Diocese of Scranton Secretive and Silent on Bishop’s Impending Resignation

On the Diocese of Scranton website is an announcement regarding a press conference next week, presumably to announce the resignation of Bishop Martino.

The Announcement reads:

Diocese of Scranton To Make Announcement
The Diocese of Scranton will conduct a news conference this Monday, Aug. 31, at 10 a.m. The news conference is not open to the public, and the location cannot be disclosed.

The news conference will be broadcast live on Catholic Television: CTV. Afterward, a video of the news conference can be viewed on the Diocesan website at www.dioceseofscranton.org

There will be no comment from the Diocese prior to the news conference.

The comment boards on the Scranton Times-Tribune website are chock full of posts, mostly in favor of the Patriarch of the Electric City’s impending departure.  There are still apologists and staunch supporters of the bishop that are placing blame on “liberals”  for Martino’s resignation.  Funny, looking back over his tenure one can find all kinds of evidence that he was the architect of his own demise.

One of the biggest discussion points in the comment threads I have read today imply that he is leaving for health reasons.  Flags should be going up on this idea.  When a priest in this diocese disappears for “health” reasons, there is usually something a lot more sinister at work.  Father Robert Gibson, the man who raped me when I was 13, was removed for “health” reasons. I am sure that if you go down the list of the notorious priests of the Diocese of Scranton, at least the list that is public knowledge, you will find all kinds of retirements and early departures for “health” reasons.

The Diocese is keeping the location of the news conference a secret and will not allow the public to attend.  Why be open and forthright when you can be secretive and closed off?  Abuse has always flourished in an environment of secrecy.   Abuse has always thrived in the Diocese of Scranton.

I have some questions for the Chancellor of the Diocese.  Really, you think waiting until Monday to explain what is going on is a good idea?  You don’t think that others will get control of this story? In an information vacuum, other ideas will take hold and will be hard to displace because you have waited so long to tell people. Are you afraid that an angry mob of torch bearing peasants will march on the cathedral? Or is it a simple case of not yet knowing which lie to tell that may seem to placate the masses?

Perhaps the Bully of Wyoming Avenue is busy preparing his farewell encyclical. My advise to the bishop is this, don’t go away mad, just go away!

Bishop Dougherty, Mr. Earley and Mr. Genello should tender their resignations right along with the boss. Bishop Timlin should also borrow a pick-up truck, load up the La-Z-Boy and move on out to the country.  Now is the time to clean house in Scranton!