Betrayal : the crisis in the Catholic Church / by the Investigative Staff of the Boston Globe.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Globe Newspaper Co.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Catholic Church--United States--Clergy--Sexual behaviour.

Catholic Church.

Child sexual abuse by clergy--United States.

Child sexual abuse by clergy.

Clergy.

United States.

Physical Description:

xiii, 274 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 24 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Other Title:

Crisis in the Catholic Church

Place of Publication:

Boston : Little, Brown, [2002]

Summary:

They were the men most trusted: Father Geoghan, Father Birmingham, Father Shanley, Father Trupia, and hundreds of others. They were the rulers of the Catholic Church: Cardinal Law, Cardinal Egan, Cardinal Mahony, and others. They promised to live by the gospel and to care for their parishioners. And they were believed. Now, the investigative staff of the Boston Globe delivers the full, devastating account of the Church's decades-long cover-up that has left millions of American Catholics shocked and angry. Spanning the United States and the entire Church hierarchy, Betrayal tells the story of scores of abusive priests who preyed upon innocent children, and the cabal of senior Church officials who covered up their crimes. When accused, abusive priests were quietly whisked away by Church officials to new parishes. While Church leaders were excessively compassionate toward priests who were alleged to have raped children, they treated the victims with scorn and cold indifference. Politicians, police, and prosecutors often deferred to the Church, allowing habitual abusers shelter and escape. The Church secretly paid out more than $1.3 billion in "hush money" to buy victims' silence -- and thus keep tens of millions of Catholics from knowing the truth about the men who ran their parishes.

It was the Boston Globe in January 2002 that broke the story of how the Boston archdiocese coddled pedophile priest John Geoghan, triggering the scandal within the Catholic Church, and throughout the crisis the Globe has continued to lead the media in reporting on major developments. Betrayal adds new, never-before-disclosed details. It shows exactly how and to where abusive priests were shuffled, as well as who knew about the problem and did nothing to stop it. Betrayal also explores the nature of sexual abuse and whether a disproportionate number of abusers are found in the priesthood -- and, if so, why. And the book paints a vivid picture of the struggle ahead, as Catholics confront their Church and call for sweeping change.

Contents:

1 Father Geoghan 11

2 Cover-Up 31

3 The Predators 54

4 The Victims 78

5 Explosion 98

6 The Decline of Deference 119

7 His Eminence 141

8 Sex and the Church 164

9 The Struggle for Change 183

Appendix The Documents 205.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 251-263) and index.

ISBN:

0316075582

OCLC:

50029861