Giving Bishops Their ‘McCarrick Money’

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DETROIT (ChurchMilitant.com) - A Catholic website spotlighting the clerical sex abuse crisis recently announced, "Get Your McCarrick Money!"

Those who visit the Complicit Clergy website can print their own page of play money with the face of disgraced, laicized, ex-cardinal Theodore McCarrick, accused of rampant homosexual predation. Faithful Catholics are encouraged to mail the faux cash to Church leaders, or put it in the collection basket for the annual diocesan appeal, as a way of demanding answers about McCarrick.

Complicit Clergy says of the initiative, "Catholics are fed-up with the financial and sexual corruption in the hierarchy of bishops."

The webpage for "McCarrick Money" goes on to state, "People no longer trust their bishops not to use their money on expensive lawyers, public relations consultants, compensating victims of homoclerical sexual abuse, or to create 'slush funds' like 'Uncle Ted' McCarrick and Bp. Michael Bransfield."

In lieu of a Founding Father or a former president, this play-money shows McCarrick's face front and center. On the back of the bill is a decades-old photo of McCarrick when he was still just a priest, standing in his swimming trunks with one of his victims, then-teenaged James Grein.

Grein has spoken with Church Militant in the past, and he was a speaker at the Silence Stops Now rally in Baltimore in November 2018.

Church Militant reached out to Grein on Friday about the "McCarrick Money" initiative. He stated, "Whoever created this is pure genius," going on to say, "I am delighted."

"The images are spot on. Speaks loudly of the turmoil we all feel," he opined.

Grein remarked further, "When I received the e-mail from Complicit Clergy, it provided some comic relief from all the difficult times."

Where's the Report?

Elsewhere on the faux money, there is text stating it has been more than 500 days since the Vatican promised a full report on an investigation into McCarrick's rise to power in the Church hierarchy.

Church leaders' investigation into McCarrick began well over a year ago, with a Vatican statement on the scandal issued on Oct. 6, 2018 — more than 16 months ago.

At the U.S. Bishops' Conference meeting last November, Cdl. Sean O'Malley of Boston claimed the results of the Vatican's McCarrick investigation would be published soon, saying, "The intention is to publish the Holy See's response soon — if not before Christmas, soon in the new year."

But the investigation's findings still have not been published — causing some to doubt whether Church leaders are really committed to coming clean.

Earlier this month, Vatican Secretary of State Cdl. Pietro Parolin told journalists that the decision on when to publish the findings ultimately rests with Pope Francis.

"I think that [the report] will come out soon, I cannot tell you exactly when," Cdl. Parolin added.

Instead of giving to a diocesan appeal or one of the bishops' scandal-ridden charities, Complicit Clergy encourages Catholics to donate to the "safe" charities listed by Catholic watchdog group the Lepanto Institute.

Headed by Michael Hichborn, the Lepanto Institute frequently has shed light on Catholic non-profit organizations that fund or promote contraception, abortion and other practices that are immoral.

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