2002 Little Notes
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Contents © 2002
by Jim Holman.
All rights reserved.

MAY 2002 LITTLE NOTES

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"A priest is like other men in his human creation and tendency toward sin. He is like other Christians in his gift of baptismal grace oriented toward everlasting life. He is, however, very different from other men in his conformation to Jesus by sacred orders. A higher standard of behavior and holiness is to be expected of the priest, surrendering his humanity to allow the divinity of Christ to flow through to God's people.

"A priest is to teach God's people the whole truth and to embrace it himself. He is to sanctify them with the sacraments. He is to guide them in his conduct and with pastoral compassion, pointing out sin for what it is and the way of truth, whether it be well received or not.

"Sexuality is a way of relating to others. Males need to learn to relate to both males and females in a proper way in proper settings and vice versa. Genital expression is only appropriate in a marriage between a man and a woman. If one has an urge to express oneself genitally outside marriage, it is an offense against chastity and an infidelity to God as well as the Church. The Catechism lists these as adultery (involving a married person), fornication (two unmarried persons), masturbation, rape, pornography, prostitution, and homosexual actions.

"When a person desires sex with a child, adolescent, or a member of one's own sex, it is often traced psychologically to a delayed psychosexual development. It is a tendency toward a moral evil. Such a characteristic is not to be expressed by anyone, but in particular never by priests. It can be dominated or even healed with Christ.

"Clergy live in a world corrupted by lust. Unless our bishops and priests clearly cling to Christ and teach others to do the same, forming for ourselves a real refuge from the lustful world, the problems will continue. Our bishops need to articulate clearly the truth of human sexuality for themselves, for their priests and for all of us, without pandering to practicing homosexuals, pedophiles, adulterers and those living together in fornication. If not, that which corrupts the rest of society will continue to corrupt God's chosen shepherds.

"At all levels of our Catholic clergy these sexual corruptions are coming to light. Several bishops have resigned because of homosexual activity with adults and others with adolescent males, those between the ages of 13 and 19, and with children even younger. More than an expected number of priests have been disciplined or lost their faculties to celebrate sacraments because of sexual activity with male adults, adolescents, and children, usually male children. The majority of us priests, however, embrace our celibacy as a gift and continue to walk chastely with the help of Jesus. The majority of us accept our sexual identity as males and all that is appropriate to a man, our conformation to Christ, our roles as "fathers" of the spiritual family, shepherding spiritually those in our care rather than "fleecing the flock" by misleading them or by using them for sex.

"Priests who die of AIDS contracted in sexual activity leave us fellow priests with mixed emotions. We feel sorry for their suffering. We feel a loss at the passing of a brother. We feel shame at their betrayal of all of us by acting homosexually. We feel outrage when someone tries to memorialize their homosexual liasons as good by creating a panel on an AIDS quilt when they were unfaithful to God, to Church, to us and to you.

"When the Kansas City Star newspaper exposed the number of priests who contracted AIDS through homosexual contact, the Catholic bishops expressed outrage and denied the numbers were that high. When pedophilia is exposed, some bishops are quick to try to separate this from homosexuality, even in the case of adolescents. Fr. Donald Cozzens, psychologist and seminary professor in Cleveland, Ohio, estimates 50% of the priests and seminarians have homosexual inclination, and a great number of these act out and teach others that this is all right. 100% of bishops come from the ranks of the priests.

"It seems clear now why little seems to be said against sexual acting out with minors and against homosexual activity either in the clergy or in society from the shepherds of the church. The only sexual teaching that has come from our bishops in the past decade came out of a committee. This bishops' committee presented homosexuality in a neutral light. Its work was so flawed that the Vatican not only intervened by insisting on changes in this document, it told bishops that no committee ever again could issue such documents without the support of the entire body of bishops. Please pray for bishops and priests that we have the courage to be chaste and to preach chastity to you in the fullness of the gospel. Live your own lives chastely. Hold us priests accountable to the promises we expressed when God made us priests. If we're not hearing it from our bishops who were ordained to shepherd us, we need to hear it from you that you will not tolerate sexual misconduct from us, and that with Christ, priests can live properly to bring His grace to you as we were ordained to do."


STELLA (NOT HER REAL NAME) is a high-level diocesan employee who is reluctant to speak negatively about the local Church, but recent events have left her troubled. Stella has worked for the diocese since the time of Bishop Maher. "The bishop recently introduced at least 10 new priests who he just got into our diocese and he just keeps bringing guys in. You can't help but be suspicious. Nobody's coming here for their health. Some of these guys are here because, clearly, they messed up in one way or another. Now I don't know if it's connected to anything sexual, but that suspicion naturally comes to mind."

If a disordered sexuality is symptomatic of a disordered spirituality, Stella is not so much concerned with the sexual habits of some priests as with their entire view of the Church. "The diocese has been, I think, moving toward the left under Brom because of his negligence. A number of our parishes have gone from being conservative to being liberalized because of the pastors he's appointed."

The most definite and visible case is with the pastor of a large parish in the Spring Valley area. "Not only does he promote the gay agenda, he's another one who's not around the rectory very much."

Stella is also bothered by the fact that the priests of diocese were rocked by a homosexual scandal in 1999 that could have been avoided, and still nothing seems to have changed. "Father Paul Bauer committed suicide in 2000. He was known to be homosexual and was open about it from the moment he was ordained. The faculty of St. John's seminary recommended against ordaining him, and the bishop did it anyway. Before Bauer killed himself, the diocese spent over $50,000 trying to treat him and get him some help. He was sent for rehab and came back to another assignment and was sent back again after messing up. These rehab programs aren't cheap. He came back before his treatment was finished, and the bishop sent a letter to all the priests stating that he was not allowed to say Mass, as he had come back against the advice of the treatment center. The letter said his faculties were gone and please pray for him and a week or so later, he committed suicide. I heard that he shot himself. Somehow, the diocese managed to keep his suicide out of the papers. Then there was Father Michael Smith. The rumor among all the priests was that he died from AIDS, but the diocese kept that quiet too." In Father Smith's Southern Cross obituary, praise was heaped upon him by a retired monsignor."

Stella wonders if Brom is accepting priests into the diocese who are going to put it at risk. "After what happened with Cardinal Law's diocese, we'd like to know what kind of screening he is doing. In one situation, he accepted a priest from Mexico who, after years in the diocese, had to be sent back because he was womanizing. Prior to this happening, he got a lot of money out of the diocese. And a lot of these imported priests are appointed pastors a short time after arriving."

One example was a Norbertine priest from the Orange County priory whom Brom appointed as a pastor in North County. "It was a few years back. Some of the parishioners were on to him and suspected he was living a double life. They trailed him and caught him at a bathhouse in Hillcrest. Brom eventually fired him, but everyone knew what kind of priest this was! Why did the bishop hire him in the first place? I heard from another priest that he died of AIDS last year.

"A few years ago there was a story about a man in his late 20s or early 30s who met Bishop Brom and was admitted to St. Francis seminary without all of the usual interviews and board reviews. Someone told me that the bishop told Monsignor Callahan, who is the rector, to admit him. It turned out that the man was a flaming homosexual who had been kicked out of two other seminaries up north. Callahan found out about this when a visiting vocations director recognized the seminarian. He was soon kicked out."

While many diocesan priests share many of Stella's concerns, for some, the issue is not as black and white. Father Magruder (not his real name) recognizes instances of which Stella speaks, but is cautious. "Among us priests we do speak to one another of what we know, not in gloating or gossip at the expense of a brother, but because it affects our morale and is too difficult to bear alone. Some of us clergy have gone on sabbaticals at the suggestion of both Bishop Maher and Bishop Brom. In respect of confidentiality, the rest of the clergy are not told the specifics of a situation. Two of my brother priests have died of AIDS in the past few years; I don't believe that either was ordained or incardinated by Bishop Brom. The fact is, Bishop Brom does call people in on these kind of things, and in this case it is said that the bishop heard enough comments that it warranted that he call in the priest to speak with him in order to address the issue. I've also heard the story about the seminarian who was admitted and kicked out. If that's true, it would be odd because Bishop Brom tends to go down the line and use the correct process for everything."

The promotion of homosexual priests to important positions may be more of a problem of authorities preferring yes-men. Father Magruder says, "In general, many in leadership want people who will follow what they say without question. It may be that homosexual priests do that. The problem of homosexuality in the diocese may be more extensive than most people perceive, but how someone is living it out is another thing. When the bishop is confronted with specific evidence he has acted and he will act. We know that when someone wanted to bring in Sister Jeanine Gramick to speak several years ago, he said it would not be appropriate and asked that she not appear, since she was under study by the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith. He handled that very well.

"Anyone who is in authority wants to be surrounded by like-minded people who support his ideas. And if they are doing this, they are going to have the bishop's ear. Most of us like people who agree with us. That's the problem with a lot of bishops throughout the country when it comes to homosexuality. They are surrounded by people who tell him what he wants to hear, and may not always give him a proper challenge or ideas that might be different. Some are homosexual and use this position to subtly promote their ideas and agenda once they have won his favor."


THE 51ST CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT straddles the Mexican border -- from Arizona to Imperial Beach. On March 7 Maria Garcia of Chula Vista won the Republican nomination for the 51st seat and will challenge incumbent pro-abort Democrat Bob Filner in the November general election. Garcia is a strongly pro-life candidate who said that Filner does not represent the values of the district. Speaking from the hospital while recovering from childbirth, Garcia said, "Filner believes that women have the right to kill their children up to the ninth month of pregnancy. I do not believe the people in this district agree with this. He did not support Prop 22 (defense of marriage). I know when the partial-birth abortion issue came up, the churches were flooded with post cards protesting partial-birth abortion. I am sure his office was flooded as well. In spite of this, he still voted against the ban. He doesn't represent the values of our community."

Though the 51st district has been gerrymandered into a safe Democratic seat, with (50 percent Democrat, 30 percent Republican), Filner's record makes him vulnerable. He has voted for nearly every pro-abortion and pro-gay measure, and he transferred money to support other social leftists, including open lesbian Tammy Baldwin of Madison,Wisconsin.

More relevant is what happened in the Democratic primary on March 7. Danny Ramirez, a committed pro-life Catholic who owns a business selling used school buses to Mexico from his office in Calexico, ran a shoestring campaign against Filner and garnered 30 percent of the Democratic vote. He won Imperial County by a 2-1 margin.

Though Democrat Ramirez said he "is prepared to run again in the 2004 Democratic primary" and was seen gathering up his campaign signs to save for 2004, he emphasized that "because of Bob Filner's extremist record, endorsements and supporters, I cannot and will not endorse him or vote for him.... I intend to vote for Maria Guadalupe Garcia in November and ask all those who voted for me to do the same."

The endorsement may not be futile -- Garcia's total (10,257) plus that of her Republican opponent, who endorsed her (9187), added to Ramirez's numbers (14,568) make 34,012, compared to incumbent Filner's 22,608.


A LOCAL PRIEST weighs in on controversial Mary Ann Fallon, diocese director of liturgy. "The St. Mary's debacle is the second incident in which she has intervened against a pastor on tabernacles. In fact, Brom issued a directive directly related to an incident related to Fallon. In a communiqué, he forbade anyone to change the placement of the tabernacle and several other things without consultation with the diocese. All of this happened because a priest in Brawley moved his tabernacle back to the center. One weekend when he was having the work done, Mary Ann Fallon was there for some kind of workshop. When she went into the church and saw that they were doing this, she went back and reported it to the bishop, and the next thing that happened, the priest got a call from Brom, telling him not to do it. The letter stated, that you couldn't move the chair or the crucifix either. He said you couldn't do anything with the altar, no matter how much it cost."

The priest who spoke about the incident: "It was ridiculous. In the first place, she's not a vicar, and you don't have the right to represent the bishop directly unless you're a vicar. The director of liturgy and worship does not have that kind of authority. She's like a lot of the people who work in chanceries today, too full of themselves."


IT'S NOT OVER YET. In August 2001, the Thomas More Law Center of Ann Arbor Michigan filed a lawsuit in San Diego Superior Court on behalf of three women plaintiffs against Planned Parenthood to force them to provide truthful information to women about abortions and breast cancer. On March 18, superior court judge Ronald Prager dismissed the case. On March 20, the Thomas More Law Center announced it will appeal the case.

Thomas More associate counsel Pat Gillen said that the decision, "was handed down despite the testimony of six experts, including the author of the only comprehensive review and meta analysis of scientific studies concerning the link between induced abortion and breast cancer risk. In addition, the plaintiff's claims were supported by the testimony of five medical doctors, one from each specialty required to deal with the increased risk of breast cancer caused by induced abortion over the life of a woman. Those experts agreed that induced abortion does increase the risk of breast cancer and that Planned Parenthood's statements on this issue were false and misleading."

While disappointed, Thomas More's Chief Counsel Richard Thompson almost seemed to expect the ruling. "Just as it took big tobacco several decades before they acknowledged the risks associated with their products, so too big abortion appears willing to sacrifice the health of women for the sake of profits."

Brian Burch, attorney and spokesman for the Thomas More Law Center, said that the lawsuit was filed under California's fair trade statute. "It was essentially a women's health issue, not an abortion issue, although a lot of people are trying to paint it that way. We were seeking to allow women to receive information, as they would with any other medical procedure, about the associated risks of abortion. We thought this should have a fair hearing. The case was dismissed under California's Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP) statute. The SLAPP statute is usually used to protect small people from big companies -- big companies would sue to shut up dissent about their products, but it's been flipped around. Now big companies are using it."

The politics Burch speaks of was demonstrated by the case's dismissal. "Essentially, the judge ruled that there's plenty of evidence to suggest that there is no link, therefore, no trial. Operating on that principle, no one could ever prove anything. There's always going to be someone to support the opposite view. There's always going to be some expert who'll say, 'I believe this' and another who believes the opposite. The point is, in order for women to know, you have to have doctors come and hash it out. That's how all these disclosures become requirements for these pharmaceutical companies."

"They're accusing us of using science as a front for reducing abortions as an end run around the abortion law. It's no secret that we [the Thomas More Law Center] are opposed to abortion. But this case in particular is about the health of women, not abortion, and that's an important distinction."


AFTER A NEWS NOTES REPORTER wrote last month that Boston's child molesting priest Paul Shanley showed up on computerized address finders in Ocean Beach, the national news media has since found him on Albatross Street in Hillcrest. The story broke in early April that Shanley was volunteer Senior Patrol officer with the San Diego Police (he has since been dismissed) and part owner of a motel in Palm Springs. "Marla," a Bankers Hill resident and longtime neighborhood watch member, told a News Notes reporter that Shanley's apartment is located in close proximity to Florence Elementary School, Florence Child Development Center, and Fleur de Lis School, with combined student populations of 450, ranging from preschool to eighth grade. "We had a neighborhood watch meeting a couple of weeks ago and I decided that because of this Danielle (van Dam) sitution that I would go to the police department with my husband and get access to the computer about sex offenders. We put in '92103' and there are 52 convicted sex offenders in that zip code. They are listed as serious sex offenders. The policeman told me that 52 was a lot of sex offenders for one area, then one week later we hear about Paul Shanley. Of the 52, the good Reverend Paul is not registered. He's supposedly been living in the San Diego area for five years and he lives one to two blocks away from 450 children!" (According to a mid-April New York Times story, Shanley left for Thailand in late March.)


TED CROOKS, Grossmont Union High School district trustee, was among the approximately 100 attendees at an April 1 meeting at the San Diego Lesbian and Gay Men's Center in Hillcrest. The purpose of the was to discuss sanctions against the district for cutting out part of an Anti-Defamation League video dealing with"homophobia" shown at Granite Hills High School in March.

Speakers included attorney ME Stephens of the ACLU, executive director Ron Lanoue of the National Conference for Community and Justice, Marilyn Riley and Alex Sachs of the San Diego Democratic Club, USD law school graduate Paula Rosenstein of the California Alliance for Pride and Equality, Jeremy Kraut-Ordover of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, and Bill Beck of the Victory Fund.

Although not a scheduled speaker, Crooks took the microphone during the question-and-answer session to offer political advice. Alluding to Gary Cass and Priscilla Schreiber (conservative board members) as "extreme," Crooks told audience members that "The fact of the matter is East County has a wide variety of people.... In fact, we have more Hispanics voters in East County than we do evangelical Christians. We have quite a wide and diverse composition. And most people in East County are tired of being on the defensive; are tired of feeling guilty over the crazy things that happen at Grossmont schools. This has been going on for about ten years now, and it keeps going on."

Crooks praised fellow trustee Tom Page as one of the "hidden heroes" of the local homosexual community, calling him "the greatest friend that this movement could ever have."


ON THE FRONT PAGE of the April 13 San Diego Union-Tribune, two local priests who actively promote homosexual activity express their "concern" about the scandals rocking the Church--scandals rooted in homosexuality.

Father Michael Ratajczak, pastor of Santa Sophia parish, said, "Priests need to be held accountable. When we sin, we need to take responsibility." Strange words, coming from a pastor who invited Father James Shexnayder, founder of the National Association of Catholic Diocesan Lesbian and Gay Ministries, to speak at his parish in January. There, Fr. Schexnayder spoke of the "wonderful complexity" and "giftedness" of "gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered Catholics.

Ratajczak also allowed Father James Mott, O.S.A. to run a "gay and lesbian Catholic" support group in which Mott advised sexually active homosexuals to receive communion without going to confession and amending their lives. This was the same Father Mott who was involved in the Saint Sebastian's Angels website for homosexual priests -- a website filled with obscenities and curses against the Pope and Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger.

Also quoted in the U-T story was Father Eduardo Samaniego, S.J., of Christ the King Church, who referred to the scandals as "not just a church crisis, but a society crisis." Samaniego also gave assurance that "This Boston thing is never going to happen again." One wonders how Samaniego proposes to solve a homosexual problem when he allows a monthly potluck in his parish for "gay, lesbian and transgendered Catholics." Samaniego has said that reparative therapy is "hogwash" and loving the sinner and hating the sin is "bullshit".


THE UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO welcomed members of several local homosexual advocacy organizations at its second annual Rainbow Forum on Wednesday, February 20. The purpose of the forum was to discuss California Assembly Bills 25 and 537, as well as "issues related to the state of education and safety in schools for GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered) students," according to an Internet announcement from USD Pride president Melissa Espinal.

Approximately 30 people attended the event. Panelists included Sherry Wright of the San Diego Lesbian and Gay Men's Center; Jeremy Kraut-Ordover of the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network; Paula Rosenstein of the California Alliance for Pride and Equality; and Diana Carrillo, the teacher-advisor of the Chula Vista High School gay-straight alliance.

One of the participants, who requested anonymity, described what took place during forum: "The first half was about same-sex marriage. The panelists discussed California state assemblyman Paul Koretz (D-42) and his plans to introduce civil unions legislation every single year until it passes. They also said they will eventually prevail, but right now they need to work for intestate succession.

"The second half of the forum was mostly about implementing AB 537, the California Student Safety and Violence Prevention Act, from kindergarten through 12th grade. Most of the people there were teachers, and they discussed how to bring homosexuality into their classrooms. A third grade teacher in the audience said that he is married and has a family but really believes in the book Heather Has Two Mommies. He also said the if there were anyone else there who was with San Diego City Schools, he needed to get together with them because they need to work on getting these books implemented and put into the school district permanently, with no problems.

"Sherry Wright from the Lesbian and Gay Men's Center told us that in Los Angeles they now have a gay and lesbian school. Somebody in the audience said, 'Wouldn't it be great if we could have a bunch of those?' and everybody said, 'Oh yeah.' But then another lady spoke up and said, 'You're just segregating yourself more. It's about compassion, and you have to be nice to everybody. Gays and lesbians aren't the only ones that have kids make fun of them.'"


IN SPITE OF OPPOSITION from the pro-life community, San Diego County Supervisors voted 4-1 on April 16 to adopt an ordinance banning free speech rights in residential neighborhoods within 300 feet of targeted houses. The new law, first introduced in February by Supervisors Ron Roberts and Greg Cox, reportedly was a response to security concerns after the September 11 terrorist attacks. It will go into effect in mid-May and only affect unincorporated areas of San Diego County.

Six pro-life advocates spoke out at the meeting in opposition to the ordinance. California Life Coalition director Cheryl Sullenger told the supervisors "This ordinance would not stop residential picketing, nor would it be legal for it to do so," said Sullenger. Referring to the 300-foot "no free speech zone" created by the ordinance she said, "It is just plain wrong to steal away freedoms that have been paid for with the blood of patriots just because one disagrees with a particular activity."

Other speakers focused on inflammatory remarks made by Supervisor Pam Slater in the San Diego Union-Tribune (March 20, 2002). Allyson Smith, a frequent participant in residential pickets, told the board, "In my six years of experience, not once have I witnessed any violence instigated by the picketers themselves.... Pam Slater -- you said that people who picket quote, engage in terrorist activity not unlike Al Qeda and the Taliban who seek to impose their extremist views on those that do not share them and seek to overturn the law using violent means. Unquote. Your remarks are a pack of bold-faced lies." Chula Vista resident Stephanie Hopping asked, "Miss Slater, how does this activity constitute terrorism? You owe us an explanation and an apology for this outrageous and slanderous statement."

Slater responded to the comments by saying, "I am very sorry if anyone took offense at any of my characterizations of some of the protests." She then went on to describe incidents where a doctor friend of hers was forced to move "because of the persistence of picketers" and another woman "having nothing to do with the abortion issue" who was blocked from entering her gated community by picketers. "While perhaps that would not in itself rise to the level of terrorist activity, I do believe, however, that when you have emphasis where doctors are threatened -- and when you have instances where people are coming at their homes, I think that is going too far."

"I thought this ordinance wasn't about pro-life picketers," said Sullenger in response to Slater's remarks. "Staff members from Roberts' and Cox's offices repeatedly told me that 'life issues' had nothing to do with this ordinance. I guess now we know the truth."

When asked about the incidents Slater referred to Sullenger said, "I understand that the female doctor who moved was abortionist Katharine Sheehan, Planned Parenthood's medical director. We prayed for her neighborhood one time. I am not sure how traumatized she was by that since she kept coming to the window and smiling and waving at us. As to the woman who was blocked from entering her gated community, I am afraid that this is just another figment of Ms. Slater's rather active imagination."

Supervisor Bill Horn registered the only "no" vote to the ordinance. "I said in the beginning that it is privacy verses, in my mind, liberty and in this case I have to come down on the side of liberty."

Attorney Michael Kumeta, who filed an objection to the ordinance with county counsel John Sansone prior to the vote, vows to defend residential picketers whose rights are violated by the ordinance and is optimistic that they will prevail. "Let's put it this way," he said, "I'd rather be in our position than the County's."

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