Fort Worth Star-Telegram
November 14, 2011
http://sportsblogs.star-telegram.com/mac-engel/2011/11/the-jerry-sandusky-case-evokes-images-of-oliver-o-grady-the-06-movie-deliver-us-from-evil.html
Today, the Big 10 announced that former Penn State coach Joe Paterno's name has been taken off its football trophy. In the grand scheme of things, who cares? It's a trophy.
The comparisons between Penn State and the Catholic church in the wake of this scandal are as plentiful as they are obvious. And the more I have read about former Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky's alleged behavior the more I have thought about a documentary I watched a few years ago, Deliver Us From Evil. This 2006 documentary was nominated for an Academy Award.
You can watch the entire documentary here.
The film chronicles the case of Catholic priest Oliver O'Grady, who served in several parishes in California in the 1970s and 1980s and committed hundreds of sexual acts against the children he was serving to allegedly protect. The damage this man inflicted is unfathomable, and this went on for decades before he was caught by authorities, served some time, and eventually deported back to Ireland.
The movie interviews several of the victims, the parents, O' Grady himself, and delves into the coverup and denial by the Vatican itself. This is one of the most troubling and haunting movies I have ever seen.
O' Grady consistently manages to smile and smirk throughout the film in regards to his attraction to young boys and girls. This was a trusted man in his community who, according to this movie, continually plotted and carried out sexual abuse.
Near the end of the movie, O' Grady is speaking to the camera and says in regards to the whole ordeal:
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"What we needed to do as a church is acknowledge our good days and our bad days. Our good times and our bad times. Somehow we always seem to look back and say, 'There were dark moments in our history and we'd rather not dwell on them' in a poetic way, you see? And that's very nice. But it's not reality.
"What I'd like to hear us say is, 'You know, we had one heck of an awful time there in the Middle Ages. But you know what, we're still here.' And that's the point if the church could see it."
He was serious when he said this.
According to this film, "Since 1950, sexual abuse has cost the catholic church over $1 billion in legal settlements and expenses. Over 100,000 victims of clergy sexual abuse have come forward in the United States alone."
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