Sandro Magister on the Legionaries of Christ: 'Fr. Maciel's Ghost Still Haunts the Castle'

In many of the houses of the Legionaries of Christ, the portrait of their disgraced founder is still on display. And his system of power continues to function.Vatican authorities did everything they could to cut off the ties, calling his life, in a statement dated May 1, 2010, "devoid of scruples and authentic religious meaning". His influence still looms large in some circles. A stunning letter of concern, written by a priest member, demonstrates the fact.

P>ROME, Italy (Chiesa) - The changing of the guard that is taking place at the top of the Vatican congregation for religious is making the heads of the Legionaries of Christ, the heirs of their disgraced founder Marcial Maciel (in the photo), even more nervous.

The prefect of the congregation, Cardinal Franc Rodé, who was their last major protector, is in fact being replaced for reasons of age. The name of his successor is not yet known. Meanwhile, however, the new secretary of the congregation has already been appointed.

He is Archbishop Joseph Tobin, born in the United States to a family of Irish descent, with pastoral experience among Spanish-speaking Catholics, previously the superior general of the Redemptorists, founded in the eighteenth century by Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori.

In an interview with John Allen of the "National Catholic Reporter" shortly after his appointment, Tobin said in regard to the Legionaries and the decisions about them made by Benedict XVI:

"A house of cards has been constructed in the media and elsewhere to portray Benedict XVI as somehow uncaring or soft on clerical sexual misconduct, but it has to answer the point that one of the first things he did as pope was to deal with Maciel. That action spoke volumes, because I had been in Rome and I saw the incredible clout Maciel had.

"The fact that Benedict did it, and did it quickly, was a clear signal that the pope is serious about correcting this thing. Theologically and spiritually, I think the Legionaries face enormous challenges, given how much religious life tends to stress the person and the inspiration of the founder. [...] And even affectively, it's a massive blow."

In effect, in spite of the fact that the Vatican authorities did everything they could to cut off the ties between the Legionaries of Christ and their founder - to the point of calling his life, in a statement dated May 1, 2010, "devoid of scruples and authentic religious meaning" - the figure of Maciel continues to have visibility and weight in the daily life of their communities all over the world.

Moreover, if it is true that full powers in the governance of the Legion today belong only to the papal delegate, Archbishop Velasio De Paolis, the fact remains that yesterday's leaders are still in place, and maintain an extremely strong influence over many of the religious, on account of the complete communion of life that they shared with the founder.

They continue to say that they were always unaware of Maciel's disgraceful behavior, until after his death in 2008.

But the Vatican authorities don't see things the same way at all. They are increasingly convinced - and they made this known in the statement dated May 1 - that a "power system" and a "defense mechanism" aware of his misdeeds had been set up around Maciel over the years.

It is known that, protected by this complicity, Maciel had the gall to spend his weekends with his lovers and children in Spain and Mexico, at the expense of the Legion. To keep his lovers near him - passed off as benefactors - in the vacation house of the Legionaries on the Amalfi coast. To take his children to audience with John Paul II, without his knowledge. To proclaim himself innocent of the countless acts of sexual abuse against the young people and children who accused him.

The letter is proof of how much the figure of the founder continues to loom over the lives of his followers. The author of the letter, Fr. Peter F. Byrne, is an Irish priest of the Legion who works in a parish in Cancún, Mexico, together with two other priests of his congregation.

In the letter, addressed to the director general of the Legion, Álvaro Corcuera, Fr. Byrne doesn't only complain that images of Maciel continue to appear everywhere and that his birthplace, Cotija de la Paz, continues to be a destination connected to his memory.He also denounces the continuation among the Legionaries of a "horrible" practice in use with Maciel: that of drawing in persons and families, classified on the basis of wealth, for the sole purpose of raking in money.

From all of this, Fr. Byrne draws the forlorn conclusion that "the structures of power imposed by Maciel still remain in force today." The Full Text of the Letter is set forth below:

Start the New Year with Prayer | Light your Free Virtual Prayer Candle

***********************

"EVERYTHING IS MOVING FORWARD AS BEFORE..."

Mexico, July 27, 2010

Most esteemed in Christ, dear Father Álvaro,

I address myself to you again with sorrow and shame. The sorrow is increased by the knowledge that sending you this letter will again be a useless effort, as have been other letters and other suggestions to you and to other superiors. But [my] silence would not be a good choice, because it would make me an accomplice of the one who abused and plundered the lives of our brothers.

In these days, I have had the honor of visiting some houses of the Legionaries (and of being received with great charity). I have witnessed with my own eyes that in most of them there are still photos of the village of Cotija, of the house in Cotija, and, incredibly, in three places (San Salvador, Cancún, and Canada) there are photos of Fr. Maciel surrounded by the first followers or by the first groups of Legionaries.

How is this possible, Fr. Álvaro? What message are we sending to Fr. Maciel's victims? Is this the way to accept the [Vatican] statement of May 1, 2010? Fr. Álvaro, for the love of God and for the honor of those who suffered the horror of abuse, the agony of disdain and disregard, I beg you to order the removal of the photos of the author of the abuse from the home in which he was born, from the village in which he was raised, and from the institution in which those acts were committed, wounding the innocent and casting so much discredit upon the holy Church.

I likewise beg you to order that all of the spiritual retreats in Cotija take on a tone of reparation, that Fr. Maciel's body be moved from the central altar to one of the crypts to the side in which other Legionaries are buried (so that only Christ may be at the center).

I propose that the home of the deceased be turned into a home of reparation and perpetual adoration, and that the museum be turned into a museum to commemorate his victims and guarantee that they never be forgotten.

Finally, I propose that the house in the mountains (CCI) be given to the diocese to be used as a seminary or retreat house, or even as a place of rehabilitation for priests in the grip of alcohol or other vices. In this way, we will make a gesture of reparation to the Church of Mexico, so discredited on our account.

I have also noticed that in Mexico, meetings are still being held among the leaders with the infamous lists that divide persons and families into triple-A, double-A, etcetera, and show the names of the priests charged with "grooming" these families and then tapping into their money.

Fr. Álvaro, this is an immoral practice that violates the principle according to which persons must never be used as means to an end. How can a priest approach a family with such a worldly intention? How can a priest use the sacraments, friendship, or spiritual direction with a secondary purpose?

This is a methodology that was institutionalized by the deceased founder, who lived a life without scruples. How can we reform the constitutions, when we are not even capable of abandoning practices that are so blatantly immoral? How will we identify a charism when we cannot identify real and proper injustices?

How can we have a culture of transparency and honesty when we continue to keep lists of persons divided into categories, and deal with them for financial reasons?

How can we convince people of our upright intentions when we are negotiating with them? How will people feel when they find out they are on these horrible lists?

In reality, Father, I don't expect any action [from you]. Nothing has changed among us during the whole period of crisis. All of the changes have come from the outside (the visitors, the Vatican, the pressure of the media or of the episcopal conferences).

Everything is moving forward as before - including the disgraceful photos of the abuser on the walls of the houses - to remind us that the structures of power imposed by Fr. Maciel still remain in force today. We continue to be Fr. Maciel's victims, because we have neither father nor pastor to pull us out of the swamp into which we have sunk.

Most affectionately in Christ,

Fr. Peter F. Byrne, L.C.

Beautifully Designed Prayer Cards Now 15% Off

---

Chiesa is a wonderful source on all things Catholic in Europe. It is skillfully edited by Sandro Magister. SANDRO MAGISTER was born on the feast of the Guardian Angels in 1943, in the town of Busto Arsizio in the archdiocese of Milan. The following day he was baptized into the Catholic Church. His wife�s name is Anna, and he has two daughters, Sara and Marta. He lives in Rome.