(North Penn) Reporter, December 13, 2005
Letter to the Editor
Upset over bishops action
The Reporter stated in an article on Nov. 8 that Raymond Leneweaver an ex-priest had taught in public school districts from 1990 to 2005 after he left the priesthood.
According to your article Leneweaver was accused by the Philadelphia Grand Jury report of molesting at least a dozen boys between 1966 and 1980 and of brutally raping a boy of about 12 while as a priest.
The article further stated that the Grand Jury report explained that in 2002 two archdiocese officials received a memo that informed them that the child molester Leneweaver was teaching in the public schools.
The archdiocese officials incredible response to this information was to do nothing. So if I understand this correctly the two archdiocese officials knew this guy had a history of raping kids and knew that he was teaching in the public schools and told no one thereby putting all these public school kids at an incredible risk.
One of the two officials who received this memo was Joseph R. Cistone. Joseph R. Cistone is now an auxiliary bishop in the Philadelphia Archdiocese. He celebrated the sacrament of confirmation at my parish Corpus Christi Church last month.
How do we justify the fact that our auxiliary bishop was silent at a time when he needed to do the right thing for the sake of our children? And now he celebrates the sacrament of confirmation with our Catholic children.
He did not have the human decency or concern to protect children from a molester and yet he stays in such a powerful position within the church officiating the sacraments.
There is no explanation or public expression of sorrow for making an error in judgment from Cistone. And we as Catholics are supposed to accept this and keep the faith. How pathetic.
TOM
MORRISSEY
Harleysville