Deacon Leonard Stohr said there were an estimated 350 people camping outside the hotel's entrance at 5:00 am.

The hotel had been used to house the Redemptoris Mater Seminary until it was closed down at the end of December in 2017.

Some of the proceeds from the sale of items in the former hotel will go toward a special fund that may be needed to compensate clergy sex abuse victims.

The land and buildings are also listed as one of the 41 non-essential properties that could be sold to help settle sex abuse lawsuits.

The ownership of the hotel has been the subject of controversy.

The money used to buy the property was donated by Carmelite nuns in the United States.

In 2011 Archbishop Anthony Apuron signed a deed restriction that allowed a seminary and theological institute controlled by the Neocatechumenal Way to use the Yona property indefinitely.

At a press conference in November 2016, Mother Superior Dawn Marie of the Carmelite Monastery on Guam said the donors were disappointed that the property was not used for its intended purpose because of the influence of the Neocatechumenal Way.

The Archdiocese of Agãna subsequently regained full control of the property after Archbishop Michael Byrnes used his authority to cancel the deed restriction.

Source

• guampdn.com
• guampdn.com
• guampdn.com
• Image: guampdn.com /Rick Cruz

The survey also claims that less than 50 percent of Guam's population now identify as Catholic.

According to the 2010 Census about 75 percent of the population was Catholic and 17 percent Protestant, with the remainder identifying as other denominations.

The survey was written and circulated through social media by a local deacon who remains anonymous. It asks for "positive responses only."

The deacon says it is being taken to gather information for a white paper he and a group of laymen are preparing to present to the archbishop.

It asks respondents what they would like the Archdiocese of Agaña to look like in the year 2028?

Tony Diaz, communications director for the archdiocese said Byrnes knows about it and supports it.

"The archbishop and archdiocese welcome it as we try to unite across all fronts and move forward," Diaz said on behalf of Byrnes.

"It's a journey that's going to take many, many steps but we're grateful for the many individuals helping."

"Through a grass-roots effort, the deacon hopes the community will contribute their vision of the archdiocese 10 years down the line."

157 lawsuits have been filed in Guam alleging instances of sexual abuse.

Pope Francis placed the Archbishop of Agaña Anthony Apuron on leave in June 2016 after accusations of sexual abuse were made against him.

Apuron, who continues to deny the accusations, was tried by a Vatican court. A verdict is awaited.

Apuron was present at a papal audience on February 7.

The Vatican Insider claimed that when Apuron personally greeted the Pope at the end of the audience, he told the Pope, "Holy Father, I wanted to see you before I die."

Source

• postguam.com
• RNZ
• catholicregister.org
• Image: CNS/Erik de Castro Reuters

In that desire for accountability, he is now addressing concerns regarding the Kamalen Karidat (KK) ministries which have been raised by Concerned Catholics of Guam (CCOG).

Established in 1993, KK helps provide food and clothing to the poor and operates a soup kitchen in Agaña.

CCOG had asked Byrnes to shut down the KK programme, citing alleged mismanagement, a lack of accountability and proper documentation.

CCOG President David Sablan told the media that CCOG believes funds were used for personal and other purposes by Archbishop Anthony Apuron, not at all related to KK's mission of helping the poor.

Byrnes said he appreciated the diligence and concern of the CCOG which communicated its concerns in a formal letter to him last October.

He has instructed the legal counsel of KK to give notice of a board meeting to address these matters.

In the meantime, the services to the poor and homeless will continue but the ministries will be removed from KK and operate under the direct control of the Archdiocese.

Father Mike Crisostomo was appointed to lead KK last May.

Byrne gave an assurance that since his appointment Crisostomo has ensured that KK has practised full diligence and compliance in managing its finances, including properly documenting all contributions.

Source

• Umatuna
• Pacific Daily News
• Pacific New Centre
• Image: Pacific Daily News

In 2016, he was for some time the apostolic administrator of Agãna, in Guam.

Hon's appointment in Guam followed a request from Archbishop Anthony Sablan Apuron of Agãna, who was under investigation as a result of allegations of sexual abuse made against him.

Hong Kong-born Hon, who is a Salesian, was at that time secretary of the Vatican's Congregation for the Evangelisation of the Peoples.

He told ucanews.com then that the task of being administrator was an added service to his position as secretary.

Pope Benedict XVI had appointed him secretary at Propaganda in 2010.

He did so on the recommendation of fellow Salesian Cardinal Joseph Zen and another powerful Salesian - the thenn Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone.

Hon has been the only high-ranking Chinese official in the Roman Curia. He has been seen as Zen's eyes and ears in the Roman Curia.

Zen is well known for his aggressive anti-communism and support of Catholics who are at odds with the government. He is the most senior critic of Pope Francis' policy of rapprochement with Communist China.

Hon has been back in Rome for less than a year; his appointment to Athens seems to indicate that Pope Francis has a very clear strategy for engaging Communist China and, in this difficult operation, insists on aides who fully embrace this project.

Source

• UCAnews
• UCAnews
• LaCroix
• Image: Archdiocese of Agãna

In 2014, the Vatican was summoned to the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child committee.

It was asked to take concrete steps to remedy decades of institutional complicity and the cover-up of widespread sexual abuse of minors.

The Vatican has now missed the September 1 deadline to submit a report, detailing the steps it has taken to protect children from sexual violence, according to a Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) and the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) statement.

Guam, where more than 100 clergy sex abuse lawsuits have been filed, was cited in their statement as an example of the Vatican's failure to increase child protection as well as accountability for perpetrators and those who cover up and conceal the offences.

"The fact that the Vatican did not submit a report to the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child is one more indication that church officials have not taken this process seriously," said SNAP managing director Barbara Dorris,

CCR staff attorney Pam Spees said church officials are quick to decry efforts to hold them accountable, calling it scapegoating or anti-Catholic sentiment, and to deflect the issue by pointing to instances of sexual violence in other religious contexts.
"No other entity on earth has the church's global presence and power to conceal the offences and insulate its perpetrators through the religious, political, and financial influence it wields," Spees said.

SNAP and CCR said the Vatican has not made substantial progress in genuinely acknowledging, internalising, and implementing the full range of policies and practices that would centre children's best interests and protect them against sexual violence.

Source

• Pacific Daily News
• Pacific Daily News
• RNZ
• Image: Japan Times

Archdiocesan Finance Council President Richard Untalan and other council members said the Yona property is one of 41 non-essential archdiocese assets that could be sold to help settle clergy sex abuse cases against the archdiocese.

But Sablan says an end-date should be set to the Neocatechumenal Way staying there and until the property is sold, those staying there should be paying rent to the archdiocese.

Sablan is the president of Concerned Catholics of Guam of an organisation formed in 2014 "to address major concerns and issues that have affected the Catholic faithful on Guam, with the objective of resolving the problems affecting the confidence and trust they have in their church leadership."

The Yona property, which was once an hotel, is being used by the Neocatechumenal Way as a seminary. It has been at the centre of a dispute about who its rightful owners are.

Sablan said it is unfair that Guam's 14 Catholic schools and their students are being assessed to pay for some $2.64 million in church debts, while the Neocatechumenal Way "gets free rent" from the archdiocese.

Catholic schools will be charged new fees of $25 per student each year to fund the operations of a Catholic education superintendent, and $144 a year per student to help the church weather its financial crisis.

On Aug. 3, Sablan sent a letter to Redemptoris Mater Seminary vice rector Monsignor David C. Quitugua, requesting a list of those living at the Yona property.

"We need to know who are these people staying out there because we know there are others than just these the Neocatechumenal Way priest- presbyters and seminarians. The Chancery officials do not know either," he said.

SOURCE

• scribd.com
• Pacific Daily News
• Image: Concerned Catholic of Guam

He also asked them to celebrate Mass in accordance with the Catholic Church's general instructions and norms.

Byrnes said he intends to appoint a priest delegate to review the Neocatechumenal Way's basic pastoral theology principles or teachings, ensure the group's catechists are sufficiently formed and certified and help the archbishop discern the effects of these efforts.

An now David Sablan, president of Concerned Catholics of Guam, has written letters and made phone calls to leaders of the Catholic church on Saipan, Chuuk, Palau and other islands warning them off the Neocatechumenal Way.

He says the Neocatechumenal Way is at the root of all the problems the Church in Guam is experiencing.

He alleges the Neocatechumenal Way:

• Lacks a valid mandate from the pope
• Celebrates Masses in a way that does not conform to the general instruction of the Roman missal.
• Uses of Catholic church and parish resources while it does not conform to canon law.

"We strongly suggest that you do not allow this heretical sect to enter your diocese," he said.

"They have caused so much division within our Archdiocese of Agãna, pitting family members against each other, when some members of a family join the NCW while other members continue to practice their Catholic faith in the way their parents and grandparents have raised them,"

Last Father Jeffrey San Nicolas, the delegate for Archbishop Savio Hon Tai Fai, said , "I am hopeful that the strings disproportionately empowering the national and international leadership of the to interfere with our local affairs will be cut."

"If the Neocatechumenal Way is to minister to the faithful, let it happen organically, not through force or manipulation."

"Source

• pacificnewscenter.com
• guampdn.com
• guampdn.com
• Image: gannett.cdn.com

The cathedral has been placed in an internal receivership, which has taken over its financial management and operations to help pay off its debt and meet its monthly obligations.

Richard Untalan, president of the Archdiocesan Finance Council, made the announcement of an internal receivership during a Friday afternoon press conference.

Untalan said about $1.1 million of the cathedral's debt is outstanding payables to suppliers, vendors and other creditors.

He said the remaining $800,000is owed to the Bank of Guam, and the council has not yet determined how that money, which refinanced part of an older loan, was spent.

Archbishop Michael Jude Byrnes, in consultation with his presbyteral council and the Archdiocesan Finance Council, said he placed the cathedral under temporary receivership as a last resort.

Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron, who is undergoing a Vatican canonical trial, removed Monsignor James Benavente as rector of the cathedral basilica in 2014, creating an uproar among parishioners.

Apuron then named Monsignor David Quitugua as rector.

When Pope Francis suspended Apuron in June 2016, Archbishop Savio Hon Tai Fai appointed the Rev. Paul Gofigan as rector of the cathedral.

Ricardo Duenas, a member of the Archdiocesan Receivership Committee, said prior to Benavente's removal as rector, the cathedral's basket collection was about $10,000 a week.

When sex abuse allegations against Apuron surfaced, on top of his questionable financial and leadership decisions, the number of parishioners coming to the cathedral declined, and so did the weekly collection, an Archdiocesan Finance Council member said.

Source

• guampdn.com
• Image: bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com

He added he also is aware that he will have to bring about "healing to those who said they have been abused."

"I have heard there are protests outside the cathedral with signs saying, ‘Defrock Apuron,'" Archbishop Byrnes said. "At the same time, there are those who are saying, ‘No, I think he's innocent.'"

The phenomenon is not uncommon. "It's the same thing in a parish when a priest leaves. People have to take a stand, or they think they do," Archbishop Byrnes.His assignment is permanent, he told CNS.

Even though Guam is a U.S. territory, it falls under the geographical jurisdiction of a CEPAC. "I don't even know where they meet," Archbishop Byrnes said. "I've got a lot to learn."

Byrnes told CNS his appointment is permanent.

"I'm here until I retire or until the pope says he needs me elsewhere."

He is scheduled to arrive on Guam Monday, Nov. 28 along with Archbishop Martin Krebs, the Apostolic Nuncio for the Pacific islands.

They will join Archbishop Savio Hon Tai Fai and Guam's clergy in a private day of recollection and Mass Monday

A Prayer for the beginning of Byrnes episcopal ministry will be held on Wednesday 30 at the Cathedral-Basilica in Hagatna.

In the evening the first of novena of Masses honouring Santa Marian Kamalen will be celebrated.

It will be the first public Mass to be celebrated by Byrnes in Guam.

Byrnes will spend a few weeks on the island, then return to Detroit to gather more of his things. "I'm going to miss my friends," he said. "I'm going to miss winter."

He is taking no chances in asserting his control over the Redemptoris Mater Seminary. He filed a complaint on November 18 in the superior court against any others who might try to claim ownership over the seminary.

The filings state it is meant to be an ancillary measure to protect and preserve the plaintiff - Archbishop Byrnes' - rights with regard to the Yona properties, and that any future claimants, including members of the Neocatechumenal Way, have no enforceable legal or equity interest.

The court action follows document filings at land management last week in which Byrnes also asserted control over the seminary and removed the previous board made up of members from the Neocatechumenal Way.

Source

• catholicphilly.com
• umatuna.org
• kuam.com
• Image: iytimg.com

The Carmelites had anonymously donated the $2 million used by the Archdiocese of Agãna, to buy a former hotel in Yona.

They considered suing the church after finding out the property was not being used by the archdiocese, but for a seminary operated by the Neocatechumenal Way,

Sr Dawn Marie says they were asked to state that they had purposely earmarked their gift for the use of the Redemptoris Mater Seminary and for the Blessed Diego Luis de San Vitores Catholic Theological Institute for Oceania.

She said it was a "pretty toxic environment for the nuns to live in."

"Because the gift was an anonymous gift from the very beginning, that anonymity was not respected by the archbishop."

"So many people knew and misunderstood that the Carmelites in Malojloj had donated the $2 million. The Carmelite community in Guam hadn't even have a savings account," she said.

The latest edition of The Archdiocese of Agãna's newspaper, Umatuna Si Yu'os corrected its earlier story about the ownership od trhe former hotel.

A story published on the front page of the newspaper on 29 November last year it carried the headline indicating that the Archbishop was the legal and sole owner of the property.

The story did not include any information about a declaration of deed restriction that clearly stated that the Owner hereby covenants and declares that the Property is and shall be held, used, transferred, sold and conveyed subject to the covenants and restrictions set forth herein:

The restriction stated:

The property shall be dedicated, to and for the use, of the Redemptoris Mater Archdiocesan Missionary Seminary of Guam, a non-profit coporation with identification number #66-0626532, in perpetual use as a see of the Redemptoris Mater Archdiocesan Missionary Seminary of Guam, and by the Blessed Diego Luis de san Vitores Catholic Theological Institute for Oceania."

This week, the Archdiocese announced that it has "acted to transfer complete and unrestricted control and possession of the Yona property back to the Archdiocese of Agaña."

Source

• umutuna.org
• guampdn.com
• Image: guampdn.com

Some consider him to be an "outsider". Guam will be Byrnes' first long-term assignment out of Detroit, Michigan.

"I wonder about the prudence of Rome when I heard about this. It goes to show that the people that are advising Pope Francis just have absolutely no idea about Guam," said Attorney David Lujan.

Lujan is representing alleged victims of clergy sex abuse including those filing lawsuits against the church and Archbishop Anthony Apuron.

"I think it's offensive that Rome selects someone from Detroit of all places, and a white person at that, to send that person to Guam, really, to sort of shepherd us when we got numerous brown priests that were born here, that grew up here, that know the people of Guam and are part of the people of Guam, whether they're Chamorros or Filipinos..."

"We have more than enough qualified leadership in the local clergy who Rome should have contemplated. So that's my reaction to this coadjutor. I can't wait to see him served," Lujan said.

Hon Tai Fai said newly Byrnes should never be considered an "outsider"

"Archbishop Byrnes may not be given, in one instance, 'infused' knowledge of every detail of our island but he is generally informed about the current situation of the local Church and is ready, as expressed humbly by himself, to learn more from the people of God on Guam, whether they be clergy, religious, or lay," Hon said in a Nov. 3 congratulatory message to Byrnes.

While there was initial apprehension among some community members about Byrnes' selection, there is also expressed relief from some lay groups such as the Concerned Catholics of Guam, which said the appointment of a coadjutor archbishop means Apuron is on his way out.

Another group of Catholics, the Laity Forward Movement, said it will continue to lead the picket in front of the cathedral-basilica even after Byrnes has arrived on island and so long as Apuron holds the title of archbishop.

"We welcome the pope's decision to designate a replacement for Apuron," Laity Forward Movement President Lou Klitzkie said on Monday. "Apuron must be removed from the Archdiocese of Agana."

Source

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• guampdn.com
• guampdn.com
• Image: umatuna.org

He has been given full pastoral responsibility and administrative authority in the archdiocese.

"I got a call from the papal nuncio (Archbishop Christophe Pierre); it was a 5-10 minute conversation, where he asked me if I would accept the appointment to become the next archbishop of Agaña, Guam," Archbishop-designate Byrnes said in an interview with The Michigan Catholic.

"I said yes, I'm willing to do whatever the Holy Father asked of me."

Byrnes was born in Detroit in 1958 and ordained a priest for the archdiocese of Detroit in 1996.

He has a doctorate in theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University and has served as a pastor and as vice rector of Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit.

He was consecrated bishop and appointed auxiliary bishop of Detroit in 2011.

Though he is still formally archbishop of Agaña, Anthony Apuron was relieved of his pastoral and administrative authority in June.

Since then, the Agaña Archdiocese has been cared for by an apostolic administrator, Archbishop Savio Hon Tai Fai.

Apuron was suspended after multiple sex-abuse charges, has welcomed the appointment of a coadjutor archbishop.

He said that the Vatican's appointment of Byrnes, a Detroit was "a most welcome answer to my request for help in the governance of the island at this time."

Apuron, who has consistently denied the charges against him, said that he is currently "working with the authorities in the Vatican to establish my innocence."

Tai Fai told the National Catholic Reporter the Vatican is preparing to put Apuron on trial.

Last Tuesday he told reporters that "they just formed all the conditions for the trial."

In an interview Byrnes said he hoped that "we will be able to strengthen all our parishes' ability .. .the kind of sensitivity and awareness of protecting God's children"

Byrnes said the Guam church's victim response coordination team is "a very good first step."

"As far as the Neocatechumenal Way, I am aware of them," Byrnes said. "I met some of them, and my thought there is that we are all Catholics, we worship the same Jesus, and we might do it a little bit different in certain cases.

"But, you know, my point there would be to say that's why I need to investigate myself and come to know the people involved."

Read Archbishop Savio Hon Tai Fai's press release

Source

• kuam.com
• themichigancatholic.org
• ncronline.org
• ncregister.com
• catholiculture.org
• guampdn.com
• Image: i.ytimg.com

Monsignor James Benavente has been cleared of the allegations against him regarding irregularities and "financial mismanagement".

Father Paul Gofigan has also reinstated

Apuron removed Benavente from his position as rector of the Dulce Nombre de Maria Cathedral-Basilica in July.

At the time he offered explanation for Benavente's removal.

But a source said Apuron cited "allegations of financial mismanagement"

At a press conference last Thursday Rev. Jeff San Nicolas read from a letter written by Archbishop Savio Hon Tai Fai.

The letter stated, "Having examined all the documents and reports made available to me, I hereby declare that Msgr. Benavente's response is found both credible and satisfactory and that none of these alleged major irregularities should be held valid."

Benavente said "although grateful it's not a time to celebrate but instead to roll up our sleeves to continue the critical work of reconciling and rebuilding our archdiocese."

At the time of his removal, in a letter published online on the JungleWatch blog.

In the letter Benavente said that Apuron had also removed him from his assignment as director of Catholic cemeteries.

Benavente headed the Archdiocesan Development Group

At the same time Aupron dissolved the Archdiocesan Development Group.

The Development group was an umbrella organisation that served the gift shop, the basilica's museum and the basilica's media ministries.

Apuron removed Gofan three years ago for not following a directive.

At the press conference on Friday Gofan said, "We never really left, but at least the atmosphere of oppression is gone. And I can feel it."

He added, "I believe that sentiment goes around with a lot of priests. That culture of fear. That culture of oppression."

"Today I feel that that heavy burden has been finally released and my name is cleared. My name has been dragged through the mud. One thing I've learned is patience."

After the archdiocese's press conference on Friday, the Catholic Cemeteries of Guam Inc. filed a complaint with the Guam Police Department and the Attorney General's Office.

The conplaint alleges that Benavente misused a total of $13,620 placed in Benavente's trust.

For several years, there has been division the archdiocese over the removal of Benavente and Gofigan,.

Disagreement continues between traditional Catholics and followers of the Neocatechumenal Way.

The dispute is over a land transfer worth tens of millions of dollars.

• Read Archbishop Hon's letter
• Read Benavente's press relaese

Source

• postguam.com
• guamphd.com
• guampdn.com
• kuam.com
• Image: guampdn.com

Mr Calvo said the new law "opens the doors of justice to those who suffered a terrible harm as children," but also cited several legal and technical concerns with the bill. Continue reading

Pacific News Center reports the Church has delivered the petition calling on Governor Eddie Calvo to veto the bill to his office.

It collected 4,500 signatures in four days for the petition.

In a letter entitled "Putting the house in order without burning it down" that was read out in all parishes in the archdiocese Archbishop Archbishop Savio Hon Tai-fai said:

"I want you to know that I am in Rome to urge the Holy See to remove Archbishop Apuron as Archbishop of Agãna and to appoint a successor. I am reinforced in my efforts by the Presbyteral Council of the Archdiocese of Agãna which has presented two letters - the first asking Archbishop Apuron to resign and when that was unsuccessful, the second calling on the Holy See to remove him."

" I can assure you that the gravely serious allegations against Archbishop Apuron will continue to be dealt with by the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith, which will hold a canonical trial. His Holiness, Pope Francis, is monitoring the proceedings."

Hon's letter also contains an apology to the "survivors sexual abuse everywhere who have suffered so much at the hands of clergy"

He said the church is committed to helping survivors of abuse to heal in body and soul.

"To that end plans are afoot create a fund to provide survivors with financial compensation for all they have gone through."

Hon said he has set up a task force to "heighten the awareness of protecting children and continue to strengthen our policies and protocols in the Archdiocese to ensure that we do not harbor those who abuse children and to make certain that abusers are brought to account."

The letter concludes with a warning that the recently enacted law change allowing lawsuits to be brought against the Church based on "acts alleged to have occurred decades ago" could expose the Archdiocese to unlimited financial liability and possible bankruptcy.

"Bankruptcy will mean the forced sale of Church properties that currently house our schools and social services, and that will have a devastating effect on education and charitable work. In other states where similar laws were enacted, the results have been school closures and the cessation of vital services

"I encourage everyone to listen to those messages and to speak together about them so that the Governor is fully informed when he considers whether to sign the Bill into law," said Hon.

David Sablan, president of the Concerned Catholics of Guam, said that asking the pope to remove Apuron is welcome news, but asking the governor not to sign Bill 326 is "a little too late" and is "an insult to the intelligence of the people of Guam."

Catholics make up about 80 percent of Guam's population.

• umatuna.org
• bigstory.ap.org
• guampdn.com
• Image: kuam.images.worldnow.com

A statement released by the The Archdiocese on September 1 re-iterated its request that the Neocatechumenal Way "renounce the benefits granted through a deed restriction."

A deed restriction signed by Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron allows the Redemptoris Mater Seminary and the Blessed Diego Luis de San Vitores Catholic Theological Institute for Oceania to use the Yona property in perpetuity.

The statement says such a step would help significantly in the Archdiocese's efforts to restore unity and build harmony between all members of the Church on Guam.

The Yona property, valued between $40 million and $75 million, is the former 100-room, oceanside Accion Hotel.

The statement also expresses Archbishop Hon's sincerest apologies for the hurt and wounds which the former members of the archdiocesan finance council had suffered as a result of their improper dissolution of the same council.

The former finance council members want to clear their names four years after they were abruptly terminated, in January 2012.

On Wednesday last, the dismissed members of the finance council accused Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron of going behind their back in 2011 when the archbishop, with help from other people involved with the Neocatechumenal Way, "secretly" recorded a deed transferring a church property in Yona to the Redemptoris Mater Seminary.

They said council, during a September 2011 meeting, had denied the Redemptoris Mater Seminary's request to transfer the title of the Yona property to the seminary.

The statement issued by the Archdiocese also made it clear that "while moving forward, the Archdiocese welcomes criticism."

"With discernment, acceptance and humility, we understand that criticism is a bridge that leads to improvement."

Source

• umatuna.org
• guampdn.com
• Image: arm3.staticflickr.com

"The only one who can lift the deed of restriction is the ordained Archbishop of Agãna, Archbishop Apuron or, eventually, his successor," Sammut told Pacific Daily News.

He said the Archbishop is "both the sole member of the RM Seminary and of the Corporation Sole that is the Archdiocese of Agana, who owns the property, following the due canonical steps of consultation and deliberation."

Sammut and Apuron are both members of the Neocatechumenal Way.

Neocats did not defy Pope

Sammut said members of the Neocatechumenal Way never defied the pope because they do not own anything.

"Archbishop Apuron never defied the Pope either, since the pope never said to the Archbishop to lift the deed of restriction," Sammut said.

"If you refer to the indication or request of a Congregation of the Holy See, I can only say that in the Catholic Church every Diocesan Bishop in the diocese entrusted to him has all ordinary, proper and immediate power, and that indications or requests of the Holy See need to be evaluated by the Bishop in the exercise of his pastoral function."

The Vatican placed Apuron on leave after former altar boys started publicly accusing him of sexual abuse. Apuron hasn't been charged with any crime.

Hon has told the media he doesn't know where Apuron is.

Apuron last made a visual public statement in early June in a recorded video message to members of the Guam community. In the video, Apuron appeared to be at the Vatican in Rome.

Pope Francis sent Hon to Guam in early June to temporarily administer the local Catholic church.

Hon issued a statement last week requesting the Redemptoris Mater Seminary and the community that controls it to voluntarily return the Yona property, instead of having the matter go to court.

Source

• guampdn.com
• Image: 1.bp.blogspot.com

These statements form the basis of a lawsuit charging libel and slander currently being served on the archdiocese.

Hon stated: "Let me be clear that in no way do my priest counselors nor I endorse the contents of these statements."

In a message released on Sunday Hon re-iterated his position. "The Archdiocese should always assume and believe that the intent of those who make allegations of this sort is to bring to light serious claims of abuse."

"Allow me to quote Pope Francis who met with 'survivors' in Philadelphia last September:

'I am grateful for this opportunity to meet you.

I am blessed by your presence. Thank you for coming here today, ... I deeply regret that some bishops failed in their responsibility to protect children.

It is very disturbing to know that in some cases bishops were even abusers. I pledge to you that we will follow the path of truth wherever it may lead. Clergy and bishops will be held accountable when they abuse or fail to protect children.'"

Apuron and other archdiocesan representatives had threatened to sue accusers and others for allegedly spreading malicious and calumnious lies against the archbishop and the Archdiocese of Agãna

At the press conference, Hon reiterated the measures he had undertaken to remove the statements from the archdiocese media outlets and reinforced his position on the gravity of any such claims of sexual misconduct leveled against members of the clergy.

On Friday, July 22, the four plaintiffs in the current suit delivered a copy of an amended suit to the archdiocese.

Hon was named and accused of being equally accountable for defamatory statements made against the plaintiffs in regard to their claims against Apuron and their intentions in coming forward.

Despite the retraction they say they will continue to press the libel and slander lawsuits.

Source

• postguam.com
• umatuna.org
• guampdn.com
• www.kuam.com
• Image: gannett-cdn.com

Hon has assigned five priests to conduct visitations to the parishes starting this month.

Father Jeff San Nicolas, the archdiocese's newly appointed Delegate of the Apostolic Administrator has been assigned the coordinator of these visits. "I'm happy that Archbishop Hon has chosen to get to know all of our parishes a little bit better," Father Jeff told the Umatuna last Wednesday.

Father Jeff explained that the parish visits would entail two basic parts. One part would be a kind of self-report. "The parish leadership will have an opportunity to describe their parish and tell of their situation."

"So the pastor might ask different planning groups inside the parish to help him put together a report, a self-report for the Archbishop," Father Jeff said. Visitations will follow the report.

The second part will be a questionnaire to give parishioners the opportunity to share their experiences in the parish.

Archbishop Hon has emphasised Pope Francis' message to Guam Catholics in his homily at the most recent Prayer Meeting on July 2 at the Dulce Nombre de Maria Cathedral-Basilica in Hagatna.

"The Holy Father asked me to prioritise my mission on unity," he said. "The Holy Father himself said he earnestly requests the prayers and trust of the brothers and sisters of the local Church and hopes sincerely that the entire Catholic community puts all its energy in promoting unity, harmony and stability of the Church."

Source

• umatuna.org
• Image: umatuna.org