BishopAccountability.org
	A Good Shepherd Savannah Morning News November 4, 2007 http://www.savannahnow.com/node/388748 Bishop Boland went to bat for a family alleging abuse by a visiting Jesuit priest. IF THE Catholic Church in this country had more religious leaders like the Most Rev. J. Kevin Boland, then the abuse scandals that have wracked the church in recent years might have been less painful. Bishop Boland, who heads the Catholic Diocese of Savannah, was among a number of Catholic clergy and families who wrote to leaders of the Jesuit religious order in Chicago over the past three decades and expressed concerns about a Jesuit priest who conducted religious retreats in Georgia and other areas. That priest, the Rev. Donald McGuire, 77, was convicted last year in Wisconsin for molesting two boys during retreats in the late 1960s. Savannah's bishop wrote a letter to the Jesuits in 2003 on behalf of a Georgia family whose teen-age son had a "relationship" with McGuire. The bishop said the young man had "transferred his loyalty from family to Father McGuire" and asked the religious order for help. It's unclear what, if anything, the Jesuits did. But give Bishop Boland credit for going to bat for the family and not sweeping anything under the rug. Earlier letters from that family, along with a second Georgia family, alleged that their sons had been shown pornography by McGuire and were victims of sexual abuse. Those allegations are consistent with others, including a civil claim filed last week by two Arizona brothers who alleged that the priest molested them. Such scandals have tested the faith of Catholics in this country. But responsible actions by leaders like Bishop Boland show that some good shepherds are protecting their flocks.
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