Happy New Year!!!

Happy New Year!!!  2017 is almost here. My family and I wish you a safe and joyous new year!!!!  💥😆

A Tree Of Life

Mr. Chuck White once again offers his own interpretation.  He misconstrued the lecture of Steven Ray in order to discredit all renewals within the Catholic Church.  According to the transcript found in Thoughtful Catholic:

"But I said that the oak tree doesn’t look like the acorn. It doesn’t look what the apostles started. That was just a little tree. But God never intended the acorn and the little tree to stay a little tree! You don’t plant a tree to only grow this tall!

When you plant an acorn you want it to grow into a beautiful tree, and that what the Church did and of courseit’s going to look different today then it did in the first century. I would expect it would. When I look at my baby pictures, I look very different now than I did when I was a baby. I have about the same amount of hair! <<laughter>> But other things look different."

In no way is Steven Ray saying that the renewals and movements in the Catholic Church are a fake.  Mr. Steven Ray described how the Catholic Church grew from a very small seed to a huge tree that some people today do NOT recognize that small seed it once was.  He goes on to describe his baby pictures. In no way does he look like his baby pictures today, but the baby in those pictures is still him.  He simply grew into an adult.

In the same way, some people do not recognize the small seed that was once the Catholic Church, but it is STILL the very SAME church that is now a huge tree.  

It is true God never intended that small seed to remain a small seed or a little tree.  He intended that seed to grow into a huge tree.  However, God also never intended that tree to remain a dead tree, producing no fruits. He intended the tree to produce fruits of nourishment, which is what the renewals and other movements in the Church does.  

This is not Christianity

The following comments came through my blog, which I did not publish due to the sheer hatred found in them.  This sheer hatred is not Christianity.  Whoever made these comments are clearly NOT Christians. 

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Merry Christmas!": 

Apuron we want you dead. 

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "The Sex Abuse Policy": 

praying for the death of Apuron to happen soon.

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "The Sex Abuse Policy": 

God willing Apuron will have major heart attack die. praying for his end. 

These comments above and others like it are being kept in a single folder.  These comments are death wishes.  To the person/persons who made these comments, death wishes can backfire.  A person who wishes for the death of another is only inviting the Angel of Death who shows no favoritism to anyone.

These comments are very unchristian.  It is even difficult (and most likely an insult to non-Christians) to call them "non-Christian" because even the non-Christians have the laws of God written in their hearts.  In fact, an atheist I know have even shown more compassion to others despite her denial of God's existence.  These comments show the darkness of the person's/persons' heart and soul......a soul in such desperate need of reconciliation with God.  The person/persons who made such comments above probably consider themselves "Christians" and may even receive Holy Communion without any problems.  If such is the case, then more evangelization is needed so that Catholics can know the true meaning of Christianity.

Merry Christmas!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! 😀 Remember that JESUS is the reason for the season!

The Sex Abuse Policy

The TRUTH is the sex abuse policy was never kept weak by Archbishop Apuron.  As a matter of fact, according to Tim Rohr himself (the bold is mine):

Personally, I have always believed that the zero-tolerance approach to clergy sex abuse by the entire USCCB, and adapted for our own diocese, is stupid. 

That is correct, ladies and gentlemen!  You heard it straight from the horse's mouth.   The Archbishop simply copied the policy from the USCCB exactly as Tim Rohr stated in his blog.  Therefore, the sex policy was never made weak by Archbishop Apuron nor was it written by Archbishop Apuron.

This policy was never made weak by Archbishop Apuron because the Archdiocese copied the same policy.  This policy also did not favor any bishop accused of sex abuse.  Why?  Because according to Tim, the policy says that an accused bishop must remove himself. Tim Rohr stated in his Blog:

Thus, Archbishop Apuron, by virtue of his own policy and his own example of its implementation, MUST REMOVE HIMSELF and permit an independent investigation to move forward. 

"By virtue of his own policy......"That is correct, ladies and gentlemen!  You heard it straight from the horse's mouth. Therefore you ask....how is it that the sex abuse policy was made weak?  The truth shows that the goal of the jungle is simply to demonize Archbishop Apuron however they can even if it means to change their song and dance. 

For those who wish to make comments under this post, please stick to the OP.  This post shows that Archbishop Apuron did not weaken the Archdiocesan sex policy because (as Tim Rohr admitted in 2014) it was a copy and paste of the USCCB.  Perhaps, the policy devised by the USCCB was weak in itself, but Archbishop Apuron did not purposely made the policy weak.  Why?  Because he was not the one who created the policy in the first place.  The Archdiocese adapted it from the USCCB exactly as Tim Rohr himself stated.

Easier Said Than Done

The jungle and CCOG president David Sablan has come out and said that the people of Guam can rebuild their church even if it was closed down and sold. They said that it was the people who built the parish from the ground up, and they can do it again.  According to the Guam Daily Post:

While such a sum cannot be easily ascertained, Post files concerning the fate of former Guam priest Rev. Andrew Mannetta state that in January 2007, the Catholic Diocese of Honolulu reached an out-of-court settlement with Elton Killion, who accused Mannetta of sexually abusing him from 1997 to 2001 during a time that Killion was a minor. The church paid out $375,000.

While none of the current 13 suits are related or equivalent to Killion’s 2007 suit, if the $375,000 figure is used as a benchmark, then the Archdiocese of Agaña, as of now, could stand to lose upwards of $4.5 million and be forced to sell some of its more valuable, and contentious, properties to make those payments.

$4.5 million dollars is a lot of money, which the Archdiocese does not have on hand.  To obtain that amount, it would be forced to sell some of its properties.  As I said before, the parishes will most likely be the first ones to be closed down as it was done in the United States.   If it comes down to that, the parishioners will suffer, but they will not be able to rebuild a new parish.  Why?  

Let us take for example, the Toto parish.  Since Father Mike Crisostomo also agreed with the junglefolks that the people can rebuild, let us use his parish as an example.  Toto parish is closed down and sold off.  Now, WHERE in Toto do you see another available land for sale that the parishioners of Toto can purchase and start rebuilding their parish?  The availability of such a property in the small village of Toto is nil.  The only ones who would benefit from the sale of the parish would most likely be real estate agents like Tim Rohr and the lawyers in the lawsuit.  

Bishop Peter Baldacchino

In 2014, Monsignor Peter Baldacchino became the new Bishop of Miami, Florida. He can speak English, Spanish, Creole, Italian, and Maltese.  He also loves soccer.  He is a missionary bishop and has been in mission in the Turks and Caicos Islands, which are located southeast of Mayaguana in the Bahamas island chain and north of the island of Hispaniola and other Antilles archipelago islands.  Bishop Baldacchino also studied for the priesthood at the Redemptoris Mater Seminary in Newark.  According to Catholic News Services (the bold is mine):

"He's a missionary priest," said Father Emanuele De Nigris, pastor of St. Cecilia Parish in Hialeah who, like Bishop-designate Baldacchino, studied for the priesthood at the Redemptoris Mater Seminary in Newark. 

Redemptoris Mater seminaries are directed by the Neocatechumenal Way, "an itinerary of Catholic formation" for individuals and families that emphasizes "missionary zeal" in spreading the Gospel in today's world -- or as Blessed John Paul II called it, the "new evangelization." 

"He built the church (in Turks and Caicos) from scratch," Father De Nigris said, pointing out that in 15 years the mission territory has grown from no Catholic churches to two churches -- another one is in Grand Turk -- and one school. Weekly Mass attendance has grown from about 40 in the early years to more than 1,000 today.

 The Turks and Caicos Islands are 73% Christians. 11% of them are Roman Catholics.  Thanks be to God that Catholicism has increased through the work of the new evangelization.  The Neocatechumenal Way is one of the many charisms found in the Catholic Church that is heavily involved in the new evangelization and is also a fruit of the Second Vatican Council.  

Some Interesting News Came In

Oh dear......oh my!!!  I just found out from a reliable source that Tim Rohr is in charge of selling the Carmelite monastery in Tamuning.  Now that the Carmelites have left, there is no need for the building.  And it was Monsignor James Benavente who gave Tim that job.  


 

Archdiocese Seeks Files Related to Sex Abuse Law

I believe the Archdiocese is looking for grounds to have the Supreme Court declare the law inorganic. If the law is struck down, then the parishes are safe. No parish need to be closed down and put up for sale as they have done in Boston.  According to the Pacific Daily News:

The Archdiocese of Agana, which faces 13 lawsuits in connection with alleged child sexual abuse, has asked the Legislature for background information about the recent law that lifted the statute of limitations and made it possible to sue the church.

Among other things, church legal counsel John Terlaje on Dec. 12 asked Sen. Frank Aguon Jr. for all documents analyzing the constitutionality or legality of Bill 326-33, as well as all opinions of the Legislature's attorney, regarding the bill. Terlaje submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to Aguon, who on Tuesday raised concerns about the request. 

 Aguon's Judiciary Committee worked on the bill, which was introduced by Sen. Frank Blas, Jr. It lifted the statute of limitations on civil cases related to child sexual abuse, allowing victims to sue their abusers and the institutions that supported them.

Aguon said the legislative counsel's opinions on the bill are confidential under attorney-client privilege.

Gov. Eddie Calvo, who signed the bill into law on Sept. 23, at the time also questioned whether the bill is flawed. 

 “I recognize that Bill 326 has several legal and technical concerns. A major concern is over the bill’s retroactive application of the civil statute of limitations for child sex abuse cases,” Calvo wrote in September. “Whether such retrospect will pass constitutional muster is unclear. Despite these questions, today I will err on the side of the aggrieved. If I am wrong, then the courts will tell me so."

In a 13-0 vote this past September, lawmakers passed the measure, which was the center of an island-wide debate. Prior to Calvo signing it, the church and several of its supporters lobbied against the measure becoming a law, saying lawsuits could cripple the church financially and impact its ability to function. 

 Terlaje’s FOIA request comes on the heels of lawsuits that have been filed against the Archdiocese,  Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron and former Guam priests Louis Brouillard and David Anderson.

They all have been sued by former altar boys, who allege they were molested or raped decades ago.

Archdiocese Questioning Bill 326

According to KUAM news:

Senator Frank Aguon, Jr. is questioning the church's sudden interest in Bill 326. If you recall, the controversial legislation was introduced after several allegations of molestation were made against clergy. Although three public hearings were held, Aguon recently received a Freedom of Information Act request from Attorney John Terlaje who represents the Archdiocese of Agana.

Although his office is complying with the FOIA, he states, "I have to wonder where were these concerns during the legislative process."

As of today, 12 civil suits have been filed against the church for child sex abuse.

Archbishop Byrnes is going to discover that the "Silent No More" group only collected about 3000 signatures to get the bill introduced while about 5000 signatures were submitted to try and convince Governor Calvo to veto the bill. He will discover that the Junglewatch Nation (which consist of Silent No More, CCOG, and LFM) were the ones pushing for the passage of the bill into law.  Only Dr. Zoltan Szkeley (a member of the Neocatechumenal Way) spoke in opposition of the bill at the public hearing.  Archbishop Hon did not even bother to do his research on the bill until it was passed by the Guam Legislature.  He was more focused on removing Archbishop Apuron that he did not realize the impact the bill would have until he was in Rome. Then, he started scrambling in Rome, telling Father Jeff to send a message to all priests to have his letter read at the pulpit and have the Catholic faithful sign a petition in opposition to the bill in the hopes of getting Governor Calvo to veto it.  

And of course, we all know the rest of the drama. Father Jeff relayed Archbishop Hon's message to his fellow priests while entertaining the very same people who pushed for the passage of the bill.  Pale Mike Crisostomo, on the other hand, decided not to read Hon's message and did not put out the petition for his parishioners to sign.  

One of the things that Archbishop Byrnes will find in the oral testimonies given at the public hearing is the NUMBER OF TIMES the name "Archbishop Apuron" was mentioned.  As a matter of fact, Tim Rohr also testified at the public hearing.  His testimony was only two pages long, but he mentioned Archbishop Apuron's name 11 times.  Therefore, this bill was mainly passed to target him and only him.  It was the same with the sex abuse ads that Tim Rohr and CCOG placed in the newspaper.  It mainly targeted Archbishop Apuron and only Archbishop Apuron.       

     

Letter By Cardinal Muller Read During Announcement

To the brothers who were unable to make it to the Advent Announcement last night or who were off-island, the following is a short excerpt taken from the 16 page letter of Cardinal Muller.  Those who attended the Advent Announcement were given copies of the full letter.  You may also ask your Responsibles to provide you a copy of the full letter or email it to you.  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                                                  Re flections on the volume of
                                         Kiko Argüello, annotations 1988-2014
                                                 by Gerhard Card. Müller
                          Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith

To be read at the announcements

On the Neocatechumenal Way:

On May 15, 2016, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, with the approval of Pope Francis, posted the letter Juvenescit Ecclesia, regarding the relationship between hierarchical and charismatic gifts in the life and mission of the Church. The letter, addressed to the Bishops of the Catholic Church, takes up a formula of the dogmatic Constitution Lumen Gentium (article 4), stating that the interaction between ministries and charisms would be understood only in the integral sacramental conception of the Church as the people of God, Body of Christ and Temple of the Holy Spirit.

The distinction between hierarchical and charismatic gifts does not correspond to the distinction between clergy and laity, because the being Christians of all members of the Body of Christ, which is the Church, has a sacramental foundation. Through baptism and confirmation we are inserted in the mystery of the Holy Church; through the sacraments of penance and the Eucharist life in Christ is purified and nourished, while in marriage the spouses are fortified with the grace of Christ. Everyone participates fully to the holy life and the sanctifying action of the Church, and that in all major activities of the mass, of the solicitude for the salvation of all and of charity. What we call the apostolate of the lay people, which is the exercise of the common, royal and prophetic priesthood of God's people, but also the vocation of all Christians to holiness.

And while the holy people of God participates in the prophetic mission of Christ by means of a life of faith and charity (LG 12), the Holy Spirit gives charisms from the simple ones to those "most extraordinary" – like those of the founders of orders, families or religious movements, which “are to be received with thanksgiving and consolation for they are perfectly suited to and useful for the needs of the Church”. (LG 12) Therefore, to ensure that the Church may not be fragmented in its various offices, ministries and charisms but recomposed in its variety to form and build unity in Christ, the Church's Magisterium entrusted to the Pope shall guard for the universal Church over the unity of the whole people of God, expressed in the variety of vocations and charisms and, for the local churches, the Magisterium of the bishops. 

In the exercise of the mandate given to them by Christ, the Popes have analyzed, accompanied and promoted the Neocatechumenal Way in various stages. It was Pope Benedict XVI, on May 11, 2008, who gave to their statutes the canonical approval, recognizing also the founders’ charism as an action of the Holy Spirit given to the Church's pastoral and spiritual edification and endorsing this path of evangelization of the world and of the new evangelization for the baptized Catholics.

The sore spot in the Churches of old catholic culture is just that: many of them, despite being "sacramentalized", are not "evangelized"; they have a theoretical knowledge of their faith, but without being rooted spiritually and existentially in it and without being completely permeated by the love of God and of neighbor. Of course, it wouldn't be fair to judge people solely based on this contraposition, which is a general characterization of the state of Christianity in the European-American civilization. And since here it is not a matter of the catechumenate for adults before their baptism, but the matter is to awaken, sustain and fortify the faith according to the model of the pre-baptismal catechumenate, it is synthetically called "neocatechumenate."

We should not – and we do not want to – replace the official teaching of the faith in parishes and schools. The issue is to make a personal experience of a life with the holy and sanctifying Trinitarian God, to share with a group of fellow travelers; to embark on a mystagogical and catechetical journey that makes us capable of following the crucified and risen Lord, conforming us and uniting us to him in love. Word of God, liturgy and community are the three key elements of the Neocatechumenal Way.

On the book:

The Annotations 1988-2014, collected by Kiko Argüello and contained in the book here, don't offer systematic reflections or piecemeal on the themes of faith and theology. They are instead the testimony of an inner journey of the soul and the efforts to gain trust in God not to mention the union with the crucified and suffering Lord. The heart wishes to discard anything that would take the place of God, expanding in such a way as to ensure that the fullness of his love can take home.

But how much good you can do with this book! As Kiko Argüello says: “to proclaim the glory of God by giving witness to his love and his unconditional faithfulness to me who, as anyone can surely confirm, am inadequate, unworthy, worthless, unfaithful [...] If these annotations can help someone, blessed be God. 

Two poems to be read:

My days shorten
And I remain with nothing.
I would like to tell you that I love You.
The beauty of the things
And the whisper of you
In the days of my life…(403)

In this life going off course
in this belonging to You
and to death…
My life runs
like the tame waters of that river.
Silently they run
between branches and mountains
and villages and peoples
and that bridge….
And again the silence,
from the forest a howling.
And I feel in my breast
Your pain.
The meaning of my life
which goes and goes.
But my being is contracted,
dry of You.
Off course my life goes
the river runs,
but with You I am carrying
the world
which penetrates and becomes small within me.(307)

Advent Announcement 2016

The Neocatechumenal Way had its Advent Announcement last night at the Asan Church.  Father Pius delivered some good news.  Some of the brothers from Guam went to evangelize in Palau and gave a catechesis.  The good news is that there will now be an NCW in the island of Palau.  

Father Pius spoke about Kiko's new book, which was recently published.  His book entitled "Annotations 1988-2014" are reflections and notes by Kiko Arguello.  His book will soon be translated into English so that we would be able to read it.  

Those who attended the announcement last night also received a 16 page letter from Cardinal Gerhard Muller, the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.  I cannot publish the entire letter on this blog, but I will quote some of the most interesting parts in the letter (the bold is mine): 

1. And while the holy people of God participates in the prophetic mission of Christ by means of a life of faith and charity (LG 12), the Holy Spirit gives charisms from the simple to those "most extraordinary" - like those of the founders of orders, families or religious movements - which "are to be received with thanksgiving and consolation for they are perfectly suited to and useful for the needs of the Church" (LG 12).
2.  Therefore, to ensure that the Church may not be fragmented in its various offices, ministries and charisms but recomposed in its variety to form and build unity in Christ, the Church's Magisterium, entrusted to the Pope, shall guard for the universal Church over the unity of the whole people of God, expressed in the variety of vocations and charisms and the Magisterium of the bishops for the local churches, "The judgement as to their authenticity and proper use belongs to those who are appointed leaders in the Church, to whose special competence it belongs, not indeed to extinguish the Spirit, but to test all things and hold fast to that which is good. (see 1 Ts 5.12 and 19-21)" (LG 12)
3. In the exercise of the mandate given to them by christ, the Popes have analysed, accompanied and promoted the Neocatechumenal Way in various stages.  It was Pope Benedict XVI, on 11th May 2008, who gave to their statutes the canonical approval, recognized also the founders' charism as an action of the Holy Spirit given for the Church's pastoral and spiritual edification and approving this itinerary of evangelization of the world and of the new evangelization for baptized Catholics. 
4.  The painful issue in the Churches of old Catholic culture is just that: many of them, despite being "sacramentalised", are not "evangelized"; they have a theoretical knowledge of their faith, but without being rooted spiritually and existentially in it, and without being completely permeated by the love of God and of neighbour.  Of course, it wouldn't be fair to judge people solely based on this contrast, which is a general characterization of the state of Christianity in the European-American culture.  And since here it is not a matter of the catechumenate for adults before their baptism, but rather to awaken, sustain and fortify the faith according to the model of the pre-baptismal catechumenate, this is synthetically called "neocatechumenate."  

What I placed in bold in #2 is extremely important.  The judgement as to the authenticity and proper use of the Neocatechumenal Way belongs to the appointed leaders of the Church.  It does not belong to Tim Rohr, CCOG, or LFM.

Number 3 is also very important and I placed the whole paragraph in bold.  The Popes have analysed, accompanied and promoted the Neocatechumenal Way in various stages.  It was Pope Benedict XVI, on 11th May 2008, who gave to their statutes the canonical approval, recognized also the founders' charism as an action of the Holy Spirit...    

The announcement closed with a reminder to all NCW members to start building their belens  or nativity inside their homes so family members can start praying the novena.  A few instructions were given to the younger communities.  

The Annual Christmas Concert

It was the seminary's 12th Christmas concert.  The seminarians sang Christmas songs, and the songs were sung in different languages.  The beautiful part of the concert was when the RMS priests and communities joined them when they sang "Silent Night" in different languages around the world.   

The nativity scene played by the kids was great!  It was enjoyable to watch the kids dressed as the Holy Family, the angels, the shepherds, and the three kings. This year's Christmas concert was packed with people.  There were more people this year.  There was also a silent auction.  The most expensive item I saw there was a bench made and carved with ifit wood.  I saw a couple of people sitting on it. The item was being sold for $750.  I did not think anyone would purchase it. But later as I browsed through the silent auction, one person did purchase it. Other people also purchased other items on the table.  

My Response

An anonymous poster copied and pasted a portion of Tim's post and asked my opinion on it.  His/her comment can be found here.  Tim's entire post, however, is found in his blog, which you can read here.  Instead of addressing the poster's copied and paste portion, I will address most of Tim's blog.  The ones in blue are quotes from Tim Rohr.  The red are quotes from articles, and the black are mine: 

Nowhere in this world or the next does an "I'm sorry" suffice. There is always the requirement to "make it up to you," whether it be returning a stolen item, imposed community service, jail time, or purgatory. In short, "I'm sorry" does NOT wipe away "temporal punishment due to sin." The reason for this is that our God is NOT only "all-Merciful" and "all-Loving," He is also ALL-JUST.

When our first parents sinned against God, God did not ask Adam and Eve if they were sorry. Of course they were sorry, but they were deported from the Garden and sentenced to a life of hard labor and death anyway. And even with that, God's justice was not satisfied. The infinite God had been infinitely offended, and the only possibility of restoring (reparation) all to its original state was for God to die for God: infinite Justice.

There are some sins that can be repaired and some sins that CANNOT be repaired.  This is why we have Purgatory.  Purgatory is also for unpaid debts as well as for the purging of sins.  When a man steals an item from another, the man can apologize and return the item.  Thus, the damage has been repaired. But when a man kills another human being, this kind of sin cannot be repaired. You cannot bring back the life that was stolen.  

Adam and Eve never made up for their sin, simply because they could not. Tim Rohr stated: "And even with that, God's justice was not satisfied. The infinite God had been infinitely offended, and the only possibility of restoring (reparation) all to its original state was for God to die for God: infinite Justice."  

This is INCORRECT teaching. Christ did not die on the cross because of infinite justice or because He was infinitely offended.  He died because of infinite Love and mercy.  Christ gave His life because of LOVE, not because of human Justice.  He died to save Adam and Eve and the rest of humanity.  Tim Rohr thinks in terms of human justice, which is contrary to God's justice. 

Our earthly laws mirror God's, because, whether someone believes in God or not, we are created in his image and his law (natural law) is etched into our being. Thus those calling for war reparations did not have to quote the bible, they only needed to call on natural law: "justice."   

Our earthly laws do NOT mirror God's laws at all.  Our laws always demand man's justice, which is different than God's justice.  Man's justice means to give the person what he deserves.  If the person deserves to be paid $200, then he should receive $200.  If the person deserves the death penalty, then the death penalty will be given him.  This is man's justice.  This is very different from God's justice. 

According to Thomas Aquinas: "God acts mercifully, not indeed by going against His justice, but by doing something more than justice; thus a man who pays another two hundred pieces of money, though owing him only one hundred, does nothing against justice, but acts liberally or mercifully." According to Catholic Answers:

The case is the same with one who pardons an offense committed against him, for in remitting it he may be said to bestow a gift. Hence the apostle [Paul] calls remission a forgiving: "Forgive one another, as Christ has forgiven you" (Eph 4:32). Hence it is clear that mercy does not destroy justice, but in a sense is the fullness thereof. Thus it is said, "Mercy exalts itself above judgment" (Jas 2:13). (Summa Theologiae I:21:3)

After my last two posts on the matter of "forgiveness," I received several comments indicating that many people are confused about this. In responding to one critic saying that I should forgive Apuron if he apologized. I replied cryptically, "We don't need his apology." My answer was intended to set up this post on "reparation," but it was taken (as expected) to appear that I was just on some personal vendetta to destroy Apuron and that I was letting my anger "fester." LOL.

The accusation reminded me of my meeting with Archbishop Hon in January 2015 when I was called before the Visitators. 

The meeting went cordially enough at first, but then Hon, aware that it was my blog which had been the genesis of the unrest which had resulted in his being sent to Guam and my sitting before him at that moment, began to delve into my motivations for my laborious and persistent effort to expose Apuron. 

I freely shared a story about how the actions of our pastor when I was growing up, and the inaction of his bishop, had led to my father's loss of faith and the destruction of my family, including my brother's death. 

It is very easy to blame our sins on someone or on something rather than on ourselves.  We often hear phrases like:  "It's not my fault" or "It's his fault."  Even Adam blamed his sin on his wife and Eve blamed her sin on the devil.  But God reminded Adam and Eve that it was "their" sin when He stated, "What have YOU done" (Genesis 3:11 and 13).  By stating YOU, God emphasized to both Adam and Eve that it was them who made the choice to sin.  We have free will to choose to listen to God or to listen to Satan.  

In the same way, it was not the Bishop who caused Tim's father to lose faith.  It was not the bishop who caused the death of Tim's brother or the destruction of his family.  Tim is simply making an excuse.  It was easier to blame a bishop rather than face the reality that his family was weak in their faith.  

I also shared a story about the torture, murder, and extortion of Catholic high school kids in a school where I was a teacher in the Caribbean. This terror occurred and was allowed to persist because the bishop did not want to know the truth about the principal of the school who was the personal friend of the bishop as well as the town alcoholic, a gay prostitute, and a hebephile, and who was blackmailed into permitting a deadly drug ring to operate in the school through one of the teachers. (Cardinal O'Malley will know about this. He was appointed to succeed the bishop I helped to oust.)

I have no idea what Tim Rohr is saying here. He claimed to oust a bishop, but no bishop was ousted. Bishop Sean O'Malley became the Bishop of the Caribbean after Bishop Edward John Harper.  There were no controversies surrounding Bishop Harper.  Harper retired on October 16, 1985, and was given the title of Bishop Emeritus of Saint Thomas.  He later died in 1990.  See the weblink here.

Archbishop Hon thought he had hit on the source of my "anger" after I shared these stories because on the surface it appeared that I had been personally wounded and was just getting "even" with these past experiences by taking out my "anger" on Apuron. (Archbishop Krebs and Fr. Ted were also at this meeting - just to let you know that I'm not making this up.)

As soon as Hon tried to make this point - that all of this was just "personal," I put my hand in his face and stopped him. And with controlled volcanic rage I said this: 

NO! I AM THE FATHER OF ELEVEN CHILDREN WHO IS TRYING TO GET THEIR SOULS INTO HEAVEN, AND I AM HAVING TO FIGHT AGAINST BISHOPS LIKE YOU TO DO IT. 

Tim Rohr is now claiming to be a savior.  He is not a savior and cannot save his own 11 children.  ONLY Christ is the savior, and ONLY Christ can save us.  Only Christ can get his 11 children into Heaven.  Salvation is found only through God. Salvation is not found through Tim Rohr.    

Let me translate that for you. My, or our, "anger" is NOT personal. His victims aside, very few of us have been "personally offended" by Apuron. Thus, no apology from him will suffice because no apology is needed. What Apuron and his ilk have done (as well as many of the world's bishops) is NOT personally offend us, rather they have damaged our Church for our children and our children's children.

And to REPAIR it, Apuron (whenever I say Apuron, that also includes Pius, David, Adrian et al), must not only be ousted, they must be made an example of as a sign to abusive bishops and clerics everywhere who for decades, because of the public trust invested in them by virtue of their appointments and sacred orders, have destroyed families, parishes, dioceses, and now, under the guise of "an itinerary of faith formation," have institutionalized their program of destruction. 

The anger appears to be more personal and motivated by hate than anything else.  

Interview With Kiko Arguello

Below is an article of Kiko's interview with Zenit regarding his book entitled "Annotations."  
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INTERVIEW: Founder of Neocatechumenal Way on a Book of Reflections, the Past and the Future

“I am embarrassed to read it because it is very intimate … But perhaps it will do someone good. In that case, blessed be the Lord!”

“You have opened a fissure in my breast, Lord. It is a dark abyss, a universe that longs for you. I lose myself in it and suffer.”

“Grant me to love you very much, Lord.”

“The Christian’s weapon is prayer.”

These are some of the prayers, reflections, poems and thoughts that Kiko Argüello annotated in a small notebook over the course of nearly 25 years and which have now been published in a book. “Annotations,” the title of the volume of the initiator of the Neo-Catechumenal Way – the second after the 2012 “The Kerygma in the Shacks with the Poor — was published by Cantagalli with a Preface by Cardinal Ricardo Blazquez, president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference.

The book was presented in late November at Rome’s Olympic Theater by Argüello himself together with Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Muller, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, and with Graziano Delrio, Minister of Infrastructures and Transports. Before the meeting, Argüello gave an exclusive interview to ZENIT.

* * *

ZENIT: How would you describe your book? And what was the need to publish these reflections that in parts are so intimate?

Argüello: They were the sufferings I had, moments of spiritual “regurgitation,” of outburst, during which I began to have a dialogue with myself writing in a notebook. I wrote these annotations year after year … I never thought of publishing them! From 1988 I carried these papers in my bag and given that they were being destroyed I asked a friend to transfer them onto a computer. He said to me: “Kiko, these are very intense, why don’t you publish them? It would do much good to the brothers of the Way, because your soul is <revealed> here.” I thought about it and also on the instigation of BAC (Biblioteca de Autores Cristianos) [Library of Christian Authors], I then decided to write the book, which I consider a sort of “spiritual testament,” a gift for my Communities founded at Madrid, at Rome <and> in the world, which I love very much. Here it is (he shows me the volume). I am embarrassed to read it because it is very intimate … But perhaps it will do someone good. In that case, blessed be the Lord!

ZENIT: Did Carmen’s death in July contribute to it in some way? [Carmen Hernández, the co-initiator of the Neo-Catechumenal Way]

Argüello: It certainly sped up the publication, because it made me realize that soon I will also die. Then I thought that someone might find these sheets. Who would publish them? Who would present them? Perhaps, I reflected, it’s better that I do so before dying.

ZENIT: In connection with Carmen, there are so many without and within the Way who wonder if she will be replaced …

Argüello: We thought about it and weighed thousands of hypothesis, but we decided not, while I and Father Mario (Pezzi, the priest <and> third leader of the international team of the Neo-Catechumenal Way, ndr) are in <good> health, we go forward as two apostles. Some brothers help us in evangelization and in other everyday practical things. But we are not thinking of replacing Carmen, also because she is irreplaceable.

ZENIT: Do you miss her?

Argüello: O yes and not a little.

ZENIT: What memories do you have of her who was your companion of evangelization for such a long time?

Argüello: Carmen was wonderful. <She had> an immense love for Christ. God joined us and prepared us for this great work among the poor. We took Christian initiation to the parishes, at least to those who wanted it, and people discovered what it means to be Christians. To be Christians is the greatest thing there can be in life. It is participation in Christ’s life, in divine life, in the love of God who loves in an astonishing way to the point of dying crucified as the least of the earth.

ZENIT:  In a few years the Neo-Catechumenal Way will celebrate its 50th anniversary. What is the first thing that comes to mind in reviewing this half-century?

Argüello: I think above all of the fact that, together with Carmen, we travelled throughout the world: the whole of America, the whole of Asia, the whole of Europe preaching the Gospel in Churches, in Squares, in Stadiums. How many young people we met – thousands! How many vocations to the priesthood, to consecrated life, to the mission the Lord awakened! Truly, God did not want us to stop for an instant … He did everything, with His zeal to save humanity, and we were only instruments.

ZENIT: Are you satisfied?

Argüello: Yes, I’m happy, but always suffering! I consider myself a sinner, a poor thing, I don’t know why God gives me these sentiments …

ZENIT: Honestly, what do you believe is the contribution that the Way has given to the Church?

Argüello: It was the popes themselves who always recognized the great contribution of the Neo-Catechumenal Way to the Church, not least Pope Francis who loves us very much and has described it as “a gift.” I believe that the Way also served to come out of the limits of clericalism that, as the Holy Father often says, is one of the “cancers” of the Church. Fifty years after the Council, there are so many who do not endure a layman saying certain things; it’s an anomaly, or that the Lord can give a charism to a layman, because this means to have “power.” This still makes us suffer somewhat today, but Christ suffered much more than us.

ZENIT: Is a novelty foreseen for the future?

Argüello: The future? The future is in God’s hands! We continue with evangelization in the parishes: there are so many new ones in the world that have opened the doors to this reality of Christian initiation, and then, the missio ad gentes, which are an aid especially for families, so that they remain united.

ZENIT: Does evangelization continue in Asia?

Argüello: Absolutely! The Pope has already sent some 400 families to Asia: Mongolia, Laos, Vietnam and also, little by little, China is opening up. A few days ago I was speaking with the Archbishop of Beijing who said to me: “We need you, because we have an urgent need for a new catechumenate.” They have opened so many churches, but there are Chinese that know nothing about Christ, about Christianity; they don’t know how to educate them, how to bring them close to the Church …. I said: “We are preparing 20,000 priests for the Church in China, but we are still very few, what to do? On the other hand, what are 20,000 priests for more than 300,000 Churches? Nothing. China is immense, but now it is in a kayros moment, it is in need of apostles. And we try, in so far as possible, to foster evangelization. I said we are preparing a group for China, in the Redemptoris Materseminaries, to take Jesus Christ <there>. In China, in fact, now there is only money … Money, money, money …And, as the Pope always says, money is anti-God.

ZENIT: Instead in Europe, he has said on several occasions, there is a risk of apostasy …

Argüello:  No, no, there isn’t a risk of apostasy; Europe is already in apostasy. And this is a grave fact, it’s the preparation of the anti-Christ. In the Second Letter to the Thessalonians, Saint Paul says: “First there will be rebellion and then the man of lawlessness will be revealed,” but “the Lord will slay him with the breath of His mouth.” We think that this breath is the proclamation of the kerygma. Therefore, for the coming months we are preparing a mission worldwide of thousands of apostles who, two by two, “without a purse or money,” will proclaim the love of God on the street.

Difference Between Sin And Sinner

An anonymous poster quoted the National Catholic Reporter.  His comment can be found here.

AnonymousDecember 6, 2016 at 10:54 AM 

Here is one from the National Catholic Reporter,"Anger in the face of evil is both just and necessary. It is the human response that Jesus Himself evinced when he was confronted with the leaven of the Pharisees. Anger that does not fester, that does not hate, but propels us into good, positive action to right wrongs, is not a sin. It is a force."

This same quote above can also be found in the jungle.  

This is my response:

Anger against evil is fine.  We abhor the sin, but NOT the sinner.  However, the jungle does not hate the sin.  They hated and attacked the sinner.  You even see it in their picket signs.  They say "defrock APURON" (who is a person).  Their signs NEVER said "Stop Sex abuse" which is the evil.  

Romans 5:8  But God demonstrates his own love for us in this:  While we were still sinners.  Christ died for us..

Christ came to save us sinners because He loved SINNERS.  He never hated them.  It was our SINS that He hated.  There is a huge difference between the man and the sin. Man was created in the image and likeness of God.  Sin was not.  Christ loved the sinners that He died for them.  

Archbishop Apuron is undergoing a canonical trial to determine whether he is guilty of sexual molestation.  Because we live in a society where a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, this rule of law should be respected.  Because we are Christians, it is right to be patient for the result of the canonical trial rather than to judge and condemn a person.   

A Path To Peace

An anonymous poster made the following comment, which can be found here.  

AnonymousDecember 5, 2016 at 7:00 PMFirst, as Christians hatred is never what we are supposed to harbor for another person. Why? Because every man and woman is made in the image and likeness of God. 

Secondly, when you say, "Yes of course. But he is not in the same league as Apuron, only one victim versus hundreds." 

This thought reveals that you believe that the law is subjective and can be applied whenever you feel like it. The law is the law. 

A person can be accused of assualt whether they pushed someone or punched them in the face. That person can be a teen, adult, male, female, or someone you would least expect to do such a thing. But regardless of who committed and was deemed guilty of the crime, it's still a crime in the eyes of the law. 

In the same respect, the law also states that a person is innocent until proven guilty even if you "think" or "suspect" he or she is guilty. If you cannot prove it, he or she remains innocent. PERIOD.  

How you treat that person is up to you, but if you were in that person's shoes how would you feel? How would you feel if everyone, strangers on the street and close friends and family members, looked at you with suspicion and whispered behind your back about a crime or act you are accused of committing? And everytime you stand up for yourself or someone stands up for you, you get pushed back and the accusations continue and the suspicions escalate. How would you feel when the people you care about don't listen or believe you? 

And if you can imagine the suffering, then maybe you will at least have enough compassion to be patient and wait in silence until the results of the trial are over.

A Christian does not harbor hatred in his/her heart.  The path to peace is to co-exist under the same Church.  Peace does not advocate the destruction of the other.  Only hatred demands destruction.  Christ, the Prince of Peace is the Way.  He never showed hatred toward anyone, not even to the Pharisees or those who killed Him. 

We also live in a society where a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Archbishop Apuron is already going through a canonical trial to determine whether he is guilty of those sexual allegations.  It is very easy to point fingers and judge a person guilty.  But it becomes a different story if that accused person was you or someone you love such as your son, your brother, or your father. Then you would be thankful to live in a society that presumes the accused innocent until proven guilty.     

     

The John Toves Case

It is extremely disgraceful for a bishop to poison the minds of the Catholic faithful against another bishop, who still holds the title "Archbishop of Agana."  What is the purpose of Archbishop Hon coming out in the media to badmouth a brother bishop if not from hatred?  According to the Pacific Daily News: 

Hon said the January 2015 pastoral visit to Guam by himself, Archbishop Martin Krebs and the Rev. Tadeusz Nowak included checking on the November 2014 allegation by California resident John Toves that Apuron sexually abused Toves’ cousin. 

This is already a false statement along with many of the things he said.  So, let us go back and look at the John Toves case. (The dates are in red.) Those of us who have kept up with what has been going on for three years know that this whole conflict started with the removal of Father Paul in 2013 and Monsignor James in 2014.  The removal of Monsignor James was the last straw, and Tim Rohr came out in public on August 6, 2014 and called for the Archbishop's resignation.  See KUAM news here.  

As for John Toves, he was a regular poster at Tim Rohr's blog "Junglewatch."  On October 31, 2014, John Toves wrote in the jungle: (The bold is mine).

We all must do more. Not everyone is called to the same level of activism, but everyone must come up with their own resolutions to stop Apuron, Quitugua, and Cristobal. We must stop this cancer from spreading!

Be courageous, strong, and faithful. 

Let us all DO WHAT WE KNOW WE MUST DO. 

I know I WILL.

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!

Below is a screenshot of that statement:

 Toves admitted that he will do something, but he did not specify exactly what he will do.  Then on November 14, 2014, John Toves delivered an ominious video message to Archbishop Apuron and Father Adrian.  You can listen and view that ominious video message in the jungle here or in Youtube here. 

John Toves indicated that Archbishop Apuron will have regrets if he does something that he (Mr. Toves) considers a bad intention.  He warned the Archbishop to watch what he intends to do.  Three days later, on November 17, 2014, Mr. Toves went public in KUAM, saying that Archbishop Apuron molested his relative. This accusation was made PUBLIC while the Archbishop was in Rome in audience with Pope Francis.  This was reported in the jungle blog on November 17th, but KUAM did not air the allegation until the NEXT DAY.  Therefore, Tim Rohr knew about John Toves' allegation BEFORE it was aired in KUAM.  According to Tim Rohr:

As some of you heard, John Toves went "public" today on Jesse Lujan's show on KUAM. Of course, what John went "public" about is already very public in a different way. For years the accusations have been rumored. But since no one was willing to "talk", there wasn't much that could be done about it. John is willing to talk. And he has. What's next? I don't know. That particular "battlefront" belongs to John. 

Below is a screenshot showing that Tim Rohr knew about John's allegation BEFORE it was publicly aired in KUAM: 

After the sexual allegations was aired in KUAM on November 18th, three days later on November 21, 2014, Tim Rohr wrote his thoughts on the sexual allegations.  According to Tim Rohr: (The bold is mine.)

Fr. Wadeson is on record stating that no formal charges were ever brought forward, only an allegation. But Archbishop Apuron DID NOT NEED formal charges in order to remove Wadeson. By his own actions against Wadeson, Apuron demonstrated that all that was needed was the allegation, even if it was more than forty years old. 

 

There is now a similar allegation against Archbishop Apuron. Whether it is true or not remains to be proven. However, again, as per the Archbishop's implementation of his own policy in his actions against Wadeson, no proof or truth or formal charges are needed for the removal of a cleric, including himself.

 

Thus, Archbishop Apuron, by virtue of his own policy and his own example of its implementation, MUST REMOVE HIMSELF and permit an independent investigation to move forward. (A temporary diocesan administrator will be appointed by Rome during this process.) 

Below is a screenshot of the above statement:

Notice at that time in 2014, Tim Rohr did not appear to care whether the allegation was true or not.  The primary focus he brought up is that the Archbishop "MUST REMOVE HIMSELF."   

Today, these are facts that we know:

• John Toves never witnessed any sexual molestation committed by Archbishop Apuron. 
• John Toves claimed that his relative was sexually molested by Archbishop Apuron. 
• John Toves' relative never came forward to make those allegations.
• John Toves admitted that he never spoke to his relative. 
• John Toves admitted that his relative never told him that he was sexually molested.
• John Toves admitted that he heard the information from someone else.

On December 1, 2014, during his interview with Jesse Lujan, John Toves admitted that he never spoke to his relative and that he did not get the information of sexual molestation from him but from someone else.  You can listen to that interview in the Junglewatch blog here.  After admitting that, the media did not pay very much attention to John Toves.  Why?  The fact that he never spoke to his cousin and never even got the information from his cousin already indicated that the allegation is not credible.   

The John Toves' case took place in 2014. This then brings us back to Archbishop's Hon's statement today in the Pacific Daily News.  The pastoral visit took place on January, 2015.  By that time, Archbishop Hon already knew that John Toves' story was not credible for the simple reason.....that he never spoke to his relative, that he never got the information from his relative, and that his relative never came forward.  So, why badmouth Archbishop Apuron if not from hatred?