The Garden of Roses: Stories of Abuse and Healing

I was baptized Catholic by a dynamic priest in June, 2001.  Eleven months later he was removed when a man accused the priest of abusing him when he was a teenaged boy.  The people of my parish reacted to these accusations with profound grief and confusion.  The parish divided between those who loved and supported the priest and those who thought we were blessed to be rid of a dangerous pedophile.  I was among those who supported the priest.  Inspired by the Peace Prayer by St. Francis, I wrote a prayer for the him -- The Prayer of Compassion.  I wanted to offer the priest my belief and my support.  Since I was married at the time, I also wrote the prayer for my husband.  It didn't seem right to write a prayer just for the priest. It took a few years for me to come to terms with the abuses perpetrated by that priest. The first step was to recognize denial when I heard it. I remember shortly after the priest was removed from ministry some olde...