Abuse of Power by Religion-Roman Catholic, Evangelical and Prote

He did have sexual relations and years of cohabitation (in California and Montana) with a woman known to him, when the relationship began, as a prostitute; He repeatedly abused alcohol and drugs; He has recently engaged in sexting activity with one or more women in Montana; He holds legal title to over $1 million in real estate, numerous luxury vehicles, motorcycles, an ATV, a boat dock, and several motor boats, which is a serious violation of his promise of poverty as a perpetually professed member of the Society. --Rev. Gerard Sheehan, SOLT

"I take full responsibility for my own poor judgment, my weakness and my sinful conduct that resulted...[in] one particularly complex situation...[that] led me to imprudent decisions with harmful consequences, the worst of which was violating the boundaries of chastity with an adult female who was under my spiritual care…[w]hile I would much prefer to allow this public act of contrition to stand alone, I regret having to address the malicious falsehoods...[of] every crackpot with a website. --from Father Euteneuer's January 31 confessional statement..." THANKS TO THE "CRACKPOTS"OR WE WOULD NEVER KNOW THE TRUTH....AND WOULD REMAIN LIKE SHEEP WAITING TO BE SLAUGHTERED, BECAUSE THAT IS SO MUCH BETTER THAN CAUSING SCANDAL

ARLINGTON, Va. (CN) - A Roman Catholic priest "kissed (a woman) on all parts of her body" during a so-called "exorcism" session, and "frequently explained full, passionate kisses as 'blowing the Holy Spirit into' her," the woman claims in court. -the opening paragraph from today's "Courthouse News" article

Finally, when Father began to beg me to remain mum, I started to get the feeling he was mostly concerned with saving his own butt, but just to be sure I played devil's advocate and asked him if he believed there were ever any circumstances that justified a victim's story being made public. "No," Father said definitively.

Victim Jane Doe: [in the chapel, and about to be touched inappropriately by Fr. Euteneuer] Are you sure this is alright? Fr. Euteneuer: [impatient; looking at the tabernacle and then back at Jane] Well, He would stop me if it wasn't! ------ Finally, when Father began to beg me to remain mum, I started to get the feeling he was mostly concerned with saving his own butt, but just to be sure I played devil's advocate and asked him if he believed there were ever any circumstances that justified a victim's story being made public. "No," Father said definitively. "But what about in the case of the Legion of Christ?" I was trying to think of their defrocked founder's name, but in the end Euteneuer supplied it for me. "Are YOU comparing ME to Marcial Maciel?!#" Euteneuer was instantly and utterly enraged, so much so that I was glad I was speaking with him over the phone and not in person. Eventually he calmed down, gave me his priestly blessing (something I surely did not solicit, and, under the circumstances felt pretty creepy receiving) and signed off.

"In the writings and speeches of Catholic bishops and evangelical leaders in recent months, "religious freedom" has come to mean something close to its opposite. It now stands for "religious privilege". It is a coded way for them to state their demand that religious institutions should be allowed special powers that exempt them from the laws of the land.

Goldberg's investigation into the intersection of the war on reproductive freedom and the global war for power spans four continents. From the HIV/AIDS epidemic to female circumcision to overpopulation to infant mortality to abortion rights, Goldberg analyzes how the means of reproduction influences the health of whole societies--even as women's rights have been sidelined by governments and social movements, and even as reproductive rights are weirdly isolated as "women's issues" only. Goldberg emphasizes how the struggle to control women's bodies is the next great human rights struggle of our globalized world.