When Catholic priests are charged with minors molestation, this fundamental civic prerogative is denied to them.In my personal case, I was lucky to convince that my accuser’s claim is unfounded.

And What did I get? An exoneration from my bishop, and a casual apology from my accuser. The experience reminds me of Fr. Macial Maciel Degollado, who had to face hundred of accusers, yet Fr. Neuhaus still believed in the defendant’s innocence, and maintained that the complaint of minors’ molestation against the founder of the Legionaries of Christ was simply unbelievable, even absurd; and the mother of the alleged victim was only motivated by greed.

The defense sparked indignant protestations, “Fr. Neuhaus might be sued for infamy!” said a chorus of voices. Despite millions of claims to the contrary, I still believe myself in Fr Degollado’s innocense, regarding sex with minors, because the accusers are allowed by law to get off so breezily.

Every blessing for Christmas to you and all your fellow “housemates” especially poor fellows like JJ who feel alienated and alone.

It took me a while before I could bring myself to read your latest post. I just knew it was going to be a bit sad.

I am sorry for that person who attacked you with his words. The world would be such a better place if we learned to keep our hurtful opinions to ourselves. This is something I have to remind myself of almost daily.

Father, I sense you have inner peace even in that dreary place you are forced to call home.

I hope you and your fellow prisoners have a joyous Christmas remembering that God still loves all of you dearly.

Thank you for this post.I have been trying to imagine what it must be like for you at this time of year.

Your post gives a great insight although, it breaks my heart to think of you incarcerated and your fellow ‘inmates’ especially at this time of year. I can understand how it must make matters worse tenfold.

Father you have an amazing strength, your workouts are admirable and as the saying goes ‘healthy body healthy mind’ is true, it must be of great comfort to you to be able do these workouts.

How kind you were to JJ God bless him wherever he is. You are doing a marvellous Job father tending to your flock in prison. I am sure that God is very proud.

To be able to offer support to others when you, yourself are suffering is an admirable quality, which you have in abundance. You are doing God’s work and he will reward you with the justice you so richly deserve. How sad Someone from ‘voice of the faithful’ (I googled them!) felt they had to attack you.

We must pray for them and their lack of compassion and their sheer misguided rudeness. It is a sad fact in life that many will ‘attack’us for no apparent reason. My son suffered years of bullying at school for simply being a ‘vegetarian’ He now reflects upon his school days with sadness and where is the justice in that?

He still flinches at 19yrs old if we drive by his old school. I too always taught my son that ‘we are known by the company we keep’ and I too was brought up that way. When he made ‘friends’ I did not think would be a good influence on him, I would recite the phrase until he would smile, groan and say ‘I know mum, I know’ eventually he would ‘drop’ the friend without much of my imput but by sheer ‘learning’ .something our ‘friend’ from ‘voice of the faithful’ could do with I am sure.

With much love and blessings Gordon

Praying for you daily and I may drop by for ‘Mass’ when I work out the time difference and the protocol as a non catholic.

Please say a prayer for my mum Irene. she has her pre op Angiogram (I think you call it Angioplasty) on the 21st December. Please keep her safe.

Godbless you

Jan

When injury comes from an unknown person usually it kind of slides off one’s back. I am sorry for the person from Voice of the Faithful who subjected you to what you described.

These are the real people who need to be healed. As a man who works in a Chancery, I have to deal with “church people”. Unfortunately, while we are all sons and daughters of God through baptism, so many people give in to hate and rage.

It is a sign of our times. It is pervasive and everywhere. Your testimony as a priest unjustly “locked up” yet ministering to people, as “the one who serves” is refreshing to read in this time of Advent. It cheers me up that there is still Hope for the Church as long as there are people like you. No one is perfect that is for sure, but the time of Advent has us pray, “Rorate, caeli de super, et nubes pluant justum”.

According to my promise you are in my prayers every day. Once again at the last youth reatreat I preached, one young man prayed for “all those brothers who are incarcerated”. I thought of you.

Peace !

Really liked Patricia’s idea–maybe an addition to your blog for prayer requests of fellow prisoners. I know Keith and I have a whole litany of prayer requests mentioned during our prayer before dinner each evening, so would be pleased to add a few daily of those requested by your friends.

Much love to you, Gordon.
LaVern

While I believe it would be better to have you serving the Church outside prison walls, I know that God is doing great things through you during this time. These men are blessed to have known you.

As always, my prayers will continue for you as well as for your fellow inmates.
God bless you all.

Today at our Intercessors of the Lamb meeting one member was on a Miles Christi retreat and she was deep in prayer to our Blessed Mother and she felt the greatest promptings to pray for prisoners.

What a gift! As you know we pray constantly for all priests especially priests in crisis. You are a shepherd who feeds me spiritually and helps me go on and persevere in my little trials.

God Bless you Father,
Patricia

The first part of this post was really the one that got to me the most, because it’s a problem I have, too. I have a past. Maybe it doesn’t involve guns and violence, but constantly I’m amazed that anyone who knows what I used to be would ever want to know me now. I have a couple friends who are priests, and they know my history, at least by my allusions to it. And still…they WANT to be my friend. It nearly scandalizes me.

Father if I sat down in front of you right now and told you my history, my past, and even my present, I would look at you in the same way as your friend Joseph; I’d be looking askance, looking for that same horror, wondering when you would shut the door on me. I really admire Joseph, for it seems he had the courage I don’t. I’ve never gone to my friends for Confession; what they know they learned outside of the Sacrament.

Yet I’ve never had the courage to ask them what I wonder so deeply: “Why do you want to be my friend?”. Most people I know don’t know the depths to which I’ve descended, and I am sure that if some of them, family especially, did know…I’d be cut off forever.

Please let Joseph, and all those with similar stories know that the bars they are behind don’t make them any different than the rest of us. We all suffer the same questions, the same assumption that maybe we CAN’T change or overcome.

It seems to me that, as hard as this is for you, this is what God intended for your priesthood. The more I read, the more I am convinced that you are there because of the desperate need of your ministry there; something that can’t come from a mere chaplain, but someone who is ONE of them. And your innocence makes you all the more into Christ, especially as He descended to the dead on Holy Saturday. Your life is Holy Saturday….all of it, in depths most of us will NEVER know.

Thank you for this blog, for your ongoing stories, for all of it. Please pray for us….I know without a doubt that we are all praying for you. We also pray for your fellow prisoners. Please make sure they know that. Maybe there should be a blog for their particular prayer requests!