Catholic Church in the Globe's crosshairs

Boston's Axis Of Evil III

By R.T. Neary

Bernard Francis Law was a graduate of Harvard University. On the surface, that would seem to be a formula for success in the Boston area

The implied rule, however, is that the graduate follow the newly-charted course distinct from that famous Veritas motto. Bernard's goal was for him to remain close to it in its entirety: Veritas en Deo et ecclesiae, Truth in God and the Church.

Born in Torreon, Mexico, son of a retired Air Force officer and whose mother had converted to Roman Catholicism from the Presbyterian faith, he majored in Medieval History. He later entered a seminary in Louisiana, and Bernard Law would eventually return to this area on Jan. 11, 1984 as the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Boston, following the death of Cardinal Humberto Medeiros.

The city was mired in the effects of a forced busing order imposed on Boston residents, not suburbanites, by Kennedy-prop and Wellesley resident, J. Arthur Garrity. Archbishop Law had extensive involvement in the civil rights issue, including threats to his life and limb as a diocesan editor in Mississippi and as a bishop in Missouri. Members of the local media were quick to posit that his thinking and actions would move in line with the academic milieu of his alma mater across the Charles and the Boston Globe's editorial positions. He did not satisfy them.

New Archbishop Bernard Law very early called abortion" a primordial evil," and never wavered from Roman Catholic teaching on the right to life, marriage, family, natural law, and all the current issues. Archbishop Law, was quickly seen as being without compromise to their way of thinking. He was securely wed to Church doctrine.

What the new head of the Archdiocese did not know was the amount of decay in the organizational structure on which he was standing. In reality, there was a serious malignancy. What the Archbishop apparently failed to recognize was the homosexual cadre within which was protecting a large number of deviants from priestly vows of celibacy. This element would bring him down.

While to a degree he was buffered, some of the malady had surfaced, and with his acute mind he should have gotten to its core and started to excise a real cancer. He had to bear responsibility, notwithstanding the many other problems he faced.

Fully aware of and professing the Church's counter-cultural history from its inception, Cardinal Law did not shirk from expected Globe criticism. Harvard and the Globe controlled the state's court system, and they ratcheted up this power until Margaret Hilary Marshall would become Chief Justice of the state's highest court.

A member of the privileged Afrikaner class in South Africa, she had come to the U.S. as an exchange student, received a degree from Harvard and a status she exploited to the fullest. She claimed she was unable to return home because of anti-Apartheid involvement during her days as a student.

"Maggie," as she was known while a clerk in a law office, was active in Left- wing circles and once served on the board of a facility which performed over 1500 abortions annually. Earning a law degree from Yale, she later returned to Harvard to become its General Counsel, and once criticized Professor Mary Ann Glendon for taking a Right To Life stand on University stationary, a faux issue.

With Vatican II leading to an unjustified flexible interpretation of some as to the core beliefs of Roman Catholicism, the papal leadership of Pope John Paul II was literally a Godsend. The Right To Life Movement became the strongest and most loyal element within the laity. Cardinal Law was unwavering in this regard, actively participating in the walks to aid crisis pregnancy centers locally, and the annual March For Life in Washington. After John Salvi's shooting rampage, however, he took a stand discouraging peaceful protests outside of Planned Parenthood. It played right into the Globe's cover-up of Salvi's background and his motivation.

John Salvi was a mentally unstable hairdresser. He was not connected with and had been rebuffed by Right To Life groups he had approached. Globe reporters knew much about his lifestyle, as well as the circumstances of his death in prison, but they cut short any true reporting of it. Globespin took over from the start and repeated a false tale.

While the Globe criticized the Cardinal at every intersection of political action and church teaching, he stood strong and had Vatican support. Everything seemed to be stacked against him to succeed in the political arena in Massachusetts, but he stood his ground. As academically talented and versed in church doctrine as he was, it would take a multitude of sexual activities by clerics within the ranks to inflict the enormous damage necessary to depose him from leadership.

Originally initiated by the defunct Boston Phoenix, the Globe picked up the story. with their Spotlight Team They subsequently ripped the Archdiocesan church structure asunder, starting in 2002.

Bishop John D'Arcy seemed to be a lonely hierarchical figure raising red flags about laxity in handling some deviants in the ranks among hundreds of loyal, hard- working , dedicated priests. The tough-minded bishop, unfortunately, was out-numbered by his peers, even though John Geoghan obviously had clerical cover and Paul Shanley was flagrant in his homosexual activities. Shanley had become brazen under Cardinal Medeiros, who could not seem to exercise control over him with the publicity he was receiving.

The Boston Globe's several "street priest" stories on Paul Shanley demonstrated awareness by their reporters and editors of his homosexual activities. They painted a different and deferential picture of him, and he exhibited the privileged status so many other Globe favorites would over the years – until the truth was exposed.

While unchallenged as a scholar, Cardinal Law appeared to be either naive or shielded from the sexual perversion within the priestly ranks. It certainly was difficult for those many fine men whose life-long commitment to Church teaching was so admired. In academic fashion, however, as other dioceses had done before him, the Cardinal ended up relying on so-called professionals to cure what was overwhelmingly homosexuality.

The Globe Spotlight Team's expose of sexual abuse by predator priests in the Archdiocese of Boston was a classical example of surgical investigative reporting. It was well-organized, disciplined, and they were effective.

While it was exemplary investigative journalism in uncovering a serious violation of trust – and a cover-up of a cancer within the clerical ranks – it also created another serious ethics violation. The Globe could not face the truth of what they were in reality uncovering.

Not only were very few of the acts perpetrated against females, this was not a pedophilia scandal. Rather it was an example of homosexual priests acting out their inclinations against young males in their trust. Certainly some incidents did fall into other categories, but those were the distinct minority.

Globe editors willfully decided to avoid the homosexuality at the core of the scandal, and they labeled the entire expose as one involving pedophilia. This was a blatant untruth – and journalistically inescusable.

Professor Mary Ann Glendon of Harvard would eventually label it correctly as ephebophilia, and a study by the John Jay School of Criminal Justice affirmed that it was not pedophilia. Their high quality work showed that over three-quarters of these acts were by adult male clerics, and over three-quarters of the victims were post-pubescent.

There was a trophy the Boston Globe editors wanted for getting to the root of what they would sometimes call the Archdiocesan "sexual" scandals. They obviously wanted to depose Cardinal Bernard Francis Law – and disgrace him.

The Cardinal, now fully aware of the many mistakes made before and during his tenure, with Vatican approval tried to stay the course. Observers knew well that he had inherited an organization with a serious malignancy. Well-educated and skilled at the academic level, however, he proved he lacked the worldly approach called for and relied on theorists, who could not present him with any genuine solutions. So-called true friends vanished, forgiveness seemed to be absent, and the Boston Globe with their other compliant media would extend no mercy. It resembled the pursuit of King Philip and the revenge sought in the war, which he once fought in these parts.

With a virtual media death watch nightly at the Chancery, a group of 58 dissident priests, several with close involvement to the "homosexual community," organized a letter requesting the Cardinal's resignation. The letter received widespread front-page coverage, and after a trip to the Vatican, Cardinal Bernard Law resigned his position as Archbishop of Boston on Dec. 13, 2002. The Boston Globe finally had its real prize!

Margaret Hilary Marshall was the typical Harvard and Boston Axis of Evil package. She had all the ingredients to satisfy limousine liberals suffering from white guilt, lesbians, homosexuals, same-sex marriage advocates, and "abortion actually being healthcare" people. She was truly the "White Hope."

Although never having tried a case, she was nominated to the Supreme Judicial Court in 1996 by Gov. William Weld, who as a result of her judicial activism, years later attended the wedding of his former Harvard roommate to another male.

Without ever having attended the Governor's Council hearing whose vote elevated her to Chief Justice, she soon started to solicit a case to challenge traditional marriage. Goodridge vs. Massachusetts DPH was the result. She eventually exerted pressure to obtain a 4 to 3 vote and give Same-Sex Marriage to Massachusetts

The approval vote took added pressure from lesbian leadership at Harvard Law School to obtain the majority vote. It also required Legislative leaders to thwart signature drives of 130,000 and 170,000 voters, calling for a popular vote. This vote by the people was never taken, nor did the Legislature ever make it statutory.

Harvard graduate Gov. Mitt Romney ordered marriage licenses be given to couples of the same sex, and Cambridge, Massachusetts issued the first marriage licenses ever for two members of the same gender. Another "first" for a state which thrives on them. The Globe's Special Occasions – Weddings page took on a new look.

Boston's Axis of Evil was functioning at full power, with Planned Parenthood now going to be given an even bigger role. The organization would take aim at becoming recognized as an educational institution, introducing K thru 12 Sexual Health within public schools, while glossing over their bloody money-making main activity.

Although once proudly basking in the title, "The Athens Of America," listening to Mayor Thomas M. Menino stumble over words was an embarrassment. He played the political game of responding to the powerful lobbies, however, and combined with never missing a photo opportunity, was elected 5 times.

Patrick O'Malley is another example of every piece falling in place for him to affect many lives – and history. Reared in Ohio and western Pennsylvania, Patrick entered the seminary in the 7th grade and still pursues the clerical life, now as Cardinal Archbishop of Boston. He assumed the name Sean on ordination.

While obviously well-trained in Roman CatholicTheology, it was his studies in languages and theatre which are most responsible for his route to Boston. Now as a bearded, humble Franciscan, he is always on stage. This role seems to be a near-perfect fit for his theatrical studies from those early seminary years. Cardinal Sean, as he is now called, sadly has never shown the ability to be a leader. While the Archdiocese is in a financial bind, bureaucrats have been receiving obscene 6-figure salaries, unknown to contributors at the parish level. The Cardinal does not even acknowledge letters.

The true head of the troubled Archdiocese of Boston is one J. Bryan Hehir, an ordained diocesan priest, directly linked to Harvard University and on their payroll. His bland personality and controlled ego tend to obfuscate his power, but with solid Leftist views he is in complete control.

With direct responsibility for Social Services and Health Care, he has advised Right To Lifers that "abortion is the law of the land" and discourages protests outside of Planned Parenthood or other facilities performing them.

Not only has he never been seen in prayerful protest at 1055 Commonwealth Avenue outside of "Auschwitz Boston," he has even been conspicuously absent from the annual March for Life in Washington.

J. Bryan Hehir was responsible for having Mayor Thomas Menino honored at a Catholic Charities dinner for him in Boston. Menino had openly professed to be "pro- choice" on abortion, supports "gay marriage" in direct opposition to Roman Catholic teaching., and walked annually in the "Gay Pride" parade in Boston. On the faculty of Harvard Divinity School since 1993, J. Bryan Hehir's views were clear, and he became the first Catholic ever selected to become Dean. Currently on the faculty of the JFK School of Government, he receives a salary of over $200,000. The Globe's "journalistic" pursuits reached ludicrous levels at times – but some were inexcusable. Shortly after the April 15, 2013 Marathon bombings, they ran a sympathetic story of a Globe sports intern's friendship with Dzokhar Tsarnaev in Cambridge. Their website had a link to a sickening video which actually showed the intern with tears running down his cheeks.

Other pieces were also designed to evoke sympathy for this privileged immigrant whose scribblings in the boat in Watertown showed his true feelings about us. One such article was by a staff writer entitled, "Despite evidence Tsarnaev has his supporters."

The Boston Globe, which the NY Times bought in 1993 for 1.1 billion dollars had in recent years been put up for sale again. Some said it was worth no more than its real estate, but it still longed for a major scoop. To everyone's surprise the opportunity – in their eyes – would come from Rome, and Vatican City no less.

With the surprise announcement by Pope Benedict XVI that he was stepping down from the Papacy, the Globe latched on to an effort to tout one Cardinal Sean Patrick O'Malley of Boston for elevation to the Chair of Peter.

John Allen, Vatican representative for a decidedly Leftist publication known as the National Catholic Reporter started the effort, which ended up resembling a full-scale American political campaign. Allen appeared on PBS, CNN and a host of national media handicapping the enclave, which by its essence is to be meditative, prayerful, and without secular influence. Cardinal O'Malley got top raves.

The politicking with the Globe's ardent campaign featuring "Cardinal Sean" as never seen before, reached near-epic proportions from the U.S. to the Vatican. Italian publications listed him as one of "the Papabili," and his entire array of staff, bishops and assorted Church/Media types joined in touting his mythical qualifications. This entourage pushed every influential pressure point, leaving no buttonhole untouched. J. Bryan Hehir's linkage was quite evident, as was the Pilot and Chancery staff's all-out effort.

Channel 5 and other media joined the drumbeat, and the Cardinal with his usual quips and joyous demeanor was not aligned at all with the conclave's atmosphere.. It reached the height of media distortion as to the event's solemnity when the Globe had a front page picture of the Cardinal laughing while saying Mass, caption and all.

Needless to say, the Globe's all-out effort and plethora of stories fell short, and Boston's Axis of Evil was thwarted literally by forces on high. A man not listed as one of the Papabili appeared on the balcony. Cardinal Sean was allowed to use the second half of that round-trip ticket – as would the entire entourage which was brought to Rome in support of the failed campaign.

NEXT: Sacramental Secular Fundamentalism: De-Parenting

Boston's Axis of Evil IV

© R.T. Neary