San Francisco Archbishop-designate Salvatore Cordileone has issued a brief statement providing details about his Aug. 25 arrest in San Diego on suspicion of driving under the influence.
According to press accounts, Archbishop-elect Cordileone, currently Bishop of Oakland, was taken into custody after being stopped early Saturday at a police sobriety checkpoint near the San Diego State University campus. Police declined to comment on whether Archbishop-elect Cordileone took a field sobriety test or to reveal his blood-alcohol level at the time of the arrest.
The stop was made at 12:26 a.m. in a residential area on the outskirts of the SDSU campus. The archbishop-elect was booked into the San Diego County Jail shortly before 2:30 a.m. and was released around noon on Saturday after posting $2500 bail. He is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 9 – just five days after his installation as the ninth Archbishop of San Francisco on Oct. 4.
Archbishop-elect Cordileone issued the following statement on Monday:
While visiting in San Diego this past weekend, I had dinner at the home of some friends along with a priest friend visiting from outside the country and my mother, who lives near San Diego State University. While driving my mother home, I passed through a DUI checkpoint the police had set up near the SDSU campus before I reached her home, and was found to be over the California legal blood alcohol level.
I apologize for my error in judgment and feel shame for the disgrace I have brought upon the Church and myself. I will repay my debt to society and I ask forgiveness from my family and my friends and co-workers at the Diocese of Oakland and the Archdiocese of San Francisco. I pray that God, in His inscrutable wisdom, will bring some good out of this.
Just curious: Any indication why it took 3 days for him to issue an apology?
The story just broke late this afternoon. The apology followed hours later. .
You sound like the accusing liberal to me….. who cares how long it took ….
Oh man, getting a DUI with your mother in the car….She must have been freaking out….I’m sorry this happened to you. I’m sure you will never drink and drive again. Take my advice. Life is better sans alcohol-nothing good comes of it.
I for one readily accept the future Archbishop’s apology, I pray only the best for him, now, let’s move on!
Aman. I live in the Diocese of Oakland and am sad to see him leve. But S.F. is a good spot for him.
Lets all pray that he can help him.
Forgiveness from this member of the Catholic public is readily given. We have learned that the Archbishop-elect of the San Francisco Archdiocese has friends, they invite him, his mother, and another priest to dinner, he joins them, probably has some wine, and it impairs his judgment in driving. We have learned that he has a social relationship with his mother, that he is capable of making mistakes in judging how much he has imbibed, and that he is quick to own up to his own errors, apologize, seek forgiveness, and plans to make restitution to society. Thank God above no one was harmed. I think if I were about to take on his job, I’d be grateful for friends, my mother, being asked to dinner, and for the existence of wine. I would hope someone who hadn’t had anything to drink would drive, but lacking that, I would hope I could guess how sober I was. I think this great man is a mere human being, and I think he’ll do as fine a job as anyone can do in his extremely challenging new post.
I remember Mother Angelica’s mentioning of perhaps one of the reasons they ran out of wine at Cana was AFTER the arrival of some of the Apostles….perhaps it’s more of an indictment of modern means of travel rather than cursing the sometimes enjoyment of friends and family….esp. for those who have sooo many burdens to carry…..esp. from those who would rather judge them than pray for them.
He’s got a lot to take on in San Fran due to the laxity of those before him…..that too must weigh heavily…..like Daniel entering the lions’ den. Again….more helpful to pray than to gossip.
“some wine”, Maryanne? How do you raise your blood alcohol level over point 0 eight with wine on a full meal? The Bishop was not pulled over for bad driving but caught in a road block used for checking drivers. Also, people who habitually drink enough to be legally impaired typically are not the ones who drive dangerously. The danger drivers are the ones who drink more than they are used to drinking … this according to one of my long ago graduate courses in driver violator school instructors, a CHP in his real life.
JLS you bring up a good point! He was not pulled over, it was just a check point! A friend of ours was caught at a check point and then found out that the person driving her didn’t have a license but was driving for years without any accidents.
Yes, one person can take a glass of wine with food and get slightly tipsy, yet have below the alcohol limit and another person can drink more and be above the limit AND NOT BE DRUNK, HAVING COMPLETE CONTROL OF HIMSELF. The Sicilian custom of having several drinks, one for each section of the meal changing wines over a period of hours, could easily fall into the second kind of person.
Your Excellency,
Probably it was not part of your Seminary curriculum, but surely a night in jail and a day in court will go a long way toward rounding out your Excellency’s formation. We continue to think well of you, wish you all the best, and hold you in our prayers. And if the Lord were to humble your enemies to the dust, or if you were to take the pledge, who could argue?
Lee Gilbert
I have no idea how or why I ever escaped getting a dui back in the day. I like the Bishop’s apology, as it hit all the necessary points, does not seem evasive, and simply makes sense. Maybe he’ll do the AA route, or the DUI weekend class. This actually is a breath of fresh air … while other clergy and some bishops get popped for child sex abuse or homosexual liaisons, this one is slapped down with a dui … and with his Mom in the car yet!!! No wonder this guy is so popular … Gomer Pyle of the Episcopacy. Hopefully he takes full advantage of his nature to conquer sin in San Francisco.
JLS,
Because he drank wine at a dinner certainly doesn’t make him an AA candidate!
God bless, yours in Their Hearts,
Kenneth M. Fisher
And hopefully, being a faithful Catholic, he wouldn’t choose AA anyway. Too many Catholics have been sold a bill of goods on the ‘higher power’ god of the twelve step programs, all to the end of disregarding the true catharsis of the Sacrament of Penance.
Depends on who’s leading the AA session.
Kenneth, probably not. If he were, he likely would have been alert alert enough to avoid the road blocks.
“This is actually a breath of fresh air.” Give us a break. If you had a family member who was injured or killed by an intoxicated driver you would be singing a different tune, JLS. I realize that Bishop Cordileone is human and has his faults and failings like everyone else but he made a mistake and apologized, he didn’t whine about being caught.
God bless you and we will continue to keep you in our prayers. No worries…….We appreciate your humility and good heart! I’m so sorry that you had to endure this but we trust in God to continue to help you and guide you always.
When I was at USMCRDSanDiego in 65/66, we began to notice that the number of stripes on the sleeves of the drill instructors in the company next to ours tended to change each Monday morning. There were two of them, and some weeks they’d have three stripes, and some weeks they’d have two stripes, but they functioned perfectly as drill instructors. We figured they’d go and get plastered and start bar fights on the weekends. Decades later I knew a former sailor who served as shore patrol and said mostly what he did was round up drunk sailors and marines and haul them off to their ship or base w/o any paperwork. When I was way younger, the local fuzz would often simply take the drunk kid back to his home and leave him there … no paperwork, no jail, just safety. Nowadays with our increasingly tyrannical society everything has to be recorded for the great accounting in the sky. Everything has to be done according to some kind of code that has crept into place to replace human interaction. The whole society is being regimented in ways which would make regimentation itself pale at the thought.
I hear you JLS but in the defense of the police, back in the day if they brought a drunk young person home, the parents actually did something about it.
I do wonder though if we put too many of the wrong people in jail for too long and for the wrong reasons.
Carol, just to be clear, I have no problem with cops. Without ’em we’d all be out there robbing banks and amassing too much money, sort of like the govt.
Oh, do you mean those banks that the government propped up a few years back with taxpayers’ money that has now been paid back with interest? Such robbery should happen more often!
Guess I am looking at this in a little different light. My concern is that old enemy, laying the groundwork and the little traps, that could undermine the work to be done in San Francisco, the hornet’s nest! We need to pray hard for the Archbishop’s protection. Being with his mother, believe it or not, was a blessing. I think it squelched further gossip. It can happen to any one, me included. After a very tired me on Christmas Eve had several glasses of wine at my daughters home, I left and turned up a one way street, which I realized right away…but to late. The policeman was very nice, no ticket for me. There are the wolves out there, waiting for these kind of events. St Michael protect Fr. Cordileone.
I entirely concur. The instant I spotted the headline this week, I prayed to St Michael! I am certain this will be the first of many “bullets” for the great courage, grace, and leadership it will take to lead at this time in history.
Prayers are on the way, dear Bishop.
You have handled this with much grace and candor.
Once I missed a stop sign coming out of the Bel Air Hotel with two Martinis under my belt. My 90-year old mother-in-law was with us. The cop, seeing my clean driving record and the age of the lady let us through, on condition that my wife continued driving. It was a near miss, and in my terror i did not drink again for a whole seven days after that.
Sorry Archbishop Cordileone, it is lonely at the top. One is sometimes targetted at the top as in the case of our Mel Gibson. As far as my knowledge extends, most Catholics like their drink. It might be our Freemason enemies that keep lowering the legal blood levels down. LOL. ;-)
Bishop Cordileone is a good and holy man who deserves our prayers. He will be a wonderful Archbishop for San Francisco–the people there deserve such a loving and humble man who will do so much to help them.
Did the sodomite controlled government know about the Archbishop’s presence and location and set up a conveniently located DUI checkpoint?
So does libelous language against government officials and police officers, as well as wild conspiracy theories, pass muster in the comments section today?
The Archbishop admitted his guilt. Whatever you may think of him or what he did or what he said, it is uncalled for for Catholics to demean government and its officers.
Really? You honor government that dismembers babies in the womb and pushes sodomy and lesbianism on children?
I think he was setup by the secular forces, they know he will be powerful adversary, so why not try to bring him down now???
oh, for heaven’s sake — it was a checkpoint because of all the college students in that area who drink and drive.
“set up by the secular forces” — give me a break!
archbishop cordleone and his mother have both admitted it was wrong to drink and drive, so don’t get all paranoid on us.
whatever max, but it will be the secular forces that will be arresting priests, killing laity and burning parishes…bet on it… I don’t trust them why do you???? BTW only the paranoid really survive
Conspiracy theories arise when logic fails.
When they start arresting clerics see where your “logic” take you
Drones, max, drones. There may be some flying over your head as we speak, and recording everything you do and think of doing.
Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean that they’re not out to get you!! ;)
JLS lol
Enough said. He apologized and will undoubtedly be held to account by the state. Judging goes nowhere. This is not abuse of anyone, but an error in judgment. We all make them and owe the bishop the same understanding we want for ourselves under similar circumstances. He risked his own and his mother’s safety and undoubtedly will have to deal with that as well. He knows it. He should be allowed to pay the price of his error in terms of legal consequences, and then supported in the awesome responsibilities he faces.
Interesting that Bishop Cordileone asks for the forgiveness that he has been so reluctant to extend to others. Additionally, it is interesting that many other posters are willing to give the Bishop a “pass” on this. Perhaps more investigation is needed regarding the Bishop’s drinking practices/habits. If Bishop Cordileone were ammore “liberal” Bishop, the neo-Caths would scream for this head,
SMC, you write:
“Interesting that Bishop Cordileone asks for the forgiveness that he has been so reluctant to extend to others.”
Did somebody repent- as Abp Cordileone repented- and the Archbishop refused to forgive them? Who was this exactly?
SMC:
When has the Archchbishop-designate been reluctant to extend forgiveness to others?
SMC,
A contrite soul is a magnet to other contrite souls. An unabsolved soul is merciless to the contrite heart and to the contrite soul.
SMC, Are you giving lessons in humanity? Your comment is the first prime example of the brutality of unforgiving remarks that Bishop Cordileone will have to face for his mistake in judgement. What would we find SMC if we publicly or privately investigated the true motives of your very unchristian thoughts?
Bishop Cordileone has most probably gone to confession and publicly repented for his error in judgement and he said that he feels shame for the disgrace that he has brought upon the Church and himself. Those are his words. SMC, You’re cruel public post has given us a private and pivotal glimpse into the cunning nature of a minion just waiting to kick a good bishop while he is vulnerable.
SMC, The shame is now on you You have publicly read the very good steps that Bishop Cordileone has taken to say he is sorry and to be pleasing to God. Tell us SMC, after reading your publicly cruel and merciless words, what steps are you taking in your life to keep your own soul from going to hell?
Archbishop-elect Cordileone is a very holy and humble gentleman. My husband and I had the honor to speak with him at the Catholic convention and he even gave us a blessing. He use to be our bishop here in San Diego, and he was very involved in the pro-life movement, he was very involved in all the care we needed to fight the good fight. God bless him and I accept his apology. He is in God’s hands now, pray for him and stop judging him……to those who are.
Let me guess
, you wronged Bishop asked for his forgiveness and he refused to forgive you? Or you went to confession and he refused to absolve you of your sins?
Mbûkû Kanyau Mbithûka who were you referring your post to? Just wondering, I got lost reading your post…sorry
First, the DUI levels in CA, and elsewhere, are simply unreasonable. No, attempting to drive while being unable to safely do so is undoubtedly wrong, that is not the issue. Having a legislature set the standard for what is reasonable is the issue. A feminized legislature continues to create a Nurse Nancy Land for us all — a place where we are all about four years old, and need constant attention and control.
Second, the good Archbishop must learn that he will be constantly watched, tested, and challenged in everything that he does. He may have stumbled on a “checkpoint” but look at this town, the very place where firemen were forced to take part in a disgusting “Gay Pride” parade, even while being the object of sexually-charged insults from the homosexual crowd. (Happily, the Town was taken to court and had to pay at least some amount for its mismanagement.) This is Sodom, and Archbishop Cordileone will be given no mercy. An apology was OK, but please, good Bishop, do not give in to what will be the constant demands by others for you to provide “mea culpas” everywhere and then to morph that, somehow, with the magic of relativism, into “understanding” about the discrimination against the homosexual (who only wants respect for his right to love, after all!). Move on, but with the same good purpose that you have already shown.
Thank you AB Cordileone for being so upfront about this indiscretion. Unless one never drinks most adults have been in your situation. They have just not gotten caught. It is a wake up call to all to not drink and drive. May God Bless you and keep you save.
God bless you Lisag. Praise God no one got hurt and this could be a blessing for AB Cordileone. Everyone see’s this as a bad thing but I trust that God loves His son so much that he was actually protecting him. We can all learn from our mistakes…..humility is His humble apology here and I accept his apology. God bless him!
What happend to Bishop C could have easily happened to any of us. I personally am not much of a “drinker”, but I do once in a while have a drink or two with friends at dinner. I don’t think most of think about our “legal 0.8 limit” when we don’t feel or act intoxicated ( clearly as stated in the report, he wasn’t out of control drunk).
I actually find it refreshing (and of course grateful no one was hurt), that he was not only polite upon his arrest, but took responsibility, apologized, and then did what few ever do, offered reparation back to society.
I now have even more respect and love for him. He’s human, like all of us, and I believe his wish that God will bring something good out of this has already been accomplished.
The country finally gets to witness the best of what a Bishop of the Catholic Church represents. They don’t get any better than Bishop Cordelone!
so many of us can relate to this, even if we never got CAUGHT driving while over the limit.
how embarasing, though, when you are a public figure — and i’ll bet MOM gave him heck, being sicilian and…well…MOM.
such incidents can keep us humble, and make us more careful for the future.
max I agree such incidents can keep us humble and a teachable moment…..God loves us, he will help us to avoid worst situations…it is when we don’t listen that things get worst. Good point you made max. We are not excusing this but we can discern and trust our Lord in everything..
The gays in San Francisco will use this against him for every time he speaks out against their “lifestyle”.
who cares, let them talk, they will always talk…….we need to continue to pray for AB Cordelone. It must be stressful to be in his shoes, God give him all the courage and strength to endure and persevere with fortitude in doing God’s will. When dealing with gay activist and agenda’s it is a very strong spiritual warfare. The evil forces are very intimidating at times, it will take God’s graces and strength to help him stay faithful and not back down.
Devil pulled out all the stops on this one. Sure he worked on the weaknesses of The Bishop and set everything up. After all, San Fran is his stronghold and The Bishop coming in is gonna rock his world. Through obvious humilty the Bishop has already overcome and will continue to fight evil. Pray for this man for he will be attacked again and again.
Mitch, it wasn’t the devil that did this. People have free will and are responsible for their actions. The devil didn’t set everything up.
PA, the devil also has freewill, and involves itself in this world. You don’t notice it because of the principle of entering cool water which gradually warms up to hot without you even realizing it.
Mitch, San Francisco is not the devil’s stronghold, and the devil did not set up this sobriety checkpoint.
Everyone knows the devil’s stronghold is somewhere back east, perhaps New Orleans or Newark.
As for sobriety checkpoints, the devil is much happier seeing people drink and drive and get into terrible accidents, so he would never bother setting up a checkpoint.
As for sobriety checks, let me point out, MacD, that New Orleans is not in the east, but the south.
Everyone does know that the devil’s “stronghold” is somewhere else so he would never bother setting up a checkpoint.
The devil is much happier seeing people go to hell so lets keep those pro-death politicians happy. MacDonald, You have just helped to sum up the real reason for the failure to enforce Canon 915.
CA Checkpoints are no longer really about getting drunk drivers off the road in CALIFORNIA, they are about bringing in some serious REVENUE to this glutton spending state government! .08 blood alcohol level is not the true level where one is even impaired!
The cop should have made the good man with his elderly mother, park the car and allow him to take a cab home! But then the state would be out about $14k!
I have to agree with St. Christopher in saying that the limit in CA is unreasonable. Having just over 1 4oz glass of wine puts most grown men over the legal limit in CA. I also agree that we have to keep the good bishop in our prayers. God Love You.
Your fellow Catholic: Why did it take him 3 days to issue a statement? Well, let’s see, he spent the night in jail, so let’s say he didn’t sleep very much that night and probably need some time to recover from that. And he didn’t get out until noon the next day. Then he probably had to think about what he wanted to say and run it by a few people, like his lawyer and his boss. I can’t believe you would question that. Issuing a public statement about an arrest is something you want to put a little thought into.
The only thing I would question is if it took him three days to say something and he came out with something other than an apology.
Drunk driving is very serious and I don’t mean to negate that one bit but I will pray for him and his family. His mom must fell terrible too. And I do think a lot of people relate to this and are not caught. We rarely get to choose our consequences in life.
There is no one who is free of sin among us.
Even the Apostles sinned not limited to St. Peter.
The Abp not only asked for forgiveness, but is willing to take the consequenses for his actions. He apologized for his public scandal, unlike some other Clergy who give scandal.
“Forgive us our tresspasses, as we forgive those who have tresspassed against us.” – we all must remember this.
Pray for the Pope, all of our Bishops, and all our Priests.
Satan loves to tempt and ridicule good Clergy in the Press.
I am saddened by this, but God humbles us all at times to teach us His wisdom and bring us closer to him and keep us from harming ourselves and others. I accept the Archbishop’s apology, and I recommended that he keeps the card from the DMV on his person that tells one how many drinks they can consume in a certain length of time according to body weight before they are under the influence. One must also take into consideration whether they have had any food or candies with alcohol in them or any prescription drugs that enhances alcohol. I never have more than one alcoholic beverage, and that is at a meal, or I might be considered under the influence. I have even watered plants with good alcohol if someone has insisted on buying me a drink when I have politely said, “No thank you.” No, I do not think the lowering of the allowance of alcohol consumption is a conspiracy of the Free Masons as many of them drink alcoholic beverages. I think is has, for the most part, been put in because of the concern of those who have had family or friends injured or killed in automobile accidents. Perhaps it is too low. I do not know, but it is what it is here in California at this time. Those who ahve actually studied Biblical history know that the Lord Jesus Christ DID drink alcoholic beverages and St. John the Baptist DID NOT. Nevertheles, the Lord walked and did not get behind the wheel of a car nor a chariot. Futhermore, this in NO Way makes anything that Archbishop Cordileone has said about marriage and the birthcontol pill and abortion wrong. He has been right about all those things.
the archbishop simply did what many of us do, namely, drink and drive. he got caught at a checkpoint, was arrested, spent the night in jail, and admitted his wrongdoing.
i’m sorry for his embarasment, but glad he didn’t get hurt, or hurt anyone else. he was honest and apologized. now let’s move on and quit inventing scenarios that make us look even loonier than usual.
This why bishops should have drivers. They should be driven around and not have to drive themselves.
Bishop Cordileone made a stupid mistake. Total lapse in judgement to get behind the wheel and get a DUI and arrested in front of his mother.
The worst part of it, is that it gives fodder and ammunition to enemies of the Church to use against the Church and clerics.
As that great Catholic “Apostle of Common Sense”, C.K. Chesterton once said, “Let us thank God for beer and wine by not drinking too much of them.”
Horrors! Out late at night, far from his diocese, but caught in the act — of taking his mother home!
This is a scandal? This is **terrific** news! I was a barroom entertainer in LA long enough to learn that a second glass of wine is all it takes for the LAPD to make their move — and that must be true for the SDPD as well.
After what’s gone down in California in the past decade, this isn’t a scandal, it’s good news and a message to all of us: pray for our bishops!
And, Bishop (soon to be Abp.) Cordileone — ad multos annos!
PS — I hope they took his mother home!
“Did the sodomite controlled government know about the Archbishop’s presence and location and set up a conveniently located DUI checkpoint?”
Juergensen, you must be kidding with this nonsense.
It is crystal clear from the many news reports I’ve read that Archbishop Cordileone’s mother lives near the university, and that the police set up checkpoints on weekends due to the large number of college students who drink too much, and then get behind the wheel.
He just happened to get caught in one of these checkpoints.
At least he was man enough, and honest enough, to put the blame on himself, and to apologize, rather than cooking up some story about people being “out to get him.”
You don’t think the sodomite state and local governments of California have the Archbishop in their cross hairs?
I have an island in Arizona you might be interested in buying.
Oh, Juergensen, they definitely have him in their cross hairs. The Gates of Hell are aligned against him. I just do not think that was the case in this instance.
Juergensen there are many check points at many area’s of San Diego. They usually have one near my home on the weekends. So it is not an uncommon thing. I don’t think a lot of people know his excellency AB. I know many cops that are very devout and Christian too. So I don’t think it was a purpose planned attack but it can be a spiritual one that many neglect to point out.
This ultimately will be good for his soul. Its a lesson in humility despite high office.
I know the Bishop, he is an incredibely humble man, but Jesus has a funny way of showing people even the most holy of saint, how far they have to go to be pleasing to him.
The Archbishop – elect used poor judgement going to a dinner party knowing drinks would most probably be offered, accepting drink(s?) and then compounding a bad decision by driving. Not arranging a ride with a designated driver, calling a cab, or planning ahead and not drinking alcohol were all easy options. Yes we sinners all make mistakes. Most mistakes are not so public are they? When our loving God, our Father, allows thru His permissive will, a reprimand such as THIS to occur at such a CRUCIAL TIME for the Archbishop – elect (Ab-e) to me it appears to be more like a ‘big thunk’ on the head from God to the Ab-e. Is God warning the Ab-e to say good bye to down time and pay attention to everything you do, all the time from now on?
what happened to the days when you could have a few…this world is getting awfully touchy. Lighten up folk…
WWJD…He may well have not passed the sobriety test after the wedding feast at Cana…although He probably did not drink…but He sure created some good stuff out of water…and we know they were drinking enough to run out at least once.
Bill – the founder of AA was a Catholic! A priest helped him develop the 12 steps.
Cut the good bishop some slack! Who among you has never been behind the wheel after a few drinks?
Let those who haven’t cast the first stone!
Thanks, Anton, but I’ll hold the stone throwing until I find a worthy target.
After reading the story, how come this is even news?
We are so judgmental when it comes to anyone wearing a collar.
What difference does it make if he had a slightly elevated alcohol level? We are quick to criticize a priest for any reason, even if he takes a drink, hey, he’s an adult, live with it. I’m going to.
He wasn’t speeding or running stop signs, he stopped at a random check point. This happened to me too at one time in San Diego, and I’m a practicing Catholic and will not judge this Priest for the same thing!
Remember everyone, to take the block out of your own eye before you worry about the cinder in your brother’s eye!!!!
AB Cordielione needs our support and prayers, not judgement!!!!!
And don’t you all think that if he was intoxicated, his own Mom would of never gotten in the car with him, and probably told him to hand over the keys!!!
I haven’t heard if the Bishop took a breathalyzer test at the check point or opted to go to the hospital to have his blood drawn. That being said, I have heard that the breathalyzer test is not very reliable and is often the reason those charged with DUI often times win their day in court.
If the Bishop chose, however, to have his blood drawn, I would imagine that if he was only slightly over the California legal limit at the check point, by the time he had this test at the hospital, he would have been in the normal range.
I’m sure the details will come out eventually. This should put a clearer light on the matter.
The practical side of this sometimes gets lost in the fury. First, I can’t remember the last time I went to someones home for dinner and didn’t have a drink or two before dinner and wine with dinner. That’s how we eat when we live so close to wine country. Second, the definition of legally intoxicated in California is 0.08. Getting to that number varies by a person’s weight and the time they have been drinking. But, for an average person who has had three or four drinks (can of beer, glass of wine, sot of liquor) over a three to four hour period, they are probably at 0,08. Three glasses of wine at a dinner party is not uncommon. I think people are paying a lot more attention to this issue than they use to. If you get caught, you will go to jail and your car will be impounded. By the time you get your car out of hawk, pay the fine, take the classes, and pay for increased insurance, you will be out a minimum of $10,000 in California. I don’t know about other states. So, even those of us who are moderate social drinkers have to pay attention to our BAL.
and lose your liscense for 6 months.
“When they start arresting clerics see where your “logic” take you.”
You obviously haven’t been paying attention to what has been going on with Catholic clerics over the past few years and on a world-wide basis.
There are obviously not a few clerics who have deserved being arrested! And imprisoned.
and not just clergy – look at that nun from omaha, nebraska, who was sent to prison for embezzling money from the archdiocese (for gambling addiction, gifts to relatives, etc.).
we are all human, and all sinners.
there was even a bishop in rawanda, i believe, who was arrested for war crimes because he had been involved in genoicide.
Being human, max, does not excuse one from sin.
The famous Fr. Benedict Groeschel has just apologized for saying that priests accused of sex abuse should not be shelved the first time, since many of these accusations are false. How’s that for compassion, huh? If you do not crack down hard on sin, then it will conquer you.
Actually JLS, that is not what Father Benedict apologized for. He apologized for blaming the victims for their own victimization. But here are his own words verbatim:
“I apologize for my comments. I did not intend to blame the victim. A priest (or anyone else) who abuses a minor is always wrong and is always responsible. My mind and my way of expressing myself are not as clear as they used to be. I have spent my life trying to help others the best that I could. I deeply regret any harm I have caused to anyone.”
JLS, He said that many of the priests accused of abuse were seduced by the teens. He made excuses for the priests. He also referenced the “poor guy” Jerry Sandusky. The interview was in the National Catholic Register last night, but they have removed it today. They apologized for it. I am glad to hear the Fr. Greoschel has apologized too.
I believe Fr. Benedict’s advance age and his recovery from a stroke he had must be effecting his thinking,… and speaking
Canisius, yes and the car accident that almost killed him several years ago. According to the apology on the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal website, “in recent months [Fr. Benedict’s] health, memory and cognitive ability have been failing. He has been in and out of the hosptial. due to his declining health and inability to care for himself, Fr. Benedict had moved to a location where he could rest and be relieved of his responsibilites.” They also said his comments were “out of character.” They reiterate that abuse is always the responsiblity of the adult not the minor and that it is a crime. The Archdiocese of New York issued a statement declaring Fr Greoschel comments to be “simply wrong” and also offering sympathy to the victims of abuse.
This is the likely cause. But also he is trained as a psychologist from what I recall. Psychology has its limits. And if he is now in a weakened state … well, maybe he is vulnerable to manipulation.
Any Catholic cleric facing the prospect of becoming the Archbishop of San Francisco should be excused for having an extra glass of wine at dinner. Given the task he is about to undertake, Bishop Cordileone should be commended for being so moderate.
Well, M. King, although the stress the good archbishop is under must be tremendous, I recommed for his sake and those around him that he sleep off the stress or take up a mild sport, even golf, or better yet spend more time before the Blessed Sacrament in Adoration, which are much better and safer ways of getting rid of stress. That way he will never have the regret of harming himself or someone else in an automobile accident. Also, he could have someone not under the influence of alcohol with him if he wants to have a few glasses of wine, and they could drive him home, or just have that wine when he does not have to go anywhere.