US Jesuits agree $166 million abuse payout
NW Jesuits to pay largest sex abuse settlement in U.S. history
First, the numbers: 500 victims over a period of roughly 60 years. That means on average 9 new victims came into the system every year for 55 years on this settlement alone. There were previous claims totaling more than $60 million brought by dozens of other abuse victims. Please don't tell me that these were just "a few rotten eggs" bringing discredit on an otherwise saintly group of faithful workers. Even if they were not participating in the abuse there must have been an even wider circle of priests and nuns, including religious superiors, who knew exactly what was going on but kept things hushed up in a conspiracy of silence either out of "loyalty" to their "friends" in the Society or out of fear of "scandal" should the word get out, or both. No Saint Mary MacKillop here although one was sorely needed.
Then there is the depth of depravity. Forty-nine (49) victims from this group were abused when they were 8 years old or younger.
One of those victims, Patti Webb, was just 6 years old in 1962 when she was taken to St. Mary's. Alone and scared, the daughter of an alcoholic - absent mother, Webb says the sexual molestation started right away.
She said Father Morse "did whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted."
"He'd say, 'You're coming into my office. You're getting a whipping.' Well, yeah, you'd get a whippin' but you'd get a lot more than that."
If she refused to "participate," as Father Morse called it, she was locked up in a pitch-black root cellar with a dirt floor that was crawling with spiders.
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| Fr. John Morse S.J. |
Oh, God. Oh, dear Lord. Multiply this story hundreds of times over and that amounts to lots and lots of suffering, traumatised children with no one to go to for solace or understanding and lots of people who will be driven away from Catholicism, Christianity and faith in God.
The only ray of light in this story would appear to be that this particular group of victims seems to be satisfied with the settlement of $166 milion - at least the ones who are still alive. I'm not convinced that they will get it all considering that the Jesuits have gone into bankruptcy.
