Epistles on Clergy Abuse: The Clergy Abuse Scandal Chronicled Through Letters

By Vincent J. Nauheimer

What makes Epistles on Clergy Abuse unique? It is written from a very personal perspective; it is a living chronological history of the clergy abuse scandal in letter form; it contains numerous no-holds barred letters sent to the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church in America over a nine year period; the letters hoist the hierarchy on their own petard using quotes from Scripture, Canon Law and the Catechism. This book offers proof that the hierarchy has and continues to bamboozle the public with their shallow cries of protecting innocent priests when, according to all that is holy, they knew they had both the means and the power to punish sexually abusive priests at their disposal. Epistles on Clergy Abuse also holds the hierarchy accountable for failing to cleanse their own ranks for bringing grave scandal upon the church.

In addition to the letters to the hierarchy are the letters to survivors. At times angry, passionate, heart-wrenching and sometimes humorous, these letters give the reader a unique insight into the world of the online clergy sexual abuse support groups. Nothing like this has been written before and it is not likely that correspondence sent over the course of several years regarding such a horrific subject will ever be put together again.

This is the book the hierarchy does not want read. It exposes them for the frauds they are, the folly that holds their sway and the wretched effects of their damnable failure to protect the children of Catholic families across the country. Nauheimer knows first hand how his writings have enabled others to come forward and find their voices. He hopes that by reading Epistles on Clergy Abuse, the general public and the Catholic laity will seek the removal of those in the hierarchy hell bent on protecting priests who would and have raped, sodomized and molested children. The hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church by their omissions and commissions have perpetuated an unspeakable evil and it has to stop.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Mar 3, 2006
• ISBN: 9781462820856

Vincent J. Nauheimer

Vinnie Nauheimer has written extensively on the subject of Clergy Abuse. He has written numerous poems, short stories, a play “The Predator Wore a Collar” and his book of poetry, Silent Screams, Poetry Born of Clergy Abuse, has helped many survivors along their path to healing. The cover illustrations of both Silent Screams and Epistles on Clergy Abuse are original oil paintings created by the author. He and his family were successful in their efforts to have an offending priest defrocked several years after filing their lawsuit. Nauheimer believes that the true culprits of the Clergy Sexual Abuse Scandal, the current hierarchy of the Catholic Church, have not yet been held accountable for their part in the rape, sodomization and molestation of thousands of children. This book chronicles his attempts to call the hierarchy to account for their arrogance, failures, and their total disregard for the health and welfare of the innocent children placed in their trust. Through his letters, he offers both a uniquely intimate and historical perspective of the clergy abuse scandal. His writing started in 1997 after being viciously and publicly attacked by the New York Archdiocese for having the audacity to file a lawsuit when his complaints against one of their priests went unanswered. The journey is an eye-opener as he comes to grip with the realization that the Clergy Abuse Scandal is not about individual priests, but rather about the broader, deeper and more destructive evil that plagues the hierarchy of the United States and the church they run. Follow his journey in letters as he graduates from an individual effort against the NY Archdiocese to the broader more insidious church wide issues of the clergy abuse scandal. These are his letters to the hierarchy, to the editor, and to the people he holds in the highest regard, the survivors of clergy abuse. These letters will elicit sympathy, anger, frustration and tears. They document a journey no person should ever have taken, but once on the road, Nauheimer never looked back.

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Copyright © 2006 by Vincent J. Nauheimer.

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CONTENTS

Part I

Letters to the Clergy

Part II

Letters to the Editor

Part III

Letters to Survivors

Dedication

This book is dedicated to all those who have suffered the devastating effects of sexual abuse. Regardless of who the perpetrator was, the aftermath of sexual abuse is always horrendous.

The focus of this book is the clergy sexual abuse committed by members of the Roman Catholic Church. It is a particularly vile form of sexual abuse in that it is a severe breach of trust as depraved as incest. After all, priests are called, Father.

This book goes out to all those who have paid a personal price for the Roman Catholic Clergy Abuse Scandal: survivors, families of survivors and friends of survivors.

Acknowledgements

To my wife and children who have been deprived of my time in direct proportion to the amount of time that I have spent in front of the computer screen writing. Thank you. I’m sure some of this was more than trying. However, spending my time trying to prevent the abuse of children and helping those who have been abused has been a very worthwhile cause, but it was time taken at your expense. I want you to know that I fully understand this and hope that you will too. You know how much I love all of you.

To the wonderful and delightful Kay. Kay has been my sounding board, my biggest cheerleader and friend extraordinaire and a very diligent editor. Her down to earth wisdom and delightful sense of humor have been a godsend. She has helped with every list she has been a member of and was one of the managers of the Link-up listserv. We have traveled the road to healing and spirituality together. My only regret is having met her in person only once.

I would like to acknowledge all the members of the original online SNAP group, the subsequent SOAR group and the Linkup Listserv. They were a great sounding board for many of my letters to the hierarchy and also a continuing source of encouragement to keep the cards and letters flowing. In particular, I would like to mention the people that made those boards work: Mike and Clare for the SNAP, Phil for SOAR and Jay for the Linkup Listservs. The debt owed these people by survivors can never be fully measured. They ran the backrooms that brought healing to thousands of survivors. These boards were the combined backbone which gave individual survivors the strength and support they needed to go public.

Next I would like to mention the work of both SNAP and LINK-UP. Especially the two power houses behind SNAP, David Clohessy and Barbara Blaine. They have been a tireless force in the effort to right the injustices of clergy abuse and to hold those responsible accountable. The clergy abuse scandal called for heroes and heroic efforts. Both David and Barbara rose to the occasion. Along with them are a cadre of chapter leaders who take the fight locally. They too are to be commended.

There are some forty thousand priests in the United States, but only one is nationally and internationally known for his efforts against clergy abuse by priests, Fr. Tom Doyle. He has helped numerous survivors of the rape, sodomization, molestation, and destruction of lives caused by the small percentage of clergymen who are perverted and evil. He also knows who was responsible for this evil’s proliferation and subsequent cover-up. For his steadfast refusal to change his views, he has paid a heavy personal price. The sad penetrating question is why out of forty-thousand-plus priests in the United States is there only one nationally recognized survivor advocate with a collar? There are over three hundred bishops in this country and not one of them with the backbone to take on the establishment. Tom Doyle has set the standard.

Who Stained the Collar?

By Vincent J. Nauheimer Copyright, 2002

Who stained the collar; soiled white?

Savaged our children in the night.

Blame the children, it’s in their eyes

They’re the culprits telling the lies.

Wanton devils so full of vice

Waiting for a priest to entice.

Such temptation never a break;

Let’s burn all children at the stake

Who stained the collar; soiled white?

Raping our children in the night.

Blame the parents, it’s all their fault.

Didn’t keep kids locked in a vault.

Parents let their kids go away

Thinking they were learning to pray.

Hearing the truth has turned them pale.

Send the parents, send them to jail!

Who stained the collar; soiled white?

Sodomizing kids in the night.

Blame the lawyers, they’re a seedy lot

The thought of money makes them hot.

There are things better left unsaid

They put a gun to the church’s head.

What they’ve done was not very nice

Victim’s lawyers, treat them like lice!

Who stained the collar; soiled white

Fondling our children in the night?

Blame the media, it’s the press!

They created this damnable mess.

Malcontents, they’re atheists all;

Blame them for the collar’s fall.

Not their fault, reporting the news.

If all else fails, blame the Jews!

Who stained the collar; soiled white?

Spreading o’er the place like a blight

Blame the laity, blame them all,

They’re responsible for the fall.

Turning a blind eye they won’t see;

Don’t let them keep their dignity.

They are responsible for this mess.

Let’s hear a hearty, I confess.

Who stained the collar; soiled white?

Can’t be the priests, it’s just not right

Oh God, Dear God accept the blame

For all that’s been done in your name.

It is your church, you’re at the top.

It is with you, the buck must stop.

So pray God let our children be;

Call off your priests and set them free!

Who stained the collar; soiled white?

Priests who wear it day and night!

Preface

Michael, tell me about Moral Relativism?

No!

Why?

Because, you will only figure out how to use what I say in your efforts to destroy my church!

Michael, I am not trying to destroy your church. The Catholic Church is doing an excellent job of destroying itself. I am only providing a running commentary.

And after a long thoughtful pause Michael said: I guess you’re right. What is it you want to know?

This was an actual conversation that I had with an ex-seminarian friend who is still a very devout Catholic. He is also one of the brightest, most intellectual, and philosophically astute people I know. It is a fitting opening because it defines the spirit in which my letters and this book were written. This work is a chronological history, through letters, of what has become known as the Infamous Clergy Abuse Scandal. Its purpose is to provide a running record of the destruction caused by an arrogant hierarchy who with unparalleled hypocrisy covered up their own evil with the excuse: We are protecting the church.

This book will give the reader a first hand opportunity to experience the process of battling with the institution known as the Roman Catholic Church over the issue of sexual abuse of minors through letters. It was compiled because I realized a long time ago that there are those out there who don’t have voices. My example has helped many find their voices and in doing so, they have learned to speak out. After reading this book, hopefully, many more will find their voice and use it to put an end to this tragedy.

*

This all started in a sleepy little village of about twenty-five-hundred households. My wife was a Eucharistic minister and taught CCD for ten years. Both my sons were altar boys and one of them was the sacristan. The pastor was a family friend who had been over to dinner on many occasions; we even vacationed together.

After Mass on Sundays people would talk in small groups, catching up on the week’s events. It was the kind of place where you spent more time shaking hands and kissing people than a politician running for office, but this was genuine. The people of this parish were what community was all about. It was the kind of place where things like child abuse didn’t happen! And if they did, it didn’t happen in church, and most assuredly, these acts were not committed by men such as priests or pastors. The incident destroyed the fabric of the community by polarizing it.

In April of 1994, my wife was shocked to see our 12 year-old son, Brian, come up the stairs crying. He had been downstairs in the family room watching a movie with the pastor of our church and family friend, Fr. Jerry Gentile. He wanted to know why the priest was touching him that way and he said he didn’t want to be his friend anymore.

My wife and I met with the priest a couple of days later and told him that he had violated our trust, but more importantly, that of our son. We told him he was not to be alone with any of our children again and our friendship was over. That was all we did until three years later, when Brian came home from a Catholic retreat for Catholic teenagers. There he met a boy who had recently been released from an institution for self mutilation. The boy proceeded to tell my son about a priest whose violation of him had been determined as the root cause of his behavior. It was the same priest!

When Brian came home, he was outraged and at the same time vindicated. His new-found knowledge confirmed the events of that evening in our home. He asked us to stop this priest. What ensued was a life-altering decision in more than one way. Many thoughts went through my mind at the time. What examples were we going to set for our children regarding right and wrong? If our son wasn’t worth fighting for, who or what was? How would we ever look any of our children in the eye again if we swept this under the rug and more importantly, how could they ever look us in the eye knowing that we had stood idly by and done nothing? If we couldn’t stand up against the sexual abuse of minors, what could we be counted on to stand up for? The answer was painfully obvious, nothing! The only thing that could be done was to take action. It was by no means either an easy or popular decision. It split our little village and the parish right down the middle. Deep rifts were created in the process between neighbors and friends. Eight years after the fact, as I write this there are still hard feelings on both sides. I will never forget an elderly woman coming up to me and telling me that I had made her pastor’s life miserable.

I can look my children in the eye today. They have seen and paid the price of admission for standing up on the side of righteousness. It was a long hard fight fraught with pain, suffering, fear, angst and an ocean of tears. However, in the end, we can all look at each other and in the mirror without wincing. Sadly, there are families who can’t. There are some whose children will always wonder what their parents stand for and why their parents put silence before the truth; why they chose the church and pedophile priests over them. Like mine, each decision was deeply personal.

Predator priests know the power of the church and depend upon it. They know the church will go to the wall for them in order to prevent a scandal. They counted on parents not wanting to go public. They also counted on the parental desire to protect their children. These stories are more common than not. The saddest of these stories was hearing about a victim whose father had threatened to kick him out of the house if he said anything to anybody about his relationship with a pedophile priest. Such is the pain and heartache that is contained within the web of abuse. Such is the depth of torment for some when it comes to choosing between their church and their children.

When we initiated our complaint to the archdiocese, we wanted nothing more than to have this priest removed and to see him get the help we thought he needed. If the hierarchy of the Catholic Church had the slightest capability to listen, many of these cases that have rocked the nation would have never seen a docket number. What we got from the NY Archdiocese was the runaround, more abuse, insults and defamation. Most of it, as I recall, was done by a pink-cheeked little man with rodent like eyes and a dead-fish handshake named Msgr. Edward O’Donnell.

O’Donnell was the Vicar of Priest Personnel for the NY Archdiocese at the time. After our first meeting, I recall telling my wife that he reminded me of a rat. Little did I know how prophetic those words were going to be. There was something about the way he positioned his Breviary on the conference room table, which caught my attention that night, but more importantly, there was no reason for him to take it with him each time he left the room. I wondered then and still do now whether the book contained a hidden tape recorder.

At this point, I feel it necessary to explain that I am not going to go into the life and times of Fr. Gennaro Gentile. For those interested, the New York Daily News did a fine job of detailing Gentile’s long history in a two part, eight page expose that ran on consecutive days starting with the March 27, 2002 issue. The story ends with a quote from a priest who worked with Gentile in 1971. Fr. O’Gorman said this about Gentile: Someone should have kicked him in the ass long before… Enough said about Gentile, because this book is not about him. The sole purpose of mentioning him is to provide the reader with the background of how I came to be set on this path.

The N.Y. Daily News also did a story on Msgr. O’Donnell on June 16 of the same year. The story quotes a parishioner saying He used our altar to lie to us, to say that the charges against Father Gentile were untrue when he knew otherwise. A report issued on April 29 of 2002 by a Westchester Grand Jury investigating clergy sexual abuse agreed with the parishioner’s assessment of O’Donnell. This is an excerpt from the Grand Jury’s findings:

The Grand Jury also heard testimony and viewed evidence of a concerted effort on the part of the religious institution to mislead the community, defending the abuser while simultaneously attempting to humiliate victims and their families—even in the face of mounting credible evidence against a particular abuser. Congregants, where the abuser was employed, were lied to during religious services in their house of worship. Articles in newspapers sponsored by the religious institution questioned the victim and his family’s motives; further, the religious institution used the media to lie about the past record of certain clergy members, thereby willfully misleading the public. In one case in particular, the religious institution sent a high level official to the congregation to vouch publicly for an abuser against whom multiple claims had been lodged by separate victims.

I was sitting in church with my family on the Sunday in question when that despicable little man stood on the pulpit issuing his twisted lies not fifteen feet from the Eucharist. Msgr. O’Donnell abused every member of my family on that day. How do you explain to your children, who have been raised in the church since the cradle, why a priest lies about you and your family from the pulpit? Why did that monster of a monsignor say things about our family that he knew were not true? This was the hierarchy of the NY Archdiocese spewing lies to our neighbors and friends to protect one of their own. If this was the character of the church, we were in trouble and at the time we had no idea of how much, because this was only the first salvo. The week after O’Donnell’s speech, the Catholic New York (the archdiocesan newspaper) would publish the fact that I was a recovering alcoholic and by purposefully using the past tense create a doubt as to whether I was still in recovery. (I was then and still am now) They also mentioned that I had closed a business earlier that year.

The N.Y. Daily News also told us that O’Donnell was a man of such sterling qualities that he approved of allowing the notorious Fr. Paul Shanley, of Boston ill repute, to work in the Leo House, which was a hostel for youth in New York City in 1995. This happened even after O’Donnell was told that there had been allegations of sexual misconduct made against Shanley. Msgr. O’Donnell, according to the News, in his infinite wisdom wrote back to the Boston hierarchy, I would find it close to inconceivable that there would be any unwholesome activities occurring there. O’Donnell epitomizes the arrogance and utter disdain the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church had and still has for the children and/or anyone who dares question their authority. O’Donnell was Cardinal O’Connor’s hatchet man.

This book is not about the sexual predators dressed in collars. They are evil men no better than animals; slaves to their desires. A pack of wild dogs will feed on the young, infirmed and aged. Sexual predators feed on the most vulnerable group in our society, the children. However, think about this: which is the greater evil? Is a perverted priest, who is a prisoner of his base desire to satisfy his lust for sex and power with children, more evil than the one who allows these collared dogs to prey unfettered upon our children? No less a personage than Cardinal Edward Egan has said that the sexual abuse of children is an abomination. However, the esteemed cardinal has never answered my question as to what word he would use to describe those who allow these abominations to continue. He couldn’t, because any name he used would be an indictment of his own actions. Abominable might be a good start.

I blame the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church from the United States to Rome for the Clergy Abuse Scandal because they are the ones who allowed the collared wolves to prey upon society’s most vulnerable members, the children. Secret societies are by nature oppressive societies. Secret societies live and die by their ability to conceal their secrets. Secret societies by their nature must protect the most heinous acts of their members lest their secrets become known. So it is with the Roman Catholic Church. They live in secret, in fear of scandal and have exhibited beyond a shadow of a doubt their willingness to do whatever it takes to avoid scandal.

The darkened wasteland of secrecy is the perfect breeding ground for all sorts of nefarious and malignant growths. It is a cesspool fertilizing the dregs of humanity and creating offspring that are as rotten as the offal from which they spring. Such was the abundance of slime generated by Roman Catholic Church’s cesspool that one day it spilled over its banks and ran into the light where it was laid bare to the world. Even now it has not stopped oozing, because despite the best efforts of all the pope’s cardinals and all the pope’s bishops and all the pope’s priests, they haven’t been able to contain it again!

In 2002, the Dallas Morning News published a survey that showed that two thirds of the bishops in the United States had allowed sexually abusive priests to continue working. In my opinion, they are guilty of aiding and abetting priests who have committed felonies because in most states, the rape, sodomization and molestation of children are felony offenses.

However, because of the Statute of Limitations, very few priests have ever been convicted and to my knowledge, no bishops have ever been charged. The remaining third are condemned for their silence. Upon discovering the diabolical deeds of their brethren, they should have been publicly screaming at the top of their lungs to have the offending bishops removed, but that was not to be. They should have at least clamored for the removal of the vilest offenders such as Law, but they did not. They should have marched on the Vatican calling for the immediate laicization of those bishops who were themselves guilty of sexually abusing children, but they didn’t do that either. Their silence was, and still is deafening! In lockstep, the tyrannical hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States closed ranks and chose to hide and protect their brethren over the children entrusted to their care. Thus they all share the guilt and responsibility for what has become known as the Infamous Clergy Abuse Scandal.

These are not my words, but the words of Jesus Christ:

Matt 7: 15-20

[15] "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? So, every sound tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears evil fruit. A sound tree cannot bear evil fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits.

What fruit has the brotherhood of Catholic Bishops produced? They have produced the Clergy Abuse Scandal and thus we know them by their fruits. Is there anyone out there who will not call those that rape, sodomize and molest children evil? The too sad answer to that is yes! It begins with the brotherhood of the red hat.

I was recently heartened to see Pope Benedict give the bishops and cardinals of the United States a rather large slap in the face when he announced to the world that the church in the United States is dying. He knows who is to blame. When as a sales manager, I told a salesman that his territory was dying he knew exactly what I meant; he wasn’t doing his job. The cardinals and bishops of the United States know full well what the pope meant. If anyone thinks otherwise, this is a quote from Zenit July 29, 2005 with more remarks: And if the apparent inefficacy of our preaching is not a suffering for us, it would be a sign of a lack of faith, of a lack of genuine commitment, stated the Bishop of Rome. He too recognizes the evil fruit he helped cultivate. What really surprised me is that the media chose not to explore it.

The current Roman Catholic hierarchy as a group is responsible for an enormous amount of pain and suffering. Only a people with blackened souls would or could put an innocent child in the flower of youth in such harm’s way as rape and sodomization. The callous disregard exhibited by the bishops of the Roman Catholic Church for children is monumental. It has only been exceeded by their collective failure to take responsibility for their horrific commissions and omissions once being caught.

The hierarchy of the Catholic Church has redefined terminology to ease their guilt. They have painted the ugliness with pretty words. The rape of children has become abuse a much kinder gentler word. Therefore, priests don’t rape children, they abuse them! The priests are not evil, they are sick; they are sinners in need of forgiveness. They don’t need to be removed, they need prayers. In the meantime, the rape, sodomization and molestation continued unabated.

This book is a record of the guilt that cloaks all those who have either by their omissions, commissions or both contributed to the evil known as the Clergy Abuse Scandal.

*

Part One

This contains the letters that I have sent to bishops, monsignors and cardinals. I chose to try and reason with them. They are the decision makers and hold the tethers of animals that abuse and have abused children. I tried to show them through the Churches own teachings the error of their ways. These letters started in 1997 and still continue to this day. I had a brief correspondence with O’Donnell late in 1997 which is included here. After that I never received another piece of correspondence from a member of the Roman Catholic Clergy until 2005. From 1998 right through the spring of 2005, not one of my letters ever elicited a response from the recipient, which was usually of the rank of bishop or higher. That seven-year record was broken in the spring of 2005 by a Bishop Doran. Judging him by his two brief responses, I take him for an arrogant man incapable of defending himself, his actions, his fellow bishops or his church. However, even if they were only an arrogant gesture, his letters were appreciated.

Part Two

This section consists of the letters that I have written to the editors of various newspapers. A lot more were printed than I ever expected; though a number of them were edited. My brand of honesty has too much truth in it to make editors comfortable printing them. Although the respect for the members of the Catholic hierarchy has diminished greatly in the eyes of the public, in the eyes of most editors, the public is not ready to have their bishops and cardinals called criminals, felons and child abusers. However, in my mind at least, any one who gives a pedophile another opportunity to rape a child is certainly a criminal. The great thing about God is that there is no Statute of Limitations on sin. This may not have been a wise thing to mention because once the hierarchy learns of this they are sure to, in their own infallible way, rectify this situation.

Part Three

When I first considered this book, it was with the sole intention of chronicling the many letters that I had sent to various members of the hierarchy of the Catholic Church. Their shameless behavior was a precursor to what I knew would follow: The excuse that they had no idea or did not fully understand the effect their decisions were having on people. That hogwash is thoroughly documented in hundreds of newspapers. This book serves three purposes. It is a record of the hierarchy’s hypocrisy, it documents when they were told they were hypocrites and why, it makes public the Catechism, the Canons and the Scriptures that say they should be fired, and lastly and most importantly, it is to serve as an example for others so that they might use their voices and pens to express their anger. It is extremely difficult to tell any member of the hierarchy what you think when your roots lie in generations of cradle-to-grave Catholics. Most Catholics have lived in fear and awe of bishops and cardinals all their lives. What we have witnessed in the past few years is that they are nothing more than men and some of them very evil ones at that. We have all seen this scenario before. Toto has pulled back the curtain only to find a white-haired blubbering old fraud. Such is the fate of the hierarchy of the Catholic Church.

It did not occur to me to include my letters to survivors when the idea for this book was first conceived. It was done to balance this book. It is very easy to tear down, but quite another matter to help rebuild. In addition to bringing balance to the book, these letters give the reader an insider’s view of what it was like being part of the survivor movement. It sheds knowledge on the incredible pain and suffering that survivors go through. It is a record of that pain. Beyond a shadow of a doubt, survivors are some of the finest people that I have ever communicated with and sadly, never met. Without these letters it would be too easy to dismiss me as a myopic individual who can’t see beyond his anger at the hierarchy of the Catholic Church. These letters remove that option. They detail the human suffering, pain, frustration, ignorance and betrayal brought about the clergy abuse scandal. More importantly, it is a wonderful view of the way survivors came together to help each other and hold the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church responsible for allowing the evil in their midst to flourish.

*

Some of you may notice that there is very little if anything between the years of 2000 and 2001 under all three of the above sections. All I can do is assure you that I did not stop writing during those years, but rather that the files containing those writings have been lost. Someday they may show up again on my computer. Miracles do happen. I sincerely doubt that any member of the hierarchy who was a recipient of one of my letters will make it public any time soon and as for the letters to the editor; these letters have most likely long since been deleted.

Part I

Letters to the Clergy

Authors note: Some of these letters have been revised from their original text to correct spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors. In some places, pronouns have been removed and the person, place or thing that the pronoun referred to was named to make it easier for the reader to understand the intent of the letter. I.e. If the word them was used to denote the hierarchy, in some instances the word them might have been removed and replaced with the word hierarchy. In no case has anything been done which would materially change the meaning and or tone of the letters.

May 10, 1997

Bishop Patrick Sheridan

Vicar General of the Archdiocese of NY

1010 First Ave.

New York, NY 10022

Dear Bishop Sheridan,

This letter is being sent to you in order that I may document the miserable failure of Msgr. O’Donnell to follow the policy stated in the Archdiocese pamphlet entitled Statement on the Policy and Procedures of the Archdiocese of New York Regarding Sexual Misconduct by Clergy. It is my experience that when an organization goes though the trouble to create a policy, they expect it to be adhered to. It is also my experience that when an organization does not adhere to its own policy, they can be held up to ridicule and in some cases be liable for the damages caused by the organizations failure to live up to the standards which they have set for themselves.

Let me give you the events as they have transpired.

1 On March 18, 1997 I called Msgr. O’Donnell and advised him of a situation with Fr. Genaro Gentile of Holy Name of Mary Parish in Croton-on-Hudson, NY. The situation involved two of my sons and other boys.

2 On March 20, Msgr. O’Donnell called me back and asked me the name of the boy who Gentile had slept in the same bed with. I told him I could not give him that name.

3 I let two weeks go by and then sought the advice of legal counsel. The third week went by and I called Msgr. O’Donnell once more only to hear from him that the incident with my boys was certainly not as serious as the one with the previous boy. At that point, I realized I was getting nowhere fast by trying to do the right thing. I told Msgr. that if we did not get together to talk about this, I would initiate a lawsuit naming Gentile, Holy Name of Mary and the Archdiocese. I thought I got his attention by doing what he forced me to do.

4 Msgr. O’Donnell was supposed to get back to my lawyer and set a date for this meeting. We never heard back from him and once again, I had to initiate the call. This time, I was given the lame excuse I have spoken to a number of lawyers about this case and I thought yours was one of them.

5 At our meeting, we had to ask for a copy your policy on sexual misconduct.

After reading your policy, I can understand the reluctance of Msgr. O’Donnell to share it with us. I accuse Msgr. O’Donnell, Director of Priest Personnel for the Archdiocese of New York of failing to follow the guidelines, which you have set forth in your pamphlet. This charge is made with the following quotes from your pamphlet to support it.

1 The person who brings an allegation… will be advised of the other reporting options available, in addition to reporting it to the archdiocese. Pg. 14. We were never given these options.

2 The person making the complaint is given the opportunity to relate the details of the complaint personally to the Director of Priest Personnel pg. 15. The only reason we had a meeting with Msgr. O’Donnell was because we threatened to sue the church. Even then, if we had not followed up, Msgr. O’Donnell’s determination to ignore us would have prohibited our meeting.

3 In the case of any complaint… that appears credible… the priest or deacon will be referred to for clinical evaluation. Pg. 15. In October of 1996, similar charges were brought against Gentile. They were deemed credible enough for the church to pay for the victim’s continuing psychiatric care. At my meeting with Msgr. O’Donnell, we were told that it might take some time for us to get an answer because Gentile would have to undergo testing. The point is: Why wasn’t this testing done when the prior incident was reported? If testing was in fact done then, why is it being used as a stonewalling tactic now?

4 The person who has made the complaint, and the priest or deacon are kept informed while any inquiry takes place. Pg.16 Today’s date is May 10, and we have not heard one word from Msgr. O’Donnell. Calls made to the Archdiocese lawyer by my legal counsel have gone unanswered.

I take personal umbrage at the unmitigated gall displayed by Msgr. O’Donnell in telling me that Gentile touching my boys was in no way as serious as the previous boy’s case. It was a callous statement that could only be made by an individual that has never had children of his own. Where was the sensitivity and compassion so eloquently addressed in the beginning of your pamphlet? Despite your best efforts to spell out your intentions in your pamphlet, your guidelines have been discarded like yesterdays news. We came to the Church in good faith and to this date have been rebuffed. If we go to court, and we will if your cover-up and indifference continues, this letter will be a record of our effort and your failure.

Sincerely,

Vincent J. Nauheimer

CC: Cardinal John O’Connor

Msgr. George Thompson

Msgr. George Thompson

Office of Priest Personnel

1011 First Ave

New York, NY 10022

October 10, 1997

Dear Msgr. Thompson

I have a lot to say, but unfortunately my dealings with your counterpart leave me feeling it would fall on deaf ears. So I will be succinct. Attached are our conditions for dropping the lawsuit against Fr. Gentile and the archdiocese.

Sincerely,

Vincent J. Nauheimer.

Enc.

10-10-97

An open letter to the Parishioners and the Archdiocese of New York

We did not want to sue. We tried not to sue. It is hard to fathom why, but the Archdiocese refuses to change. We believe that they will not change their habits of covering up until it costs them so much that they have to change. That is why the suit is for fifty five million dollars.

The archdiocese ignored us until we forced them to meet with us. After our meeting, they ignored us again and placed the gag order on Fr. Ron. The Archdiocese left us no choice but to sue. Once we brought the suit, they have made a concerted effort to trivialize the suit and isolate us from the parish by

1. Using the Bully Pulpit to speak half-truths.

2. Branding this a money issue.

3. Denying this man Gentile, has ever been investigated before when Msgr. O’Donnell’s had first hand knowledge otherwise.

If we drop the money issue, the archdiocese will quietly reshuffle the deck as they have done in the past and it will be business as usual. We refuse to accept this. This issue was never about money. It is about the children, our children and all the other children who have ever been the recipient of perverted affection. It is about future generations of children and their right to be protected. It is about a sacred trust violated by a pastor.

Having said that, we are willing to drop the lawsuit against Gentile and the Archdiocese on two conditions:

1. The Archdiocese removes Gentile as pastor of Holy Name of Mary.

2. The Archdiocese adopts a form of Meagan’s law, which advises the parish of any sexual misconduct or allegations against a priest prior to his arrival or during his tenure at a parish.

Our offer is good for the next 30 days and it will not be offered again.

If the Archdiocese does not agree to these terms, we will use our proceeds from the lawsuit to fund an organization whose sole reason for existence will be to persuade the Church to implement a Megan’s law for parishes in order to protect the children. It is not about money. It is about the children!

Sincerely,

Patricia Nauheimer and Vincent Nauheimer

Msgr. George Thompson

Office of Priest Personnel

1011 First Ave

New York, NY 10022

October 29, 1997

Dear Msgr. Thompson,

Due to information that we have recently been made aware of, we feel it necessary to withdraw our offer and the terms for dropping the lawsuit. Recently disclosed information which has come to our attention dates back over twenty years. It concerns the behavior of Fr. Gentile with young boys of a most distressing nature. We now feel that we have to change our mind. It is with our deep regret, but we rightfully feel that to give the Archdiocese the opportunity to sweep the entire issue of Fr. Gentile under the table would be wrong. There are those out there with far more suffering than us and they need to see justice served in order to restore their faith.

Sincerely,

December 5, 1997

Cardinal John O’Connor

Cardinal’s Office

1011 First Ave.

New York, NY 10022

Dear Cardinal O’Connor

There is perhaps no better passage in the Bible than this to describe the Archdiocesan behavior.

Ezekiel 13: 21-23:

Your veils also I will tear off, and deliver my people out of your hand, and they shall be no more in your hand as prey; and you shall know that I am the Lord. Because you have disheartened the righteous falsely, although I have not disheartened him, and you have encouraged the wicked, that he should not turn from his wicked way to save his life; therefore you shall no more see delusive visions nor practice divination; I will deliver my people out of your hand.

Obviously Canon Law 1369 agrees with Ezekiel. This passage may even be the basis for Canon 1369:

A person is to be punished with a just penalty, who at a public event or assembly, or in a published writing, or by otherwise using the means of social communication, utters blasphemy, or gravely harms public morals, or rails at or excites hatred of or contempt for religion