Off My Knees – A Blog by Michael Baumann
Standing up for myself and other victims of sexual abuse by clergy.
A letter by was released by the President of the University of Scranton, Scott R. Pilarz, S.J., to the University on August 20, 2018, concerning the Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report. It outlines proactive steps being implemented at the "The U" as a result of the findings presented by the Grand Jury. Some of the actions include the… Continue reading The University of Scranton Takes Action
Since my last post, I have spoken briefly with an investigator. I am looking forward to a more in-depth interview with him. He initially offered to meet me here in Virginia until he realized that I was much further south than he expected. Contact has been made. He seems to be working a very large… Continue reading Dialed the number. Now I wait…
I am writing this from the low country of South Carolina. A break needed to assess where I am and where I am going. I am also working on a project that I will keep under wraps for the time being. The first steps are proving to be very challenging. After the post from July… Continue reading The Answer to “What is it going to take?”
I wrote a blog post in February, 2013 titled "Is there a Survivors' Community" in which I was looking for answers from survivors about our community, our way forward and who speaks for us. In May,2013 I expressed my frustration in another post, "Crickets, Silence on the net..." that I did not hear from anyone in… Continue reading What is it going to take?
The last time I had gone to a reunion, the great terrible secret was still under wraps. I had gone with 2 purposes, one of them was to find out if Gibson was still alive and destroying lives. The second was to try to exorcise the memories of what had happened. I was… Continue reading Reunion
This morning I read an article on-line from CatholicCulture.org on the United Nations probe into torture and the Vatican. I find it amusing that the UN, the world’s most ineffective organization, is creating theater of the absurd with the Holy See, the world’s most recalcitrant organization. The piece I was reading, written by Phil Lawler,… Continue reading Reply to CatholicCulture.org’s Misunderstanding of Torture
"The beginning of wisdom is the definition of terms." Socrates An article on the Vatican Radio's Website reported on a request from Pope Francis for forgiveness for the priests who committed sexual crimes against children. During his prepared remarks to members of BICE [International Catholic Child Bureau] whom he received on 11 April 2014 in an… Continue reading A Papal Request for Forgiveness Begs Clarification
Another story of extravagance and arrogance at the expense of parishioners. Here is a story about the Bishop of Atlanta and his new digs. Hey what is $22M when it comes to the comfort of a Prince of the Church. Didn't the Pope just fire a Bishop in Germany for this kind of thing? I'm… Continue reading In case you were wondering if the Bishops still don’t get it…
An article in the Scranton Times-Tribune online follows up on the story of Carlos Urrutigoiry and his elevation to a position of authority over priests accused of misconduct in a Catholic Diocese in Paraguay. The National Director of SNAP, David Chlohessy, is demanding the Diocese release the files on the Urrutigoiry and the events that… Continue reading Scranton Times-Tribune Coverage of the Urrutigoiry Story
According to an article in the Pocono Record on 14 March 2014, a priest who was credibly accused of molesting boys in Shohola (Pike County) and Moscow (Lackawanna County), Pennsylvania has been elevated to the post of Vicar General of Ciudad del Este Diocese in Paraguay. Now a Monsignor, Carlos Urrutigoity will be in charge of… Continue reading Promoting Pedaphiles
Off My Knees - A Blog by Michael Baumann 