Bankruptcy talk stirs Boston Catholics
"I think it's a cowardly act...they ought to face the music, do the right thing."
The news that Cardinal Bernard Law might be leading the Archdiocese of Boston into a bankruptcy filing has hit the faithful hard. It is difficult to escape the conclusion that Law is far more concerned with protecting his fiefdom than he is with the well-being of his flock. Whether or not the Archdiocese will seek bankruptcy protection or not is an open question, but the fact that Law has not addressed it directly is only feeding the fire. People are angry, and I don't think Law grasps the depth and breadth of that anger.
A plaintiffs' attorney told CNN there was little possibility the archdiocese would indeed seek bankruptcy protection, since doing so would require it to lay bare its finances.
"It's a risky thing for everyone," Coffey said. "It's like sitting at a negotiating table and putting a hand grenade out on the table, not pulling the pin, but telling everybody, 'If we can't make a deal on something I like, we may have some kind of explosion here that's mutually destructive for everyone.'
"I think, at this point, it ought to be seen as part negotiating strategy and part trial balloon."
A Boston Globe study estimated the minimal value of properties owned by the archdiocese at $1.3 billion, more than 10 times the predicted cost of the settlements.
One alleged victim expressed concern that a bankruptcy claim could keep him and other plaintiffs from publicizing their claims in court.
"It runs the risk of negating the suffering that people have gone through for 30 years," said Bill Gately, a member of the Survivors' Network. "It's like, 'Here's your check -- get out of here.'"
In the end, it's not about the pain and anger felt by those who have been abused by pedophiles wearing clerical collars. It's about the money, and it's about the Empire. Cardinal Law's priorities clearly do not seem to lie with his parishioners, and that can only make things worse for everyone in the long run.
I am not Catholic, so I have no stake in this matter. From a perspective of pure human decency, though, I would very much like to see the flesh stripped from the carcass of the Archdiocese. For the years of pain, denial, and lack of compassion for the suffering of parishioners, it would at least be a start.
