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	Tension Surrounds Cardinal Pushing, Shouting and Cursing Erupts during Question-and-Answer Session Regarding Child Molestation By Lisa Donovan and Frank Main Daily Southtown [Chicago IL] January 31, 2006 http://www.dailysouthtown.com/southtown/dsnews/311abn8.htm Cardinal Francis George was peppered with the same question again and again Monday night: Why would a priest interrogated by police about allegations of child molestation be allowed to continue teaching and ministering at a Roman Catholic school? The head of the Archdiocese of Chicago, George told the approximately 300 gathered at St. Agatha Catholic Church on the West Side that he was sorry — that he should have done more to make sure Rev. Daniel McCormack abided by a church order not be alone with children. "I'm truly sorry you had as a pastor ... a person who was accused of being child molester," George said, describing the allegations against McCormack — if true — as "destructive of the soul and destructive of the church." There are 750 families in the parish at 3147 W. Douglas, which includes Our Lady of the West Side School. Most at the meeting offered tense but polite reverence to George as he met for more than two hours with them about the abuse allegations dating back five years. But pushing, shouting and cursing erupted during a question and answer session, and police were called in to separate some people. No arrests were made. "This was my biggest fear: that sisters and brothers are going to be fighting with sisters and brothers," said Julia Bledsoe, a member since 1988 who grew up near the parish. McCormack, 37, was charged Jan. 21 with two counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse. On Saturday morning the cardinal held a news conference, answering questions about why he didn't relieve McCormack of his duties at St. Agatha when the one of the two alleged victims first came forward with allegations of sexual abuse. The cardinal was hamstrung by a technicality in church law, he explained. McCormack was removed from St. Agatha only after he was criminally charged. On Monday night, a visibly angry Tara Rice, of the West Side and who has daughters who are the third generation to attend Our Lady of the West Side School, said she was "disappointed and angry" about how the situation was handled. "How long will you continue to cover the secrets of the church?" she asked George, followed by a collective hush from the crowd. The cardinal, once again, explained he was limited by church law in handling abuse allegations. "There is no desire to hide something if it is something — if it's known," George said. Chicago Sun-Times
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