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The Hidden Abuse
Catholic Church Faces Hurt with Hope
The [Wilmington DE] News Leader
November 20-23, 2005
This series is remarkable for several reasons. It is informed
by a sympathy for the survivors and their families and loved ones, whose
experience is presented in extensive quotations and streaming video of
three interviews. The series also includes diocesan and legal documents
that offer insight into the management of the Wilmington diocese. The
series profiles survivors, accused priests, seminarians, church-going
Catholics, clergy, and bishops, to create an unusually complete picture
of the crisis in a single diocese. The series pointedly contrasts the
Philadelphia archdiocese, where a grand jury's report
revealed the extent of abuse, with the more "hidden" nature
of abuse in Wilmington.
Articles
- Tormented
by broken trust [intro and brief profile of Rev. Dudzinski]
- Diocese
kept abuse cases secret [includes assignment records
and links to documents]
- Secret
list was compiled, then later destroyed
- Parents
see value in altar serving
- Naive
adoration; a lifetime of pain [about Rev. Carley;
includes links to interviews]
- Impact
extends beyond sex abuse victims
- Betrayal
by trusted figures leaves scars
- Parishioners,
priests endure shadow of accusation
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Documents
- This
letter from the Bishop of Worcester asks the Bishop of Wilmington
to allow a priest [Rev. Holley] who has been accused of sexual
abuse to work in the Diocese of Wilmington. [See the article
discussing this letter. The document is dated 1971.]
- This
letter from the Bishop of Wilmington tells the Bishop of Worcester
that a priest [Rev. Holley] who had been accused of sexual abuse
could not come to work in Delaware because the priest "presented
a greater problem than we could handle...." [See the article
discussing this letter. The document is dated 1971.]
- This
memorandum to Diocese of Wilmington officials describes concerns
about Edward Dudzinski taking middle-school boys on vacation with
him. [See the article
on this memo. The document is dated 1977.]
- This
court document shows one of the church's legal tactics when
defending priests who have been sued. [See the article
on this point. The document is dated 1989 and concerns Rev. Dudzinski.]
- These
seven documents are typical of the kind of public statements
that church officials have made about priests working in Delaware
who have been accused of molestation. [See the article
on these documents. The statements are dated 2002-2003 and concern
Revs. Wiggins, Rogers, Smith, Irwin, O'Neill.]
- Read
the lawsuit: Kenneth Whitwell vs. Archmere, Catholic diocese
and Rev. Edward Smith. [See the article
on this suit. The document is dated 2005.]
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Interviews
- James
Curry talks about the [e]ffect of priest abuse on his son.
[about Rev. Carley]
- John
Dougherty recalls his abuse at the hands of a Catholic priest
[Rev. Carley].
- Michael
Schulte talks about being raped by a[n unnamed] Catholic priest.
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