BishopAccountability.org
 
  Boston Vigil, Part 2: " You Can't Honk for Justice"

By Kay Ebeling
City of Angels
January 6, 2008

http://cityofangels4.blogspot.com/2008/01/part-two-boston-vigil.html

In Boston this morning Bob Sidorowicz said: "We used to have a sign that said honk if you're for justice. The church called the police because of all the honking. The next week our sign said You Can't Honk for Justice."

Sidorowicz was at the cathedral in downtown Boston this morning at a vigil honoring the sixth anniversary of Boston Globe articles which brought the pedophile priest issue into national view. However, the group, aka Sidewalk VOTF, has continued to hold vigils on Sundays in front of the cathedral in Boston since 2002. (A link to the first article in the Globe is in the left column of this blog.)

Sidorowicz: I've been doing this about five years now. I read about it in the Globe when it first broke and I was really angry and wanted to do something. I came down here and asked these people if I could stand with them and I haven't left.

"About 40 or 50 people showed up for Mass today in a cathedral that holds about 1700. They have one major mass and this is it.

"I've been here not every week, but about 46 Sundays out of each year. We used to have cookies and coffee on tables, but police stopped us from blocking sidewalks with tables. Now have signs and posters with pictures of victims.

"My sign says:

Men Of God Do Not Rape Children

So who are these men who call themselves bishops and priests?


CITY: What do you think Bernard Law is doing this Sunday in January?

Sidorowicz: He's in a basilica. His reward for being silent was to be given a large basilica all his own in the Vatican.

CITY: Describe the scene downtown Boston today.

Sidorowicz: People come by. People honk horns and wave and say we support you. Other people walk by and call us losers and say to get a life. One or two every couple weeks do that, but mostly people are supportive.

Most of the people who come to Mass here are tourists. I recognize the regulars, there are only about 20 of them. The rest are tourists who want to see the cathedral while they're visiting."

Now what the tourists see are Sidewalk VOTF.

VOTF is Voice of the Faithful, an organization within the church working for reform.

Sidewalk VOTF are the members who stay on the sidewalk

Sidorowicz is a printer in the Boston area.

Interviews were conducted by phone this morning.

Commercial Break

The PayPal project is still here in 2008. We need money for cameras, editing equipment, and a travel budget here at City of Angels Blog. Please click the PayPal button and put on whatever cash you can to keep this blog alive and thriving. (I report this as income to IRS) Soon to come: Videos.

End Commercial Break.

Then RUTH MOORE took the phone and said:

"We've got a good gathering here. We've got to be 25-30 now.

"It's the 6th anniversary of the Globe articles about the church's widespread cover up. Those articles started a wave across the country."

CITY: Describe the scene there.

Ruth Moore: We have yellow crime scene tape stretched across the light poles and people are holding crime tape.

"We have hundreds of pictures -- we don't have them all out -- We have three large posters of the quilt, the SNAP quilts.

CITY: What brings you here this morning?

MOORE: We came 6 years ago to the cathedral and we were stunned at the response we got shocked at the whole thing

"We stood here hoping something would change

"Nothing has changed,

"We'll continue to come here until there's change

"We have someone here every week If I'm off someone else picks up and stands here for me.

"Even if there are only two persons, there's always someone here on Sunday. And sometimes more than once a week.

"We have a good four survivors who come, the rest of us are supporters.

"We stand here for them knowing that they can't always come."

"We were so stunned, we've stayed together as a community we're a very close family type group."





Ann Hagan Webb then got on the phone:

"I'm a survivor and the New England coordinator of SNAP. We're here this morning with crime scene tape, there's posters, 15-20 people, we're passing out flyers. It's 38 degrees but that isn't cold for Boston.

"There's hardly anyone walking into the church in terms of parishioners. Hardly anybody goes to the cathedral anymore.

"When we first used to come in 2002 Cardinal Law would have busloads of people and every week it would be somebody different Plus a lot of Boston Catholics would come.

"Could be our weekly picketing all these years has worked.

"The point is this is still going on," said Ann Hagan Webb. "I was abused from kindergarten through 7th grade at Sacred Heart in Rhode Island.

"We were at my old church in December to get his picture taken down-- there's a big picture of my perpetrator in the entry way it's still there, that's why we were picketing.

BULLETIN ARTICLE

"The priest wrote a disparaging letter to all the parishioners -- I think it was in the bulletin -- he sent a letter to parishioners insinuating my case is possibly false memory--

Then up came Rosemary Morgan wearing a fir hat.

*****$$$???!!!

I hope you enjoy reading this blog. Please come back often and visit my advertisers. I also pass the Internet hat. You can support this blog by putting cash on my PayPal account. Just click the button in the top left corner. I report all income to the IRS. Thank you.

END COMMERCIAL BREAK*****

ROSEMARY MORGAN: I'll be age 80 in May and I've been coming since the beginning.

CITY: Why?

ROSEMARY: I was a victim of physical and mental abuse by marriage and it holds over. Then you think what they might be going through. The reasons I'm here is because I have compassion for people who have been hurt.

"I've been coming for going on seven years. In all kinds, rain storms, snow, sleet, hot-hot days and days like today where it's nice but it's damp.

CITY: Anybody say nasty things to you?

ROSEMARY: They say I ought to be ashamed and I say I am ashamed for what's going on there, in the church. And then one time I was over at a church in Roxbury, Massachusetts, and we were going to have a rally a woman said And how much are you getting paid for this?

"And my answer was not enough.

Rosemary says she'll only go to a Catholic Church today for First Communions and weddings.

"I realized Catholic Church had manmade rules and I was following them. If I got married again I'd be excommunicated so it discouraged me. Then having this happen and other things in my life.

"As you know I'm called the Lady of the Lawn Chair. I'm here in my lawn chair this morning, holding a crime scene tape in my hand.

"The police have actually waved to us, which is very-very good.

"In the beginning they did not like us, they did not like us at all. They'd scowl and look at us like we were dirt in other words. Then they came to realize what we were doing, what we were actually doing.

"It's different now. I suppose you have a few that think we're a little bit odd, but we're doing this for the children and for the survivors."

==============

City of angels lady is now off to church in this coffee house where we meet Sunday evenings. The pastor is single and practices serial monogamy, so there's no questions asked. The music and prayer there is oh so genuine. Kairos on Sundays and the Daily Massage weekdays (linked at bottom of this blog) -- that is my religion, so to speak.

And neighborhood Bible studies where we plan to do Guerrila Christianity.

You don't need religion to pray.

I may not be able to go near a church without doubling over in pain.

They didn't murder my soul.

 
 

Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.