SAO PAULO – A Polish priest accused of sexually abusing a former altar boy in Rio de Janeiro and turning his parish home into an « erotic dungeon » has surrendered and is now in police custody, a public safety official said Saturday.

State prosecutors have accused Marcin Michael Strachanowski of handcuffing the 16-year-old former altar boy to a bed three years ago in the parish house where the priest lived and threatening to kill the youth if he spoke of the abuse.

Strachanowski arrived at a police station Friday night, said a spokesman for Rio’s state public security department. He spoke on condition of anonymity in keeping with departmental policy. Images published in Brazilian newspapers showed Strachanowski being driven away in a police car.

The 44-year-old priest was suspended from duties after the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Rio de Janeiro learned that a judge had issued an order Thursday for his arrest.

The archdiocese issued a statement Friday announcing the suspension and expressing regret over the alleged abuse.

Judge Alexandre Abrahao Dias said that investigators found « erotic material sent to the victim via Internet to seduce him » and that the priest also took other youths to the parish house, « which he converted into a kind of erotic dungeon where he submitted them, often with the use of handcuffs, to orgies. »

Lawyers representing the priest did not immediately return a telephone message left Friday afternoon seeking comment. The phone number for the lawyers went unanswered on Saturday. The judge said that he was ordering the priest detained in part because he feared Strachanowski might try to flee from Brazil.

Church officials said that Strachanowski also faces a canonical legal process by an ecclesiastical tribunal, but they declined to provide additional information about the priest, such as how long he has been in Brazil or his work history with the Church.

The security department spokesman said the priest submitted a document in Polish as evidence that he is a college graduate, which could allow him to be kept in a lockup with better conditions than most Brazilian jails, which are severely overcrowded and dangerous because they are ruled by hardened gang members. The determination will be made by Brazilian education officials in conjunction with authorities.

Strachanowski’s lawyers also have the option of trying to seek his release through the courts next week, the spokesman said.

Sex-abuse scandals involving the Roman Catholic Church have mushroomed around the world recently, and some of the accused priests have surfaced in Brazil, home to more Catholics than any other nation.

Late last month, prosecutors charged the Rev. Jose Afonso with abusing altar boys ranging in age from 12 to 16. Prosecutors said the alleged abuses took place in the city of Franca, in southeastern Sao Paulo state.

Also last month, 83-year-old Monsignor Luiz Marques Barbosa was detained in northeastern Brazil for alleged abuse of at least three boys after being caught on videotape having sex with a former altar boy who was an adult when the video was filmed. Barbosa is under house arrest while authorities investigate. Two other priests in the same archdiocese are also accused of abuses.

The National Conference of Brazilian Bishops announced this month that it plans to craft a manual with guidelines to help bishops prevent child-abuse cases.

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Les leaders politiques québécois ont réservé aujourd’hui une volée de bois vert au cardinal Marc Ouellet pour ses récents propos anti-avortement.

Avec de telles positions à l’égard des femmes, il n’est pas étonnant que les églises se vident au Québec, a résumé la ministre responsable de la Condition féminine, Christine St-Pierre, en entrevue à La Presse Canadienne.

«Faudrait-il laisser une femme violée garder le fruit de son agresseur? Pourquoi remettre dans l’actualité un dossier réglé? L’avortement est une question personnelle qui ne regarde que la femme», a-t-elle lancé.

Tant les femmes que les hommes du Québec n’accepteront pas le retour à la clandestinité de l’avortement comme semble le souhaiter le cardinal Ouellet, a dit Mme St-Pierre.

Le primat de l’Église catholique au Canada a soulevé un tollé en professant, lors d’une activité pro-vie il y a quelques jours, son opposition sans réserve à l’avortement, même en cas de viol.

Il a également souhaité la reprise du débat sur la criminalisation de l’avortement et salué la décision du gouvernement de Stephen Harper de ne pas financer, dans le tiers-monde, les programmes de santé comportant l’interruption des grossesses.

La chef de l’opposition péquiste, Pauline Marois, s’est insurgée elle aussi contre ces propos «rétrogrades».

«Au-delà des dogmes et des mythes, il faut être capable de reconnaître les droits et respecter le libre choix des personnes», a-t-elle dit.

A son avis, les Québécois catholiques ne se reconnaissent pas dans le «courant de pensée» incarné par Mgr Ouellet.

«Il est sûrement en porte-à-faux avec une partie de son Église qui est beaucoup plus ouverte et prête à accepter cette réalité (du droit à l’avortement)», a-t-elle estimé.

Sylvie Roy, députée de l’Action démocratique, a pour sa part décrié le «radicalisme» des positions exprimées par l’homme d’église.

«Je ne peux m’expliquer que l’on puisse penser comme ça dans un Québec contemporain», a-t-elle dit, suggérant que Mgr Ouellet a peut-être trop longtemps séjourné dans les officines de Rome.

De son côté, la coleader de Québec solidaire et militante féministe Françoise David a vu dans les propos de l’ecclésiastique de haut rang «un manque tout à fait spectaculaire d’empathie et de compassion» pour les femmes violées et victimes d’inceste.

«Il n’était pas nécessaire d’ajouter à la détresse, à la misère, des victimes de viol. Il y a un malaise devant une telle insensibilité», a argué Mme David.

La virulente sortie de Mgr Ouellet est d’autant plus surprenante, a-t-elle poursuivi, qu’elle vient rompre avec la prudente discrétion observée depuis des années par les évêques du Québec dans ce dossier.  «C’est pour ça que c’est très gênant, y compris pour les catholiques pratiquants», a-t-elle dit.

Le fédéral ne veut pas rouvrir le débat, selon Verner.

Côté fédéral, la ministre des Affaires intergouvernementales, Josée Verner, s’est affichée dans le camp des «pro-choix» et plaidé pour la séparation de l’Église et de l’État.

Le gouvernement Harper, a-t-elle insisté, ne souhaite pas rouvrir le débat sur l’avortement, n’en déplaise au cardinal.

Porte-parole du Bloc québécois en matière de condition féminine, la députée Nicole Demers croit au contraire que le gouvernement Harper manoeuvre sur divers fronts pour miner le droit des femmes à l’interruption volontaire de grossesse.

La décision d’exclure le recours à l’avortement dans les pays pauvres et le projet de loi C-510 — qui vise à criminaliser «les pressions» exercées sur une femme pour avorter — en sont l’illustration, a-t-elle affirmé.

Quant au cardinal Ouellet, Mme Demers ne lui accorde pas le droit de s’immiscer dans le dossier de la procréation puisqu’il est un homme.

«J’ai de la difficulté à réconcilier qu’encore une fois ce soit un homme qui monte au front et essaie de déterminer ce que les femmes doivent faire pour elles-mêmes et comment les femmes doivent réfléchir, penser et agir», a-t-elle analysé.

Nullement en reste, le monde syndical s’est joint au tir groupé contre le primat, perçu comme la tête de pont d’une nouvelle offensive pancanadienne contre le droit à l’avortement.

«Ce qui est inquiétant, c’est que ce n’est pas juste un prélat un peu perdu dans sa vision des choses. Il y a au Canada une montée de la droite autour de cette question. J’en veux pour preuve la manifestation récente devant le parlement d’Ottawa avec plein de députés prêts à s’afficher», a dit la présidente de la CSN, Claudette Carbonneau.

Mgr Ouellet a décliné la demande d’entrevue de La Presse Canadienne. Son bureau a cependant fait savoir qu’un communiqué sera émis ultérieurement pour «clarifier» les propos du cardinal.

La Presse canadienne
Le Devoir

FATIMA, Portugal — Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday called abortion and same-sex marriage some of the most « insidious and dangerous » threats facing the world today, asserting key church teachings as he tried to move beyond the clerical abuse scandal.

Benedict made the comments to Catholic social workers, health providers and others after celebrating Mass before an estimated 400,000 people in Fatima. The central Portuguese farming town is one of the most important shrines in Christianity, where three shepherd children reported having visions of the Virgin Mary in 1917.

Benedict’s visit to Fatima on the anniversary of the apparitions was the spiritual centerpiece of his four-day visit to Portugal, which ends Friday. It was cast by Vatican officials as evidence that he had turned a page in weathering the abuse scandal, which has dogged him for months.

The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, pointed to the turnout in Fatima and said it was « very beautiful and encouraging » that pilgrims hadn’t been deterred in expressing their faith despite months of revelations in Europe about priests who molested children and bishops and Vatican officials who turned a blind eye.

The faithful understand « the capacity of the church to effectively overcome – via conversion, penance and prayer – the dimension of real sin there is in our community, » Lombardi said.

Benedict himself admitted to the « sins within the church » on the first day of the trip, his most explicit admission of Church culpability in the scandal. By Thursday, however, he had moved on to stressing core church teachings in the largely Roman Catholic country, where abortion on demand has been available since 2007 and where Parliament in January passed a bill allowing same-sex marriage. In addition, a judge in 2008 made it easier to obtain divorce even when one spouse objects.

Benedict told the gathering of lay Catholics that he appreciated their efforts fighting abortion and promoting the family based on the « indissoluble marriage between a man and woman » – the Vatican’s way of expressing its opposition to divorce and same-sex unions.

Such initiatives « help respond to some of the most insidious and dangerous threats to the common good today, » he said. « Alongside numerous other forms of commitment, such initiatives represent essential elements in the building of the civilization of love. »

The admonition was a break of sorts from the continuous message Benedict has delivered in Portugal about the suffering of the world and church – a message which resonates in Fatima, where the sick and infirm flock seeking remedies for ailments.

In a special message to the sick during Mass, Benedict urged them to take heart, saying they should « overcome the feeling of the uselessness of suffering which consumes a person from within and makes him feel a burden to those around him. »

« In suffering, you will discover an interior peace and even spiritual joy, » he said.

His message struck a chord with many in the huge gathering, among them elderly and infirm people who, with their heads bowed, fingered rosaries.

Aurora Clemente, a 65-year-old cook from Portugal’s northeastern tip, close to the border with Spain, said she had been coming to Fatima on May 13 for more than 30 years.

« Fatima makes miracles. When my son was seriously ill, I prayed to the Virgin of Fatima and he survived, » she said.

« I find it very moving here. For me, this is the most beautiful place in the world, » she said, sitting beneath a red umbrella on the fringe of the crowd.

Like Lourdes in France, Fatima attracts millions of pilgrims a year seeking cures. One of the rituals pilgrims perform at Fatima involves casting replicas of body parts – eyes, lungs, hearts – on sale at local shops into a big bonfire while reciting a prayer asking for healing.

Pope Paul VI visited Fatima in 1967. Pope John Paul II – who was shot in St. Peter’s Square on May 13, 1981 – came three times before his death, believing that the Virgin’s « unseen hand » had saved him.

During his third and final visit in 2000, the Vatican announced the « third secret » of Fatima: the third part of the message the Virgin is said to have told the three children: a description of the assassination attempt on Pope John Paul II.

The first two secrets of Fatima were said to have foretold the end of World War I and the outbreak of World War II and the rise and fall of Soviet communism.

After the third secret was revealed, the Vatican essentially implied the Fatima case was closed. But on Thursday, Benedict said its message continued to be relevant.

« We would be mistaken to think that Fatima’s prophetic mission is complete, » Benedict said in his homily during the Mass. Lombardi was asked if such comments were merely an effort to keep Fatima’s fascination relevant to the faithful at a time when the Cold War and John Paul’s assassination attempt are no longer front-burner issues.

« The term ‘prophetic’ doesn’t mean an announcement of concrete facts that one sees in a crystal ball but rather knowing how to read history and events in the light of faith, » Lombardi said.

Nicole Winfield
The Huffington Post

A Christian street preacher was arrested and locked in a cell for telling a passer-by that homosexuality is a sin in the eyes of God.

Dale McAlpine was charged with causing “harassment, alarm or distress” after a homosexual police community support officer (PCSO) overheard him reciting a number of “sins” referred to in the Bible, including blasphemy, drunkenness and same sex relationships.

The 42-year-old Baptist, who has preached Christianity in Workington, Cumbria for years, said he did not mention homosexuality while delivering a sermon from the top of a stepladder, but admitted telling a passing shopper that he believed it went against the word of God.

Police officers are alleging that he made the remark in a voice loud enough to be overheard by others and have charged him with using abusive or insulting language, contrary to the Public Order Act.

Mr McAlpine, who was taken to the police station in the back of a marked van and locked in a cell for seven hours on April 20, said the incident was among the worst experiences of his life.

“I felt deeply shocked and humiliated that I had been arrested in my own town and treated like a common criminal in front of people I know, » he said.

“My freedom was taken away on the hearsay of someone who disliked what I said, and I was charged under a law that doesn’t apply.”

Christian campaigners have expressed alarm that the Public Order Act, introduced in 1986 to tackle violent rioters and football hooligans, is being used to curb religious free speech.

Sam Webster, a solicitor-advocate for the Christian Institute, which is supporting Mr McAlpine, said it is not a crime to express the belief that homosexual conduct is a sin.

“The police have a duty to maintain public order but they also have a duty to defend the lawful free speech of citizens,” he said.

“Case law has ruled that the orthodox Christian belief that homosexual conduct is sinful is a belief worthy of respect in a democratic society. »

Mr McAlpine was handing out leaflets explaining the Ten Commandments or offering a “ticket to heaven” with a church colleague on April 20, when a woman came up and engaged him in a debate about his faith.

During the exchange, he says he quietly listed homosexuality among a number of sins referred to in 1 Corinthians, including blasphemy, fornication, adultery and drunkenness.

After the woman walked away, she was approached by a PCSO who spoke with her briefly and then walked over to Mr McAlpine and told him a complaint had been made, and that he could be arrested for using racist or homophobic language.

The street preacher said he told the PCSO: “I am not homophobic but sometimes I do say that the Bible says homosexuality is a crime against the Creator”.

He claims that the PCSO then said he was homosexual and identified himself as the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender liaison officer for Cumbria police. Mr McAlpine replied: “It’s still a sin.”

The preacher then began a 20 minute sermon, in which he says he mentioned drunkenness and adultery, but not homosexuality. Three regular uniformed police officers arrived during the address, arrested Mr McAlpine and put him in the back of a police van.

At the station, he was told to empty his pockets and his mobile telephone, belt and shoes were confiscated. Police took fingerprints, a palm print, a retina scan and a DNA swab.

He was later interviewed, charged under Sections 5 (1) and (6) of the Public Order Act and released on bail on the condition that he did not preach in public.

Mr McAlpine pleaded not guilty at a preliminary hearing on Friday at Wokingham magistrates court and is now awaiting a trial date.

The Public Order Act, which outlaws the unreasonable use of abusive language likely to cause distress, has been used to arrest religious people in a number of similar cases.

Harry Hammond, a pensioner, was convicted under Section 5 of the Act in 2002 for holding up a sign saying “Stop immorality. Stop Homosexuality. Stop Lesbianism. Jesus is Lord” while preaching in Bournemouth.

Stephen Green, a Christian campaigner, was arrested and charged in 2006 for handing out religious leaflets at a Gay Pride festival in Cardiff. The case against him was later dropped.

Cumbria police said last night that no one was available to comment on Mr McAlpine’s case.

Heidi Blake
Telegraph

TURIN, ITALY (CNN) – The shroud of Turin, which some Christians believe is Jesus Christ’s burial cloth, went on public display Saturday for the first time since it was restored in 2002.

About two million people – including Pope Benedict XVI – are expected to view the shroud while it’s on view at the Turin Cathedral for the next six weeks.

The shroud, which bears the image of a face that some Christians say is Jesus’, was restored eight years ago to remove a patchwork repair done by 16th-century nuns after the cloth was damaged in a fire.

Many scholars contest the shroud’s authenticity, saying it dates to the Middle Ages, when purported biblical relics – like splinters from Jesus’ cross – surfaced across Europe.

« The shroud owner said it in 1355 … the local bishop said it was a forgery and even the pope of that time said it was a fake, » said Antonio Lombatti, a church historian.

The Catholic Church’s official position regarding the shroud – Christianity’s most famous relic – is that it’s an important tool for faith regardless of its authenticity.

The archbishop of Turin, Cardinal Severino Poletto, tells visitors to view the shroud with their hearts rather than their minds.

« It is a man who’s had this horrible set of injuries, lying in death, but the face has a kind of transcendental quality about it, » said David Rolfe, a filmmaker whose latest project argues for the shroud’s authenticity, in describing the relic.

Rolfe’s film, « Shroud, » was made at the Catholic Church’s invitation to coincide with the relic’s exhibition.

The pope will fly to Turin to visit the shroud May 2, according to the Catholic News Agency.

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