What are the accusations against us? by Fr Martin Mary
The punishment we face is severe: removal of faculties for all our priests and expulsion from the Diocese of Christchurch, effectively forcing us out of New Zealand, destroying our good name, and publicly humiliating our members. This degree of punishment is generally reserved for the gravest offenders.
So,
what accusations justify such measures? I don’t mean the claims made in the
media, but the actual accusations investigated by the Vatican Apostolic
Visitation, which led to these extreme penalties.
From
the pulpits of the diocese, it was announced that these punishments followed
the Vatican investigation of our community. Since Bishop Gielen arranged this
investigation after the TV programmes, the implication is that the allegations
contained in them were found to be true.
When
asked for details by the media, “A spokesperson for the bishop refused to say
what exactly the investigation found, but said ‘the actions speak for
themselves’”, implying that the punishment itself was the justification.
The
truth is, the Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer have not been accused of any
crime—neither by civil authorities, the Diocese of Christchurch, nor the
Vatican, even after its investigation. The “recommendations” from the Vatican
lack the citation of a single canonical crime committed. The diocese of
Christchurch “refused to say what exactly the investigation found,” because it
didn’t find anything!
Bishop
Gielen’s stated reason to us (different from what was suggested from the
pulpits) was his desire to assign the Latin Mass Chaplaincy to another group,
making our services no longer needed.
One
of the harshest punishments possible, merely to change staff—without a single
criminal accusation?
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