‘Roman Catholic Faithful’ Confronts Cardinal Cupich Over Clerical Sex Abuse

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PETERSBURG, Ill. (ChurchMilitant.com) - Newly revived activist group Roman Catholic Faithful (RCF) is challenging Chicago Cdl. Blase Cupich and Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan to collaborate in its effort to compel the release of secret documents testifying to the archdiocesan homosexual network and its role in covering up sexual predation against young men and minors.

In a Monday press release, RCF President and Founder Stephen Brady stated, "A number of persons have raised issues regarding the late Cardinal [Joseph] Bernardin's alleged homosexual abuse of seminarians and of other young men."

"We want all Bernardin-related documents, including court documents, unsealed and we want the Chicago Archdiocese to release all of the documents they have, both secret and otherwise, regarding any payoffs — even if they were made through a third party," he added.

Church Militant spoke with Brady late Monday about his call for Cupich to help the RCF initiative.

"There's a method to our madness," Brady explained.

Brady pointed to Cupich's persecution of faithful priest Fr. Paul Kalchik, who last weekend was forced to flee his parish after members burned a gay flag that once hung in their church.

"When Cdl. Cupich does something like that to an orthodox priest," he noted, "it tells you something very personal about the cardinal's own life."

"Look at the two homosexual Chicago priests who had sex in the car in Miami," he continued. "Now, how comfortable do they have to be, as priests, with their homosexuality in their home base to be giving each other oral sex in the front of a car with clear windows on a sunny day on a public street?"

The contrast in the cardinal's treatment of the two cases, Brady said, "tells you a lot."

He added: "We didn't ask for Cupich's help expecting him to help us. We wanted to get his response. If he refuses to help, well then, why is he refusing to help?"

"What he does will tell us a lot," Brady reiterated. "What he does or doesn't do will tell us volumes, and will speak volumes about his own personality."

Included among the documents RCF is seeking are the late Chicago Cdl. Bernadin's medical records — currently held by Loyola University Medical Center — as well as all records involving Steven Cook, who in 1993 accused Bernardin of sexual assault, and "any other related court cases to which the Archdiocese of Chicago is a party."

In Monday's press release, Brady detailed other documents RCF will be seeking:

In addition, we want the release of any and all documents related to the 1984 murder of Frank Pellegrini. Mr. Pellegrini was viciously killed several days prior to his scheduled appointment at the Chicago Chancery regarding a network of homosexual clergy who were abusing underprivileged boys in Chicago. We also want the Archdiocese to release all documents regarding Fr. Andrew Greeley because of his close connection to Mr. Pellegrini and the comments he made in one of his books regarding a murder in Chicago.

"We have been investigating this type of homosexual coverup since 1996," Brady reminded his readers.

He went on to point out Chicago's pivotal role in fostering the growth of the homosexual network beyond the archdiocese:

When we uncovered a network of clerical and administrative homosexuals in the case of the late Bishop Daniel Ryan in Springfield (Illinois), the press referred to us as right-wing extremists. Cardinals Bernardin and George of Chicago both protected Bishop Ryan. It wasn't until we went public with damning evidence that Bishop Ryan was finally removed. Those who protected him, however, were still in power. The Chicago Archdiocese's jurisdiction covers the entire state of Illinois. In my opinion, its corruption has spread throughout the entire state of Illinois.

"I don't expect Cupich to respond positively," Brady told Church Militant on Monday. "I expect him to make some wild claim against us, but I want people to know, we're not going away."

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