priest sexual abuse – Authentic Freedom Academy

Pope Francis Has Failed Us!

Posted on September 26, 2018 by Lauri Ann Lumby

Pope Francis has been given the greatest opportunity that could ever be given to the leader of a “great” institution. He has been given the opportunity to root out and rid his home of the evil that has beset it. Instead, Francis has chosen to side with the forces of evil by stating that the Church has “spared no effort” in resolving the issue of clergy sexual abuse – an “effort” that I find I must question. What exactly have you done about addressing the issue of priest sexual abuse and the culture of clericalism that has allowed this evil to continue for 2000 years? As far as I can tell, the evil continues in spite of the “effort” the Church claims to have put forth (an effort that has for the most part been geared toward preventing the laity from abusing children…a laity that was rarely guilty in the first place!).

Pope Francis, CAtholic Church, clericalism, clergy sexual abuse, priest sexual abuse, sex abuse scandal

Children are still being abused. Priests are still getting away with it. Clergy remain in hiding. And the magisterium turns its face in denial of the true source of this evil – a culture of white male, ordained privilege that places priests above the people they were meant to serve. “Above” us to the point that neither Church, nor Canon, nor even moral law pertains to them.

Pope Francis has failed us. I cannot speak for other Catholics (or former Catholics), but I once had great hope for this pope. I didn’t expect doctrinal change (though it would be nice if he at least acknowledged that women were deserving of ordination and that historically there is no support for a male-only/celibate only priesthood), but I did expect that the chose leader of the world’s largest religious faith would stand on the side of truth. With his most recent statements, however, it seems he stands on the side of the hierarchy – specifically, protecting the culture of clericalism that is at the heart of all that is wrong with the Catholic Church, and I might argue, with all of Western society. I have always said, if you want to see where Western culture is going, look to the Catholic Church. Where Francis currently stands on the topic of clerical abuse seems right in line with what is happening in the area of sexual abuse in the good ole USA – the men in power standing with the men in power while the rest of the world suffers. I am ashamed.

I will say it again, Pope Francis, you have failed us. You have been given a chance to acknowledge the horrors of clergy sexual abuse, admit the wrongdoing of your brethren, ask for forgiveness, and then embark on the true work of forgiveness which is to determine the cause of the sin and ROOT IT OUT! Instead you have done nothing but offer platitudes while brushing clergy sexual abuse off as something that only happened in the past. Incidents of clergy sexual abuse are still being reported today, but the Church does nothing. Francis, with your words today, it is clear that nothing else will be done. Until the cause of the “sin” is identified and transformed, the sin shall remain. Apparently Pope Francis is ok with this or more would be done. “We have spared no effort,” are perhaps the most offensive words I have yet to hear out of the mouth of this pope.

Pope Francis you have failed us…and as a 53 year old woman, I can tell you it is not only the youth of the Church who are outraged. The whole entire world is outraged over the ongoing sexual abuse of the vulnerable by the ordained Catholic priesthood….and you should be too!

Signed,

Lauri Ann Lumby, OM, OPM, MATS

Authentic Freedom Academy and Temple of the Magdalene

Please join us Wednesday evening for the inaugural of the Temple of the Magdalene online gathering:

church

Supporting the Birth of a New Church

Posted on August 31, 2018 by Lauri Ann Lumby

A Church that isn’t a Church

The only Church we will ever need

The Church within.

As it relates to church, my (now ex) husband shared this bit of wisdom, “The only perfect church is the church of one.” This could not be more true as every single institution ever created by man will only be as good as its weakest member. As long as there are wounded, imperfect humans, we will have wounded and imperfect institutions. I believe it is for this reason that Jesus NEVER set out to start a church. He didn’t even come here to start a new religion. Jesus was a Jew who only sought to remind the tribe in which he was raised of its own Divine potential. But more importantly, Jesus came to support us in moving beyond the external perceived authority of institutional religion and toward the only true authority that we will ever truly need – that which Jesus called “God,” and which Jesus tried to explain, is not outside of us, but is within.

As the revelations of the corruption and evil within the Catholic Church continue to emerge, one has to wonder about the fate of the Church. In my past life, I used to believe the Church could be healed and reformed and that I was to be part of that reform. Now I know better. After giving up on the Church, I thought it was my job to start a new church. Again, now I know better. Why in the world would I want to start an institution and have to be responsible to and for others? No Way! As I have been sitting in this space of holding the Catholic Church in its death and pondering my role in all of this (there is no doubt in my mind that I am here to play some sort of role that has something to do with what we used to call “church”), the prophecies of Joachim DeFiore have haunted me:

Joachim DeFiore (1132-1202), a theologian and prophet of the Catholic Church spoke of the time we are in when he referred to “The Age of the Holy Spirit.” He prophesied that a time would come when humanity would no longer have need for the Church. He said that humanity would no longer need the intercessor of the Church or its priests as we would come to know God ourselves. I believe we are in this time. We are moving away from the need for an outside perceived authority and learning to stand in our own discernment where we can discover and live in our own truth. We no longer need a priest or a Church to tell us what is good, right and true for ourselves. We also no longer need a Church to tell us who God is. We have all the tools we need to come to know the Divine on our own. If we do not have the tools, we have resources we can go to find and learn how to use these tools. This, I believe, is the “Church” that I am being called to help bring forth.

A Church that isn’t a Church

The only Church we will ever need.

The Church within.

Here we come to know the God of our own understanding. We come to know this God through whatever means possible – through scripture, ritual, nature, life itself, creative expression, contemplation, meditation, prayer, poetry, fairytales, etc. etc. etc. Here there is no limit to how we might have an encounter with the Source. In knowing this Source, we also come to know ourselves. In coming to know ourselves, we discover our unique giftedness and how we are called to use these gifts in the world for the sake of our own fulfillment and in service to the betterment of the world. In coming to know ourselves, we also come to know our brokenness and we are given tools to help find healing and transformation from all those things which prevent us from being free. Here, WE are our own source of salvation – We in our relationship with the Source of unconditional love and in our relationship with others and with the world.

This is the church that I believe will find its way out of the debris of the dying Catholic Church and through Authentic Freedom Academy and the Temple of the Magdalene, I support the emergence of this new (original) “church.”

The Keepers, Sr. Cathy, Baltimore, priest sexual abuse, Catholic Church

church, Raised Catholic

The Keepers – Netflix Documentary

Posted on August 28, 2018 by Lauri Ann Lumby

I just finished watching the Netflix documentary series – The Keepers. It its official advertising, the docuseries is described as:

This docuseries examines the decades-old murder of Sister Catherine Cesnik and its suspected link to a priest accused of abuse.

OMG! This does not even begin to express what is covered in this series. I will be the first to admit that this has been perhaps the most difficult series for me to watch and yet I felt watching it was critically important. In fact, I would suggest that it is critically important for everyone to see. I will, however, preface this recommendation with a HUGE TRIGGER WARNING. The docuseries catalogues IN DETAIL the sexual abuse inflicted on (likely) hundreds of teens by Fr. Joseph Maskell of the Baltimore, Maryland Archdiocese. In addition, the docuseries describes the far-reaching efforts by the Church, law enforcement, the courts and even the FBI to cover up the abuse and curtail the investigations of the murders of two local women, Sr. Cathy Cesnik and Joyce Malecki. The Keepers provides provocative evidence suggesting both women were likely killed by Fr. Maskell (or he ordered their murders). To say the series is chilling would be an understatement!!!

Like the movie Spotlight, this is a series that stayed with me. I felt it to the depth of my being. Being raised Catholic and having worked in the Church for a number of years (finding my calling within the Catholic Church in fact), this series hit home. On one hand, the series did a beautiful job of portraying the potential good in the Catholic Church. It demonstrated the beauty that comes out of the Church in people like Sr. Cathy and other women and men who found the love of the Divine in the Church and who sought to live out that love in service to the world. On the other hand, the series demonstrated the insidious evil that dwells in the shadows of the Catholic Church, the depth of that evil and its far-reaching effects. In Baltimore, it was not only the Catholic Church that was involved in the abuse and its cover-up – this culture of abuse and the efforts to keep it secret involved law enforcement, the courts, and even the FBI. Some suggest that members of the local law enforcement may even have participated in the abuse.

What troubled me the most in this documentary were two things:

The archdiocese’s deception (which continues today!) and the efforts they put forth to curtail any investigation, including arguing AGAINST raising the statute of limitations for abuse victims. If nothing else, cue up episode 7 for the ludicrous arguments put forth by the diocese against increasing the statute of limitations for abuse victims!
The abuse itself. This troubled me because of the way in which the abuse was described. The details of the abuse were so similar to what I have heard from others, and so specific to certain “sacramental” acts and so depraved that I have to wonder if these priests are being trained to do these things. You cannot make this stuff up! It is not normal sexual behavior by any stretch of the imagination. When I heard of a single priest performing this kind of abuse I thought, “Well that’s weird, sick, twisted and super disgusting.” But to hear of it AGAIN with another priest I have to ask the more difficult question: “Why is this more than just an isolated incident and from whom are these priests learning this kind of deviant behavior? It is an abuse of power and distortion of the sacraments in a way that is beyond imagination. It is beyond sick and the pure definition of evil! As one who honored and held the sacraments as sacred, I am horrified – not just by the abuse, but by the Church’s ongoing efforts to deny, ignore, push under the rug, that this is taking place in the Catholic Church and then doing nothing to: 1) hold priests accountable 2) make appropriate restitution to victims (I’m sorry, but a $25,000 pay-off does NOTHING to heal the abuse and its ongoing effects on a victim’s life!!!!!), 3) change the system that made any of this possible in the first place!

This, in fact, is the final piece that I came away with after watching The Keepers. It is too late for the Catholic Church. There is no possible way the institution of the Catholic Church can fix this. The disease is too far reaching. The cancer is too deep. The tentacles of the tumor are too tangled and intertwined. You cannot restore or rebuild a structure that is this far gone. The only answer is to tear it down, creating space for something new. For me, watching The Keepers put the final nail in the coffin of any dreams or hopes I might have had of the Church reforming itself. It really is too late.

How lonely sits the city
that once was full of people!
How like a widow she has become,
she that was great among the nations!
She that was a princess among the provinces
has become a vassal.

The roads to Zion mourn,
for no one comes to the festivals;
all her gates are desolate,
her priests groan;
her young girls grieve,
and her lot is bitter.

All her people groan
as they search for bread;
they trade their treasures for food
to revive their strength.
Look, O Lord, and see
how worthless I have become.

For these things I weep;
my eyes flow with tears;
for a comforter is far from me,
one to revive my courage;
my children are desolate,
for the enemy has prevailed.

From the Book of Lamentations

death of the hierarchy, death of the church, new church, Jesus, priest sexual abuse

church, Raised Catholic

The Death of the Hierarchical Church

Posted on August 26, 2018 by Lauri Ann Lumby

The hierarchical Church is dying. Heralding its death are the ongoing revelations of priest sexual abuse and the Catholic Church’s inability (or unwillingness) to do something about it. The “sins” of the hierarchy go deeper than we can even image (for just a glimpse, watch the Netflix documentary The Keepers. It is the chilling account of one priest who sexually abused hundreds of young girls, who murdered two who threatened to report him, and the entwined system of corruption that allowed him to get away with it). Nothing short of a complete dismantling will change the system of clericalism that places priests and bishops above the law (civil and doctrinal). Jesus spoke against the very system that we see in the Church today as he witnessed the “sins of the hierarchy” in his own Jewish faith:

Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples, saying,
“The scribes and the Pharisees
have taken their seat on the chair of Moses.
Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you,
but do not follow their example.
For they preach but they do not practice.
They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry
and lay them on people’s shoulders,
but they will not lift a finger to move them.
All their works are performed to be seen.
They widen their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels.
They love places of honor at banquets, seats of honor in synagogues,
greetings in marketplaces, and the salutation ‘Rabbi.’
As for you, do not be called ‘Rabbi.’
You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers.
Call no one on earth your father;
you have but one Father in heaven.
Do not be called ‘Master’;
you have but one master, the Christ.
The greatest among you must be your servant.
Whoever exalts himself will be humbled;
but whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”

MT 23: 1-12

In this exhortation against clerical hypocrisy and hierarchal abuse, Jesus lays out the kind of leadership he had in mind. Jesus did not preach FOR a hierarchical institution, he spoke of humility and service, “The greatest among you must be your servant.” The hierarchy of the Catholic Church has exalted themselves, placing themselves in positions of power, above those they are supposed to serve. For this they are being humbled. The Church is experiencing the consequences of their actions. In this the Church will be brought to its knees.

The mighty is falling and a new order is rising up to take its place. What that new order is, we do not yet know. And yet, this “new order” seems to be a part of my own calling:

Supporting those who are grieving the loss of the Church they once knew, or who are grieving the damage done to them by the Church…and guiding them to the only Church they will ever truly need…the Church within themselves. Learn more HERE.

clergy sexual abuse, priest sexual abuse, sex abuse scandal, Catholic Church sex abuse

church, Raised Catholic

Clergy Sexual Abuse – Compassion for the Victims

Posted on August 17, 2018 by Lauri Ann Lumby

As social media continues to rage over the topic of clergy sexual abuse, I find myself wondering “what about the victims in all of this?” It is appropriate to be enraged at the Catholic Church for centuries of abuse, the culture of clericalism, fear, power and control, that made the abuse possible in the first place, and the long-standing refusal of the Church to do anything about it. It is only right that the Church “pay for its sins,” and that they begin to do the really hard work of identifying and then eradicating the cause of clergy sexual abuse. If the Church continues to do nothing, which I suspect it might, I predict that their days are numbered.

As it may be appropriate to wish karmic retribution upon the Catholic Church, this does nothing to address the deep needs of the victims who have suffered – and the victims are many. First, of course, are the hundreds of thousands, if not hundreds of millions who have been sexually abused by Catholic priests. There is no doubt in my mind that these are the ones who have suffered the deepest wounding at the hand of the Church – deep psychological, spiritual, emotional, mental and physical wounding. Unless we ourselves have been abused, we cannot begin to imagine the depth of their pain or the sense of betrayal. I do hope that one day the victims will have the courage to speak. Their voices need to be heard so that true healing can begin to take place.

The second victims are those who perhaps have not been sexually abused, but who were used by men of the Church so as to gain power or for their own selfish needs. When speaking of these, I think of all the women and men who have been the priests’ concubines – their “lovers.” All the housekeepers, cooks, secretaries, vacation buddies who were made “special” by the priest because of his attentions, but who were never given the dignity of marriage. Those who were good enough to spend time and sleep with but who had to do it all in hiding because “Father” couldn’t possibly leave the power of his position to make you his wife or partner.

The third victims are the good priests. I have known a few. Not all Catholic priests are pedophiles and not all are abusing their power. Many are good, kind, gentle men who have been called by God to serve. They serve with a sincere and humble heart and do their best to continue the work that Jesus began. Now these men are guilty by association – or at the very least, suspect. My heart goes out to these men and I hope and pray that they receive the support they need to continue their work in spite of the suspicion that will now surround them, perhaps even becoming vehicles through which true reform and healing can begin to happen in the Catholic Church. If nothing else, they will be needed to support the fourth group of victims.

The fourth group of victims is the people in the pews. Those who have found a home in the Catholic Church, who have found peace and comfort there and whose peace is now disturbed. Those who grew up believing the Church was good and had only the people’s best interests in mind. Those who gave their lives to the Church through their participation and support. Those who found comfort in the traditions, the teachings, the prayers, and the scripture and who came to know Jesus and the love of God through their Catholic faith. Those who believed the priest was a good man 1) because they were told this and 2) because they have personally experienced his kindness. These are the people who are now scared and confused – trying to make sense of senseless acts in an Institution that is supposed to be made of love. My heart bleeds for these people because the Church is their home and now what? Leave the only home they have ever known? Leave what has been a source of comfort and support and go….where? Watching as friends and relatives leave the Church and wondering what they are supposed to do. I get it. I’ve been there. As one who eventually made the decision to leave the Church, I can say that it was the most difficult decision I have ever had to make and after ten years, I am still grieving this loss. In light of the latest wave of truth-telling as it pertains to priest sexual abuse, some of this group might choose to leave the Church, doing the difficult work of mourning that loss. Others will choose to remain, hoping they can be a vehicle for healing and change. Others will have no choice but to turn the whole thing off – turning away from the stories of abuse because it is just too much for them to handle. Regardless of the choices made by those in the pews, my heart is with them. They too are victims in this.

Actually, we are all victims in the clergy sex abuse scandal. Not one of us is exempt from the pain of the evils done by humanity. When one of us suffers, we all suffer. Life is suffering. But in this suffering we have a choice. We can let it destroy us, or we can use that suffering to find the path to healing and in that healing find our way to the new life on the other side of that pain. This is my hope, and my invitation to all those who are currently suffering as a result of the latest reports on clergy abuse – let us come together as one, seeking together the path of healing so that something new might come forth out of this pain. Ironically, this is what my Catholic faith taught me and what it would call me to do.