Second Part of Chapter 1 Draft

Title: Second Part of Chapter 1 Draft

Author: Father Mark White

Publisher: Father Mark White blog

Date: 12SEP2020

Ordained by a Predator, Chapter 1 “Summer 2018,” part two

We went on with the business of parish life–Masses, confessions, weddings, quinceañeras, summer-vacation Bible School. I continued to try to fathom the depths of what had happened. I calculated the number of priests McCarrick had ordained and the number of young people he had confirmed. I tried to get in touch with seminary brothers who had become priests but had left the ministry. It occurred to me that perhaps McCarrick had ruined their lives too.

I appointed myself James’ ‘amanuensis,’ that is, the official collector of links to news stories about him. I thought that the bishops of the places where he had lived would reach out to him; I combed the internet for stories about that happening. I dreamed up a ceremony: at the tomb of St. Peter in Rome, McCarrick would kneel before James and beg his pardon, cameras rolling. I worked on a Sunday sermon about how we could hold onto our Catholic faith, even in the face of the devastation that this Cardinal had wrought. His having ordained me did not make me any less of a parish priest. It just made Holy Orders an even-greater mystery of faith.

I blogged all this. I had posted my sermons online for a decade, along with occasional book reviews, travelogues, and ravings about my favorite sports teams. Readership waxed and waned over time–never exactly ‘viral,’ but never moribund, either. My blog had a solid hold on its little corner of the internet. Now it gave me a forum to work my way through what felt like a devastating blow–not just to me, but to my readers, too. Only time would tell how we might recover from it.

I published an open letter to the Cardinal. He had gone into hiding, so I had no way of writing him directly. Plus, I thought my letter might resonate with others.

Dear Father in God and brother priest,