PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer columnist discusses reactions to the priest abuse scandal.
John Grogan: Hi, John Grogan here.... Welcome. I'll be happy to take your questions in just a minute here.
John Grogan: Today, my column centers on the response of area Catholics to the clergy sex-abuse scandal. I was surprised at the depth of emotion in so many of the responses.
leatherj5: I'm now living in North Carolina. I'm also Catholic. I heard about the Grand Jury’s letter and saw the list of local priest being made public. What do you think will happen to the local diocese within the next 3-6 months if anything?
John Grogan: That's a good question. Realistically, I don't expect too much to happen in the next several months. Because of the statute of limitations there will be no criminal charges against any of these offenders, and the state Supreme Court just ruled out the possibility of more civil actions.
michele: Why are you surprised? I'm not!
John Grogan: Well, not really surprised at the level of outrage and anger. But in the past when I have written about the transgressions of the Church, I've always received a good dose of scolding from devout Catholics who accuse me of Catholic-bashing who say I'm looking for an excuse to damage the Church. This time I received some 250 responses and not ONE made that argument.