BRAINTREE (MA)
The Patriot Ledger
By The Rev. ROBERT W. CONOLE, Parochial Vicar, St. Francis of Assisi, Braintree
I am most thankful to The Patriot Ledger for calling me and asking me to comment about Paul Shanley's conviction (‘‘Shanley verdict has local Catholics relieved,'' Feb. 8). Paul Shanley served here at St. Francis of Assisi in Braintree many years ago. Hopefully the conviction represents another step in the long journey of healing for victims of clergy sexual abuse.
It is my hope and my prayer that victims experience several more victories in their quest to be heard, to be helped and to be healed.
There is one point that I raised in my telephone conversation with the reporter which, to my disappointment, did not appear in the article. That unmentioned point is simply this:
That many of us priests have significant children in our lives, and we feel very passionate about their well-being and safety, too.
Posted by kshaw at February 18, 2005 07:01 PM