|
The Archdiocese of Boston Sex Scandal |
 |
|
Introduction: Sex, scandal, lies, and cover-up are not words one typically associates with Catholicism. However, in January of 2002, an investigation began of the Archdiocese of Boston. This investigation concerned pedophilic priests who had molested and sexually abused hundreds of victims. On December 14, 2002, Pope John Paul II accepted the resignation of Cardinal Bernard Law. Law had been the archbishop of Boston for over eighteen, the fourth largest archdiocese in the United States. Law’s resignation came a bit too late for many Catholics, who believed he should have stepped down months before when evidence of Cardinal Law’s involvement with priests who had committed numerous sex crimes and were known pedophiles came out into the public. The sex scandal that rocked the Boston Archdiocese involved more than 450 lawsuits, and a grand jury investigation of Cardinal Law and seven other bishops who were subpoenaed by the court for their involvement in the case. Father George Geoghan was one of the first priests whose sex crimes were brought into the public and was named the unofficial mascot of the entire scandal. The end of the court case investigation brought settlements, resignations, and possibly the beginning of the end of many believers’ life long faith in Catholicism. The case’s after-math can be seen in parodies and lack of trust of powerful men in the Catholic Church, decreased numbers of attendants in Catholic schools, and the life-long pain, shame, and embarrassment that each of the case’s victims feel.
Note: The Archdiocese of Boston Sex Scandal involved investigations and brought charges against many different church figures of Boston’s Archdiocese, this website is focused on Cardinal Bernard Law and Father John Geoghan.
Contact: carr20c@mtholyoke.edu |