Comments by "Harry Mills" (@harrymills2770) on "Sweeping report on Catholic Church sex abuse in PA" video.

  1. We were Methodists in a small town, living across the street from the Catholic Rectory, and about a block away from our Methodist church, just down the block on - fittingly - Church Street. We kids grew up runnin' all over the place. When we got big enough, we boys all worked for Joe Gallagher, Father Gallagher's brother, whose knees were as bad as mine are, now. Salt of the Earth. Paid us what he promised, and his disappointment when we lollygagged a little too long during breaks, was far more devastating than any yelling or screaming and he never laid a hand on us. Can't tell you how many gravestones I mowed around. Go down the right side, make an 'L' cut, and then do another 'L' cut on the way back down the row of stones. Good hard work. Toughened us up quite a bit. Made us some money, besides. Joe was kind of everybody's firm but fair uncle. None of us kids were ever touched. And when Hurricane Agnes ripped through Northeastern Pennsylvania, the Methodist Church was on lower ground and got flooded. After we moved away, I went back to PA in the summer between Jr and Sr year of high school (with the plane ticket I bought, using my Perkins and McDonald's money), and as our house hadn't yet sold, and it was becoming an overgrown eye-sore that I cleaned up. Joe let me borrow his 3-on-the-tree Ford F-150 to haul away the yard waste. I then abused the privilege by taking the girl with whom I was hopelessly and unrequitedly smitten on a shopping trip to Scranton. Bought her some perfume. Got in big trouble for taking the truck on a 30-mile road trip! Just a few stern words and the shame of letting Joe down. But what could they do? I was just-turned 16, the year before, my folks were 2500 miles away, and although I was supposed to stay with the Methodist preacher (whose daughter held my heart), what could HE do if I too koff and did as I pleased? I pissed EVERYbody off on THAT trip, including the girl. sigh During the flood, the Whole Town went to the Catholic Church just up the hill (Across from Kintner Milling Co.) from the Methodist Church. Those joint services were the best. Father Gallagher and Pastor Stork took turns talking and praying with us, everybody had a good time in tough times, and thought nothing of it, other than the prayer benches for your knees and the real wine that the Catholics used (and we boys might sneak in and take a few swigs of, when we were mowing the church grounds and some fool left the door open!
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  2. I think the abuses in the Catholic Church go back to Roman times. I'm not sure who decided priests shouldn't marry, but it came along, later, and the priesthood became a haven for homosexuals. And it only makes sense that some predators would be in the bunch, and that those predators would see advancement in the Church as a ticket to doing whatever they wanted, with the power of the Church - and often the government - covering for them. If they'd do away with the marriage prohibition, things would be different, I think. But positions of trust like the priesthood, are always going to be targets for the worst kinds of power-abusing people, because of the power in it.
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