Priest dies two days after stating he was not the author of letter addressed to Cardinal O'Connor claiming Bishop of Albany was sexually involved with his priests.
I've heard from some that it was a suicide, but I'm guessing the police in Albany are suspicious.
From Fox News:
The Rev. John Minkler, 57, was found dead Sunday in his home in Watervliet. Police there won't say how or when Minkler died.
"He was very disturbed that his name was associated with this letter and he wanted to assure me that he was not its author," Albany Bishop Howard Hubbard said Monday.
Last week, Andrew Zalay said Hubbard had abused his brother, Thomas Zalay, 30 years ago. Thomas Zalay committed suicide in 1978.
Hubbard has maintained he has never broken his vow of celibacy and has denied ever sexually abusing anyone. He also says he has handled all claims of abuse by clergy seriously and has dismissed several abusive priests.
Minkler was ordained in 1972 and had been chaplain of the Stratton Veterans Administration Hospital (search) in Albany for about 20 years.
"This is a tragedy no matter what the circumstances," Hubbard said. "A priest has died and I have great sympathy for his family and they will be very much in my prayers."
Prosecutors have declined to investigate the 30-year-old claim against Hubbard, saying the allegation didn't represent a crime. The Albany Diocese (search), which represents more than 400,000 Catholics, has said it will hire its own investigator to look into Zalay's claim.
A copy of the 1995 letter to the archdiocese in New York City surfaced following a press conference last week called by a lawyer who has represented several alleged victims of sexual abuse by priests. The Albany Diocese in a statement issued Monday said Minkler was identified as the letter's author in a television news report.
"The purported letter" to the late Cardinal John O'Connor (search) was denied by Minkler in a written statement and no such letter was found in the files of the archdiocese, according to the Albany Diocese statement.
Amy has more on this over at Open Book.
Monday, February 16, 2004
Update on Father Benedict (Mother Teresa's Express Novena)
An interestig side note is the revelation of Mother Teresa's express novena...
From Father Glenn:
"Both Father Juniper and Brother Daniel Marie report that today was a quiet day for Father B. He didn't attempt to get into his 'lounge chair'; although Father is a fighter, he does know his limits. In fact, today he said something to a nurse which one rarely hears coming from the lips of Father Benedict. He said, 'I don't want to overdue it!' I have known Father for close to thirty years - I have never heard him say this! Well, thank God he knows that even he must respect his limitations. He wants to go home yesterday, but every evening I remind him that we can't make a move without the doctor's 'green light'.
Today he called the friars over to his bedside; he wanted to pray. He began to pray the Memorare - nine times in a row. Those of you who knew Mother Teresa know that this is her famous 'express novena'. When she wanted something 'pronto', she would gather with her sisters and pray this prayer. Now, I'm not a mind reader, but I suspect Father B. had one ear turned toward the phone hoping it was his doctor who would say, 'Father Benedict, start packin''. On the other hand, he might have been praying to receive a special grace for patience - which he needed real quick!"
From Father Glenn:
"Both Father Juniper and Brother Daniel Marie report that today was a quiet day for Father B. He didn't attempt to get into his 'lounge chair'; although Father is a fighter, he does know his limits. In fact, today he said something to a nurse which one rarely hears coming from the lips of Father Benedict. He said, 'I don't want to overdue it!' I have known Father for close to thirty years - I have never heard him say this! Well, thank God he knows that even he must respect his limitations. He wants to go home yesterday, but every evening I remind him that we can't make a move without the doctor's 'green light'.
Today he called the friars over to his bedside; he wanted to pray. He began to pray the Memorare - nine times in a row. Those of you who knew Mother Teresa know that this is her famous 'express novena'. When she wanted something 'pronto', she would gather with her sisters and pray this prayer. Now, I'm not a mind reader, but I suspect Father B. had one ear turned toward the phone hoping it was his doctor who would say, 'Father Benedict, start packin''. On the other hand, he might have been praying to receive a special grace for patience - which he needed real quick!"
Sunday, February 15, 2004
Who Killed Jesus?
I had a conversation the other day with a good friend, a Jewish woman, who I've blogged about on these pages before. She is very upset and fears that the release of Mel Gibson's movie will unlease an uprise of anti-semitism. We talked about this for some time and at the time while trying ally her fears--I really felt that she was over reacting. Until, of course, I recall her personal history.
She grew up a young Jewish girl in very Catholic Poland in the 1930's and 40's. Surrounded by Christians, she witnessed first hand the complicity of many who willingly handed over their Jewish neighbors to the nazis. She and her family survived through the help of other Catholics--who gave them a "Catholic" cover; fake baptism certificates, allowed them into their churches and ultimately saved their lives. But one only has to put themselves in the place of a twelve year old who knows they are being hunted down sitting in a church and looking up at the stations of the cross and seeing the passion of Christ in an entirely different light.
So then armed with some compassion, I revisit this issue again. It bothers me that Mel Gibson cut the scene with Caiphas yelling, "His blood be upon and our children." It after all is a line from the Gospels. I would have rather he had kept the scene in and interwoven a scene from the Exodus where Moses sprinkles the blood that has been sacrificed to ratify the covenant upon the heads of the people. Then, the scene becomes one of the priests unwittingly invoking salvation upon the Jewish people, not giving bigots and ignorant people a blank check to disregard the entire Gospel message of love and to use it as a reason to hate anyone.
After all, the same Gospel that some used to fuel hatred for the Jewish people--of which Jesus and his Blessed Mother were members of that same chosen race, enabled some Catholics in Poland to shield and protect Jews during the shoah. Obviously, it is a matter of clearly understanding the Gospel and its demands for a radical response of love.
So who killed Jesus, might better be asked by who continues to kill Jesus? This puts the ball in our court--"when I was hungry, when I was naked, when I was in prison, when I was a stranger," etc. (Matthew 25)...it could well be us!
The Gospels portray the religious and world leaders turning against the innocent Christ...it wasn't something that was specifially "Roman" or Jewish" but rather something that was a "world' event and when it comes to reliving the Passion of the Christ it is always us, not any race of people, who stand in the crowd screaming "crucify him" and we can only hope that his redemptive blood will be upon us and our children.
She grew up a young Jewish girl in very Catholic Poland in the 1930's and 40's. Surrounded by Christians, she witnessed first hand the complicity of many who willingly handed over their Jewish neighbors to the nazis. She and her family survived through the help of other Catholics--who gave them a "Catholic" cover; fake baptism certificates, allowed them into their churches and ultimately saved their lives. But one only has to put themselves in the place of a twelve year old who knows they are being hunted down sitting in a church and looking up at the stations of the cross and seeing the passion of Christ in an entirely different light.
So then armed with some compassion, I revisit this issue again. It bothers me that Mel Gibson cut the scene with Caiphas yelling, "His blood be upon and our children." It after all is a line from the Gospels. I would have rather he had kept the scene in and interwoven a scene from the Exodus where Moses sprinkles the blood that has been sacrificed to ratify the covenant upon the heads of the people. Then, the scene becomes one of the priests unwittingly invoking salvation upon the Jewish people, not giving bigots and ignorant people a blank check to disregard the entire Gospel message of love and to use it as a reason to hate anyone.
After all, the same Gospel that some used to fuel hatred for the Jewish people--of which Jesus and his Blessed Mother were members of that same chosen race, enabled some Catholics in Poland to shield and protect Jews during the shoah. Obviously, it is a matter of clearly understanding the Gospel and its demands for a radical response of love.
So who killed Jesus, might better be asked by who continues to kill Jesus? This puts the ball in our court--"when I was hungry, when I was naked, when I was in prison, when I was a stranger," etc. (Matthew 25)...it could well be us!
The Gospels portray the religious and world leaders turning against the innocent Christ...it wasn't something that was specifially "Roman" or Jewish" but rather something that was a "world' event and when it comes to reliving the Passion of the Christ it is always us, not any race of people, who stand in the crowd screaming "crucify him" and we can only hope that his redemptive blood will be upon us and our children.
Saturday, February 14, 2004
Bishop Takes Public Stand Against Notre Dame
Good for Bishop D'Arcy! Unfortunately not only is Notre Dame having a performance of the V-Monologues but also is having a "Queer" film fest.
I know many good and holy alumni of Notre Dame. Is this what you remember about your alma mater? The Bishop's stand will mean more if you the alumni of Notre Dame back him and threaten to cut off all support. Notre Dame's prestige comes from its being the premier Catholic University in the United States--but because of weak leadership from within its days as a "Catholic" university may be numbered.
From A Statement by the Bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend:
"Also, what possible advantage can this text have to the common good of society or of the church? I have dialogued on this matter with Father Edward Malloy, CSC, most recently in an exchange of letters initiated by me this past summer, in which I shared with him my pastoral concern. Such quiet dialogues on difficult matters have always been my modus operandi with Notre Dame and the other Catholic institutions of higher learning in our diocese, especially on difficult issues. This is in the spirit of Ex Corde Ecclesiae which calls for a spirit of friendship between bishops and university leadership through close personal and pastoral relationships characterized by mutual trust, close and constant cooperation and continuing dialogues. But a bishop has an obligation to teach, and there comes a time when the young people at Notre Dame, many of whom, along with their parents, have written to me over the years about this text, need to know the judgment of the bishop on a moral question at a time when clarity about the teaching of the church is required. A bishop can never refuse to exercise this responsibility so central to his vocation.
As an example of a sound moral choice within the context of true academic freedom, I would like to refer to Portland University, a sister institution of Notre Dame, also under the Congregation of Holy Cross. There, Rev. David Tyson, CSC, at that time president of Portland, after reading the text and consulting his deans, who also read the text, determined that it was inappropriate to the mission of a Catholic university, and the play was cancelled.
I know many good and holy alumni of Notre Dame. Is this what you remember about your alma mater? The Bishop's stand will mean more if you the alumni of Notre Dame back him and threaten to cut off all support. Notre Dame's prestige comes from its being the premier Catholic University in the United States--but because of weak leadership from within its days as a "Catholic" university may be numbered.
From A Statement by the Bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend:
"Also, what possible advantage can this text have to the common good of society or of the church? I have dialogued on this matter with Father Edward Malloy, CSC, most recently in an exchange of letters initiated by me this past summer, in which I shared with him my pastoral concern. Such quiet dialogues on difficult matters have always been my modus operandi with Notre Dame and the other Catholic institutions of higher learning in our diocese, especially on difficult issues. This is in the spirit of Ex Corde Ecclesiae which calls for a spirit of friendship between bishops and university leadership through close personal and pastoral relationships characterized by mutual trust, close and constant cooperation and continuing dialogues. But a bishop has an obligation to teach, and there comes a time when the young people at Notre Dame, many of whom, along with their parents, have written to me over the years about this text, need to know the judgment of the bishop on a moral question at a time when clarity about the teaching of the church is required. A bishop can never refuse to exercise this responsibility so central to his vocation.
As an example of a sound moral choice within the context of true academic freedom, I would like to refer to Portland University, a sister institution of Notre Dame, also under the Congregation of Holy Cross. There, Rev. David Tyson, CSC, at that time president of Portland, after reading the text and consulting his deans, who also read the text, determined that it was inappropriate to the mission of a Catholic university, and the play was cancelled.
Feast of St. Cyril and Methodius
But most will celebrate the lesser saints of the day, choose one of the three St. Valentine's commemorated today. Most of us have learned stories that combine all three into one.
From CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: St. Valentine:
"At least three different Saint Valentines, all of them martyrs, are mentioned in the early martyrologies under date of 14 February. One is described as a priest at Rome, another as bishop of Interamna (modern Terni), and these two seem both to have suffered in the second half of the third century and to have been buried on the Flaminian Way, but at different distances from the city. In William of Malmesbury's time what was known to the ancients as the Flaminian Gate of Rome and is now the Porta del Popolo, was called the Gate of St. Valentine. The name seems to have been taken from a small church dedicated to the saint which was in the immediate neighborhood. Of both these St. Valentines some sort of Acta are preserved but they are of relatively late date and of no historical value. Of the third Saint Valentine, who suffered in Africa with a number of companions, nothing further is known.
From CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: St. Valentine:
"At least three different Saint Valentines, all of them martyrs, are mentioned in the early martyrologies under date of 14 February. One is described as a priest at Rome, another as bishop of Interamna (modern Terni), and these two seem both to have suffered in the second half of the third century and to have been buried on the Flaminian Way, but at different distances from the city. In William of Malmesbury's time what was known to the ancients as the Flaminian Gate of Rome and is now the Porta del Popolo, was called the Gate of St. Valentine. The name seems to have been taken from a small church dedicated to the saint which was in the immediate neighborhood. Of both these St. Valentines some sort of Acta are preserved but they are of relatively late date and of no historical value. Of the third Saint Valentine, who suffered in Africa with a number of companions, nothing further is known.
Four Nuns Kept off Flight
Obviously, we're talking about four nuns in habits.
From CNN.com - Nuns among six passengers kept off American flight - Feb. 12, 2004:
"Four California nuns say they were among six passengers kept off an American Airlines flight in January after crew members complained of a sulfur smell in the cabin and ordered passengers off the plane.
'I felt discriminated very much, because the four of us were taken out from that group, kept us aside, not telling us why we were there,' said Sister Tessy Pius, the principal of Mary Immaculate Queen School in Lemoore, California. She and the three other nuns are natives of India and are employed at the school.
The nuns were among the group of passengers held in Dallas, Texas, for additional screening before being allowed to board another flight to Fresno, California, January 2, American Airlines spokesman Tim Wagner told CNN.
At the time, airlines were acting under strict security rules because the national threat level was orange, or high. When the Department of Homeland Security raised the threat level December 21 from yellow to orange, it warned that al Qaeda may use international flights to launch attacks on the United States. "
From CNN.com - Nuns among six passengers kept off American flight - Feb. 12, 2004:
"Four California nuns say they were among six passengers kept off an American Airlines flight in January after crew members complained of a sulfur smell in the cabin and ordered passengers off the plane.
'I felt discriminated very much, because the four of us were taken out from that group, kept us aside, not telling us why we were there,' said Sister Tessy Pius, the principal of Mary Immaculate Queen School in Lemoore, California. She and the three other nuns are natives of India and are employed at the school.
The nuns were among the group of passengers held in Dallas, Texas, for additional screening before being allowed to board another flight to Fresno, California, January 2, American Airlines spokesman Tim Wagner told CNN.
At the time, airlines were acting under strict security rules because the national threat level was orange, or high. When the Department of Homeland Security raised the threat level December 21 from yellow to orange, it warned that al Qaeda may use international flights to launch attacks on the United States. "
Friday, February 13, 2004
Dad of Kerry Intern, "I think he's a sleazeball."
I heard Kerry on Imus this morning, lot of coughing, didn't sound well. He denied that there was anything to this story.
From The Sun Newspaper Online - UK's biggest selling newspaper:
"PRESIDENTIAL hopeful John Kerry was branded a "sleazeball" last night by the parents of a young woman he allegedly tried to woo.
Alex Polier, 24, was named as the woman at the centre of a scandal that threatens to damage Democrat Kerry's bid for the White House.
Her mother Donna claims Kerry, 60 -dubbed the new JFK - once chased Alex to be on his campaign team and was "after her".
There is no evidence the pair had an affair, but her father Terry, 56, said: "I think he's a sleazeball. I did kind of wonder if my daughter didn't get that kind of feeling herself.
"He's not the sort of guy I would choose to be with my daughter."
Terry, of Malvern, Pennsylvania, added: "John Kerry called my daughter and invited her down to Washington two or three years ago.
"He invited her to be on his re-election committee. She talked to him and decided against it."
From The Sun Newspaper Online - UK's biggest selling newspaper:
"PRESIDENTIAL hopeful John Kerry was branded a "sleazeball" last night by the parents of a young woman he allegedly tried to woo.
Alex Polier, 24, was named as the woman at the centre of a scandal that threatens to damage Democrat Kerry's bid for the White House.
Her mother Donna claims Kerry, 60 -dubbed the new JFK - once chased Alex to be on his campaign team and was "after her".
There is no evidence the pair had an affair, but her father Terry, 56, said: "I think he's a sleazeball. I did kind of wonder if my daughter didn't get that kind of feeling herself.
"He's not the sort of guy I would choose to be with my daughter."
Terry, of Malvern, Pennsylvania, added: "John Kerry called my daughter and invited her down to Washington two or three years ago.
"He invited her to be on his re-election committee. She talked to him and decided against it."
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