MARCH 2012

Virginia Saldanha: Bishop Fathers Child by Nun

Dear Mumbai Laitytude/Association of Concerned Catholics of the Archdiocese of Bombay, As you can see from records that I have reproduced CHRONOLOGICALLY below, your article of March 9, 2012 under the caption "Gender sensitivity grows in Church- Then why is the Bishops name not being revealed" is at least the FIFTH TIME [see serial no {5}] that the article by Virginia Saldanha has been published in the Catholic media in India over the past 21 months. I second the question that you asked which is "If Virginia thinks so strongly about women why is she not revealing the name of the bishop who according to her fathered the child?" I also agree with you when you say, "Some persons use information in their possession for their personal gain and glory. Lets hope that the name of the Bishop is revealed so that this statement is proved wrong." From the extensive research I have been doing on Ms. Saldanha, a "theologian" who has served in the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI) and in the Federation of Asian Bishops Conferences (FABC) in prominent positions for many years, I imagine that she would not be lying in so grave a matter which concerns the immoral acts of a bishop of her archdiocese and a nun who had to leave her congregation and become a cook after he impregnated and discarded her. There are a number of issues involved including that of abuse of clerical office/authority and of suppression of truth, leave alone the problem of the abuse of women and women's rights. Since the story is now around two years older than the "10-12 years ago" conversation of Ms. Astrid Lobo Gajiwala -- also a supposed theologian -- who is stated to have reported it to Ms. Saldanha, the guilty bishop might have retired or worse, become an archbishop or a cardinal by now. If Ms. Saldanha's allegation is true, it appears to me that there are grounds for a criminal investigation to uncover the identity of this bishop and bring him to justice while at the same time assuring justice to the victimised ex-nun. If Ms. Saldanha cannot substantiate her allegation, then she is guilty of slander and bringing disrepute to the Church. Either way, Mumbai-ites must ensure that they get to the bottom of this. The longer this allegation remains unverified, even innocent bishops will be viewed with suspicion and distrust. 1) The ex-nun revealed her shame and ignominy to Gajiwala -- who also militates for womens empowerment and against gender violence -- only so that the guilty may be brought to book. Instead Gajiwala has used that knowledge to their advantage, ensuring that Ms. Saldanha reported it to support their contention that there is gender violence in the Indian church. Virginia Saldanha and Astrid Lobo Gajiwala are vocal on issues of women's rights, womens empowerment and gender equality, which ultimately converge in their demand for the ordination of women as priests. See THE NEW COMMUNITY BIBLE 15 PRIESTHOOD UNDER ATTACK, DEMAND FOR ORDINATION OF WOMEN PRIESTS - FR SUBHASH ANAND AND OTHERS http://ephesians511.net/docs/NEW_COMMUNITY_BIBLE_15_PRIESTHOOD_UNDER_ATTACK_DEMAND_FOR_ORDINATION_OF_WOMENPRIESTS.doc Do they refrain from confronting/exposing the bishop in question because they know that the bishops can make their lives miserable as they do some priests and lay persons who have stood up to them? Or do they wield this secret knowledge like a Damocles' sword hanging over the Church to extend the reach of their radical feminism through their influential positions?

It must be noted that Ms. Gajiwala -- who can hardly be called a model Catholic woman and parent [read her blogs!]-- is now on the editorial board of The Examiner, the Archdiocesan weekly of Bombay since November 2011!!! The two women and several other feminist nuns -are article contributors to the latest issue of the New Leader, March 1-15, 2012, and the most recent issue of The Examiner, March 3, 2012. 1. 2) As my records below show, though yours is the fifth internet forum that has carried Ms. Saldanha's article in the past one-and-a-half years, few Catholic voices have demanded that an inquiry be instituted. Fewer still have seen through the feminist agenda of these lay women "theologians". 3) The Archdiocese of Bombay is indisputably the largest propagator of institutionalised New Age [Interplay, vipassana meditation, yoga, Neuro-Linguistic Programming, Christian Meditation (the WCCM and KRIPA Foundation), to name some] and other error [the "Catholic" Alpha Course, etc.] among the around 170 dioceses in this nation. Learned "theologians" like Astrid Lobo Gajiwala and Virginia Saldanha have never questioned those in authority responsible for these errors. If they did, they would lose the platforms from which they are currently able to promote their feminist agendas. Or, it is just possible that they do not protest because they too subscribe to the New Age ideologies of these practices? MICHAEL PRABHU CATHOLIC APOLOGIST www.ephesians-511.net CHENNAI

A RECORD OF THE FIVE APPEARANCES OF THE ALLEGATION AGAINST THE BISHOP

{1} http://www.ucanews.com/2010/06/18/women- are-also-victims- of-clergy-sex-abuse/ Women are also victims of clergy sex abuse by Virginia Saldanha UCANEWS.com UCA News June 18, 2010 The issue of sexual abuse of women in the Church in Asia has been simmering beneath the surface for a long time. It is not a new issue. It has just never made the news before. But that must now be rectified. Over the years I have become acutely aware that the problem is widespread. Many victims are crying out for justice, healing and support. But too often those cries for help are silent, made by the women victims to themselves alone. That must stop. For the women who have approached me already and for those I am yet to hear from, my pledge is simple. I will reach out to you with hope of justice and the path to recovery and peace. No shortage of evidence There is no shortage of anecdotal evidence of the scale of the problem which in some cases dates back many years. Astrid Lobo-Gajiwala , a prominent leader in the womens movement in the Church recently shared this story with me: "I had gone for a family camp organized by Church personnel about 10-12 years ago. I wandered into the kitchen to meet the helpers and got into conversation with the cook. When she came to know who I was she told me her story. She was a former nun who was forced to leave because she became pregnant. She was very, very bitter. She said she had been working for a bishop and he was the father of her child, a boy, who was being looked after by a church run orphanage. The bishop continued in his position as shepherd of the flock." Brief public appearances Occasionally the issue becomes public - at least briefly - before retreating beneath the surface again. The first study of the problem was in 2000 when the Women and Gender Commission of the Association of Major Religious Superiors in the Philippines (http://www.amrsp.org/) did research on the sexual abuse of women in the Church. They presented their partial findings to the Catholic Bishops. Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) (http://www.cbcponline.net/). In 2003 the CBCP came up with "Pastoral Guidelines on Sexual Abuses and Misconduct by the Clergy." The final document was signed by Archbishop Quevedo, then president of CBCP on September 1, 2003. At that time I was Executive Secretary of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Indias Commission for Women (http://www.cbcisite.com/Women%20Commission.htm) as well as the Executive Secretary of the Womens Desk in the Federation of Asian Bishops Conferences Office of Laity & Family. (http://www.fabc.org/offices/olaity/olaity.html). Spurred on by the Philippines survey, I began to investigate the issue in India. I found Indian sisters shy about talking about it so I approached a Mother General from Switzerland. She confirmed that it was an issue, but that congregations were asked to deal with the issue "in house". The drawback of this approach was that only the Religious sister concerned was "dealt with", rather than the problem itself. Prepared to speak out Some sisters were prepared to speak out, although few appeared to hear them. When 26 Indian women theologians met in Bangalore in 2002, they issued a statement saying: "We raise our voice of concern and protest against the individual clerical abuse of women. "We decry Institutional injustice to women that strips them of dignity and renders them powerless."

But progress in addressing the problem was slow and frustrating. I worked with the then Executive Secretary of the Commission of Clergy and a woman theologian to produce a syllabus on sexuality, to be used in the training of seminarians. It was rejected. I feel the response to the issue was a questioning of the links between the women theologians' group and the CBCI Commission for Women. They were subsequently de-linked in 2003. 2.

Once again, the problem slipped back beneath the surface. But womens voices could not be fully silenced and we continued to hear stories and the cries for help. At a seminar for Religious, some years ago, I sat with a group of sisters to talk about the impact of patriarchy on women in the Church. One sister spoke about her experience as a nurse being summoned by the priest in the mission area as he was sick. When she was attending to him, he pulled her down on top of himself. An elderly sister sitting by my side said to me: "Virginia, this is a big problem, something must be done about it!" I agreed, but where to start? For a long time I was not able to do anything except raise the issue at various talks and discussions in the Church. Hopeful signs However, there were some hopeful signs that some men in the Church were prepared to address the problem. Calcutta Jesuit Provincial Father George Pattery, for example, raised it when talking to ucanews.com at the February 2006 General Body meeting of the Conference of Religious of India. "The tendency is to silence the victims whenever complaints of sexual abuse are made. From now on, we will work to formulate a policy that will ensure justice for all within the Church." Montfort Brother Mani Mekkunnel* , national secretary of the Conference of Religious India (http://www.cridelhi.org/home.htm), a strong defender of womens rights in the Church, also spoke of the need to chart a policy on sexual abuse of Religious within the Church. *a supporter of the feminist agenda; see CRI {2} But the momentum only really began to gather over the past year or so. With the avalanche of child sex abuse cases in the Church coming to light in different parts of the world, women began asking, "what about the sexual abuse of women which is also a violation of womens dignity, abuse of priestly position, and violation of the vow of celibacy?" Sexual misbehavior More women began to approach me personally. In February this year, a Religious sister from Asia living in the UK contacted me because she had suffered from the sexual misbehavior of an Indian priest while he was in the UK. He even boasted to her about his other sexual escapades! Since then, I have been accompanying and supporting this brave and tenacious woman on her journey to bring justice and healing to herself and other victims of this priest. As she has pursued her case of sexual harassment, she has found that the priest's boasts were far from idle. Reports to the authorities came to light from when he worked in India of his sexual misbehavior with many women, included sending inappropriate emails, betraying their trust and physical abuse. In May this year I met with another victim of sexual abuse by a priest. She said that she had emotional problems and went to retreats organized by the priest, looking for counseling and healing. She was convinced by the priest that healing came from God in the form of his "loving touch", which developed into a sexual relationship. She later discovered that he had relationships with other women who also came to his retreats for counseling. Time for action More cases came to light during the East Asia Bishops Institute on Women (http://www.fabc.org/offices/olaity/docs/Final%20St_EA_BILA_on_Women...) in Taiwan in May this year, where the issue of violence to women in society and in the Church was brought up. A participant from Taiwan shared tearfully her own experience of sexual abuse by a priest while Sprout womens group in Taiwan said that they have helped with a case of sexual abuse in the Church and developed a course for sexual harassment prevention in all the dioceses of Taiwan. But the time for talk is over. We in the Church need to address this problem urgently. First we need to acknowledge a problem exists. Then we need a survey to quantify the scale of the problem and then we need action - to bring justice and healing in existing cases and to do our best through education and policy to address this issue in future. But most of all we must ensure that no more are women left to cry for help and not be heard. END By Virginia Saldanha, former executive secretary of the FABC Office of Laity and Family . She can be contacted on [email protected] and would like to hear, in absolute confidence, from any women who have suffered from sexual abuse in the Church. NOTE: Out of 28 comments, 27 encouraged Virginia Saldanha, including the following from UCAN itself! My name is Paddy and I work on the editorial team at ucanews.com . If you need to get in touch with Virginia, you can email me at [email protected] and I will make absolutely sure your message reaches her. NOTE: Only one anonymous respondent saw through the subterfuge. He wrote:

 The author's email ID reveals more about the author than what is written here. "womynvs " evidently refers to "womyn " followed by the author's initials. For the uninformed, the word "womyn is tied to the concept of radical feminism, the kind which will not tolerate the spelling "woman" because it has "man" in it. The earliest use of the term "womyn", according to the Wikipedia essay, is attested in the Oxford English Dictionary as being the name of a 1975 "womyn's festival" mentioned in a lesbian publication. It is absolutely essential to discern the rising strains of militant feminism within the Church from the real sociological/gender issues. Bishops beware! By "Guest". 3.

{2} http://www.religiousindia.org/2010/06/23/women- are-also-victims- of-clergy-sex-abuse/ Women are also victims of clergy sex abuse Conference of Religious India [CRI] Bulletin , June 23, 2010 Virginia Saldanha, the former executive secretary of the FABC Office of Laity and Family, raises concern over the issue of sexual abuse of women in the Church in Asia. {As in {1} above} {3} http://ecclesiaofwomen.ning.com/forum/topics/women- are-also-victims- of?xg_source=activity ECCLESIA OF WOMEN IN ASIA - Forum of Asian Catholic Women Theologians Women are also victims of clergy sex abuse! Posted by Virginia Saldanha on June 29, 2010 at 4:28pm in General Discussion {As in {1} above} {4} MangaloreanCatholics yahoo group digest no. 2060 July 8, 2010 [Owner/moderator Ancy DSouza Paladka a.k.a. Salu Soz, a supporter and promoter of liberal issues ] 19. Women are also victims of clergy sex abuse says Virginia Saldanha Posted by: "Allwyn Fernandes" [email protected] Wed Jul 7, 2010 10:48 pm (PDT) Virginia Saldanha speaks up at last, says "Women are also victims of clergy sex abuse". {As in {1} above} When people like Virginia Saldanha speak up, you know the wind has turned!!! Better late than never, but better never late! It takes greater courage to speak truth to authority when authority is powerful. Now the bishops have been weakened considerably and people are developing the courage to speak up. But still, I am glad that Virginia has decided to speak up - she did not even reply to my email earlier giving her a specific case. Now she wants people to come forward and confide in her. By all means, Virginia, we will because, as you say, "That must stop." Amen to that! Bishops had better beware - nothing like women roused to anger. You have treated the complaints of victims shabbily for far too long. Allwyn Fernandes, Mumbai {5} Your site, The Association of Concerned Catholics, http://mumbailaity.wordpress.com/ : Gender sensitivity grows in Church- Then why is the Bishops name not being revealed. http://mumbailaity.wordpress.com/2012/03/09/gender-sensitivity-grows-in-church-then-why-is-the-bishops-name-not-beingrevealed/ Posted on March 9, 2012 The below mentioned article {Gender sensitivity grows in Church Ashley DMello TNN} [not reproduced here- Michael] appeared in the Times of India issue of March 9th 2012. The article under it* is taken from the blog of Virginia [Saldanha].The link to the said article is also given. If Virgina thinks so strongly about women why is she not revealing the name of the bishop who according to her fathered the child? Some persons use information in their possession for their personal gain and glory. Lets hope that the name of the Bishop is revealed so that this statement is proved wrong. Link to check authenticity: Women are also victims of clergy sex abuse!: http://ecclesiaofwomen.ning.com/forum/topics/women-are-also-victims-of?xg_source=activity *{As in {1} above} Prelate Accused of Sexual Abuse Resigns - Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith Investigates http://www.zenit.org/rssenglish-29435 BENIN CITY, Nigeria, June 1, 2010 (Zenit.org) Benedict XVI has accepted the resignation of Archbishop Richard Burke of Benin City, who stepped down due to a failure to observe celibacy . A Vatican communiqu announced Monday that the Pope accepted the resignation of Archbishop Burke, 61, a member of the St. Patrick's Missionary Society, also known as the Kiltegan Fathers, who was serving in Africa. Also on Monday, Archbishop Burke released a statement to The Irish Catholic newspaper, in which he affirmed, "The reason for my resignation is that I have been unfaithful to my oath of celibacy." "I am deeply ashamed of my behavior," he stated. "I take full responsibility for my actions. I wish to express my deepest sorrow for my inappropriate, irresponsible and repeatedly sinful conduct." []

Although the archbishop admits that he did have a sexual relationship with a young woman, beginning when she was 21 years old, he insisted that "I have never, ever, in my life -- in any way -- sexually abused a child." "I am very aware that I have hurt many people and I ask their forgiveness and prayers," the archbishop concluded. [] The Irish Catholic added that the case was taken over from the missionary society by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, where it is still under investigation. From: [email protected] AOCC/Mumbai Laitytude To: Sent: Wed, 2 June, 2010 2:08:07 Subject: Prelate resigns because of failure to observe celibacy Dear Friends, 4. If an archbishop can resign because he feels he could not observe the oath of celibacy, certainly all those who take this oath should also be made to resign! Sexual abuse of women is also a failure to keep the vow of celibacy!! When will this be acknowledged and stopped? If celibacy has to stay it should be observed as such or be done away with. We need to work on this. Gordon Jacobs, Mumbai Pope Accepts Zimbabwean Prelate's Resignation http://www.zenit.org/article-20478?l=english EXTRACT VATICAN CITY, September 11, 2007 (Zenit.org) Benedict XVI accepted the resignation of Archbishop Pius Ncube, an outspoken critic of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe. Archbishop Ncube of Bulawayo, 60, said in a press statement issued today that the Vatican accepted a request he made in July to leave office, the Catholic Information Service of Africa reported. The resignation follows allegations publicized by state- run media that the archbishop had an adulterous affair. Archbishop Ncube denies the allegations, but the case is in the High Court in Bulawayo... NOTE: A. At regular intervals, this ministry receives information concerning the moral escapades and financial mismanagement of prelates, with requests that this ministry report on them. However, this ministry as a rule restricts itself to reporting what is already in the public domain and then too in exceptional cases, and also only in instances of liturgical abuse, Hinduisation as opposed to inculturation, doctrinal error, New Age error, and the like. So why has there been an exception in making and publishing the report "Bishop Fathers Child by Nun"? The report was in the public domain not once but five times [at least]; the original report was made by Virginia Saldanha, a former high-ranking executive of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India, who "studied theology" in a Catholic seminary and lectures to Cardinals and bishops in India and overseas; and because as the source of her information she cites Astrid Lobo Gajiwala, who herself "studied theology" in the same Catholic seminary, also lectures on feminist issues to Church leaders, and is on the editorial board of The Examiner, the Bombay archdiocesan weekly. Their having been in close proximity to the bishops of their archdiocese for about three decades, their report cannot be taken lightly or be dismissed as frivolous. B. Separate articles on Feminist Theologians to be released shortly at www.ephesians-511.net: 1. Virginia Saldanha and Ecclesia of Women in Asia: Vaginas, Orgasms, and the Ordination of Women as Priests [The title was later modified by me- Michael] 2. Astrid Lobo Gajiwala: Feminist Theology, Interreligious Dialogue, Hinduisation, and the Ordination of Women as Priests 3. The Indian Churchs leading Feminist Theologians and their supporters among the religious and priests.

My letter to the mumbailaity was published by them on March 20, 2012:

Virginia Saldanha: Bombay Bishop Fathers Child by Nun By Michael Prabhu http://mumbailaity.wordpress.com/2012/03/20/virginia-saldanha-bombay-bishop-fathers-child-by-nun-by-michael-prabhu/ Posted on March 20, 2012 http://mumbailaity.wordpress.com/ Michael Prabhu from Chennai is one of the few catholic apologists who writes on various Catholic issues in India. He has his own web www.ephesians- 511.net on which he has written a number of articles on certain practices which are going on in the Catholic Church. His knowledge on those subjects is deep and profound. Readers are requested to visit his blog. Michael Prabhus email id is [email protected] .

RESPONSES
http://mumbailaity.wordpress.com/2012/03/20/virginia-saldanha-bombay-bishop-fathers-child-by-nun-by-michaelprabhu/#comments: 1. Pietro , 20 March: This is investigative journalism. 2. Croydon , 20 March: Thank you Michael and Mumbai Laity for this article/response. I am a personal fan of Michaels work and have studying some of his impeccable research. I am sure he has left no stone unturned in researching the above subject. Protecting women's rights is a necessary step. But when it distorts the Churchs teachings and is based on falsity, then it must be dealt with. If the authorities cant deal with it, then the laity must. Moreover, anybody fighting for women

priests has definitely got their theology wrong. There is an official document/ Encyclical clearly explaining the reason the issue of women priests is foolish (refer http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/apost_letters/documents/hf_jpii_apl_22051994_ordinatio-sacerdotalis_en.html). I would like to remind Michael and Mumbai laity that "although we are flesh, we do not battle according to the flesh. For the weapons of our battle are not flesh but enormously capable of destroying fortresses. We destroy arguments and every pretension raising itself against the knowledge of God and take every thought captive in obedience to Christ" (2 Cor 10:3-5) 3. Francis S. Lobo, 21 March: Why Virginia Saldanha and Astrid Lobo are not revealing the identity? It looks like "Bishop and the Nun" are not real character, but cooked up story by Virginia Saldanha and Astrid Lobo to strengthen their feminist motives in the Church. Virginia should either reveal the identity and the Church will deal with the same or else she should accept that it is a lie to strengthen feminism in the Church. 5. 4. Gordon Jacobs , 25 March: I have asked Our Dear Cardinal Oswald Gracias to disclose the name of the bishop in the article written by Virginia Saldhana. He is away, and I will await his return to Mumbai shortly. However if the article, and its contents is incorrect than the cardinal must make a public statement and publish it in The Examiner to clear any suspection on any of the Bishops. He also need to take up the issue with the author of the article for damaging the repute of our catholic Bishop and the nun. I am sure our dear Cardinal will oblige, and stand up for justice, transparency and the well being of his flock. However should he continue to remain silent like he usually does, then the laity will belive that the allegations made are true and the issue is being swept under the carpet. I have also written to The Holy Father and the Apostolic Nuncio to hasten the response from our dear cardinal.

VIRGINIA SALDANHA CLAIMS THAT HER INFORMANT WAS NOT ASTRID LOBO GAJIWALA
Clarification Regarding Bishop who fathered a son http://mumbailaity.wordpress.com/2012/03/27/clarification-regarding-bishop-who-fathered-a-son/ Posted on March 27, 2012 Mumbailaity has now been informed by one of its readers to whom Virgina Saldanha has written that the concerned Bishop is not from Bombay . She also implies now that the said information was not given to her by Astrid but by someone else. Thus this would mean that the source from where she got the alleged information is not correct. As you are all aware the said post attached below was written by Virginia and was first carried around two years ago. Subsequently the said post was carried by 4 other blogs. What is really surprising is that this clarification has come after two years after the post was first put up by her and too because Mumbailaity took it up. Readers would appreciate the stand taken by Mumbailaity that when things are put in the Public domain the public have a right to know who was the person involved so that the laity can stay away from danger. If someone claims that they do not want to reveal the name then the said post should not have been put in the public in the first place. People who claim to be leaders should be aware about the implication of their acts and that all their written articles which have been put up for public consumption are also available for public scrutiny. Attached below are the sites besides Mumbailaity who carried the said article. {1} http://www.ucanews.com/2010/06/18/women-are-also-victims-of-clergy-sex-abuse/ {2} http://www.religiousindia.org/2010/06/23/women-are-also-victims-of-clergy-sex-abuse/ {3} http://ecclesiaofwomen.ning.com/forum/topics/women-are-also-victims-of?xg_source=activity {4} MangaloreanCatholics yahoo group digest no. 2060 July 8, 2010[Owner/moderator Ancy DSouza Paladka a.k.a. Salu Soz, a supporter and promoter of liberal issues] MY COMMENTS There is a name for people with the morals and character of Virginia Saldanha as revealed by her twoyear- late denial, or should I call it a change of testimony? But I will restrain myself from using it. She has accused a priest of an attempt at sexual abuse based on the alleged report of a woman. Once again we have to ask if her second- hand "evidence" is reliable or is it all part of the hype that she creates and the hysteria that she whips up about predatory priests prowling all over the Church only so that she can offer her solution: let women be ordained as priests. A seventy- odd page report that I am releasing this week shows that behind the smoke screen of concern about sexual abuse is a singleminded agenda: women priests . Her shocking denial of the allegations made by her in an article written by her and not anyone else and published in an international news media of which she is on the Board of Directors [UCAN ] makes any future testimony from her unreliable. Her words now lack any credibility. Not only did she have to save her fellow-feminist Astrid Lobo Gajiwala from a possible cross-examination in the case of the bishop fathering a son by a nun, she claims that the bishop is not from her archdiocese. Can we take her at her word on that? What prevents her from naming the diocese or the bishop? If she pursues cases against priests whom she accuses of sexual abuse -- or attempts at sexual abuse -based as before on hearsay or third-part allegations, who is to say that she will not renege on her allegations at a future date? In her futile crusade to see women in the priesthood , she betrays a total lack of compassion for whoever she may destroy in the process.

If she pursues cases against priests whom she accuses of sexual abuse -- or attempts at sexual abuse -how much more passionate must be her mission to bring the errant bishop to justice? MumbaiLaity has made some points which raise some very pertinent questions. Will Virginia Saldanha answer them? The intention of this report, a one-of-its-kind from this ministry, was never to malign a bishop but to expose Virginia Saldanha . I believe that it has had its impact with Virginia Saldanha s having had to experience the ignominy of publicly denying the veracity of her original statements. She has yet to issue an apology which is due to all readers of the UCAN , CRI and Mumbai Laity blogs. SINCE ALL BISHOPS ARE NOW SUSPECT , the bishops must deal firmly with Virginia Saldanha even if it is to ensure that the errant bishops identity is not revealed. We trust that they will be able to do this effectively after the release of my report on her activities in a couple of days. 6.

VIRGINIA SALDANHA THREATENS THE MUMBAILAITY

From: Virginia Saldanha To: Sent: Sunday, March 25, 2012 5:10 PM Subject: Fwd: Responses to Bombay Bishop fathers child by nun- Visit WWW.wordpress/mumbailaity SEE ALSO PAGE 12 [] I am surprised that as late as this morning you are still posting messages and pursuing a piece of gossip that has been cooked up on your blog, even after I sent you an email regarding this already some weeks back. I do not understand why you are propagating rumors through your blog which professes to be the voice of Laity in Mumbai. It seems that it is being turned into a gossip blog! [] No where in my article did I even suggest that the bishop is from Bombay Archdiocese. How did this title begin to be circulated and linked by you to an article that I have written two years ago? For your information, the bishop is not from Bombay diocese . You nor anyone who is not an authority to hear the name, can demand that we tell you the name!! We do not wish to publicise what action we took after hearing this woman's story, now more than ten years ago. [] I am asking you once again to please put a stop to these rumours that are unnecessarily being circulating not only tarnishing the names of myself and Astrid , but of all the Bishops from the diocese. If you want to be a leader you need to act responsibly. If you continue both Astrid and myself will be forced to take action against you for harassment and sullying our names. Virginia Catherine of Siena Virtual College www.catherinecollege.net Imparting and Stimulating Awareness education to make our world more just and inclusive.

VIRGINIA SALDANHA NAMES GEORGE MENEZES AS THE SOURCE OF HER INFORMATION

From: prabhu To: [email protected] Sent: Wednesday, March 28, 2012 5:56 PM Subject: VIRGINIA SALDANHA Dear George, How are you? I trust that you recall our brief intermittent correspondence till October 2008 Let me come to the purpose of this communication: I don't know if you are aware of and have read a blog in the March 9, 2012 issue of Mumbai Laity of Mumbai concerning an allegation made by Ms. Virginia Saldanha in June 2010 about a bishop fathering a son by a nun and then abandoning her. The allegation made by her was published in June 2010 by UCAN in which she is on the Board of Directors. Over the succeeding 21 months, the exact same piece was published in the Conference of India, Religious bulletin [CRIB ] where she wields great influence, in her own blog, the Ecclesia of Women in Asia [EWA ], and in the Mangalorean Catholics [MC] yahoo blog, before Mumbai Laity picked it up and published it in March this year. At that time, someone from Mumbai forwarded it to me. Since the allegation was repeated five times in the public domain, and I was already researching Virginia Saldanha towards an expose of the true nature and goals of the feminist lobby, the EWA, and the feminist theologians in the Indian Church, I responded to the Mumbai Laity blog with a "short" [by my standards] article which was published therein on March 20, 2012*. In the UCAN story as well as the later four, she categorically mentioned Astrid Lobo Gajiwala as her source. It is impossible for anyone, especially someone of the intellectual calibre and calculativeness of Ms. Virginia Saldanha , to err in naming one's source. It was presumed that the allegation was about a bishop of the Bombay archdiocese; hence Mumbai Laity published it and I gave my article a caption to that effect. Now that the article and responses to it have been widely circulated across Mumbai and also reached the attention of the bishops [if it had not all these previous 21 months] and Ms. Virginia Saldanha , she has made a clarification, a retraction, and a fresh allegation, which I am not sure you are yet aware of. They go like this. The bishop is not from the archdiocese of Bombay; Astrid Lobo Gajiwala was not her source; the source was George Menezes . Ms. Virginia Saldanha also now claims that they "took ... action" against the errant bishop but will not reveal details. I have some questions to ask and comments to make.

1. Considering that Ms. Virginia Saldanha has held executive public office in the Church since at least two decades, and in very senior and sensitive positions for at least half that time, and considering that during that time she has worked in close proximity with the bishops [and in Bishops' Conferences] who she could contact easily unlike us ordinary mortals, what was the need for her to scandalise the Church by publishing the allegation in UCAN, in CRIB and then in her EWA blog -- all within a span of ten days? Did she have some reason for doing that? She writes nothing without very good reason. 2. If indeed, as she now claims, they [she and Astrid] "took ... action" against the errant bishop, why did she bring up the issue in her article ten to twelve years after the fact, giving the impression that it was still unaddressed, and why did she not mention in that article that they [she and Astrid] "took ... action" against the errant bishop? 3. If indeed, as she now claims, the original source of the story of the bishop's promiscuity is not Astrid Lobo Gajiwala , why did Astrid Lobo Gajiwala not raise an objection and have her name removed? After all, Ms. Virginia Saldanha could easily insist that her source remains anonymous. And certainly at least one published comment/reader's response unfavourable to the womens ordination movement has later been expunged from a UCAN article [Albertus' comment in Nuns attack Vatican on womens ordination July 23, 2010, http://www.ucanews .com/2010/07/23/nuns-attack-vatican-on-women%E2%80%99s-ordination/]. 7. Astrid Lobo Gajiwala reads UCA News and CRIB for sure, because they write a lot about her. Being an office-holder in the Women Theologians' Forum EWA, she must have again read it there in June 2010. We did not see Astrid Lobo Gajiwala raise a hue and cry and charge Virginia Saldanha or the news agencies and blogs with defamation, libel and slander. These women theologians are united in their quest for the ordination of women as priests [a seventy-plus page article on Virginia Saldanha is ready for release and another on Astrid Lobo Gajiwala is under preparation], and they will sacrifice anyone at that altar to further their aims and achieve their goal, anyone who might constitute a threat, anyone except someone in their sisterhood. 4. Astrid Lobo Gajiwala and Virginia Saldanha were apparently quite happy with the state of things up until Mumbai Laity came in. Since the publication of the story in the Mumbai Laity blog and my response [which was published therein around ten days later], Virginia Saldanha has occupied herself in contacting whoever might ease her unfortunate predicament. She has of course charged the Mumbai Laity with publishing rumours , and gossip that has been cooked up, and warned them that if they continue to do so, she and Astrid Lobo Gajiwala might decide to "take action" against them. "Take action" seems to be their refrain. Imagine such women as ordained priests in the Catholic Church! [This will remain only in the realm of imagination] If while in a vulnerable position, this lady [it was very difficult for me to use that word, and I'm sure that she, as a feminist, will hate being called one] and her "womyn" friends can issue such threats, one can imagine [imagine quite safely, again] what they will be capable of if vested with the power that they accuse the male clergy of now possessing. Rumours? By what stretch of imagination does Virginia Saldanha describe as rumours and gossip that has been cooked up, the story in the Mumbai Laity which is nothing but a faithful reproduction of an article written by her in which she says that a bishop fathered a child by a nun who now works as a cook? 5. Will a public retraction and correction of her mistake be forthcoming from Virginia Saldanha ? It is right and just that she apologizes [for having used the name of Astrid Lobo Gajiwala instead of yours]. But she has not thought it fit to issue an apology to the thousands of readers of UCAN, CRIB, EWA, etc., for feeding them an untruth [ok, a lie]. Some months ago, I published a report in which I named a Mumbai Catholic couple who are involved in a New Age activity, and I said that they were in a particular Catholic ministry. Another couple from that ministry wrote to me and pointed out that it was not true and that I was wrong. That was a rare error on my part; I had not done my homework thoroughly. I immediately wrote to all concerned apologizing for my error and also made a correction in my report. 6. From superficially reading all that Virginia Saldanha writes, one gets the impression that she is passionately concerned about the welfare of women. I say "superficially reading" because when one analyses her work closely with wisdom, intelligence, knowledge and discernment, as I have done, her true ideologies, agendas and concerns are revealed. But what actually seems to be happening is that she writes, and writes, and goes after a bishop and maybe a priest or two who may or may not be guilty of the crimes against women that they are accused of. Has she not seen similar situations in secular politics, even in the bureaucracy? Whistle blowers and those who do not toe the line on corruption, sycophancy, have cases foisted on them by the establishment while criminals become ministers. Is it not possible that our Church, being an institution with a human face, experiences the same? Nothing, nothing has been said about what the feminists did for the former-nun turned cook. I should think that Virginia Saldanha would have been eager to share with her readers as to how the feminists helped rehabilitate one of their own sex, especially one who has been victimised, not in the "Bishop Fathers Child by Nun" case, but in general. I did not find any such information, not a line, in the thousands of pages of information that I researched while preparing my five reports related to this issue of the threat from radical feminism in the Indian Church I thought that you should know about the situation and hence the letter. Your response is welcome. God bless. Kind regards, Michael Prabhu Catholic apologist, CHENNAI [email protected] www.ephesians-511.net

GEORGE MENEZES, AN HONORABLE MAN, SAYS THAT VIRGINIA SALDANHA IS A LIAR

From: George Menezes To: prabhu Cc: Virginia Saldanha; Astrid Lobo Gajiwala Sent: Friday, March 30, 2012 10:50 AM Subject: Re: VIRGINIA SALDANHA Dear Michael Thanks for your Email. I am copying your mail (which was not marked Confidential) to Astrid a personal friend and Virginia a lay official in the Church [] I do not know anything about this matter nor am I interested in the sex life of the Church hierarchy. [] The only reason I am replying to Michael Prabhu is that somewhere in his long mail he mentions that Virginia wrote. "The bishop is not from the archdiocese of Bombay; Astrid Lobo Gajiwala was not her source; the source was George Menezes ."

This is a blatant lie.

Please keep me out of this and God bless you all, George [Part of this report can also be downloaded here: http://www.gloria.tv/?media=270068 March 21, 2012] 8.

UPDATE, APRIL 10, 2012

Letter sent to the CBCI President/Archbishop to declare the name of the alleged Bishop who fathered a child http://mumbailaity.wordpress.com/2012/04/05/letter-sent-to-the-cbci-presidentarchbishop-to-declare-the-name-of-thealleged-bishop-who-fathered-a-child/ Posted on April 5, 2012 From: judith monteiro <[email protected]> Date: Fri, Mar 30, 2012 at 4:29 PM Subject: URGENT action requested regarding article Women are also victims of clergy sex abuse! To: Archbishop Bombay <[email protected]> Cc: [Bp.] Agnelo Gracias Sub: http://ecclesiaofwomen.ning.com/forum/topics/women- are-also-victims- of?xg_source=activity Women are also victims of clergy sex abuse! Posted by Virginia Saldanha on June 29, 2010 at 4:28pm URGENT action requested Dear Your Eminence Oswald Cardinal Gracias, Praise be to Jesus Christ now & ever more. This email has reference to the abovementioned subject. This article has been doing the rounds & is not just disturbing but is harmful to Society both to Women & the Religious. I request your Eminence to kindly ensure immediate action on the same. If the article is true then it is a shame to the Church claims of "Empowerment of Women" / "Justice in the Church", etc & if the article is spiced up, then it is a slur on the reputation of the Religious. Hence, a demand should be made to the author of the article & her informant to either authenticate the news with names & evidence or to make a public apology for the article. We, the laity think, pray & meditate a 1000 times before we make statements against the religious because we respect the Cassock / the Habit & We, will not tolerate such degrading articles about the Priest/ Nuns / Bishops I personally come from a family with priests in every generation - dads brother is a priest & 2 nuns (mom & dad sisters). We have Bishops, clergy & nuns as family friends who we consider as family & I will definitely not keep silent when such a strong accusation is made about the RELIGIOUS without evidence given to support it. But, as a Woman, it would be a shame as a Catholic Woman to be a silent spectator. In the recent past I too have raised my voice against wrongs in the Church providing names & evidence to substantiate my claims. Unfortunately this article does not provide names leaving it suspect as to the credibility of such an article. Anyone can make claims either for publicity or in "ad lingo" to create a stir / to create effect. Do we need such effects in the Church? Why cause doubts in the minds of the people? I quote the article: There is no shortage of anecdotal evidence of the scale of the problem which in some cases dates back many years. Astrid Lobo-Gajiwala, a prominent leader in the womens movement in the Church recently shared this story with me: I had gone for a family camp organized by Church personnel about 10-12 years ago. I wandered into the kitchen to meet the helpers and got into conversation with the cook. When she came to know who I was she told me her story. She was a former nun who was forced to leave because she became pregnant. She was very, very bitter. She said she had been working for a bishop and he was the father of her child, a boy, who was being looked after by a church run orphanage. The bishop continued in his position as shepherd of the flock. The blogger Ms Virginia Saldanha & the story sharer Ms Astrid Lobo-Gajiwala are 2 prominent citizens of Mumbai holding / have held Archdiocesan post in Women Cells. Ms Virginia has been the Executive Secretary of the CBCIs Commission for Women as well as the Executive Secretary of the Womens Desk in the FABC of Asian Bishops Conferences Office of Laity & Family. Ms Astrid too has been a Consulter for the Indian bishops CBCI Commission for Women, and the FABC. As a responsible Church representative it is surprising that Ms Virginia should post a blog where, by not disclosing the name has succeeded in casting suspicion on the identity of the bishop. Was this blog written while holding Archdiocesan posts or after end of tenure?

I am given to understand that news is now floating that the Bishop does not belong to Mumbai Archdiocese. Why such cat & mouse games or why is information fed in bits & pieces? Mumbai has bishops who have either come here after serving in other states or have been transferred to other states from here. Will the laity feel safe after such news? Not long ago, I too received a vulgar email & a threatening letter which were sourced by the Cyber Crime to 1 church office & 1 Archdiocesan office & neither I nor my colleagues will rest till the culprit is booked. By catching the culprit, We wish to ensure that this does not happen to other Women & that the 1 or 2 spoilt apples may be caught, saving the name of the other good priests living in these parishes & elsewhere. Earlier this month, one Mr Sanal from Delhi verbally attacked the Pope, the Clergy, the Cross & the Catholic faith on national television (tv9). As a Catholic I immediately demanded his apology on air & along with likeminded clergy & laity we demanded that he prove his allegations true or tender a public apology esp. on the same channel. He refused to do so & 2 FIRs have been lodged against him by the laity. This is done so that no one abuses or takes advantage of our religion, our Pope or our Clergy in future. Likewise, allegations have been made against a bishop in the subject matter of this email. Similarly, I demand that: 1. Ms Virginia either authenticate her statement OR tender a public apology on her blog as well as by letter to the Archdiocese which should be published in The Examiner. 2. Also Ms Astrid should publicly clarify whether she did share such information. 3. As the Archbishop of Mumbai from where this example originated, I hope you will take a strong stand on this i.e. demand proof of the allegations / a public apology as the case may be. 9. If the bishop is guilty appropriate action needs to be initiated. Whatever the end result the same should be put in public domain please since the allegations originated from a public space itself. Please understand that our sympathies lie with the ex-nun & Justice should be given top priority, but if the news is suspect, the Clergy should not be given a bad name in general or be eyed suspiciously in future. I am sure you have realized that: the article has over the years generated doubt in the minds of the laity & non-Catholic, esp. those interested in Womens issues. Such an article which leaves lot to the imagination is very damaging, it could result in doubts towards past & present bishops (since it is a decade old incident), clergy movements will be eyed suspiciously & nuns could be prone to cheap stares & sexual harassment. HENCE WE NEED AN ADMISSION (by way of a name) OR AN APOLOGY URGENTLY. Maundy Thursday is on 5th April it is celebrated as the Feast of Priests. I hope you will have succeeded in getting an explanation / apology by then & that the same will be made public by the concerned party & the Archdiocese. Awaiting your action. Thanking You Yours in Christ Judith Monteiro, Dadar (W), Mumbai cc: religious friends cc: AOCC cc: Archdiocesan Womens Desk

THERE WERE SEVERAL RESPONSES PUBLISHED IN THE MUMBAILAITY. I COPY MINE HERE
http://mumbailaity.wordpress.com/2012/04/05/letter-sent-to-the-cbci-presidentarchbishop-to-declare-the-name-of-thealleged-bishop-who-fathered-a-child/#comment-3428 http://mumbailaity.wordpress.com/2012/04/06/does-the-catherine-of-siena-virtual-college-have-the-archdiocese-of-mumbaiapproval/ Dear Ms. Judith Monteiro, I greatly appreciate and fully endorse the sentiments expressed as well as the actions called for by you in your letter in this blog. As Mr. Croydon DSouza wrote, your letter is written in the right spirit. Congratulations. There is something very fishy in all of this, starting with the sordid allegation made by Astrid Lobo Gajiwala and made public by Virginia Saldanha in UCAN and in the Conference of Religious, India bulletin. When this blog brought up the issue, Virginia Saldanha retracted her claim that her source was Astrid Lobo Gajiwala. She named a prominent Bombay Catholic as her source. When I wrote to him, he replied, copy to both these "womyn", that her fresh allegation was "a blatant lie". I have been conducting incessant research on the activities of these womyn, and at the end of it all, it is quite evident that all their bluster about sexual abuse of women by a male priesthood, womens rights, womens empowerment, etc. is a subterfuge for their unholy campaign for the ordination of women as deacons and priests. Period. For 21 months, I restrained myself from engaging in this accusation-allegation issue since my ministry is restricted to combating liturgical, doctrinal and New Age errors. I was constrained to write about it on my web site http://www.ephesians-511.net only when I discovered that a particular Bombay bishop has apparently endorsed the antiRome ideologies and activities of these womyn. It makes me wonder if they have a certain Damocles sword you may imagine what hanging over his head, hence his cooperation with them. I pray that I am wrong in my suspicion. My research also reveals that these womyn are linked with ex-priest married-to-an-ex-nun John Wijngaards' movement for the sacerdotal ordination of women, an issue which the Church has virtually banned even contemplating. Virginia Saldanha is the Registrar for Wijngaards' Catherine of Siena Virtual College whose new season commences April 9. The Ecclesia of Women in Asia of which these two womyn are office-bearers is another conduit and vehicle for radical feminism and the clamor for women priests. Are the bishops simply ignorant, intentionally blind, or under powerful coercion? We need answers.

Two of my four detailed articles in this feminism/women priest series will be ready for public release next week. They are under hourly updation now. When completed, they will be sent to Rome. I am constrained to do that because the bishops simply do not respond to my letters; if they ever do, they give half-hearted or false and unfulfilled reassurances. There are so many other issues to which I have drawn their attention, but they do nothing while the perpetrators and propagators of error continue to undermine the Church and destroy the souls of ignorant and innocent Catholics. Priests who muster the courage to question the bishops on such issues face victimisation from the hierarchy and isolation from their confreres who prefer to remain in their safety zones. Just last afternoon, Maundy Thursday, I had released pilot versions of three of my total of five reports on the bishop-fatherschild-by-nun and radical feminist/women priests series [I combine them in one grouping only because I apprehend that there is a connection] to a select circle of faithful Catholics from all over the world, to gauge the reaction. Within minutes, a ministry in London sent me an Associated Press release on the Popes Maundy Thursday Mass homily, and I quote, "Pope Benedict XVI denounced priests who have questioned church teaching on celibacy and ordaining women, saying Thursday they were disobeying his authority to try to impose their own ideas on the church." Let me close by recording once again my appreciation of your intervention and your proper approach to see that justice is done. We need many more Catholic women like you in the Church. I also thank the owners and moderators of this blog for providing the otherwise muzzled laity of the Church with a forum to express their concerns. Michael, Catholic apologist, Chennai Good Friday, April 6, 2012 10.

RESPONSE FROM CROYDON DSOUZA PUBLISHED IN THE MUMBAILAITY

Does the laity have a right to know the name of the accused Bishop? http://mumbailaity.wordpress.com/2012/03/28/does-the-laity-have-a-right-to-know-the-name-of-the-accused-bishop/ Posted on March 28, 2012 Dear Readers of Mumbai Laity, I would like to begin by thanking you for all that youll are doing for the sake of uncovering the truth in Mumbai. This letter is in regards to your post 'Clarification regarding a Bishop who fathered a son' on 27th March 2012 and Mr. Michael Prabhus article 'Virginia Saldanha: Bombay Bishop Fathers Child by Nun' on 20th March 2012. To begin with, I would like to state that I completely endorse the stance that the readers have the right to know the name of the Bishop, also to add further, readers have the right to comment and also to speculate on half baked facts as it is made available to them in the public domain. If any writer has a problem with that, they would do better by ceasing to write. Or could it be that they may be spreading lies, for which they are uncomfortable when questioned? Anyway, coming back to this above article, there are now severe implications to this clarification which I would like you to take note of:(1)The Author of this 2yr old, widely publicized article, by clarifying that it is not a Bombay Bishop, then implies that now all Bishops in India, except those in Mumbai are suspect. There are over 160 Dioceses in India and each at least having its own bishops or Archbishops. I think a good idea would be that either the Archbishop or some of the concerned laity from their respective dioceses writes to Ms. Saldanha asking her whether the bishop is from their particular diocese or province and then we keep a watch for the positive reply. Or could it also mean that the Bishop could be from outside India. Please spare me the trouble of listing the entire Archdiocese in the world. I think, in the process of clarifying, she has now left us with even more questions. This trait of leaving people in confusion with unanswered questions is a typical trait of the mischievous elements who act like roaring lions waiting for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8). (2 Cor 2:11 so that we may not be taken advantage of by Satan, for we are not unaware of his schemes). (2) Another very important point is that in certain quarters within the church, including the writer who now is not revealing the name of the bishop are now crying foul because they seem to think that the Mumbai Laity are dwelling on gossip and for a nave mind, it may seem so. But for those who have in the past followed the work of Mumbai Laity, like myself, are definitely convinced of your good intentions and the effort to set things right in the Archdiocese and this matter is just one of them. Here is an alleged case of a poor nun somewhere who has been severely wronged by a bishop and all that this author can do for 2 years is make an issue of it: * In order to reach a pre-conceived desired end; women priests, clearly forbidden by the church. * For 2 years she has probably, and let me state again, probably used this information to claw her way to the top of associations and committees. The aforementioned nun maybe still in that kitchen awaiting justice. And now when the laity would like to know the truth in order to help this nun, it is termed gossip and slander. Dont these people realize that by hiding the name of this bishop, and thus encouraging inaction from their part, they are now subjecting other nuns and women to further attacks by this Bishop? I think Mumbai Laity has a lot more sincere intentions with regards to helping women than the so called feminist groups. (3) While she has by her clarification confirmed that it is not a Bishop from Mumbai, it raises another question in my mind. Being a fan of Sir Arthur Conan Doyles works of Sherlock Holmes, one out of the many things I learnt from him is that the reason why we are deceived is because we work along the lines of the things we are made to believe. While I am not stating anything further except, I hope this theory is false in regards to this matter.

(4) My last and of course, the most important point, so while reframing the sentence , for 2 years on at least 5 occasions and different blogs/sites we have been subjected to such major deception; that too after constant pounding and questioning and in the process being sent on a wild goose chase either verbally or written. Can we then the alert laity of the Church in India, Asia and the world over give CREDEBILITY TO HER ARTICLES AND HER IDEOLOGIES WHICH ARE CONFIRMED TO BE BASED ON LIES? Is she a woman of credibility in her writing and the cause she espouses? Moreover, why the authorities in the church, who for so many years encouraged this woman, ever checked on her credibility and authenticity? Why does Mumbai Laity have to step in to solve this matter when it is the job of the Bishops as shepherds to rectify such wrongs? Does this mean that our hierarchy cannot discern? Or do the authorities agree to the nonChristian ideologies of such people? Or are the authorities responsible for some of the lies that they promote? Do they use these false ideologies in promoting some of their own, which are also based on such lies? While I have these questions for all of us, I think the best place to seek answers is in a place called ROME. And there shall I go. Before I end, I would like to quote our Lord from this beautiful passage John 8:44 "You belong to your father the devil and you willingly carry out your fathers desires. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in TRUTH, because there is no truth in him. When he tells a lie, he speaks in character because he is a liar and the father of lies." Croydon DSouza ([email protected]) 11.

UPDATE, APRIL 17, 2012

"BISHOP FATHERS CHILD BY NUN" REPORT GOES VIRAL: THE STORYS SIXTH APPEARANCE

ONE CAN ACCESS VIRGINIAS ALLEGATION ABOUT THE BISHOP AT WOMENPRIESTS.ORG!

RE: Catherine of Siena Virtual College: Gender Studies - 10/09/2010 http://www.womenpriests .org/circles/m29177-print.aspx EXTRACT Catherine of Siena Virtual College (Gender Justice Studies) is offering 5 special courses beginning the week of 04 October 2010: Click here to see our faculty and staff--Virginia Saldanha Virginia Saldanha being our most recent addition. CLICK ON Virginia Saldanha AT womenpriests.org AND YOU REACH THE EWA : http://ecclesiaofwomen .ning.com/profile/VirginiaSaldanha ?xg_source=profiles_memberList. HERE ONE CAN READ, AMONG OTHER THINGS, SOMETHING womenpriests IS KEENLY INTERESTED IN, THE STATEMENT OF THE 9TH ANNUAL MEETING OF THE INDIAN WOMEN THEOLOGIANS FORUM 23rd 25th April, 2009. [Womenpriests HAVE THEIR FINGERS IN THAT PIE TOO - THROUGH THE EWA .] HERE IS THE LINK FROM Catherine of Siena Virtual College WHICH IS ALSO womenpriests.org TO http://www.catherineofsiena .net/about/news.asp Indian Women Theologian's Forum Statement of the 9th Annual Meeting of the Indian Women Theologian's Forum (IWTF) , 23rd - 25th April, 2009 THE LINK IS http://ecclesiaofwomen .ning.com/forum/topics/indian-women- theologians- forum !!!!! AT THE SAME EWA PAGE, http://ecclesiaofwomen .ning.com/profile/VirginiaSaldanha ? xg_source=profiles_memberList, ONE CAN ACCESS VIRGINIA SALDANHAS BISHOP FATHERS CHILD BY NUN STORY: http://ecclesiaofwomen .ning.com/forum/topics/women-are-also-victims-of?xg_source=activity. IN EFFECT, VIRGINIA SALDANHAS BISHOP FATHERS CHILD BY NUN STORY IS ACCESSIBLE AT womenpriests.org .

"BISHOP FATHERS CHILD BY NUN" REPORT GOES VIRAL: THE STORYS SEVENTH APPEARANCE
I was surprised to see my "Bishop Fathers Child by Nun" story at the following National Catholic Reporter page http://ncronline .org/news/women/voice-women EXTRACT : http://mumbailaity.wordpress. Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mar. 20, 2012. Virginia Saldanha: Bombay Bishop Fathers Child by Nun By Michael Prabhu http://ncronline.org/comment/reply/26357/308529 Posted on March 20, 2012 by The Voice of Bombay's Catholic Laity http://mumbailaity.wordpress.com/2012/03/20/virginia-saldanha-bombay-bis... [] MY COMMENTS The Mumbai Laitytude/Association of Concerned Catholics of the Archdiocese of Bombay on March 9, 2012 published an article with the caption "Gender sensitivity grows in Church- Then why is the Bishops

name not being revealed" . The article was a reproduction of Virginia Saldanha s already- five-timespublished "Women are also victims of clergy sex abuse " story starting with UCAN , June 18, 2010, through the Conference of Religious, India bulletin [CRIB ], the Ecclesia of Women in Asia [EWA ] blog of the Indian Women Theologians Forum, and the Mangalorean Catholics yahoogroup forum, ending with the MumbaiLaity blog. My response to that article in the MumbaiLaity -- which became the basis of this separate report VIRGINIA SALDANHA- BISHOP FATHERS CHILD BY NUN http://ephesians-511.net/docs/VIRGINIA_SALDANHABISHOP_FATHERS_CHILD_BY_NUN.doc -- was published by MumbaiLaity on March 20, 2012. National Catholic Reporter reproduced it word for word the very same day!!!!! As of today, April 17, 2012, there has not been a single readers comment added to that page.

UPDATE, APRIL 25, 2012 VIRGINIA SALDANHA WRITES TO MUMBAI LAITY AGAIN * ON APRIL 21, 21012 *SEE PAGE 7
From: Virginia Saldanha <[email protected]> To: Mumbai Laitytude Sent: Saturday, April 21, 2012 4:57 PM Subject: Re: FW: FOR PUBLISHING IN THE MUMBAI LAITYTUDE: BOMBAY BISHOP FATHERS CHILD BY NUN? This is my first reponse [sic] to [Mumbai Laitytude] Virginia On 14 March 2012 12:08, Virginia Saldanha <[email protected]> wrote: Hi! Nn, I am addressing this to you, since you are the only person who I know is connected to Laitytude. This was forwarded to me today from a different source that gave [me] the article from the TOI on 8th March. It was not clear to me then who put in the comment "If Virginia thinks so strongly about women why is she not revealing the name of the bishop who according to her fathered the child?" 12. Now it is seems from the mail below that it perhaps is the person who put the article on the web?* First I would like to strongly reiterate that I would not like any article by me, or any comment of mine ever to be put on the your Laitytude blogspot again for the simple reason that it does not generate intelligent discussion, but only gossip which is totally undesirable. Secondly, the purpose for me [sic] writing the article is to make people aware of an issue and to get pressure for action against perpetrators of abuse. My purpose is not to generate gossip or to shame anyone publicly. I realize that you [sic] putting the article on the blog two years later, has [sic] only served to make it a point of gossip and jumping to conclusions about the bishops. No one expressed any concern for the victims. You yourself having brought a victim to me, should have expressed that concern, but it is missing! Thirdly whoever prefixed the article with that question did so maliciously it seems. It only served to generate the a [sic] kind of discussion that ended up in maligning people. Michael Prabhu had no business to jump to the conclusion that the bishop is from Mumbai. Nowhere is there a suggestion to that end. By submitting a post with that title, he is guilty of character assasination [sic] of the Bombay bishops and should apologise for that. Not to mention his disparaging remarks about Astrid and myself. Is that the intent of publishing the article? This is a serious issue and I have told you umpteen times that a group of us are taking it up with the authorities concerned, we do not need to publish what we are doing. Please do not add fuel to the fire with these discordant voices that do not help the issue. While I appreciate you [sic] bringing the victim to me, I wish that you will respect that we women know how to handle the issue. We know what needs to be done and do not need advice from gossip mongering people. I would appreciate a response from Laitytude. Virginia Saldanha Catherine of Siena Virtual College www.catherinecollege.net Imparting and Stimulating Awareness education to make our world more just and inclusive.

---------- Forwarded message ---------From: prabhu <[email protected]> Date: Sat, Mar 10, 2012 at 7:44 AM Subject: FOR PUBLISHING IN THE MUMBAI LAITYTUDE: BOMBAY BISHOP FATHERS CHILD BY NUN? To: Michael Prabhu <[email protected]> Dear Mumbai Laitytude of the Archdiocese of Bombay, []

A VERY WORRIED VIRGINIA SALDANHA MY COMMENTS 1. *It appears that Virginia Saldanha thinks that it was I who wrote the lines in the MumbaiLaity that she highlighted in red ["If Virginia thinks so strongly about women why is she not revealing the name of the bishop who according to her fathered the child?"]. I didnt. The question was asked by MumbaiLaity. I have never written to/in MumbaiLaity except in response to their post of Virginia Saldanha s UCAN article. 2. As late as APRIL 21, Virginia Saldanha has forwarded again to MumbaiLaity her earlier email to them of MARCH 14. What is significant about APRIL 21? That was immediately after she received my alert along with the links to my three reports concerning her, including two on her leadership in the women priests scandal. Who sent her my alert? Because I didnt write to her until I marked a copy each to her and to Astrid Lobo Gajiwala of my follow-up letter to the Apostolic Nuncio in India and that was only at the stroke of midnight April 23/24. I guess that the referred copy of the alert was sent to Virginia Saldanha by one Monisha Rebello who wrote to me on APRIL 21 at 4:48 PM. Virginia Saldanha wrote to ML at 4:57 PM the same evening. Coincidence? Nah!!! Monisha Rebello, though not a part of the women priests bandwagon, is closely associated with both Virginia Saldanha and Astrid Lobo Gajiwala . Monisha Rebello also forwarded the alert to Fr. Franklin Lobo CSsR within a couple of hours of my posting it, probably as soon as she opened her mail and saw it. Here is the letter that Fr. Franklin Lobo CSsR wrote me, under copy to Monisha Rebello, and my response. From: Franklin Lobo To: Monisha Rebello Cc: [email protected] Sent: Wednesday, April 18, 2012 11:40 PM Subject: Re: FW: WE ARE ON TO SOMETHING BIGGER THAN THE NEW COMMUNITY BIBLE ISSUE: A MOVEMENT FOR WOMEN PRIESTS Dear Michael, 13.

This is stale news. Have you heard of Fr. Jim Borst's companion who was teaching at the Hyderabad Seminary? He was also elected the asst. General of his congregation. I have met him personally, and I can't think of a better/cleverer/humbler man. Yet he resigned from the priesthood, not to marry or anything like that; but as a prophetic act (doing something unusual). Because the Church would not even consider to discuss the question of women priests. He is still alive. The Roman Catholic Church just stated "our tradition is such; nothing else will be considered". Ignoring the whole matter is a stronger thing. The more it is discussed, the more people come to know; and begin to talk. Much love in Jesus. fr. franklin cssr On Wed, Apr 18, 2012 at 8:48 PM, Monisha Rebello <monisha_rebello> wrote: From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: WE ARE ON TO SOMETHING BIGGER THAN THE NEW COMMUNITY BIBLE ISSUE: A MOVEMENT FOR WOMEN PRIESTS Date: Wed, 18 Apr 2012 18:27:41 +0530

MY RESPONSE TO FR. FRANKLIN LOBO CSsR

From: prabhu To: [email protected] Cc: Monisha Rebello; Monisha Rebello Sent: Saturday, April 21, 2012 3:40 PM Subject: ...A MOVEMENT FOR WOMEN PRIESTS Dear Fr. Franklin, I thank you for writing and revealing your mind on this issue of women priests. Let me go point by point against your statements and what I construe from them. My comments are in blue 1. "Have you heard of Fr. Jim Borst's companion who was teaching at the Hyderabad Seminary? He was also elected the asst. General of his congregation." Apparently, you reacted after reading my updated alert of April 18, 2012 which Monisha Rebello forwarded to you and of which you did not open and read a single page of any of my reports by clicking on the links provided by me before writing to me. If you had, you would have noted that the ex-priest you refer to, John Wijngaards -- and his Indian seminary-teaching background -- is mentioned scores of times in my reports. [I could send you the same update only on April 19 because of a sudden glitch in my server on the 18th evening] 2. "I have met him personally, and I can't think of a better/cleverer/humbler man. Yet he resigned from the priesthood, not to marry or anything like that; but as a prophetic act (doing something unusual). Because the Church would not even consider to discuss the question of women priests. He is still alive. The Roman Catholic Church just stated "our tradition is such; nothing else will be considered". a) You have a very high opinion of the founder of the heretical, radical women priests organisation who not only insists that the Church's canonical position on Holy Orders is wrong, and so demands that women be ordained as deacons and priests, but who also rejects the Church's stand on pro-life issues and also those of homosexuality and lesbianism.

b) "I can't think of a better/cleverer/humbler man". I can: Fr. Jim Borst MHM whom you mention and who is well known to me personally. He is one of the humblest and holiest priests I have ever met. John Wijngaards is the extreme opposite. Filled with [the deadly sin of] pride, he believes that his -- not the Magisterium's -- is the correct interpretation of Scripture, as all Protestants do, attacks the Catholic Church's teachings, and ferments revolt in the Church among women religious and lay women while pretending to be Catholic. In eulogizing Wijngaards, you give your support to a dissenter who is listed as such by all good Catholic ministries which are faithful to Rome. c) Of course he resigned from the priesthood to marry. He married a woman, Jackie Clackson -- who was probably a nun, though I have not been able to document that -- who was a headmistress in the same Indian state of Andhra Pradesh where Wijngaards was himself working. Their friendship -- and falling in love -- dates back to their meeting in Andhra Pradesh. 3. "I have met him personally... he resigned from the priesthood ... Because the Church would not even consider to discuss the question of women priests ... The Roman Catholic Church just stated "our tradition is such; nothing else will be considered." Is it possible that you are under the influence of Wijngaards' heretical teachings? I have never before received an email (from a priest) that criticizes the Church and then describes her as the "Roman Catholic Church". In that context, it is written disparagingly, with negative connotations. Normally, one would say, "the Church" or "the Catholic Church". Your choice of words "the Roman Catholic Church just stated "our tradition is such; nothing else will be considered" indicates that you have a problem with the Church's uncompromising and "rigid" stand against women's ordination. One can only conclude that you too are in favour of Wijngaards decisions and actions. 4. "Ignoring the whole matter is a stronger thing. The more it is discussed, the more people come to know; and begin to talk." That must rate as one of the most illogical and un-Catholic statements that I have ever heard. It's like someone telling me to stop writing and exposing New Age ideologies and propagators of New Age practices lest Catholics would become aware of New Age dangers and succumb to them or be influenced by them. You surely must know what St. Pope Felix III said about those being silent about error as being as guilty as those who foster it. You regard Wijngaards' rebellion against orthodoxy and orthopraxis as a "prophetic act (doing something unusual)". Wijngaards left the priesthood in protest against the Churchs teachings and to marry, albeit some time later. What has happened to good, old biblical Catholic values when a priest like you regards Wijngaards' opposition to priestly celibacy and exclusive male-ordination as "prophetic" but mine as not? 14. You did not say a single word of encouragement to me against all the research and documentation that our team has done to expose this new danger in the Indian Church. Many priests who in their hearts may appreciate my ministry take the easy way out by not responding to my alerts because they do not want to run foul of certain disloyal but powerful people in the Church by being seen as standing with me. You, instead, are the only priest, the only respondent rather, who has suggested to me that I ignore the women priests issue. In the light of all this, I am now very much concerned about your popular Inner Healing ministry to Catholics, since it can be used by you as an opportunity to get across your personal views which appear to contradict what the Church says. Your "Friday, July 04, 2008" letter to me on the later-revised St Pauls' New Community Bible -- which I was campaigning against because of its religious syncretism and a few very erroneous commentaries -- was similarly negative and discouraging. Still earlier, even in the face of its being listed as essentially New Age in a Vatican Document, and despite all the evidence [much of it written by priests] that I have compiled and presented, you insisted that a humbug 'remedy' like homoeopathy is scientific. Since there is no dogmatic teaching on that, I do not take your stand with gravity. You are free to make your personal choice on homoeopathy, but not on the issue of the New Community Bible [which eventually had to be pulled for revision!!], and certainly not on the issue of women priests. I now feel obliged to publish your letter and my response in a future update, along with all the other encouraging responses that I received, including several from priests. Before I go to the next point, I must add that I was aware long back that you had become hostile to a priest because he insisted that his retreatants must abjure the use of homeopathic remedies; which brings me to the next point of my letter. 5. Monisha Rebello: She first contacted me by email on May 17, 2009, and I have preserved all her letters till date. On February 10, 2010, she wrote, "I was on homeopathic medicines myself tho' years ago for treatment of my sinuses and it did get healed, but I first heard about the spiritual dangers of homeopathy at [the above priest's] retreat." A month later, she revealed to me that she was accusing the same priest of trying to outrage her modesty, and she invested almost two years of correspondence in attempting to get me to take up the issue through my ministry of exposing error. I had to explain to her that my ministry was and is not concerned with moral problems or financial scandals of the Church hierarchy, but only with matters related to Faith. She of course did not reveal to me that she had approached one VIRGINIA SALDANHA to get at the priest, but I already knew that. Now, if you have observed, we have come full circle. VIRGINIA SALDANHA is the leading proponent of John Wijngaards ' womenpriests.org in India. You are a personal friend and sympathizer of John Wijngaards ; and Monisha Rebello -- who is associated with Virginia Saldanha -- forwarded my Virginia Saldanha/womenpriests alert to

you, though she did not reply to me, even when I had sent her the pilot reports under an alert 13 days earlier, on April 5, 2012 to be exact. Incidentally, you did not acknowledge either my initial alert of April 5 or my update, sent to you April 19 from my Prem Mathias email address because of a vsnl server problem. But, when Monisha Rebello forwarded you my alert/update/ expose regarding Virginia Saldanha and John Wijngaards , you sprung into action. Its a complex, yet crystal clear picture. About the priest in question, Monisha Rebello wrote this to me on Sunday, June 21, 2009, and I am sharing this with ANYONE for the very first time, "I say this because I've known him very very personally - I hope you understand what I mean. We love each other deeply, atleast I still do and Im not afraid nor ashamed to admit this to you, Michael. " I deeply regret having to make personal correspondence public, but I am now -- and have been on rare occasions -constrained to do so in the case of Catholics who constitute a public threat to the Church. [In this case it is Virginia Saldanha and not Monisha Rebello who I am referring to.] Whether the priest is innocent or guilty of what she alleges is not my concern. What does Monisha Rebellos own admission say about her? Read her own words very carefully once more, "I've known him very very personally - I hope you understand what I mean. We love each other deeply, atleast I still do". These are not the words of a woman whose modesty has been outraged [against her will] or who has been abused by a priest. They are the words of a woman "in love". They are words of complicity and will be regarded as such in any sound juridical examination, civil or ecclesial. They are the words of a woman who is in love with a priest even while she pursues all but criminal action against him after having maligned him on the Internet in an effort to destroy his reputation and vocation, and later with the support of Virginia Saldanha and her cohorts. Using alleged "sexual abuse" cases like these, Virginia Saldanha hopes to get mileage -- and leverage -- for her demand for the ordination of women, but Monisha Rebello's own words divest her allegations of any credibility. Remember the saying, "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned"? Virginia Saldanha and Monisha Rebello appear to be using each other to further their own ends. Finally, Virginia Saldanha 's internationally-publicised allegation of a bishop fathering a son by a nun must not be ignored by the same people who are baying for the blood of a young priest. In fact, the silence is deafening, especially from the Church hierarchy and senior charismatic leaders in Virginia Saldanha 's Bombay archdiocese. I would like to add here, though it may be a little out of place, that it is not just Monisha Rebellos credibility that is shattered by her own words. In my tri-series on Virginia Saldanha , her credibility too has been completely busted; but not by me. Her attacks on fundamental Church teachings, her cleverly hiding her fulltime involvement with Wijngaards womenpriests.org and the implementation of its dangerous programmes in Indian institutions, and her change of story concerning the source of her "bishop fathers child by nun" allegation are among the reasons why nothing that she says can anymore be believed. 15. 6. "This is stale news". What is? If you knew, when you admit that it is "stale news", that John Wijngaards' womenpriests.org has already burrowed into the Indian Church, and that Virginia Saldanha is its promoter here, what did you do about it till now? It appears that as you are connected to her directly as also through Monisha Rebello, you have remained silent, and you now wish me to be silent too. If this is "stale news", it's funny that Rome does not think so. A few minutes after I released my Maundy Thursday April 5, 2012 alert on women priests in the Indian Church, I received information that the Pope denounced the women priests movement during his homily at the Chrism Mass. Then, on April 18, the women priests issue has taken centre-stage in the U.S. church. Read Vatican Calls for Reform of the U.S. Leadership Conference of Womens Religious http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/vatican-calls-for-reform-of-the-u.s.-leadership-conference-of-womensreligi/#blogComments Vatican Undertakes Reform of Nuns' Group - Archbishop Sartain of Seattle Appointed as Delegate http://www.zenit.org/article-34626?l=english Congregatio Pro Doctrina Fidei Doctrinal Assessment of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious http://www.usccb.org/loader.cfm? csModule=security/getfile&amp;pageid=55544 Statement of Cardinal William Levada, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on the doctrinal Assessment of the LCWR http://www.usccb.org/loader.cfm?csModule=security/getfile&pageid=55673 etc. My news is certainly not stale, Father Franklin. That Virginia Saldanha and her pack of radical feminists have recruited and/or joined ranks with supporters among the Indian clergy for her women priests movement is breaking news . The worms are now coming out of the woodwork. With regards and all deference and respect to you as a priest, Michael Prabhu Catholic apologist 3. Virginia Saldanha accuses MumbaiLaity of "putting the [Bishop Fathers Child] article on the blog two years later" to foment gossip. She forgets that in that long period of two years she did not "realize" that it was

not Astrid Lobo Gajiwala but someone else who was her source of information. She woke up to the realization only because of the MumbaiLaity post; so it did serve a purpose jogging her memory. She tells MumbaiLaity, "I have told you umpteen times that a group of us are taking it up with the authorities concerned, we do not need to publish what we are doing". Well, the issue, according to Virginia Saldanha is around 12-14 years old; so who is she trying to con? Let her provide us with proof of what she has done to see that justice is meted out to the bishop. I am constrained to question if there is indeed a "Bishop Fathers Child by Nun" incident or if it is just one of her inventions intended to generate mileage for her clergy-sexual-abuse- of-women charges which in turn justifies -- in her scheme of things -- the demand for women priests. 4. Virginia Saldanha writes, "Michael Prabhu had no business to jump to the conclusion that the bishop is from Mumbai." She is correct. I did jump to the conclusion when I read her article. And when I realized it, even before she brought it to my attention, I modified the title of the report that was uploaded on my web site, dropping the word "Mumbai" or any insinuation that it was a bishop of the Bombay archdiocese. 5. Please refer to pages 127, 128 of my report VIRGINIA SALDANHA- ECCLESIA OF WOMEN IN ASIA AND CATHERINE OF SIENA VIRTUAL COLLEGE- FEMINIST THEOLOGY AND THE ORDINATION OF WOMEN PRIESTS http://ephesians-511.net/docs/VIRGINIA_SALDANHAECCLESIA_OF_WOMEN_IN_ASIA_AND_CATHERINE_OF_SIENA_VIRTUAL_COLLEGEFEMINIST_THEOLOGY_AND_THE_ORDINATION_OF_WOMEN_PRIESTS.doc where I have commented on Bishop Agnelo

Gracias ' disparaging the quality of the English writing of Mr. Gordon Jacobs of the MumbaiLaity. Now once again read Virginia Saldanha 's letter to MumbaiLaity on page 13 of this report. Check out the number of times I have inserted the word "sic" to indicate her errors, grammatical as well as spelling. Even gossip mongering" should be a hyphenated word. In her various executive capacities in Church bodies, Virginia Saldanha must have corresponded with Bishop Agnelo Gracias several times. I wonder if he ever pulled her up for the poor quality of her usage of the English language in the manner he did Gordon Jacobs. 6. Virginia Saldanha writes to MumbaiLaity in her capacity as an official of "Catherine of Siena Virtual College www.catherinecollege.net Imparting and Stimulating Awareness education to make our world more just and inclusive", see page 13. Catherine of Siena Virtual College is one and the same as womenpriests.org , the dissenting, radical, heretical organization of ex-priest John Wijngaards that is militating for the sacerdotal ordination of women. 16.