FUNERAL AND CONCLAVE

 posted by Frenchie    

Following the death of Pope Francis, who has died on Monday April 21st 2022 at the age of 88 yo. The process leading to the conclave which will see the election of a new Pope is actually a very precise and detailed ceremonial.

On Tuesday the "Novemdiales" (9 days in Latin) . 9 days of prayers and masses at the Vatican  and throughout the Church, for the departed Pontiff. During that mourning period the funeral planning takes place. It is designed to give enough time for the faithful and world leaders to make plans for viewing and/or attendance to the funerals. 

The body shall lay in rest at St Peter Basilica until the funeral, after the initial viewing by the Curia inside the Pope's apartment. On November 2024 Francis had reformed and "simplified" the previous protocol. The Viewing by the Curia is now taking place in the private Papal Chapel, rather than in his own Chambers. The body must then be placed in a simple coffin with a zinc inside lining. The coffin has to be closed the day prior to the funeral. The coffin is then to be brought to St Peter Basilica without going through the Apostolic Palace.

The third step, at the burial site, has also been changed. Instead of the traditional triple casket of Cypress, Lead, and Oak is no longer followed. The new protocol has now established a set of new rules in case there is a burial outside of the Vatican Basilica. This should apply to Francis who had made it known that he wished to be buried at the St Mary Major Basilica in Rome.

On the second day after the death, the "General Congregations" under the responsibility of the Elder of the Sacred College, will meet the various Cardinals as they arrived at the Vatican, until  the beginning of the Conclave which leads to the election of the Pope's  successor. The whole affair usually takes place between 15 and 18 days after the Pope's passing.

The General Congregations attendances are limited to the 200 Cardinals, as they are meant to make a State of the Church Analysis. Each of the Cardinals is supposed to make a presentation at least once. These meetings are very important, since many Cardinals barely know each other, often due to their remote locations. This is their last occasion to exchange their positions and analysis before the Conclave. In fact it was during these meetings that then Cardinal Bergoglio convinced his brothers that he would make a potential Pope.

Once the doors of the Conclave are shut, and the Cardinals are in isolation, they are kept into silence and prayers in between the rounds of voting. Usually only 4 or 5 names are circulating, the selection having been done during these famous general Congregations. One could say that the game is almost fixed.

The key person of the transition is the Elder of the Sacred College. In this function he is de facto presiding the College of Cardinals, as well as  the General Congregations.

Informal meetings by linguistic groups or by group of interests are also taking place in the end of  each afternoons, in and around the Roman Capital. These informal meetings are very influential, and at times  decisive, because this is where alliances are formed to back up such or such Cardinal.

Before discussions on strategy, the first General Congregations meeting need to fulfill the necessary technical needs, all taken by votes.  The day and the details of the Pope's funeral, the date for the beginning of the Conclave, the technical details for the welcoming of the Cardinals, and the preparations for the Conclave. Daily expenses during the transition , and the destruction of the famous ring of the fisher of man and the lead seal used for the apostolic letters.

Parallel to the General Congregations, Particular Congregations also will take place in smaller settings. These are geared towards the management of the "current affairs" of the Holy Sea, under the leadership of the Carmerlengo of the Sacred College (Chamberlain) Cardinal Farrell an Irish born, American Bishop. (former Prefect of the dicastery for Laity, Family and Life)  Until the election of the new Pope. This particular responsibility is exercised by a delegation of the College of Cardinals. The Carmerlengo is assisted during his daily meetings by three Cardinals. Said Cardinals are renewed every 3 days by lots taken from the list of Cardinals residing in Rome and its vicinity, or from those already arrived in Rome.

Beside the Carmerlengo, the key actor of the transition is the Elder of the Sacred College. He is the de facto president of the College of Cardinal, and as such leads the General Congregations. He is also the likely celebrant of the Pope's Funeral. One can recall the weight of the Homily of Cardinal Ratzinger during the funerals of Pope John Paul II.

It is the Elder of Sacred College that ultimately receives the acceptance of the newly elected Pope, and ask him about the name the New Pope chooses for his reign.

 The current Elder of the Sacred College (Decanus Sacri Collegii) is Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re. Appointed in by Francis in 2019 he is "Primus inter pares" first among them.

AND THEY WONDER WHY WE CALL IT A CULT

By Tim Rohr

For those who have followed this blog for awhile, you may remember when my enemies posted many anonymous comments attempting to discredit me with accusations made by certain members of my family in a court proceeding that has been long since concluded and resolved. 

Because I don't want to harm the members of my family who made those false allegations, I won't go into details other than to say that I know that at least one of them was recruited by the haters who were trying to save then-Archbishop Apuron. 

Despite the resolution of this personal matter and the absence of further attacks on me on this blog, apparently the enemies are migrating to Chuck White's blog, ThoughtfulCatholic.com

In a post titled KIKO'S ICONS,  an anonymous poster leaves this comment:

The first part is directed at Chuck and the second part directed at me - with the implied threat to Chuck that his family will suffer too if he continues to question Kiko Arguello - the founder of the Neocatechumenal Way. 

The commenter makes a big deal about how one must "know the man" before we can question him. It's the usual absurd neo-nonsense. 

In the real world, people, policies, ideas, writings, whatever can and should be questioned by thinking people. We do not need to personally know someone to question his or her output. Do you need to personally know Pope Paul VI in order to question "Humanae Vitae," or President Trump in order to question his policies? 

Of course not. But when it comes to the Neocats and their sacred savior, Kiko Arguello, all sense and logic is lost. And they wonder why we call it a cult.

MEMO TO CATHOLICS IN THE PEWS

LINK to online version

When I was first asked to be a guest columnist for this publication, the request was for a column addressing Catholic issues with leeway to wander into other topics. In hindsight I’ve probably written more about other topics than Catholic issues, but with this column I’m returning to my “roots.”

There is much that could be said about the current goings-on within the Catholic Church: the clergy sex abuse scandal, the U.S. bishops skirmish with the new president, the pope’s health. Instead, I’m going to share a few thoughts about us regular Catholics in the pews.

Let’s start with dressing better. This is weird coming from a guy who used to lead the "Folk-Mass" in his teens and twenties dressed in jeans and Birkenstocks, but, at least for Sunday Mass, I have now made an effort to put on what was once called “our Sunday best.” I mean, come on, some of us dress nicer to go to the movies than we do to go to Mass. Sure, it would help to have some encouragement from the pulpit, but in the meantime, we can do this ourselves.

Next, we might try spending some old-fashioned “thanksgiving” time after Mass instead of erupting into a meet and greet.

I was brought up to believe that Jesus Christ, Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity, in the consecrated bread I just received at Holy Communion, is uniquely present in me “and endures as long as the Eucharistic species subsist" (CCC 1377), or in other words, until the “species” (consecrated bread and/or wine) is fully digested - about 15 minutes.

In the “old days” this 15 minutes formed the basis for “prayers after communion.” I mean think of it, we Catholics believe that Jesus Christ, who suffered, died, rose again, and is seated at the right hand of the Father, is uniquely and substantially present in our very bodies for an ultra-sacred 15 minutes. Maybe we should visit with Him for a bit before the others.

Related to this, when we visit after Mass - which is a good thing, let’s take it outside. Our Catholic church buildings are unique. They are not meeting places - as are non-Catholic houses of worship. It’s why our parents and the nuns of yesteryear taught us to be quiet in church, even if it was empty.

And that’s because it’s never empty. Unless for an exceptional reason the Eucharist has been removed from the tabernacle - Jesus Christ, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity, is always present. And it’s His house, not ours. So “Shhhhhhh” - as Sister would say.

Speaking of “Shhhhh” - take noisy children outside. I know, I know. Those are fighting words. But before you trash this column, know that I am a father of eleven children, two of whom are special needs, and all of whom we brought to Mass every Sunday from about the first Sunday after they left the womb.

We had a system. Our family sat near the rear entrance of the church or chapel, and while Mom usually held the infant, I held the next eldest - usually a two year old and the child most likely to make noise. As soon as the child got loud enough to distract others, I took the child outside.

Occasionally I’d end up spending the whole Mass outside, but usually the child would calm down enough to return to Mass without incident. I’d say that about age three, each child got the idea and was rarely a problem after that.

Also, we didn’t bring toys, books, games, gadgets, or munchies to occupy the children. They simply intuited through our behavior that there was something special about attending Mass and that it was a time for quiet and reverence.

P.S. It helped that we would attend Masses that were quiet and reverent. I think “solemn” is the word. Our kids, like most kids, responded more to the environment than to any of our “shush-ing.”

One of our children with disabilities, a son, and the tenth of our eleven children, was particularly rambunctious. I spent a lot of time outside with him in his first couple of years. Eventually he figured it out and would just sleep through the Mass.

The only problem was that he was born with a nasal issue and his snoring echoed through the whole church. We learned that he didn’t snore if he slept sitting up. So we propped him up in the pew and all was well.

I miss those days.

Tim Rohr has resided in Guam since 1987. He has raised a family of 11 children, owned several businesses, and is active in local issues via his blog, JungleWatch.info, letters to local publications, and occasional public appearances. He may be contacted at timrohr.guam@gmail.com    

EULOGY FOR BOB - AS DELIVERED ON THE DAY OF HIS FUNERAL AND BURIAL

By Tim Rohr

I shared the following thoughts about Bob at the conclusion of Last Respects for Bob and before commencement of his Funeral Mass at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Yigo, Guam on April 15, 2025. 

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On February 20, 2016, a certain priest celebrated a funeral Mass for his father. His father was rather well-known, so everyone expected the deceased man’s son, the priest, to deliver a moving eulogy. 

At the homily, the priest began:

“We are gathered here because of one man. A man known personally to many of us, known only by reputation to even more. A man loved by many, scorned by others. A man known for great controversy, and for great compassion.” 

Everyone present believed he was describing his father. However, the priest went on to say:

"That man, of course, is Jesus of Nazareth." 

The priest was Fr. Paul Scalia and his father was the late Justice Antonin Scalia. Fr. Scalia went on to say:

“It is He whom we proclaim. Jesus Christ, son of the father, born of the Virgin Mary, crucified, buried, risen, seated at the right hand of the Father. It is because of him. because of his life, death and resurrection that we do not mourn as those who have no hope, but in confidence we commend Antonin Scalia to the mercy of God.”

While Fr. Scalia went on to include some memories of his father in the ensuing homily, it was clear that the point of his sermon was not to memorialize or even honor his father, but to remind everyone present that they were really there to honor God and to participate in the eternal memorial of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and, in so doing, commend the soul of his deceased father to the mercy of God.

This, of course, is not only what we are doing here today, but it is exactly what Bob would want. While he may have appreciated the fond remembrances of all the many things he accomplished, he also knew that none of that would matter if he didn’t make it to Heaven.

And this is why at one point, already in his mid-70’s, Bob sought and received reception into full communion with the Catholic Church. 

And it was right there, in that spot, before this very altar, in this very church, that I put my hand on Bob’s shoulder, as his sponsor, and saw the smartest, most analytical, most calculating, most skeptical man I had ever known, humbly hand over his life and eternal destiny to the authority of the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church, receive the oil of confirmation on his forehead, and receive, for the first time in his 70 plus years, the real Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ on his tongue and into his heart and his immortal soul.

A few years earlier, Bob and I, were having breakfast one morning at a local restaurant. The discussion turned to religion as it often did. And while he was asking me questions about Catholicism, I asked him “So why aren’t you Catholic?” He replied, “No one ever asked me.” I replied “Well I just did.” He said, “Where do I sign?” 

Later he told me that he had told his wife Lou about our conversation and had asked her why she, in their 44 years of marriage at that point, had never asked him to become Catholic. Lou replied: “For 44 I have been praying for you.” 

In the years since his conversion, Bob, whenever asked why he became Catholic, would answer in his typical Bob Klitzkie figure-it-out-yourself way: “Paschal’s Wager.” Paschal’s Wager is the philosophical proposition I had used in a series of columns I had written for the Umatuna, and ultimately a book, under the title “Why I’m Catholic.” 

By the time I had asked Bob to become Catholic, he didn’t need convincing, he only needed to be asked. But, probably due to his philosophical mind, he grasped the Pachal’s Wager idea and made it his own. 

For those who don’t know, Pachal’s Wager is essentially the proposition that while we can’t know for sure if there is life after death, there is at least a 50/50 chance, so why not bet (wager) that there is. 

Ultimately though, I am very sure that it wasn’t Paschal’s Wager, my invitation, or even his own inquiry that brought Bob home to the Catholic faith, but the prayers of the one who said “For 44 years I was praying for you.” 

And so now we join his beloved child bride (as he called her to the end) in praying for Bob that he really does get home, all the way home, and us with him.

+++++

AFTERTHOUGHT

Since Bob and his wife Lourdes (Lou), as in Our Lady of Lourdes, also attended the other church in Yigo, Santa Bernardita (Saint Bernadette), it is providential that the day after Bob was laid to rest (today) is the Feast of Saint Bernadette, the young girl to whom the Virgin Mary appeared at Lourdes. Another reason to believe Bob is now in good company. 

WHY WE NEED TO THANK BOB - NOT THE CHURCH - FOR THE "SAFE SPACE"

By Tim Rohr

Photo from Guam Daily Post. Public hearing on June 26, 2016 on Bill 326-33.

"This is the church's commitment to keep our children safe and to be connected, especially to the victims, but also to the many people out there who are still hurting. It's a chance for us to gather them in a safe space," said vicar-general Fr. Paul Gofigan. - Guam Daily Post, April 12, 2025

The words "safe space" came to mind yesterday at the state funeral for the now late-Senator Robert "Bob" Klitzkie. They came to mind because it was Bob who created that "safe space."

The local Catholic Church did not create that safe space. Its leaders may be enforcing it now (under court order), but they did not create it. Bob did. And here's how.

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On May 17, 2016, Roy Quintanilla, the first of then-Archbishop Apuron's accusers, came forward at a press conference held on the street between the Cathedral and the DNA Building. Roy detailed how, as an altar boy, 40 years ago, Apuron had sexually molested him.

Apuron denied the allegations and blamed an ad placed by the Concerned Catholics of Guam in local papers for the "false" allegation:

"To be absolutely clear and to avoid any misinterpretations of my statement, I deny all allegations of sexual abuse by Roy Quintanilla."

Archbishop Apuron says newspaper advertisements placed by the Concerned Catholics of Guam, calling for sexual abuse victims to come forward, have now resulted in a false allegation.

However, Apuron functionally admitted he was lying when he immediately disappeared that very evening and showed up in Rome the next day, caught on camera by the Vatican's cameras as he tried to get help from Pope Francis during a public event.

In the meanwhile, Apuron's storm troopers (Edivaldo et. al) made things exponentially worse by staging (poorly) a defense of Apuron starring an elderly deacon. 

As the circus escalated, I wrote on May 21, 2016, in a JW post titled "DO THIS IF YOU WANT TO SEE TONY RUN":

It is very possible that Apuron has already been asked to resign by one of the Vatican Congregations, but has refused - or should we say, Pius has refused to let him resign. They need to keep him going to do this upcoming ordination. 

Public protests, letters to the editor, radio show call-ins, signs, comments submitted with real names on this blog, etc. The din must become deafening. And stop asking him to "step down." That sounds too dignified for this pathetic monster. It's time to start saying "get the hell out. " 

However, there is one thing that can be done to legally remove him. Pass a bill lifting the statute of limitations on past sex crimes against minors. Then watch Tony run. But it will be too late. 

Two days later, Senator Frank Blas, Jr. introduced Bill 326-33 which proposed lifting the civil statute of limitations on the sex abuse of minors. (PDF of the bill)

However, the bill only allowed victims to sue their perpetrators and not the institutions which shielded and/or enabled them. Given that the victims had been minors and that the perpetrators were either dead or had few assets (given that the aim was at offending clergy at the time), it was unlikely that any lawyer would be willing to represent the victims.

At the time, the bill served its real purpose which was to put Apuron and his defenders on notice, given how Apuron, at the time, was threatening to sue. However, soon thereafter, the then-Apostolic Administrator, Archbishop Savio Hon, most likely acting on orders from his Neo-compromised boss, Cardinal Fernando Filoni, decided to belittle the victims (by then there were four) and their stories. 

Enter Bob Klitzkie. 

Bob, a recent Catholic convert, upon seeing Hon's flippant response to the victim's accounts, immediately set to work with then-Senator Frank Aguon, Jr., whose committee the bill was in, to amend the bill to include institutional liability. 

Bob and Frank rewrote the bill to include this all important provision:

The amended bill was introduced as Substitute Bill 326-33 and had a public hearing on June 27, 2016.  The legislation was passed unanimously by the legislature and was signed into law as Public Law 33-187 by Governor Eddie Calvo on September 23, 2016, despite "the Church's" (Hon's) last desperate attempts to oppose it. 

In his testimony submitted in support of the bill he had helped write, Bob set out a thorough history of how this legislation came to be, and I recommend that today, April 15, 2025, on the day of his funeral, the day we commit the body of Robert W. Klitzkie to the earth and his soul to heaven, that you read it...and thank Bob for the "safe space."

“Please give us Agat boys a chance to achieve some measure of justice and closure in our lives.” 

-  Walter Denton, June 28, 2016.

 

THE FILTH IN THE CHURCH

By Tim Rohr

As April is "Child Abuse Awareness Month," I've been seeing multiple articles and notices about what the Archdiocese of Agana is doing.

The Guam Daily Post reports:

Guam's Catholic church is holding a series of forums in April in conjunction with Child Abuse Prevention month, Sexual Assault Awareness month, and Youth Violence Prevention month.

The meetings, to be hosted at various parishes across the island, were also mandated by a federal bankruptcy court settlement in the clergy sexual abuse cases. 

One wonders if the archdiocese, or more specifically, the current archbishop, would be doing anything if not MANDATED by the federal court settlement. 

I ask this because sex abuse of minors was rampant for decades in this diocese and it wasn't a secret. It was whispered about everywhere, and not just by clergy, but many lay people too. 

But no one did anything. And when finally a very few people did do something, we were publicly threatened with "canonical and legal measures." 

As the Pacific Daily News reported on June 1, 2016:

“Those who are orchestrating this campaign are inciting people into hatred of the Archbishop and the Catholic Church. They have produced scandal, confusion and grave errors with the cruel intent to injure the Archbishop, the Catholic Church in Guam and many other people of good will who have been outraged and harassed. Therefore, the Archdiocese of Agana is in the process of taking canonical and legal measures against those perpetrating these malicious lies,” the Archdiocese said.

Such threats cost some of us a lot: financially, personally, societally, psychologically. And some of us paid with our families. You might say that those who spoke up for the abused were just as abused, and maybe even more given that the majority of abuse victims who came forward never had to give their names, but our names were front page news for months.

After years of being at the center of this ugliness, I have to wonder if those of us who stood up accomplished anything at all. Sure, Apuron is gone (or is he?), as well as some of his gestapo (Adrian, David the Tall, Edivaldo), but has anything been done to address the clerical culture in this diocese that engendered, protected, and promoted this filth for decades? 

Giving kids a "safe space" sounds good, but there is no safe space as long as the demon at the core of all this filth is still allowed to roam. 

And what is that demon? I won't go into it here, but I'll leave a clue. The real abuse was not pedophilia, but ephebophilia. There is a big difference. 

Meanwhile, the archbishop would do well to apologize for all the hell his predecessor wreaked on the few brave people who stood up to what Benedict 16 famously called "the filth in the church." 

EULOGY FOR BOB - LONG VERSION

By Tim Rohr

Bob's funeral will be Tuesday, April 15, 2025 at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Yigo. Last respects will be from 9am to 12pm. The Funeral Mass will commence at 12:pm with burial at the Veterans Cemetery in Piti.

It is serendipitous that Bob, one of the few who fought to the end to hold our government accountable, will be committed to the Earth and to Heaven on "Tax Day." 

I was asked by his family to give one of the eulogies. I'm guessing there will be three. Upon being asked, I was in a bit of a quandary. Eulogies are not permitted at a Catholic Funeral Mass. If there is to be a eulogy, it is to occur at the vigil (wake) or after the burial:

...the practice of eulogies at Catholic funerals is officially discouraged. In the General Introduction to the Order of Christian Funerals, we are told that a homily is to be given, "but there is never to be a eulogy" (no.27)...The church prescribes that before the end of the vigil, "a member or a friend of the family may speak in remembrance of the deceased" (no.80). - Are eulogies allowed at funeral masses?

In Guam, however, the practice of having a vigil or a wake the night before the funeral, which is common elsewhere, is replaced with what is called "Last respects," which is essentially a wake (usually about 3 hours) before the Funeral Mass commences and at the church wherein the Funeral Mass is to be celebrated. 

The eulogies for Bob will be shared at the end of the "wake," so technically there is no violation of church norms, but nevertheless, I did not want to detract from the solemnity of what the Funeral Mass is really all about (the salvation of Bob's soul) with the usual funny stories and melancholy memories that make up many eulogies. 

I'll save what I am going to say until I say it, and then I'll share it here. Meanwhile, this post will be my Eulogy for Bob.

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I first met Bob around 2009. I had written a letter to the editor that caught the attention of a friend of Bob's. I suppose my letter was incendiary enough to make Bob's friend think that I should meet Bob. So he arranged a meeting and we hit it off. 

I'm not sure what Bob saw in me other than a person who was willing to go public on things others weren't. But it was the beginning of several adventures. 

The Journal

If I remember right, our first adventure was a fight for the Legislative Journal. The Journal is a written record of a legislative session, in other words the "minutes." In November of 2010, the legislature had pulled some late night shenanigans to deep-six a bill requiring informed consent for abortion. I was present at the session and despite being new to the legislative process, I could tell that something wasn't right. I brought this to Bob and he instructed me to request a copy of the Journal for that session in order to document the "malfeasance" - which is a word I learned from Bob. 

Senator Judith Won Pat was the Speaker at the time and I directed all my requests for the Journal to her. Won Pat ignored my requests. I began writing about my battle to get the journal in letters to the editor and eventually I got the Journal. The Journal in fact documented the malfeasance and I used it as basis to continue to hammer the legislature for the next three years until informed consent for abortion finally made it into law. 

How the common man can win

This experience served me well going forward. I realized that the common man could win against the biggest powers that be (in this case the legislature) not by making a superior moral argument - which I could do, but by hammering away at little things like the violation of standing rules, non-compliance with the Sunshine Act, and other "bothersome" stuff that legislators and others in power hope we aren't paying attention to. 

Bob taught me how to do that - how to make and hold the powerful accountable by simply knowing what the laws and rules require. 

One instance comes to mind. In 2011, then-chairman of the Rules Committee, Rory Respicio, in an attempt to deep-six a second version of the informed consent for abortion legislation, had cut the camera at a critical juncture in a Rules Committee meeting. Bob told me how to get the DVD of the recording of the meeting and how to demonstrate what Rory did. I didn't have a blog back then but I did have a newsletter with about 1000 addresses. I isolated the portion from the recording, uploaded it, linked it to an expose in my newsletter, and sent it to 1000 people, including Rory and everyone else in the legislature. It still took another couple years, but eventually the legislation made it into law. 

Abortion

At the time, Bob was more interested in holding lawmakers accountable than he was in abortion. In fact, he told me he had no opinion about it. At one point he asked me why I thought it was wrong. I had long since learned in my work in Catholic apologetics to never answer a question with an answer, but to answer with a question. So I answered: 

"When is it every okay to intentionally take the life of an innocent, defenseless, helpless human being?"

Bob was intellectually honest enough to say "Never." And from that moment, not only was Bob a virulent defender of life in the womb, but he made that "question" (answer) his own and often used it during his radio run with Tall Tales with Bob Klitzkie. 

Becoming Catholic

Also, around that time, Bob began attending a Catholic adult study group I had started several years earlier. I suppose he found it intellectually stimulating - which is what anything had to be to interest Bob. One day, over breakfast, he was asking me questions about Catholicism and I was answering them. Finally, though, I asked him a question: "Bob why aren't you Catholic?" Bob answered: "No one ever asked me." I replied "I just did." He responded: "Okay, where do I sign?" A couple years later, Bob was received into the Catholic Church and he asked me to be his sponsor. 

Actually, as Bob would later tell me, he had been studying Catholicism since the events of 9/11 in 2001. He had become convinced that 9/11 was part of a religious war, a spiritual battle, and that the Catholic Church was the only entity that could win it. I recommended that he read the book "Triumph," a history of the Catholic Church by Harry Crocker III, in which the many battles between the Catholic Church and the Saracens were recounted. It became one of Bob's favorite books and a foundation for his intellectual surety in choosing to become Catholic. 

Same-sex civil unions

Also, around 2009 or so, the issue of same-sex civil unions raised its legislative head. I was approached by a member of the clergy and was asked to "do something." I believe I was approached because I had been at the forefront of the anti-abortion wars for awhile. It turned into an ugly battle and caused myself and my family a lot of pain. The sad thing is that it didn't need to happen that way. 

In hindsight, it probably would have just gone away as there was never enough support for it, either in the legislature or in the community. But the media smelled a story, and they pumped it for everything it was worth, casting me as the villain, the "town homophobe." 

I suppose one could say I took the bait, but I probably still would have let it go had it not been for some fast-ones being pulled by the legislature again. In this case, it was a substitute bill that was not really a substitute bill, but a new bill introduced as a substitute in order to avoid a public hearing. That got Bob's attention and he coached me on what to do about it. I did what Bob said to do and eventually the bill fell apart, but not after a whole lot of damage. In the end, SCOTUS legalized same-sex marriage a few years later and it was no longer an issue. 

"Unborn Child"

Perhaps one of Bob's biggest contributions to Guam and to its future was enshrining the term "unborn child" into law. It was in the context of a bill that had failed a couple of times already. The legislation made harming or killing a child in utero, an unborn child, a felony. I believe it was called the Unborn Victims of Violence Act. I'll look it up and link it later. After the bill's second failure, pretty much on technical grounds, I asked Bob to rewrite the bill to get rid of the technical trip-ups. He did. The term "unborn child" was featured prominently, Bob testified for the bill, and the bill became law. 

Abortion reporting law ends abortion in Guam

Another major contribution to Guam and unborn children and their mothers came in 2015, when he wrote and shepherded through a bill that filled in the blanks of an existing abortion reporting law, with one of those blanks being legal consequences for failure to report. Once that bill became law, that was pretty much the final straw (following seven other pro-life laws I, Bob, and others had backed) for the abortion providers. By 2018, and after performing thousands of abortions for decades, the last abortionist closed up shop and to this day no doctor in Guam will perform abortions. 

The Certificate of Title Fiasco and the collapse of Apuron

Bob's biggest contribution, though, was instigating the action that brought what we called "the Yona property" back to the archdiocese. The Yona property was the Redemptoris Mater Seminary, the former Accion Hotel, and at the time it was secretly alienated by then-Archbishop Apuron to his Neocat buddies, the property was valued at 75 Million Dollars. 

Bob had been watching the war in the archdiocese: the Fr. Paul thing, the Msgr. Benavente thing, the clergy sex abuse thing, and all the other malfeasance - as Bob called it. But he didn't see a way he could get involved other than to advise me on this or that. In fact, even after we discovered the secret deed which functionally gave the property to the Neocats, Bob still didn't see a way to do anything, though he was more concerned. 

But then, (it was November 2015), the now missing "David the Tall" (David C. Quitugua) then-Vicar General, posted a copy of the title for the property on the front page of the Umatuna. I showed it to Bob and he noticed something. I can't remember what it was just now, but soon thereafter both he and I showed up at the Department of Land Management and had a meeting with the Deputy Director. 

In short, the title had been fabricated. Now that was something Bob could sink his teeth into and he did. All hell broke loose. Bob ended up suing the Director of Land Management and won, but more importantly, Bob's work to expose the scam exposed a much bigger scam that set the stage for the collapse of Apuron, the closure of the seminary, the return of the property, and the environment that led to Apuron's sex victims feeling safe enough to begin coming forward. And as we know, that drip, drip, drip turned into a torrent. 

All of this is documented in three JW series: CERTIFICATE OF TITLE FIASCO, ORCHESTRATED, and HIGH DRAMA IN THE AOA. 

Bob and I went on to stay involved in several other adventures, perhaps the most recent of which was our testimony before the Supreme Court of Guam in July 2023. The issue was whether or not Belle's Law was still a law post-Dobbs. Bob and I were the only two amici (friends of the court) who presented testimony in addition to the lawyers. Ultimately my argument failed. However, I'm proud to say that (again with Bob's coaching) it earned me several mentions (mostly hostile ones) in the Supreme Court's decision. The jury is actually still out on Belle's Law. I believe it is in the 9th Circuit now. 

My son

And one last thing, though it's too personal to provide details. In short, he helped me stay alive during my darkest days and ultimately provided me the legal education to get my son back.

Farewell Bob. I'm going to have to go it alone. At least for now. 

Your friend and student, 

Tim

MODERN FATHERHOOD IS A THANKLESS JOB

This is a post that is different from the usual. However, it is worth posting because, as many are now realizing, the derogation of men and belittling of fatherhood is at the root of so many social ills. The post is copied from a Facebook post. The original is here.

Modern Fatherhood Is a Thankless Job

If you want to know what true silent suffering looks like—watch a father in 2025.

Fathers don’t just provide anymore. They sacrifice their lives, peace, and identity… and still get disrespected.

Because modern fatherhood isn’t about love. It’s about service. Duty. Disposability.

Let’s break it down:

1. The Legacy Trap

Every man’s deepest fear isn’t death—it’s raising children who don’t carry his name, his values, or his blood.

Legacy is everything. That’s why men build. That’s why men protect. That’s why men die working.

But guess what?

30% of DNA tests come back negative. And that’s just among those bold enough to check.

Do the math. If you have three kids, chances are one might not be yours.

So you’re telling me a man can work 35 years, sacrifice dreams, deny himself joy… and end up investing in another man’s sperm?

No refund. No apology. Just “thanks, Dad.”

2. Divorce Means Automatic Disconnection

Even if the children are yours, there’s still a 50% chance you’ll lose them after divorce.

The court hands her the house, the kids, the sympathy—and hands you bills, depression, and supervised weekend visits.

You become an outsider in the very family you built.

They call another man “Daddy.”

And you get Father’s Day texts… if you’re lucky.

3. Mothers Get the Spotlight, Fathers Get the Stress

The media worships motherhood.

Social platforms turn moms into superheroes for posting lunchbox ideas.

They get celebrated about 30 times around the year.

Meanwhile, the father who left the house at 5am, fought the traffic, paid the rent, almost got stabbed, survived hypertension, and came back home to loud silence? 

Zero praise.

She gets flowers for childbirth. You get bills for being the man.

4. If You’re Broke, You’re Trash.

Forget morals. Forget effort. Forget presence.

If you’re a man without money, you’re just an inconvenience—even to your kids.

The modern world respects deadbeat millionaires more than present, struggling fathers.

And when your kids grow up, guess who they take abroad?

Not the man who paid school fees.

Not even the one who bought them their first car.

It’s always the mom. She’s all deserving!

5. The Government Is Raising Your Children

Even if you stay. Even if you fight. Even if you provide. 

(Even if your wife aligns with you. 😏)

Modern fatherhood still loses.

Why?

Because the school is telling your son he might be a girl.

The media is teaching your daughter that men are predators.

TikTok is feeding them gender confusion, identity crisis, and a full menu of rebellion.

And you? You’re not allowed to say “No.”

You don’t raise your kids anymore. You sponsor them.

6. You Can’t Discipline. You Can’t Lead. You Can’t Even Speak

Try correcting your child, and you’re “toxic.”

Try setting rules, and you’re “controlling.”

Try raising your voice, and CPS might knock on your door.

So now, fathers are quiet.

Not because they’re weak—but because they’ve been silenced.

7. Society Protects Her, Not You

She cheats? It’s because you were emotionally unavailable.

She withholds sex? It’s self-care.

She takes your kids and vanishes? It’s “protecting them from trauma.”

You cheat? You’re a monster.

You complain? You’re weak.

You fight for custody? You’re unstable.

Welcome to modern fatherhood.

Conclusion: Why Do Men Still Do It?

Because men are wired to protect—even if they get destroyed doing it.

Because deep down, every real man still hopes he’ll be the exception.

But in this world?

Fatherhood is no longer a position of honor.

It’s a battlefield where you fight for children who might not be yours, in a house that’s not yours, with a woman who might not respect you—and a system that’s praying for your failure.

And yet… we still show up.

Because even in a thankless job, real fathers don’t quit.

But that doesn’t mean we don’t bleed.

Let the comment war begin.

I would love to hear the motherhood apologists spot where I am wrong this time.

FAREWELL BOB. AND THANK YOU.

 

FOURTEEN MILLION

We will probably pass 14 MILLION views today.

 

MIND YOUR OWN F-ING BUSINESS

By Tim Rohr

A few days ago, the Guam Daily Post published the story "OAG asked to investigate 2 abortion doctors." The Post shared the story on its Facebook page. As of today the story had about 20 comments. About half the comments were supportive. The other half were the usual "Mind your own f-ing business" - as one literally said. 

I don't engage comments on Facebook where I am involved with the story, but I can and will engage them here. The point of engaging them though is not to defend myself or even answer back, but to share why it's all of our "f-ing business."

1. Regardless of the issue (abortion), it's the law, and laws are public. It's why when a law is enacted it is given a name beginning with the words "Public Law...." and then followed by a number. The laws are called public laws because they belong to the public. In other words, public laws are our "f-ing business." So we have every right and duty to "mind" them because they are our "f-ing business. 

2. The laws at the core of the story required the publication of annual reports. So there was no snooping around. I simply asked for a copy of the reports which the law, the public law, required to be published and made available to the public. Simple. 

3. When any of us are aware, or even suspect that a law is being violated, it is our civic duty to bring the matter before the proper enforcement authority, which in this case, is the Attorney General. So it's my "f-ing business," and yours.

Beyond the simple and objective facts just stated, who among us would ignore cruelty to an animal? Let's say your neighbor regularly whips the hell out of his dog. And let's say you want to do something about it. But your neighbor says "mind your own f-ing business." 

Or how about child abuse? It's obvious to you that your neighbor's kids are physically abused, neglected, and half-starving. Is that your "f-ing business?" 

No? Okay then I guess neither is the slicing up of children in the womb. 

However, I tend to believe that those who are screaming at me to mind my own "f-ing business" when it comes to complying with a law requiring the filing of a simple piece of paper - and in this case a piece of paper with a number on it - are the same people who'd be calling the cops on an animal abuser. 

But when it comes to a baby in the womb, well that's different. And it's different because of the real reason they want people like me to mind our own "f-ing business." They want us to "mind our own f-ing business" because they don't want to be reminded of theirs. 

DEALING WITH DISABLED WEBSITES FOR THE DISABLED

LINK to online version

March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month. There was the usual proclamation signing, a nice letter from the congressman, and a list of events sponsored by the Guam Legal Services Disability Center.

We have a plethora of agencies and services for the disabled, or should I say a “maze.” As the father of two disabled sons, both of whom are now adults, and one of whom lives with me, I have found it challenging to navigate these agencies and services for my sons.

Thanks to friends who have been down this road ahead of me, I am managing, but it would help if these agencies updated their websites, which is where most people, like me, searching for information, will initially land.

I was hesitant to use the names of the following agencies in this column, but decided it would be confusing if I didn’t.

Starting with the Guam Legal Services Disability Center under Outreach/Events, there is the current list of activities for March 2025. Following this list is an advertisement for a “Public Input Session.” I got interested, especially since it said “breakfast will be provided.” But then I saw the date: March 18, 2024. I guess I missed it. It would help if past events were deleted from websites, or at least labeled as “past events.”

Continuing my web search, I came to the page of Guma’ Mami, Inc. The headline read “March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month!” - and there was a nice picture. I thought, great, I have found some real information, but then read “Date Posted: 03/03/2022.” Three year old information. Next!

I went to the website of Department of Integrated Services For Individuals With Disabilities (DISID). Under “Links” there is information about an Emergency Registry for disabled persons. I downloaded the application and then read the instructions to drop off the form at their office at the DNA building. DISID relocated away from the DNA building several months ago.

Another link on the DISID website is to the State Rehabilitation Council. At the bottom of this page are two links to a document titled “State Plan for the State Vocational Rehabilitation Services Program.” That looked interesting. However, both links lead to “No Results Found.”

In the footer of the same page, the “Contact Us” information shows Phyliss Leon Guerrero as the Director. However, “Contact Us” information on other pages of the same website lists Michelle Perez as the Director.

Under “Reports,” the latest financial report for DISID is for fiscal year 2021. Not helpful.

Guam CEDDARS is an organization I’m familiar with but haven’t visited in a while. They’re based at the University of Guam, have a very nice office, and always seemed to be pretty organized, so I headed to their website to see what’s new.

Well what’s new? The topmost post on CEDDARS’ website is titled “Guam CEDDERS Presents at 2023 MTEC.” So two years old is “what’s new,” although at the top of the page there was a link to the “latest” newsletter…dated March 2024. Because I used to know a few people on the CEDDERS Advisory Council, I decided to check out the Membership List. It was dated 2022-2023.

Before leaving CEDDERS, I thought I’d check out news and events, since I am looking for “news and events” to help my son. It seemed to be current with the top item referring to an event that happened in February. Scrolling further down, I saw that the February event was posted on September 1, 2023. Oh well. Missed that one too.

The Guam Developmental Disabilities Council appeared to be a bit more up to date. Its latest post announced a meeting on March 12, 2025. However, the next most “recent” post was dated April 2, 2022 announcing the “Autism Community Together Fair.” By the way, under the “Resources” tab…there is absolutely nothing.

I am sure there are good people at these agencies and departments who are doing good work, but you won’t find out about it by going to their websites.

As the saying goes, you never get a second chance to make a first impression. And today, whether you be a private company, a government agency, or whatever, your website is your first impression.

Figuring out life with a child with disabilities is challenging enough, we shouldn’t have to deal with “disabled” websites as well.

Tim Rohr has resided in Guam since 1987. He has raised a family of 11 children, owned several businesses, and is active in local issues via his blog, JungleWatch.info, letters to local publications, and occasional public appearances. He may be contacted at timrohr.guam@gmail.com   

ATTORNEY GENERAL ASKED TO INVESTIGATE TWO ABORTION DOCTORS

In today's Guam Daily Post (with linked references):

In 2024, 36 women residing in Guam terminated their pregnancies through chemical abortions, according to the 2024 Abortion Report. A request asking the Office of the Attorney General to investigate and bring action against a couple of doctors alleges that reporting requirements were not met.

Abortions are not illegal in Guam. However, there are no doctors who perform abortions on the island. In fact, according to the 2024 Abortion Report compiled by the Department of Public Health and Social Services Bureau of Vital Statistics, the women were given prescriptions for abortion medications by Queen’s University Medical Group in Hawaii through telemedicine.

That is not where Guam resident Tim Rohr, who asked the AG to investigate, found fault.

The Women’s Reproductive Health Information Act of 2012 states that a physician or qualified person who is performing the abortion needs to provide the woman with printed materials related to the procedure at least 24 hours prior. The woman must then certify “in writing on a checklist certification” that the materials were provided.

Rohr sent a Sunshine Reform Act request for the “total number of checklist certifications by month for calendar year 2024" to the Guam Memorial Hospital Authority, which is responsible for keeping records. He found none.

“Pursuant to a letter received from Guam Memorial Hospital Administrator Lillian Perez-Posadas, MN, RN, on March 6, 2025, in response to a Freedom of Information Act request: 'GMHA is not in possession of any documents responsive to your request,'” Rohr said in his request to the AG.

According to the Bureau of Women’s Affairs, “currently, no physicians in Guam are publicly providing either medication abortion or surgical abortion. The option for medication abortion is available via telemedicine.”

According to Post files, when the 2024 Abortion Report came out, Pro-Life Committee Chair Sharon O’Mallan said that when a woman terminates a pregnancy, she must meet with a “person here who does the in-person counseling,” then the woman is referred to the Hawaii-based abortion doctors before the abortion prescription is mailed to the woman.

The 2024 Abortion Report identified the providers who performed the abortions as Queen's University Medical Group Drs. Bliss Kaneshiro and Shandhini Raidoo, who are listed as abortion providers at the Guam Bureau of Women’s Affairs and are licensed to practice on the island.

According to Rohr, off Guam or not, the law needs to be complied with, including “in-person informed-consent” certifications. He alleged the abortion doctors failed this requirement, despite the preliminary injunction which enjoined the enforcement of the informed-consent requirement being vacated.

“Drs. (Raidoo) and Kaneshiro are also the two doctors who initiated a lawsuit in the Guam District Court against the attorney general of Guam and other defendants in January 2021 in order to enjoin the in-person informed-consent requirement of 10 Guam Code Ann. § 3218.1. 6 While their suit initially succeeded with the Guam District Court, as already stated supra, that decision was vacated by the 9th Circuit and physicians providing abortion services in Guam, telemedicine or otherwise, are required by law to comply with all the requirements set forth in 10 Guam Code Ann. § 3218.1,” Rohr said in his request.

With no paper trail, Rohr levied the allegations and called on the AG to “bring action against the physicians who provided the abortions in calendar year 2024 for not complying” with the law.

“Given the foregoing, it appears that 36 abortions were provided in Guam in calendar year 2024 without informed consent, as required by 10 Guam Code Ann. § 3218.1. Wherefore, I request the Attorney General of Guam, whose job it is to enforce the laws of Guam, to investigate the facts as set forth herein, and if said facts are found to be true, to bring appropriate legal action against the abortion providers,” Rohr said in the request.

The request was stamped received by the attorney general’s office on March 7, but when The Guam Daily Post asked AG Douglas Moylan to confirm receipt and what if any action his office would take, he said it was the first time he'd seen Rohr's request.

“We will review and contact Mr. Rohr,” Moylan told the Post on Saturday.

 

WHY I CARE

By Tim Rohr

In HE'S NOT GOING TO TELL US, Anonymous complains that I am making more out of "the incident" than necessary and that the Archbishop's letter closes the matter. 

My main contention about "the incident" is not the incident itself - since abuses of all kinds abound in this archdiocese and said "incident" is hardly a blip on the abuse graph - but rather the delay in addressing the incident, a delay which provoked speculation that chancery officials were either delaying in hopes the story would go away, or buying time to figure out how to cover it up. 

Even this "delay", on its own, would have been little cause for me to care save for the several years of hell I and others suffered during the Collapse of Apuron. 

The fall of Apuron was unthinkable, and he himself liked to proclaim "no one can get me." He was right of course. A bishop is the absolute power in a diocese. He can't be recalled, impeached, voted out, or even "FOIA'd." A bishop has total impunity and immunity. 

Thus, as the unthinkable began to be thinkable, and as brick by brick Apuron's neo-clad wall began to crumble, Apuron's gestapo began an all out war on me, and eventually my family. Threats of law suits by Apuron against "Tim Rohr" and accusations of my involvement with a real estate and Chinese gambling conspiracy made local and even international headlines:

"In 2012, a blog called “Jungle Watch” was created online, attacking Archbishop Apuron and the Neocatechumenal Way, accusing them of manipulating the prelate and “colonizing” the entire Agaña diocese. The site is managed by Tim Rohr, a real estate agent employed by Msgr. Benavente and involved in the projected sale of the seminary. The online attacks became more and more violent..." - LA STAMPA

The reason I was singled out was because even though there were many others working behind the scenes, it was this blog where the battle began, a battle which led to a year long picket in front of the Cathedral and calls for Apuron's "defrocking," and ultimately a canonical trial which found Apuron guilty.

It was after the Vatican found Apuron guilty that all hell broke loose. The fall of Apuron's Reich was the fall of a central piece of "Kiko's Kingdom" - Kiko Arguello, the founder and leader of the Neocatechumenal Way which had made massive inroads into the halls of Catholic Church power. 

With such power, one might wonder why little Guam mattered. I've spelled this out numerous times, but I'll spell it out again here.

Power in the Catholic Church government, like most governments, is synonymous with numbers: the more supporters the greater the power. In the Catholic Church, numbers = vocations, especially ordained ones. The more priests a bishop has, a religious order has, an organization like the NCW has: the more power. 

However, the only way to "get a priest" is for a bishop to ordain him. And while Kiko was successful in recruiting vocations and funneling them into his many seminaries, he still needed bishops to ordain them. For some reason, he had particular success with U.S. Capuchins, namely Sean O'Malley, Charles Chaput, and Anthony Apuron.

However, O'Malley and Chaput appear to have been discerning about who they ordained. Kiko needed a bishop who would ordain who ever Kiko wanted ordained, namely all of them. And that's where Apuron came in. And it is also where the now "defrocked" Adrian Cristobal comes in. 

For years, many local Catholics knew that Adrian had designs on succeeding Apuron, and that these designs were more rooted in his competition with - and dislike (to put it mildly) for - some other members of the local clergy than any desire to serve the Church and its flock. 

Apparently, this "competition" hearkened back to the days when they were all in seminary together, a competition that was gravely exacerbated when Apuron passed over Adrian for the title of "Monsignor" and conferred it on Adrian's immediate competitors. 

Adrian responded by promptly disappearing from Guam for several years, and then returned in 1995 with the Neocatechumenal Way in tow, in the person of a mysterious monk named Pius. Pius moved in with Apuron and the NCW takeover of Guam began.

However, the "takeover" was really Adrian positioning himself, by building a power base, to oust his competitors for the "Chair of Apuron" and coronate himself as Guam's next archbishop. This is why Adrian's Barrigada parish, where he kept himself ensconced as pastor, became, and still is, "Neocat-Central."

Enter John Toves

The late-John Toves, who, in addition to being one of the altar boys at Mt. Carmel in the 1970's when Apuron was helping himself to the bodies of John's friends, Toves, later, was also in the seminary with Adrian and others and knew "what was what." 

So when John showed up in 2014 and knocked on the door of the Chancery, it was clear that he scared the hell out of Adrian.

Toves request to meet with Apuron denied, Guam Daily Post, Dec. 5, 2014

By 2014, when John showed up, Adrian was totally running things and Apuron was pretty much hiding in a closet. 

The backstory is this. 

Adrian, like just about every other member of Guam's clergy as well as many lay Catholics, knew of Apuron's history of molesting boys. However, Apuron, relying on fear, misplaced respect for his office, and the dirt he had on other clerics, had so consolidated power that no one dared challenge him let alone "out" him. 

But the tell-tale heart of Apuron's sordid past never stopped thumping beneath the chancery floorboards.

At first, Apuron put his confidence in "David the Tall" (after sending him to canon law school for many years), to keep him out of trouble should any of the ghosts from Apuron's past appear. 

But "David the Tall" was a too thin line of defense, so Apuron was looking for a lot more protection as well as an escape plan if he needed one. 

Functionally, protection and escape was what Pius and the neocat machine offered Apuron, and offered it in return for his rubber stamp, a rubber stamp on everything from ordinations to gifting away a mega-million dollar property into their control.

 Bottom line for Kiko et. al was that they now had a bishop who would ordain whoever he was told to ordain, including rejects from the other Neocat seminaries. 

And this was the path to power for both Adrian - who had local designs on power, and the Neocat generals - who had universal designs on power. And so the Neocat seminary swung into overdrive with locals - believing this was a "Seminary for Guam" - contributing millions. Perfect, the Neocats had a bishop in their control and a funding source: us. 

SMEAR Tim Rohr: Object No. 1

So you can see why all hell broke loose when it became obvious around 2016 that Apuron's wall was breeched, and breeched initially by this blog and the tens of thousands of comments. Thus "Tim Rohr" became "Tim Rohr and his associates" and smearing me became Object No. 1. 

I was okay with the smearing. I expected it. Welcomed it actually. Because I knew that they, Apuron's gestapo, was heading right for a cascade of mistakes - which in fact happened. However, my family didn't take it so well. Some of them were embarrassed by all the negative attention. I understood it but didn't know what to do about it. I had hopes that those who had promised to support my family when all hell broke loose would actually be there. They weren't. And my family suffered and they're still suffering. 

At the center of the planned attack on me and my family were certain members of the clergy, including Adrian. I know who they are, and, if you were following the action back in those days, you do too. 

After Apuron was found guilty by a Vatican tribunal in March 2018, Apuron's goons immediately began planning for his appeal. As already set out in La Stampa, the path to a successful appeal lay in proving that Apuron was the victim of a conspiracy led by "Tim Rohr, a real estate agent employed by Msgr. Benavente and involved in the projected sale of the seminary..."

However, their problem was that they had no evidence that I was "involved in the projected sale of the seminary" (because there was none), so they had to find another way to discredit me.

In May 2018, less than two months after the Vatican's guilty verdict, my name and face was plastered all over the local media for a full week with stories of accusations that I was a wife beater and a molester of my own children.

Krystal Paco, then a reporter for KUAM, had texted me on the morning of May 9, 2018, asking for my comments on allegations made against me in court filings.

Krystal sent pictures of some of the filings. I asked her how she got them. She said she pulled them herself (from the court) after having been "given a case number as a tip."

The plan, of course, was to discredit me by getting me accused of the same crimes Apuron was accused of to pave the way for Apuron's appeal. 

Enter Theodore McCarrick

It almost worked. The kiko's in Rome engineered the appeal to bypass the normal process of appeal through a tribunal, and got the pope to take on Apuron's appeal personally:

The pope explained that in considering Apuron's appeal, he is bypassing the traditional "giuria"--the council of bishops that make up a tribunal--and will be considering the appeal himself. This is because Apuron's situation is a "very difficult case." - Catholic News Agency, Aug. 28, 2018

I remember watching the pope say this on TV. Francis was on a flight back to Rome from an event in Ireland. However, the aim of the interview was not what he was going to do with Apuron, but what he was going to do about a much bigger fish, then-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick. 

The McCarrick scandal was full of hooks and traps, especially for Francis, because there was a paper trail showing a connection between Francis and McCarrick. McCarrick had already been removed from his office by Francis' predecessor, Benedict, for decades of sexual misconduct with multiple seminarians. However, Francis had restored McCarrick to a position of power and now McCarrick, in 2018, was all over the news due to a now infamous letter by the now excommunicated Archbishop Vigano. 

This is all very complex, and would make a much better movie than the Da Vinci Code ever did, but bottom line is that Francis was caught with his hands in the cookie jar and he needed to do something quick to salvage his reputation for on being tough on clerics who were sexual miscreants. 

This is why, when Francis was being questioned about McCarrick, Francis himself changed the subject to Apuron - when the press probably knew little to nothing of Apuron. So now, with the stage lights glaring on Francis over McCarrick, he could not let Apuron off the hook. So Francis denied Apuron's appeal and finished him off.

BUT, had it not been for the timing of the McCarrick thing, I am very certain that Apuron's appeal would have been granted by Francis and he'd be living happily ever after in Guam. 

So, why do I care?

So, WHY do I CARE? Why do I care about a little liturgical abuse at a little school? Why do I care that the new archbishop took a month to say anything about it? And why do I care that when he finally did say something he ultimately said nothing. 

I guess it just reminds me of the terrible price some us had to pay and are still paying for shining the light on half a century of horrors, horrors shrouded in silence. In the end though, it was that silence that helped everyone eventually hear the pounding of that tell-tale heart - or should I say "hearts"...hundreds and hundreds of hearts.

I'll stop now.