c. 2008 Religion News Service

Former head of abuse review panel blasts Cardinals George, Egan

(RNS) An Illinois Supreme Court justice who chaired a lay review board investigating the Catholic sex abuse scandal blasts the church and prominent cardinals in a new book, accusing them of dishonesty.

Justice Anne M. Burke, who headed the National Review Board for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops from 2002 to 2004, says “bishops got away with concealing crime” and singles out Cardinal Francis George of Chicago.

Burke says she was furious at George’s “casual attitude” and said he “wasn’t honest with me.” Burke also says George, now president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, didn’t tell her he was housing an abusive priest.

“I found the cardinal’s lack of honesty really difficult to deal with,” Burke says in the book by Kerry Kennedy, daughter of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy. “How do I go on to trust what he says to me?.. He and his brother bishops have been in denial all along.”

Burke’s comments come in “Being Catholic Now,” a collection of reflections about Catholicism by prominent U.S. Catholics, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and conservative commentator Bill O’Reilly. The book was released Tuesday (Sept. 9).

Burke told the Chicago Tribune that the interview took place more than a year ago and she commends George’s recent actions, including his release of his legal documents and his promise to purge the priesthood of abusers.

In a statement, George said he was “unaware of all the details of his situation” when he allowed a Delaware priest accused of abuse to stay at his residence.

“I stated publicly that there was no priest in ministry in Chicago who had against him a substantiated claim of sexual abuse of a minor,” George said. “That statement was true when I made it and it is true now.”

Burke also criticizes Cardinal Edward Egan of New York in the book, saying he “was offended by” the National Review Board’s “insistence on independence.”

“I think he was also intimidated by the thoughts of fifty former FBI agents doing our questioning,” Burke says.

Egan’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

_ Daniel Burke

Scientology to face court trial in France

PARIS (RNS) The Church of Scientology and seven of its members will be tried for fraud and other allegations in a groundbreaking case that could lead to a ban on the church’s operations in France, legal sources cited by local media say.

The allegations stem back a decade, and were originally leveled by a woman who claims she paid the church more than $28,000 for lessons, books, drugs and an “electrometer,” which church members claim can be used to measure a person’s mental state.

The trial in Paris, which according to reports is likely to take place in 2009, is the first time the church would be judged on charges of swindling. Previous legal charges have been leveled at individuals or against the church (in 2002) for violating individual freedom and information laws.

The Paris area chapter of the church and its president ultimately paid several thousand dollars apiece in the 2002 case.

The church swiftly rebutted the latest allegations, claiming it was being stigmatized.

“The special treatment reserved for the Church of Scientology Celebrity Centre raises questions about the equality of the justice system and the presumption of innocence,” it said in a statement.

“We are far from dissolution,” Daniele Gounord, spokeswoman for the Church of Scientology in France, told Paris’ Le Monde newspaper on Tuesday (Sept. 9).

“Based on previous experiences in France and elsewhere things usually finish well,” she said.

Founded half a century ago in the United States, the church that claims prominent members such as Hollywood star Tom Cruise, is viewed with skepticism in a number of European countries.

In Germany, federal and state interior ministers claimed the church was unconstitutional last December, paving the way for possibly banning it in the country.

The church or its individual members have been on trial on four separate occasions in France, starting in 1978. In two of the earliest cases, sentences were ultimately shortened or dropped altogether on appeal.

_ Elizabeth Bryant

Faith leaders launch push to address poverty

(RNS) Faith leaders from 21 national organizations, led by the Jewish Council for Public Affairs and Catholic Charities USA, have joined forces to spend a week urging local, state and national politicians to make anti-poverty efforts a top priority.

Called “Fighting Poverty with Faith: A Week of Action,” the grass-roots effort includes a range of activities, from a poverty symposium in Nashville, Tenn., to a letter-writing campaign in Rhode Island. The week culminates with a Sept. 16 gathering on the steps of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.

With the McCain and Obama campaigns heading into the final two months before Election Day, Rabbi Steve Gutow, executive director of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, said the interfaith coalition can “hold the candidates responsible” for coming up with strategies to help the 37 million Americans who live below the federal poverty line.

The timing also coincides with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and the weeks leading up to the Jewish high holidays, further highlighting the commitment that faith groups have towards helping others, he said.

“It’s a time when we’re really investigating what we need to do in this world,” Gutow said. “We can solve poverty with political leadership powered by a citizen movement.”

The effort was lauded by several Democratic lawmakers, including Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., and Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn.

“Our faith needs to guide our conscious in what we are doing,” DeLauro said, adding that the coalition’s efforts could rally support for legislation to increase tax credits for struggling families with children, aid to farmers, pay equity for women and other issues she supports. “I know an organized campaign like yours can make a difference.”

Earlier this summer, a smaller coalition led by JCPA and Catholic Charities sent letters signed by nine faith leaders to the McCain and Obama campaigns, requesting that their national conventions include a prime-time speech addressing poverty.

_ Nicole Neroulias

Quote of the Day: Anglican deacon Skye Denno

(RNS) “I think it makes me more approachable, and I haven’t heard any grumbles. I did walk down the street in biker boots, my hot pants and a dog collar and got a few looks. I don’t do it to be difficult _ it’s just me.”

_ Skye Denno, a newly ordained deacon in the Church of England who still clings to her punk rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle. She was quoted by London’s Daily Telegraph newspaper.

KRE/RB END RNS