The Belmont County Priest is Innocent?

Here go again with a man of the cloth getting accused of sexual abuse. Before I go into my rant on this my first question would be, why it took 16 years for this woman to come forward in the first place. From time to time, and more often in recent years, these type of allegations have surfaced against religious leaders and it has been by people who claim the events took place years ago sometimes as many as 20 years or more. Sexual abuse can be difficult to come to terms with emotionally and for most they, the victims, tend to want to forget it ever happened. I can not claim to know what goes on in someone's head who has been a victim, but I am sure it is not pleasant, but why would you not step forward sooner? In some cases like, and I am not saying this one particularly, accusations are made to simply destroy a person out of spite or vindictiveness. In a case like this regardless if it is true or not the accused always suffers even if he or she is innocent.

Now on to the whole story, first here is the official position of the church:

STATEMENT OF BISHOP R. DANIEL CONLON DIOCESE OF STEUBENVILLE REGARDING REV. GARY A. ZALENSKI NOVEMBER 17, 2007

Effective today, I have withdrawn Father Gary A. Zalenski, who is currently serving as Pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Neffs, Ohio, from active ministry, as the result of a credible allegation of his having sexually assaulted a minor in 1991. He may not present himself as a priest or carry out any public function as a priest. Within a few days he will move from the rectory at Sacred Heart to a private residence of his own choosing.

The allegation was brought to the Diocese of Steubenville by a woman who was a young parishioner at Saints Peter and Paul Parish in Lore City, Ohio, where Father Zalenski was pastor at the time. All information about the matter obtained by the diocese has been communicated to the Guernsey County Prosecutor.

The matter will be referred to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, an office of the Holy See in Rome, for further action. This could take some time. In the meantime, Gary Zalenski will remain a priest of the Diocese of Steubenville, and the diocese will provide material assistance to him as needed.

This matter is being handled in full accord with the "Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People", which was adopted by the Catholic bishops of the United States in 2002, the "Essential Norms", which are special laws approved by the Pope for the United States to deal with child abuse, and the Diocese of Steubenville's "Decree on Child Protection".

As for Sacred Heart Parish in Neffs, I have appointed Monsignor Gene W. Mullett as Temporary Administrator, along with his other duties, and have asked him to provide special pastoral care to the people in this difficult moment. Monsignor Mullett is pastor St. Michael and St. John parishes in Bellaire.

This is all very painful. I am angered that a young member of the Church was apparently violated. I am embarrassed that the offender was a brother priest. I am troubled that absolute certainty about the matter is probably beyond my reach, and yet I must act. I grieve that two parishes and two families are thrown into turmoil.

In such a situation I look to Jesus on the cross. He took our sins and our brokenness upon himself and became the source of our healing.

Any person who has been sexually assaulted as a minor by a priest or other representative of the Diocese of Steubenville is encouraged to contact the diocese at 740-282-3631 as well as any local law enforcement agency.

Now whether or not the priest is guilty or not will be determined by a court of law. Unfortunately with all the news of sexual abuse by clergy it may be difficult to get a fair trial no matter what. All the evidence has not even been presented and Bishop Zalenski has even stated "....as the result of a credible allegation of his having sexually assaulted a minor in 1991". C'mon – who in the hell even made him the judge in this matter and what credible evidence. While I understand the No Tolerance for ANY sexual abuse by clergy and the agreed upon policy implemented by the Catholic Bishops in the United States, which they did just to satisfy the Vatican, I do not believe this priest will even get a fair trial. This is one area where the separation of church and state does apply for a change. One problem that will arise from this matter and that is not matter what the outcome – the Church itself will still go on just fine as if nothing happened and citing it Sexual Abuse policy for protection. Civil litigators looked at how the policy affected the church's liability. Legal experts say that while the new policy would not affect criminal cases, it will likely have an impact on the church's civil liability because it represents an effort to keep abusive priests away from children. How much the church's liability in the hundreds of lawsuits it is facing will be affected, though, remains to be seen. Will the new policy shield bishops and the church from abuse that took place in the past? How will the policy affect current lawsuits? Will the policy limit the church's liability in future cases of abuse, or has it opened it up to more exposure because priests will not be automatically defrocked? These are all question that anybody interested in this case should consider. The case will involve the priest an not the church and if this priest is found guilty the church is still protected, How Convenient

I personally could care less about the Catholic Church, but in a case like this where sexual abuse is involved by a member of the cloth and the church does little more than just remove the individual in question and release a letter of apology is appalling. I am not sure which is worse, the alleged crime or the poor stance and apparent ignorance of the Catholic Church, just to protect their own interests an assets. Faith no longer exists but the almighty dollar lives on and that is what it will all boil down to.