GUAM
Pacific News Center
Written by Janela Carrera
Father Edivaldo Oliveira issued a statement denouncing the ad, calling it a malicious intent to destroy the Catholic faith.
Guam – An ad paid for by the Concerned Catholics of Guam is stirring up some controversy as it calls on victims of sexual abuse to come forward. The targeted dates and locations, according to Catholic blogger Tim Rohr, are directly related to when Archbishop Anthony Apuron was a priest.
The paid advertisement starts off by asking “Were you sexually abused? Molested?” In the background is the image of an altar boy with his back facing the camera. It then lists dates and locations as to when and where victims may have been sexually abused. Local Catholic blogger Tim Rohr says he didn’t pay for the ad, but he is working with the people behind it.
“The dates and the locations are specifically targeted as to when the now Archbishop Apuron, when he was serving as a priest and pastor–was in that capacity in those dates and locations,” explains Rohr.
Rohr says this advertisement came as the result of an interview K57 host Patti Arroyo had with a guest on her show. The guest, Mae Ada, had claimed that she was at a funeral service when someone had mentioned to her that he was molested by Archbishop Anthony Apuron as a child.
“Since then we’ve had a pretty regular stream of information,” notes Rohr. “There has been a pretty regular flow of information and contact. I won’t say with how many but more than one–people who have identified themselves as having been sexually molested.”
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