text:
The Nienstedt shuffle.
Grant Gallicho October 25, 2013 - 2:56pm
Yesterday, after shying away from the press for weeks, Archbishop John Nienstedt of St. Paul and Minneapolis responded to the disturbing revelations about the way his diocese has been handling priests accused of sexual misconduct. He apologized to victims and their families. He promised to do better. And he pledged "before God and in memory of my beloved parents"--whose deaths he recounts at the top of his weekly column--"to do all in my power to restore trust here in this local church."
A tall order--made taller still by Nienstedt's reluctance to come clean about the facts of the cases in question. (Last month, Nienstedt's former top canon lawyer, Jennifer Haselberger, publicly revealed that the current and past archbishops of St. Paul-Minneapolis promoted a priest with a history of sexual misconduct--who later went on to abuse children--and failed to notify civil authorities when they learned that another priest had possessed "borderline illegal" images of what appeared to be minors.) In an e-mail interview with Minnesota Public Radio (MPR)--his first since they started reporting on this fiasco weeks ago--Nienstedt answers relatively straightforward questions with something shy of the whole truth.
MPR led by asking why Nienstedt didn't go to the police after learning about the priest whose computer apparently contained "borderline illegal" photos. Here's Nienstedt's response:
NIENSTEDT: The analysis completed in 2004 did not find evidence of possession of child pornography. The images that [former chancellor for canonical affairs Jennifer] Haselberger showed to coworkers were of pop-up ads. Pop-up ads are unsolicited and often attach to the hard drive without the user's awareness or permission.
The St. Paul police completed a 7-month review of the same material from the hard drive that was analyzed in 2004 and came to the same conclusion: there is no evidence of possession of child pornography.
Not quite. What really happened is that in 2004--when Harry Flynn was archbishop--it was discovered that a computer that had belonged to a local priest contained thousands of pornographic images. The archdiocese hired a firm to investigate, and its report found "borderline illegal" images on the hard drive. Even though Minnesota law requires priests to report suspected child abuse--which includes child pornography (defined broadly to include "lewd" displays of genitalia)--it appears that no one with the archdiocese called the police. The priest was sent to treatment, returned to ministry, and the report--along with copies of the hard drive--ended up in the chancery basement.
It wasn't until last year, while Jennifer Haselberger was checking up on the priest (because Nienstedt was considering giving him a new assignment) that the '04 report and discs again saw the light of day. In memos to Nienstedt and other diocesan officials, she quoted the report at some length. She printed a few of the images and showed them to Nienstedt. And apparently her interventions had an effect on the archbishop, because in May 2012 he composed a letter to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, seeking guidance. In that letter, he acknowledged that the priest has possessed "borderline illegal" images. Nienstedt even shared his concern that he could be subject to criminal prosecution. But he didn't send the letter. And he didn't call the cops.
When Haselberger showed him the "borderline illegal" photos, she reminded Nienstedt in a subsequent memo, he did not dispute that they were pornographic. But now he does. Now he repeats the non-expert opinion of Fr. Kevin McDonough--who had served as vicar general under retired Archbishop Harry Flynn, and at the time was Nienstedt's "safe environment liason"--that the images were not pornographic, but rather pop-up ads, "unsolicited, [which] often attach to the hard drive without the user's awareness or permission."
First, Nienstedt repeats McDonough's opinion as though it's fact. It's not. Haselberger rejected McDonough's assessment in a memo to Nienstedt. And no one has suggested that the report itself floated the idea that the images came from pop-up ads that magically installed potentially illegal images to the priest's hard drive. It's disingenuous for Nienstedt to pretend otherwise.
Second, that's not really how pop-up ads work. If you're innocently browsing, say, the website containing the State of Minnesota's statute on child pornography, you're not going to see pop-up ads for kiddie porn. But even if you are looking at legal pornography sites, how likely is it that they're surreptitiously installing child porn on your computer? The images wouldn't be that hard to trace.
Does he think Minnesota Catholics haven't read MPR's own excellent reporting (pace the deeply confused president of the Catholic League) on this case? Has he? Because a person who had actually read up on this case would have a hard time keeping a straight face while claiming that
St. Paul police completed a 7-month review of the same material from the hard drive that was analyzed in 2004 and came to the same conclusion: there is no evidence of possession of child pornography.
Nienstedt makes it sound like the police reviewed all the evidence they asked for and determined no crime had been committed. Again, that's not what happened. What happened was the police phoned the chancery and asked for the evidence Haselberger told them about, and a diocesan attorney made them wait before handing over a few discs--and, crucially, he withheld the report. Nienstedt asserts that the police had "the same material from the hard drive that was analyzed in 2004," but the investigating officer wasn't so sure. "Whether these discs given to me were the actual discs or copies of those discs after first asking for them, I do not know," he wrote in his report.
Of course, Minnesota law doesn't care whether a mandated reporter has proof beyond reasonable doubt that abuse has occured. It merely requires him to notify civil authorities when he has reason to believe abuse had occured--and suspecting possession of child porn counts because kids do not pose themselves for such photos. Nienstedt told MPR that he hasn't broken the law. But the case isn't closed. The police have reopened it.
In his column, Nienstedt ritually acknowledges the heinous crime of sexual abuse and apologizes to victims. "Over the last decade some serious mistakes have been made," he admits. But he doesn't name them.
He says he's learned a good deal over the past several weeks. But he doesn't say what those lessons were.
He says "we must also be committed to honesty and transparency." A good start would be not shading the truth when answering predictable questions from the media about what happened on his watch--questions Catholic parents in the Twin Cities deserve answers to.
He promises to "recommit today never knowingly to assign a clergy member to a parish or school if I have concerns that he will do harm to the community." But it's 2013. Boston blew up over a decade ago. Why should a Catholic bishop have to "recommit" to the obvious?
He notes that "there is also a question as to the prudence of the judgments that have been made." But whose judgments? Recently resigned vicar general Fr. Peter Laird? No, the archdiocese said, "he did nothing improper." Nienstedt prefers not to say. The task force he appointed to investigate this mess is supposed to provide some answers, but its work will hold value only to the extent that it's willing to name names.
Mistakes don't get made by no one. And no one is confused about where the buck stops in a Catholic diocese.
Commenting Guidelines
So coy about your personal experience and background and so wrong in your suppositions about mine, George D. You have stung my nationalism by your display of presumably American superiority. The USA is not only the world's foremost distributor of pornography, including the sort of borderline illegal pornography we have seen is so easy to access, it is also the world capital of child abuse -- TWO MILLION cases reported to the police every year; the child abuse scandal among American priests utterly dwarfs the Irish incidents; yet you have the nerve to speak is such tones of my country as if your own were a paragon of virtue, a city on the hill, a beacon of civilization for the whole world!
Grant gives new, and indeed troubling info, about MANY images of kids who look as if they are under FOURTEEN -- certainly that looks bad for the bishop and I would not wish to minimze it.
However, this entire industry of investigating people's online activity, with sting operations etc., seems to me a formula for witch-hunting (as well as fodder for police bureaucracy and the prison industry -- which also handle the 2,000,000 annual child abuse reports -- none of which is of any significant help to the children that America is just not rich enough or not community-organized enough to protect).. I noted that a leading Harvard theologian lost his position because some janitor found porn on his computer. It is very easy, as I saw, to download porn, from American providers, and once downloaded it may be quite difficult to erase definitively. Here is a minefield for everyone, not only for porn users -- as seen above a house-guest could use your computer and download images that could turn up years later in a dump where your computer had been dumped.
A few things: First, none of the facts I've mentioned in this comment thread of my previous one have introduced information that wasn't mentioned or linked to in those posts. I reconstructed what happened in these cases from the superb reporting of MPR and from the records Haselberger made public. Second, I agree that online sting operations, such as those that used to be run by Dateline NBC, are moreally and legally problematic (I understand that a lot of the Dateline prosecutions did not hold up in court, probably because they look like entrampment). But entrapment is not what happened in St. Paul. There was no sting. The porn was found by a parishioner. He reporter it. The archdiocese investigated, and never called the cops. Third, the priest in question initially claimed a house guest was responsible for downloading all that porn. Later, he changed his tune, admitting to downloading legal pornography. In other words, at first he lied. The foresnic computer expert took that issue into account while examining the hard drive, and found "no evidence" that anyone except the priest had downloaded the "borderline illegal" images.
If the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis is serious about being honest and transparent, it should make public that missing report.
"Couple that with the fact that you are from Ireland where there has been a lot of problems with priest molestation."
George D.: Being from Ireland is no worse than being from Canada.
40 million leads to information about the Indian boarding "schools" in Canada:
Information about native children raped and abused by priests and religious in boarding "schools" in the U.S.: https://www.google.com/search?q=indian+children+abused+by+priests+in+boa...
It's not about Ireland or Woodstock or any other country or time period. It's about everyone who supports the perpetrators and their enablers.
There is NO EVIDENCE to assume that American hierarchs have turned the corner on their disasterous response to the rape and sodomy of children by priests, as you contend.
Jim Jenkins - actually, there is considerable evidence that American bishops have handled some cases as they should be handled, and that they've improved in this respect, which is what I claimed. Given the background you claim in these comments, I'd expect you to be familiar with that evidence. Why aren't you?
Jim _ - there is always danger in making broad or sweeping generalizations. OTOH, have to say that the track record of roughly 250 US bishops on abuse has not greatly improved since 2002. And a prime reason for that is that no current policy (US Charter, Vatican decrees, etc.) hold bishops accountable.
We only have their spoken word that they will protect children. Unfortunately, the repeated failures and the constant drip, drip, drip of revealations (both prior to 2002 and too often since then) only reinforce the overall conclusion that Mr. jenkins is stating.
Your own cardinal has repeatedly violated the 2002 charter - and he helped write and approve that charter.
Guess we could sit and marshall numbers, data, etc. but to what end? Think we would all admit that one more abused child is too many; and yet, bishops continue to defend the institution first and play lip service to the 2002 charter. (which, by the way, needs to be revised and updated -both to better the process of investigation and reporting and to insert accountability for bishops with actual steps to be taken if a bishop violates these regulations).
Sure you could cite numerous bishops who have followed the charter - but, OTOH, less than 20 dioceses have posted the names of abusers - so much for transparency. And you still have two, if not three, dioceses that have never followed the charter. And then you have folks such as Finn, Meyers, Neinstedt, Braxton, to name only a few.
Bill - I agree with much of what you write. The fact that we could cite numerous bishops who have followed the charter is not nothing - in fact, it's something pretty substantial.
But in point of fact, I don't know if we could cite numerous bishops who have followed the charter, or at least who have a perfect-compliance score across a period of years. For all we know, even Nienstedt and Myers have high compliance scores as the audits measure these things. The USCCB reports high compliance numbers from their national audits every year, but reading through the most recent audit report raises a number of questions.
For example: of the 299 clergy accused in 2012 whose identities were known and who were still alive, 79% of them were removed from ministry or permanently laicized (which certainly sounds like what should happen) - but 21% were not. Of those who were not, about half of them were returned to ministry (but the reasons for this is not given), and about half were accusations against religious-order clergy which were referred to the order's provincial (but what was the disposition?) Do those 21% represent compliance issues, or at least compliance risks? As the auditors measure these things - apparently not. But just spending a few minutes thinking about these problem cases in St. Paul / Minn (not to mention Philadelphia) suggests that there could be all sorts of problems buried in that 21% number.
What I'd like to see is an independent audit of the process, from initial accusation to final disposition. Pick some accusations randomly and follow their progress. And make a judgment regarding the outcome: was the accusation made correctly? Was it passed along to the review board correctly? Did the review board to a credible and professional job of investigating the circumstances and formulating a recommendation? Did the bishop act on the recommendation on a timely basis? Did the bishop accept the board's recommendation, and if not, why not? Did the bishop forward the case to the Holy See for dismissal, and if not, why not?
In addition, the report raises trenchant cautions: only a fraction of dioceses permit their parishes to be audited (but it is in parishes that the majority of abuse occurs); and it points out that employee turnover among those charged with responsibility for child proteciton leads to gaps in the knowledge and gaps in the the process.
in fact, I do think there is a lot of value to marshalling numbers and data and see if it tells us anything conclusive or even suggestive. The cases discussed here at dotCom tend to be instances in which the process was abused by bishops or diocesan officials. And while a read through the audit report I linked to above should put to rest any suspicions that bishops fail in every case, or that there is some sort of secret Vatican policy in place, we have ample reason to suspect that there are holes that still need to be plugged. Thank goodness for the diligence of journalists in sniffing these cases out and bringing them to light.
"Over the last decade some serious mistakes have been made," says the AB. How 'bout, "Over the last decade, we did wrong"?
If Pope Francis doesn't remove Bishop Robert W. Finn who was *criminally convicted* and who subordinated children's health and safety to selfish ecclesiastical considerations, I'll be deeply disappointed in the man (the pope, that is).
Thanks, Jim P - but will add only one more comment to your statements.
You cite the audit reports of 21%.....the problem with this is that the John Jay audits are based upon diocesan/episcopal self-reports. So, you see where I am heading with this.
A serious flaw in the 2002 charter again is that the bishops decide, determine the audit process, rules, etc. They can set up diocesan boards but, again, if they fail to give their own boards information or withhold info (this MINN case is a good example of Flynn's decision); then, what is the audit worth?
We have already seen two leaders of the national board resign and speak out against the dallas charter and the results of the John Jay Study (Mr. Jenkins experienced this *corrupt* process in SF).
Would venture to say that the 21% is an underreport figure. And you also cite another area or gap - the constant shuffle of responsiblity between local bishops and religious orders - some of the largest orders have a very checkered history e.g. SJs (as you well know in Chicago); Salesians, small orders that have neither the leadership or resources to handle abusers.
As we have seen in Ireland, Holland, England, and now Australia - eventually we do arrive at an independent investigation led by the state. The US may still end that way if this scandal continues.
Bill - yep. I do think it's encouraging (but whether it will amount to anything is yet to be seen) that the auditors are pressing the dioceses for permission to directly audit parish compliance. In the parishes is where most abuse originates and/or takes place.
Maybe I'm mistaken, but perhaps George D mentioned Ireland because the history of the church's power in society there is much different than here, and because of the news about the Cloyne report.
@ Jim Pauwels: I will copy and paste your 10/28/13 post only because responses on these CW blogs are not posted proximate to their instigation point, and hopefully it will help anyone who does want to follow along with what I'm referring to. You wrote:
Jim Jenkins - actually, there is considerable evidence that American bishops have handled some cases as they should be handled, and that they've improved in this respect, which is what I claimed. Given the background you claim in these comments, I'd expect you to be familiar with that evidence. Why aren't you?
The so-called "considerable evidence" you are referencing is the much ballyhooed, but fatally flawed, John Jay Study and its follow-up compliance reports - I think they are every five year intervals - which were entirely funded and underwritten by the US Bishops Conference [Not exactly an independent organizational entity that didn't have any stake, any skinny in the study's outcome - Yeah, right! I also believe that unicorns defecate in technicolor.].
US Catholic bishops got exactly the study results they paid for, which was mainly contrived to support their ecclesial-political ideology and continued corporate hegemony over the church: Namely, (1) that the sexual abuse and exploitation of children by priests and bishops has all but ended - which we NOW know because of Minnesota, Kansas City, Scotland, Wisconsin, Ireland, Philadelphia, etc., etc., etc., is NOT true; (2) all members of the hierarchy escape any responsibility for the scandal [because the hierarchs get to point the finger-of-blame for all the bad advice they got from - wait for it, get this - psychiatrists and psychologists]; (3) most of the abuse can be sourced to the permissive [presumably sex, drugs, and rock'n roll] counter-culture of the 60s [eliminating any further need to exam any possible links of the abuse scandal to the feudal, narcissistic, male celibate clerical sub-cultural of the Catholic Church]. Boy, those hierarchs really dodged a big one, didn't they!?!
I have a word we mental health professionals and academics use for these studies that you refer to: BOGUS!
I wont bore you with a discussion of many of the study's design flaws [such as reliability, validity, sampling errors, self-report instruments, lack of inferential correlates, generalization errors that most immediately come to mind]. Suffice it to say: The reason that no independent professional journal has yet to date published this study is because it could never survive any normal peer review process [the study had to be published by John Jay College of Criminal Justice itself]. The John Jay Study is a perfect example of what researchers refer to as [I'll clean-up the language for you]: Crappy data in, crappy data out.
A personal aside: In fact, I was personally interviewed by the consultant research team for this John Jay study - I guess that makes me a participant. I recomended to now Cardinal Levada that any study of contributing factors to the abuse scandal be totally independent from the influences of the Catholic Church hierarchy if the study was to have any credibility and integrity for Catholics and the general public. I even recommended to him that any continued support from the Catholic Church to priest predators be contingent on their cooperative involvement in this independent research.
Levada didn't listen then. And, I suppose, people like you aren't listening now.
The result is that in the future we will continue to see sorry recriminating pageants played out in the media where hierarchs and priests bring new, added sorrows upon the PEOPLE.
We Catholics deserve better.
This scandal is going to go on and on and on until a Pope removes the blatantly guilty enabler-bishops and institutes a system within each country such that the non-enabler bishops will be expected to publicly shame the bishop-enablers like Finn, Rigali, et al. How that can be done without changing the hierarchical culture, I have no idea. Maybe Pope Francis will figure out a way. But if he doesn't, he too will eventually lose the respect of the people.
Now at ABC Religion & Ethics ... http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2013/10/25/3877103.htm ... a lecture by Patrick Parkinson, a professor of Law at the University of Sydney, who's done research on the issues. It's long and there's a second part to it, but here's just a small bit ...
" rates of reported child sexual abuse by priests and religious in the Catholic Church are many times higher than for clergy and paid pastoral staff such as youth workers, in other denominations .... The figure for the number of victims in the Catholic Church was exactly 10 times that in the Anglican Church ...
One of the unanswered questions about sex offending by clergy is how much of it is situational, or influenced by the culture of a group, rather than the outworking of an abnormal sexual deviation .....
Some priest-offenders rationalise their abusive behaviour on the basis that sexual activity with boys is not a breach of their vow of celibacy whereas sexual relations with a woman would be. Different levels of sexual contact falling short of intercourse may also be excused in this way. Some support for this thesis emerges from the survey conducted as part of the research for Towards Understanding, the discussion paper on sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church in Australia. Respondents noted that offenders within the Church dissociated their abusive behaviour from their commitment to celibacy. Indeed, a high number of respondents described offenders they knew as having a strong commitment to celibacy.
This cognitive distortion may well be an important factor in sex offending against boys. If priest offenders have a strong commitment to celibacy, then sexual relations with adult women or girls will not be permissible. If these men rationalise sexual contact with men or teenage boys as either not being a breach of their vow of celibacy at all, or a sexual peccadillo which may be both tolerated within the Church and forgiven by God, then they may well be as prone to situational same-sex activity as men in prison or in other confined, all-male environments. Teenage boys in children's homes and boarding schools, and boys in parish contexts with whom the priest or religious may find good enough reason to be alone, may disproportionately become victims because of their accessibility and vulnerability, not necessarily because of a paraphilic sexual attraction to boys of that age ...."
Jim P,
Regarding the USCCB bishops' audits, here is what William Gavin, a former FBI agent who was hired by the USCCB to make sure they were preventing and reporting abuse:
"It was an audit in quotes...I think it was more of a program review than anything else."
Gavin says he could ask whether a diocese is conducting background checks on priests and employees — but he was not allowed to look at records that would indicate whether there were any allegations against a priest.
"We didn't have the benefit of drilling down into personnel files to see what might be there," Gavin says. "They were off limits."
Gavin and his auditors had to depend on a bishop's word about whether anyone had been accused of abuse."
Fr. Jim Connell, a retired canonist of the archdiocese of Milwaukee, has pushed for siginificant reforms to no avail:
"Require that the related Essential Norms be audited along with the charter. While the charter is a profound, important and morally binding document, it does not actually stand as church law. The Essential Norms, however, has been approved by the Vatican as church law to assure diocesan compliance with the charter. However, the scope of the audit as established by the bishops is of the charter only, not also of the Essential Norms. In other words, that which is legally binding on each diocese (Essential Norms) is not audited, while that which is not legally binding (charter) is audited. This must change."
When we provided chapter and verse to the Gavin Group, correcting misiniformation, with detailed documentation, I believe it was basically a waste of time. We were told that our references to the preamble were void because the audit addressed only the text in the 17 articles themselves.
The USCCB audits are "compliance" audits, a checklist so to speak that fails to determine if what is audited actually is effective. Genuine audits are "performance" audits, which our attorney general insisted upon when the state audited the Diocese as part of a non-prosecution agreement. Bishop McCormack went to court to prevent the state from doing performance audits and mercifully lost the case.
I later did a comparison between the results of the USCCB audits versus the state audits. The difference was night and day: "The bishops claim one thing, the state finds something very different. . ." http://votf.org/Survivor_Support/audit.html (sorry for some line breaks in formatting)
Please understand why some of us are skeptical. The Diocese once reported a change in procedure to the USCCB for which it was honored with a commendation, not noting of course it was something the state's auditors required of them to correct a deficiency.
Fr. O Leary:
I think I made my point. Last word - yours.
I am not singling out Ireland as if it is unique. Certainly, Quebec was very similar culturally and institutionally. I was simply saying that it produced a clerical culture that did not hold priests accountable. Priests, therefore, assumed and entitlement mentality. Just read the comments on this board and others. QED. How accountability is somehow anti-clerical escapes me.Maybe there is a program at the Gregorian that will enlighten me!
As for residential schools, Prime Minister Harper apologized for residential schools some years ago and I don't think that the Jesuits or any other order of sisters has done similarly (as far as I know). Nor has the Catholic Church in Canada. Most people in Canada have no idea of what residential schools were or their purpose. The stated purpose was to literally "kill the Indian in the child". There needs to be far more education in the curriculum in Canada including and especially the Catholic PUBLICLY funded schools in Ontario.
i have no problem and am in sympathy with Phil Fontaine asking the UN just this month for refer to Canada's dark history with indigenous people as genocide. Certainly, inasmuch as Catholic run boarding schools were vehicles of "assimilation" aka killing the Indian in the child, there should be a public apoplogy from the Cardinal and bishops of Canada but I am not holding my breath in that regard.
But if feel not need to get defensive about Canada or the Catholic church's relationship with indigenous people. I don't see that as disloyal.
Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel afterall!
@ Crystal Watson: Thanks for bringing the Patrick Parkinson study to my [our] attention. This is the kind of independent scientific inquiry that is sorely needed rather than the twisted public relations, blame-shifting gambit of American hierarchs in the John Jay Study.
What I found most interesting in the Parkinson study is the attempt to address to the issues of the Catholic clerical culture and its ability to act with impunity in the sexual abuse and exploitation of children.
My experience tells me that most of the abuse by Catholic priests were crimes of opportunity: The whole cultural edifice of the celibate-male priesthood [even its enshrinement in Canon Law] enabled priests to prey upon vulnerable children and their families with impunity. It happened because it could happen, and because Catholic culture broadly understood enabled it.
IMO, the fact that the vast majority of assaults were priests-on-male-adolescents which the Parkinson study focuses on is an artifact of the high concentration of homosexually-oriented priests in the priesthood.
It was much more opportune for priest predators to disguise their cultivation - stalking, really - of potential victims among young boys than among young girls. It was much easier for predator priests to explain to other priests, parents, school teachers and principals, parish secretaries, etc. their particular attention toward boys. Where if it had been with girls that kind of exceptional behavior would have immediately raised red-flags about the priest's maintenance of celibacy.
One area where I hope that sometime in the future researchers will focus their attention is how "pew" Catholics also engaged in what the Parkinson study calls "cognitive discord." I believe that we must bring more light to the tacit approval and financial underwriting of the whole clerical culture's superstructure by lay Catholic men and women over decades that also enabled the abuse and exploitation of children to metastasize, eventually corrupting the very hierarchy who were suppose to be the shepherds protecting us from predators in sheep's clothing.
Carolyn - thanks for those comments and that link. I agree that the USCCB audits only go so far, and could/should go farther. Did you read the 2012 audit report (here)? It appears that a different group, StoneBridge Business Partners, is now conducting the audits. The auditors have called out the need for parish-level audits, and noted that 20% of audited dioceses are now permitting the auditors to visit parishes. That number is far too low. As someone who has some parish-level responsibility myself, I can see how even a well-managed parish like ours has to work hard to maintain compliance for background checks and training requirements for staff and (especially) volunteers.
Thanks in particular for those comments by Fr. Jim Connell - it's an astute point.
US Catholic bishops got exactly the study results they paid for, which was mainly contrived to support their ecclesial-political ideology and continued corporate hegemony over the church
Do you not see how this sort of accusation, bereft of any supporting evidence, tends to diminish the credibility of your commentary on this issue? If the John Jay investigators and the StoneBridge Business Partner auditors are as corrupt as you accuse them of here, you should present evidence for it. These are extremely serious accusations.
@ Jim Pauwels: Since you are quoting me, I presume your comment is directed to me.
Supporting evidence? Really, I don't think the kind of evidence you would require could ever be produced - because that is the nature of the complicit and corrupt hegemony of the hierarchs to conceal and confound the public.
These hierarchs didn't get that far up the clerical ladder because they were stupid enough to leave a paper trail conveniently hanging around for public consumption. [I guess recent revelations in New Jersey, Minneapolis, Kansas City are just aberations to you?]
Where is your evidence, Pauwels, for your preposterous contention "that bishops do take protecting children more seriously than they used to?" I'd like to see that evidence – the whole world would like to see that evidence. How about some citations that we could all look that up? Or, is this just your personal conjecture?
Pauwels states:
That they [the hierarchs] don't get it right more often, still today, in spite of everything, is perplexing and infuriating.
You should try pleading your "perplexing and infuriating" reaction to all the children assaulted in New Jersey and Minnesota by priests, recent incidents which have occurred since your self-described turn-around in how hierarchs deal with predator priests.
How would you respond to investigations like Patrick Patterson's in Australia cite above by Crystal Watson? Patterson forthrightly begins to identify the systemic factors that contributed to the enormity of the sexual abuse and exploitation scandal in the Catholic Church – unlike anything American hierarchs have ever been associated with.
Did you even read Carolyn Disco's post above? Just in case you missed it:
Regarding the USCCB bishops' audits, here is what William Gavin, a former FBI agent who was hired by the USCCB to make sure they were preventing and reporting abuse:
"It was an audit in quotes...I think it was more of a program review than anything else."
Gavin says he could ask whether a diocese is conducting background checks on priests and employees — but he was not allowed to look at records that would indicate whether there were any allegations against a priest.
"We didn't have the benefit of drilling down into personnel files to see what might be there," Gavin says. "They were off limits."
Gavin and his auditors had to depend on a bishop's word about whether anyone had been accused of abuse."
Audits are what you do in financial accounting - commonly known as bean-counting. That is not scientific inquiry. Gavin is attempting to salvage his profession reputation from having even been associated with the hierarchs' audit program.
Wake up Pauwels, and smell the coffee.
Jim Jenkins: >My experience tells me that most of the abuse by Catholic priests were crimes of opportunity
This seems pretty generally true for abusive relationships, doesn't it? For example, Sandusky's abuse associated with football and his "charity." Or almost all domestic abuse situations. Would not most or all of us would agree with Mr. Jenkins in the generalization and in the general application to sexual abuse by Catholic priests?
If so, the issue becomes one of determining what constitutes and permits the opportunity. When I was a boy, one heard frequent talk of "near occasions of sin," and we were warned away from such at our moral peril. Does the Church still use this term and concept? It always seemed sensible to me, if demanding. Because if it does seem a useful construct still, then defining the metes and bounds of the opportunities that support the crime should seem a priority.
Mark L.
Clergy sex abuse does seem to often be a crime of opportunity, but the answer isn't just to create less opportunities for it to happen. Most people could have all the opportunities in the world and still never rape a child. We should be asking why the church has so many priests who do.
Well, right now we can, to some extent, bound the opportunities that support the crimes. At least there we can do something in practice - keep watch on the youth around us, be alert to iffy situations, try to be aware of unusual behavior, and, if possible, raise other people's awareness. All that can be done independently of the priorities of the church hierarchy, and it gives us some measure of local control of the sex abuse risks. It doesn't come naturally, but if we really care, we can train ourselves to be watchful. (In fact it's my major complaint against normal priests, that they were probably sometimes in contact with abusers but did not see it.)
http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2013/10/25/3877103.htm ... a lecture by Patrick Parkinson, a professor of Law at the University of Sydney, who's done research on the issues.
This lecture is *great* - everyone concerned about this issue should read it.
Regarding opportunity: The lecture by Parkinson referenced earlier includes this passage:
Propensity and opportunity: Furthermore, propensity is not co-extensive with opportunity. It may well be that the incidence of child sexual abuse has declined in recent years, consistently with international trends, with no change in propensity. This is because propensity is only one of the preconditions for sexual abuse to occur. There is also the need for opportunity. As awareness of the problem of child sexual abuse has developed, so the opportunity for abuse has declined and the risk of disclosure leading to penal consequences has increased. Des Cahill offers these observations:
"So it is important to ask: why has there been a decline in clerical child sex abuse since the 1980s ...? To me there are eight reasons for the decline: the social visibility given to the issue since about 1983; the better child protection mechanisms that we have in place; the greater vigilance of Catholic parents and church workers; the lessening number of priests over the past four decades; the resignation of many priests from the clerical life; the almost total collapse of the altar boy system; the closure of almost all Catholic boarding schools; and the lessened interaction of Catholic priests with their Catholic schools."
(In fact it's my major complaint against normal priests, that they were probably sometimes in contact with abusers but did not see it.)
They saw it. If you lived in a big old house with three or four other adults, and one of them was always drunk, wouldn't you notice? And if one of them was always taking children up to his room, wouldn't you notice? And if one of them was always taking children to his lake house for weekends, wouldn't you notice?
But if you had no education, no work experience, no marketable skills, little energy, etc., and you were well into your 40s, would you risk your safe berth by complaining? Those who rocked the barque were likely to find themselves out of the comfortable city rectory and down in the boonies alone.
Where is your evidence, Pauwels, for your preposterous contention "that bishops do take protecting children more seriously than they used to?" I'd like to see that evidence – the whole world would like to see that evidence.
There is nothing preposterous about my contention. It's the only conclusion to be reached by anyone who is willing to look at the data and consider its meaning. And the whole world needn't wait - the data is out there already for anyone to see. Perhaps the data complicates cherished narratives of folks who advocate certain programs of reform - but that is their problem.
Both of us have mentioned at least two sources in this course of this thread: the the most recent USCCB audit (cf especially chapter 2, and tables 1 and 2 in chapter 3), and the lecture by Patrick Parkinson (in which there are a number of passages in which he gives the church credit for the progress it has made, while not pulling any punches on its failings). In addition, the John Jay College Causes and Contexts report includes material that acknowledges that the bishops have made progress. (cf the "Recommendations for Prevention Policies" on p 120 ff for some of those acknowledgements).
In referencing these sources, it goes without saying that I accept the data presented in all three of the sources I've linked to here - for example, in the USCCB audit report, I accept the tables showing the number of criminal background checks run and the number of clergy, staff, volunteers and children who have received abuse-awareness and safe-enviromment training. In other words, I accept that the reporting organization exercised due diligence in collecting and analyzing the data, and exercised truthfulness in publishing it. If you refuse to acknowledge that there is anything useful or valid in any of these sources, I'm afraid I can't help you, but I am confident that anyone who reads these sources with an open and objective mind will agree that the data supports the contention that, overall, the bishops have made progress in recent years - even bearing in mind the limitations of these numbers that have been pointed out in this discussion and in previous discussions.
There is also a second set of data points I have in mind: my own experience in ministry, in which, like all of my peers, I've been required to personally jump through all the hoops (training, criminal background checks, etc.). Finally, there is my observation of three priests of whom I'm personally aware who were removed from ministry in recent years. As best as I can discern (I have no view to the details of the process), the cases were handled according to the Dallas norms, and all three have been permanently removed from ministry. I don't know that these three cases illustrate progress per se, but from everything I've heard and read about how the church used to handle such cases, it seems like progress to me.
"Maybe Pope Francis will figure out a way. But if he doesn't, he too will eventually lose the respect of the people."
The clock is ticking, and quickly the weeks and months go by. By being a populist he built up an early high level of expectation. That euphoria can disappear as fast ... or faster ... as it arose.
Let's hope he doesn't end up being known as Pope "Alway A Bridesmaid, Never A Bride."
[I guess recent revelations in New Jersey, Minneapolis, Kansas City are just aberations to you?]
Actually, that's the $64 question: are they aberrations? Are they typical? Are they something in between, and if so how in-between are they? My claim in all this is extremely modest, even pretty boring: that some cases have been handled by the review boards and the bishops as they are supposed to. How many? That would be helpful to know. But I don't know how we learn the answer. I lifted one fact from the most recent USCCB audit: that 79% of clergy with accusations against them (who are still alive) have been removed from ministry and/or forcibly laicized. What does that 79% number mean? It may mean that a majority of cases are handled appropriately. But why not more than 79%? And what is the likelihood that, like Fugee in Newark, some of those barred from ministry will be reinstated?
79% of clergy with accusations against them (who are still alive) have been removed from ministry and/or forcibly laicized. What does that 79% number mean? It may mean that a majority of cases are handled appropriately.
No. That is only possibly appropriate for those cases for which the accusation, after a proper enquiry, was deemed likely to be true; and the other 21% of the cases were only handled possibly appropriately if in those cases the accusation, after a proper enquiry, was deemed to be false. The percentage says nothing about whether the handling was appropriate.
The critique of the Murphy Report, commissioned by Dublin priests, is in turn critiqued by their Archbishop: http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/archbishop-remember-the-victims-29708852.html
Gay men having sex with minors -- Jim Jenkins claims that this is the bulk of the abuse cases. When I claimed that many cases fall under this category I was lambasted by William LIndsey (BIlgrimage) who said, repeatedly, that I put ALL cases in this category.
I suggest that the abuse scandal becomes much more understandable in this perspective, and spares us having to imagine all abusers as monsters who rape children just as a display of power and without any sexual attraction (the male gender of the adolescents in 80% of the cases being just an accident).
The main reason for the decline in sexual contact between adult men and teenag boys is the tightening of the law and of gay men's awareness that the age of consent has to be taken with utmost seriousness. It was very different thirty years ago when gayness was illegal or regarded as socially unacceptable, without much differentiation of ages, so that many gay men thought they might as well be hung for a lamb as for a sheep.
Crystal Watson portrays all men who have had sexual contact with minors as child rapists -- not a helpful use of language in my opinion. As to pedophiles, it is well known that penetrative sex is statistically rare in their case, and the offence of touching or of voyeurism is the most common.
About that 21%: half of those were order priests. Has anything official been done about establishing procedures to handle order priests and nuns? Have any bishops or the USCCB tried to look into that problem? Or the Vatican?
Here is the full text of the critique of the Murphy Report: http://www.associationofcatholicpriests.ie/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Commissions-of-Investigation-and-Procedural-Fairness.pdf
Ann: for the Vatican, see what pope Francis said in his interview with Commonweal!
I wrote:
79% of clergy with accusations against them (who are still alive) have been removed from ministry and/or forcibly laicized. What does that 79% number mean? It may mean that a majority of cases are handled appropriately.
.. to which Claire responded:
No. That is only possibly appropriate for those cases for which the accusation, after a proper enquiry, was deemed likely to be true; and the other 21% of the cases were only handled possibly appropriately if in those cases the accusation, after a proper enquiry, was deemed to be false. The percentage says nothing about whether the handling was appropriate.
Claire - you lead your comment with "No" - but you could have started the same comment with "Yes" and it would be equally true. I agree at least somewhat with your analysis. Here's how I would think about it:
- That 79% consists of two major categories: those who have been laicized (i.e. expelled from the clerical state - their career as a priest, deacon or bishop is ended); and those who have been removed from ministry but not (or not yet) laicized.
- For the latter category (removed from ministry), there are two sub-categories: those who have been removed from ministry because an accusation against them has been deemed credible (cf articles 6 and 9 of the Essential Norms); and those whose cases have been fully processed by the review board and the bishop and have been permanently barred from ministry (cf articles 8 and 9 of the Essential Norms). For the former sub-category (removed from ministry, possibly only temporarily, because an accusation has been deemed credible), the accused's case is still pending, and the disposition is unknown.
We aren't told how many clerics fall into each of the categories and sub-categories I've outlined above. But if we accept the rule of thumb that victims almost always tell the truth about abuse, then it's difficult to believe that there are many (or any) instances in which a cleric who has been laicized after being found guilty, has been laicized unjustly. And I would say the same of the subcategory who have been permanently barred from ministry. The subcategory of those who are removed from ministry pending a determination by the bishop are to be accorded a presumption of innocence, but it seems reasonable to assume that at least some of them are guilty of what they're accused.
Now - it's possible that, even though the final disposition of a case was that a cleric was laicized because he was guilty of sexual abuse, the case still wasn't handled appropriately at the diocesan level or by the Holy See. I can't point to any instances in which this happened for accusations that were reported or processed after the promulgation of the Charter and the Essential Norms, but I wouldn't be surprised if there are folks here who can cite some instances of this. Some of the cases we've discussed here, such as Fugee in Newark, may end up fitting that particular set of circumstances, but as of this date, I don't think he's been laicized.
I think the most we can say, based on the fact we're given (the 79% number), is that the fact doesn't contradict, and may support, the hypothesis that at least some of the cases are handled appropriately. In short: it may mean that a majority of cases were handled appropriately. And there is anecdotal evidence - possibly a good deal of it, although I don't know if it's ever been pulled together and organized - of cases that were handled appropriately. This anecdotal evidence is a powerful confirmation when it's coupled with facts like the 79%. And we know of at least some instances in which cases were not handled appropriately; but we don't know whether those instances are typical or exceptional.
From that:
St. Louis Archbishop Robert Carlson didn't report a clergy sex abuse claim to police in the 1980s when he was a leader with the Roman Catholic Church in Minnesota, according to a lawsuit filed there Tuesday. And the same priest in question allegedly went on to do more harm.
About that 21%: half of those were order priests. Has anything official been done about establishing procedures to handle order priests and nuns? Have any bishops or the USCCB tried to look into that problem? Or the Vatican?
Ann - as you probably know, the bishops don't have jurisidiction over religious order priests; the superiors of each individual order are responsible for their members. Each order needs to establish its own processes. This Chicago Tribune article from earlier this year suggests that orders tend to lag behind the bishops and dioceses in this respect.
One interesting little nugget from that article is that the is a private firm called Praesidium that apparently has developed some accreditation standards which a religious order may try to comply with. This statement from this past August by the Conference of Major Superiors of Men implies that a lot of orders are now accredited. But that's all I know about it.
Jim, actually I don't follow those details any more. After following the news on that front in full depth a few years ago, I became convinced that accountability and transparency were not really present. Even if you point to cases that, you say, appear to have been dealt with "appropriately", I'm not ready to dig into the details and look for flaws. I'm afraid that the question is settled as far as I'm concerned: prevention is done by vigilance on the part of all people involved in the local church, and problems are to be addressed by taking them to the police and letting them deal with it. Chanceries and their more or less "appropriate" protocols are no longer on my radar.
But I wish you good luck in trying to fix the system.
@ Jim Pauwels: RE your posts of [10/29/13; 5:23pm] and [10/29/13; 6pm]:
Nice try, but no cigar Rev. Pauwels! All the unctuous condescension not withstanding, your argument and logic escape any close examination.
You still haven't produced any citations from the scientific literature, besides what others and I have cited, to support your preposterous contention that is ["that bishops do take protecting children more seriously than they used to"].
Perhaps they didn't teach the scientific methodology in seminary? You can't as you do when you cite the John Jay study and its subsequent audit reports make inferences and extrapolate conclusions from its purely summative data [i.e., bean counting, as in "79% of credibly accused priests have been removed from ministry" from another of your many posts]. The study would have had to use other research methodology to make those conclusions because the hierarchs contrived the study to fit their political ideology and agenda.
You can't conflate the USCCB audit/John Jay report with the lecture by Patrick Parkinson [A lecture given in Australia.]. That's mixing apples and oranges: the US and Australia are not analogous situations. Nor, can you selectively quote from the Parkinson lecture little nosegays about how things have improved over time in Australia – Australia is not the US.
Besides in Australia, unlike here in the US, the Australian national government is breathing down the neck of the Australian Catholic Church with a fully empowered judicial inquiry into the sexual abuse and exploitation scandal - nothing like the prospect of prosecution and imprisonment to focus the hearts and minds of the hierarchs. Of course, things have gotten better – in Australia!
The politics is very different here in the US: Both of the last two administrations sided with the church's attempts to shield Cardinal Levada whenever he would travel to the US – and now lives in retirement, I believe - from a mountain of subpoenas from American courts. Catholic justices on SCOTUS [a solid majority] voted en masse to uphold Levada's diplomatic immunity on the grounds that he was an official of a foreign state. You have to hand it to the hierarchs' legal eagles – they're really worth every penny.
Pauwels, anytime you find those studies your desperately looking for, let us know.
@ Jim Pauwels: Don't mean to pile on, but I found somethiing that you wrote very interesting:
While you attempted to posture your arguments as calmly and dispassionately as possible, this quote I believe is really telling of the back-story for much of your arguments:
There is also a second set of data points I have in mind: my own experience in ministry, in which, like all of my peers, I've been required to personally jump through all the hoops (training, criminal background checks, etc.).
Do I detect some indignation that priests are now being held to account for their commissions and omissions as they relate to abuse and exploitation of children by their colleague "brother priests"? Regrets maybe? Being painted with too broad a brush perhaps?
Interesting that you highlight your [observation] of three priests removed from ministry. This begs the question from my time on the SF review board: Why there was only one priest from SF archdiocese who ever reported another priest to police authorities?
[Let me summarize the particulars of this one illustrative case study: Rev. John Conley – former assistant US district attorney for Illinois - on returning to the rectory found his pastor, Rev. James Aylward, wrestling on the floor in nothing but his underwear with a teenage boy who was the rectory's evening phone receptionist. [I'll spare you the other graphic details.] Conley promptly reported the assault to the SF police. For Conley's actions, then archbishop Levada suspended him from ministry, banned him from living in the rectory, ordered him to undergo psychological evaluation and treatment, and sneered at him, "You need to learn obedience." Conley sued Levada in civil court - I think it was a first in US legal history for a priest to sue his bishop - for mental stress and defamation of character; his suit was reinstated upon appeal. On the eve of Levada's deposition, archdiocesan lawyers negotiated an agreement that restored Conley's faculties and fully funded Conley's retirement to the tune of $hundreds of thousands, in exchange for Conley dropping the suit. Levada never testified. Conley now lives in SF in comfortable retirement filling in for parish priests on leave or vacation.]
I think most Catholics can understand why priests are like the "three blind mice" when it comes to their brother priests and bishops.
What is also equally preposterous is the contention of many priests that they were never aware of any of their colleagues' abusive behavior despite the fact that most of the abuse took place on church or school property.
This pervasive silence from the clerics and fellow religious about crimes against children that were occurring right under their noses undermines the very arguments that you, Pauwels, make about how the so-called John Jay audit indicates "due diligence" from the hierarchs.
All priests and religious must come forward with their own stories of what they saw and what they know about the abuse and exploitation of children by their fellow priests without reservation or this sad chapter in the Catholic Church will never end.
"The task force he appointed to investigate this mess is supposed to provide some answers, but its work will hold value only to the extent that it's willing to name names."
Developments subsequent to the writing of this fine article seem to indicate that the task force will be hamstrung in its investigation and will in fact not "name names" -- because it won't be allowed to. Father Whitt, the staff director responsible for the task force, recently made statements which indicate this. They can be seen via the National Catholic Reporter, including a longish article in the Twin Cities secular press. Take a look at http://ncronline.org/search/site/Whitt for a list of the articles, and follow the links.
We have seen this script before in other places, and it was a disaster. Archbishop Nienstedt has chosen to a) divide up the investigation among four separate entities, and b) is trying to restrict the access of the task force to information they would credibly need to do their investigation.
If I were the members of the task force — which, at least on paper, seems eminently qualified and includes a broad range of relevant professions — I would speak to the Archbishop immediately to clarify the matter of access to records. If I came away unsatisfied, I would immediately resign so as not to damage my professional reputation. Perhaps the whole task force might be moved to resign en masse — though it would be far better if they were given access to the information they need.
This shameful record of trying to hoodwink lay professionals, of trying to "use" them, simply must stop.
The near-universal occurrence of this sort of behavior by bishops lends credence to the existence of some formal but still secret Vatican policy. If that is so, it too will eventually come to light, with predictable consequences.
I have read that when a bishop is made a cardinal he takes a vow never to reveal anything that would harm the Church or its reputation. Does anyone know if that it true? Do bishops also take such a vow? i have read that canon law requires that bishops not criticize a fellow bishop publicly. Is this true?
If they may not speak out, no wonder there is a cover-up culture of men who cannot abide criticism.
Cardinals' Oath on Receiving the Biretta
Below is a translation of the oath of fidelity and obedience to the Pope and his Successors, pronounced by the Cardinals at the time they receive the biretta, or cardinal's hat:
"I [name and surname], Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church, promise and swear to be faithful henceforth and forever, while I live, to Christ and his Gospel, being constantly obedient to the Holy Roman Apostolic Church, to Blessed Peter in the person of the Supreme Pontiff Francis, and of his canonically elected Successors;
to maintain communion with the Catholic Church always, in word and deed; not to reveal to anyone what is confided to me in secret, nor to divulge what may bring harm or dishonor to Holy Church;
to carry out with great diligence and faithfulness those tasks to which I am called by my service to the Church, in accord with the norms of the law.
So help me Almighty God."
I am unaware of a similar oath for bishops, but obviously no oath is necessary, since all understand the importance of secrecy in such matters. Can anyone think of any US bishop who has freely divulged information/documents without a court order, or under threat of testifying himself in open court under oath who did not quickly settle a lawsuit days before such scheduled testimony?
Cardinals and bishops fight page by page to keep the secrets all the way to the US Supreme Court. Fortunately, Lori (when in Bridgeport) and Mahony lost such cases. But Lori still refused to release 12% of the documents under review and pursued another legal strategy to start the meatgrinder all over again. Appeals can go on for a decade.
We simply need district attorneys, attorneys general, legislatures, and grand juries with subpoena power instead of so-called investigations by independent groups where clerics like Whitt decide what is seen and not seen, and who may be interviewed or not,
Gerelyn had it exactly right in her description of priests who are essentially economic hostages to their bishops.
That oath is truly amazing. Under that oath, are they required to tell the truth under the oath they take in legal depositions? Or does one oath trump the other (the god of religious oaths superseding the god of legal oaths, perhaps)? Can anything they say under legal oath be trusted? Can they even, morally, say I do to the oath they take before a deposition? Has anyone ever tried to explain this to a plaintiff's attorney or a D.A.?
Questions, questions...
Jim Jenkins. I've cited my sources. Attacking me personally doesn't change those sources. Not everything that is true is published by academics and peer-reviewed. The data in the sources I've referenced is what it is. Parkinson in Australia, whose work you seem to admire, seems to accept the John Jay report on causes and contexts for what it is, and to find some value in it. If you don't - as I say, I can't help you.
In this conversation, I've made a very modest claim, and defended it with some evidence. If you don't like my evidence, you don't (although your rejection hasn't dissuaded me that my evidence has some value). But you haven't offered any evidence whatsoever that would make me or anyone else think that I'm wrong. Not even evidence that doesn't meet your lofty standard. You've told a couple of anecdotes. Anecdotes are fine, as far as they go; I've shared a couple myself. Grant's posts on Minneapolis are, in a sense, anecdotes, i.e. they are single episodes, albeit anecdotes bolstered by reams of evidence. But anecdotes by themselves don't tell us anything very useful about general trends. An anecdote may be typical or it may be atypical of overall trends. The whole point of this discussion is: are these instances in Minneapolis indicative of anything, and if so, what? I've shared my point of view, and don't need to share it again.
You've positioned yourself in this discussion as a social scientist who is familiar with the social scientific literature on child sex abuse in the Catholic Church (and you have the advantage of me, as I'm not and I'm not). Now that you've exhibited the good form that experts always show when they sneer at non-experts, go ahead, be scientific and bring out some wares from the storehouse of your scholarship.
Btw, I'm truly sorry you had such a bad experience in San Fransisco, and I'm grateful that you stepped up at one time to try to help the church.
There is also a second set of data points I have in mind: my own experience in ministry, in which, like all of my peers, I've been required to personally jump through all the hoops (training, criminal background checks, etc.).
Do I detect some indignation that priests are now being held to account for their commissions and omissions as they relate to abuse and exploitation of children by their colleague "brother priests"? Regrets maybe? Being painted with too broad a brush perhaps?
Only you know what you think you detect, but what I was expressing here is that taking all the classes, background checks, etc. was a pain the ass. Nowadays, I have to ensure that the volunteers in my ministries do the same thing, and all of them find it a pain the ass, too. On the other hand, these things are necessary and, I believe, helpful. There are a lot of good things in life that are also pains in the ass.
Mr. Jenkins - appreciate your replies to JimP (who is a deacon in the Chicago archdiocese).
JimP - again, the issue with quoting or using data from charter audits or John Jay is the earlier points that were posted. Charter audits only tell us about current status of an oversight structure e.g. background checks, safety measures, etc. It says nothing about actual cases of alleged or confirmed abusers or what the bishop/diocese does. John Jay is interesting but, at the core, they base their conclusions upon data that is not objective; is not complete. Thus, it is hard for experts to take the JJ Study as significant. If anything, an argument could be made that JJ Studies and Charter audits are lulling us to sleep.
In terms of priests' reporting abusers - my experience has been very different from yours. My classmates continue to disappoint me.....even recent conversations elicit responses such as: *never saw anything*; *don't know anything about that*; *he surprised us all*; etc. The denial is shocking.
Here is a different analysis and approach to this issue - example is a Vincentian priest, Carlos Rodriquez, who has served time in California for abuse and whose records were recently and finally released as part of the LA settlement.
My own timeline on this case:
My classmate, Rev. XXXX, pastor in Illinois currently, said that he recommended that Carlos not be ordained at the end of his deaconate in Patterson, CA where he was pastor. CM provincial consultor, XXX, swayed the provincial council to ordain him. And, of course, the file doesn't contain any of the early 1990s stuff when Carlos was assigned to St. Vincent's downtown and abused….kid came to confession (not sure what CM?) who wisely convinced the kid to see the pastor outside of confession. This led to Santa Barbara where he again abused and finally his dispensation and then six years later, conviction. What a sad and sordid story – and he had a functional IQ of 92; the emotional maturity of a 14 year old.
Again, my approach is via *formation*. The file contains some provincial council and seminary faculty votes but, of course, no actual student files, no minutes or record of faculty discussions/votes; no psych testing results. The pattern is sad and disheartening:
- Initially not accepted to high school seminary – later admitted
- Minor Seminary High school principal, Rev. XXXX, with provincial, Rev. Falanga, allowed him to move to novitiate but only as a candidate for brotherhood (this is another sad issue – be a brother by default)
- Novitiate director changed and allowed him to go to college seminary, Perryville, MO as priest candidate
- In religious communities, a seminary faculty only makes recommendations (provincials/councils like bishops make the actual decision for promotion)
- West provincial adds fifth year at college but allows Carlos to go to theology
- Theology faculty appears divided…..make him do an unordained internship (this is very unusual)
- This adds another year to theology studies
- But, he moves on, does diaconate internship fifth year and is ordained
- West Provincial leaves and gets married; provincial consultor takes his place (one year after casting the influential vote to grant ordination …he said that Carlos just had to mature and it was normal…He had just received his Marriage and Family Counseling Certification and thus was deemed the expert on all matters psychological
- What you see is a fragmented formation process – three if not four different faculties voting; faculties that did not have the expertise to make these decisions; and a bias that when votes were evenly split, then promotion was guaranteed. This allowed Carlos to play off various faculty members; to basically get a clean slate every time he changed seminaries and residences. No consistency and no one paid attention to the psych testing results (which are not in the file)
This situation continues to exist across the US seminary landscape - it adds to the complexity of this issue and goes even deeper than just active priests and their decisions or non-decisions about colleagues' behaviors.
I have no documents to back this up, but I believe that all men before they are consecrated bishops - before they are given the keys to the kingdom [roughly akin to the exclusive keys to the executive restroom] and, of course, the bank accounts - prospective bishops must sign a pledge that they will never ordain women or married men priests, and they will never deviate from church policy on contraceptives and abortion.
I have to believe that they also all swear oaths about money - after all they are becoming corporate officers in the corporation sole church.
I understand that if they don't sign, there is no red or magenta hat for them. I guess then it's back to trolling in the parishes?


text:
Conway Group Healthcare are now recruiting. Find out more now.
Cowen Group, Inc. a diversified financial services firm recently movedinto new premises at Conway Groups state of the art offices at Centrepoint.
Top Dublin based cosmetic surgery company, River Medical, has recently opened its brand new clinic at Conway Groups premises.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
|Santa Monica, CA
Warren completed her first season at CSUN with an 8-9 singles record and 8-12 in doubles play … competed at No. 5 and No. 6 draws in singles … posted notable victories over UMKC, New Mexico State, UC Riverside, Pacific, Cal Poly and UC Davis … in doubles action, teamed with Corinne Schnyder to go 5-6 in No. 3 doubles … duo recorded notable victories New Mexico State, UC Riverside, Eastern Michigan and Pacific … also teamed with Alexis Marquez and Anna Yang in doubles throughout the season.
Favorites include the LA Lakers, Edward Norton, Roger Federer and "Avatar" ... best advice she has received is "no matter how bad your situation is, there's always someone having a tougher time" ... advice for young people is "don't let all the technology take away you love for nature" ... lists her mom as her greatest hero ... undecided on a major.


text:
Join us for the second part of the Reliability-Centered Lubrication webinar series, presented by instructor Mike Johnson.
Join the Oklahoma Section for their discussion on Civilian and Military Facilities: How lubrication is teated by each with regard to processes, procedures, importance, scheduling, KPI's etc.
Join the Northern California Section for a discussion on Automotive Transmission Fluid Technology and Trends.


text:
Angela Simmons Celebrates Her Birthday With Keri Hilson, Kevin Durant, Serge Ibaka, Young Jeezy & More
And the parties just don't stop for Angela Simmons.
Just days after celebrating her 25th Birthday with a private bash in New York City, Angela Simmons took her party festivities down to Miami for a night on the river. She was spotted aboard the Venetian Lady yacht last night where she partied the night away with Oklahoma City star Serge Ibaka (who was also celebrating his birthday) as well as Kevin Durant, Keri Hilson and Young Jeezy.
Take a peek at a few pics below:
Angela's body looked sick in that dress! (in a good way)
[Sidebar: I heard through the grapevine that Kevin Durant use to have a lil crush on Keri Hilson. I wonder if he put them moves on her : )]


text:
BTW what app is that in the screen shot?
Debug 2: Paul Haddad of Tapbots
Guy and Rene talk to Paul Haddad of Tapbots about coding on NeXT, deploying Tweetbot and Netbot on multiple platforms, for multiple services, pricing for scarcity, in-app purchases, push notifications, iCloud sync, and his beef with AppKit. This is Debug.
- Guy English (@gte) of Kicking Bear
- Rene Ritchie (@reneritchie) of iMore.com
Yell at us via the Twitter accounts above (or the same names on ADN). Loudly.
Have something to say about this story? Leave a comment! Need help with something else? Ask in our forums!
Reader comments
Debug 2: Paul Haddad of Tapbots
Apple's Podcast app.
Checking this new Podcast out. Will comment later.
Love the podcast. As an iOS developer myself, I love that you guys have decided to do something like this. I only have one request that I would like you to consider. I would like to see more questions about how your guests handle the economics of being an app developer.
What is their philosophy on pricing?
What do they do to get recognized on the App Store?
How much time and resources do they spend on marketing/advertising and getting the word out?
How do they use social media to drive their company and products forward?
From my perspective, this is an area that isn't covered much at all online. Like myself, most developers are small and somewhat isolated from all other developers. There is a great community for the sharing of source code but now much in the way of information on how to make it from a business stance.
Again, love the show. Keep them coming.
In both shows everybody talked about WebObjects, but clearly nobody has had any contact with it in recent years. Dudes, there is a vivid community outside Apple using it, and there's Project Wonder around it that only uses WebObjects at it's core. There's a lot of companies doing WebObjects projects independently of Apple, around the world, a yearly conference in Montreal and the project is quite active. And yes, it's all Java.
Thank's for the link!
Found this via iOS Dev Weekly and wanted to subscribe via Downcast (iOS app). I tried adding the feed manually and it said that it was successful, but then there's no actual podcasts to download/play. Then, I used Downcast's search feature, found your podcast and tried to subscribe. Still no podcasts available. Wondering if anyone else is having issues with trying to subscribe to the podcast. =\
Would love to hear an interview with Alfred app creator - Andrew Pepperrell. :)


text:
Global Rating: 5.00 from 6 reviews.
Add your own review for this product
|city state/province country
|Beautiful and Unique (5/5)
|Aug 12, 2014
|Barbara Glover
|Glendale AZ US
|I ordered this necklace for my sister in honor of the birth of her first child. I was worried about ordering something personalized from a company I hadn't used before. However, I placed the order and an associate called me a few days later to go over the order and the particular charms I chose for the necklace. I was blown away by the service I received. The necklace arrived and was more beautiful than I imagined. My sister loves it!
|blessed family necklace (5/5)
|May 14, 2014
|Margie Matheson
|Atlanta GA US
I bought this for my sister-in-law for Mother's Day Instead of writing my own review, here are her words:
"You have given me some wonderful gifts over the years since I married your brother, but you have REALLY outdone yourself this time. This one is my all time favorites! I am SO proud of this beautiful necklace with the pendant that has my four children's names on it!! I was moved to tears when I opened it. I absolutely love it and I thank you from the bottom of my heart."
|Mother's Necklace Blessed Family (5/5)
|May 20, 2015
|Trish Everette
|Champaign Il US
|The necklace is beautiful! I have several pieces from nelle & lizzy and I love them all.
|Mothers necklace blessed family (5/5)
|Dec 29, 2014
|Tammie Komer
|Crystal MN US
I purchased this for my daughter for Christmas. She loved it. Thank you
|I am blessed (5/5)
|Dec 22, 2013
|Wendy Chwatek
|Erie Pa US
|Absolutely love this necklace! The variety of chain used in the necklace makes it unique and unforgettable. Thanks Nelle and Lizzy.
|blesses family neckalce (5/5)
|Jan 13, 2014
|Ve US
|Love this necklace. I have had so many compliments on it, and several of my friends are now placing orders from this site for their own personalized jewelry.


text:
Tuscarawas News Detail
Academic and Professional Career Development WorkshopPosted Nov. 16, 2012
Join the School of Communication Studies for a career workshop for graduate and doctoral students on Friday, Nov. 30 from 2:00 - 5:00 in room 146 Taylor Hall.
2:00-2:15 p.m. Welcome, overview and preview
Dr. George Cheney, professor, School of Communication Studies and coordinator of doctoral education and interdisciplinary research for the College of Communication and Information
2:15-2:45 p.m. Presentation by distinguished master's graduate Deborah Easton, communication skills consultant /trainer
Focus on non-academic employment opportunities and job-seeking strategies
2:45-3:00 p.m. Q & A session
Deborah Easton and George Cheney, moderators
3:00-3:45 p.m. Presentation from Ryan McNaughton, career counselor, Career Services Center at Kent State University
Focus on resources of the Career Services Center and job-search preparation
3:45-4:15 p.m. Break
Refreshments and networking
4:15-5:00 p.m. Breakout sessions: Development of Resumes and Curriculum Vitae (CVs)
Presentation of sample cover letters, resumes and CVs
Moderated by George Cheney, Dr. Mei-Chen Lin, associate professor and graduate coordinator for the School of Communication Studies, and Dr. Jennifer McCullough, assistant professor and basic course coordinator for the School of Communication Studies
Deborah Easton, M.A., a nationally known communication skills consultant /trainer for 30 years, provides audiences with practical and effective advice for communicating with colleagues, clients, and customers. Easton has conducted programs for a variety of corporations and other organizations, including: health care, manufacturing, public utilities, insurance, social services, finance, technology, and telecommunications. She is the recipient of the School of Communication Studies Distinguished Alumnus Award for 2012.
Ryan McNaughton, M.Ed., is a career counselor for the Kent State University Career Services Center. McNaughton transitioned to the world of career counseling after spending 13 years as a radio and television news and sports reporter/producer. McNaughton holds a Bachelor's Degree in Broadcast Journalism from Syracuse University, and a Master of Education in Counselor Education from Westminster College. He believes each and every interaction can be a networking opportunity.RSVP by Monday, Nov. 26 via e-mail to firstname.lastname@example.com


text:
There are currently no items in your cart.
Melody Bober Sheet Music: 1 items found
March Of The Toys
By Glenda Austin, Victor Herbert, William L. Gillock, Carolyn C. Setliff, Carolyn Miller, Edna Mae Burnam, Katherine Beard, Edna Mae Burnam (arr.), and Melody Bober. Educational piano. Christmas; Pop. 4 pages. Published by Hal Leonard - Digital Sheet Music (HX.267445).
Available Instantly
Melody Bober


text: Gib Robinson is a retired professor of Renaissance English Literature and a former administrator at San Francisco State University. As an advocate of service learning and community outreach for both students and faculty, he divided his time between classroom teaching and designing ways for the university to serve the city of San Francisco and the Bay Area. He came to San Francisco Zen Center in 1976 and lived in the Page Street building from 1976-82 except for his sabbatical year at Tassajara in 1977-78. He served as shuso at City Center in the spring of 2013. He is a founding director of Vimala Sangha where Lew Richmond is the founding teacher; he regularly attends Vimala Sangha in Mill Valley led by Ed Sattizahn, and the Presidio Hill Zen Group led by Steve Weintraub. He lives across the street from City Center with his wife Megan and teenage daughter Annie.


text:
Los Angeles is one of the most exciting cities to look for an internship. LA has everything going for it, from glitz and glamour to serious business opportunities. Los Angeles is also home to some of the world's finest museums, truly iconic sights, and myriad cultural events.
When you're looking for internships in Los Angeles, you'll find a multitude of options across a variety of industries at Internships.com. Explore intern positions in advertising, marketing, public relations, media and entertainment, financial organizations, arts, engineering, non-profit companies, and countless other fields. Interning with a company in Los Angeles gives you an opportunity to add to your skill set and get first-hand career experience. You'll also get real insight into what jobs are like in the field that interests you.
An internship is the perfect way to gain expertise and demonstrate to future employers that you've got the ability and knowledge to do a great job. Internships can also help make your transition from college to "the real world" after graduation much easier, since you'll know what to expect outside the classroom.
Start exploring Los Angeles internship opportunities below and find the position that's the perfect fit for you and your career goals.


text:
|Below is the list of links to Live Stats. The view link will only be available after the game start time.
There are no recent Live Stats.
You can select a sport and season below for archived Live Stats.
|Search Criteria
|NOTE: Live Stats will appear in a new popup window. Please disable your popup blocker for this site in order to view the Live Stats.
Email Updates
- WSU Volleyball Honored for Academics
- Raiders Select Burns as Tennis Head Coach
- Three Future Raiders in National Championships;...
- Raiders Announce Nonleague Schedule
- Raider Roundup for Season Ticket Holders is Back
- Basketball Camp Canceled
- Karena to Tour New Zealand with AIA
- Softball Recruit Named NFCA All-American
- Women's Swimming, TenEyck Honored for Academics
- Davis Adds Significant Transfer from Pac-12 to...
- Volleyball Releases 2015 Schedule
- Baseball Receives Votes in Final Polls
- Athletics Announces 2014-15 Award Winners
- 87 Named to Horizon League Spring Academic Honor...
- Seven Named to HL Spring All-Academic Teams


text:
How can you become more agile in a fast-moving market? An increasingly popular method of making quick decisions is A/B testing (or bucket testing). In its simplest form you put two versions of a product into the market simultaneously and see which one gets the better customer response. You then repeat the process by putting the winner up against another variant and trying again. Essentially you use a single-variable test several times over. Once a classic direct mail technique and now used extensively to test website response rates, marketers can use this method to check market reactions for a wide range of products and services.
For example with your website you can test small details one at a time, such as colours, offers, copy text, layouts and images. Multiple tests will show which items yield the greatest improvements. According to Wikipedia around two-thirds of web based companies use A/B testing including the likes of Amazon, BBC, Ebay – even Google and Microsoft.
You can use A/B testing to carry out market research on the fly. You can test different marketing propositions, website layouts, sales pitches and so on. You can also test different markets with the same product. The key element is to keep undertaking tests in which only one variable is changed.


text:
Extension Human Nutrition: (Edit Mode)
<< Go Back
Access Denied
Either you are not currently logged in, or you do not have access to this page. Please contact the administrator to obtain access.
Return to Home
Contact us
Statements and disclosures
Kansas State University
Manhattan, KS 66506
© Kansas State University


text:
Friday, July 25, 2014
Construction for a new facility for The Village at Summerville is being planned for early 2016.
The Village, a senior living facility located at 201 W. 9th N. Street, is expanding up to 75.09 acres total as a planned unit development. The property is owned by Presbyterian Communities of South Carolina.
Summervilles Planning Commission met July 21 for a public hearing on the planned development.
Kathy Ligon, president and CEO of Presbyterian Communities, said The Village has been part of Summerville since 1954, and Presbyterian Communities purchased 47 acres of property adjoining the current property. They are looking to make replacement buildings and new development on the property.
We have a very strong mission, she said. We feel we provide a lot for the community, and to strengthen us for the future we feel we need to go ahead and make these improvements and additions to our ministry so we can remain strong in this community.
Presbyterian Communities secured the new land in 2012 but has not done anything on the land since.
Right now The Village has a nursing center with 87 beds. Ligon said that facility is aged and needs to be replaced, so they are looking to build a 90-bed health center with private rooms and private baths. Presbyterian Communities also plans to build a memory support center for dementia patients, which will come with 20 beds. Officials also wish to build 54 apartments, and hope to build villa products as people wish to have them.
Ligon said she thinks Summerville needs the new development to better serve its growing population.
So many people are coming into the area and so many of them will be bringing their parents along with them and will be looking for a place to have them close by, she said. Its just a really exciting time in the history of our organization.
Tim Mueller, president of SFCS Architects, specializes in retirement facilities. He said the plan is still in its earliest design phases, and the facility is still using the main entry that already exists today for the community.
Once the new health center is built the existing one will come down or be re-utilized.
Phase one of the project will be a three-story apartment building and a one-story commons facility. The villa products will be two-story buildings that will allow residents to be a part of the community but not necessarily move into the big house.
Residents attended the public hearing to express concerns over changes in the roads. Resident Robert Bright was concerned about any access roads coming through the neighborhood of Daniels Orchard.
Officials said Daniels Orchard will not be affected.
The city requested that we have a back emergency access, off part of the block of the main road, which weve put in, Mueller said. There will be no access through Daniels Orchard. A traffic study has been completed for the proposed project and based upon an independent traffic engineer, the project will not have a negative impact on the existing road system.
Summervilles Planning Commission approved the PUD amendments. The proposed amendments still need council approval, with the first reading scheduled for August.
The Journal Scene is pleased to offer readers the enhanced ability to comment on stories. We expect our readers to engage in lively, yet civil discourse. We do not edit user submitted statements and we cannot promise that readers will not occasionally find offensive or inaccurate comments posted in the comments area. Responsibility for the statements posted lies with the person submitting the comment, not The Journal Scene.
If you find a comment that is objectionable, please click "report abuse" and we will review it for possible removal. Please be reminded, however, that in accordance with our Terms of Use and federal law, we are under no obligation to remove any third party comments posted on our website. Read our full terms and conditions.
© 2015 The Journal Scene an Evening Post Industries company. All Rights Reserved.
Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Service, Privacy Policy and Parental Consent Form.


text:
Perfect for the dog lover! This adorable little dachshund will enhance any canine enthusiasts jewelry.
These Teeny Tiny Beads have been produced for over 10 years near the ancient city of Cusco, Peru by the Romero family business that has now expanded to employ over 40 people. The following is a description of the manufacturing process of the Teeny Tiny Beads, taken from an article in Bead And Button, April 2002. Bead production starts in the hands of the designers, who sculpt the original animal shapes in clay. Factory workers make production molds from the originals, then press soft clay into the molds to make multiple copies of each piece. To remove an animal from its mold, workers use a metal rod that also creates the hole in the bead. The beads are bisque-fired (a relatively low temperature process) in the electric kilns that the Romeros built themselves, then partially glazed to give some areas of each animal a glossy finish. After another firing, artisans give the animals character and appeal with details added in matte-finish paints. Several thousand beads are produced in each batch, which takes about three days to complete.
Warning: This product may contain lead and is not intended for sale or use by children 12 years of age or younger.
A bit of bling or a bit of blush. Don't use bland beading wire when you can make your designs blast off in color. Regular beading wire is great for neutral pieces, but color will make your designs live and breathe.
Shop for colorful Soft Flex Wire.
Make your own jewelry with Soft Flex® beading wire. Learn beading tips, get inspired with free beading projects and do your bead shopping all in one place! Browse useful charts and interesting beading articles, get answers to your jewelry-making questions and learn everything you ever wanted to know about gemstone beads. Shop the best quality beading wire, crimps, clasps, beads and gemstones.
Defining Excellence Then and Now - We lead our industry with simply the best products and services. We celebrate our innovative ideas and proudly inspire creativity with our passion to educate. We are dedicated to exceeding the expectations of our customers and are grateful for their continued loyalty.
© 2011 Soft Flex® Company. All Rights Reserved.


text:
Karen Eggert (301) 734-0603
WASHINGTON, Sept. 23, 2008--The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is reclassifying California as modified accredited advanced for bovine tuberculosis (TB). This action is necessary to reduce the likelihood of the spread of the disease within the United States.
APHIS had listed California as an accredited-free state for bovine TB. An epidemiological investigation of a TB-positive cow found through slaughter surveillance in December 2007 resulted in the confirmation of an affected dairy herd. The investigation continued, and officials recently identified two additional affected dairy herds. The finding of a second affected herd within a 48-month period means that California no longer meets the requirements for accredited-free status.
Bovine TB is a contagious and infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium bovis. It affects cattle, bison, deer, elk, goats and other warm-blooded species and can be fatal. The disease can be transmitted to humans through direct contact with infected animals or consumption of raw milk. It is not transmitted through pasteurized milk. If a producer suspects TB in their herd, they should isolate the animal immediately and contact their veterinarian for a proper diagnosis.
Consideration will be given to comments received on or before Nov. 17. Send two copies of postal or commercial delivery comments to Docket No. APHIS-2008-0067, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road, Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. If you wish to submit a comment using the Internet go to the Federal eRulemaking portal at
Comments received are posted on the Regulations.gov Web site and also can be viewed at USDA, Room 1141, South Building, 14th St. and Independence Ave., S.W., Washington, D.C., between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. To facilitate entry into the comment reading room, please call (202) 690-2817.
Note to Reporters: USDA news releases, program announcements and media advisories are available on the Internet. Go to the APHIS news release page at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/newsroom. Also, anyone with an e-mail address can sign up to receive APHIS press releases automatically. Send an e-mail message to firstname.lastname@example.com and leave the subject blank. In the message, type


text:
Minnesota Vikings
- Jerseys
- Men's Shirts
- Men's Polos & Button Downs
- Men's Hoodies & Jackets
- Men's Shorts & Pants
- Women's Apparel
- Kids' Apparel
- Hats
- Apparel Accessories
- Tailgating Gear
- Home Décor
- Helmets
- Fatheads
- Pet Accessories
- Car Accessories
- Wallets & Bags
- Jewelry
- Sports DVD/Collectibles
- Golf Accessories
- Travel Mugs
- Other Accessories
- NFL Logo Gear
- Clearance
Minnesota Vikings Apparel & Gear
Product Selection
Minnesota Vikings Apparel & Gear for Game Day
For the dedicated Minnesota Vikings fan, DICK'S Sporting Goods offers a wide range of officially licensed NFL® apparel and gear.
If youre tailgating outside TCF Bank Stadium or lounging on the couch, any die-hard NFL® fan is sure to find clothing and accessories to fit their needs. Browse jerseys for your favorite players like Teddy Bridgewater, Cordarrelle Patterson and Greg Jennings.
For the true fan, an officially licensed Nike® jersey is the ultimate in game day gear. Minnesota Vikings jerseys are available in men's, women's and kids' sizes.
To complement your game day outfit, consider a Vikings hat. For fans in colder climates, DICK'S Sporting Goods offers an assortment of knit hats from brands like New Era® and '47 Brand®.
For the fan that makes Sunday football a family tradition, look for officially licensed gear for fans of all ages. From NFL® Nike® jerseys to t-shirts featuring Minnesota Vikings logos and wordmarks, you are sure to find something for the whole family.
Buying Tips
If you are looking for a relaxed way to support your favorite NFL® team, a T-shirt or polo is the perfect fit for you. These officially licensed tops come in a wide range of colors and fits, so you can cheer on the Minnesota Vikings as Mike Zimmer coaches them to victory.
For the Vikings fan who wants to train like the pros, Nike® offers an expansive collection of performance tops and shorts.
Expert Advice
For the true Minnesota Vikings fan, DICK'S Sporting Goods is the ultimate one-stop shop. Find officially licensed apparel, including hoodies, sweatpants, crew neck t-shirts and polos emblazoned with your teams logo or wordmark to show off your Vikings spirit.
Whether you are kicking back for a game in your Minneapolis, Minnesota home, hitting the gym or cheering in the stands, DICK'S Sporting Goods has everything you need to support the team all season long.
Browse a wide selection of other Licensed merchandise at the ESPN Fan Shop at DICK'S Sporting Goods.
- Minnesota Vikings Accessories
- Minnesota Vikings Apparel Accessories
- Minnesota Vikings Car Accessories
- Minnesota Vikings DVDs
- Minnesota Vikings Fatheads
- Minnesota Vikings Gifts
- Minnesota Vikings Golf Accessories
- Minnesota Vikings Hats
- Minnesota Vikings Helmets
- Minnesota Vikings Home Decor
- Minnesota Vikings Jerseys
- Minnesota Vikings Jewelry
- Minnesota Vikings Kids' Apparel
- Minnesota Vikings Men's Polo Shirts
- Minnesota Vikings Pet Accessories
- Minnesota Vikings Shorts
- Minnesota Vikings Tailgating Accessories
- Minnesota Vikings Travel Mugs
- Minnesota Vikings Wallets & Bags
- Minnesota Vikings Women's Apparel
- NFL Logo Gear
- Vikings Hoodies
- Vikings Shirts for Men


text:
Discount Policy
Discounts are calculated as follows unless otherwise indicated:
- 20% discount for Hunter employees, Hunter students, senior diplomatic personnel (UN Diplomats, Vice-Consuls, Ambassadors, etc.), and senior citizens, aged 62+ (must present proof).
- 10% discount for Hunter alumni, US Veterans, and CUNY employees (must present proof).
- Discounts do not apply to any promotions, 40 hour classes, or 3 hour Saturday classes.
To receive the discount, you must register by mail, fax or in person and be prepared to show proof. You cannot receive the discount when registering online. Discounts must be taken at the time of registration, and will not be given retroactively. Discounts may not be combined. Any exceptions to the above policy require the Director's written approval.


text:
Plan Your Wedding with local knowledge from recent newlyweds
Discover real weddings, venue and vendor
reviews, and so much more, in your local area:
reviews, and so much more, in your local area:
RECENT ACTIVITY in other local areas
Read the buzz in other cities around the world!
Vista, CA, USA37 engaged couples/newlyweds in Vista are using Wedding Mapper!
1 reply 26 viewsLatest Topic: Seating Chart
Last Message: Aug. 01, 2015
Quezon City, Philippines442 engaged couples/newlyweds in Quezon City are using Wedding Mapper!
2 replies 54 viewsLatest Topic: Venue
Last Message: Jul. 31, 2015
Lexington, KY, USA257 engaged couples/newlyweds in Lexington are using Wedding Mapper!
2 replies 43 viewsLatest Topic: fasig tipton
Last Message: Jul. 29, 2015
Rapid City, SD, USA74 engaged couples/newlyweds in Rapid City are using Wedding Mapper!
2 replies 38 viewsLatest Topic: Wedding hair
Last Message: Jul. 28, 2015
San Juan, Puerto Rico316 engaged couples/newlyweds in San Juan are using Wedding Mapper!
10 replies 375 viewsLatest Topic: Videographer for Old San Juan Wedding
Last Message: Jul. 18, 2015
Cartagena, Bolivar, Colombia341 engaged couples/newlyweds in Cartagena are using Wedding Mapper!
8 replies 220 viewsLatest Topic: Destination Wedding
Last Message: Jul. 15, 2015
TOP VENDORS around the world
Wce Carriagehouse
Englewood, NJ
Mi Boda En Cartagena
Cartagena de Indias, Colombia
Marci Curtis - Wedding P...
Troy, MI