Tomorrow is the March for Life at the Cathedral. Come out and support our Archdiocese, our Archbishop Ryan, and Father Harold, who will be the main speaker. As most people know, Father Harold has the zeal of the Holy Spirit, making him an excellent speaker.
The Neocatechumenal Way is well-known for having large families because we are open to life. We carry life in us as we bear fruits. We carry the life of the Gospel as we evangelize. We carry life as we produce vocations and large families.
As I have pointed out in my previous post, the former Archbishop of Agana, Anthony Apuron, was a target for a witchhunt. The purpose of the witchhunt was to remove him from office. The Concerned Catholics of Guam (CCOG) went on a witchhunt to remove Apuron. In 2015, CCOG paid for an ad targeting Apuron. The ad was given to SNAP and published in the jungle. Below was the ad paid by CCOG. Notice the dates and places shown on their ad.
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Rohr said the CCOG has been in contact with Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. The SNAP organization helps heal those who have been sexually victimized.
However, SNAP does not help victims of sexual abuse. They exploit them and use them to bring down the Catholic Church (see the information here). According to news report:
The lawsuit by Gretchen Rachel Hammond names Clohessy and other SNAP leaders as defendants and alleges that "SNAP does not focus on protecting or helping survivors — it exploits them."
The group, which more than any other is responsible for revealing the scandals that have continued to rock Catholicism in the U.S. and around the world, "routinely accepts financial kickbacks from attorneys in the form of 'donations,' " Hammond alleges.
In exchange for the kickbacks, SNAP refers survivors as potential clients to attorneys, who then file lawsuits on behalf of the survivors against the Catholic Church. These cases often settle, to the financial benefit of the attorneys and, at times, to the financial benefit of SNAP, which has received direct payments from survivors' settlements."
Hammond, who worked on fundraising for SNAP from 2011 until 2013, said she feared reprisals from SNAP leaders over her objections to the lawyers' payments and suffered serious health problems as a result. She said she was fired in 2013, allegedly because she confronted her bosses over their practices with victims' attorneys and that the dismissal has hurt her career.
The lawsuit was first reported by National Catholic Reporter.
Furthermore, CCOG does not represent Catholics. They only represent themselves.
The Guam Clergy sexual abuse started with John Toves who accused former Archbishop Anthony Apuron of sexually abusing his relative....a relative whom he never spoke to. According to KUAM news:
Toves is accusing the archbishop of sexually abusing his relative over thirty years ago. Despite these allegations however Toves admits that he had never spoken personally to his relative about the alleged abuse. According to Toves he obtained the information through fellow seminarians when he was in the seminary. At this point no victim has stepped forward.
The Guam Clergy sexual abuse never started with Roy Quintanilla. Nevertheless, Roy Quintanilla came out in 2016, accusing Apuron of sexually abusing him. According to Tim Rohr:
I have shared this many times, but it needs to be continually shared. These four did not demand compensation, they demanded an apology - only an apology. At that point, Apuron could have put out a statement saying "I'm sorry, but I did not abuse you" and it probably would have all been over.
But he didn't. While he did state that he did not abuse them, he also threatened to sue them for saying so.
This is false. The lawwsuit was for those who put out an ad targeting the former Archbishop. According to news report (the bold is mine):
On Friday, the archdiocese announced plans to file lawsuits against those who had been spreading “malicious lies” about the local Roman Catholic Church, addressing a full-page advertisement published locally the previous weekend that asked victims of sexual abuse to come forward.
In his video statement, Apuron referred to what he called “malicious ads.” Concerned Catholics of Guam, a group that has been critical of the archbishop, paid for the ads.
The video clearly showed the former Archbishop saying, "malicious ads." You can see the video here. The video and news report came out after Roy accused Apuron of sexually abusing him. After that video, Roy Quintanilla called Apuron a liar.
The first four accusers of Apuron after John Toves were all from Agat and knew each other. They were Roy Quintanilla, Roland Sondia, Walter Denton, and Doris Concepcion who claimed her deceased son was sexually abused. However, there were only two people who came forward, stating that they reported their sexual abuse to Father Jack Niland ( who was deceased). Those two were Roy Quintanilla and Walter Denton. Both claimed that Father Jack brushed off their plea for help. However, Deacon Tenorio came out, stating that there were no reports of sexual abuse filed by Father Jack Niland.
So, Frances Chargulaf, who is also a friend of Roy Quintanilla and lives in the same state as Walter Denton, came forward and accused Father Jack Niland of sexually abusing him. With that allegation, everyone would probably conclude the reason why no reports were filed by Father Jack.
Nevertheless, Roy Quintanilla had positive things to say about Father Jack after he passed away. According to Roy Quintanilla:
Roy Quintanilla
August 17, 2009
My Dear Friend Fr. Jack, taught me the meaning of true friendship. He was not only my best friend, mentor, and confidant he was someone I really enjoyed spending time with. No matter what we were doing, whether we were together or talking from a distance life felt like it had a purpose. He had a way of balancing life's ups and downs and inspite of everything, made us aware that life is a precious gift to be cherished and that we should all be greatful for everything life bestows on us. Thank you my Friend for always looking out for me and my family when you were here and I know you're looking out for us from Heaven. I miss you and I wish you were still with us, but like you said, God has plans for all of us and we are all were we should be. I will remember you for as long as I can because I know that "Death is not in passing but in the forgetfulness."
Furthermore, if Father Jack was a sexual predator, the most likely person he would sexually abused would be Roland Sondia for he was very close to him and his family. See the information here. Below are photos of Roland Sondia and Father Jack before he passed away.
Father Antonino Caminiti passed away yesterday. Rest in peace, Father Nino. We love you!
The Guam Clergy Sex Scandal started with John Toves, who is now deceased after struggling with cancer. Je accused then Archbishop Anthony Apuron of sexually molesting his relative, whom he has never spoken to. After John admitted that he never spoke to his relative. His relative never even came out to support John's allegations. So, no one believed John Toves.
Then four other people came out in public to accuse then Archbishop Anthony Apuron again. According to Tim Rohr:
Had Apuron admitted his crimes or even met privately to apologize to his initial accusers, the archdiocese might have been spared the loss of millions and millions of dollars in legal fees and properties, most of which had been given to the Church by common, hard-working Catholics who sacrificed their own comfort and family security to help the Church they loved.
This is my response:
SERIOUSLY!!! They came out in PUBLIC, accusing Apuron of sexual abuse, and you want him to meet them in PRIVATE! SERIOUSLY!!! You also want him to admit to the crimes.Then Rohr said this (the bold is mine):
In fact, Apuron, if he really did not do what he was accused of, would not have even had to apologize. He could have just met with those initial accusers and heard them out. I was involved with those initial accusers and I can state for a fact that all they wanted to do was confront the man they believed who had hurt them in their childhood. They did not want to sue - there was no way for them to do that in the beginning anyway, they did not want to hurt the Church, they did not want to do anything other than to assuage their childhood pain.
Apuron DID say that he did not do what they accused him of. He claimed to be innocent to this day. And what did the four accusers do? They proceeded to sue him and the Archdiocese for 2 million dollars. According to news report:
Four people who publicly accused Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron of sexually abusing altar boys in Agat in the 1970s filed a libel and slander lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Agana, Apuron and up to 50 other unnamed defendants for calling them liars and for accusing them of “instilling hatred, ignorance and violence in the people.”
The plaintiffs in the suit are Doris Y. Concepcion, Roy T. Quintanilla, Walter G. Denton and Roland Paul L. Sondia. Through their attorney, David Lujan, they filed the lawsuit in the Superior Court Friday morning. The plaintiffs are seeking no less than $500,000 each for all general damages, for a total of at least $2 million
Well, so much for not being interested in money. Even before the sexual allegations came out against Apuron, Rohr wanted Apuron to step down as Archbishop of Guam. According to KUAM news
In Tumon, local blogger Tim Rohr spoke before island Rotarians. Rohr writes Jungle Watch, a blog that covers issues involving the island's Catholic community. Even prior to the removal of Monsignor James Benavente Rohr has been highly critical of Archbishop Anthony Apuron for his controversial removal of Father Paul Gofigan last year from the Santa Barbara Church.
Rohr said, "My only hope is that the archbishop for his own health resigns ASAP."One Rotarian questioned, "There seems to be a lot of conviction on your part on the archbishop's part - do you see any amicable meeting or meeting or meeting of the minds or compromise?", to which Rohr replied, "Absolutely not." He then reaffirmed his belief that the archbishop needs to resign.
Rohr announced this in 2014, two years BEFORE Roy Quintanilla publicly came out to accuse Apuron of child sexual abuse.
At any rate, although they claimed that they were not doing it for the money, they went ahead and pushed forward a bill that would give the four accusers to bring a lawsuit against the Archdiocese for 5 million dollars. Again, so much for not being interested in the money.
Then others came out of the woodworks also seeking 5 million dollars from the Archdiocese. Many of these accusers couldn't be identified because they only used their initials, and many of them accused dead priests. No investigation was done to verify their stories. Some of these accusers came from:
1. A Protestant who claimed to be an altar server in a Catholic Church.
2. A person who claimed to be a "back-up" altar server.
3. A female who claimed to be raped by Father Brouillard during a "Boy Scouts" event.
4. A person who claimed to be raped during a fiesta where hundreds of people were present
5. A person who claimed to be sexually abused by Fr. George Maddock just a few days after his death and while other youth praised the priest.
Are there any real victims out there? I'm sure there were, but their numbers have been overshadowed by the numerous false claims.
In his post, Tim Rohr wrote that Father Harold of ten years ago is not the same Father Harold today. More than 10 years ago, Rohr had only good things to say about the Way. In 2008, Tim Rohr wrote positive words about the Way and the priests walking in the Way. According to Rohr’s letter (the bold is mine):
4. The NCW is producing vocations. And I know that the seminarians are learning Latin and Gregorian Chant in conformity with the true wishes of Vatican II. I don’t see that happening anywhere else.
5. I see NCW priests wearing their clerics. They are visible to the community. God Bless them for that.6. I was sitting with Fr. Ivan and Fr. Eric Forbes when Fr. Ivan asked Fr. Eric if he would teach the seminarians how to say the Traditional Latin Mass. Fr. Eric responded positively and also offered to teach them the theology of this beautiful Mass. This is in conformity with the wishes (if not command) of the Pope in his recent Moto Proprio. I don’t see anyone else rushing to embrace the Pope’s desires in this regard.7. The NCW is teaching people to study their faith. They are studying the Scriptures, the Catechism, and the Early Fathers. It’s wonderful to see.8. I understand that the NCW is also active in the prison. I used to teach in the prison for GCC and saw how active non-Catholic groups were with the prisoners. The majority of the prisoners are Catholic. Where is the Catholic ministry? The NCW is now there.9. I see the NCW going out 2 by 2, knocking on doors and inviting people back to the Church, in other words, doing exactly what Christ commanded. The only other group that I know that does this is the Legion of Mary, so good for them too.10. Most of all I am moved by the politeness, the kindness, the general charity of those I know in the NCW, especially the priests and seminarians, but essentially most everybody I know personally who is connected with it.
Rohr wrote this about 16 years ago. Today, Troy wrote:
My dad was part of the Way, and I never knew him to be a happier person prior to his membership in the community where he belonged. In fact, every person I know and I have met who has been in the Way is a joyful, excited Catholic.
So, Rohr had positive things to say about the NCW and the priests walking in the Way more than 10 years ago. TODAY, Troy said positive things about Father Harold and some people walking in the Way. Therefore, it was not the priests, seminarians, or those walking in the Way who has changed. It was Tim Rohr who changed.
Here's the ironic twist. As a returning newcomer to my Catholic faith, I wasn't much informed of the politics surrounding the archdiocese and I had no idea Father Harold was among the priests often targeted by JungleWatch due to his association with the Neocatechumenal Way. I remember finding that out a few weeks into my journey back into Christianity and thinking, 'Gosh, I have no idea what's so wrong with Father Harold, and now I wonder about all this other stuff being said against the Way.'
There are always two sides to every story. Unfortunately, Troy only heard one side. Had he heard the other side, he would have met Father Harold sooner. Ten years ago, Father Harold was persecuted simply because he walked in the NCW and was a seminarian in RMS. He was even nicknamed "Boboboy" by Tim Rohr. When Father Harold was assigned to Talofofo Church, the parishioners there opposed him so much because of the stories told by JungleWatch. They never gave him a chance. So, Father Harold's assignment to Talofofo Church was rescinded, which was a loss for Talofofo Church. Today, if one were to speak to the parishioners of San Dimas and San Dionicio, they will tell you that he is an excellent priest especially to the youth. He is also well-loved in St. Anthony Church where he previously served. So, Talofofo Church lost out because they listened to the jungle folks.
Father Harold was persecuted by JungleWatch only because he walks in the Way and was an RMS seminarian. It did not matter that Father Harold is a diocesan priest of the Catholic Church. It did not matter that he was an excellent priest who was capable of reaching our youth and to people who do not walk in the Way. According to Troy Torres (the bold is mine):
The scapegoating of the Way reminds me a bit of Guamanians who blame crime on Chuukese people, forgetting that Chamorros commit more violent crime than our Micronesian brothers and sisters do.
Scrapegoating is correct.
I posted the following about five years ago, and I decided to copy and paste the same post, which I wrote:
I, for one, am very grateful for this charism, the NCW. How can one be so ungrateful especially after seeing the fruits from first hand experience? Many thanks to RMS priests such as Father Alberto, Father Nino, Father Santiago, Father Edivaldo, Father Krysztof and other priests and deacons who encouraged people like us to join the Way. How grateful they would be to see us continuing our walk and bearing fruits. Some of the fruits of the Way include:
1. Families who are open to life.
2. Mission families who are willing to leave everything behind to evangelize.
3. Celibacy among single people.
4. Itinerants who are willing to evangelize in other countries.
5. Community members who forgive others and ask forgiveness from those whom they have wronged.
6. The faith being transmitted in the family from parents to children.
7. The calling of members into the priesthood or the monastery.
8. Marriages were saved.
Of course, we are no better than our brothers who are not walking in the Way. We all face the same problems and struggles. From time to time, even we fall into sin. But the most important thing is that Christ is there to help us get up so that we can continue our walk. After all, salvation is a process, a journey toward holiness. I, for one, am very grateful that God was able to help me and my family through this charism. I am most especially grateful to the RMS priest who encouraged us to attend the first catechesis. The happiness of a priest would be to bring his sheep to God for that is his role.
The NCW is not for everyone, but God allowed so many different charisms in the Catholic Church to meet the unique needs of His people. I, for one, am grateful for this charism."
I would also like to add that we have many youth in the Way who participate in evangelization and pilgrimages. Our next pilgrimage will be to Rome next year. Plans are already being made for the Rome pilgrimage.
According to Catholic News Agency:
