The most powerful speech however, heard and seen through my own eyes as a victim of clergy abuse- was that of Rev. Thomas Doyle. Fr. Tom Doyle was the Catholic cleric who blew the whistle on the conduct of the sex abuse crisis and the involvement of the hierarchy several decades ago; a revelation that was basically ignored by that same archaic hierarchy.
His speech at the conference was exemplary; including his advocation of victims of abuse, his insights of the criminal conduct of the corruption of the hierarchy, and his testaments to the deleterious behavior and ignorance of the church in correcting itself. He was truly mesmerizing.
I am in awe at his ability to capture the very essence of the core of religious corruption; converting it to a very human perception. His insights into the blending of the audacity of the systematic criminal violation of children by clergy, combined with an intellectual comprehension of the effects of a collaborating unchecked institution- reveals the extensive magnitude of the church's continued debauchery.
His speech was the cream on top of the introductory delivery by Fr. Reese, and an insurmountable creation of undaunted realization-spoken as though he had captivated the intrinsic frustration of the silent majority of damaged clergy abuse victims and catapulted their frustration into the face of the oppressive power of indestructible evil.
Barbara Blaine of SNAP- The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, was emotional, and she pleaded for accountability, and encouraged more victims to come out and speak courageously, and was conveniently placed on a panel between two opposing clergy at her sides. Nevertheless, she was strong and convincing, and drove her point across relentlessly. She was, as is usual, an outspoken voice for abuse victims that was capable of touching even some of the coldest hearts in the room.
A.W. Sipe continued the expose' of the intentional condoning and remorseless conduct by the infamous hierarchy, and repeated quotes from his book and speech presented to the blind eyes and deaf ears of the church from several decades ago as well. Sadly, his warnings long ago went ignored; and his documents that were read to the conference revealed that the church has learned little or nothing concerning corrections of it's incomparable ignorance and misguided actions.
Anson Shupe, professor of sociology, author, and a professed non-catholic, delivered a short but sharp critical opinion as a sociologist- " that the antiquated catholic institution basically can not be repaired ." He based his theory on historical sociological comparison, and was accurate, direct and credible in his approach and conclusion.
The real disappointment of the conference- and a very misleading and hazardous one at that, was the speech and presentation by Karen J. Terry, PhD- professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
Dr. Terry herself, is a very presentable and credible appearing speaker, who had charts, data, and a wide screen assemblage for all to see, and was very articulate, and professional in her delivery.
And that is the very reason her "John Jay Study on Clergy Abuse" is so poisonous and misleading. It also presents a false sense of security for those who depend on it for accuracy; and it's existence is held as a source for evidence that the church has improved on it's behavior - and the "crisis" is nearly over.
Many of the "church owned" professional speakers at the conference quoted this supposed independent investigatory John Jay Report as "science and fact"; when I believe it is a tweaked report that is biased, and misguided- and financed by the church itself.
Dr. Terry gave her presentation without a stumble or flinch, and revealed important aspects of the extended research and investigation report, and was then asked to answer questions by the audience.
The audience was to write their questions on a 3 by 5 card, which was conveniently collected by Dr. Plante, a contributor to the John Jay Report on Clergy Abuse, for the speaker to answer.
Dr. Plante screened the questions for most of the speakers before he asked them to answer the questions, and needless to say, most of my question cards were omitted.
I intentionally walked up to the speaker's desk and handed Dr. Terry my question card, to blatantly show the crowd that my question would probably not be answered. And my suspicion was correct, she did not read or answer my question out loud to the audience.
The question on my card was:
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