FALL RIVER DIOCESAN NEWSPAPER FOR SOUTHEAST MASSACHUSETTS CAPE COD & THE ISLANDS VOL. 38, NO. 10
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Friday, March 11,1994
FALL RIVER, MASS.
Southeastern Massachusetts' Largest Weekly
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$11 Per Year
Father Fernandes reports on pro-life
cards, Mass
A SPECIAL DAY: Principals at last Saturday's Mass and reception at St. Anthony of Padua Church, Fall River, honoring Deacon and Mrs. Manuel Camara are, from left, son and daughter Paul Damian Camara and Claudia Moniz; Father Edward E. Correia, pastor; Deacon and Mrs. Camara; Father Jose Eduardo, OFM Conv; son H. David Camara.
Fall River parish honors dedicated member's By Pat McGowan There's room for 600 people in the pews of St. Anthony of Padua Church, Fall River. Last Saturday night every pew was filled and there were standees. "Is it always this crowded'!" pastor Father Edward E. Correia was asked. He laughed negatively. The SRO congregation was honoring Deacon and Mrs. Manuel H. Camara Jr. as part of a yearlong celebration of the 25th anniversary of the dedication of St. Anthony's' new church building, replacing a structure the parish had outgrown. Through the year.
priests who have served in the parish have been invited to return to celebrate Mass. preach and renew ties with church members. Last Saturday it "Vas Deacon Camara's turn. except that he wasn't returning; he's always been there. He and his wife Mary could well be called Deacon and Mrs. St. Anthony of Pad Ull. Born, baptized and married in the parish. they have given it a lifetime of service. That it is appreciated was obvious. Deacon Camara was deacon and homilist for the Mass. at which his son. Paul Damian Camara. was a Turn to Page 13
Father Step~l~n A. Fernandes, director of the Pto~Life Apostolate, has reported that some 60 percent of dioc;esanparishes have reported on th,enumber of postcards they sent~I{jWllshingtonas a result of Natlonal Project Life Sunday, when, churchgoers were asked to send c;uds to members of Congress expr~ssing their support of pro-life pr~~rams. He said the heed for continued work for thd pro-life cause is reflected intij(: following letter received by a cpnsti~uent of SenatorJohn F. K~r~y(p-MA): Thank ydutforcontacting me by postb'rdtoncerning health car~ .neforql and abortion. I appr«;ciate being made a ware of yqur vjews, and I would likelc)J~~You know where I st~nclo.p this very important tl>pi~.•. I believe' n· 'ne should ever make 'on lightly orha$tU~a~re~\
m.tpcy. Sfl~hQum. be re~cll after very caref~l tir ~p(:'and reflecf tiOn. FlQ: ~~t>i~fterm uCQ caref\ilsf .'. r¢maill com-L mittedtd 9sition that no orrell}? ", " e,ly is better able,and!PiP.glJ.~hasa more compeUi~&t:righ~, to weigh her optiq:tl,s<t~a)'l the. pregr nl.l,nt •WqrtI,~Q . ;;rhcluded in these opt~g.in . " uldbe the chqiceof' yt~rmimR tion.. " ]als
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A T CEREMONIES blessing the newly renovated parish center at Immaculate Conception Church, North Easton, from left, Very Rev. Francis L. Mahoney; Rev. Paul A. Caron, Immaculate Conception parochial vicar; Rev. Lucio B. Phillipino, pastor; Bishop Sean O'Malley, OFM Cap.; Msgr. John J. Oliveira.
North Easton church marks parish center renovation At ceremonies last Saturday at Immaculate Conception parish, North Easton, Bishop Sean O'Malle'y joined with the church community to celebrate the successfUl completion of the repair and renovation of the parish center. Originally built in 1962 and dedicated July 31 of that year by the late Bishop James J. Gerrard, construction of the center was supervised by the then pastor, the late Rev. John J. Casey. It included a gymnatorium seating 500, six classrooms and a kitchen. The renovations have brought the number of classrooms to 12
and there are also audiovisual and conference rooms. The entire structure meets all building code requirements and is fully handicapped accessible. The updating of the center was directed by Father Lucio B. Phillipino, the present pastor of Immaculate Conception, who said his flock "is eagerly looking forward to many ways we can use this center to move forward as a parish." The North Easton parish was officially established in 1871, although Mass was celebrated in the area as early as 1832 by visiting Turn to Page 13
Cardinal Be'rnardin case, highlights media resp-onsibility issues WASHINGTON (CNS) Along with last week's complete withdra wal of sex ual abuse allegations against Chicago Joseph L. Bernardin came calls for a new look at the role of the news media - and especially the controversial leading role of Cable News Network - in bringing the now-discredited claims to worldwide attention'last fall. "The role'of CNN and others in the accusations made against Cardinal Bernardin is a story deserving of telling," said Archbishop William H. Keeler of Baltimore, president of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops. He suggested that not only some journalists, but also some lawyers and therapists should face scrutiny. "Unfortunately, only the media, medical and legal professions can appropriately police themselves," he said. Last November CNN broke the story that Steven J. Cook of Philadelphia had filed a Ill. wsuit accusing Cardinal Bernardin of having abused him sexually 17 years ear-
Iier, when he was a preseminary high school student in Cincinnati and the cardinal was' archbishop of Cincinnati. The first CNN report was aired only minutes after the lawsuit was filed Nov. 12 in U.S. District Court in Cincinnati. But the report included six minutes of excerpts from a sympathetic CNN interview with Cook in which the accuser was asked his feelings, wept on camera, describl:d the cardinal as "vermin" and "evil," and called for his removal from office. He also urged "others wHo may have been used and perpetrated and raped by him to come forward." The broadcast portions of the prerecorded interview did not include a single question about Cook's own credibility, whether he could prove his claims or how he could corroborate them. CNN closed the report with a plug for its "comprehensive onehour program on the sexual abuse crisis in the clergy," titled "Fall From Grace," that was to be aired two days later, Nov. 14.
In the next two days the network repeatedly aired the allega- . tions in its hourly news reports, using them to plug the upcoming special. Near the beginning of the special program, Cardinal Bernardin was referred to as a churchman who himself faces charges that he has been a sexual abuser and has "fallen from grace." "CNN, I think, played a large part in propagating this around the country and giving credibility to the allegations," said Msgr. Francis J. Maniscalco, press spokesman for the U.S. bishops. When Cardinal Bernardin held a press conference Feb. 28 to comment on the complete with-
drawal of all allegations against him, he made an oblique reference to the CNN reporting that was immediately recognized by those familiar with ttie story. "There is only one thing that still troubles me," he said. "I am concerned about the almost instantaneous judgment made by some that I had fallen from grace or had been permanently damaged, even before I had a chance to respond or the legal system had deliberated. "I trust that, after reflection, the appropriate persons will address. this issue so that others will be spared this travesty," he added. Although CNN was the most visible focus of criticism and questions, the debate over journalists' responsibility was much broader, and perhaps nowhere more thoroughly discussed than in Chicago itself. "Many of us in the media· owe Joseph Cardinal Bernardin one rather large apology," wrote Chicage> Sun-Times editorial columnist Dennis Byrne shortly after the claims were dismissed.
Peter Steinfels, senior religion correspondent of The New York Times. told Catholic News Service, "Anybody can file a lawsuit saying anything.... I don't think the media can use the fact that a lawsuit has been filed to avoid making an independent judgment" on the credibility of the accuser, the plausibility of the allegations and how to report the event. Despite the fact that CNN and the other TV networks played the lawsuit as a major story, the editors at The Times decided to give it minimal coverage. They buried it deep inside the first section of the paper, with only a few inches of newsprinLunder a single column headline. The story got Page One play and much more extensive treatment in many other dailies, but most of the coverage balanced the allegations in the lawsuit with careful emphasis on Cardinal Bernardin's absolute denial of ever having abused anyone and his unblemished reputation. Turn to Page 13