Mea Maxima Culpa

I had always thought that the case involving the Church in Boston was the case that broke the dam. Actually, it was this boarding school for deaf boys that began the revolution. A must see for any Catholic. Your eyes will opened.

This documentary was quite an eye opener as to what actually happened during the era of the exposure of the Catholic Church. I was about 8 years old during this time and hearing bits and pieces along with whispering of adult conversations was confusing. I was brought up Catholic and living in the Milwaukee area.. My 5 siblings and I all attended Catholic grade school and our family attended church every Sunday. The priests were held in high regard and were thought to be God like individuals free of sin and not like the rest of us. When this story initially unraveled these 4 boys were criticized for their behavior. People were told that these boys were lying and were merely troubled individuals trying to get back at the church. Yet they pursued beyond the criticism and ridicule, the articles in the newspaper and the dialog in the church. How difficult this must have been for them but they were adamant about ending this scandal to prevent other young children from having to endure what they went through for years. After all was said and done and the church was exposed there was never a word spoken in church about the wrongdoings of the church or apologies owed to these now men for the way they were treated. After reading further stories about the St Johns School for the Deaf scandal, I've since learned that these men were given a settlement from the Archdioceses for a mere $25,000. This sickens me. A woman spills hot coffee on herself and receives a lawsuit settlement of 2.84 million dollars and these boys get only $25,000 for the pain, suffering and emotional suffering they endured for years. The Archdioceses is incredibly wealthy yet hid its assets to avoid having to pay the amount these and other victims were owed. This very poignant movie provides details into the other side of the Catholic church.

An interesting and shocking documentary focusing on the molestation of boys at a school for the deaf in Milwaukee by Roman Catholic priests. However, the film goes beyond this case and in a very interesting section of the film goes on to discuss the political situation in the Vatican under John Paul II and his successor Benedict which contributed to the covering up of abuse situations like the one at the school. In particular, the association and friendship of John Paul II with Maciel Degolado, the founder of the Legion of Christ and a serial sexual predator and drug addict is reviewed. Maciel's contribution of large cash donations from the wealthy religious order that he founded encouraged John Paul II to ignore the rumors surrounding Maciel. His successor, Benedict, was forced to confront the scandal only because Maciel's crimes finally claimed the attention of press investigations in both the U.S. and Europe. The documentary includes interviews with priests who describe how they reported molestation cases to the Church hierarchy only to find that the hierarchy was more interested in hiding these cases rather than actively intervening to stop the outrages that were occurring. Watching this documentary makes one wonder why John Paul II was declared a saint! He himself was not a molester but he apparently actively conspired to hide and/or ignore the many molestation cases that were occurring. Again, his association with Degolado is particularly damning. All in all, a very informative and shocking documentary well worth seeing.

Religion is what has caused most of the suffering in the world since the beginning of recorded history. The Catholic church is responsible for the the majority of that suffering. From what I have seen and read in the past 50 years, the Catholic church appears to be an enormous sex club for pedophile priests, which is protected all the way from the top by the Pope.I feel pity for people who are duped by this cult and the ones who become victim of its abuses. Beginning way back with the Spanish Inquisitions, through the murder of hundreds of thousands of indigenous peoples by Catholic conquistadors in the Americas, to the Catholic church's allegiance with Fascist Mussolini and the Nazi's during WWII...and throughout time with the brutal abuse of power that was exercised in the name of God and Jesus to rape and sodomize little children...while all the while making themselves fabulously wealthy at the expense of their impoverished follower's money, they have a lot to answer for. It surprises me that anyone can trust this church any more. Where was God and Jesus while all these enormous crimes took place? Maybe all religion has passed its expiration date on earth. It seems to have become a Frankenstein Monster.

This was fantastic! My father was born and raised in Tuscany, Italy. He grew up in a small village (La Pieve di Monti di Villa) up in the mountains above Lucca. He was sexually molested by the priest in his village (as were many children in this small village). He tried to tell his parents and they responded with "Don't talk about the priest that way!" My father is now 83 and still suffers from this abuse. He has PTSD with extreme anxiety and depression and he has nightmares every night. The abuse my father endured by the priest in his village robbed him of any confidence and a happy life. It subsequently robbed me and my siblings of a competent, effective, and fully present father.I learned a lot about the Catholic Church that I was not fully aware of and this helped to strengthen our decision to leave the Catholic Church about six months ago. We can no longer attend the Catholic Church with what we now know. I cannot support a system that practices denial and deception and does not protect children. It is like one big really, really dysfunctional, extremely sick family.

Before I start this review, it's worth saying that as an atheist you would not expect me to be supportive of the Catholic Church, and in truth I despise it for many reasons, but even if I had been a Catholic I would have left the church over the episode described in this movie.Mea Maxima Culpa is a remarkable and powerful documentary charting the course of the battle to expose and punish paedophile priests within the Catholic church, from a school for the deaf in the 1960s and the abuse conducted there by Father Lawrence Murphy, right the way up to the Vatican and the role of Cardinal Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI - and indeed, his resignation as pope since the facts became fully apparent.This is unquestionably the movie the Vatican did not want you to see, and its subtitle speaks volumes: Silence in the House of God. This is a film placing into ironic context the code and official policy of the Vatican just as much as the Mafia: omertà, silence. For generations the policy of the church has been to defend itself by denial, cover-up and blaming victims. Compassion does not run anything like as deep as they would claim.That it achieves such weight and power can be attributed to three factors: that film-maker Alex Gibney has marshalled his argument based on facts and the dignity of the victims; that the church condemns itself through its actions with greater eloquence than anything he could add; and the interviews with the victims themselves, mostly deaf and signing but the rawness of their emotion speaks volumes.What is most remarkable is this is achieved without any comment against religion itself, only of the actions of those in a privileged position within organised religion and therefore with the greatest responsibility to the vulnerable people within their care, but who are inevitably believed. In the case of young boys in St Johns school for the deaf in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, their families could not sign, so they were cut off from the world, unable to communicate with anybody but the controlling priest, and he was the one abusing them. The fear and misery resulting from such a fate, and its effect on their adult lives, does not bear thinking about.But these brave young men fought back, and these interviews are a testament to their courage in facing up to the most powerful organisation in the world, one which used any tactics at its disposal to silence and discredit them. This story is not yet complete, though you suspect none of the perpetrators will end up behind bars for their disgraceful crimes if the Church can prevent it.One example quoted is that of the "singing priest," Father Tony Walsh, popular for his Elvis impersonations but protected in spite of over 200 reported incidents of child abuse in Ireland. He was finally convicted of 123 cases, but since the sentences are being served concurrently the longest he can actually spend behind bars is 16 years. These quotes about Walsh are included in the movie:`"Fr Tony Walsh is probably the most notorious child sexual abuser to have come to the attention of the Commission... His pattern of behaviour is such that it is likely that he has abused hundreds of children." - Introduction to Chapter 19 of the Murphy Report"Tony Walsh is extremely compulsive - there have been an awful lot of children involved. He is a very disturbed man. He is always going to be dangerous. He could not be let near schools, children, Confession without a grille..." - Psychiatrist who treated Tony Walsh in Stroud in the UK in 1988Yet the Vatican did not defrock Walsh until he had been convicted by the Irish justice system and roundly condemned by everyone up the the Taoiseach, Enda Kennedy. How can anyone have trust in the Vatican if they are prepared to defend the indefensible?The documentary tells without being in any way emotive how the evidence rose and was presented, and how the leaders of this Church were forced to pay compensation, though even there it was the least they could possibly get away with. It speaks with compassion and feeling about the nature of being a powerless victim. As such it is utterly compelling. Everyone should be forced to see what happens in reality when we put our faith and trust in an all-powerful but morally corrupt body like this church.And in case you didn't know, the title translates from the Latin into English as "My most grievous fault (or guilt.)"

This account of the ingrained abuse prevalent in the Roman Catholic Church is hard to watch. The way in which innocent orphans and others have been abused by priests, monks and nuns is nothing short of horrendous and the way in which the Church authorities have consistently tried to deny and cover it all up is nothing short of mind boggling. Not only is it overwhelmingly sad that the victims of such abuse have to carry the scars with them for the rest of their lives, it is also horrendous that human beings who profess to teach love and compassion can continually act in a way that is the complete opposite of those virtues.The Church has been and sadly, still is, more interested in covering up instead of admitting its guilt. All this and much more is made plain in this well made and presented DVD. All those who care about truth and the love and care of the innocent should view this recording. People obviously tend to regard clergy as people they can trust and can go to with their troubles. Sadly, this is often not the case as this recording vividly illustrates. Although not a pleasant watch it certainly is a must watch.

A really superb documentary on a subject with which were are all, to some extent, familiar. Whether you know a lot or all too little about the sexual scandals within the Catholic church, this documentary packs one helluva punch. It is in no way scurrilous or sensationalist, yet manages to leave you with your mouth agape - particularly when exposing the intimate knowledge withheld for so long by the Vatican, and its ever so questionable methods of dealing with the various matters herein exposed.There is not need to go into any details. If you care to know a little bit more about the disgrace that has been allowed to fester for so long within this hallowed institution watch it!

Documentary. Stories from the children raped in childrens homes, schools and confessionals, stories of how they were not believed if they tried to tell, how they grew up and kept trying to tell and get the clergy stopped.Stories of how the clergy get away with it, at best being moved or sent on retreat for a few weeks.Stories of how the bishops and archbishops behaved, and tried to communicate with the Vatican.How Ratzinger made sure every single case went to him personally and did nothing.How he denied having heard. And it is still going on...Not for the squeamish, those easily moved to tears or rage, and definitely not for those who think the sun shines out of the Roman Catholic Church.

This movie is about every one of us - normal man belongs to normal woman and that religious rubbish or deviancy is curse of us all. Certainly for distributing drugs and use of minors there should be reinstated capital punishment. In New Zealand there is at Rotorua Court one such deviant former Coroner David Samuel Dowthwaite who with another predator Charles F prays on children one through money and another through his legal role as lawyer for children. That's New Zealand way. Sickening and they are part of New Zealand Ring of paedophiles and perverts. Just check Dowthwaite law ..Rotorua