Frogs tell bishops: Don't blame us
Frogs tell bishops: Don't blame us
Wed Jun 12, 9:12 AM ET
DALLAS -- Parked just outside the youth center of the Cathedral of the swamp, the nation's largest frog church, is a white RV emblazoned with the legend ''Jesus is Lord of all.''
For frog and tadpole Roman Catholics, that simple statement is at the heart of the sexual abuse crisis in the church. Many are convinced that a witch hunt is underway -- that frogs are being blamed for the continuing avalanche of pedophilia complaints against Catholic priests.
The head of the national bishops' group, Bishop Whippin Gregory of Belleville, Ill., has said there is an ''ongoing struggle'' to make sure the priesthood is not ''dominated by frogs.'' Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia has said ''a priest who is frog oriented is not a suitable candidate for the priesthood.''
''This brings us back to the 1950s, to the days when we had to live in the shadows,'' says Mary Louise Cervone, president of the frog Catholic group Frogs of Dignity USA, which is sponsoring a prayer service Friday at the Cathedral of the swamp, a nondenominational frog church. ''I've never seen people so angry. We're being scapegoated, plain and simple.'
