Cash for Cardinal's luxury pad sparks Vatican probe

 

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Vatican City (AFP) - The Vatican has opened an investigation into the financing of renovations at a luxury penthouse occupied by Italian cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the former number two in the Holy See hierarchy, officials said Thursday.

Spread across hundreds of square metres at the top of the Palazzo San Carlo and boasting a huge terrace with magnificent views over Rome, Bertone's sumptuous retirement pad has became synonymous with the kind of clerical extravagance Pope Francis has vowed to stamp out.

Now it is set to cause further embarrassment to the famously frugal pontiff after it was confirmed that a probe has been launched into how 200,000 euros' worth of the renovation costs came to be paid by a Foundation linked to Rome's Bambino Gesu (Baby Jesus) children's hospital, which is run by the Vatican.

Bertone himself is not under investigation but officials are examining the conduct of the hospital's former chairman, Giuseppe Profiti, and its former finance chief, Massimo Spina, a Vatican spokesman said.

The probe follows revelations by investigative journalist Emiliano Fittipaldi, who is one of two reporters currently on trial in a Vatican court for obtaining classified documents which provide evidence of waste, irregularities and extravagance in the Holy See's finances.

The controversial trial is currently suspended due to the ill health of one of the three Vatican officials charged alongside the journalists.

Press freedom bodies have attacked the Vatican for prosecuting journalists whose revelations have been shown to have been in the interest of the Church and its followers.

Earlier this year, Francis announced new rules for the naming of saints after Fittipaldi and his co-accused Gianluigi Nuzzi revealed how the current system could be abused to generate large profits for private companies connected to the Vatican.

The books also highlight how flats like the one occupied by Bertone are frequently let out at peppercorn rents with no system in place to decide on what basis they should be allocated.

The cardinal's apartment is frequently described as being nearly 700 square metres (7,500 square feet) in size. He insists it is less than half that and has stressed that he shares it with the three nuns who look after him and his private secretary.

Above is from:  http://news.yahoo.com/cash-cardinals-luxury-pad-sparks-vatican-probe-142823147.html

St James Weekly Collections for the weekend of March 20, 2016

 

Two additional pledges;  $ 25.00 total incerease.

St James weekly collection for weekend of March 13, 2016

 

St James weekly collection for weekend of March 13, 2016

Gallup Diocese Files Plan to Compensate Abuse Victims

• By
• Tom Corrigan

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Gallup, N.M., on Monday unveiled a $22 million reorganization plan, the bulk of which will be used to compensate 57 clergy sexual-abuse victims.

The plan, filed Monday with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Albuquerque, N.M., lays out how the diocese expects to repay its creditors, the vast majority of whom say they were sexually abused by the diocese’s clergy decades ago.

The Diocese of Gallup, which serves about 60,000 parishioners in New Mexico, Arizona and several Native American reservations, filed for chapter 11 protection in late 2013. The filing halted more than a dozen lawsuits related to sexual-abuse allegations.

“It is impossible to overstate the tragedy of the abuse that was inflicted on the children and teenagers of the diocese,” lawyers for the diocese said Monday in court papers.

The bankruptcy plan, which is subject to the approval of Judge David Thuma, was largely drawn up in court-ordered mediation sessions after initial talks with the diocese’s insurance carriers and other participants broke down.

The plan relies on at least $22 million to repay victims as well as lawyers and other creditors. Of that amount, $11.55 million would come from a settlement in which diocesan insurer Catholic Mutual will buy back its policies. The diocese itself is slated to contribute just over $3 million to the plan.

“This contribution is a real stretch for both the diocese and the parishes,” diocese lawyer Susan Boswell, said in an interview Monday, referring to the Gallup diocese’s status as one of the poorest dioceses in the country.

Other insurance carriers, the Diocese of Phoenix, some of the Diocese of Gallup’s parishes, two Franciscan religious orders and two foundations that support the diocese will also contribute to the restructuring plan.

In return for their contributions, the Gallup diocese and others will receive protection from future lawsuits tied to past abuse. The bankruptcy plan also restructures other aspects of the diocese’s finances, which it says will help it continue its ministries, child protection programs and services for the poor.

Non-monetary terms negotiated as part of the bankruptcy—which many victims say are more meaningful than monetary compensation and often include apology letters and provisions aimed at protecting children from abuse in the future—are still being negotiated. Victims lawyer James Stang said in court Monday that he hopes to file a list of those provisions with the court by the end of the week.

In an interview, Mr. Stang called the bankruptcy plan and the expected payout for victims a “fair deal.”

The average award per victims is expected to be greater than what victims won in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee’s bankruptcy, which came to a close in November after five years of bitter legal battling.

The archdiocese settled with nearly 600 victims for $21 million. About 350 victims shared the bulk of that settlement, and about another 100 victims each received $2,000, court papers show.

The bill for bankruptcy lawyers and other professionals in the Milwaukee Archdiocese’s case rose to about $21 million.  Similar fees and expenses in Gallup will top $3 million, according to Ms. Boswell.

The Gallup diocese is one of 15 Catholic dioceses and religious orders that have used bankruptcy to address mounting sexual abuse lawsuits. Since 2004, the Catholic Church in the U.S. has paid out an estimated $3 billion to cover settlements, therapy for victims, support for offenders, attorney fees and other costs, according to a report by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Write to Tom Corrigan at tom.corrigan@wsj.com

Above is from:  http://blogs.wsj.com/bankruptcy/2016/03/21/gallup-diocese-files-plan-to-compensate-abuse-victims/

Weekly Collections St. James Church weekend of March 6, 2016

 

 

Five additional pledged; $123.00 additional pledged.

St. James weekly collection for weekend of February 28, 2016

 

Two new pledges; $195.00 pledged.

Two Pennsylvania Bishops Hid Hundreds of Child Sex Abuse Cases, Report Says

 

 

Grand-jury report says abuse involved more than 50 priests or religious leaders over a 40-year period

Associated Press

March 1, 2016 11:09 a.m. ET

ALTOONA, Pa.—A new grand-jury report claims two Roman Catholic bishops in a central Pennsylvania diocese helped cover up the sexual abuse of hundreds of children by over 50 priests or religious leaders over a 40-year period.

The 147-page report on sexual abuse in the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese was made public Tuesday by Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane.

Ms. Kane says none of the alleged criminal acts can be prosecuted because some abusers have died, statutes of limitations have run their course and victims are too traumatized to testify.

The findings are based partly on evidence from a once-secret diocesan archive.

The report is critical of Bishop James Hogan and his successor, Joseph Adamec. Bishop Hogan died in 2005 and Bishop Adamec retired in 2011. Bishop Adamec’s attorney says the accusations against the bishop are unfounded.

Above is from:  http://www.wsj.com/articles/two-pennsylvania-bishops-hid-hundreds-of-child-sex-abuse-cases-report-says-1456848570