reach out befriend others. Happy hour went on till late.By end of evening I reflected on how important it is to be in touch with people.NCW priests reached out to those who are hurting.
Amen to that! The NCW priests have a spirit of evangelization that comes from the charism of the Way and from Jesus Christ.
Delete
DeleteThe way is Charism from Jesus Christ. Charisms are given to the church to build the Body of Christ. There are many charisms but same Lord who gives. To damage a charism of the Lord is to place a nail in the side of Christ. That is not the path to salvation.
This is what it means to be out of touch with what is happening around the community. This is what Marx call 'opium of the people'
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ReplyDeleteYes journalist has written statements first hand eye witnesses inside. He gathered data documents materials interviews studies into 50 year period.
Its amazing that you celebrate this article as though it is a victory. Do you not see that the article is just another example of the corrupting influence of the NCW? That this article continues a discredited narrative, and that the author reveals himself to be partisan and Neocat?
ReplyDeleteThis is precisely the sort of thing that turns churchmen away from the NCW. this is precisely the sort of thing that causes archbishop byrnes to chastise the NCW. Nowhere in the article is any sense of outrage at the sexual abuse, but the author would rather call into question those people who have bravely stood up to abuse and the minimizing of abuse.
You all should be ashamed. Your obsession with the NCW blinds you to the truth. Your support of the NCW amounts to destabilizing the Church. The entire content of this article reveals the hidden influence of any number of senior NCW - and you think that is good!?
No wonder you are being rejected more and more.
Dear Anonymous at 1:10 pm,
DeleteThis is not a celebration. There are always two sides to every story. This story is from Archbishop Apuron's side, whose story was never fully told simply because the jungle would constantly call him a liar.
The truth needs to come out so that those who destroyed an innocent man may have time to repent. The truth has a way of changing the heart of a person and getting rid of the hatred. It is time that the junglefolks start to question Tim Rohr. He thinks that this article came from Father Pius; yet, he does not even see Archbishop Apuron's name and the name of Jackie Terlaje in the article. So, ask him where is his proof that this came from Father Pius?
DeleteIt is time junglefolks start to question Rohrism. Rohrism is a direct attack on the Catholic Church and her teaching.
Given the article published in LaStampa this week two sides of a story are evident. What ever the verdict concluded by the trial prudence dictates to keep the verdict silent for an extended period of time. To proclaim a verdict at this time is a danger to the church.
Deletewe can only pray Holy Father Curia will delay any verdict on this matter at this point in time.
Churchmen Guams powerful monsinuer turn others away from the catholicism. Folks are avoiding his masses calling him Fr.Joel Osteen.
DeleteThe article states the TRUTH.
DeleteI'd rather have this in place of the same old lousy fake news and political spins excreted from PDN and patty Arroyo's mouth.
Aren't you tired of the fake spin news from the media?
Dear Anonymous at 5:08 pm,
DeleteIt was indeed Patti Arroyo who first suggested another possible reason for the removal of Father Paul. According to the jungle:
"On her K57 radio show (Tuesday, July 23), host, Patti Arroyo, suggested a possible ulterior motive for the firing of Fr. Gofigan from his Dededo parish post and his otherwise rather clearly implied direction to go find another diocese.
In her interview with Fr. Gofigan - and independent of any comment made by him - Arroyo suggested that the action taken against Fr. Paul was not about the status of the registered sex-offender but about the desire of the Archbishop to implement the Neo-Catechumenal Way into Guam's largest parish, a move Gofigan is said to have resisted."
http://www.junglewatch.info/2013/07/the-apuron-gofigan-affair-update-72713.html
Patti Arroyo did not stick to the facts. She made a possible suggestion for Father Paul's removal, which was false. And Tim Rohr jumped on the bandwagon, using it to attack the NCW.
I cannot but not agree with many of the people who wrote their comments. This article in Vatican Insider is amazing, a masterpiece of truth and clarity. It is a pity that Chancellery has been hijacked by Untalan, Martinez and Benavente. Archbishop Brynes has been brainwashed.
ReplyDeleteDiana at this saying by el papa http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/09/21/pope_francis_if_you_want_mercy,_know_that_you_are_sinners/1338134
ReplyDeleteDiana, can you please cite all your references or evidence concerning the plight of the Archdiocese? Jungle Watch just listed many of their references for people to view. I find the documents to be authentic. Any rebuttals?
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous at 3:16 am,
DeleteIn my blog, I have pointed out how Tim Rohr misinterpreted those documents he has. For example, Rohr claimed that Archbishop Apuron approved Joseph Lastimosa to work at the Dededo parish and then points to a Guam Parole Board document as his evidence. That document does not have the Archbishop's name and signature. That has been Rohr's tactic. He invents a story and then misinterpret a document to fit his story.
I have also pointed out Tim Rohr's inconsistencies in his reporting several times. For example, he claimed that Father Pablo wrote Richard Untalan requesting the transfer of the seminary to RMS. When asked to produce Father Pablo's signed letter, Rohr changed his story. A man who constantly change his story is a man who has something to hide.
The problem is not the letters and audio clips that Rohr presents. The problem is Rohr's interpretation of them. He has been twisting those documents in a way to deceive people into believing what he wants them to believe.
Tim Rohr - " Father Jeff in Rome to defend Junglewatch"
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous at 3:31 pm,
DeleteReally?????? I don't think so. Father Jeff would be more concern about defending himself rather than Junglewatch. After all, Father Jeff was there present with Archbishop Hon when they both reviewed the evidence and then cleared Monsignor James of financial mismanagement. Therefore, this makes both Father Jeff and Archbishop Hon guilty of possibly covering up financial mismanagement and even theft of monies.
Understood Hon absolved Financial mismanagement to create win win situation to silence ccog stop protests.
DeletePapers then destroyed.
misappropriation of money placed in one's trust by one's employer. Embezzlement.
DeleteDear Anonymous at 9:12 pm,
DeleteThere is no win-win situation when you cover up the misuse of funds. And the protests did not stop until Archbishop Byrnes came in.
Furthermore, Archbishop Hon never said anything about missing or destroyed documents. Missing and destroyed documents were mentioned by the time Archbishop Byrnes came in, and the jungle blamed Archbishop Apuron and Father Adrian. According to Tim Rohr dated July 8, 2017:
"Also, tt is clear that critical records from the chancery archive are not only in disarray, but many are MISSING......If there are missing records - and there ARE - only Apuron and Adrian could have removed them. "
http://www.junglewatch.info/2017/07/david-and-adrian-must-be-investigated.html
Tim Rohr made that statement after Archbishop Byrnes stated to the PDN that the records were in widespread disarray. That was in July, 2017. By that time, Archbishop Apuron was not in the Archdiocese, and Monsignor David and Father Adrian were already removed from their position by Archbishop Hon. And then in came the new group.
Six months AFTER Archbishop Byrnes came in, he announced that the records were in widespread disarray. Archbishop Byrnes NEVER said that the records were missing or destroyed because in the first place, he would not know what records would be missing or destroyed. How could he know when he was new on island.
Tim was the one who made that statement in his blog about the records being missing. Tim also never specified WHAT records were missing or destroyed. Instead, he goes into a story about how Monsignor David was unable to make the baptismal certificate, thereby assuming that he destroyed paperwork regarding information for that baptismal certificate. The question you should ask yourself is why would anyone want to destroy information regarding a baptism? That is hardly worth destroying.
Furthermore, how did Rohr conclude that records were missing or destroyed when Archbishop Byrnes never said anything about missing or destroyed records? The word "Disarray" means disorganized or untidy. It does not mean missing or destroyed. In addition, Vatican Insider stated:
" According to witness testimonies collected by Vatican Insider, the documents relating to Benavente’s financial administration were promptly destroyed to avoid any verifications or findings."
Now, if anyone is going to destroy records, it would be documents implicating one in a crime. It would not be documents regarding information to a baptism. The documents regarding the baptism was either misplaced or unrecorded due to human error or forgetfulness. The record showing that a crime has been committed (such as embezzlement) is the one that would be destroyed. Monsignor David and Father Adrian have no motives for destroying records, but Monsignor James have a motive due to the receipts and invoices that were submitted to the Attorney General's office and GPD. After all, it was Monsignor James who was accused of allegedly misuse of funds.
" According to witness testimonies collected by Vatican Insider, the documents relating to Benavente’s financial administration were promptly destroyed to avoid any verifications or findings."
DeleteNo evidence for this statement. Anonymous "witness testimonies", that will never be seen or heard. No way to prove the assertion that documents were destroyed, particularly that they were destroyed to "avoid any verifications or findings".
And yet, there have ben verifications and findings on this matter. Or more correctly, there have been incestigations and reinstatements. There was nothing found to be problemative with Benevente.
The author is simply giving the NCWparty line which has no basis in evidence ot proof, but is just another example of lies and distortion. They are rally good at that by now, and with methods to ensure loyatly to the NCW (of an investigavtive reporter for example), it is highly unlikely that any of you will ever actually understand the truth.
Dear Anonymous at 10:34 pm,
DeleteActually, it can be proven. That is why there are witness testimonies. Their anonymity is for the purpose of protecting them. A witness testimony is valid in court.
Furthermore, records can be proven missing. For example, Monsignor James has implemented certain projects that are already in existence; therefore, there should be receipts and invoices as well as the minutes. In other words, if you purchase a statue, and the statue is there. But the record and receipt of the purchase is not there, then you already know what is missing, and it is NOT the statue.
I didn't purchase a statue.
DeleteDear Anonymous at 6:17 pm,
DeleteThat was just an example.
I wonder if Rome/Vatican would entertain tim if they have seen his blog and how foul his choice of words can be? Also won't look good for Fr. Jeff to associate himself with him knowing he was with ccog demanding of Rome/Vatican on ccog agenda and siding with snap...just doesn't look good. They can use thier trip as a pilgrimage to encounter Christ in an intimate way...
ReplyDeleteThat would be more productive....
Just saying.....
ReplyDeleteVulgar language frightening pictures used in blog degrade Holy See Curia Cardinal Filoni.
How unearth does Rohr match pictures to his blog posts? Frightening images.
They probably went to Rome to confront the corrupt Filoni.
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous at 7:05 pm,
DeleteCardinal Filoni will not be in Rome. Pope Francis sent him to Japan.
Each place Monsinuer worked financial mess. Cathedral st.Thomas aquinas cc.
ReplyDeleteIf I recall the video footage of kuam filmimg the day msngr. Beneventy leaving the Cathederal, he had alot of boxes to move out...looked like boxes of documents...wonder what kind and if they still exist?? Hhhmmmm....
ReplyDeleteFunny with all this mess, Rohr just threw Blockley under the bus. Wow. CCOG Rohr can turn on you like a pitbull.
ReplyDeleteRohr Blockley parted ways in an unusual turn of events. Blockley believes Rohr twisted stories to give another meaning which he believes untrue.
DeleteDissenters inside Junglenation.
ReplyDeleteDissenters from Timmy.
Rohr is criticizing Casteix, claiming SNAP is only there to take money for themselves. All I can to this is that it takes one to know one. Rohr is there for the same thing. He was only after selling the Yona property so he can get his large commission on it.
ReplyDeleteIt was the jungle who invited SNAP into the island.
Delete
ReplyDeleteHe was only after selling Yona property so he can get a large commission.
Yes he is. He is also the agent for the Carmelite house in Tamuning. I have seen his children and friends occupying the Carmelite house in Tamuning. He wants money....
DeleteDear Guamboy,
DeleteThat is interesting. I wonder if Tim Rohr is interested in buying the Carmelite house. That house is big enough to accommodate his entire family. He just needs the money for it if he is interested in buying the home.
Rohr cannot sell property he holds so how will he sell yona property. Just saying.....
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous at 8:07 am,
DeleteTim Rohr is a real estate agent and a friend of Monsignor James. Vatican Insider has already discovered that Rohr is involved in the projected sale of the seminary.
Legally perhaps, the Archdiocese has every right to sell the seminary and the adjoining land. I heard that they are thinking of dividing the property in three lots to acquire more money.
DeleteHowever I believe that in reality they are pilfering this property.
The property was acquired by Archbishop Apuron to be used exclusively as a seminary. The maintenance of this property is the fruit of the toil of innumerable people who worked so hard and gratuitously for many years.
Instead, the present administration is bringing all these lawyers from the mainland that are charging the Church exorbitant fees for their services plus air fare (business class of course) and hotel accommodation etc.
Unfair. Unfair. Unfair.
Discreditable conduct of real estate agent Rohr tending to bring harm upon the Catholic faith and the Roman Curia. His constant attacks upon the church insults to good people in the Curia are an attack on the instituational church.
ReplyDeleteThanks Blockley. Your view important.
DeleteHow do you know he's Blockley?
Delete
ReplyDeletenine deacons ordained?
Will Preston finally be ordained Deacon? Terrible terrible njustice.
DeleteDiana Timmy is already threatening father blockley with a defamation suit because of the comment that you put up
ReplyDeleteDear God is one,
DeleteI do not see what my comment has to do with Father Blockley. I only quoted Vatican Insider. Also, now we see why the witnesses who testified prefer to remain anonymous until the civil trial.
Diana I think the reason he's doing this is because his hand is in the cookie jar and can't get it out because he's been caught and Monsignor James and father Paul And he's going after anyone whose against him
DeleteDiana Timmy is making fun of the lawsuit that archbishop is going to do against him
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteCan't understand how the Vatican Insider or Dianas comment is associated with Father Blockley?
A fascinating discussion is worth comment. I believe that you need to publish more about this issue, it might not be a taboo subject but generally
ReplyDeletepeople do not discuss these topics. To the next!
Best wishes!!
FYI: The first link doesn't work...
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous at 5:34 am,
DeleteThe anonymous person must have deleted his/her comment.
How long does it take to get the three canonical judges to sign the verdict for Archbishop Anthony's canonical trial? It's been over 2 weeks! Doesn't Rome see what is happening in Guam??? A miracle is needed in order to reverse certain decisions made by CoAD Byrnes.
ReplyDeleteDiane... is there any hope for Apuron?
ReplyDeleteIts taking way too long. The island mafia-politics is way too influential. Even Zoltan, whom I thought had a clear grasp of the island's problem, is dancing their tune. Byrnes has publicly cast his vote of no confidence on Apuron. The JungleSewer keeps spewing hate in a noisy and vulgar-as-usual form. I am afraid that this Pope, like Byrnes, will side with the powerful and influential of the island, with the distorted public opinion, fearful of the 'perceived image' of the Church (activism = modern secular tactic in order to manipulate events)... not truth or Justice. I hope I am wrong but I don't see the Pope getting rid of Byrnes (to accept that he appointed in Guam a second spineless administrator, like Hon -- it wouldn't look good on the Pope) nor do I believe he will be sending Apuron back in here and risk a bigger scandal because the JungleSwamp will go 'Planet of the Apes' on the Vatican if they send him back.
Dear Anonymous at 12:32 pm,
DeleteRemember what our catechists told us. God is the one in control. We cannot see ahead in the future, but God allows things to happen for a reason, which He only knows and can see. For example, Archbishop Byrnes did not allow the NCW in Guam to evangelize. As a result of this bad decision, there are now communities in Palau, and the communities in Saipan continue to grow.
Although I do not know whether Archbishop Apuron will return, but personally I hope that he does return. If he does return with an auxillary bishop to help him, Archbishop Apuron will also need the help of the people to fight off the Junglewatch Nation, who are only few in number. Archbishop Apuron is the only one strong enough to stand against the mafia.
Dear Anonymous, I don't particularly appreciate that you kinda scold the Pope, Archbishops Hon and Byrnes, calling them "spineless" and other names whatever you wish to call them. It is no wonder you also accuse me! Look, it is not my fault that the jungle quotes me here and there, as I have just recently learned. I occasionally read and very rarely visit them.
DeleteIt is no secret that I called the jungle and CCoG the surrogates of Joelle Casteix and servants of SNAP! Why did I call them this way? Because they took order from Casteix to inflict unlimited damage on their own church, my church and your church(!), by pushing through a "predator bill" targeting the organization rather than the perpetrators.
Please note that Rohr just admitted that they decided to attack the whole church as an organization accidentally, modifying the original "predator bill" to include the church as culprit and defendant. It is inexcusable! They did this secretly, from one public hearing to the next, at the very last moment. I know because I was there at the last public hearing of the bill and saw the result of their plot.
This was a perfect coup following the tactic of the sneaky SNAP letter-by-letter! Whatever the jungle and CCoG say about Casteix now is just a ridiculous distraction about their ugly plot. It is just late, too late man! The damage had been inflicted upon all of us and can never be undone. We and the next generations of Guam Catholics will pay the price tag for their recklessness!
Let me add, that all Senators, first of all Democrat Senator Frank Aguon, and also Governor Calvo all assisted to this travesty wholeheartedly! Even if the Governor says now that he "should not have signed the bill". Ouch! Too late, man, it is just too late. The posterity will look back on these events of 2016-2020 as the dark age of Guam Catholicism when a church group viciously and vigorously maimed the whole diocese for the fun of it, absolutely unnecessarily and with no good reason.
During these terrible events that have happened and will happen to Guam Catholics, our only hope is the legitimate leadership of our local church, including our Archbishops, that they will follow the footsteps of our Lord to lead the wayward back to the flock. It is disappointing that the same way the jungle and CCoG treat the NCW as their enemy, we also tend to treat them as our enemies. By your comments I see that you even take our legitimate leaders as your enemies. Whatever happened to the teaching of our Lord about treating others...?
This is way over the line already! This should stop now.
Zoltan,
DeleteIf I were treating (what you call) our 'enemies' as they are treating us I honestly believe we wouldn't be having this conversation. You are witnessing the unjust and total dismantling of missionary work done in Guam for over 15 years, talent, time and treasure, marriages rebuilt, vocations aroused, lives rescued from addictions, etc. all that has stopped... Who is going to do that now? Tim Rohr? CCoG? in their comfy office behind a computer? with his pals? without mentioning that Apuron risked everything for the Church and its future in Guam, his reputation, his life, confronting these dark forces.
Now if a Bishop willingly ignores the injustice done (sin of omission) to a not-so-small group of people in Guam by a powerful mob, that is called cooperation with evil.
Besides, I have never seen Byrnes or Rohr as enemies, the REAL enemy is the Devil, who has legitimately deceive them as they honestly believe their actions (unjust as they may be) are doing good. Exposing how they have been deceived is what I try to do (albeit with rough edges) and you perceive it as treating evil with evil. I don't wish Rohr or his family to ever have to go through what Apuron has been subjected to... but boy, blinded by hate, he is.
Dear Zoltan,
ReplyDeleteI only expressed a 'fear' by saying "I am afraid that..." whomever (the Pope, priests, bishop, the faithful in Guam, the ignorant in Guam, etc.) may be guiding their decisions on fear of the mob (who is being driven by a powerful activist group of the island) and not by reason... ok? I expressed a fear... not a fact nor did I passed a judgement.
Second, I preceded my other opinion by saying "I HOPE THAT I AM WRONG..." so am admitting that I do not know what is the truth or what will happen. Furthermore, it is no mystery to you that I believe that: 1) Hon had no spine (just follow what he did, I don't have time to explain all that he did to appease the mob) and 2) Byrnes has no spine (I have written extensively on why I believe Byrnes IS fearful of the mob just by his comment --careless or not-- on Apuron)... I mean, if Byrnes wants Apuron to be crucified for the sake of the Island, at least let Apuron make that decision... I won't accept it from anyone other than the one who is being crucified... because not the Church, not Peter, not anyone has the right to DEMAND divine virtue from a human... (I don't know if you know anything about Health Care ethics but for the same reason a parent of a baby cannot offer the marrow bone of their baby to save the life of another)
...about the Pope... I said that I hope that I am wrong in 'projecting' (if you will) that the Pope MAY... (ok? big MAYBE)... fall for the same fear of the mob or may just base his opinion on what is superficially (the media) the public openion in Guam... then, I added that to make matters worse, it will not look good on the Pope to have to admit that Hon was a mistake and now that Byrnes was not capable to tackle the island-problem... removing Apuron would be motivated by a negative perception-of-self. Which is why the Jungle-mob keep banging the pots and pans and what they are hoping for.
BTW: If the Pope decides to place all the burden of the injustice on the NCW, I have no choice but to unite our sufferings to those of Christ on the Cross. In the meantime, we pray, hope and long for justice. Christ may be calling us to enter the cross here in Guam, but I can always pray to God and to those who are Christ followers “Father, if thou art willing, remove this cup from me; nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.” (there is nothing anti-christian in praying that or expressing that sentiment.)
The NCW is the only ones being systematically dismantled in order to 'fix the problem'... no criticism of Teflon Rohr or the biased media have been heard (I believe is because of the fear of them)... Besides, what motivates me is the fact that behind the NCW are MANY MANY MANY LIVES that have been rebuilt and the future of the evangelization of the Pacific. Now I don't know what makes Rohr's hatred tick... I don't understand it... nor do I understand why Judas betrayed Jesus... I don't feel superior to them, for all I know God may be using them for a bigger mission... however, at this crossroad, I have to side with whom I believe is Christ (the ones upon whom injustices are falling on) that is Apuron and the NCW. Unless you can show me that what is happening is JUSTICE, I have to follow my conscience and voice my concerns.
Dear Anonymous, the only thing I see from your comment is that you intend to hurt those who were or are legitimate leaders of our church. What is you purpose? I am completely at loss with sentences like this: "I have to side with whom I believe is Christ (...) that is Apuron and the NCW." What do you really want to say?
DeleteDear Zoltan,
DeleteIt is the legitimate leader of the Church, Archbishop Byrnes, who is hurting the NCW. Archbishop Byrnes placed a moratorium on the NCW for a year. The NCW was also told not to evangelize on Guam. That is the reason why the NCW in Guam went to the other Pacific islands to evangelize. RMS will also shut down by the end of this year. I agree with Anonymous 5:34 am. I also side with whom I believe is Christ, and that would be Archbishop Apuron and the NCW.
Dear Diana, in what sense do you say Archbishop Apuron and the NCW are Christ? The Holy Bible states there is only one Christ, our Lord Jesus. The Apostle St. Peter reveals about Jesus in Matt 16:16: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
DeleteOne's suffering may bring one closer to Christ. It would align your mind with that of our Lord. But how would suffering "turn" you into Christ? We should be careful how we use words with given meaning. Shifting the commonly understood meaning of words could undermine good communication and turn what you say into cryptic talk.
You said Archbishop Byrnes' request not to form new NCW communities on Guam for a couple of months would not hurt NCW, but makes it stronger. It allows NCW to expand in the region to Saipan and Palau. We also celebrate the weekly mass in beautiful, consecrated church buildings. The reason of closing the RMS, we heard, is that it has serious issues of long term sustainability in the given environment. Why do you say the Archbishop is hurting us, his own flock in Jesus?
Dear Zoltan,
DeleteArchbishop Apuron and the NCW are one with Christ. Christ is in the poor, the humble, the weak, the downtrodden, the persecuted, and all those who do the will of God. Even Mother Teresa stated that she was able to see Christ in the poor. For whatever you do to the least of your brothers, you do to me (Christ). When the Apostle Paul persecuted Christians, Jesus appeared to him and said, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute ME?” Jesus never asked Paul why he persecuted Christians. Any persecution on Christians is a persecution on Christ.
I never said that Archbishop Byrnes’ moratorium would make us stronger. I said persecution makes us one with Christ. RMS can sustain itself without the help of the Archdiocese; therefore, Archbishop Byrnes was incorrect. His real reason for closing the Seminary was to sell the property to pay for the settlement of the alleged victims. Anonymous has already answered your question as to why Archbishop Byrnes is persecuting the NCW.
Dear Diana, there is a slight difference between seeing Jesus in the eyes of the suffering and claiming that you are Jesus! Mother Teresa had never said she was Jesus. As Christians, we all would like to live like Jesus is in us. We invite Him as our Lord and Savior to live in our hearts. But how could this turn us into Jesus himself?! There is only one Jesus in history of whom the Apostle says "You are the Christ!"
DeleteWhen Catholic Christians are persecuted, it is because of their Catholic Christian faith. Their faith in the only Son of God, Jesus Christ, is the very reason they are persecuted. ISIS executed Christians for their confession of faith. This is the meaning of persecution. Potentially hurting your self-serving interest and causing discomfort with a purpose of pastoral care for the archdiocese is not persecution.
You say "RMS can sustain itself without the help of the Archdiocese." Well, then it should have been proved to the Archbishop by demonstrating hard evidence. Can you deposit the projected operation cost for the next 10 years into a vault and hand it over to him? That would be an assurance. Words by themselves do not constitute assurance of long term sustainability as established by financial experts.
Dear Zoltan,
DeleteAnonymous 5:34 am stated: "I have to side with whom I believe is Christ (the ones upon whom injustices are falling on) that is Apuron and the NCW."
I stated that I agreed with his/her comment. Then you asked," in what sense do you say Archbishop Apuron and the NCW are Christ?" So, I clarified my answer for you, but you still did not understand. I never said that Archbishop Apuron is Christ. I said that Christ is Archishop Apuron because he is suffering an injustice.
What does it mean to you when I stated that we are one with Christ and that Christ is found in the weak, the poor, the suffering, and the persecuted? Anonymous and I agree that Christ is Archbishop Apuron and the NCW because that is where the injustices are falling upon.
Archbishop Byrnes follows CCOG.
Dear Diana, you are right that I got confused of what you say. You stated "I never said that Archbishop Apuron is Christ. I said that Christ is Archishop Apuron because he is suffering an injustice."
DeleteIn my translation you claim X equals Y, but Y doesn't equal X. How is this possible? I am sorry, but this does not make sense to me at all. Could you help me out, please?
You must be using words in a different meaning that you didn't reveal. Thus it becomes cryptic talk that people with a normal sense are unable to follow.
Dear Zoltan,
DeleteIt is possible and in no way cryptic talk. For example, man is created in the image and likeness of God. But in no way is God in the image and likeness of man. That is in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
CCC 370 In no way is God in man's image. He is neither man nor woman. God is pure spirit in which there is no place for the difference between the sexes. But the respective "perfections" of man and woman reflect something of the infinite perfection of God: those of a mother and those of a father and husband.
It does not make sense to you because you think only in scientific terms. God is outside the laws of physics. What is impossible for you is possible for God.
Christ said, "Whoever persecutes the least of his brothers persecutes ME." Chrust said this. Christ is the truth and he does not lie. And Archbishop Apuron and the NCW are the ones being persecuted.
Dear Diana, CCC states God is existence and and man is the image. Not the other way around. CCC also says the Catholic Church is the Body of Christ. It is not the same as Christ, but we carry on His body on Earth. To be part of the Body of Christ we must not drift away from the Church and its legitimate leaders.
DeleteHave another look, please, of what you stated: "I never said that Archbishop Apuron is Christ. I said that Christ is Archbishop Apuron because he is suffering an injustice." You claim equality of X with Y, but deny equality of Y with X. The contradiction is not coming from science or physics. It is coming from simple logic. Christ is a single being. If X = Y then also Y = X. God gave us pure logic to guide our mind and reasoning. If you don't see that you owe an explanation here, then what else can I tell you?
Claiming equality with God is used to be considered as heretical in the history of the Catholic Church. In Isaiah 55:8-9 Christ says
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts."
Dear Zoltan,
DeleteChrist said,"If you persecute the least of your brothers, you persecute Me." The question is do you believe these words from Christ or not?
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church:
CCC 460 The Word became flesh to make us "partakers of the divine nature":"For this is why the Word became man, and the Son of God became the Son of man: so that man, by entering into communion with the Word and thus receiving divine sonship, might become a son of God." "For the Son of God became man so that we might become God." "The only-begotten Son of God, wanting to make us sharers in his divinity, assumed our nature, so that he, made man, might make men gods."
Is the Catechism saying that we are to be equal with God? Of course not. We are to be like Christ. Just as Christ shared in our humanity, Christ desire that we share in His divinity. Do you understand what that means? Do you know what it means to be one with Christ?
Christ said, "If you persecute the least of your brothers, you persecute ME." "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting ME?" Since Christ said these words, then why is it difficult for you to believe that Christ is Archbishop Apuron and the NCW being persecuted? Any persecution of Christians is a persecution of Christ for they are one.
Zoltan,
DeleteDo not forget that at the end of our lives we will not be judged by how many budgets we balanced, how many economic problems we solved, if you left a sustainable diocese or not, how much money we were able to raise or how many great things we have done…
We will be judged by: "I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me."
... and as Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta would say to you:
"Hungry not only for bread— but hungry for love, Naked not only for clothing—but naked of human dignity and respect, Homeless not only for want of a home of bricks—but homeless because of rejection." -- Mother Teresa
Don’t you think Apuron is thirsting for justice? His naked (embarrassing) situation demands that you at least respecting his human dignity?, He is now a stranger in a foreign land, destitute from Guam, the place that he loves and where he was born, is that not real ‘homelessness’?, Apuron is sick with all the lies and fabrications being leveled at him, sick because NOT EVEN HIS BROTHER BISHOP believes him, but publicly states that Guam is better off without him; neglecting his cry for justice; Apuron is hungry for YOU to understand the injustice done to him, who is the ordinary of Guam? He is in the prison of public opinion, and even when WE try to free him, you call ME and DIANE, troublemakers, disobedient, heretical, trying to hurt, etc.
If you are committing a sin, an injustice, and I call you on it, how can that be hurting? The only thing hurt is pride, image, public opinion, etc. Now explain to me why is the pride, image, public opinion of Byrnes more important than that of Apuron?
NOBODY is saying the Apuron or NCW is GOD or Christ himself... but rather, what you find hard to understand is that...
“We are taught from the very moment to discover Christ under the distressing disguise of the poor, the sick, the outcasts. Christ present Himself to us under every disguise: the dying, the paralytic, the leper, the invalid, the orphan.” – Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta
Dear Anonymous at 3:34 am,
DeleteExactly. You said it better than I did. Thank you for your comment.
Dear Anonymous, I have never called you or Diana "troublemakers, disobedient, heretical". Please, quote me if I have ever said that. What Mother Teresa talks about here is the presence and not the existence of Christ. She tells us that Christ is present in the suffering, so we may discover Him in their faces. She is not saying Christ is identical with those who suffer. One has to recognize the slight differences between different meanings of words and expressions. We can share in the divine nature of holiness through our faith in Jesus.
DeleteI am having trouble with this statement from Diana: "I never said that Archbishop Apuron is Christ. I said that Christ is Archbishop Apuron because he is suffering an injustice." These sentences contain logical contradiction.
I keep praying for the safe return of Archbishop Apuron to the island. I'll keep praying until he is back. His fate is in the hands of the Vatican Tribunal that has already made its verdict. The Tribunal is the only authentic body inside the church to make judgment in the charges that the Tribunal has investigated. This is my understanding. Perhaps I am wrong, then please, correct me.
We owe loyalty to our legitimate church leaders who set up the pastoral agenda for our diocese. If the evangelization agenda is in temporal conflict with the pastoral agenda, then it is the duty of our leaders to reconcile different approaches and make meaningful compromises where it is needed. Is there any other way to govern a diocese?
Dear Diana, you are right that we may share in the divine nature of holiness through our faith in Jesus who is both fully divine and fully human. This is the meaning of what St. Athanasius wrote down and CCC quoted from him (St. Athanasius, De inc. 54, 3: PG 25, 192B). CCC does not teach that we can be existentially identical with God, but we may share in His divine nature of holiness.
DeleteWe need Jesus in our lives at every moment because we are sinners, we have the original sin that predisposes us to sinning. Jesus saved us by His excruciating death on the cross that He suffered for us, taught us how to overcome sin and be holy. God says in Pet 1:16: "Be holy as I am holy."
The prospect of Christian life is walking away from sin and thus overcoming sin by following Jesus. Our Catholic saints show us examples how can we be holy. No one is holy because one says so. Mother Teresa has never said she was holy. But one becomes holy, thus overcoming sinful nature, by one's entire life in Jesus. It is a distinctive feature of Catholic faith that we recognize our saints as holy and celebrate their sharing in divine nature.
Dear Zoltan,
DeleteAs Anonymous has clearly stated no one claimed that Archbishop Apuron is Christ. I am sorry that you misunderstood the statement I made, but that is the whole purpose of clarification. The clarification was already made; therefore, it is unnecessary to beat a dead horse.
I am glad to hear that you are praying for Archbishop Apuron's return. We are all praying for him.
Dear Zoltan,
DeleteYou have characterize our plight for justice for Apuron as:
"...the only thing I see from your comment is that you --intend to hurt-- those who were or are legitimate leaders of our church."
Zoltan November 10, 2017 at 9:19 AM
"Claiming equality with God is used to be considered as --heretical-- in the history of the Catholic Church."
Zoltan November 11, 2017 at 2:41 PM
(granted that you are totally misunderstanding our comments)
"jungle and CCoG treat the NCW as their enemy, we also tend to treat them as our enemies. By your comments I see that --you even take our legitimate leaders as your enemies.--"
Zoltan November 9, 2017 at 7:02 PM
(You are equating my calling to conversion of a Bishop to the 'Alinskyite-activism', the 'deliberate defamation' of a person, the missionary distroction of a legitimate charism of the Church, and in your words, comparing us to "a church group (that) viciously and vigorously maimed the whole diocese" => troublemakers)
Zoltan, what you seem to miss from my post is the problem that the Jungle and their gang of thugs are driven by an ideology which goes far beyond the few operative protests demanding Apuron's "DEFROCKING". Alinskyite leftists quite simply do not believe in the one Holy Catholic Apostolic Church (they are ready to bring down the Vatican if they must) -- if not, they would be asking for a census of the faithful, reflecting the real sentiment of the faithful in Guam, which THEY KNOW they do not represent --, which is why they’re so willing to violate the norms of justice and focus on banging the pots and pans until THEIR WILL IS DONE.
If the Church gives into injustices because of the level of noise made by an ideological group, then that is the formula that can be used by any 'anti-catholic' group to bend the will of the Church to do their will... or at least to threaten them into submission.
If this is too hard to understand... I can't help you there.
Dear Anonymous, if you read what I wrote about the "predator bill", you'll see that I talked about its proponents who are the wayward in the flock, the jungle and CCoG. The authors of this bill are Rohr and Klitzkie. I have stood up against this bill at the public hearing protecting the interest of the diocese and defending NCW. I had my encounter with the beast who created this situation face to face. I was left alone with that. Let me quote:
Delete"The damage had been inflicted upon all of us and can never be undone. We and the next generations of Guam Catholics will pay the price tag for their recklessness! (...) The posterity will look back on these events of 2016-2020 as the dark age of Guam Catholicism when a church group viciously and vigorously maimed the whole diocese for the fun of it, absolutely unnecessarily and with no good reason.
During these terrible events that have happened and will happen to Guam Catholics, our only hope is the legitimate leadership of our local church, including our Archbishops, that they will follow the footsteps of our Lord to lead the wayward back to the flock."
Thanks for your understanding.
Zoltan,
DeleteI commend you for all the work you have done to protect the Church. Even the way you defend Byrnes is admirable. If anything in me may come across as intransigent or rude towards Byrnes is my desire for him to acknowledge that the situation in Guam is grossly corrupted by the special-interest ideologues of the island. I know that it takes heroic virtue (which I don't have and the reason I remain anonymous), if not almost divine virtue, in order to face that crowd (which you have first hand experience and scars as witness of your love for the Church), however, it is TRUE... indeed VERY TRUE... that if the Church/Byrnes gives in to this activism mentality, what stop the 'enemy' from coercing her in the future? This will create precedent whose waves will ripple across the secular anti-Catholic world. Any pact with the Devil is surely a failure. You either reject it altogether or it will never come to a good end, by experience. I pray for Byrnes, I want him to be the best Bishop he could be, but if he is making a mistake (from my subjective point of view) I have to follow my conscience, ethically and because in front of God that is all he will ask of me... What did you DO??? To hope for the best is not good enough IMHO.
I am sadden that my zeal for the Church is construed as hurting the legitimate authority of the Church or hatred towards the junglefolks, however, God will be the judge of each of us for what we did and didn't do in this very difficult time in the history of the Catholic Church in Guam.
I pray that Tim Rohr and his beautiful family escape the consequences of what he is doing (by the mercy of the wounds of Christ I hope he is not already paying for that without knowing why). Nothing done out of zeal for Christ is a mistake, out of zeal for Christ everything is forgivable, even when they are wrong, or badly done... however, if the sin is deliberate... God's patience has a limit and he assures us...
“So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. What I tell you in the dark, utter in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim upon the housetops. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground without your Father’s will. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. So every one who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven; but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven." Mt 10:26-33
IMHO the problem in Guam is only one. Pride... Satanic Pride... Satanic Wounded Pride. All that Apuron is bearing right now is what happens when God wants to do something really great and wonderful on earth. The devil arises and through pride he seeks to divide us to destroy the work that God wants done. I pray for Apuron, I wish for him the Holy Spirit who would make of him a Saint, but Apuron has to ask for this Spirit in order to enter the Cross... NO ONE can demand it from him... So, if Apuron screams JUSTICE... I am next to him to plead his cause... if in the future he decides to bear injustices upon himself, I will be there with him interceding for his enemies... cause they don't know what they are doing.
There is a great difference between NCW/Apuron and the jungle who rejoices in defaming, ridiculing and insulting their enemies. What drives them? Who knows? but the facts are written in history.
One's calling to conversion (badly done, I grant you that) is another's hurting. There is no calling to conversion that is done in a nice way.
ReplyDelete"You brood of Vipers..." Mt 12:34
"Go and tell that fox..." Luke 13:32
"You Hypocrites..." Mt 15:7, Mt 22:18, Mt 23:13,15,23,25,29, Mk 7:6, Lk 12:56, Lk 13:15
Calling to conversion the leadership of the Church is an example left by Christ. You may say that both the CCoG & Rohr could also claim to be doing the same... yes, but here is where discernment plays a great part and Christ left a clear rule for discerning:
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? So, every sound tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears evil fruit. A sound tree cannot bear evil fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits." Mt 7:15-20
If a Bishop doesn't guide his discernment by this rule, it is my obligation, as a brother in Christ, to remind him...
“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church;” Mt 18:15-17
by the FRUITS you will tell them... what are the fruits of CCoG and Rohr? you yourself answered that question in your post...
"a church group viciously and vigorously maimed the whole diocese"
What are the fruits of the NCW, Apuron, etc. This is what is CLEARLY, UNJUSTLY, SELF-EVIDENTLY missing in the 'public discourse' for its defense. Above all, its missing from the Church. This injustice is what Byrnes 'SEEMS' (attention to this big 'SEEMS') to be extremely blind to, deliberately or not, Ezekiel 33:7-9, urges us to admonish one another.
If Byrnes is such a visionary, then He shouldn't worry about what I say, because he must have it all under control and he knows how we feel, he is aware of the injustices and he believes this is the best for Guam... he can have 1001 reasons to stay the course as he is doing... However, I have to (it is a moral obligation) make him aware of what I consider, a grave injustice. (which, it 'seems', you don't agree with me it is so grave.)
Praying return Archbishop Apuron.
ReplyDeleteRe DianaSeptember 23
ReplyDeleteI applaud Archbishop Byrnes in his attempts for ONE Body of Christ. The restrictions he placed on the NCW regarding their Mass should not be seen as persecution of the NCW but "pastoral correction" which is still not being realized.
Cardinal Arinze's letter back in 2005 with Pope Benedicts's confirmation in 2006 were greatly ignored to the point where the 2005 letter was not even given to the NCW groups, but Kiko's interpretation of it.
. . . So Diana, when you say "The problem is Rohr's interpretation of them. He has been twisting those documents in a way to deceive people into believing what he wants them to believe." - this statement also can apply to the leader(s) of the NCW.
In light of the deception of the Most Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, I would not judge Archbishop Byrnes too harshly - we learn to trust people who are trustworthy, and to doubt those who we've found deceptive.
Praying that we are may be ONE.
Dear Anonymous at 2:32 am,
DeletePlease open your eyes and face reality. The Mass was NEVER the problem. The jungle deceived you into thinking that the place we celebrated the Mass in was the issue. After Archbishop Byrnes instructed us to hold the Eucharist inside the church building, the NCW obeyed. In fact, we did not complain about celebrating the Eucharist in the church building. However, the jungle STILL called for the destruction of the NCW. Therefore, YOU were the one deceived.
Bringing the NCW into the church building did not bring unity because the jungle still called for the destruction of the NCW. You and Archbishop Byrnes were deceived.
You are missing the point. The Mass is a separate issue. The Mass although corrected in Guam, remains uncorrected worldwide.
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous at 7:42 am,
DeleteDo not change the subject. We are speaking about Guam, not the entire world. As I said, the Mass was NEVER the problem. The NCW obeyed, but the jungle CONTINUES to call for the destruction of the NCW. You and Archbishop Byrnes have been deceived by the jungle......plain and simple.
Anon. 7:42 read the article in the Vatican Insider again. If it was just the Mass, JW would have been satisfied that the Way obeyed. But no, they demand the removal of the NCW in the parishes. That alone says they had an agenda, and the Mass was only used as an excuse to hide their real agenda. Read the post Diana posted in the Vatican Insider.
DeleteI agree. The NCW in other parts of the world are tolerated, and they leave them alone. It's only here in Guam that we face persecution cuz they seek our destruction.
DeleteA one-sided Bishop
ReplyDelete