CHRISTIAN love SCANDAL 'THE BEAUTY AND THE PRIEST

Priest affair? Yes, I do care

By Denis Hamill New York Daily News Sunday, August 21, 2005 Who cares?

That was my first reaction to "The Beauty and the Priest" love scandal between Msgr. Eugene Clark, the rector of St. Patrick's, and Laura DeFilippo, his "leggy," "shapely," "attractive" - take your pick, dudes - secretary.

Whatever happened between DeFilippo and Clark, at least it was between consenting adults, and not another 11- year-old altar boy rape story.

Still, I was curious about how Clark came to own a $2 million home in Amagansett while I'm still taking my kid down Coney. But the church has taken a vow of silence on this one.

But, hey, Clark isn't the first clergyman to get rich. God works in mysterious ways. Cardinal Law of Boston, who covered up for child rapists, was punished for his sins with a life sentence in a luxury condo on St. Peter's Square, where he was allowed to say Mbutt at the Pope's ceremony. Bishop Thomas Daily, who also had a veiny hand in the Boston coverup, was given a fine stone house in Brooklyn, where he smugly presided over the collapse of the Catholic school system.

Talk about ash and sackcloth.

I agree with my colleague, Michael Daly, that one of the more offensive elements of the Msgr. Clark expose was not the affair itself but the hypocrisy of this dirty old priest, who condemned Hollywood for the moral decline of modern society.

But, c'mon, who really cares?

Well, the church hierarchy should care. This particular case once again screams for a reexamination of the archaic celibacy laws, which didn't even exist in the early church. After all, St. Peter, the first Pope, was a married man, as were most Popes after him for hundreds of years. Celibacy laws weren't established until the 11th century, and many historians believe they were created as a way of preventing priests from leaving property to wives or children. Like that $2 million house in Amagansett.

All that said, for me, the Msgr. Clark scandal really got ugly when the jilted husband, Philip DeFilippo, went public with story and photos. Where his teenage daughter and all her friends could see the pictures of her mother, father and some decrepit priest who looks like he just shot a remake of "The Mummy's Hand" splashed across the newspapers and TV.

That's what elevated this affair from venial to mortal sin. But perhaps all the dough Philip DeFilippo saves in alimony might be best spent on shrinks for his emotionally short-circuited daughter. But except for that, who cares?

Well, the people who raise money for the wonderful charities buttociated with the Catholic Church care. They care because whenever a new love scandal explodes in the press, the money to help the elderly, the poor, the sick, the orphaned, the mentally challenged and the forgotten of the city stops coming in. That's who Msgr. Clark, who misses no meals, hurts.

I know how important these charities are. When my mother grew old, she was blessed with a fine apartment in the Bishop Boardman senior citizens apartments in Brooklyn, run by Catholic Charities, where she lived with security and dignity. When she developed Parkinson's dementia, she received magnificent care at the Carmel Richmond Nursing Home in Staten Island, an immaculate waiting room for Heaven. Vital places like these depend on donations from generous Catholics and benevolent foundations.

But when these love scandals detonate on Page 1, the foundations, already looking to cut costs, have an excuse to terminate funds. Outraged wealthy Catholics slap close the checkbook. Thousands more stop attending church. One Catholic Church fund-raiser told me, "People jokingly ask, 'How the church can ban birth control and pay for Viagra?' It would be funny, except those same people aren't sending money anymore."

Who cares?

The parents, teachers, and students of 26 Catholic schools shuttered this year in Brooklyn and Queens care. They care that this happened while some randy old priest lives in a $2 million Amagansett beach house and still has the disposable income to pay for a cheaters' motel 2 miles away at Hamptons' summer rates?

Who cares?

I care, because one of those 26 schools was St. Thomas Aquinas school in Brooklyn, where I played Little League as a boy. I care because my grammar school, Holy Family, was long ago shuttered. As was St. Stanislaus, the church where I was an altar boy. I care, because my entire Catholic childhood has vanished. When you grow up Catholic, you always believe the church will remain.

Instead, it's being chipped away by persons, their enablers, bottom-line corporate hit men and hierarchical hypocrites.

Who cares?

Go to the churches across the city this Sunday and count the empty pews. Go to the charitable Catholic insbreastutions that have to say no to people in need.

That's who cares.

- Denis Hamill

More at:

Jai Maharaj Om Shanti

Hindu Holocaust Museum

Hindu life, principles, spirituality and philosophy

The truth about Islam and Muslims

The person mission of Jesus stated in the Christian bible:

"Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not so send peace, but a sword. "For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. "And a man's foes shall be they of his own household. - Matthew 10:34-36.

o Not for commercial use. Solely to be fairly used for the educational purposes of research and open discussion. The contents of this post may not have been authored by, and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the poster. The contents are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works. o If you send private e-mail to me, it will likely not be read, considered or answered if it does not contain your full legal name, current e-mail and postal addresses, and live-voice telephone number. o Posted for information and discussion. Views expressed by others are not necessarily those of the poster who may or may not have read the article.

FAIR USE NOTICE: This article may contain copyrighted material the use of which may or may not have been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. This material is being made available in efforts to advance the understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democratic, scientific, social, and cultural, etc., issues. It is believed that this consbreastutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with breastle 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research, comment, discussion and educational purposes by subscribing to USENET newsgroups or visiting web sites. For more information If you wish to use copyrighted material from this article for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

Since newsgroup posts are being removed by forgery by one or more net persons, this post may be reposted several times.