ILLINOIS
Southwest News-Herald
Ray Hanania
Is the Catholic Archdiocese a “government within a government?”
That may be true in Italy, where the Vatican has its own laws and police, but is it true in America?
Is it true that if a pedophile is wearing Catholic vestments, he can be protected from the laws of this country?
Pedophilia is a serious crime. Sexual assault of adults AND children is a serious crime. All are prosecuted, unless, of course, you happen to be among the privileged few who work for the Catholic Archdiocese not just in Chicago but across the nation.
I can only image the charges that would be filed and the high profile announcements the Illinois Attorney General or the U.S. Attorney might make if the pedophiles were not Catholic Priests but religious leaders at an Islamic Mosque or a Rabbi at a Synagogue.
So why isn’t anyone exploring the possibility of filing charges against the priests who have been identified — reluctantly and belatedly by the Catholic Archdiocese — as having sexually abused children, mainly young boys?