Is he still celebrating mass in Gozo?
There is a fresh suit against Mercieca, the defrocked priest who spent most of his life in the United States but who then fled for shelter in Gozo when men began to say that he had fiddled with them when they were pubescent. The case attracted mammoth attention a couple of years ago because one of those men was a politician.
The newspapers report that lawyers are flying to Malta from the US to take Mercieca’s deposition – his testimony, or version of events.
Meanwhile, the Archdiocese of Miami, under whose control Mercieca remains, has reminded the press that he was defrocked in 2006 and is no longer permitted to dress like a priest or perform the role of a priest. The word is that he continues to do both in the comfort, shelter and security of Victoria, in defiance of his archbishop’s ruling, even celebrating mass. It’s time for a statement from the Archbishop of Gozo, I would think.
Excerpt from the story in The Times, 21 October
Reacting to this new suit, on Thursday the Archdiocese of Miami released a statement where it outlined that Fr Mercieca’s faculties were removed in October 2006 after he was accused by Mr Foley.
“A priest without faculties cannot perform or dress as a priest. The Archdiocese of Miami’s policies clearly outline how it deals with such allegations when Church clergy, employees or volunteers are accused of such crimes.
“All claims of sexual abuse are reported to the State Attorney’s office, an offer of pastoral and psychological counselling is made to the alleged victim and the Archdiocese’s Review Board conducts a review of the allegations while respecting any investigation by state authorities,” the Archdiocese said.
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Mercieca Anthony Fr
46 Triq il-Librerija Victoria VCT 1173 Gozo Malta
2155****
Ordination: 30 September 1962 Resident in Gozo. Incardinated in ANOTHER diocese.
Daphne this was very simple…it was taken from the official website of the gozitan curia
[Daphne – Your point being? If a priest is defrocked by one archdiocese, he is defrocked in all. It’s one church, remember.]
you can only understand the actions of the church if you first understand that the church considers itself as a republic within the republic.
Doesnt the Archdiocese of Miami know that Fr Mercieca is Gozitan and in Gozo, anything goes? If he had to stop celebrating Mass, then he would be admitting his guilt to his fellow Gozitans, some of whom consider him to be the next best thing after sliced bread. A defrocked priest has no stature in Gozo at all.
[Daphne – A defrocked priest is defrocked everywhere, not just in the archdiocese where he was defrocked. The archbishop of Miami defrocked him on behalf of the Catholic Church.]
Remember how the Bishop of Gozo established a commission to investigate the allegations against Fr. Mercieca? This was announced at the height of the international media scandal that resulted from ex-Congressman Mark Foley’s allegations of abuse against Fr. Mercieca? What happened to that Commission? How many times did it meet? Who were its members? What evidence has it collected? Has it made any findings and recommendations to the Bishop of Gozo? If not why not? Have the findings ever been published? Has the Maltese media followed up to ensure it got access to those findings? Or was the establishment of the Commission just a cynical media ploy by the Diocese of Gozo?
[Daphne – Good questions, but they’re too busy spending their time planning evangelisation missions to the island of gang-rapists, goat-shaggers and horrible murders.]
All this talk of this chap being “defrocked” is fertile ground for an innuendo.
I’ll get me coat…
Daphne, are you sure that if he is defrocked in one diocese, it counts for all? I think it should be verified with the Curia as that would really be a scandal.
[Daphne – Double sigh. Yes, Gerald, I’m sure. It’s one church, remember? Or so they told us.]
Daphne – This is from where matt555 extracted the information he supplied:
http://gozodiocese.org/clergy/gozopriests/#m
Given that the Fr Anthony Mercieca’s details are supplied under the heading “Diocesian priests living in Gozo”, I suppose that then yes (shamefully) he is still a priest, and has not been “defrocked” here, despite his admission of guilt.
[Daphne – Priests are not defrocked diocese by diocese. They are defrocked, full-stop, within the Catholic religion as a whole. If they wish to carry on as priests, they’ve got to start their own sect. What we have here, therefore is the Bishop of Gozo openly defying his own church by allowing a defrocked priest to masquerade as a priest.]
Once defrocked in a diocese, you’re defrocked everywhere
[Daphne – Thank you for backing me up on that, Meerkat. Maybe I should point out that you’re the voice of authority on this one, as something of an expert in the laws of the church.]
What actually happens in such cases is that the archbishop of the diocese sends the file of the priest child molester to the Vatican. It is the Vatican that decides to defrock a priest and not the archbishop. It is then up to the archbishop to decide whether to release a statement to the public or to keep silent.
[Daphne – The archbishop of Miami says he has been defrocked – that he is not allowed to dress as a priest, pose as a priest or act as a priest. So now is the archbishop of Miami lying?]
I am not so sure. During Gonzi’s interdett there were interdicted mintoffiani who received the sacraments abroad.
There was a famous case of a plane crash in Libya(Benghasi) but am not 100% sure of the details. From what I remember Italian priests gave extreme unction and last rites to interdicted maltese.
[Daphne – How can you compare the two? A priest is an official of the church. If he is defrocked, he has been effectively sacked by the boss and no longer represents the company. The faithful, on the other hand, are ‘customers’ – if one employee of the company decides he doesn’t want to service their needs, it doesn’t preclude another employee from doing so. Something else: those who are ex-communicated don’t carry a sign on their foreheads which says so. So they are free to carry on receiving the sacraments wherever they are not recognised by prying eyes. This is on the same principle as Maltese parents being told their children are not alllowed to receive ‘first holy communion’ unless they spend years being processed through the doctrine machine at tal-Muzew. First holy communion is just the act of receiving the eucharist for the first time. You can just go up and do it at any blinking mass, and nobody can stop you. It’s extraordinary how people here allow themselves to be tyrannised.]
I found a recent news item on the times which reports some commemorative event however in the comments the interdett story is mention passionately
here is the link:
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20081013/local/biggest-peace-time-loss-of-maltese-soldiers-remembered/
I’d be betting that he’s thinking that the Maltese people and Church wouldn’t be up to date to realise that he had been de-frocked after all….
[Daphne – Or maybe the Gozo diocese is thinking of operating on the principle of setting a thief to catch a thief in its evangelisation mission of people who do strange things to children and animals.]
@ Daphne I agree with most of what you are saying but I am still not convinced that legally there may not be some loophole.
Church history (even recent see court case re B’kara church immovable property) is full of issues relating to jurisdiction. I have this faint idea that a bishop has no jurisdiction on a diocese which is not his. There are also issues pertaining to religious in convents eg fransiscans, dominicans, jesuits etc, these religous acknowledge their provincials and generals as their superiours not the bishop.
Someone with more knowledge of canonic law could enlighten me on this.
[Daphne – Somebody with excellent knowledge of canon law already has: scroll up to read Meerkat’s comment.]
To clarify matters a bit, the following extract from the Code of Canon Law (1983) applies:
CHAPTER IV : LOSS OF THE CLERICAL STATE
Can. 290 Sacred ordination once validly received never becomes invalid. A cleric, however, loses the clerical state:
1° by a judgement of a court or an administrative decree, declaring the ordination invalid;
2° by the penalty of dismissal lawfully imposed;
3° by a rescript of the Apostolic See; this rescript, however, is granted to deacons only for grave reasons and to priests only for the gravest of reasons.
Can. 291 Apart from the cases mentioned in can. 290, n. 1, the loss of the clerical state does not carry with it a dispensation from the obligation of celibacy, which is granted solely by the Roman Pontiff.
Can. 292 A cleric who loses the clerical state in accordance with the law, loses thereby the rights that are proper to the clerical state and is no longer bound by any obligations of the clerical state, without prejudice to can. 291. He is prohibited from exercising the power of order, without prejudice to can. 976. He is automatically deprived of all offices and roles and of any delegated power.
Can. 293 A cleric who has lost the clerical state cannot be enrolled as a cleric again save by rescript of the Apostolic See.
———-
One may wish to have a look at this article on the process of how a priest is defrocked:
http://www.bishop-accountability.org/news2006/11_12/2006_11_30_Barbee_ProcessTo.htm
In essence, therefore, if Anthony Mercieca was defrocked as stated by the Bishop of Miami then it is clear that he is defrocked everywhere and I cannot fathom how he is listed as a serving priest in Gozo.
As a catholic, I only hope that this fine example of virtue is sent to the United States to face his accusers.
[Daphne – You don’t have to be a Catholic to hope that. You just have to have a sense of justice and decency. It is beyond shocking that the Gozo diocese is giving him sanctuary and allowing him to pretend he hasn’t been defrocked.]
@A.Attard, I cannot see the connection between MLP supporters of the 60s and a pedophile priest. Can’t you leave politics out of this. Let me tell you that in the 60s even Maltese priests administered the sacraments to MLP supporters. My father used to hear mass and receive Holy Communion on a regular basis at his place of work. It was only political motivated priests who obeyed Mons M.Gonzi.
[Daphne – Good for them. Had I been a priest in 1960s Malta, I would have done the same thing. But then I wouldn’t have run after a church that kicked me around.]
This might be of help to all
http://www.opusbonosacerdotii.org/canonlaw/articles/loss_of_the_clerical_state.asp
The term used in Canon Law for ‘defrocking’ is ‘loss of the clerical state’.
[Daphne – Priests are not defrocked diocese by diocese. They are defrocked, full-stop, within the Catholic religion as a whole. If they wish to carry on as priests, they’ve got to start their own sect. What we have here, therefore is the Bishop of Gozo openly defying his own church by allowing a defrocked priest to masquerade as a priest.]
I know, Daph. What I meant was that he’s obviously still accepted as a priest by the Gozo Curia. That says a lot about their attitude towards such cases. (And it isn’t exactly encouraging for any possible victims – of his or of any other member of the clergy in Gozo – to speak up.)
I was making a point about jurisdiction I was absolutely not trying to politicise the issue. I just mentioned an example.
Please ignore my comment if it misleads you
(Maybe Meerkat can help out on this one)
“Presbyterial Council
Can. 495 §1. In each diocese a presbyteral council is to be established, that is, a group of priests which, representing the presbyterium, is to be like a senate of the bishop and which assists the bishop in the governance of the diocese according to the norm of law to promote as much as possible the pastoral good of the portion of the people of God entrusted to him.”
Now, seeing that the said Presbyterial Council seems to include Fr Mercieca’s brother (see http://gozodiocese.org/bishops/mario-grech/circulars/presbyterial-council/ and http://gozodiocese.org/clergy/gozopriests/#m ), it may be that there’s a conflict of interest of some sort, no?
Once a priest always a priest. This is a sacrament and it is indissoluble. This is not saying anything extraordinary. Anyone with a valid degree in medicine and surgery is a medical doctor for life. HOWEVER if the Medical Council has him erased permanently from the medical register he is no more a de facto doctor. I do not know what the position of this paedophile is in Gozo. I am sure the Bishop of Gozo has had him erased automatically following the decision of the Miami Diocese. It seems to me that certain contributors are insinuating that this is not the case. I sincerely hope that they are wrong.
Not that I like to quote the Orizzont, but – despite it being two years old – this article is worth reading. Here are a few choice quotes:
“Ma nkunx nghid hazin li huwa kellu relazzjoni mhux xierqa, li ma jfissirx li hu ghamel att sesswali b’penetrazzjoni.” (Fr Vella Gauci about Fr Mercieca – They’re beginning to sound like Clinton in the Lewinsky case.)
“Fr Anthony Mercieca, fil-prezent ghadu attiv ferm fil-parrocca ta’ l-istess Katidral tar-Rabat, Ghawdex. Skond Fr Joe Vella Gauci, l-Arcipriet tal-Katidral, huwa kkonferma ma’ l-orizzont li Fr Mercieca ghadu jqaddes fic-centru parrokkali, waqt li nhar it-Tlieta attenda wkoll ghal-laqgha tal-presbiterju.” (And this when they knew all about the case, even if it the news about it was still pretty fresh.)
“Fr Mercieca qatt ma ammetta li kellu relazzjonijiet sesswali jew penetrazzjoni, imma kellu “relazzjoni inapropprijata. Dan bl-ebda mod ma ta x’jifhem li kellu intimità sesswali.” (So are we to take it that they see it normal for adult men – and priests, at that – to sleep naked in the same room as young boys, to “massage” them, and to go skinny-dipping with them?)
This is the article from where the above quotes were extracted:
http://www.l-orizzont.com/news2.asp?artid=30634
What Fr Vella Gauci (and many others like him, I presume) fails to realise is that whether or not Fr Mercieca actually had sex with the boy/s in question, his relationship – at least with Mark Foley – was certainly inappropriate. The fact that he was a priest and in a position of trust makes the case/s all the more shocking.
Here’s another interesting quote:
“Richard Sipe, a former priest who studies sexuality and the priesthood and has counseled abusive clergy and victims, said abusive priests typically deny that their activities were sexual because they often convince themselves that only intercourse violates their vow of celibacy.” (Extracted from http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061020/NEWS/610200607 )
Shhhh. Don’t say its ONE Church. That’s probably a registered trademark of Super One Productions
“[Daphne – Or maybe the Gozo diocese is thinking of operating on the principle of setting a thief to catch a thief in its evangelisation mission of people who do strange things to children and animals.]”
End Quote.
Very true.
Now let’s get down to earth. The fact is that this priest “was pastaz” with a minor. The thing is that this kind of stuff should be, for our rights, broadly publicised. Do you want this kind of priest to be teaching (and heaven forbid doing other stuff) to your children?
People who choose a public kind of life (ie politicians, priests, rebels…. call them whatever you want) have to expect AND accept that their life becomes public. After all, because of their role in society it is essential that their so called private life is not so private at all. You wouldn’t want your social security minister to be living off like Sylvanus of the satirical TOM article…. same as you wouldn’t want your trusted priest to be a paedophile in his spare time…
The issue is that who preaches is expected to practice what he or she preaches – if you hear a bus driver swearing one might not give a second thought – but if you encounter your parish priest while on a stroll, and he nearly skids on a banana peel on the pavement “u jzarrat xi wahda goffa b’Alla” everyone would be impressed, would you not?
Daphne – Good questions, but they’re too busy spending their time planning evangelisation missions to the island of gang-rapists, goat-shaggers and horrible murders.]
I’m sure Gozitan PN voters sure appreciated the sentiments expressed in those, and similar comments.
[Daphne – I don’t particularly care, Sybil, given that I’m not standing for election under the PN ticket in Nadur – or anywhere else, for that matter.]
“No priest in the diocese of Gozo has been defrocked to date”.
This was the reply given by the Gozo Curia to questions made by The Malta Independent on Sunday,(20 April 2008).
The query mentioned by name a priest from Nadur against whom allegations of child abuse have been made, and the priest from Victoria whose name became dubiously famous all over the world inconnection with a Republican Member of Congress, i.e. Fr Anthony Mercieca.
[Daphne – Unbelievable. How have they worked this one out in the religious republic of Gozo? An explanation really is in order here.]
Catholic comes from the Greek which means universal. So what applies to USA applies instantly to Malta. Otherwise the Church would not be Catholic i.e. Universal. It’s as simple as that.
I somehow relate this to the whole Michael Jackson case. Whether he was guilty or not, I do somehow lay some guilt on the parents who would let their children near the offender until they are sure of his innocense. I know we are all innocent until proven guilty, but common sense should elevate children from such a threat. I feel the same when I see fourteen and fifteen year old girls running around in skimpy outfits in the early hours of the morning in Paceville. I’m not in any way imply that it would be their fault should something happen, I’m simply suggesting that common sense should stand as a warning factor.
[Daphne – Pat, do you imagine the parents know what their daughters are wearing? I don’t know what it’s like in Sweden – maybe it’s just too cold – but here there’s an age-old tradition of hiding your lipstick, mini-skirt, low-cut top, spindly heels at a friend’s house the day before and then changing there. If the friend’s parents are strict as well, you just use a public lavatory.]
I do know of several cases where I know the parents have seen the girls in the outfit they strut in Paceville and they are well aware of the time they stay out. Admittedly in those cases the girls have not been as young as I mentioned previously, but certainly young enough to raise a weary eyebrow.
And yes, this happens in Sweden as well. It has become a tradition to have girls stripping on stage during the graduation celebrations from 9th grade (15 year olds), although this would happen in company with other 9th graders. Lets all get together and blame MTV.
“his fellow Gozitans, some of whom consider him to be the next best thing after sliced bread”
“but they’re too busy spending their time planning evangelisation missions to the island of gang-rapists, goat-shaggers and horrible murders.”
Grow up and stop talking as though you’re something of a superior species. Daphne preaches in favour of the illegal immigrants and then speaks of “us” as lesser beings. FYI not all Gozitans are religious and think of Mercieca favourably…
Any bad news such as rape, murders, etc which happens in Gozo is treated with “ohh those gozitans have done it once again” and “it has happened because they are gozitans and have nothing else to do” simply because the media in big headlines announces “GIRL RAPED IN GOZO”. If the same thing happens in Malta, the headline would be somewhere along the lines of “15 YEAR OLD RAPED”.
The term “Gozo” in a headline brings up the last bad memory which happened in Gozo, making people think that these things are the order of the day… However we hear of rapes, murders, robberies, bribes and drugs in Malta; one of these possibly occurring everyday and the case is discussed but is taken lightly because it happened in the “main land”. People walking there are saints.
[Daphne – The difference is that Malta is an urban society and has the sort of crime which reflects this. Most murders in Malta are straightforward shotgun affairs. Gozo is a rural society, has a much smaller population, but has a disproportionate number of horrible crimes. When somebody is murdered in Gozo, he is never just shot in an argument – oh no. Think of all the Gozo murders in recent years – has there been a single straightforward one? No. It’s always hideous, and the investigations reveal an even more hideous amorality underlying it. Crime in Gozo has all the perversion associated with a closed and secretive society: a row of tal-fenek dogs strung up with piano-wire anyone? A school-girl used as the village bicycle by men who need a change from the proverbial hole in the wall? Or how about an entire family of adults kept in slavery while the priest and the neighbours look the other way, until the son finally kills his father? Or the shocking background to the murder of that warden, with the savage woman, her intellectually subnormal brother, and the old man kept as a sex-slave? Gozo’s problems aren’t unique – they’re shared by many isolated rural communities the world over. It’s the inspiration for horror movies like backwoods killer films – you know the ones, where a young couple takes a turn down a dirt-track and ends up as somebody’s lunch or plaything. It’s also the inspiration for dark comedy, like the BBC’s League of Gentlemen and their sketches of ‘local life’ in a small village, where the local shop is run by an incestuous brother and sister with a monster child they keep in the attic, and for whom they hunt down girls. Before Malta became so heavily urbanised, there were similar problems in isolated villages: Gharghur had a particularly unsavoury reputation, as I recall.]
Hi All,
Taking a small break from the nappies – (I ain’t no metrosexual and hate them)!
ANYWAY, back to the topic at hand.
The point was raised about sending Mercieca back to the U.S. – I believe (and I hasten to point out that I’m no legal expert) that it cannot be done. Mercieca is not being CRIMINALLY prosecuted as the case is time barred both in Miami and Malta. That is why there has been no request for extradition as there has been in other cases. Outrageous but there you have it!
@Pat
“I feel the same when I see fourteen and fifteen year old girls running around in skimpy outfits in the early hours of the morning in Paceville. I’m not in any way imply that it would be their fault should something happen, I’m simply suggesting that common sense should stand as a warning factor.”
Here I have a feeling that some of you may jump at my throat but anyway – I DO believe it’s their fault too if something happens. True everyone has a right to wear what they want without harassment, BUT we all know that the world is full of sick creepy bastards like mercieca, so like it or not, dressing like that is asking for trouble. That is reality!
After all we all have the right to walk down a street with a big wad of cash in full view but if you get robbed, you would have been asking for it wouldn’t you?
Of course this in no way excuses the creeps!
@ Daphne
I sincerely hope you’re right!
“with the savage woman, her intellectually subnormal brother, and the old man kept as a sex-slave”
I don’t remember this one! Was it recent?
[Daphne – Easy, boy. They were the people who killed that woman warden some years ago.]
Ok…so lets say that you are right that a if a priest is defrocked in one diocese he is actually beeing defrocked by the whole church. Would he still be listed as a Rev.?
I am just asking! I would like to know and learn. Please meerkat or daphne iluminate me
[Daphne – Over to Meerkat, as I don’t have a clue.]
you are so right daphne. League of Gentlemen could really be set in Gozo.
Many a time when walking through Gozitan villages you can almost hear the stares – ‘Are you local?’
[Daphne – I actually find that show really creepy because it’s so close to home. I can’t laugh at it without any sense of unease, as say, somebody brought up in a huge metropolis would.]
I am very reliably informed that Fr Mercieca leaves home at 4.30am to go somewhere by walk and comes back when it is dark. He is not celebrating mass and he is not wearing the suttana or any other sign denoting that he was a priest.
As for skimpily dressed girls, well, i am in agreement with Dave on this one. Why would they dress provocatively? What statement are they and by default, their parents, trying to make? Yes, they are asking for some sad bastard to come out of his hole and eat.
We all have a right to do what we feel, but you then have to be responsible as to what effect you are having on others.
[Daphne – Ah, the big mystery: where does Mercieca go between dawn and dusk? Skimpily dressed girls: what a load of old bores you are, honestly. If a girl isn’t going to wear skimpy clothes at 20, when in heaven’s name is she going to wear them? At 40? 80? There’s no sight sadder and more desperate than that of these girls’ mothers wearing the same skimpy clothes their daughters wear, because they never got skimpy clothes out of their system at the appropriate age. I wore skimpy clothes all my life but swore that I would never make myself ridiculous by doing so after the age of 38, even if I was a size 6 or 8 at the time – which I was. I stuck to it. Clothes should not just be appropriate to size; they should also be appropriate to age. Too many women my age with husbands and families and households to run dress like tacky hookers. Elegance? Forget it. The real problem is the mothers, not the daughters. The daughters are young and have all the beauty of youth and they should be allowed to make the most of it without a battery of whining adults having a go at them. The time to stop wearing provocative clothing is the day when all you provoke is comments on how you’ve aged. Parties nowadays are full of try-too-hard women who look like sad parodies of some disease called I’m Scared No Man Will Ever Fancy Me Again. Damn right no man will, but that’s because men their age admire elegance more than they admire middle-aged women in clothes for 20-year-olds.]
‘Gharghur had a particularly unsavoury reputation, as I recall.’
I lived a few years in Gharghur and yes there are some real so called ‘tough’ guys there – the type that blow up your car in the middle of the night if you park in ‘their’ space. There were a few heinous murders too. But on the whole, people are decent. A few perverts/thugs do not a village make.
I once heard that Bidnija is really all one family except for a few ‘imports’. Is that true?
[Daphne – More or less, yes. Most people are called Galea here. The hamlet was isolated from Mosta until the mid-20th century – there was no road. But here’s the thing: lots of the people here are very good-looking, so it certainly wasn’t a troll gene doing the rounds.]
Yes, definately, girls should not be allowed to show any skin for fear of “asking” for the attentions of some red blooded male. Nobody waves red flags in front of bulls after all, at least not without consequence. Cover them up I say, in fact let’s make them wear the burkas.
Just in case there are some people who are taking my previous para seriously (sense of humour is somewhat lacking at times on these pages) what I am saying is that it is not the girls who should be held accountable for their dress code, but the predators who are inclined to consider girls as objects.
Please stop and listen. What do you hear? The deafening sound of silence coming from the public relations office of the Diocese of Gozo on the issue of Anthony Mercieca.
[Daphne – yes, it’s amazing, isn’t it? They feel they’re not answerable to anyone.]
@ Mr Mario Debono
Why do some people have to resort in putting everyone in the same basket re gozitans!
I am a gozitan and i dont think that he is the best thing since slice bread, so please refrain from speaking on my behalf as i am very capable to speak for myself.
From where did you get your statistics?
“Here I have a feeling that some of you may jump at my throat but anyway – I DO believe it’s their fault too if something happens. True everyone has a right to wear what they want without harassment, BUT we all know that the world is full of sick creepy bastards like mercieca, so like it or not, dressing like that is asking for trouble. That is reality!”
Is it their fault that some testosterone filled thug feels that the needs of his genitalia exceeds the right of a young girl? This is why I pointed out that although being foolish, it can’t be the girls fault. A virgin running with a thong through a bunch of drunk guys still have the right not to be deflowered.
I agree it’s asking for trouble, but be careful laying the blame. Just last week my wife was in hospital doing some checkups and in the middle of the night a young girl was brought in, beaten to a pulp and violently raped. This happened in the early hours of the morning, but you still can’t put the blame on her, no matter what.
“[Daphne – Easy, boy. They were the people who killed that woman warden some years ago.]”
ERRR BOY?
“If a girl isn’t going to wear skimpy clothes at 20, when in heaven’s name is she going to wear them?”
I agree Daphne, but the sad truth is that there are vile bastards out there who will “be unable to hold back” especially when drunk. Now for a girl to go out in what is practically a bikini, to Paceville is unfortunately asking for trouble.
Unfortunately the police cannot be everywhere! The ideal solution would be to lock all said creeps up but that is unfortunately next to impossible!
Let’s make things clear, the girl has every right to dress as she pleases but should be more pprudent in potentially dangerous situations, as Paceville can be!
@Vanni
“what I am saying is that it is not the girls who should be held accountable for their dress code, but the predators who are inclined to consider girls as objects.
I agree with you, but the sad fact is that there ARE predators out there and untill we know they are all locked up, one should be careful
Daphne – yes, it’s amazing, isn’t it? They feel they’re not answerable to anyone.]
Read my first entry above (second in the list)
@Pat,
“Is it their fault that some testosterone filled thug feels that the needs of his genitalia exceeds the right of a young girl? ”
Ofcourse not, heaven forbid! What I am saying is that if going to a place were there is a likelihood of finding these apes, such as paceville, unfortunately the reality is that one has to be careful.
I wish girls could dress as they please where they please, but short of taking a bodyguard around with you, it can be a risky business!
@Mario P. Spot on. I hope that Daphne’s party political blinkers will not stop her from seeing that were it not for Dom Mintoff Malta itself would still be the republic with the republic of the Roman Catholic hierarchy instead of the other way round. Dom Mintoff and Gerald Strickland before him did a lot to try and break the grip of what was essentially a medieval church – can we not agree that in retrospect that was a good thing?
[Daphne – Spot on, Uncle Fester. I come from a family of Stricklandjani, not Nazzjonalisti. So I never had those blinkers you’re talking about.]
Uncle Fester
In his way, Mintoff was as medieval and despotic as any Church prelate. He only wanted to loosen the Church’s hold on the minds of the people so that he could substitute his own ‘religion’.
His adepts used to refer to him as Is-Salvatur – which, as you know, happens to be the popular name given to the Resurrected Christ – and they would also light candles in front of his effigy, just as if they were carrying out some religious devotion.
We should agree, in retrospect, that this was a bad thing (your blinkers permitting, of course).
[Daphne – Thank you for pointing that out. Mintoff didn’t take on the Catholic Church for reasons of liberalism or secularism. He did so because he couldn’t stomach having a rival power around. Religion and secularism had nothing to do with it. As for putting Lord Strickland and Dom Mintoff in the same basket….]
[Daphne – . Mintoff didn’t take on the Catholic Church for reasons of liberalism or secularism. He did so because he couldn’t stomach having a rival power around. Religion and secularism had nothing to do with it…..]
Revisionism at its best or else no one here ever heard of the famous/infamous “sitt punti”. I can imagine Mintoff himself applauding you for putting that down on black and white.
[Daphne – Hardly. If you had the slightest sense of strategy or the psychology of a certain kind of man, you would see that it wasn’t the religion that he wanted to do away with, but the power of the church, which prevented him from achieving his objectives. Mintoff is one of those men who will mow down anything that stands in his way, and who will obliterate anyone who tells him ‘No’, with the result that he is always surrounded by people who say ‘Yes’, leading to the inevitable detachment from reality. He used the same principle when he destroyed, stole or otherwise eliminated private banks – because they were a rival power which prevented him from dominating the economy completely, and from dictating who should get loans and who should not. Mintoff could not bear, and still cannot bear, any obstacle in his path. A couple of months ago in court he was shouting at the magistrate and telling him to do what he says at once because what he says goes. A less tolerant magistrate would have jailed him immediately. When his lawyer reproved him, he made the most unbelievable scene, shouting that he should do exactly what he says while everyone stood around in embarrassment. Ghastly.]
Unfortunately through personal experience i learnt the harsh truth of some priests on our Maltese Islands.
Being abused by a priest myself at a tender age i can only sympathise with other children that have gone through it.
But the worst thing is telling the archbishop about it and they tell you that they cannot help you.
This is what the archbishop told my father and i quote ‘Nafu bih pero minhabba is-Socjeta ma nistew naghmlu xejn’ (excuse my maltese writing)
This people are sick and they have no idea what people like myself endure. I am lost for words.
Please note that this happened a few years back and it was just before the department against child abuse had been in operation by the Curia.
In fact once i was going to be a statistic they eagerly called me to meet up so that i can fill in a form.
At least nowadays children have a voice!!
[Daphne – Is this priest still around? They have forms, eh? Unbelievable – forms for people who have been abused by priests. Just how many of these cases are there, then?]
Yes the priest is still around and still active in church, and everyone from my village is very well aware of him.
Unfortunately i was never given the option to report him to the police etc etc… it was a Taboo back in my day.
I had to learn how to forgive to move on with my life…..
[Daphne – You’re joking. Heaven knows how many young girls he’s fiddled with since then, and everyone is keeping it quiet, which is colluding. And elsewhere on this blog people are voicing concern about Africans making passes at Maltese women on buses.]
I know i have read the other blogs..i dont wish to take up too much space so i will make it brief.
Question: Are the priests like Fr.Mercieca given any form of counseling afer being found guilty?
@ Daphne “Daphne – Is this priest still around? They have forms, eh? Unbelievable – forms for people who have been abused by priests. Just how many of these cases are there, then?” This is just the icing on the cake my dear!!! there are “tal-muzew”, teachers and other people who abuse of their positions…
@J. How long ago are you talking about? You should go and report him to the police on your own initiative even if you are now an adult. They may haul him in for questioning and scare the living daylights out of him and even if they don’t there will be a police report on this sicko so the next time someone else reports an incident they will have a file on him with a prior report. If you have not sought counseling you should. You shouldn’t underestimate the psychological harm that sexual abuse does to someone. About 15 years ago I used to attend a gay and lesbian support group and one evening a young man who had been attending for weeks stood up and in floods of tears and sobs that came from the bottom of his heart he told us how he had been abused by a priest as a young boy. Nobody knew what to say we were in such shock. When I returned a month later to the group my friend and I asked where the young man was and we were told that he had hung himself. I can still see his face in my mind’s eye all these years later and I wonder what could we have done to stop him taking that extreme step.
@Daphne. As for Mintoff I think his personality is less black and white than people make out. More time will need to pass by before we can even attempt to objectively look at that period of history. Don’t forget that Strickland was demonized by the church and seen as a sort of anti-Christ in his day. Difference between Strickland and Mintoff is that Strickland caved in and begged forgiveness from the prince bishop of his day. Mintoff gave them a two finger salute and they eventually caved in to him because it was in their interest to do so.
[Daphne – To do so much damage to a child. It really is an unforgivable crime. Nobody would dream of sheltering a priest who had killed somebody, but then we think nothing of sheltering a priest who destroys a person’s very being. The crime is made worse by the fact that it’s always the most vulnerable children who are preyed on, which means they have even less resilience and far fewer coping mechanisms to deal with the violation in adult life. They are not going to pick on the sort of boy who is likely to give them a good kick in the balls and run shouting down the street that Fr X tried to touch him up.]
@Daphne. Talking about kneeing a perpetrator in the nuts. That actually happened when I was in Form 3 at a church school in the late 70s. Apparently a well known “frere” who was known for spending half of a 20 minute history lesson “deep in prayer” with eyes turned downwards in affected piety and the other half attempting to indoctrinate the class with party political propaganda for the PN, was punched straight in the face by a 13 year old that he tried to grope in the school bus. Of course it was all hushed up at the time. No action was taken against the boy and the overfed prelate slunk back into class without the rest of us knowing anything about it. I got the full story in graphic detail from my former classmate at our 25th anniversary reunion 3 years ago.
[Daphne – If you sat your O-levels in 1980 you’re my exact contemporary. So what are the odds that I do know you, despite your protestations to the contrary?]
If a priest is dismissed from the clerical state, that means that his status reverts to the lay state. He is still a priest but he cannot function as a priest, to put it in simple terms.
‘Rev’ only applies to men who are still in the clerical state.
I find this priest paedophilia so terrible and shameful. Because the church hides it very well, it is just incredible how much goes on. The church does its VERY BEST for these stories not to come out, and just transfers these priests to another parish/country. You would be shocked at the number of cases, and the terror/ confusion these children suffer .
@Daphne. My reunion was 2 years ago not 3, my mistake. I sat for my O-Levels in 1981 and believe you me we have never met. If we had met I would let you know. Let me help you out, take my email address and break it down then google my initial, my surname, the city where I live and my profession and you will get my professional biography.
[Daphne – You’re right, we haven’t. You’ve been away most of the time.]
J. – Especially since this man is still a priest, I suggest that you pluck up the courage to report him to the relevant authorities – By which I mean the police, and NOT the Curia. (You may wish to talk to Insp. Louise Calleja, who I believe was handling the Mark Vella Gera case.)
Please do so if not for yourself, then for other innocent children. A leopard does not change its spots, so this man may still be preying on children entrusted to his care, even if on a temporary basis.
@Daphne. As the old saying goes curiosity killed the cat, satisfaction brought it back. Welcome back! I think that it was Dom Mintoff who once said that you need to get out of the place for a while to see things clearly. Having been out of the place for a while I see a lot of change, much of it definitely for the better. However still very polarized, still very blinkered, no room for any gray – us and them, black and white, ta din naha w tan-naha l-ohra. I remember reading a book by a Dutch anthropologist in the 70s – Prelates and Politicians in Malta – in which he predicted that once the PN was elected to power the church’s authority would cave in rapidly and Mintoff’s hoped for secularization of Malta would take place. I would like to reread that book one day. What I see is a steady erosion of clerical power, not a tidal wave of change at all. What do you think from your position to the side and near the top of the top heavy social structure in post-1987 Malta in the waning days of Eddie’s “bidla mehtiega”?
[Daphne – The country has changed dramatically in the last 10 years. The other day I was sorting through some street photographs from 1995, and they looked like scenes from the 1970s (elsewhere). People in drab clothes, and the cars parked in a row on one street – in Sliema, that is – were old VW beetles, old station wagons, Maruti jeeps, and so on. But forget the materialism, which is a good thing anyway and not a bad one: people’s expectations have changed and there is far greater openness and tolerance than there was, as long as the person doing whatever it is isn’t African.]
@J – listen to what Amanda Mallia is telling you. Maybe Daphne can put you in private contact with each other so that she can provide you with exact contact information for Insp. Calleja if she is unable to do so publicly. You also need to get therapy to work on healing the enormous psychological hurt this man has caused you. Do it for yourself first and then for others.
J. – Going to the curia is simply a waste of time. Go straight to Inspector Louise Calleja, the sooner the better.
Uncle Fester – I do not know Insp Calleja, but have heard her name about similar cases, including, I believe, the Mark Vella Gera one.
J. Insp. Louise Calleja works for the vice-squad, so giving them a call would be a start.
Daphne, Do you remember Dun Dumink Camilleri from Nadur? He’s back in Nadur. He has been back for well over a year now. From what I heard legal charges against him have been dropped because the mother who had initally made the report has now forgiven him. Can you believe that?
[Daphne – Is this the priest who ran away to the US to escape charges? The one about whom I had written a couple of years ago?]
yes it’s the same one
[Daphne – Thanks. I’ll dig out that article and follow it up.]