In San Francisco, my wife Marita and I were devoted eucharistic ministers of St. Patrick's Church, under parish priest Fred Bitanga. I remember vividly his pain and anguish, caused by the breaking stories of allegedly abusive priests.
As scandals broke nationwide, the council of bishops was forced to do something.
The result of the investigation, evidenced by multi-million dollar settlements to victims in the Los Angeles archdiocese, did not bring priests, many of them unidentified, to any sort of justice. Instead, they were shuttled to new assignments, there to continue their abusive ways.
It sickened me to think the Catholic Church would treat unsuspecting parishioners and their families this way. And I see similar events unfolding in Cebu.
I commend your efforts to flush out a priest, who is in hiding. If you want to do something, Google Megan's law California.
Read what citizens are demanding of their police when convicted sexual offenders are allowed to move into their neighborhood.
Some activists have been successful in driving such predators from their communities. I know this needs a 180-degree turnaround in the mindset of Filipino Catholics, who place much trust in the clergy. But the time has come for parishioners to start looking out for themselves and their families.
