Well, it's been about a week since Fr. David Nuss of the Diocese of Toledo, Ohio declined to accept the pastorate of St. Rose of Perrysburg, Ohio for 'personal reasons'. Many people know exactly what the personal reasons are, but I imagine, fearing being accused of slander or libel, many have declined to say a thing about it. Others, like Dave Yonke of the Blade, are waiting to see what happens. Well, I don't fear those things; I don't want to wait to see what happens. I intend to speak up.
I've written to Fr. Nuss via email asking him to be a real man, a real priest and step out into the clear light of day; admit what his wrong is and accept the consequences for his actions. There has been no response to date and my email was sent on Sunday, July 8, 2007. Did I really expect a response? I had a tiny spark of hope, but it has all but faded.
There's a victim here - his victim - out there needing healing and justice. There's the people of St. Rose who have been left in confusion and anger. There's the people of the whole Diocese who want a five year nightmare to finally come to an end.
And what does Fr. Nuss do? Remains silent. I guess he thought he could just go to ground for a while and hope the whole thing just blows over. Then Bishop Blair can quietly appoint him to some tiny parish way out in the country where no one knows what happened at the other St. Rose. Thus would begin the subtle rehabilitation of Fr. Nuss's public character. The hope is ultimately he can be restored and given greater authority in the Diocese again.
Both of them need to get real - this is the information age - one can run but cannot hide anymore. Eyes and ears, in reality and virtual-reality, are everywhere. He will be watched wherever he goes and people will be informed.
I told Fr. Nuss in my email: you need to be stop contributing to the culture of secrecy that resulted in thousands of children being sexually abused (that's not his 'crime' by the way) and the Bishops being reactionary, worried about their 'bella figura' (their 'nice image'; - that's a well-known Italian phrase - the Bishops will know exactly what I mean), covered things up and continue to cover things up. The "Father Nuss Affair" is just another example of that.
Yeah, it's hard to break a habit that goes back centuries. Yet, one step in the right direction can break that habit. I hope they don't need to broken to break it though.
I do wish myself that Fr. Nuss' abuse victim here would be brave and speak up. Her voice needs to be heard. I only hope the 'Shoo-Loop' lawyers have not gotten to her by now with the hush money. She should know there are many people in the Diocese who are willing to stand by her side if she's willing to tell her story. Her testimony would be like a hot knife going through butter - the wall Bishop Blair and the majority of the Clergy have set up to protect themselves from the truth being laid out in the open. Her words would lend courage to the many, many abuse victims who have been shamed into silence to finally demand what they need: healing, justice, mercy and accountability from the Bishops.
Well, this is enough for now. Maybe if others see this blog and it gets out perhaps it might be enough to pry the situation open and put Fr. Nuss in a position where he has to say what cries out to Heaven to be said. I certainly hope and pray that be so.
And yes, I am praying for Fr. Nuss and his victim.
Mike Drabik, member of St. Aldalbert/St. Hedwig Parish, Toledo, Ohio
9 comments:
From The Toledo Blade, Sunday, 07/15/2007:
"A rocky road to healing: Diocese enacts new policies, programs, but victims demand more accountability"
A key quote:
"Bishops are working harder than ever at public relations, but fundamentally they still protect their secrets more than they protect their flocks,"
BINGO! We have a priest here who has behaved in a predatory fashion. All the Bishop is doing is conducting a public scam while letting the wolves feed on the lambs and the sheep!
Mike
What abuse? What predatory behavior?
For anonymous: read the news today (07/22/07): "Toledo Diocese Says Priest Had an Affair" - that's from Channel 11.
The Abuse: Fr. Nuss had an affair with with a young recently widowed woman with a small child. He promised to leave the priesthood and marry her. Then he told her he'd changed his mind and dumped her.
Abuse? Yes! If Fr. Nuss had been a psychotherapist and did the same he'd have lost his license.
Priests by the very nature of who they are and what they do are given a level of trust that most of us do not enjoy. In the guise of helping he used a vulnerable person for his own ends - that's abuse even if the person involved was an adult and technically consented.
There are consistent rumors of other priests in the Diocese of Toledo who are sexually involved with women; sexually involved with other men and even sexually involved with each other.
That's tragic, but the other parties, as I have it, are truly consenting adults.
Let Bishop Blair deal with them.
But as for Fr. Nuss - he abused a vulnerable person and must be held accountable.
Thank God it looks like he's going to be!
Blade Article, 07/25/2007:
"Bishop Blair knew of priest's sexual sin"
The claim here is that Bishop Blair during his interview with the members of St. Rose knew about 'The Father Nuss Affair', but was constrained by Canon Law from admitting knowledge of the matter due to the fact that he was held to the seal of Confession.
Father Nuss had 'confessed' by way of using what Catholics call either the Sacrament of Penance or the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Anything confessed with in this context is absolutely inviolate. So, for example,if one confessed to having committed a heinous murder,and as long as the penitent was truly sorry and never intended to do it again, then through the ministry of Church and her Ministers (i.e. priests), in virtue of the 'binding and loosing' and power to forgive sins, the penitent is washed clean.
This does not take away the effects of the sin and does not leave the door open for more sinning.
As a Catholic I must affirm the seal of confession, but I hold that Bishop Blair, as he knew of the situation with Fr. Nuss and considering the volatile problems at St. Rose, made a poor judgment call in appointing him as pastor there.
I believe he was quietly trying to rehabilitate the priest's public image and he put that before the needs and welfare of the people of St. Rose. Same old, same old as it has been for 40 years and more.
As for having sexual intercourse with a member of the Church: I agree with the comments in that aforesaid article: priest, bishops and deacons are afforded the same privilege as psychotherapists, doctors, lawyers and counselors: an unearned trust. That trust must be automatic and not earned for these professions to properly function in society.
Therefore, when a priest, bishop or deacon violates that trust by using it to take unfair advantage of a vulnerable person, I state that it's a crime and the priest, bishop or deacon should be held accountable.
As it currently is NOT a crime in Ohio's laws, then I believe this is something the Ohio Assembly needs to take up and add it to Ohio Revised Code's criminal statutes.
I have written to Bishop Blair asking that public penance and an apology be given in this matter by Fr. Nuss himself. I don't expect to see one. Why?
Because of the 'seal of confession'? That's just an excuse now because - well- that's been blown quite some time ago. For the healing of the victim and her children and the healing of the people of St. Rose and the Diocese, I think the apology and public penance (an ancient practice albeit)of Fr.Nuss is mandated.
As for this matter not being connected to the Dallas Charter on the sexual abuse of minors, Ms. Orberski, the resident SpinMeister of the Diocese of Toledo asserts it is not. I guess for her the operative term is the word 'minor'.
Technicalities and procedures have always been the 'out' for all the Catholic Dioceses in the US in matters like this. Technically, she's right.
But the spirit and intention of the Charter was to get at the heart of the culture of secrecy that seeks to protect the institution and the power, place and property of the bishops.
Technicalities aside, 'The Father Nuss Affair' has violated that spirit and intention. The apology and penance should follow.
We need openness and frankness and truth from our bishops or matters like this Affair will simply be a signal to the predators in our midst that they can continue to abuse children and vulnerable adults with the full knowledge that the bishops will bend all their efforts to protect them.
If Nuss was a real man he would leave the priesthood.
the seal of confession is a cop-out
"The Abuse: Fr. Nuss had an affair with with a young recently widowed woman with a small child. He promised to leave the priesthood and marry her. Then he told her he'd changed his mind and dumped her."
Where do you find any of that information to be true? That is all ridiculous. The woman was 37, Nuss 41, far from "young". And how do you know he told her he'd leave the priesthood for her?
Hi anonymous:
The information I have comes from the copy of the email to Bishop Blair from the victim's friend and the Claudia Vercellotti and from Claudia herself.
If you want to quibble about the woman's age and what 'young' means- well that is tangential. The fact still remains that Fr. Nuss took advantage of his special position in the community as a priest - just like police officers, judges, doctors, lawyers, therapist, etc . . . have, to exploit a vulnerable person.
Please stop trying to excuse him by focusing on it as consensual. Some of the members of the above professions have done the same thing and the community really hollers about it when it came out. Indeed in some States people with a fiduciary relationship (which all those are) can go to jail for doing what Fr. Nuss did.
What is the difference in this case? None!
And with Claudia's name being stated, I can just hear you say "Ha, I knew it!"
Claudia is very willing to discuss the matter.
Here's the email address to contact her:
snaptoledo@mail.com
and the phone number: 419-810-5375
If you just want to vent - don't waste your or her time. But if you are willing to discuss this rationally like an adult - she's quite willing to talk to anyone.
A comment on the Bishop's inference that all those involved in bringing this matter to light have committed the grave sin of 'Detraction'. Then he states the famous "He who is without sin be the first to cast a stone'.
-Sigh- Detraction only occurs if there is a deliberate and vicious attempt to destroy someone's good name with the truth of his/her own unvirtuous behavior. It is compounded by the use of blackmail or by using the situation to advance one's self or one's cause.
None of this was intended by anyone who brought this matter to light - not Claudia, not myself, or anyone else.
The spirit of the Dallas Charter was violated: no more secrecy when it comes to the vulnerable being violated by clergy or other Church figures.
Fr. Nuss' sin was both personal and public.
Not to say anything would have been to have allowed an injustice to continue and to let Bishop Blair believe that things are settling down and he can get back to the 'same-old, same-old'.
The 'Box' is open, the Genie is out of the Bottle - when is he going to get it?
Finally, I restate - there are other priests in the Diocese who are sexualy involved with women, men and even each other. Information comes into SNAP's hands all the time about these 'carryings on' - and it comes from people who could care less about the Sexual Abuse Scandal. To her great credit Claudia has NEVER tried to use those things to advance her cause. She sees those relationships as entirely consensual and thus absolutely something for Bishop Blair to deal with in a pastoral manner - as a good shepherd should. If ever she should use that information then that would the sin of detraction in its worst form.
The fact is that a lot of people see SNAP in a general advocacy role and some place where they can vent their own frustrations about the moral behavior of the priests and other Church figures. As they don't get any response from their bishop when they complain - she has become a magnet for these issues. Thus they send all kinds of things to her via email, snail mail and the phone.
But Claudia is focused on those being victimized. Protecting the victims - whether they be children or adults - from the wolves disguised as shepherds is her only priority.
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