Like a Welcome Flood

8/8/2018

“I was fourteen when they kicked me out. They said I wasn't very smart and had a bad attitude.
I always thought I would have made a good priest.”
-- A former St. Anthony’s seminarian and clergy abuse survivor

At Saints Simon and Jude church (SSJ) in Huntington Beach, California, practically every unpleasant encounter that parishioners have experienced with their pastor, friar Daniel Barica, has been a replay of his time spent as pastor at Mission Santa Barbara. This is a disturbing pattern for a minister responsible for the spiritual well-being of almost 4000 families. But Barica is no shepherd of the church. He is a wolf preying on his flock and thriving in a fearful environment he creates and controls. I find this personally offensive and unnervingly similar to the way my own offender operated more than fifty years ago. As a survivor of clergy sexual abuse, I feel I’m being victimized by the Franciscans once again as they continue to protect this priest and do nothing to stop him from causing harm.

It’s no longer enough to demand that Barica be removed from SSJ. He must also be removed from public ministry and placed in a Franciscan aftercare program similar to the one used for friars who sexually offend. Barica must not be allowed to minister to any congregation. He must not be moved to another parish where his abusive behavior will remain unchallenged. Anything less is a slap in the face of anyone who has ever been hurt and lied to by the Franciscans.

When friars like Barica go off the rails in the Province of St. Barbara there are established guidelines and protocols in place to deal with them. Such programs are not meant solely for priests who are sexual molesters. Those suffering from alcoholism, drug addiction, mental illness, anger issues, etc., have all found their way into a system designed to help them deal with their problems while the leadership protects the public and their own interests.

A Clear Power Imbalance

In a recent SSJ Sunday bulletin (August 5), Barica made an astounding attempt to defend his behavior by ignoring the anger and fear in his parish and failing to acknowledge that he was the cause of it all. It was a hire-wire act worthy of a reckless man who believes he will never fall. Astonishingly, he redirected the criticism by attacking those who were exercising their first amendment right—a right he apparently believes should only be reserved for those who agree with him. Like many offenders who shift blame and refuse to accept responsibility, Barica struggled to convince his congregation that the real victim was him. Playing the martyr in his own bizarre passion play, he tried to create sympathy by nailing himself to a cross and comparing himself to Jesus Christ.

Abusers are predators. Arguments that attempt to differentiate and separate the abusive behavior of a priest like Barica from the behavior of a priest who sexually molested young boys are not only naïve but serious miscalculations. Abuse of any kind by any priest is rooted in a clear power imbalance. The absence of sexual assault does not diminish or negate other forms of abuse; one type of cruelty often leads to another. In my case and the cases of many others reviewed by the Franciscans’ Independent Board of Inquiry in 1990, there were no criminal distinctions made between pats on the rear, hernia exams, sponge baths, fondling of genitals, or sodomy. If a friar made inappropriate physical contact with a minor in any way, that action constituted sexual abuse. This included language that was off-color, suggestive, and specific to a boy's personal hygiene.

The abuses that Barica has perpetrated on members of his own congregation, staff, school
personnel, and students have been documented by dozens of survivors who have come forward. Many sit in the same pews with us. Some suffer in silence. Others share their stories, stand up to their oppressor, or simply refuse to be quiet any longer. Those at SSJ who have been hurt by Barica are engaged in this struggle. Anonymous or not, they strive to be heard, ask to be believed, and most importantly need to be supported by their community.

It’s not difficult to understand why so many SSJ survivors choose to remain anonymous. They are fearful for themselves, their families, and their jobs. Those who have children enrolled in the parish school are afraid their sons and daughters will become the victims of Barica’s wrath. When a vengeful pastor has the power to taunt, humiliate, and ostracize people from their own church as Barica does, no one wants to be his target. In the aforementioned Sunday bulletin of August 5, Barica crossed yet another line when he shamefully smeared these unidentified members of his congregation. Sounding like a crazed imitation of an outraged biblical prophet, Barica raised his staff and roared: “It is the evil work of cowardly ‘snipers’ who shoot from behind the anonymity of the internet.”

In uttering these words Barica revealed himself to be the sanctimonious fraud he is. Similar words (and worse) were used against me and other survivors when we first came forward with allegations of abuse. Many of us chose to be anonymous and were not believed until the numbers of victims were far too overwhelming to ignore. Anonymity is often the safest defense against clerics like Barica who can’t be trusted. His ignorance of what constitutes valor could fill a cathedral. The great polemicist George Bernard Shaw said it best when he wrote: “You cannot be a hero without being a coward.” One has to be scared in order to be courageous—a quality possessed by every SSJ survivor who has spoken out against Daniel Barica.

Persuading the Press to Cover This Story

Many of the SSJ incidents are the same ones people complained about when Barica was assigned to his previous parish: rude and offensive outbursts that belittle and demean; contrarian positions on ideas that don’t originate with him; bullying parishioners and staff to get his way; dictatorial dismissals and alienation of those who challenge him; a smug sense of superiority and entitlement; the use of fear and intimidation to silence his critics; the questionable handling of church funds for personal use; and a bizarre urge to talk about his sexual energy from the pulpit.

The major difference between SSJ and Mission Santa Barbara is that SSJ has an elementary school attached to it—a circumstance that makes an unsafe situation all the more urgent.

Since posting my last column (July 12) which also addressed this problem, more than 120 comments have been left by angry and confused parishioners demanding change. We can debate the effectiveness of comments left on any blog until we agree to disagree. But the central question remains: What can SSJ parishioners do to bring about an end to this pastor’s tyranny?

Here are five possible answers: 1) Sound an immediate alarm and raise public awareness of the risks and safety concerns for children at SSJ elementary school; 2) Begin a thorough and concerted campaign to withhold donations and funds from Barica and the Diocese of Orange; 3) Contact the Franciscan Office of Pastoral Outreach and go on record; 4) Consult an experienced attorney to discuss legal options, and/or file a complaint with the Orange County district attorney’s office; 5) Persuade the local press to cover this story.

This last point is crucial. A vigilant press is needed more than ever. The community of SSJ must find ways to mobilize and work together to induce the Orange County Register and the Los Angeles Times to investigate what’s been happening at the parish. In Santa Barbara, the community’s stellar newsweekly, the Santa Barbara Independent, has kept the Franciscans on their watch list since the St. Anthony’s Seminary sex abuse scandal first came to light in 1990. If there’s one thing the friars and the church fear more than anything else it’s the publicity that a bright spotlight would shine on any kind of suspected clergy abuse.

A False and Insidious Narrative

I was living and working at Mission Santa Barbara when Barica assumed the duties of pastor there in 2009. SafeNet had an office on the Mission grounds. His assignment was a mistake from the very beginning. Barica made it clear that he would be the first and last word on any matter relating to the parish. In the beginning, people cut him some slack. He was new and he was their pastor. But as time went on, Barica’s complete disregard for people’s opinions and feelings shocked those who had, in the past, worked collaboratively with their pastors. The parish council, as well as the Mission advisory board, became feckless groups that failed in every respect to keep this priest honest.

Barica needed cover and he was in good company at the Mission. He served at a time when the community of friars there was being run by some of the most incompetent and hostile Franciscans this province has ever seen: former guardian Richard McManus, former vicar guardian Angelo Cardinale, and former administrator Brian Trawick. McManus and Cardinale are reportedly still living at the Mission; Trawick has been shipped off to province headquarters in Oakland where some say he is undergoing a battery of tests to determine if he is, indeed, capable of understanding complete sentences.

In the end, Barica became a dumpster fire that these and other friars not only didn’t try to put out, but poured gasoline on instead.

It’s painful to comprehend at times, but Barica and the others have often taken issue with the clergy abuse scandal. They begrudgingly acknowledge that some bad things may have happened to young boys long ago. But they have also created a false and insidious narrative that poses such questions as, “Who’s to really know what happened for sure?” and “How can anyone ever really learn the truth?” To them, if the history of clergy abuse was condensed to a single book it would sit on an empty shelf inside a boarded up room where it would go unread. The scandal has no bearing on the present or their place in it. To merely bring up the subject in their presence is like sitting with a toddler who prefers to poke his own eye out with a sharp stick rather than eat his vegetables.

When Barica was pastor in Santa Barbara he made no attempt to assist those in his community who were struggling with the abuses perpetrated by members of his own order. That’s a terrible fact. He even thwarted the efforts of those who were trying to help. It was the horror and height of irony to watch a priest mock his own anguished parishioners. He resisted even the simplest requests, such as SafeNet’s attempt to place a notice in the Sunday bulletin informing parishioners that the Franciscans' Office of Pastoral Outreach was available to help them heal and recover.

Despite clear policies laid out by the bishops and the province, these renegade friars in Santa Barbara took it upon themselves to declare the end of the clergy abuse crisis. Barica literally announced this rubbish from the pulpit when he exhorted his congregation to get over their suffering and move on.

Just about everything I have related here has been documented either on SafeNet's website or on this blog. Letters were sent to the proper authorities. Phone calls were made. Face-to-face meetings were arranged. And nothing came of it—nothing, that is, until enough complaints by people at Mission Santa Barbara pressured the Franciscans to remove Barica or face the real possibility of litigation and a barrage of horribly bad publicity. And lest anyone forget: this is exactly how the friars were forced to accept and deal with the clergy abuse scandal at St. Anthony’s Seminary in the early nineties. Had it not been for community members and survivors who kept pressing them to do something, it's doubtful the Franciscans would have initiated an investigation on their own.

Clinging to an Uncertain Future

In 2012, the Province of St. Barbara entered into dialogue with the five other Franciscan provinces in the United States to explore the possibility of unifying into one community. On May 30 of this year the friars of each of the six provinces voted to support the formation of this new organization. If approved by Rome it will consist of nearly 1,000 friars, be headquartered in a yet-to-be-determined location, and be launched officially in late 2022.

This is happening, in particular, because the Province of St. Barbara is at a critical juncture in its survival. Its economic life is clinging to an uncertain future. By joining forces and pooling resources, the friars in this province will find themselves in a much more favorable financial position. But they and others will also be exposed to much greater scrutiny and liability. The Franciscans will inherit each other’s problems, including any old and new scandals. The sins and crimes of the few will reflect on every friar from coast to coast. Barica, and others like him, will become an albatross around every Franciscan’s neck no matter where they are.

I avoid offering advice. When pressed I try to determine what I would do in a similar situation. Out of that may come suggestions with the understanding that people should look deep within themselves for answers. If I can propose anything to the parishioners of SSJ at this time it would be this: continue to resist the autocracy of Barica and his kind. Write, phone, email, text, tweet, leave a message. Go on record. Let your voice be heard. Each individual can make a difference at SSJ. Build your support groups. Sustain your determined efforts with grace, right intention, and the strength to stand together. Living the gospel may not always be the easiest path to follow, or even the most practical, but truth cannot be deprived.

  Real change, the kind that creates epiphanies, doesn’t come from bullies like Barica. It doesn’t originate with a diocese or a religious order that preaches the gospel but fails to practice it when it's needed most. Like the light at the end of a dark tunnel, change occurs when people begin to move toward it. It takes the will and the courage to do what is right and to cause change to course over us like a welcome flood.

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NOTE: In separate comments that I left under last month’s post, I provided contact information for the Franciscans’ Office of Pastoral Outreach along with a list of editors and reporters for the Orange County Register. I’m publishing both again here along with contact information for three reporters at the Los Angeles Times. One reporter for the Times (Anh Do) covers Orange County. The other two Times reporters (Jaweed Kaleem and Louis Sahagun) write about religion issues.
I’m also including the contact information for the local offices of the Orange County District Attorney.

FRANCISCAN OFFICE OF PASTORAL OUTREACH

Angelica Jochim, MFT
Pastoral Outreach Coordinator
Franciscan Office of Pastoral Outreach
PO Box 1137
Sebastopol, CA 95473
1 800 770-8013
angelica.jochim@gmail.com

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THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER (OCR)

Reporter / Covering Huntington Beach:

Susan Goulding
714-796-6766
sgoulding@scng.com

Editors / Crime and Public Safety:

Mark Evans, 714-796-4957, markevans@scng.com
Steve Green, 714-796-7714, stgreen@scng.com
Jim Radcliffe, 714-796-7985, jradcliffe@scng.com

Reporters / Crime and Public Safety:

Sean Emery, 714-642-6487, semery@scng.com,
Twitter: @semeryOCR
Alma Fausto, 714-796-7865, afausto@scng.com,
Twitter: @AlmaFausto1

Editor / Watchdog Investigations & Reporting
on Public Officials and Institutions:

Frank Suraci, 310-543-6621, fsuraci@scng.com

Reporters / Watchdog Investigations & Reporting
on Public Officials and Institutions:

Jason Henry, 626-544-0871, jhenry@scng.com
Joe Nelson, 909-386-3874, jnelson@scng.com
Tony Saavedra, 714-796-6930, tsaavedra@scng.com
Scott Schwebke, 714-796-7767, sschwebke@scng.com
Teri Sforza, 714-796-6910, tsforza@scng.com
Beau Yarbrough, 909-483-9376 byarbrough@scng.com

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THE LOS ANGELES TIMES

Reporter / covering Orange County:
Anh Do
Email: anh.do@latimes.com
https://twitter.com/@newsterrier

Reporter / covering religion issues
Jaweed Kaleem
Email: jaweed.kaleem@latimes.com
https://twitter.com/@jaweedkaleem

Reporter / covering religion issues
Louis Sahagun
Email: louis.sahagun@latimes.com
https://twitter.com/@louissahagun

--------------------------------------------------------------

ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY’S OFFICES
http://orangecountyda.org

Orange County District Attorney
Main Office
401 Civic Center Drive West
Santa Ana, CA 92701
714-834-3600

Orange County District Attorney
Central Justice Center
700 Civic Center Drive West
Santa Ana, CA 92701
714-834-3952

Orange County District Attorney
Harbor Justice Center
4601 Jamboree Road
Newport Beach, CA 92660
949-476-4650

Orange County District Attorney
North Justice Center
1275 North Berkeley Avenue
Fullerton, CA 92832
714.773.4480

Orange County District Attorney
West Justice Center
8141 13th Street
Westminster, CA 92683
714-896-7261

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275 Comments

Author

A Room With A Pew is a regular column on clergy sexual abuse and the healing process. Using memoir, essay, short story and poetry, the column aims to reflect the experiences, observations and opinions of writer Paul Fericano, a survivor of clergy abuse who attended St. Anthony’s Seminary in Santa Barbara, California, in the sixties. The author helped co-found SafeNet in 2003 and returned to Santa Barbara that year to assist the community in recovery. As a poet, writer, and activist engaged in the healing process, Fericano often challenges survivors and others to look for humor in the shadows. He is the editor and co-founder of Yossarian Universal News Service (YU News Service), the nation's first parody news syndicate established in 1980.

Memories of Better Days Persist
Many St. Anthony's students have contacted me, and one asked about the barbershop, where he had sought refuge one day after his offender beat him. Read story.
by PAUL FERICANO
TUES., APRIL 1, 2014
---
No Matter How High the Hedge Grows
The Solidarity Project memorial for clergy abuse survivors at Mission Santa Barbara was vandalized for a second time by a person employed by the Franciscans.
Read story.
by PAUL FERICANO
WED., MARCH 5, 2014
---
Mario (Walter) Cimmarrusti, OFM: 1931 - 2013
The Worst of What We Lived
My offender, a notorious Catholic priest and Franciscan friar who abused many boys at St. Anthony's Seminary, died on November 23, 2013.
Read story.
by PAUL FERICANO
THURS., FEBRUARY 13, 2014
---
The Roots of Pastoral Response
Pastoral response is the kind of outreach by the church that is absolutely essential to the healing process.
Read story.
by PAUL FERICANO
WED., FEBRUARY 5, 2014
---
Looking for Francis in the Franciscans
Among survivors of clergy abuse, what puzzles, angers, and disappoints many is the shortage of moral courage among the friars in general.
Read story.
by PAUL FERICANO
WED., JANUARY 8, 2014
---
From Survival to Forgiveness
In 1965 when I was 14 I was sexually abused at St. Anthony’s, a Catholic minor seminary in Santa Barbara operated by the Franciscan religious order.
Read story.
by PAUL FERICANO
THURS., DECEMBER 5, 2013

Cathy Bryant link

8/9/2018 02:23:12 am

The poor parishioners! I hope that this man is removed from his post as soon as possible. The suffering he causes will spread like ripples through the community until he is prevented from having authority.

Mary P.

8/9/2018 07:22:41 am

I was just wondering can’t the diocese see that this man is not a good example for our children? His bulletin and homilies have been nothing but complaining and yet he criticizes people who complain. I don’t see forgiveness in this man. All I see is bitterness and anger.

Paul Fericano link

8/9/2018 01:22:27 pm

There is an arrogant logic at work within the hierarchy of the church. Its been there from the beginning. It teeters on the precipice of a failed policy which basically states that the church does not take instructions from the laity. No matter what is being said to persuade people to keep filling the pews and opening their wallets, the public face of the church is one that does not tolerate dissent, discussion, and debate when it comes to allegations of church wrongdoing.

One need only study the volumes of complaints, civil lawsuits, and personal testimonies of thousands of survivors of clergy sexual abuse and their family members to realize how, for years and years, they sounded the alarm only to see themselves ignored, shunned, and, in many cases, re traumatized by the church and its attorneys.

Until it finds itself threatened with civil litigation and unwanted publicity from a free press, the church will continue to operate as if the laity are disgruntled children who should be seen and not heard.

Renee

8/9/2018 03:03:07 pm

What a sad state of affairs. I left the church many years ago because of the lack of accountability and concrete measures to stop the abuse. I would suggest that the parishioners find a new church to attend and empty the pews and until the diocese removes this priest! Great article Paul!

Mary

8/9/2018 03:18:45 pm

What is happening to SSJ? I have been afraid to talk to others publically or post anything out or fear of retaliation. In last Sunday's bulletin, Father Barica made a reverence to cyber bullies and other references. What? I am very sorry that we have a pastor who cannot build up the body of the church. He is just dividing the community. I dont feel comfortable going to the priest or parish staff to express my feelings. I am fortunate for this blog. I am still hopeful that the OC Diocese would help to make a change at SSJ. I think if they took a poll about how the church was doing they would understand that so many are not happy. Father Barica is in charge of a very large church 4000 families. Why dont they take a anonymous poll? I feel that he is harming the faith of so many catholics, especially the youth. It makes me so sad. I know the Diocese keeps track of donations and agree with earlier posts that the only way to send a message:
**Stop Donating to SSJ. ***

Festival volunteer

8/9/2018 05:58:13 pm

The CBS Morning Show had a story this morning about the grand jury of Pennsylvania investigating 300 priests in 6 dioceses. I knew there was a big problem but 300 in just one state?? I thought priest abuse was under control?? The survivors they interviewed all said they are no longer practicing Catholics. They are upset about the cover up of the church. So lucky us now we have our own priest abuser being covered up we need to move him somewhere else. This story says Paul Fericano lived at Mission in Santa Barbara so he personally knows what those people went through with Barica. Our other priests did not tell us they just kept it secret and lied to us?? Paul says one way is to file a complaint with the District Attorney. TMI for his talk about sex energy to our kids, that can’t be legal. We already lost too many of them that don’t go to church because of him. We can’t lose any more.

Scott

8/11/2018 07:25:13 am

Key words in this blog "But Barica is no shepherd of the church. He is a wolf preying on his flock and thriving in a fearful environment he creates and controls." Fear has no business in a church. If you are afraid to speak up let the Worthy Adversary do it for you joelle@casteix.com

School Family

8/12/2018 09:40:04 am

The Maryland football coach was placed on leave yesterday while the school investigates claims he verbally abused and humiliated players. Their athletic director said he is reviewing the culture of the program. I sure hope the diocese reviews the culture here at SSJ and puts Fr Daniel on leave. Its bad enough on a college team but can’t be tolerated one bit at a church.

Ron S

8/12/2018 02:05:12 pm

I don’t like the new culture at SSJ. We were much more welcoming and able to give input to the priests before Father Daniel arrived. Now guys in the mens club are afraid to approach him. Like what they did with this football coach, normally the person responsible for harassment is put on leave during an investigation so he or she does not try to maintain influence and control over the other employees. This tells me the diocese has not even started to investigate all the years of complaints. They probably will do something when we all stop donating.

School mom

8/12/2018 07:19:14 pm

I am not happy with father Daniel at all. He destroyed the community and the school’s reputation. I met with the new principal as well and all I can say is that for him to hire this woman he must really hate the school. The new security system they’re talking about won’t protect the kids from the homeless roaming around during recess or the elderly looking for parking and not paying attention to the students in the playground, we need a gate to separate the school from the church if they really want to protect our kids.

john

8/13/2018 07:46:08 am

Whatever security upgrade is planned should look at the entire site, as it clearly an open campus. Anyone walking on Magnolia has direct access to any of the classrooms there. Those classrooms and children are very vulnerable. Anyone can walk around during recess or lunch.
The parking lot re-design that cost millions, should have addressed the security of the site. Waste of money. We all need to stop donating to SSJ.

Alex

8/14/2018 11:09:33 am

A church is supposed to be loving and caring. It makes no sense why neither the Franciscans nor the diocese respond to abuse and harassment complaints about Father Barica like universities and corporations must. The normal procedure is to relieve the offender of duties while an investigation is ongoing. Some kind of statement from the church is appropriate, even to deny everything. But after reading about all the complaints about him in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and Huntington Beach, there is still no such statement. When the priest abuse scandal broke, the church promised us they would be transparent about their priests. Not addressing complaints about Father Barica’s inappropriate behavior is repeating the pattern of cover up from the past.

8/14/2018 12:19:25 pm

BREAKING NEWS...

"Catholic Church Covered Up Child Sex Abuse in Pennsylvania for Decades, Grand Jury Says"

Read the story at: https://tinyurl.com/NYTimes-clergyabuse

The time is now to get the entire SSJ story in the public eye. Contact: reporters at the L.A. Times and O.C. Register.

Also contact the local district attorney's office.

Complete contact info listed below.

NOTE: Three reporters have thus far shown an interest in what is going on at SSJ. They need to talk to parishioners. Anonymity for those who request it. The press protects its sources.

ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

1. Scott Schwebke, 714-796-7767, sschwebke@scng.com

THE LOS ANGELES TIMES

2. Anh Do / Reporter / covering Orange County:
Email: anh.do@latimes.com
https://twitter.com/@newsterrier

3. Jaweed Kaleem / Reporter / covering religion issues
Email: jaweed.kaleem@latimes.com
https://twitter.com/@jaweedkaleem

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Other Press Contacts:

THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER (OCR)

Reporter / Covering Huntington Beach:

Susan Goulding
714-796-6766
sgoulding@scng.com

Editors / Crime and Public Safety:

Mark Evans, 714-796-4957, markevans@scng.com
Steve Green, 714-796-7714, stgreen@scng.com
Jim Radcliffe, 714-796-7985, jradcliffe@scng.com

Reporters / Crime and Public Safety:

Sean Emery, 714-642-6487, semery@scng.com,
Twitter: @semeryOCR
Alma Fausto, 714-796-7865, afausto@scng.com,
Twitter: @AlmaFausto1

Editor / Watchdog Investigations & Reporting
on Public Officials and Institutions:

Frank Suraci, 310-543-6621, fsuraci@scng.com

Reporters / Watchdog Investigations & Reporting
on Public Officials and Institutions:

Jason Henry, 626-544-0871, jhenry@scng.com
Joe Nelson, 909-386-3874, jnelson@scng.com
Tony Saavedra, 714-796-6930, tsaavedra@scng.com
Teri Sforza, 714-796-6910, tsforza@scng.com
Beau Yarbrough, 909-483-9376 byarbrough@scng.com

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

THE LOS ANGELES TIMES

Reporter / covering religion issues
Louis Sahagun
Email: louis.sahagun@latimes.com
https://twitter.com/@louissahagun

--------------------------------------------------------------

ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY’S OFFICES
http://orangecountyda.org

Orange County District Attorney
Main Office
401 Civic Center Drive West
Santa Ana, CA 92701
714-834-3600

Orange County District Attorney
Central Justice Center
700 Civic Center Drive West
Santa Ana, CA 92701
714-834-3952

Orange County District Attorney
Harbor Justice Center
4601 Jamboree Road
Newport Beach, CA 92660
949-476-4650

Orange County District Attorney
North Justice Center
1275 North Berkeley Avenue
Fullerton, CA 92832
714.773.4480

Orange County District Attorney
West Justice Center
8141 13th Street
Westminster, CA 92683
714-896-7261

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ATK

8/14/2018 06:35:16 pm

It’s probably going to take outside third parties to dig into this for something to change, like District Attorney and the Register and Times reporters this article suggests. From a legal standpoint, most important to investigate is the information revealed about Father Daniel embezzling funds and the witnesses named that know. A crime like this is a clear violation of public trust. With all the witnesses, (school parents, volunteers, staff and parishioners) it will likely be easy to confirm most of what is written on the internet about Father Daniel, even what is written anonymously. I googled Father Daniel’s name and read all the comments carefully like I do when I review evidence for a case. A priest must be held accountable for theft, abuse, infidelity and harassment just like everyone else.

When I read the comments, it is very concerning that previous parishioners said they put up a fight to get Father Daniel out. If true, these are serious nondisclosures Father Lackie or any priest who knew were required to tell us. This would mean they never should have placed him here to begin with.

On a personal level, I feel offended on behalf of all of us when Father Daniel refers to anyone who posts anonymously as a coward. I do not want my office targeted by the church and lose business. It is understandable why church victims in Pennsylvania and elsewhere stayed anonymous for so long. More will eventually come forward here but for now, it is better to say something anonymously than not at all.

I put together a timeline to help everyone by summarizing what is written on the internet. Here are some of the comments regarding Father Daniel, abridged and paraphrased for space (for exact quotes see the named sites):

The Worthy Adversary “…a discussion of predatory grooming.”
September 20, 2015 Joelle Casteix wrote about Father Daniel’s red flag behavior and said this should alert Bishop Vann. She said “Barica has crossed the line: he has blurred sexual boundaries and made it okay to discuss sexual energy with children and teens (who can read the bulletin). He’s opened the door by saying that he blesses his sexual energy with oils.”

Superchurch “Is Your Pastor a Bully?”
August 15, 2017 “Phillip.” wrote about a SSJ eucharistic meeting with the parents (during the 2016/2017 school year). At this meeting, Father Daniel said any religion other than the Catholic religion is a cult.

Diane Doughtery “Are Catholic Hierarchs Bullies?”
September 5, 2017 “Catholic Parent” said (he or she) knows someone with a friend that invites Father Daniel over for dinner often to their house on Lake Street. That friend said there are two Daniels at SSJ, one with gray hair that is well liked and another that is tall and good looking but not very well liked.
April 3 “Anonymous” said Father Daniel has turned a once open and inviting community into a prison.
April 28 “Anonymous” said the biggest symbol of the prison is the fence around the playground. Before it was installed, some of the other teachers would tell (him or her) how upset they were when Father Daniel told families to leave the playground. Sometimes they heard him yelling at them.

A Room with a Pew “Problem Priest…”
November 3, 2017 “Sanda” said Father Daniel’s behavior has been the parish’s dirty little secret for quite some time and he is enabled by the church staff and the diocese.
March 6 “Estelle” said Father Daniel is a nightmare and they have been sending letters to the diocese.
June 8 “Maria D.” said Father Daniel has destroyed the community and she is upset how the Franciscans move problem priests around.
June 9 “Heather Blake” openly posted her name and the name of the school mom Ms. Blake said Father Daniel is having an affair with.
June 12 “Mr. M” said Father Rusty told Dan Hart on Cloudhaven about money being taken by Father Daniel.
June 15 “Diane B.” said many SSJ staff and parents are reluctant to speak up due to their fear of Father Daniel.
June 16 “SSJ Parent and Volunteer” said complaints to the parish office started soon after Father Daniel arrived. Most were anonymous so they were told to ignore them because if someone did not have the courage to put their name to a complaint, it was considered not credible. And parishioners who did come forward to complain were criticized and shunned by Daniel. Parish staff were too afraid to speak up. And Fathers Rusty, Dan, and Ryan all received complaints too but did nothing.
June 20 “B.B” said Father Daniel is a disaster who manages to ruin every single place he’s been to.
June 20 “Rachel chu” said Father Daniel is creepy.
June 22 “Sandi” said Father Daniel is a scourge.
June 23 “Mrs C.” who works in the church office says Fa

8/14/2018 06:38:26 pm

June 23 “Mrs C.” who works in the church office says Father Daniel is hated beyond words. She said he is a dictator who does not care about people’s feelings and is very rude and makes fun of the teachers in front of the parish staff. She also believes the affair with the school mom is true.
June 23 “John C” said Father Lackie and anyone protecting and enabling Father Daniel must resign immediately.

8/14/2018 06:36:37 pm

June 23 “Diane B.” posted what she wrote to Father Lackie, including telling him to read the comments on Room with a Pew and to not ignore her plea.
June 24 “Frank” said Father Daniel is wicked.
June 24 “Nikky” said she complained to Father Rusty about Father Daniel and his response was “If you think that is bad imagine having to live with him.”
June 27 “D.D” said Father Daniel is nut job who has no control over his actions.
June 29 “SSJ Student” said Father Daniel is a horrible man.
July 3 “SSJ Mom and Parishioner” called Father Daniel our Judas. She said he destroyed what once was a loving community and spread hatred among us.
July 5 “Diane B.” said there was no response to her (June 20) email to Father Lackie in Santa Barbara.
July 12 “Sam” said he personally knows Father Michael Harvey is gay and that is probably the reason he quit the priesthood.
July 17 “SSJ Dolphin” said (he or she) overheard Father Daniel make fun of one of our SSJ teachers.

A Room with a Pew “Don’t Show Them the Money”
July 16 “Mary from Santa Barbara” said Father Daniel is a nightmare that needs anger management. Then she revealed to us that her parish fought to get rid of him.
July 17 “SSJ Mom” said Father Daniel went ballistic and witnessed him yelling at the parents, the kids and the VBS volunteers.
July 17 “VBS volunteer” said (he or she) also witnessed Father Daniel yelling and said he is unstable and can hurt the kids.
July 17 “Afraid to be identified” said Mark Purcell is protecting Father Daniel because of their relationship.
July 17 “Regina Flores” said she left SSJ because of Father Daniel.
July 18 “Heather Blake” said Father Daniel is probably gay.
July 18 “Peter L” said the affair and not being celibate would force Father Daniel to quit. And if he is gay, that would double the reason he must quit.
July 18 “Andrew” said he thinks Father Daniel believes he is untouchable because Father Lackie is afraid of retaliation from Father Daniel exposing intimate times they had when they both lived here. And being gay, Father Michael probably left out of fear of retaliation too.
July 18 “SSJ Rebel” said mom laughs with Father Daniel after mass then goes home and tells dad how much mom hates Father Daniel. And “SSJ Rebel” feels relieved to finally be able to express (his or her) feelings about the whole SSJ chaos.
July 22 “Sally O.” said Father Daniel is a big bully.
July 24 “SSJ mom E” said Father Daniel has uncontrollable tantrums. (A big safety concern for our school children.)
July 25 “SSJ mom who won’t be stopped” wrote Father Daniel told the school marketing committee “I don’t care if our enrollment goes down.” She said he also cancelled summer programs and the visit from Santa each year. He openly mocks people, makes rude remarks in church and to school parents, yells at students and has inappropriate sermons.
July 26 “SSJ Faculty memeber” said things will get worse when school starts.
July 28 “Kat” wrote that Rev. Reader told her the diocese is taking concerns seriously and are working on it. (Another stall tactic after years of complaints?)
July 28 “Mrs C” in the parish office wrote that SSJ was never this bad before, and because of the atmosphere Father Daniel created now you can’t even trust the person sitting next to you.
July 28 “I work with Mrs C” published office emails and a letter showing Coleen Murray, Father David Gaa and Father Ryan all received complaints long ago. (More of Father Daniel’s enablers?)
July 28 “Patrick B.” (Bell?) said he knows Father Daniel stole from us.
Jul 28 “SSJ Finance Council” also confirmed that Father Daniel stole money and Bishop Vann, Mark Purcell, Father Rusty and other members of the Finance Council know too.
August 4 Several people wrote how upset they are about Father Daniel writing in the Sunday bulletin that anyone who posts anonymously are cowards.
August 4 “H.K” said people who are posting anonymously are not cowards, they are fed up and don’t know what to do and after reading his message (he or she) doubts anyone will be willing to meet with Father Daniel or approach him in anyway.
August 4 “Seriously Father Daniel” said people post anonymously because Father Daniel does not forgive his enemies and they are afraid of retaliation by him.
August 4 “John L. Gronbeck-Tedesco” said he wants a complaint with the district attorney for public indecency and other causes.

A Room with a Pew “Like a Welcome Flood”
The author wrote about why people stay anonymous: “When a vengeful pastor has the power to taunt, humiliate, and ost

8/14/2018 06:42:51 pm

A Room with a Pew “Like a Welcome Flood”
August 8 The author wrote about why people stay anonymous: “When a vengeful pastor has the power to taunt, humiliate, and ostracize people from their own church as Barica does, no one wants to be his target.”
August 9 “Mary P.” said she don’t see forgiveness in this man. All she sees is bitterness and anger.
August 9 “Festival volunteer” wants to know why the other priests kept Father Daniel’s past a secret.
August 12 “Ron S” said guys in the men’s club are afraid to approach Father Daniel.
August 12 “School mom” said Father Daniel destroyed the community and the school’s reputation. And that he must really hate this school.

If anything on this site is not true the diocese should have sued the author Paul Fericano for defamation in 2014 back when he first wrote about Father Daniel as a problem priest saying he emotionally abuses his parishioners in a fearful and unwelcome environment.

As anyone who practices law knows, the truth is the defense for defamation. People’s feelings are not defamation either because we have a right to how we feel about Father Daniel. So no lawsuit or even a statement to challenge any of this means what is written on the internet should be considered the truth about Father Daniel and what people think of him. The diocese has to be careful about suing over comments that are easy to verify (even if they are anonymous) because of the numerous witnesses to Father Daniel’s behavior. Once witnesses verify these comments with testimony, this would become evidence of cover up. I do not expect the diocese to want any type of evidence that can support a very large punitive damage award over nondisclosures about his past.

In the mens club

8/15/2018 06:59:22 pm

When we see this listed in one spot it really makes us question how the Franciscans and the diocese ignore all this for so long. We need a mens club resolution about how to deal with this.
This is like to the news about the priest abuse in Pennsylvania. An Associated Press article today called what happened there a “conspiracy of silence” by the church. It said how individual leaders of the church largely escaped public accountability.
We have our own conspiracy of silence going on. The diocese not addressing years of complaints about Fr Daniel is allowing him to escape accountability at SSJ.
Staying silent is the opposite of Bishop Vann’s promises posted on the OC diocese website called the “Covenant with the Faithful”
His covenant promises the diocese “will work collaboratively with all members of the Diocese to promote an atmosphere of openness and trust.”
His covenant promises to be “consistent and transparent in our communications with the Catholics of our Diocese.”
Bishop Vann can’t do the opposite of his promises. He must be open and transparent with us by posting all the complaints he received about Fr Daniel so we can read them. The Franciscans also need to post the complaints they got so we can read why Fr Daniel’s last 2 Franciscan congregations wanted him removed.
Bishop Vann needs to tell us about Fr Daniel stealing money. If he did not steal then Vann should be open with us and tell us no money is missing. But I doubt he will do this if he knows there are named witnesses that prove he is lying to us.
Bishop Vann needs to tell us about Fr Daniel’s affair with a school mom told by Heather Blake. If there is no affair, Vann should just tell us. He probably won’t do this either if people can prove the affair is real.
Then the covenant says “We will restore confidence in our role as Bishops.” Not answering complaints makes it much worse. Start getting our trust back by being open and transparent about Fr Daniel. And do not dismiss anonymous complaints as not being valid.
We are afraid of retaliation by Fr Daniel. He already threatened to not let us serve alcohol at our monthly meetings. Guys would just quit helping out at SSJ events. The idea that we and other parishioners have fear of their own priest retaliating against us is enough reason to relocate him.

Insurance agent parishioner

8/16/2018 02:47:49 pm

The Men’s Club serves alcohol at their meetings? Aren’t they held on campus? Today this is not just unacceptable for our society, it is a big risk. I am a licensed insurance agent and unless the church specifically has a liquor liability endorsement on their policy, there is no coverage for anything that happens as a result of serving alcohol. I do not handle the church’s insurance but I know public school districts employ Risk Managers who are responsible for securing proper insurance and alcohol is banned for a reason. Even if SSJ has a liquor liability endorsement, the policy limit will still apply. In other words, if someone has a couple of drinks and leaves a meeting or the festival, drives over the legal limit and injures or kills someone in an accident, lawyers will come after SSJ. A $5 million liquor liability limit does not cover a $25 million wrongful death award. The donors would have to pay the difference. If the Men’s Club wants to drink at their meetings they should do it at someone’s private home but even that can create liability. I don’t know much liquor is sold are at the festival, but if it’s $25,000 and we can be sued for $25 million, no risk manager I know would agree to that risk.

Carlos R

8/16/2018 08:03:00 pm

This priest put up bars so kids can't play on the swings after church but he still allows booze where there is a school....he really has lost it.

Alan G

8/16/2018 11:08:32 pm

CNN story of today talked about Pennsylvania abuse victim Mike McConnell:
“The abuse affected his marriages, caused substance abuse and destroyed his belief in the Catholic Church, said McDonnell, who publicly has accused and sued two priests in the Diocese of Philadelphia, which was not covered by the latest grand jury report. One of those accused priests was defrocked, while the other was removed from public ministry, diocesan records show.
"They stole the most sacred thing I had, and that was my Catholic Church," he said.
McDonnell said he wasn't not surprised the Vatican hasn't responded.
"This is Roman Catholic Church, playbook page 82. This is what they do -- they hide, they are deceitful in what they do. It is self-seeking," he said. "And they're going to spin every story."
And another victim named Carolyn: "It's very lonely, especially when it's your word against God's," she said.
Bishop Vann is using the same playbook by hiding Barica’s complaints and ignoring us. He has already caused too much emotional abuse on his victims that left our church. He better not be grooming our school kids for his sexual energy like the lady wrote about.

SSJ mom K

8/17/2018 05:31:46 am

It’s pretty scary to even think about Daniel being around the students. We received a pathetic email from the new principal. It’s clear that he is making all of the school decisions right now. When Mrs Pinkofsky was the principal he couldn’t get near the students or the school but now he’s the one in charge. We are so worried that this was his plan all along. The diocese better do something and remove this beast.

A.F.

8/18/2018 01:50:42 pm

I have been rocked by the news in Pennsylvania because this brings back memories of Father Gus. I wrote on the other blog my feelings about what happened when he was here. Virginia wrote her feelings about his time in Oregon. The bottom line is the Franciscans kept trying to hide him and lied to 3 of their own parishes by not telling us the truth about him.

Here is what the Register wrote when the original news broke: “The Catholic Diocese of Orange allowed a priest to stay at his Huntington Beach parish for at least two years after learning that he had been accused of sexual molestation and that his accuser was paid a monetary settlement.”

The settlement was in 1996. Gus was at SSJ until 1998. So Father Alex Manville and the Franciscans decided to keep him on duty here at a school parish 2 more years without any warning.

I remember seeing Gus hug so many kids. I did not think anything of it back then. Now it sends a chill down my spine that he might have molested kids that are afraid to say anything like the victims in Pennsylvania. He was always around lots of school children who loved him and trusted him. Parents had their guards down.

After word got out here, they moved Gus to Oregon without telling those parishioners. And he even got rewarded to be their pastor.

After searching about him some more, I found this LA Times story of July 15, 2003 titled: “Placement of Pedophile Priest Raises Questions”
“Parishioners at a midtown church want to know more about a decision to relocate a priest here six weeks ago from Oregon after he acknowledged sexual misconduct with minors.”
“Catholic church officials have since removed Father Gus Krumm from St. Francis of Assisi parish. But some members of the congregation said after Sunday services that they do not understand the decision by church officials to allow the priest to come to live near an adjoining school and why the local diocese was not told of his past.”

The Franciscans tried to hide him yet again at St. Francis in Sacramento after hiding him at Ascension Church in Portland for 4 years - until those people finally found out. More kids were exposed that might be afraid to tell us they were molested too.

At any of the 3 parishes, the abuse could have taken place in places like the boys room. Here is a real possibility: He walks in with a kid in there and stands next to him at the urinal. He exposes himself under the guise of taking a pee. Gus could have reached over and touched the boys genitals next to him with his pants already open. With no witnesses, fear takes over and the boy suffers silently to this day.

The Register says the Franciscans already paid out $28.6 million in abuse claims as of 2012. Where do you think this money came from? This is an abuse of our donations. They should not have kept this a secret either.

Now they are keeping Father Daniel’s abusive past from us by not telling us what happened in LA and Santa Barbara. Why were those people so upset that they put up a fight to get rid of him? Start being honest with us and answer our complaints. Please make Father Dan answer Diane B’s email to him she posted on the other blog back in June which pleaded for his help. (Any answer yet Diane?)

They moved Father Daniel around to hide his past just like they did with Gus.

Smith

8/18/2018 04:14:14 pm

Thanks A.F. You got me to want to find answers to my questions in all the news too. Here is one I don’t know if you saw...

USA Today August 17, 2018 story “Why the Roman Catholic Church still struggles with sexual abuse scandals”
“Poulson’s case is an example of how abuse and cover-up continue to plague the Catholic Church, even after the issue first exploded into the national consciousness some 16 years ago in Boston. Since then, the church has vowed to make improvements and paid out billions of dollars of parishioners' tithes to victims.”

I thought it was millions of dollars of our donations. This say billions with a “b.” I think I am going to be sick.

8/18/2018 04:48:20 pm

Here are some more Mr Smith:
From nytimes.com August 15, 2018
“I think right now it’s really hard to be a Catholic,” said John Gehring, the Catholic program director of Faith in Public Life, a national network of faith leaders. “Everywhere you look, things seem to be falling apart.”

From npr.org, August 16, 2018
“The grand jury report also paints a picture of a Catholic Church replete with priests who were abusers themselves or were willing to watch and condone the abuse.”

From npr.org, August 18, 2018
"When the abuse crisis first broke big in the 2000s, people's hearts were broken by the abusers, but people were angry at the people in authority who covered it up," Vallone said. "Now, it's gone beyond anger and it is rage."

From CBSnews.com on August 17, 2018, regarding the Pennsylvania Grand Jury report:
“The report also lays out how priests used the Catholic faith to manipulate their victims, and how church officials buried the abuse for years.”

From Time.com written by Rev. Bambrick, pastor of St. Aloysius Church in Jackson, N.J. He is a member of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, and a founding member of both Jordon’s Crossing and Catholic Whistleblowers.
He said the Pennsylvania grand jury describes how dioceses had a “common playbook” by which they “managed” the crisis. This enabled them to escape “public accountability.” He said it is time for national transparency, accountability and justice.
He wrote “The National Church has become adept at offering shallow and hollow apologies, statements about shock, disgust and pledging promises. Dioceses are releasing statements emphasizing these crimes concern the past and not the present, stating there are policies in place for a safe future. It sounded more like a capital campaign slogan, not a call to action and reform. These pious platitudes do not create transparency or promote trust. Church officials must tell the truth — all of it, without varnish. They must admit to the wrongdoing without making justifications and excuses. They must speak from the heart and truthfully.”

Bambrick, a Catholic priest calls out his own Church to tell the truth? Finally, someone with the courage to put the victims ahead of a priest’s vow of obedience.

From the comments I see about Father Daniel, it is clear to me the Church moved him around after abuse complaints to avoid scandal. It is clear to me he uses the Catholic faith to manipulate his victims as well. Father Daniel made it hard for the youth and parishioners he betrayed and chased away to remain Catholic. And like these stories, it is clear that other priests like Fr Lackie, watched and condoned Father Daniel’s abuse.

Abuse does not have to be sexual to be wrong. I read so many accounts of harassment, anger, emotional abuse, crying, and people being shunned by Father Daniel.

Bishop Vann, Rev. Reader, Father Dan Lackie, Father Ryan Thornton, Father Rusty Shaughnessy, Franciscan Provincial David Gaa, Mark Purcell, Chris Sumpter, Colleen Murray, and every other priest and employee that enables and protects him must tell us the whole truth about Father Daniel. All of it - like Rev. Bambrick says.

All of it means we must be told his history and know what is in his employee file. Has he received anger management training, therapy, disciplinary action, or reprimand of any kind? Has he had psychological or psychiatric appointments or testing? Has he been diagnosed as a narcissist or any other personality or mental disorder? Or depression? What kind of medications are prescribed to him? How much alcohol does he consume? All of these things affect his job and his ability to make proper decisions, like firing Ms Pinkofsky or stealing from the collection. Is there a disciplinary action in his file about any missing money he used for personal trips? Or about his oil rubbing sermon and his affair Heather Blake told us about?

Answering our questions and complaints is how the church will tell us the whole truth about Father Daniel. And yes we need to see all complaints, anonymous or not, from people at SSJ, St. Barbara’s at Mission Santa Barbara, and St. Francis of Assisi in Los Angeles. We must be told the whole truth or they all need to resign.

The church has to stop the cover up. They got away with it with Gus. They can’t get away with it with Daniel too.

Mr H

8/20/2018 12:47:44 pm

I want to know if he looks at porn to take care of his sex energy. The police should look at his phone and computer to make sure he does not have child porn.

Victoria S.

8/20/2018 08:44:13 pm

I was watching Meet the Press yesterday morning and the show ended by talking about the priest abuse. In case you missed it, 2 of the guests were Catholic. This should make everyone think about what is really happening at SSJ and why they continue to conceal Fr Daniel’s past. I am holding off my donations until they tell me, including if they spent a dime of my money on all these settlements.

I found the transcript of yesterday from their website. I copied and pasted it in its entirety. It is important to not turn our heads and keep ignoring and enabling what is going on in our own church. Something has to change here. It should not take a donation hit but that is how we approve or disapprove of their behavior. We can't wait for his affair partner or a child or even another priest to make a claim of abuse after all of his warning about sex energy he has. We can't wait until it is too late.

CHUCK TODD: Back now with End Game, you can't talk about American politics without talking about the role of religions in general and what's happening in the Catholic Church this week out of Pennsylvania is something that is going to have reverberations here. A Pennsylvania grand jury report released this week identified more than 1,000 child victims of more than 300 abusive Catholic priests across the state. That's just one state of Pennsylvania. This is in 2018. Never mind what we thought they made movies about in 2002 and things like that. I want to get everybody's reaction to this. Hugh, I want to start with you, but let me, this is, this is from the grand jury report on how the church had a playbook for concealing the truth. “Make sure to use euphemisms, never say ‘rape’; say ‘inappropriate contact’ or ‘boundary issues.’” Also in this playbook, “even if a priest is raping children, keep providing him housing and living expenses,” referring to the priests. “When a priest does have to be removed don't say why.” And “above all,” Hugh Hewitt, “don't tell the police.”

HUGH HEWITT: I'm an ashamed and grieving Catholic. And Donald Wuerl, who is the archbishop of Washington, should have resigned last week, should be fired today because he was part of a conspiracy to cover up a child porn ring run by priests in Pittsburgh. He is part of the problem--

CHUCK TODD: Think about what you just said there.

HUGH HEWITT: --that only--

(OVERTALK)

CHUCK TODD: Think about what you just said there.

HUGH HEWITT: I know, a child porn ring.

CHUCK TODD: Run by priests.

HUGH HEWITT: And child peddling and child trafficking and you can't read this without vomiting if you're a Catholic who believes in the church. I think Attorney General Shapiro, Democrat of Pennsylvania, has set a standard for 49 other attorneys generals because we cannot trust the Catholic-- we can trust some people: Chaput in Philadelphia, Gomez in Los Angeles. But you can't trust the church to do this.

CHUCK TODD: Wow.

HUGH HEWITT: You have to have, I think, 49 more Shapiro reports.

CHUCK TODD: Holy cow.

YAMICHE ALCINDOR: I would imagine that, and as someone who also is Catholic, when I think about this, I think of developing countries. And I think about the fact that Pennsylvania and maybe the 49 other states might get to this. But the Catholic Church has so many other roots in so many other places where priests are seen as not just the people that are at church but they're the people who run the schools, they're the people who run aid, they’re where families go to if you need your child to just have a role model if your father's not around. And when I was reading about the priest putting on crosses on children's necks to try to tell other priests this is a child who's vulnerable and has already been violated, I almost vomited. It was--

CHUCK TODD: Me too.

YAMICHE ALCINDOR: --it's terrifying.

CHUCK TODD: It's terrifying. Shivers.

EUGENE ROBINSON: Look, Pope Francis is going to have to do something and just--

CHUCK TODD:

What is the something?

EUGENE ROBINSON:

--something big and something serious.

CHUCK TODD:

What is it though?

EUGENE ROBINSON:

I don't know.

HUGH HEWITT:

I'll tell you what--

EUGENE ROBINSON:

But it better be big.

HUGH HEWITT:

--you fire Wuerl.

(OVERTALK)

CHUCK TODD:

But how does that begin?

HUGH HEWITT:

You send Gomez here.

EUGENE ROBINSON:

He's the pope. He can send a much clearer message I think than has been sent thus far to save the Catholic Church in this country. I mean, because there will be, I think, if not 49, there certainly will be--

CHUCK TODD:

Carol--

EUGENE ROBINSON:

--more Shapiro reports.

CHUCK TODD:

--here's what I think makes this so damning. Let me put up a thing, the first time an abuse scandal went public was 1985 in Louisiana. We've got the look the editor in chief that everybody loves here in Washington D.C., Marty Baron of TheWashington Post essentially made his name by uncovering th

8/20/2018 08:46:21 pm

CHUCK TODD:

--here's what I think makes this so damning. Let me put up a thing, the first time an abuse scandal went public was 1985 in Louisiana. We've got the look the editor in chief that everybody loves here in Washington D.C., Marty Baron of TheWashington Post essentially made his name by uncovering the abuse that was taking place up in New England. And it's as if the Catholic Church each time just dealt with the problem and then tried to move on.

CAROL LEE:

It's a culture of secrecy. It's an institution that does not, that sees itself as its own kind of moral and governing and legal authority.And so, and it's massive. It's across the world. And what we've seen is that this kind of abuse is so widespread that were the church to try to tackle the issue, how would you even know? You don't know who is -- who is trying to solve the problem is actually part of the problem because it goes from the individuals who have committed abuses to those who have covered it up to people who are complicit in it. And it's all very widespread. And I think Pope Francis, you know, he doesn't have a great track record of dealing with these issues, particularly the one that came up in Chile. And he was silent. And it took them 48 hours to issue a statement. He still hasn't said anything. He didn't say anything this morning.

CHUCK TODD:

I'm curious of the larger societal impact. And this is an evangelical movement that has turned the other way on this president and what he's done morally, a Catholic Church that you can't trust morally with your kids even if you believe in them in your own beliefs. And what does that do to organized religion in this country?

YAMICHE ALCINDOR:

I think it makes people more and more wary of going into churches or going -- and looking at pastors for some sort of moral direction. For a long time--

CHUCK TODD:

But if not them, who?

YAMICHE ALCINDOR:

--I don't think there is. I think what the lesson here is that you really can't trust anyone. I should say this, I'll say it, I grew up with a grandmother who was very devoutly Catholic who also said priests are men and who also said be very careful of who you put your child with regardless of who that is. So if it's coaches, if it's teachers I think you need to understand and I think we all understand now that we need to be very, very more vigilant in--

HUGH HEWITT:

If I had more time though I could run down a list of good, great leaders in the church, Chaput, Gomez, but I can also tell you that this pope has failed. And if he sends someone like McElroy out of San Diego or one of these other old, white guys who've been part of the complicity of conspiracy and cover up for 40 years he will have failed in his most important challenge because those institutions are necessary.

CHUCK TODD:

I'm sorry to be talking about this on a Sunday morning of all mornings. Anyway, thank you all. And thank you for watching. As we say goodbye we're going to leave you with an uplifting moment. It's a moment from the great Aretha Franklin. And it's a performance at the Kennedy Center Honors in 2015 where she honored Carole King with her rendition of You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman. Enjoy and remember. We'll be back next week because if it's Sunday, it's Meet the Press.

Knight of Columbus

8/20/2018 11:42:22 pm

I did not get a chance to watch Meet the Press on Sunday morning so thank you for putting this up! I also saw how the church is trying to say the crimes concern the past and there are now policies in place for a safe future. That sounds like a BS guarantee. Men have buildup - celibate or not. People and children are at risk until one of 2 things happen: 1. Priests marry and their wives can keep them drained or 2. Priests are neutered (balls removed so no buildup occurs).
Forcing priests to suppress their urges or hide their sexual behavior has warped people, according to Elizabeth Abbott, author of A History of Celibacy. She said it brings out horrible things.
The priest abuse has been going on for decades. It is still big news in the year 2018.
Back in 1990, A. W. R. Sipe, who had twenty-five years experience of counselling priests, published the results of an extensive study on the actual reality of mandatory celibacy. His data was based on interviews with 1,500 priests or their sexual partners between 1960 and 1985.
He concluded that:
• 6 per cent of priests were sexually involved with minors
• 20-25 per cent with adult women
• 15 percent with adult men
A 1980 study conducted by a Catholic priest at the Institute for Advanced Study of Human Sexuality, found that of a sample of fifty gay Catholic priests ranging from 27 to 58 years of age, only two were abstaining from sex at that time. Gay Catholic is an oxymoron because It has never been allowed.
Most men can’t handle their buildup. Priests are men too. Until the semen buildup is relieved, there is natural arousal and attraction men experience. If they have access to kids at school or in a bathroom they are easy targets. I hope Barica gets his buildup out with his girlfriend so our kids are not attacked. Maybe Lackie relieved him when they lived together and that is why he is silent to our complaints.
If Barica is taking care of his sexual energy he talked about with kids in church on his own with his oil, his girlfriend Mary or any way else, he is not celibate like the church requires and has to quit – before another one of his victims is affected.
Yes this is all so gross but we can’t put our heads in the sand and ignore this anymore.

Adam M.

8/21/2018 02:56:03 pm

Interviews in the Sydney Morning Herald. Until any affairs and sexual acts committed by Father Daniel and all holy men comes out of the shadows, this crises is far from over.

Father Xavier:
Did you find yourself in inappropriate situations?

''Yes, I did. I was going to a sauna - a place where it was easy to have casual sex. I never got in a situation where I was actually in a relationship with anybody. But I did find myself having casual sex. It went on pretty strongly for 20 years.''

How did you get away from it in the end?

''I developed a couple of very good relationships - friendship relationships - so that when I found myself looking for intimacy, I could have that intimacy with a couple of really good friends.

Prior to that, my needs for intimacy were addressed as being purely physical. I didn't know what else to do, so I would go off and have sex. I got hooked on sex, and wanted more and more, even though I felt more and more guilty."

Have you been chased by women because you were considered to be 'safe'?

''I have experienced that. I was working in a seminary, and not infrequently I came across women who got very attached to religious men of all ages. They were often women who had been hurt by men; they saw safety in male company that was not dangerous.

I would like to see celibacy relaxed; it should be optional. Celibacy for religious men and women is totally normal - if that's what they wish to do. But to make it obligatory is ridiculous.''

Brother John:
Did you have guilty feelings about being sexually aroused when you were younger?

''Oh yes! But I didn't do much about it - I prayed a lot and went to confession. The priest just said it was part of growing up. I masturbated a lot and I confessed to that. I used to ring up a sex-line every three weeks and it cost me about $35. I ejaculated after just a minute listening. I have never seen a woman naked; I have only seen bare breasts at the Missions.

I often wonder if I could perform the act of sex. Would I be able to have sexual intercourse? Would I come too quickly, because I get aroused quickly?

I have never had any feelings of attraction to fellow priests. I am not homosexual. I believe celibacy for priests should be optional - remain celibate unless you can't do without a woman."

8/21/2018 04:22:32 pm

Sydney Morning Herald, Brother John continued...

“We are kidding ourselves if we think priests don't have their mistresses - and that gay priests don't have gay boyfriends. I'm sure it happens. Priests go to brothels, but I have never been with a prostitute.''

School parent PT

8/23/2018 02:16:15 pm

With all the fallout in the church going on, does anyone know if the diocese is doing anything or what Fr Daniel is saying? I really don't want my kids exposed to him anymore.

OG Volunteer from the Glorious Days

8/24/2018 09:57:01 am

What a sad state of affairs when we as parents must tell our children to avoid the priests at their school and parish..

I have seen with my own eyes the damage the Daniel B. has wrecked in the SSJ community. No more long waiting lists at a high ranked Catholic school. Empty pews. Paid staff afraid to speak up...or speak at all. Most abhorrent is the anger and division he has instilled within the parish family. There are long time friends and neighbors who outwardly shun others because of his hateful rhetoric. Is this Being Christ? That you would let such a hate-filled & small man influence you to turn your back on friends and neighbors of 30+ years?

I volunteered at the school and parish for over 20 years because I loved my parish family. The priests at the time encouraged that love, as we all held each other in faith and respect. While no priest, or person, is perfect, the previous environment allowed everyone to come to the table.That is community. Daniel brings nothing to the communal table except lies, deceit, discord, hate, and anger. He is a pathetic man. While he may deserve my sympathy and prayers for his pain, he certainly does not deserve my respect as he continues to burn SSJ into the proverbial ground while encouraging hate and distrust among the community.

Love thy neighbors - new and old! We have not changed! Do not let Daniel infect you with his ego driven hate and anger.

SSJ mom M

8/24/2018 02:38:50 pm

Did anyone read the recent bulletin ? They went to Disneyland for their faculty meeting. I am speechless. They claim the enrollment is low and they are cutting costs by firing people and canceling school programs such as art and Spanish and yet they can afford to have a meeting at Disneyland????!!!!!! Really ???!!!!! So instead of taking our kids to Disneyland we are paying for O and Daniel ?! Couldn’t they have this lame meeting at Colman Hall ???? Oh and she says it wasn’t fun it was all Work, how cute !!!! This new sassy principal is for sure a princess.

SSJ mom O

8/24/2018 02:48:46 pm

I heard the diocese are conducting an investigation, is this true ? I heard it’s just for show and that they are telling people that they can’t stay anonymous, in other words they only want to know the names of whoever is complaining and then go back and claim that they found nothing against Father Daniel as if nothing happened.

8/24/2018 04:00:25 pm

IMPORTANT NOTE:

No Catholic diocese can force anyone to reveal their identity in cases involving alleged abuse by a priest. Anonymity is a standard practice that every single U.S. diocese respects and abides by. Anything less by the church is an attempt to control the narrative and silence its critics.

Beware of arguments that claim only survivors of clergy sexual abuse can use anonymity when bringing allegations against a priest. These claims are false and misleading. Abuse is abuse. And SSJ parishioners are survivors of Daniel Barica's abusive behavior.

As such, you have the right to protect yourselves and your families from the likelihood of retaliation by the diocese, your pastor, and any of his supporters/enablers. Punishing those who disagree is a practice that stretches back decades, if not centuries.

I believe the diocese and Franciscans have lost all credibility and should not be trusted to launch any investigation of the SSJ crisis. It has been my experience to question any inquiry conducted by the church without the direct input and active participation of the laity as equal partners--including those who have been profoundly harmed.

At this point, it seems clear that the removal of Daniel Barica as pastor, facilitation by professionals for parishioner recovery and well being, and a totally independent study of the SSJ scandal is the only way for this or any other wounded community to begin to find peace and justice.

SSJ is your church. As the faithful in the pews you are a powerful presence. Continue to be seen and heard.

Mom E

8/24/2018 05:51:06 pm

Disneyland !!!! I read the bulletin and am pretty furious. We want Crystal back. She only went to Disneyland with the kids when they won the auction tickets other than that she had been sitting in her office and working. This new principal is getting on my nerves already.

Mens Club member

8/24/2018 07:19:55 pm

An open letter to the new SSJ Principal:

I have kept quiet since I wrote about what Mel Jurisich told us at a retreat about Fr Daniel. I did not like how they handled this back then. I received the email with the Sunday Bulletin today and I had to speak. What you wrote continues to mishandle and enable the situation. Stop protecting him. Please! It is easy to tell you want us to be complicit and keep our mouths shut. Did Fr Daniel review your message ad make changes? It sure sounds like he did.

We all know school enrollment is down and families stopped donating because of dictator Fr Daniel. He decides to cut staff and expenses and then takes everyone to such an expensive place like Disneyland? Knott’s Berry Farm is about half the price. The zoo or a museum are even less. The beach or Coleman Hall are free. The Mens Club could have hired a magician for you. What you both did is irresponsible. Ms. Pinkofsky never would have wasted so much money. We need an apology.

“I have witnessed His ability to make us believe anything is possible, even during the most trying of times.” We are a church. Why are we experiencing trying times in our church, and not love thy neighbor new and old like the OD Volunteer wrote?

There were no trying times until Fr Daniel came here. I miss the glorious days too when we would have coffee and donuts Saturday mornings behind Coleman Hall, our grandkids were not yelled at, they could play on the playground and we were allowed to host a visit by Santa every year. I feel more like his subject than his parishioner.

We need to better understand what you wrote so here are more questions:

“As we journey through this transition, Fr. Daniel and I are united in our vision of a collective community.”
1) Does this mean you agree to the past school firings like Russ Smith and Ms. Pinkofsky?
2) Should he be able to fire whoever he wants in the future?
3) Do you think St Francis would have fired a teacher?
4) Do you care if school enrollment goes down like he told the marketing committee?
5) If you are united in your vision, does that mean you agree that any other religion is a cult like he told all the parents in the Eucharistic meeting?
6) Before you were hired, did Fr Daniel or the diocese disclose any complaints to you about him from SSJ, Santa Barbara or the people in Los Angeles?
7) Is not telling you about all those past complaints giving you stress and anxiety?
8) Will you file a workers comp claim if the stress makes it impossible to do your job as you expected, including dealing with complaints?
9) Are you afraid of retaliation by him if you don’t appear to agree and enable his non-Catholic statements and behavior?

Then you talk about the staff having a “united front”.
10) Are you requiring everyone else on staff to be quiet enablers of his harassment and abuse too, even Mrs. C in the parish office who wrote how hated Fr Daniel is?
11) If you do not allow staff to speak their mind as a condition of continued employment, are you exposing SSJ to costly employee lawsuits from people who get fired for openly disagreeing with how he treats people and children?

“You might be wondering how you can best support our efforts. It is quite simple. Let’s become one. A large, supportive community is the best way to allow God to make all things possible at SSJ.”
12) Is what you are really saying - shut up and support him no matter how horrific he is?
13) You want us to be obedient Catholics and quiet enablers too so he can cause further damage at SSJ?
14) If he was a celebrity, politician or football coach would you tell us to keep quiet about his abusive behavior?

A few more questions:
15) How much did the Disneyland trip cost with food and parking? Did the school parents pay for it out of their tuition or did we the parishioners end up paying out of our donations?
16) Please look in the records because we want to know how many school children were transferred out of SSJ before 8th grade between 2012 when Fr Daniel arrived and today?
17) Right now, how many vacant spots are there in each grade at the school?
18) How many parishioners stopped donating between 2012 when Fr Daniel arrived and today?
19) Will 18 year olds still be expected to start donating on a regular basis if they want anything in return, like getting married in our church one day?
20) To be open and inviting, will you take down the fence around the playground? I hope you realize it is a dangerous trap if kids need to run from danger. The potential liability is great if a child cannot escape and something happens to him or her.
21) Did Fr Daniel write, review or edit your Sunday message?
Some of A.F.’s questions above I cut and pasted because these are important questions too:
22) Has Fr Daniel received anger management training, therapy, disciplinary action, or reprimand of any kind?
23) Has he had psychological or psychiatric appointments or tes

8/24/2018 07:21:19 pm

23) Has he had psychological or psychiatric appointments or testing?
24) Has he been diagnosed as a narcissist or any other personality or mental disorder?
25) Or depression?
26) What kind of medications are prescribed to him?
27) How much alcohol does he consume?
28) Did Fr Daniel steal from our donations?
29) Is Fr Daniel having an affair per Heather Blake?

“Forming a collaborative union between school and parish is the bridge that will allow Him to be present for all of us throughout this school year and beyond.”

Collaborative union means you must be open and collaborate with us in the parish. So please reply on this blog with your answers so we can all read what you have to say. Or if you really want to be open, put your answers in next week’s bulletin.

Thank you for doing the right thing as a Catholic just like what Jesus would do - not what Fr Daniel orders you to do.

5th grade mom

8/24/2018 09:25:47 pm

Ms. Obannion: Really, Disneyland? I won’t call you doctor until you acknowledge and apologize for the hurt he has caused us. I can see through your eloquent Christian words about allowing God to handle the situation. Don’t brain wash us to stop because we will not until he is gone like they did at his other places. God is testing you right now. You have to report anything he has done that is not what you would expect of a priest. Talk to the teachers in a safe environment so they tell you what they have witnessed these last few years because I know first hand they are afraid to do it themselves. Include everything they say in your report. Keep them safe from retaliation.
God wants to also see if you will honor your promise in your email to everyone at the school when you said: “Our approach to parent communication is transparency and we promise to do our very best to keep the lines of communication clear and open.”
We are commanded by God to tell the truth and not sin. We want to know the truthful answers to all these questions too. Not answering is not being truthful either. Don’t hide anything any more. I hope you realize once school starts you have to look at us while you are talking. Don’t pretend there is no elephant in the room. I talk to many other moms and we all want to know what is going on. Honor you promise to be open with us. Then I will call you doctor.

SSJ Mom

8/24/2018 09:52:12 pm

I am so sorry but this O’bannion should shut her mouth up and stop talking about Catholic values. I am sure all of you have seen her inappropriate photos on social media. My boys were giggling while looking at her photos with her boobs all shown and guys all over her or the ones with the alcohol. I wonder if father Daniel had seen any of those photos. Who knows maybe he did and that’s why he hired her.

Tony C

8/26/2018 12:32:07 am

Maybe he did not just see the photos but the real ones at Disneyland. Did they sit together in Space Mountain with his sexual energy touching her backside? It's pretty dark in there. I read he became a priest at 40. He dropped sex cold after all those years of doing it? Don't bet on it. He already ruined my marriage. After he is done with Mary, this new principal and her nice boobs on Facebook might be his future ex victim.

The most expensive place on earth

8/25/2018 07:20:54 am

I am so mad at this new principal and fr Daniel. I couldn’t afford to take my daughters to Disneyland this summer and they went there for a meeting. This is disrespectful, inappropriate and unfair to all the parents who work hard to put their kids in this school and have to listen to their complaints on how low the enrollment is and their constant requests for donations. I miss Mrs Pinkofsky if she was still our principal there is no way on earth she would’ve allowed this to happen.

SSJ mom RS

8/25/2018 08:34:45 am

Edutainment. What a joke! Don't beg for any more donations or a minute of my time helping out in the classroom anymore. I am going to boycott anything extra. I never missed the auction but that is off the calendar too. What did your bonding time cost us? I have an idea. How about we start the first day of school with edutainment by taking all of us to Dland. With all we pay whats a few hundred per family? Or will there not be enough left over for dictator daniel to spend on more of his vacations he tries to pawn off as working photography trips. Vow of poverty? He sure lives the good life here. I would like to see what expense reimbursements he makes us pay for too.

Dad who is Mad.

8/25/2018 09:33:38 am

More accurate description is Dicktator Daniel.

Amy L.

8/27/2018 05:16:12 pm

Wow! I am glad another parent told me about this blog because there are 2 things Father Daniel said that upsets me still. My son and I were at his mass in October of 2015. During the sermon, he was pressuring the parents almost demanding that each family offer up one son to become a priest. It was very uncomfortable. I only have one son so I was offended by this. Then in early 2016 he said something much worse. My son’s confirmation group was together at 5 o’clock mass. During the sermon Father Daniel asked the congregation what a home was and someone said “love”. He then said these words I can’t get out of my brain “I am not talking about love in a hotel room.” My mouth hit the floor. The kids laughed at this thoroughly inappropriate remark. I am sure many other parents remember this too. This is a perverted statement made by a sick man. I pulled my son from SSJ school and stopped going to church there after that sermon.

I work with Mrs C

8/27/2018 06:12:20 pm

Demands are being made for Pope Francis to resign over protecting an abuser. SSJ has concealed and protected our own abuser for years even though there are complaints about Father Daniel from us and many people: Heather Blake, Rachel Chu, Regina Flores, Dan Hart, Rob Tritz, Dave Genova, Patrick Bell, Barbara Hayden, Nancy Thornhill, Ceasar VonWeninger, Jim Ortale, Frank Leingang, Nicole Hunt, Russ Smith, and many others. Tritz and Genova are two of many families that pulled their kids from our school specifically due to Father Daniel’s abusive behavior. We are not allowed to say anything public so ask these families about this to help you understand why our enrollment is so low. It is very depressing around here. Rob Tritz is the former son-in-law of Chuck Linnen so you can also ask Chuck why his grandkids do not go to SSJ school anymore.

I read many complaints the office received from people who signed their name or were anonymous. There are written complaints about abuse, harassment, yelling, mocking children, his sexual sermon, the affair and embezzlement of funds. Now with thousands of tuition and donation money spent on Disneyland, we are getting complaints about misappropriation of funds too. It is pretty serious.

Like the Pope, on behalf of our staff, this is a formal demand for the following to resign by protecting Father Daniel and not making all the complaints from his last three churches transparent and public:
Provincial Minister: Fr. David Gaa
Provincial Vical: Fr. Martin Ibarra
Secretary: Fr. Tom West
Treasurer: Fr. Mel Jurisich
Provincial Definitors: Fr. John Gutierrez, Fr. Anthony Garibaldi, Fr. Joe Schwab, Fr. Garrett Galvin, Fr. Bill Minkle, and Fr. Dan Lackie.
Sts. Simon and Jude Staff: Fr. Vincent Nguyen, Fr Ryan Thornton, Deacon Steven Byars, Colleen Murray, Shirl Giacomi, Mark Purcell, Maureen O’Day, Richard Ballesteros and Colette O’Bannion

We the teachers and staff at SSJ are afraid to come forward and be fired like Russ. To help us, please stop donating and volunteering until Father Daniel and his protectors are purged from our parish.

SSJ family from the good old days

8/28/2018 01:28:27 pm

They should all resign! I heard about all this from another family we used to go here with. Our kids graduated from SSJ but they won’t set foot in that church anymore. They told us almost no one they graduated with goes there either. Your tuition will have to rise as attendance keeps dropping. The news about the Pope visit to Ireland last week said regular church goers there dropped from 90% to only 31%. Having a crank of a priest can't be good for attendance.
Talk to some graduates yourself about this. Our kids told us we wasted our money sending them to SSJ. They will not get married there and they won’t go to any reunions. We figure with all the fundraising, we paid SSJ around $160,000. We wish we had that money back. If we put it into their college funds they would not have such big student loans.
Families move into this area because the public schools are exceptional. With what I heard about kids leaving, yours probably already have SSJ friends that transferred to those schools. You still have time to register but you can transfer anytime after school starts too.
Here is some financial advice, put your kid’s tuition into their college fund instead so they are not in such big debt when they graduate. Then maybe they can buy a condo instead of paying back their student loan.

Not the same SSJ

8/30/2018 06:23:16 am

This is not the same school anymore. Lots of dumb rules and many unnecessary changes. The principal’s office has no blinds so if your kid gets in trouble the whole school will know. I wanted to meet with her but my kids told me not to because their friends will think they got in trouble if they see me in there. Father Daniel is all over the place which makes us all uncomfortable. The classes are empty. We are all waiting for the diocese to do something . All I can say is that it’s pretty sad.

8/30/2018 10:37:28 am

Yes, they took the blinds down on purpose to deter people! Remember they want to keep everyone quiet, us employees too. Colette and Father Daniel are both reading this so whatever you or the students or anyone wants to tell them, say it here. After all, Colette’s email promised to keep the lines of communication open. It does not get more open than right here. We should all see what everyone else is feeling. Notice that there is not one comment that supports Father Daniel. I doubt anyone wants to be named as one of his enablers anyway. That would be like supporting Harvey Weinstein.

It’s all Daniel

8/30/2018 06:39:16 am

All the new rules and changes are Daniel’s. This Dr O is his marionette. What bothers me the most is that we can’t go to mass with our children. He’s trying to force us to go on Sundays to fill up those empty pews. I also hate the new office structure. The only reason we stayed at SSJ is that my daughter is graduating this year. Good luck to all of you who have small children.

Voice your concerns

8/30/2018 06:02:22 pm

Okay so pass this along.

You can email Dr. Erin Barisano at ebarisano@rcbo.org with concerns. She is the superintendent of OC Catholic Schools. You can also call 714 282 3056.

8/30/2018 09:20:02 pm

If you do not want to be identified tell The Worthy Adversary how you feel and she will report to the diocese for you. joelle@casteix.com or call her at (949)322-7434 She already wrote about Fr Daniel being a potential predatory groomer. Very creepy.
http://theworthyadversary.com/3704-ssj-grooming

8/31/2018 04:24:10 pm

Well it has been a week since I asked the questions of the principal. $500 and a beer at the next Mens Club meeting says Fr Daniel did not allow her to answer me even though she promised being open and transparent. The person who works with Mrs C in the church office said they are both reading this blog. No answer here or on this weeks bulletin which would have been the most transparent to the parish.

I got today’s email of the bulletin and the message came from Fr Daniel instead. Its another doozie! Not quite as bad as calling people cowards but he is talking about change again as if we must accept his change ways - or hit the highway and go to some other church.

What he wrote really shows his hypocrisy. He has been telling us what to do ever since he came here. In this message, now he is telling us to act differently than he acts.
“It is so easy to LOOK religious. It takes great dedication, discipline, mindfulness and love to truly BE religious and to grow in holiness. Sometimes that means change is necessary. As the author of the letter of James implies, it is all about being DOERS of the word, not just hearers of it, so as to avoid empty ritual. May God guide us all in holy change!”

Yes he looks religious when he wears his vestments at mass. But when he opens his mouth, he is not a doer of the word. I looked back on some of the comments:
Firing employees, yelling at children, having an affair, putting oil on himself while standing naked, stealing from the collection, calling other religions a cult, mocking people, anger, spending our SSJ money on a trip to Disneyland, and causing emotional distress on people is not being a doer of the word.

Former Men's Club board member

8/31/2018 05:13:09 pm

All of us real old-timers of the Men’s Club are sick of his changes and telling us what to do. We can’t bring smiles to kids faces any more with Santa at Christmas that made us all mad. We got along for 40 years without him just fine. He better go away before I die.

SSJ mom L

9/1/2018 09:41:13 am

In my opinion, the one who ruined SSJ is this Mary. She’s the one who turned Daniel against the Principal and teachers by planting her evil ideas in his head. I couldn’t look at her ugly face last week but another mom told me that her wrinkles tripled and her eyebrows looked scary. The school is not the same , lots of students have left, the mass was empty and dull, teachers look sad and Daniel bores us to death. Moms couldn’t sit next to their children. Lots and lots of unnecessary changes and rigid rules. My heart aches for this beautiful community.

Martha

9/4/2018 09:15:15 pm

Daniel Barica is the one to blame for what is happening to SSJ and you can check his history and speak to people from other places where he was. It takes two to tango, but as a priest he had no rights to have a relationship with a woman who was married. He knows what he has done and hope he went to confession. What about the other priests who just turn the other cheek and act as if everything is ok? It sickens me....the entire thing. He is a bad example and should not be in charge of SSJ and all these families.
PLEASE DO NOT DONATE TO SSJ ANYMORE UNTIL BARICA IS GONE

Catholic

9/1/2018 10:30:11 am

Ezekiel, Chapter 34: Parable of the Shepherds
Proverbs, Chapter 3: Confidence in God leads to Prosperity

Holy Mary, Mother of God,
Ora Pro Nobis

9/1/2018 11:50:07 am

Excerpt from "An Open Letter from Young Catholics" August 8, 2018
www.firstthings.com

“As Catholics, we believe that the Church’s teaching on human nature and sexuality is life-giving and leads to holiness. We believe that just as there is no room for adultery in marriages, so there is no room for adultery against the Bride of Christ. We need bishops to make clear that any acts of sexual abuse or clerical unchastity degrades the priesthood and gravely harms the Church.”

Creepy statement about "love in a hotel room" by a priest.

Holy Mary, Mother of God,
Ora Pro Nobis

SSJ mom who won't be stopped

9/2/2018 02:41:22 am

It is incredibly frustrating to be part of the SSJ community these days! As a parent at the school, I want to do the best I can for my kids, but now I question myself every day.

I believe we still have a great school, and the kids are getting a great education. The changes hurt, but aren’t all bad. Changes need to be made for progress, but unfortunately many of the changes that were made were strictly Fr. Daniel being vindictive. It is hard to teach our kids about kindness when they are not witnessing it. The older kids know what has happened, and have no respect for the administration because of it. There is no way to explain away some of the decisions that have been made!

It is sad that nothing has been done YET to remove Fr. Daniel from our parish, but I believe we need to keep at it and expressing our hurt, anger and disappointment in the way our community has been damaged. The following is a list of all of the directors at the Diocese of Orange, and other players who can help influence change.

In light of the recent actions in Pennsylvania, the church has become more vocal (after years of quiet) against the abuse. These passages are directly from Bishop Vann’s letter in response to the rulings:
“I appreciate the righteous anger expressed toward those who have failed to follow due process and the demands of accountability. I also want to assure you that I am committed to join with my brother bishops to address these failings.”
“Unequivocally, I join my brother bishops who have already spoken out to identify the root cause as a crisis in holiness. Shepherds who sincerely seek the Lord do not abuse the power that Our Lord has entrusted to them. Those who abuse this holy office fail Christ and his Church.”

This is our chance to demand the change Bishop Vann is promising and keep at it until something is done to protect our community. I encourage everyone to use the links below and bombard their offices with our tales of what is happening. We assume they know, but do they? Fr. Daniel is parading around campus like he doesn’t have a care in the world, so clearly nothing has been said to him.

If we stick together we can protect our school. If people roll over and run away, Fr. Daniel wins and nothing good will come from that!

Bishop Kevin Vann
MBungcag@rcbo.org (no direct email listed for him)

Dr. Erin Barisano, Superintendent of Schools
(714) 282-3056
ebarisano@rcbo.org

Ms. Sally Todd- Associate Superintendent
(714) 282-3056
stodd@rcbo.org

Thomas Burnham, Chief Human Resources Officer
714-282-3023
tburnham@rcbo.org

Rev. Patrick Rudolph, Episcopal Vicar for Priests
714-282-3053
prudolph@rcbo.org

Norma Aguero, Director-Child and Youth Protection office
714-282-3125
naguero@rcbo.org

Sylvia Palda, LMFT, Victim Assistance Coordinator (VAC)
949-244-5781
palda.sylvia@gmail.com

Angelica Jochim, MFT
Pastoral Outreach Coordinator
Franciscan Office of Pastoral Outreach
PO Box 1137
Sebastopol, CA 95473
1 800 770-8013
angelica.jochim@gmail.com

Joelle at The Worthy Adversary: jcasteix@gmail.com

Another SSJ mom

9/4/2018 01:16:02 pm

SSJ Mom I just saw this. Thank goodness I was told to check out this site by a friend. You point out a promise that Bishop Vann is not keeping. What he wrote sounds so warm and fuzzy but he is an outright liar. I know because I complained to him about abuses by Daniel several times long ago and he did nothing. Other parishioners told me they complained to him too. He promises “unequivocally” he will not tolerate abuse of power. Why do you think kids have been expelled and teachers like Russ Smith and Trent Amelotte are gone? The parents and teachers complained Daniel abuses his power. Proof of this is he did exactly what Trent and Russ said he does – abused his power by retaliating for their disobedience to him. What priest fires a teacher on any planet? Then stands there when I see him at church with his kids and tells them to do unto others. If he is doing unto others he needs to fire himself. And stop using oil all over his naked body after a shower. Now when he is saying mass I can't help imagine him in the nude the whole time with his weiner staring at me. Although I am divorced, he is definitely not my type.

One more ...

9/4/2018 08:31:04 pm

Write letters also to Dr. Pia de Solenni, chancellor of the Diocese of Orange in California, she was on Catholic TV to explain why her diocese's model of "radical transparency" might be the best way for the church to recover from recent clergy abuse scandals.

Me Too

9/2/2018 10:02:04 am

"Unless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build. Unless the LORD guard the city, in vain does the guard keep watch."
Psalm 127:1

I agree with SSJ Mom Who Won't Be Stopped. We are called to do the right thing.

"We going to have to demand that the unfaithful clergy stop all spiritual abuse of the flock, before it becomes sexual abuse. And if they won't stop or step down voluntarily, then we must go to whatever lengths that are within the realm of justice to stop them."

"The worst, most diabolical, most evil form of clericalism is a priest, bishop, archbishop or cardinal staying in the Church and willfully abusing the authority given to him by Christ when he himself doesn't even believe and submit to what the Church teaches. His own spirit of dissent is a suicide pact with Satan and a death warrant for the souls who follow in his filthy footsteps."

"The root cause of the clergy sex abuse scandal is the willful spirit of dissent from the teachings of Christ, as safeguarded by his Church, and the disobedience that - left unchecked - naturally and inevitably flows from the dissent ... to the great destruction of innocent bodies and souls."

Pray the Rosary daily, Catholic Faithful ...Fidelity to Jesus is up to each person.

As for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.

SSJ Teacher

9/3/2018 07:53:43 am

I was hesitant to comment on this blog but I finally decided to write something. First, the new principal has nothing to do with the rules it’s all father Daniel. Second, father Daniel wants peace and quiet so he is doing his best to gradually turn SSJ into a military school. Third, everyone is watching his back because you can lose your job any second if you dare to criticize him. It is definitely not the same community and don’t count on the diocese all you guys can do is pray for a miracle.

SSJ family MD

9/4/2018 09:06:37 pm

All everyone can do is pray for a miracle? Like praying for a car accident to take him out? If teachers wait to stop his abuses on our children you will probably lose your jobs anyway because there won’t be enough of us school families left to pay your salary. I disagree about Colette, she has everything to do with the rules. She either needs to be transparent with us like she said she would and go on record to demand the Franciscans remove him, or she needs to stop enabling him and quit. The same applies to you and all the other teachers. If you are afraid to criticize him than you are his enablers too. The teachers need to fight him together like the people did in Santa Barbara. There is no school without you showing up. Go on strike for a few days or have a sit-in like I read they did in Los Angeles to get him moved out. You can't be afraid of him! If you and Colette are afraid, you are enabling more mental and spiritual abuse of your own students. You are also putting a wedge in their faith by looking the other way! Those precious students are way more important to protect than your jobs. Shame on you teachers for allowing this scourge on our children.

Reform

9/3/2018 09:15:10 am

Reach out to these individuals on Bishop Vann's Oversight Review Board:

Ron Lowenberg, Chairman
Honorable Michael Brenner, Ret.
James Burns
Joseph Cervantes, PhD.
William J. Collins, M.D.
Rev. Bruce Patterson
Darlyne Pettinicchio
Tim Petropulos
Sr. Kathleen Marie Pughe, CSJ
Victor Quiros
Diane Gomez-Valenzuela
Jackie Gomez-Whiteley

Staff:
Rev. Msgr. Stephen Doktorczyk, Promoter of Justice
Rev. Daniel Reader
Rev. Steve Sallor, V.G.
Marianne Bungcag, Recording Secretary

Money talks

9/3/2018 01:54:03 pm

Complain to whoever you can and stop donating. The diocese will take notice if the money stops flowing in.

Wisdom

9/4/2018 10:21:18 am

Must-Watch Video: How to Recognize Judas in Your Midst
Fr. John Lankeit, rector of Ss. Simon and Jude Cathedral in Phoenix, delivered this powerful homily on Aug. 26.

9/4/2018 09:41:49 pm

Just watched it and think that we all need to speak boldly and go forth to share this homily with all. Fr. Lankeit is at SSJ in Phoenix!!! What a powerful and bold homily. Please: TELL EVERYONE NOT TO DONATE UNTIL BARICA IS GONE!

SSJ Parent

9/4/2018 11:34:58 am

Did they cancel the morning assembly ?! I used to rely on it to get all of the school’s updates. And what’s up with the principal’s short dresses. I admit she has a beautiful set of legs but it’s a catholic school for goodness sake.

SSJ parent too

9/4/2018 12:34:07 pm

Why do you think our "priest" hired her. I bet he liked her hot legs better than her brain. Her tata's are pretty hot too. Heather Blake announced he is already in an affair with 3rd grade mom Mary M. And I see on a comment he became a priest at 40. No wonder he has all that sex enegy how could he quit cold turkey. Alot of married woman are attracted to priests because their husbands will never suspect and the priest isn't going to tell on his wife because he will lose his job. Pretty sick. The priest gets her in the daytime while everyone else is occupied at school and the husband gets leftovers at night.

SSJ parent

9/4/2018 06:38:48 pm

Wow. Fr. John Lankeit's homily on 8/26 was powerful. His homily from last Sunday 9/2 was more powerful - we need more courageous and faithful priests like him to speak the truth.

Not "Father" Daniel

9/5/2018 02:19:59 pm

Matthew 23:9 “And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.”

9/5/2018 03:05:04 pm

Yes we should not call them father. Because of what one of them said I think they talked to each other about something confidential. From now on I will confess to Jesus, not priests I can't trust anymore. I know many SSJ groups and teachers who are very very upset about what we are going through. Dan Lackie should be disciplined for not telling us how angry the people in Santa Barbara were at Daniel. He is a dicktator allright.

SSJ Mom D.F

9/6/2018 07:21:03 am

What makes me sick is all the chaos that’s going on right now. SSJ was never this unorganized. The office is packed with puzzled parents. The teachers aren’t sure what to do, you ask them a question and they stare at you as if you’re talking gibberish. You hear rumors here and there. Nothing confirmed. Mrs Pinkofsky used to brief us on what’s going on at school during the Monday assembly, this new principal is walking around waving at us as if we’re in a Disneyland parade.

SSJ employee

9/6/2018 08:44:49 am

I can’t help but see the similarities of the chaos you talk about at SSJ to the news about the White House today. In the August 5 bulletin, Barica calls people who write anonymously “cowardly snipers” who shoot from behind the anonymity of the internet. Trump says the anonymous person who wrote the Op Ed about what is going on behind the scenes in the White House “gutless”. His Press Secretary Huckabee called the writer a “coward” who should resign. Mrs C and other SSJ employees are posting anonymously because of what he has done to SSJ. We don’t want to be attacked by this fake “holy man” and lose our jobs. We have to pay the mortgage and feed our families. What we are doing is not cowardly. It is a brave act to seek accountability for abuse and his enablers while keeping our families safe from retaliation. If we fail to call out abuse and pretend everything is great, now that would be cowardly.

4 decades as a mens club volunteer

9/6/2018 09:31:30 am

Reform, you wrote a list of people to contact above but watch out for Ron Lowenberg! He is not just the Chairman of the Diocese Oversight Review Board, he has been on our Finance Council. Mark Purcell discussed the embezzlement by Daniel but instead of running a full investigation, Lowenberg is another protector. What makes this more upsetting is Lowenberg is a former Chief of Police for the City of Huntington Beach. He has to investigate just like he did when he was in charge of our city. With the people he still knows there, I am sure he also knows about the current HB Code Enforcement complaint against SSJ. Lowenberg needs to tell Daniel to quickly comply with the code enforcement officers and follow the law like we all must. Last I heard, no one ever responded to the city complaint. Our church is supposed to set an example of how to be a good citizen, not break the law with code violations and embezzlement.

It gets worse, a long time ago many of us from the mens club converted the priest’s house garage into living space. Anyone who has been in the house like me for the many parties Alex, Larry and Michael used to have knows what I am talking about. When we did the work, I assumed the church went through the city but now I know they could not get a permit because garage conversions are illegal. You can still see the garage door from the outside to hide the conversion but we framed in a wall right behind it so the garage door can’t open. The space is now a drywalled and painted living room with a TV and furniture. It does not matter that the garage was converted long before Daniel arrived. He is now in charge so he must fix this and all other code violations the city is demanding. Our church cannot break any laws.

Someone who left SSJ told me Daniel breaks the law in another way. Per the Office of the Attorney General on the CA Dept. of Justice website, in order for our Festival raffle to be legal, at least 90% of the gross receipts must be kept by SSJ. That means 50/50 raffles are illegal. That also means the top 3 raffle prizes cannot be $13,000 unless they sell $130,000 in raffle tickets. But the last Stewardship report said the entire Festival only made $131,031. This amount includes raffle sales, rides, food, game booths and alcohol. To be sure to only give away 10%, the top 3 prizes must be stated as a percentage like 1st place = 5% of raffle sales, 2nd place = 3%, 3rd place = 2%.

It is bad enough that Daniel is abusive and he yelled at my grandkids and does not let us sit and have coffee anymore on Saturdays. He cannot say a sermon about how we should follow the law but ignore the laws himself. To Mark P, the guys in the mens club are real upset at you for protecting him too and not stepping in when he cancelled Santa. We want to know how much of our collection money Father Daniel took for all his vacations and going to Disneyland. Is he still skimming cash off the top before it is counted?

And I think Daniel should answer Doug’s list of questions to the principal a couple of weeks ago. Not answering is not being open like she promised us. Anybody else want to know the answers to what is going on around here? We the donors have the right to know. Or I will stop donating like a lot of other people I know.

Janet

9/7/2018 08:07:55 am

I have to say back to school night last night was pretty uncomfortable. My daughter told me about this blog when she got home from school yesterday. I am glad to see more people don't like all this. I know everyone is talking about Mary Moore and when I saw her I walked the other way. I don't know what other parents have seen this but my daughter told me most of the kids know. I don't know what the diocese is going to do but too much water has gone under the bridge already. To not be awkward all year we need a fresh start with someone else. I don't like the feeling at the school one bit.

B’s mom

9/7/2018 10:18:37 am

Back to school night was a waste of time. Dr O had nothing to say. The teachers had nothing to say. Father Daniel had nothing to say. This new principal needs to understand that SSJ is unique and she can’t enforce her rules on us and not even bother to discuss them. She had already started giving the kids warning slips for minor issues. The school feels more like a prison.

Susie B

9/7/2018 07:47:03 pm

Why is Dr O promoting Diet Coke for her talks? It sounds like an ad. We are trying to get our kids to drink healthy and they see this. Seeing her at back to school night was weird. I passed by her and it was uncomfortable. You know she shouldn’t act like nothing is wrong. She must know the parents and kids are reading this. Yes B’s mom, SSJ is a prison like you say. The mens club guy warned it will be a prison to our kids in an emergency. If something happens to mine I will never forgive Fr Daniel if they can’t run somewhere safe.

Mrs Garcia

9/7/2018 02:30:22 pm

What’s going on right now is unfair to all of us. No one is happy. I thought this Dr O was not going to make any major changes ? So far the only thing left is for her to change the school’s name.

Frame of Reference

10/14/2018 10:35:20 am

You have to understand... Principal O'Bannion has never been principal before. I'm sure she was hired at a bargain salary and she is using this opportunity to make a name for herself. She will pad her resume with all the 'accomplishments' she made in a 1-2 year period and then try to move on for more money. I personally think she is unqualified for the position (and generally a bad person to boot), but it's not entirely her fault. Those responsible for hiring her are either naïve and short sighted, or worse malicious in their intent. O is going to tear apart the school, one change at a time, and then leave. The next principal will have the unenviable task of fixing things and allowing people to heal. What no one will be able to fix is when good teachers start leaving... sometimes unexpectedly. I fear that this is the inevitable next step unless Principal O can be removed ASAP.

Not the same

9/7/2018 03:21:44 pm

Sure felt different this week not having coach smith out there greeting the kids and watching over everything as the kids made their way into school. These new changes are not what we are paying for. Why not send out a survey to the parents to see what’s working and what can be improved upon? It feels like a big storm is building and the diocese does nothing.

Definitely not the same

9/7/2018 03:28:04 pm

I say bring back Mrs. Crystal Smith and she will be able to fix everything in a heartbeat. I have known this women for years and she sure knew what she was doing when the school was under her administration.

Phil

9/7/2018 04:54:33 pm

Pretty powerful! Fr Lankeit’s homilies of Aug 19, Aug 26 and Sept 2 go head to head with the bishops by demanding they purge abusers, including spiritual abusers. He said 16 years ago, “the US Bishops established a zero-tolerance policy to deal with abuser priests.” So why hasn’t Bishop Vann enforced this zero-tolerance policy with our spiritual abuser who says he puts oil on his nude self? Lankeit is at a church in Phoenix Sts Simon and Jude www.simonjude.org Coincidence? No, not when God is answering our prayers. These homilies are on their website. Download what he said because he can help. If you want protection, ask him for the confession privilege when you write or leave him a message about your feelings. frlankeit@simonjude.org 602.242.1300 x118

9/7/2018 04:58:15 pm

More of what Fr Lankeit at Sts. Simon and Jude in Phoenix said:

“If you try to sweep evil under the rug in order to maintain appearances, it will eventually surface in a much more scandalous way...to the greater humiliation of the Church.”

“It’s doubtful that abusers and enablers start out from Day 1 as abusers and enablers. But they no doubt begin as betrayers early on. And the sooner we call them out on their small disobediences, the better chance we have of preventing a later, inevitable holocaust of the innocent. But if we support their small infidelities especially when they justify our own infidelities, and encourage them to continue, then we share, to some degree, in the havoc they wreak on innocent souls.”

“A morally bankrupt priest, on the other hand, either because of his narcissism, or because of his personal insecurities, or worse, because he feels so guilty about his own unfaithfulness—his own secret life—his own betrayal of Jesus behind closed doors—that he just doesn’t feel right challenging you to follow the same Jesus that he himself has rejected and betrayed...such a priest will have no problem sacrificing the souls of his flock, because he has no regard for his own soul. And he hands Satan a double victory!”

“The worst, most diabolical, most evil form of clericalism is a priest, bishop, archbishop or cardinal staying in the Church and willfully abusing the authority given to him by Christ when he himself doesn’t even believe and submit to what the Church teaches. His own spirit of dissent is a suicide pact with Satan and a death warrant for the souls who follow in his filthy footsteps. Such a monster may say he believes what the Church teaches. But the people of God are not stupid! If he preaches dissent; peddles his poison in books or speeches; goes to the “peripheries” not to bring back lost sheep, but to affirm them in their sin; or worse, lives a secret, sordid sexual life that flows from his dissenting heart, and wreaks havoc not only on innocent bodies, but also on innocent souls, then God help his soul when he passes from this life into the next.”

Fr Lankeit says eliminating spiritual abuse is everyone’s responsibility:
“…for those members of the laity who willingly support and encourage dissenting priests and enable their spiritual abuse, while at the same time condemning the cover-up of sex abuse, I offer you some food for thought. If you enable the evil spirits of dissent and disobedience (by a priest) to hide in your heart, then—spiritually speaking—you are just as complicit as bishops who enabled the agents of evil—the pervert priests— to hide in parishes and to continue to consume the bodies and souls of the vulnerable.” “Your choice (to call out abuse) will show how serious you are—or are not—about first purging evil from your own heart...and then helping to purge it from our Church. Because the future of the Church, and the good of the whole world—not to mention the eternal destiny of your soul—all these depend on which side you do choose.”

9/7/2018 06:54:09 pm

Another powerful homily from Father Lankeit on June 24, 2018
Nativity of John the Baptist

"Sr. Lucia, the oldest of the three child visionaries to whom Our Lady of Fatima appeared, spoke prophetic words—many years later as a nun—that show just how and why the fate of humanity hangs in the balance.

She wrote:
“...the final battle between the Lord and the reign of Satan will be about
marriage and the family. Don’t be afraid...because anyone who operates for the sanctity of marriage and the family will always be contended and opposed in every way, because this is the decisive issue...”

The prophetic spirit of John the Baptist lives on today, even as the pathetic spirit of the Evil One still holds sway in our society.

The question for each of us today is:

Does the Spirit of John the Baptist—the spirit of uncompromising faithfulness to God and the spirit of undaunted courage to share the truth with those for whom I’m responsible—live on...in me?"

Father Lankeit's homilies are spot on. The attack on "marriage and the family" is what is going on in the Church today, the spiritual abuse by unfaithful clergy and the cover-up. Laity and faithful clergy need to MAN UP and SUIT UP, into the breach. Call out the abuse and demand reform.

10/9/2018 06:43:07 pm

Father Lankeit is another enabler fake! I thought being from a church of the same name was a sign. It was - a stop sign. I asked him to help us after reading his sermon about priests who spiritually abuse their flock. His words: “When evil confronts the Church... cowards in power fall silent...or twist the truth.” “Speak the truth in a million voices. It is silence that kills.”

But when I asked for his help to speak for us who are afraid of retaliation, he said he would not. This shows his hypocrisy. He is just what he said not to be – a coward in power that stays silent.

N Jr.

9/7/2018 08:26:07 pm

This new so called security system is useless since anyone can enter at anytime from any of the outside doors, all you need to do is wait for someone to get out of the office, library, classrooms or restrooms and you’re in. Besides, you can’t protect the students during recess or P.E. Only a gate can do the trick.

Diet Coke at school

9/8/2018 06:08:17 am

So you’re telling me that soda isn’t alllowed @ school and she calls her meeting diet Coke with O” and will be having sodas with parents, what a hypocrite ? I told my daughter last night that i’ll Be going to Diet Coke with Dr O and she said how come we can’t have soda too, I said because it’s a bad example that you shouldn’t follow. As for back to school night she didn’t say anything about all the changes and didn’t even allow us to ask questions. What a mess !!

Bring Coach Smith Back

9/8/2018 06:42:05 am

SSJ isn’t the same anymore. Many many many rules to follow. No fun. We want Coach Smith back.

9/8/2018 09:06:18 am

I am disappointed with the back to school night. I thought that I’d be getting all the answers to my questions on that day but instead I left as confused as I arrived. She didn’t go over any of the changes. I asked my son’s teacher some questions but she didn’t have an answer for me. She promised to get back to me as soon as possible. Still waiting for her response.

9/8/2018 11:50:09 am

Faithful Catholics: educate yourselves on the following True Reformers of the Catholic Church and discern how to best to act as you learn more about these true saints. The following true reformers did not stay idle ...

Saint Thomas More
Saint Ignatius of Loyola
Saint Philip Neri
Saint Charles Borromeo
Saint Teresa of Avila
Saint Francis de Sales

Holy Mary, Mother of God
Ora Pro Nobis

Another from the Men's Club

9/8/2018 12:36:13 pm

I don’t know why Tom Doupe wrote in this weeks bulletin as if nothing is wrong and we are all happy in the Men’s Club. He should have asked us first. Ignoring the obvious is silent approval of this train wreck of a priest. Tom should write how upset we really are over what he did to SSJ. The people who come for an hour on Sundays won’t know. Running Moon and John Cardullo off the grounds years ago was his first mistake and ever since then we want him out. Jim Ortale was there too. After Fr. Daniel said to leave that day Jim asked “Who the hell do you think you are?” I saw Jim’s email later that said the same thing - and Jim copied Fr. Daniel in on the email. So guess what, Fr. Daniel calls Jim into his office and cries in front of him as if he is the injured one. Moon, John and Chuck Linnen were at the sex energy mass and personally heard Fr. Daniel talk about standing naked looking at himself in the mirror like he was masturbating. They talked after in front of the church but did not know what to do about it. Rudy Chavez says he is a bully. Jason McKeever does not like how he announced to the school families they can’t be on campus after 5pm or on weekends. We know Maurice Freleaux and the other teachers are not happy. Fr. Daniel told us how he hates our fundraisers like the Christmas trees because he doesn’t want the church to be a marketplace and said people have to donate instead. We did not give in to how ridiculous he is. Some of us know Barbara Hayden is a personal friend of Bishop Vann. We know she has him over for dinner and reports what is going on but the bishop ignores even her. We know Chris Sumpter quit without warning then backpedaled and called it a retirement. Usually you announce when you will be retiring to give your employer time to replace you and train the new person. But she quit suddenly it’s obvious she did not approve what Fr. Daniel does to people. We know Patrick Bell quit too because of Fr. Daniel. We know even someone as high up as Mark Purcell stopped donating. He does not approve either, he hasn't gone to any of the priest parties for years and he does not want any of his money used for Fr. Daniel’s vacations. Ask him or the accounting office about this yourself their records will show when Mark stopped. We want to know how many others cancelled their donations and the rest of the questions one of us asked the principal still won’t answer. Losing Santa really lost it for the rest of us who used to donate and we are not so enthusiastic about SSJ anymore. I don’t think Russ Smith ever forgave Fr. Daniel when he told Russ’ daughter Nicole a few years ago during baptism class (for everyone to hear) that her baby could not be baptized because she did not contribute enough money. The other parents who heard this were disgusted. Fr. Daniel knows Russ has been very upset about this confrontation with Nicole ever since. And Russ knows all about Fr. Daniel making Maureen Van Winkle, Kellie Smith and Sharon Ortale cry. How horrible can any man be? So he makes it all worse by firing Russ to get rid of an adversary who knows too much. People wanting a wedding or funeral get the same story about money he told Nicole. Unless they are regular contributors they cannot use the facilities and have to go somewhere else. This is a church not a bank. But we must be his personal bank because a lot of us stopped donating like Mark because we know about the cash he took so far and don’t trust him with our money. Some of the guys also know the lady who did not let Fr. Daniel go to her funeral. We don’t want him at our funeral either.

Murph

9/9/2018 10:33:05 am

I heard some of this but I did not know it was this bad. I am suspending my donations as of today. I left a voice mail for the priest in Phoenix to call me back too. His sermons look like they are written about fr Daniel.

9/9/2018 11:23:03 am

Watch and listen to Father Lankeit’s homily for today - it is powerful. God bless you, Father Lankeit.

Bye Bye SSJ

9/8/2018 02:58:49 pm

Thank you so much Father Daniel for ruining the school. My kids came crying yesterday telling me how awful mass is. They said Mr Freeleaux doesn’t sing anymore instead there is an old lady squealing. I stopped going to the school mass ever since they announced that parents can’t sit next to their kids. What a shame. I promised my kids that this will be our last year at SSJ. Once again Shame on you Daniel Barica.

An angry SSJ mom

9/9/2018 08:56:19 am

My well behaved, kind, reliable and extremely mannered 8th grader got a warning on his second week of school for not printing the homework. In other words, he did the homework but along with many of his classmates who didn’t know that they need to print it out. The reason is that his teacher wasn’t clear enough. In addition, they have been bombarded with a set of new rules and regulations. For goodness sake, the year barely started. Three more warnings and you get a detention. This will be my kid’s first warning ever. The question is why ruin the students last year of school for something so dumb when you could’ve just given them a verbal warning or be more clear next time while explaining what is needed to be done. To me when more than half the class gets warnings then there must be some sort of confusion which falls on the teacher’s shoulders. My kid is freaking out and can’t wait to leave the school. Is this what father Daniel and O want ? What a memory our kids will have of their last year at SSJ. So a kid who hits is the same as one who forgot to print his homework ? This O was never a principal before and will never be able to act as one. She needs to go back to her castle at Disneyland. I agree with the mom above Shame on you father Daniel.

Another angry mom and dad

9/9/2018 10:58:27 am

Dr O said during back to school night that she had left her home and family to be with us. Dear Dr O we ask you kindly to please go back to where you came from because you don’t belong to SSJ. SSJ is a loving community. We teach our kids to be kind and we give second chances. We don’t scare them and call it discipline.SSJ had a great reputation while it was under Mrs Pinkofsky’s leadership. She was a mother figure to our children. They respected her even though she never had to walk around the school waving and smiling at the students then turn around and scare the heck outta them. I blame father Daniel, the evil Mary and every single person who allowed this catastrophe to happen.

Be careful what you wish for

9/9/2018 11:02:04 am

I wasn’t a fan of Crystal. I thought she was too strict. I was super excited about the Disney princesses. Turned out that the strictvone has a year of gold and the princess is more of an evil witch.

9/9/2018 11:55:23 am

I meant to say the strict one had a heart of gold.

Mrs. Nguyen

9/9/2018 06:58:42 pm

I agree with Susie SSJ is now prison. I dont want prison fence at playset too dangerus if someone comes to hurt like Father Daniel say. Take the fence away my kids need to run from bad person. Not stuck like animals. Father Nguyen need to tell Father Daniel please! Keep my boy safe there let him run away please!

9/10/2018 01:52:58 am

Is there any way that sympathetic friends from abroad can help? Father Daniel and his supporters are naiive if they think that the problem is only noticed locally.

9/10/2018 11:12:03 am

Yes Cathy!
There is something that will help! Our province and bishop are reading this but have ignored complaints for years per Paul Fericano. Please email the link to this blog to the rest of the Franciscan leaders around the world. We need them to be aware of the damage this Province is doing to the reputation of all Franciscans by not removing an angry and abusive man. You can CC them all one email so they know everyone got it. If any of us do this we will be identified and retaliated against. Thank you! Most of heir emails are on this link:
https://www.nafra-sfo.org/cnsa/2018ProvincialLeadership.pdf

9/10/2018 11:18:46 am

Sorry..their emails.
If you want, please copy and paste what you wrote to them so we all can see and be transparent with each other like they are supposed to be. Thank you again!

Dr O’s Newsletter

9/10/2018 06:18:48 am

The school’s weekly newsletter had turned into a daily dairy written by O. Dr O lists her daily interactions and favorite memories of the week instead of informing us about school’s updates and important news. She totally ignored the 8th graders warnings. This is unacceptable to me and I sure hope it stops because I already got bored and tired of this bologna.

Dr O’s Daily Journal

9/10/2018 07:17:55 am

This is not a newsletter it’s O’s journal. She needs to take a look at a sample of Mrs Pinkofsky’s newsletter and learn how to properly write one. This is not the school we signed up for.

Diet Coke with O

9/10/2018 12:49:29 pm

Dr O confessed today that all the decisions were made by Daniel. She said it loud and clear that she had nothing to do with any of those decisions even the canceling of the gem award was all Daniel. As for him he was no where to be found. The woman also said that she doesn’t check her voicemail. I will try to hold my tongue and stop at that.

GDK

9/10/2018 01:10:41 pm

My impression is that Dr O had been brainwashed by Daniel and Mary and their stooges. The way she talked about coach smith and how she indirectly criticized Mrs Smith/Pinkofsky made me think that they had given her the wrong information about those two. It’s sad to see all this hatred and bitterness in a catholic community but thanks to Daniel our community is divided and school is on its way to shut down.

9/10/2018 02:28:33 pm

GDK, look at the other blog Don't Show the Money... Mr. Smith asked to have his phone number removed! I thought he cared about the kids and wanted to help. Maybe not if they are trashing him. What did O say about him and Mrs P? Don't hold back because everything needs to come out of the darkness. Thanks for all your help.

Curious

9/11/2018 01:07:29 pm

I'm curious to know why you think Mr. Smith asking to have his personal number removed from a public blog means he doesn't care about the kids or families at SSJ. I've seen this comment twice now and don't understand why someone would say this. I am not related to this issue, but I'll tell you I'd be real upset if someone posted my personal information publicly without my permission, especially when my work contact information is so easily accessible meaning anyone can still contact me at any time.
I would be very upset to have random people,. potentially people I don't even know, contacting me on a private line when my family could be trying to get through to me for emergencies.

Another from the Men’s Club

9/11/2018 05:15:41 pm

Curious, you must be Russ Smith. Please don’t become another protector! Don’t let bishop Vann change who you are and how upset you told us you are about all the damage Fr. Daniel has done to SSJ. You know more than anyone all the history and the upset teachers and students. From the very first Men’s Club meeting Fr. Daniel spoke at, he told all of us in the room that if it was not for him the diocese would have to take over SSJ. That was a very bad way for him to start off. As if we had to deal with him or else. Looking back, our church and our school would have been better off with a diocesan priest. Oh, then he threatened to not let us have alcohol at our monthly meetings in Coleman Hall. You of all people know that would have started a mutiny. You have been to many Men’s Club meetings and told several of us some pretty terrible stories about what Fr. Daniel has done to people and teachers including your own daughter. Your number is not private because a lot of us already have it. Kids and parents need to be able to tell you how they feel without worrying about their phone calls to the diocese being recorded. Kids trust you. Please keep that trust by talking to them on your phone and stopping by for anyone who needs to talk. They need you to get through their anxiety for this school year. A kid texting you is not going to tie up your phone line in an emergency. And call waiting lets you see who is calling if you are on the phone. Your help and support for these kids by telling bishop Vann everything you know about Fr. Daniel is more important than anything right now. Ask the bishop to start a full investigation into the complaints and the money Fr. Daniel took to fund his personal lifestyle. After all that has happened we trust you not him. Please do whatever you can to stop more families from leaving SSJ so that my grandkids tuition does not go through the roof.

9/12/2018 12:12:10 pm

I'm not Mr. Smith.
I would just keep in mind that posting someone's personal contact information that has not been made public by that person and requesting that large amounts of people contact them (without their permission) could be considered harassment in a legal context, so I highly recommend against it.
If everyone posting "anonymously" on this blog stopped posting anonymously and joined forces to take action, imagine the outcome. Sounds like that's what happened in L.A. They stopped attending church and publicly protested. Stop putting all your eggs in someone else's basket for them to take care of.
If you ask yourself "Have I sacrificed as much as these people losing their jobs for speaking out?" and the answer is no, you should not be upset they aren't doing more for your cause, but instead be upset that you aren't doing more for the cause yourself.
Ask yourself, "what else can I do?" and go do it. Stop asking "why doesn't my fellow man do more?".

SSJ Mom T

9/10/2018 09:32:31 pm

I didn’t go to this Diet Coke thingy but I heard all about it. I heard that O said that the faculty’s morale was low and compared her meeting with them to attending a funeral. Well when you have a crazy lunatic running around firing people don’t expect them to be all happy and cheerful. I also want to add that no one can ever deny what Crystal and Russ had done to the school. SSJ had always been one of the top schools in HB until Daniel showed up. The staff you’re talking about used to bow with respect to Crystal and praise her day and night so if they tell you otherwise then trust me they’re lying to your face. Finally, I heard that she blamed it all on Daniel but at least we don’t get to see him much anymore hopefully it will stay that way.

A question to Dr O

9/11/2018 06:02:44 am

During the meet and greet you said that you were not going to make any major changes. This is our second week of school and so far every day we have a new change. You should be getting a warning for lying.

Elle

9/11/2018 06:13:34 am

O said that meeting with the faculty and staff was like attending a funeral, well let me tell you this Miss O. Listening to you every Monday (although you really don’t say much) is like attending a funeral. Reading you dumb newsletter is like attending a funeral. Seeing Daniel walking around the school is like attending a funeral. Kids getting warnings every single day and coming back home crying is like attending a funeral. Changing everything that we’ve moved about SSJ is like attending a funeral.

9/11/2018 06:51:24 am

I blame Crystal for being such an exceptional principal that. She raised the bar. Her newsletters were so well written and her speeches were extraordinary. Dr O will never be able to fill her shoes.

Mrs. Reyes

9/11/2018 02:00:22 pm

Here is the beginning of a CNN article a few days ago:
“A letter from a top Vatican official appears to acknowledge that the Holy See knew about sexual abuse allegations against former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick for at least several months before he was elevated to cardinal in 2001.”

On April 24, 2010 the NY Times reported:
“Documents released in a lawsuit filed against Pope Benedict XVI show that the Vatican was informed more than a year earlier than previously thought about the case of a priest who molested deaf boys for two decades at a boarding school in Wisconsin.”

Scandal at the very highest level of the Catholic Church from 2 Popes? I thought Popes are supposed to be infallible. How can they be infallible if they lie by not telling us they are covering up abuse? The court oath say we have to tell the truth, the whole truth. If you said just part of the truth in court you would be a liar for withholding information. A church and a Pope must have an even higher standard to tell the whole thruth than a court.

I always questioned why Benedict resigned because I did not know a Pope could actually resign until he did. I grew up with Popes not being replaced until they died, even if their hospice took months. I would like to know if anyone in the press put these Pope cover up stories together.

Barica is not a Cardinal but the cover up strategy is the same. Paul Fericano wrote how his employers knew about years of abuse complaints about him. Yet they still elevated him to pastor of one of the largest and richest parishes – with a school. This strategy by men who tell us to abide by the Ten Commandments is so not right.

And the bishops wonder why so many young people stop going to mass and never donate. A website called Crux takes Catholic surveys which said 74% leave between ages 10 and 20. I was stunned to read this. It says many “leave due to a slow disconnect between what they describe as ‘meaningless rules and rituals’ of the Church.” “And perhaps more troubling for the church, for every one Catholic convert, more than six Catholics leave the church.” I can tell from the small number of catechumens we now have. Add the latest sex abuse crises, the Pope being part of the cover up, and a very disturbed priest like Barica - the exit rate must be even higher at SSJ. All you need to do is look around you at mass like I do and see how old most of the parishioners are now. If the Franciscans stop protecting Barica and get another pastor that is not an angry narcissist to stop the exodus soon, in 5 or 10 years when our generation starts dying off in bigger numbers, SSJ parish and school will really be in big trouble. I hope Bishop Vann and church leaders around the world read this because they need a their own come to Jesus meeting and reality check. :Losing all those kids is not sustainable. The remaining donors cannot save the church.

Marcelle

9/11/2018 05:26:40 pm

My daughter just told me that she doesn’t like this year’s Art Program “Meet the Masters” and that she preferred Ms Eckhard way more. She told me it was more fun last year. She even told me that Spanish was better last year although she usetto be scared of Mrs Calvillo. I am not sure where SSJ is going with all of this. Father Daniel if you are reading this please stop listening to this Mary, she is a disaster. She turned SSJ into a public school just like the one she works for.

9/12/2018 07:47:31 am

Another from the mens club said they drink alcohol when they use Coleman Hall for their meetings. I already wrote about this last month. I can't stress enough how risky this is to our church and our donations. Accident lawyers make a living suing for anyone who gets injured or killed by DUI drivers. The diocese Risk Managers need to thoroughly analyze this risk vs. the very expensive cost of a liquor liability endorsement (that we also must pay for). This applies to serving beer, wine, vodka, tequila, etc at the Festival too. Even if we have liquor liability coverage, a $5 million insurance limit will not cover a $25 million wrongful death award. We might have to sell the field to a developer to be able to pay for it. (It is a separate parcel that was originally slated for more homes before Father Ron was able to buy it.) We should not take this risk and follow the lead of public schools that do not allow drinking anywhere on campus for any meeting or event.

Judge Judy

9/17/2018 11:16:54 am

You are incorrect about the Church's liability. Just google dram shop law:

California’s Civil Code Section 1714, also known as the state’s dram shop laws, protects bartenders and bar owners from liability if a person leaves their place of business, drives drunk, and hurts someone.

According to the code, “Everyone is responsible, not only for the result of his or her willful acts, but also for an injury occasioned to another by his or her want of ordinary care.” And it also goes on to say, “The furnishing of alcoholic beverages is not the proximate cause of injuries resulting from intoxication, but rather the consumption of alcoholic beverages is the proximate cause of injuries inflicted upon another by an intoxicated person.”

In short, what the code is saying is that a person is responsible for his own actions, even when he is under the influence of alcohol. And a bar, restaurant, or even private individual that served alcohol at home will not be found guilty of a felony, or be liable to compensate injured victims, if one of their guests chooses to drive while intoxicated.

There is one exception to this law. According to Section D of the code, any adult that serves alcohol to minors (those under the age of 21), may be found liable if that minor suffers or causes any injuries or death while under the influence of alcohol.

Thus, these laws, combined with insurance mean that there is little risk. Carry on.

9/20/2018 09:38:08 am

I inadvertently put my response below. See Sept 20.
As a church needing to love others, most important to consider are the victims in the other car in an accident from an impaired driver leaving the festival. As donors, we need to know if we have a liquor liability endorsement on our general liability policy, the coverage amount and how much the endorsement costs us.

Doctor O My God

9/12/2018 08:25:52 am

For all of you who remember how we celebrated 9/11 last year. It started with A memorable patriotic speech by our beloved Mrs Pinkofsky. Then the boys scout. Then once again Mrs Pinkofsky made another wonderful closing speech. The spirit was high that day. SSJ was one whole community. We were all united. We were all happy. The students were proud to watch their school’s tribute to 9/11. Going back to Dr OMG. She stood there with this blank look of hers. She did not say a single word. She was dull. I am sure she couldn’t make it as a performer that’s why she turned into a different career. However, this sad soul Daniel Barica was dumb enough to hire her. Now the school turned into a juvenile hall thanks to her. Sadly, this Dr OMG who is talking about the way girls’ dress is the same one posing half naked on the internet. Thanks again Daniel for spreading hatred and chaos wherever you go.

SSJ Dad

9/12/2018 10:48:26 am

I don’t care what Fr. Daniel did in the past, what I care about is what he’s doing now to our school. First, he hired this incompetent individual as our principal. Next, he doesn’t want to claim any responsibility for this woman’s actions. My little daughter is terrified to go to school. My wife who is pregnant is stressed out about our daughter’s hair, her shoes, if she’s tardy, her skirt. Come on Dr O seriously ? Who do you think you are ? We pay you to take care of our kids not to scare them. If this crap continues we’re out of there.

Frustrated Too

10/14/2018 10:46:06 am

I share your frustration, but we must not forget that this is our school. Not hers. She may be the mouth piece for Father Daniel, but on some level that doesn't matter. She's implementing these horrible policies and driving (and sometime successfully scaring) them away. We have to find a way to come together and have her removed before more irreparable damage is done.

Focus on the source

9/12/2018 11:10:51 am

It’s easy to pick on the messenger (Dr. O) but we need keep our attention on Fr. Daniel. If we want true change it starts with bringing in a pastor who values community, children, education, and unity. Don’t lose sight of that.

ssj mom who won't be stopped

9/13/2018 10:37:55 pm

I agree completely! Dr. O is just the messenger! We can't loose sight that Fr. Daniel is the problem!
Dr. O has definitely made some unpopular choices, like this new discipline policy- the kids are terrified! But, I think she has some good ideas and could be good for the school. We all miss Crystal, but we have to focus on the good!
Keep contacting the Diocese! Let them know we won't be stopped until Fr. Daniel is gone!!

John C

9/15/2018 01:31:12 pm

No! Mrs O (I can't call Daniel's puppet a doctor) is not just a messenger. She has the authority to stop him not just stand aside and watch. As a teacher and a doctor she must report any form of abuse and harassment to the authorities and church leaders. The same goes for the other teachers. I already said anyone protectng him must resign including Fr Lackie who never even answered Diane B's email asking for his help. He knows about this blog because Diane's email to him specifically called it to his attention. With all that is happening in the news about priests and bishops protecting each other, I never expected Fr Lackie to ignore us and pretend none of this is happening. May God have mercy on Fr Dan's soul for allowing this to continue.

Mrs Rodriguez

9/12/2018 07:28:39 pm

We should all be worried about father's past because we have a school here. I was told about this and read it. There are big red flags I wrote down that worry me too much. Father getting taken from other churches without telling us. Telling sexual things in church to kids. Or saying other religions are a cult. People crying, yelling at kids and removing money? Really father do you need money? Ask us we will give it to you. The Mens club, it looks like they know what is going on. Has father been checked out? The Catholic church is already in too much crisis we don’t need another one. Mr Smith your Associate guy who asked to have your number removed said you are reading this. That is God answering our prayers! Mr Smith please find out what is happening with father so more kids don't leave. They need you. It has gone downhill too much. I can't pay more tuition if kids are gone. And I want mine to play on the slides after church its their favorite, they are sad. Please tell father to open the gates. It is not a welcome feeling at all like father tells us to do. Thank you from my kids Mr Smith!!

Pray Not Prey

9/13/2018 12:55:10 pm

St. Augustine said, "Hope has two daughters. Their names are anger and courage; anger at the way things are, and courage to see that they do not remain the way they are."

An excerpt from Msgr. Charles Pope ...

"While no one in the Church lives the gospel perfectly, the outright denial of central truths of our faith without any reproof from the Church hierarchy has been a source of great scandal and confusion. Silence from shepherds, who should be chasing the wolves away, is malpractice of the worst kind. There is simply no acceptable excuse for the deafening silence that has come from too many in the hierarchy in the face of dissent and even outright heresy. It is being taught routinely, openly, and ever more boldly by renegade theologians, wandering clerics, and even certain conferences of bishops. The faithful are bewildered, saddened, and justifiably angry."

Daniel did it again

9/13/2018 02:01:41 pm

Once again Daniel Barica was able to mess up a whole community with his reckless behavior and irrational thinking. He hired a crazy Disney Lady who thinks that everyone works for her majesty. She bombarded us with tons of new rules and of course father Daniel is hiding under the bed. Thank you Father Daniel for all of your dumb decisions. Can you please do us a favor and leave but make sure you take Dr O with you.

Too much drama

9/13/2018 02:06:40 pm

We can’t take it anymore. There is too much drama going on at SSJ. It’s sad.

God Bless SSJ

9/13/2018 08:51:10 pm

So far about 100 kids left the school. How many more have to leave before the diocese takes notice ?

Mr. Z

9/13/2018 09:07:54 pm

I was thinking maybe the diocese wants to shut down the school and keep the parish and that’s why they sent father Daniel. Then he got rid of the smart principal and hired the doofus to get the job done before the end of the year. I am being serious about this because why else would they let him stay when it’s obvious that he can’t run the school and how could anyone with a brain hire this Dr O. I heard she told the parents if you like to be formal call me Dr O’bannion but if you prefer to be informal call me Dr O. so the Dr. Part is a given the formality lies in the last name, seriously?

Mr RL school dad

9/16/2018 11:06:48 am

Dr. Doofus. That's her new name from now on. Yes it is bullying but we have a priest who bullies so by his example it must be OK for kids and adults to do again.

Desperate Daniel

9/14/2018 05:26:46 am

Super desperate Daniel was standing in the parking lot and waving at parents and students as they were leaving school yesterday during pickup. He knows how much he’s hated and is trying to gain some sympathy. I personally don’t want him around the school, other moms thought it was a desperate plea for forgiveness after what he did to the school. Either way no one is happy with him and his new principal with her idiotic changes.

SSJ H

9/14/2018 06:43:38 am

Me and my husband thought the same thing. He must feel like an idiot after hiring this crazy lady.

9/14/2018 08:37:07 am

100 kids left? I did not know it was that many. I wrote losing kids and their future donations is not sustainable for the church. But losing this many kids is not sustainable for the school right now. With fundraising it must be $800,000 - $1 million less because of this priest. Either higher tuition or cutbacks in programs and education will have to happen to make up the shortfall. Does anyone know which the new principal will do? Cutbacks will hurt our kids but increasing tuition again will make more families leave and continue the cycle of downward spiraling.

Miss LM

9/14/2018 10:47:26 am

I know 2 of those families that left the school. One of them told me Father Daniel yelled when her kids were on the swing set. They pulled their kids not long after that. Another said the way he talks to the families something has to be mentally wrong with him. She did not want her kids exposed to whatever issues he has. She transferred her son to Eader in the middle of the school year and she said he is happier there and has more friends than he had at SSJ. Before that she had little saved up for college but now she is giving the tuition and the church donations she was forced to pay to her son’s account instead.

Leaving?

9/14/2018 12:19:48 pm

Would love to know how many plan on leaving the school if things stay as is? It will be hard to stick around if enrollment keeps dwindling and faculty continue to leave.

We are

9/14/2018 01:13:04 pm

We are definitely going to leave but we’re trying to Stick it out and see what happens till the end of the year. We’re hoping that they fire this new principal. If not we’ll go to Cox next year.

Leaving SSJ

9/14/2018 01:06:55 pm

We are planning on leaving for sure. We have three students enrolled this year.

9/14/2018 02:17:16 pm

We’re thinking of leaving too.

Child abuse

9/14/2018 01:36:15 pm

What’s going on at Sts Simon and Jude School right now is Child Abuse Period. Dr O along with Father Barica need to be accountable for the psychological maltreatment that our children are going through. I feel helpless and guilty every time I see my kid panicking about her shoes or hair or socks. It’s ridiculous, savvy and not right. We as parents are the voice of our children. Let’s fight for them against this O.

9/14/2018 03:09:25 pm

Does anyone know the latest on his affair with Mary in 3rd grade Heather Blake told us about on the Problem Priest blog? Have they been seen alone again like the time they were caught on a date watching a R rated movie together? I hope there was not a hole in the bottom of the popcorn cup. There is enough scandal going on around the world, now we have our own priest problem. But I would rather Mary relieves his sex energy he told us about in church than him abusing one of our kids. I think this man is sick and needs a thorough mental analysis. I already commented on August 20 that priests need to marry so their wives keep their buildup drained or they need to be neutered if they want to stay a priest. We must protect SSJ kids from his sexual energy. Search his name you will see the Worthy Adversary already warned us he might be a predatory groomer. Grooming Mary must be how he got her into their affair.

9/14/2018 03:25:31 pm

I see the flirting going on between them. Married woman don't go somewhere alone with another man most of all a dark movie theater. If they never said anything openly about their date like apologizing to the school that makes this affair more real.

9/14/2018 04:44:19 pm

I just read the newest bulletin in my email. Now Doug Duchene is writing as if there are no problems here. He talks about a dark period he experienced with the church. Well we are in the middle of a dark period from a priest out of the dark ages. Now that he fired Mrs. P, Fr. Daniel has free reign to discipline however he wants because the new principal does not have the balls to stand up to him. Now it falls just short of hitting kids on the knuckles with a ruler and using a paddle with the holes in it, the abuse we endured as kids in Catholic school. Doug says “I just need to look, listen and trust.” OK well listen carefully Doug… the guys know you are not happy with what is going on because you told some of us you do not agree with the changes at SSJ. And we know your sister in law Toni is not happy either. You kept silent because you wanted to protect your job but now 100 students are gone so you might lose your job anyway. Before more kids leave and our school has to cut payroll again, you must report everything you know that is not right coming from the lips of a priest. If you believe “God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are the ultimate answer” like you wrote, then do what they expect of you don’t enable an abuser. You can’t be afraid to blow the whistle on his affair or the money he took and anything else a priest should not do. Ultimately, we are all judged by God by what we do that was right. It is not right to keep quiet about every bad thing you know Daniel does.

Mrs. Volunteer

9/15/2018 10:53:04 am

A group of us was at dinner last night at the priest house. All I can say is it was very uncomfortable now that most of us know all this history about our pastor. I should have said I was sick.

OC Catholic

9/15/2018 12:55:05 pm

Too much drama in the Church and in the OC backyard at SS Simon & Jude.

What Would Jesús Do (WWJD)? I am reminded of Jesús’ radical righteous anger in the temple. After much prayer, I also think it’s time to man up, suit up into the breach. “No greater love than this ..”

“According to news reports, the church hierarchy in Pennsylvania and beyond has already denied Christ's gospel three times: once when it sheltered predators in silence; once when it failed to remove everyone who was involved in covering up any crime; and again when two of the six dioceses involved tried to shut down the grand jury investigation that produced the report. Now they face the same choice Peter did.”

“They can offer the full record of faithlessness in abject penitence, witnessing for repentance and redemption even at risk of martyrdom. Or they can deny Christ a fourth time by minimizing the past and protecting those who helped maintain that grisly silence. Which is to say, they can choose to be a millstone around the neck of the faithful — or the rock on which the church can be rebuilt.”

Fmr volunteer

9/16/2018 02:24:23 am

Under the poor excuse of a Spiritual leader Daniel and his Parish Aministator SSJ has become a place of injury,doubt,despair, darkness and sadness. The complete opposite of what St. Francis represents.
As the festival approaches, missing since Daniel's 2nd year is the much anticipated book sale. With the exception of baked goods the only thing to purchase is overpriced and common photos by Daniel. He claims he didn't want the Parish to be a market place yet he has his photo cards for sale in the parish office.
Where does that money really go?
Some transparency would be nice.
As if Daniel didn't get enough attention. 2 years ago at the festival he and the festival committee showed a complete lack of respect for our beloved Friend. Christian and his group Forever Young. They were placed in the corner by the entrance and anyone walking in had to file past them obsuring the view. Daniel of course had the entire side wall and most of the back wall displaying his photos.He didn't have the decency to keep his voice down.
There have been many posts to stop donating. How about a boycott of the festival . Hit Daniel where it hurts most(second to his ego) . I would say stage a peaceful protest across the street, but Daniel's crew would take note of who is protesting. Daniel and Colleen would retaliate. We know they are holding the parish hostage.
A few side notes; is the new organ a form of reward/payment to Mark Purcell for his silence? Does anyone else see a problem with the Parish website promoting an event which on the surface could simply be a typo or is it a break from Catholic teaching of monotheism. Nov 2 in Coleman hall a celebration of Dios de Los Muertos. Literally translated gods of the dead.

Cancelling Parish Pay

9/16/2018 08:50:38 am

You are right this darkness is the complete opposite of St Francis. Mark Purcell, Coleen Murray and Dan Lackie need to resign for allowing this to happen to our church! I already stopped my donations. I am going to say the four letter words that I think about whenever I see his majesty Daniel at the altar. I will go to confession to him so he knows who said it but he cant tell anyone: Butt Wipe.

9/17/2018 11:25:26 am

Dia de los Muertos - Day of the Dead, not Gods of the Dead. Watch Coco on Netflix and you'll learn about it.

9/20/2018 05:37:31 am

I am fully aware of what Dia de Los Muertos is. However the church website listed the event as Dios de Los Muertos unless they have bothered to fix it.

Dr O’s reflections

9/17/2018 05:50:29 am

The new principal is running out of ideas for the school’s newsletter. At the beginning she used to write about her interactions with the students now she’s telling us what the parents say to her. To me, this belongs to people magazine not a school’s newsletter. As a parent I would like to learn more about your strict rules. Your non stop changes. Your plans for this school year. What new programs will we be having? Why change programs that had already been there and were so successful ? Did you hire a marketing company yet ? Why are the teachers so afraid of you and they all look sad this year ? And so on .... I don’t need to know about how parents are struggling because we’re all aware of that and trust me I struggle too each time I read your shallow, non informative newsletters.

Shocking as always

9/17/2018 06:01:34 am

I still can not believe this O is disclosing personal information and discussing parents’ affairs in her newsletter. The mom who’s getting a divorce is a personal friend of mine and she shared this information with O privately, now it’s published for all to read. How disrespectful and rude of this O to embarrass people like this. I am not sure how we’ll be able to continue the school year with such an insensitive human being.

When Daniel makes a decision

9/17/2018 06:55:29 am

This is what happens when you put a mentally unstable person in charge he ends up hiring another mentally unstable doofus. Now SSJ has turned into a mental institution.

9/17/2018 12:46:33 pm

Yes - Dr Doofus.

Distressed Parishonier link

9/17/2018 02:43:09 pm

I read all these comments with such a heavy heart. I do not like what is happening within our Church & School community. To see such a GREAT community become so ugly makes me sick to my stomach. I not only speak of what is happening with Fr. Daniel and Ms. O but also of what is happening on this blog. So many of these comments have become incredibly ugly and extremely vicious. I completely agree 100% that the Diocese needs to made aware of what is happening within our community BUT the way you are going about it by the constant name calling and ugly comments IS NOT going to help your fight it is only going TO HURT your fight. Someone posted last week to STAY FOCUSED but you are not. Someone just posted about the Festival and how that is HUGE for the parish so why not refuse to go, donate, work etc this main event? You all say stop donating at church , this festival here could make a BIG impact. I will not be supporting the festival this year. I also recently overheard some people talking about a big function the school holds every year dinner and dancing. If you want to be heard choose not to support that. That too will make a sizable impact. So please stop with the name calling and start MAKING A STAND by ACTUALLY TAKING ACTION.

Sad Parishioner

9/18/2018 08:29:58 am

I have been reading this for a while and it is time to participate. You are right we need to stop giving our money in the basket and at the festival. But ugly words can be necessary to get the diocese attention like protesters are saying about Roger Mahony in LA. How is he still a Cardinal? How is father Daniel still a priest after the ugly he caused at SSJ? He keeps chasing away young Catholics. I see less kids on Sundays and it makes me sad for our church. If it takes calling him names to get someone to finally do something that is not as ugly as parents not being with children in heaven.

CC Daniel

9/18/2018 08:33:09 am

Daniel is the one who hired this woman. I urge everyone who has a problem or trying to contact her to CC Daniel as well. He needs to understand that parents are not happy with his dumb decision to hire this woman.

Mr. Beal

9/18/2018 12:43:37 pm

I am glad to finally see this revolt against this ‘priest’. I left not long after he came to Simon Jude. I was standing in the back of the church before mass and he made it a point to come all the way back there and in front of everybody tell me he did not want me standing. I have a back condition that makes it very difficult to sit for an hour. I told him he would not see me standing anymore because I won’t be back and I walked out. He embarrassed me. I expected a call about why I my weekly checks stopped because I wanted to tell them he is an idiot but no one ever did.

Frank C

9/19/2018 02:32:48 pm

Fmr Volunteer said Mark Purcell is too silent. I have not asked him but he must know a lot. How does he look at us with his Catholic eyes and not have guilt? Maybe he confesses to Fr. Daniel to keep it between them. All us guys in the Men’s Club look at this website. It would make me very uncomfortable to see knowing eyes looking at me from the pews. Mark should do something. Not saying anything about these writings makes him look guilty. If its not true he needs to tell us. They promise to be transparent but don’t give it. He can solve our priest problem by telling the authorities what he knows about the embezzlement scheme written in these comments. Theft from the collection by priests could be the next scandal to hit the church. And what about all the cash that comes in from the festival?

scandal indeed

9/19/2018 04:49:26 pm

From E. Christian Brugger:

"Seeing the silence, some are likely to interpret it as weakness, or cowardliness, or willingness to tolerate a culture of predation in the Church, or, worse, as a sign of secret agreement with the sinful clerical behavior and an episcopal culture of secrecy. Through the bishop’s ambiguous example, some Christians, especially those who are weak in faith or morals, may leave the Church and the sacraments, or become enemies of the Church — or worse, despair of their hope in Christ. In other words, through the bishop’s example, “the weak person is brought to destruction.”"

"We should attend carefully to the final words of St. Paul’s teaching (I replace “meat eating” with “staying silent”):

“Therefore, if staying silent causes my brother to sin, I will never stay silent again, so that I may not cause my brother to sin” (1 Corinthians 8:13).

"What Should Bishops Do?"

"In my judgment, it is reasonable to conclude that giving scandal in this way is a lively possibility in every diocese of the United States."

"A bishop who stays silent, or, worse, publishes insipid letters to be read at Sunday Mass that indicate no practical resolve to address what’s responsible for the crisis — promiscuous homosexuality, unchastity within the fraternity of priests and in seminaries, bishops not held accountable for gravely sinful behavior, clericalism and radical theological dissent against the authoritative moral teaching of the Church — gives scandal by tempting Catholics, most especially the victims of clerical predation and their loved ones (who constitute a fairly substantial population), to despair of the help of the Catholic Church in living the Christian life."

"Each and every bishop therefore should — must — ask himself:

"Do I have reason to believe that my action or inaction in response to the present crisis is likely to lead anyone around me, especially the morally and psychologically vulnerable, to sin seriously, especially by losing faith in the Catholic Church?"

"If the answer is Yes, then he has an obligation to act to obviate scandal. The obligation is grave since the matter is grave. The implications for mortal sin should be obvious."

"This may sound like bishop-bashing, but it’s not. All of us have the grave duty to avoid giving scandal: Fathers who struggle with pornography must avoid leading their sons and daughters into the same sin and tempting their wives to look elsewhere for marital-type consolation. Wives who struggle with gossip or vanity must be careful not to pass on sinful habits to their daughters or friends. Employers who lie or cook the books or backstab cause scandal by teaching subordinates to do the same."

"Please, there are enough kinds of scandal to go around. All of us have responsibility. But in the present moment, the spotlight is on the bishops."

"And let’s not forget Jesus’ warning about those who lead the little ones to stumble:

Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. Woe to the world because of things that cause sin! Such things must come, but woe to the one through whom they come! (Matthew 18:6-7)"

9/19/2018 06:24:40 pm

Hi Cathy Bryant...
Did you see what I wrote on 9-10 in reply to how you can help us by emailing the Franciscans?
You don't need to look up any more emails, just use the ones on this link there are plenty.
https://www.nafra-sfo.org/cnsa/2018ProvincialLeadership.pdf
If you can please copy and paste what you wrote them here so we are transparent like they should be. Thanks again!

9/20/2018 09:17:38 am

Judge Judy are you really a judge? If so your response is very irresponsible. I just saw this, you said to carry on as if there will be no problem when someone gets killed in an accident. We have already seen many bad accidents at the surrounding intersections where alcohol is not involved. Add a couple of drinks and the risk greatly increases. As a church, we can’t value alcohol sales over people’s lives. Think about the victims in the other car and the destruction it will cause their families. As someone who is licensed to deal with my client's risk every day this risk is real, otherwise there would be no reason for liquor liability endorsements to exist.

The alcohol at the festival is not being served inside a 21 and over bar where children are not allowed, but a very public place, a church that is supposed to be a great example to kids. The festival has open bottles of hard liquor used to mix drinks in plain view. In my years of experience dealing with insurance lawyers, I learned there is nothing absolute about the law. Ask your lawyer he or she will probably say no matter what law is written, case law supports both lawyers arguments. So they name every party possible in their lawsuit which usually includes the volunteer servers, supervisors and the corporate or private organization that should have stopped serving the DUI driver sooner. Even if it is ruled we have no liability, SSJ donors may have to shell out $500,000 to $1,000,000 to defend a $25,000,000 wrongful death lawsuit. When I donate I expect it to be used to help people, not be given to lawyers.

T.H.

9/20/2018 10:59:20 am

I already volunteered a shift in the beer booth. If I am one of the servers I can get sued? I can't pay a lawyer for this. I am going to switch to a food booth.

9/20/2018 05:35:31 pm

It's not irresponsible to cite to facts. I am not a judge, but what I have provided you are citations to laws (try Google sometime), as opposed to scare tactics. I understand that it fosters your business by frightening folks into buying insurance, but get real. No volunteer is getting sued. Even if they did, the church's insurance would have to defend them.

People must take responsibility for their own actions and should not drink and drive. Period.

You're statement that parishioners would have to pay attorneys fees is wrong also. The insurance company pays the attorneys fees. SSJ would be responsible for paying it's deductible.

Name one case where a volunteer was sued for serving alcohol at a church event. You can't. Have there been any drunk driving accidents involving someone drinking at SSJ? No. You make a lot of erroneous assumptions. And carry on means carry on reading this blog. It had nothing to do with car accidents. Another exaggeration and non sequitur. Just admit you're wrong and stop trying to paint doom and gloom scenarios.

9/20/2018 06:08:04 pm

I am not trying to sell insurance. I am not trying to get into an argument. I am just talking about risk donors should think about. For example, we don’t know if we have a liquor liability endorsement on our general liability policy, the coverage limit and how much the endorsement costs us. That is like driving your car on the freeway not knowing if you are covered. I hope someone in the accounting office of the church replies here and tells us if we are covered for serving liquor. But remember even with coverage, who will pay for any award against individuals and the church for any amount over the maximum coverage limit? I know the endorsement is very expensive so chances are there is no coverage at all.

I have seen it myself, someone is denied another drink at the beer booth but because we allow each person to get 2 drinks their friends keep buying for them. Lawyers usually sue everyone they can down to the servers. Then it’s up to the jury to determine who is at fault. This is not to scare anyone it’s a reality of today. Public schools do not allow liquor for any event on school grounds for a reason.

Regardless of whether or not we have insurance, besides being a bad example to SSJ kids, what if there is an accident? As a church, most important to consider are the victims in the other car from an impaired driver leaving the festival or a Men’s Club meeting. I pray this won’t happen. But if it does, accident lawyers could name every individual and committee member along with the church and even the diocese in a lawsuit. We all need to consider that risk.

SSJ Usher

9/21/2018 08:38:01 pm

Fr. Vincent, your words in this Sunday’s bulletin:
“Our responsibility is to transform our hearts by being Christ for others.” “Our responsibility is to be holy and to help each other to be holy.”
A few Sundays ago I asked you privately to read all these comments about Fr. Daniel and to not reveal my identity to him. You had the chance to address the problems with our church in the bulletin and be open like the Pope wants. I am very disappointed you wrote nothing about all this. At least apologize to the 100 kids that left the school. Fr. Vincent please reach out to the families that left and ask them to come back. Be holy to them by apologizing for whatever Fr. Daniel did that caused them to leave. Our church is divided now. Please do what you are telling us to do - transform Fr. Daniel’s heart to get him to act like Jesus and be holy. Request an intervention, get Fr. Daniel some professional help before more families leave our precious church. Thank you Fr. Vincent!

Angela R

9/24/2018 10:08:48 pm

Has anyone talked to Reverend Reader or someone else at the diocese lately? Back in July Reader told Kat they are taking the complaints seriously. If he was not lying when he said that than he should have made a change or at least some sort of anouncement by now instead of leaving us hanging.

9/25/2018 10:16:51 pm

I believe it's time to reject the false authority of the Revs. Reader, Sallot, and Vann. The diocese is corrupt. As painful as that may be for many to accept, change often begins with great suffering.

I speak only for myself, as a survivor of clergy abuse and an ex-Catholic--one of the lowest spots on the pole of reason (next to women) when it comes to asking the church to listen to my voice and honor it.

But I also speak as a man engaged in a deeply spiritual practice that attempts to follow a path of justice and compassion--two concepts that are not mutually exclusive.

I hope to touch on this more in my next column.

For now, and to those at SSJ who feel particularly discouraged by what's happening in their parish and school: stay vigilant, practice your true faith, and remember to keep breathing (and laughing). The writing is on the wall for Daniel Barica.

Former SSJ

9/25/2018 06:41:30 am

We have left this church due to the lack of care and poor administration now at the SSJ church and school. There are other Catholic churches in the area. Good luck to you who stay.

Ceasar

9/26/2018 04:35:02 pm

I wrote this on the other article but it is worth repeating because of how similar this is to SSJ.
From the website National Catholic Reporter:
“Many years ago, my parish lived through the dark ages of an authoritarian priest. He happened to be the sidekick to an even more authoritarian bishop. It was a sadly dysfunctional time in the diocese as a whole. Heads were rolling. Priests and laity were being dismissed without explanation. Lines were being drawn in the sand. Folks sucked it up, grumbled and stayed, or they spoke out and quickly found themselves on the other side of the church door.” “When power and authority are abused, they must not be supported.” “I also learned that each parish has a small flock of obedient sheep that will continue to do the pastor's bidding regardless of the extent of his nastiness. They will commiserate and grumble loudly about the injustices being committed, but never directly to the priest. Their silent acquiescence is interpreted as support. They remain faithful minions to the clerical bully, and the bullying goes on.”

9/28/2018 05:37:53 pm

This afternoon’s email with the bulletin has Colleen Murray writing words that keep enabling Fr. Daniel. She says “…community members don’t live in harmony at all times and in any situation where people minister together, friction can occur.” We can’t be complicit and accept friction in our church. We all know it started with Fr. Daniel, back when he kicked me and the other guys off the grounds just for eating donuts. Back when he told everyone else in the Men’s Club meeting if it was not for him, SSJ would have been staffed by diocese priests. We hated him ever since those first encounters. Colleen needs to remember how we all got along when Fr. Michael was in charge. We did not tiptoe around him in fear, he did not require you to be a monthly donor to have a wedding or funeral, he let Crystal and Russ Smith do their jobs, he did not fire anyone, he did not yell at kids, did not make people cry, he loved seeing the smiles on kid’s faces when Santa visited each year, he invited lots of us in the Men’s Club over to his house for parties, he let Frank, Rudy, Terry and the rest of the Knights have spaghetti dinners often, he did not steal from the collection, and above all, he did not tell us he has sexual energy we now have to guard our kids and grandkids from. Then Colleen says “…animosity arises when we make judgments about who can and cannot engage in the church’s mission. This type of attitude limits the number of voices that can spread a message of good news and limits the number of people who will eventually witness this message.” Animosity? Maybe she is talking about Fr. Daniel’s grudges. He is actually the one who determines who can and cannot engage in the church’s mission. He is the judge, jury and executioner against anyone who disagrees with him. Then Colleen uses “attitude”. It should be very clear to her Fr. Daniel’s attitude is the reason the number of voices spreading the good news at SSJ has greatly declined. Like the now silent voices of the 100 school children that transferred. And the families that told me their children who graduated from SSJ don’t come here anymore. Collen can be transparent with all of us by telling us one easy to find statistic: How many alumni are now donors? Based on the age of who I see in the pews lately, I would say no more than 5%. Someone wrote losing kids is not sustainable and I agree. If alumni do not support their alma mater, that says a lot about a school’s health. If the Franciscans keep Fr. Daniel in power, they need to question 1) how they will be able to pay the bills after our generation is gone and 2) how they will be accepted into heaven for lying to us about his past parishioners that were upset, and now not responding to the cries of so many of us here.

SSJ dad Kevin

9/28/2018 06:15:06 pm

Great thoughts! I personally know Colleen received many many complaints about Daniel so shame on her for protecting him too. Between having a moron like Daniel + the sex cover up by the bishops, our church is in big trouble right now.
I would like Colleen to be transparent about another easy to figure stat...How many families stopped donating since Daniel arrived and what is the combined total they used to give? I bet this number is big.

Donna A

10/1/2018 09:37:45 am

Colleen Murray is trying to keep us quiet by justifying friction and animosity in our church? Well it is not OK! Bring back Father Michael. I will be quiet by canceling my festival volunteer shift in silent protest.

Sam

10/1/2018 11:39:29 am

I wrote another comment about this. Michael is not a priest anymore so he is not coming back. I think he quit because it got too hard for him to deal with being gay and not being accepted by his own church. Michael is a friend of mine so I personally know he is gay. It’s OK as long as he is not a priest because the church does not officially accept LGBTQ members. Catholic values says anyone living a gay lifestyle is committing a mortal sin which leads to hell. I don’t agree with this but if a man chooses to be a priest he has to follow the rules and not have sex with the other guys he lives with. A priest who can’t resist intercourse needs to get another job like Michael did. I think Dan Lackie escaped to Santa Barbara to get away from Daniel Barica’s control and stop being a repeated victim of the sexual energy he said he has in his bulletin message to all of us. Maybe he will report sexual abuse but the vow of of obedience appears to be much stronger then the vow of chastity with our Franciscans.

Festival boycott

9/29/2018 10:23:40 am

Really Ms Murray? With all you know and the complaints you received you are not going to turn him in? I am sure you already know which families stopped donating including mine. The total must be getting bigger. Please tell us how much less we all give and how much he took for himself in the next bulletin. And tell us what you know about his affair. You ask for help at the festival but I can’t volunteer and pretend everything is fine. I will not support him directly or indirectly because SSJ is not the same. A festival is supposed to be a happy time but we have sad times now. I will boycott until he is ousted. Father Christian was the only link to the happy times that kept me coming. Anyone who works the festival or spends money there are just more enablers of his control over us.

SSJ Survey

10/3/2018 01:58:19 pm

O sent out a survey request this morning. I personally have my doubts about it, however, I encourage all parents to fill it out. I am sure it will go to her and Daniel and I know they will try to get rid of the bad and keep the good “if any” but I still believe we need to let them know how we feel about their horrid administration and how terrible they’re making us all feel. Do it for the sake of your children.

School Mom MT

10/3/2018 02:53:14 pm

I got the survey too! Be sure the let them know Dr O promised transparency so tell us how much taking everyone to Disneyland cost us. And how much revenue are we down by Daniel chasing away 100 students. Are our kids safe around him with his temper? Did he take the money this blog says and how much? Will we get another tuition increase due to the enrollment shortage? (If so we are gone for sure.) Why was Mr. Smith fired? And what about his relationship with Mary Moore, movies or whatever it is they do alone together?

The best way to give them a survey of what you think is to not show up at the festival. We dropped $200 last year. That buys 2 of the 4 of us season passes to Knotts. Their rides are much better (and safer!). Buying them now allows one free 2018 entry so we will go this weekend. Does anyone know how old the festival rides even are? Some of them must be a few decades because I remember them when I was a kid. My husband says metal gets fatigue so I hope they are still safe to ride.

Mr. Lee

10/3/2018 04:05:51 pm

Great idea! I just gave my kids a choice of festival or Knotts all year. Knotts was unanimous. I am glad because I suffer with all the grass and dust that is kicked up. My allergies go into overdrive. My wife and I will for sure fill out that survey. That will give them something to chew on for a while.

J. Williams

10/5/2018 09:18:13 pm

I have been watching these comments from a distance. I do not like this priest at all either. I say he is borderline insane. I should have written before, when he went off calling people who write about him cowardly internet snipers. But now he has crossed into the absurd with what he wrote in this weeks bulletin I just read… “Let us all do what we can to continue in faith formation, giving our best example to the children, our future Church.” He says we should be an example to kids but I saw he tells them about his sexual energy and then yells at them? I am not surprised 100(?) of them left the school. If they are supposed to be our future church why would he upset parents to the point that they take their kids elsewhere? Losing just one is not acceptable but how many left? Does anyone else think getting caught on date with a married school mom in a dark movie theater is a problem? Nice example allright.. of how to kill the faith formation of our future church.

Former Men’s Club board member

10/6/2018 09:14:00 am

All this effing priest has done ever since he came is telling us what to do like no more Santa. He does the same to other groups like the Knights of Columbus and Women Creating Community. They try to create community and then he tears it apart. I can see why his other churches got rid of him. We can’t elect a new board now without a criteria review. We are not children, I am sick of it all. I say we disband for a while until we get rid of him too. I was humiliated a few years ago the day he called me into a finance meeting with him, Ron Lowenberg and Jenny Rello. They grilled me about how we spend the Men’s Club money we raise, as if we steal it. I was offended by these “church” people and told them to come to our events once in a while to see for themselves. Now I find out he grabs cash from the collection and that is OK? This whole situation is B.S.

FEDup

10/6/2018 10:33:35 pm

I'm fed up with the blatant hypocracy that passes for faith at SSJ. Colleen Murray is just as corrupt as Daniel. She knows everything and will NEVER have the interests of the parishioners in mind. She enjoys her seat of power. I will never contribute anything to SSJ untill the trash is removed.
To some point we are all complicit in the problem. We blindly accepted Daniel few if any of us thoroughly looked into him when he was first announced as the new pastor.
We welcomed him and provided the the stage and enabled him to bully us. He only has power because we gave it to him. As for the new principal the parents need to unite and protest. There is power in numbers. This is YOUR school not hers and not Daniel's. My children all graduated from SSJ and I would never want my grandkids to attend.

We need to take back our parish.

10/7/2018 10:31:52 am

From my perspective working in the parish office, there are a lot more protectors than Colleen and Colette that allow Barica to bully us: Kevin Murray, Mark Purcell, Lynn Sandon, Maurice Freleaux, Karen Foster, Sabrina Gannon, Doug Duchene, Kathi Domenici, Mike Rangel, Laura Canzone, Richard Ballesteros, Leslie Gerken, Fr. Nguyen, Fr Thornton, Fr. Lackie, Deacon Byars, Micaela Eckhard, Maureen Van Winkle, Lisa Einck, Sharon Daniels, Vicki Gray, Pam Portante, Amy Glanane, Shirl Giacomi, Bob Bernard, Ron Lowenberg, Erika Rowe, Patricia Chasteler, Mary Zant, Chris Ivancich, and Maureen O’Day. Even Russ Smith and Crystal Pinkosfky for not going public with how I personally know they feel. Many of you have told me you hate him or can’t wait for him to be gone. Shame on all of you for being enablers of this abusive man who oils himself up every morning, is in an affair with one of our school moms and embezzled money for his personal vacations. I will come forward if just one of you does, otherwise I will be destroyed for speaking up like the people he did this to so far. He already chased away 100 students from our school. How many more need to leave for you to stop protecting him?

Mrs. Sanchez

10/7/2018 01:37:22 pm

More enablers for your list…
Michael Harvey, Rusty Shaughnessy, Scott Melvin, Chris Sumpter, Louise Nakamine, Christine Loewe, Marta Shively, Ariel Vapor, Jeff Hyder, Joe Teske, Connie Greyshock, Andy Tomko, Alan Gandall, Frank Croteau, Al Smeckel, Marsha Rechsteiner, Chris Velardi, Mary Lou Ledgerwood, Susan McCortney, Greg Guard, Russ Kadota, Dennis Lam, Bob Copeland, Kent Hayden, Sara Jones, Doug Perkins, Frank Lobasso, Sean Culmer, Patricia Freyer and Jana Kasler.
If you know more names add them here because everyone needs to get over their fear and work together. We need to know the truth about Fr Daniel’s past that is being swept under the rug. The Franciscans should not have lied to us and warned us before they moved him here. Now we know that the people at his other parishes battled to get him transferred. Why didn’t Fr. Michael or Fr. Dan tell us this very important fact? Please everyone, fight like the other parishes did and save our church! Before more kids leave.

Amazed beyond belief

10/7/2018 05:46:46 pm

Maybe we should have a public flogging? Or burn them all at the stake? What a bunch of mean-spirited, rumor-mongering, gossipy, whiney babies. If you have a problem, go to the source. Can't believe you call yourselves Christians! Grow up!

Cathy Bryant

10/7/2018 06:52:27 pm

That's not a very Christian attitude, Amazed beyond belief. People are complaining here, true, but that's after trying a direct approach in many cases, and people are also making practical suggestions and offering comfort and support. As a Christian, how do you think your name-calling helps? What are you doing to help people deal with the situation?

10/8/2018 12:35:47 am

Hi again Cathy!
I know you live overseas so thank you for defending us. Enablers shut people up by telling us to act Christian. Well, that is exactly how priests got away with the horrific child abuse scandal. I asked Father Lankeit at Simon and Jude in Phoenix to help us after seeing his powerful sermons about priests who spiritually abuse their flock. He turned out to be another fake because he would not help. His words: “When evil confronts the Church... cowards in power fall silent...or twist the truth.” “Speak the truth in a million voices. It is silence that kills.” But when I asked for his help, he said he would not. This shows his hypocrisy because he chose silence.

Why do I tell you this? Because if any of us contact the Franciscans, Barica will find out who we are and fire us. Since Fr. Lankeit won’t help, could you by emailing the Franciscans for us?
I think the only way to stop this is for other Franciscans to be ashamed of what is happening here. Maybe awareness and peer pressure from around the country will finally get him out of our lives. I hope my kids come back when he is gone.
If you will help us, just use the emails shown on this list (Don’t worry about the missing ones because there are plenty.) Copy everyone so they see who else got it. You can be brief and ask them to help the parish in Huntington Beach. Please let us know if you can do this. Thank you!
https://www.nafra-sfo.org/cnsa/2018ProvincialLeadership.pdf

10/7/2018 07:36:10 pm

In response to "Amazed Beyond Belief"....

I see. And what source might that be? The pastor? The bishop? The pope? Jesus? Nostradamus? Tom Hanks? The IRS?

Honestly. What do you think people have been trying to do here for the past several years? Do you have any sense of how absolutely frustrating and deflating it has been for survivors to be ignored; to be made to believe that THEY are the problem? This is an insidious strategy used by men in power against those who even remotely attempt to challenge their authority.

Do you know what it's like to be constantly dismissed by a higher "source"? Have you any idea how afraid and angry people are and why, only now, after all these years (thanks to the #Me Too movment), they are starting to find their voice?

Gossipy? Whining? Rumor mongering? This kind of high-handed sermonizing and shaming is exactly the kind of sanctimonious nonsense that the church has been trying to get survivors to swallow for centuries: Let's distract people from the truth by pointing to the lie that is so much more difficult to verify.

Rather than be amazed beyond belief, perhaps you should consider believing people and adding your name to the list of those who recognize the hypocrisy revealed in every Sunday sermon that Daniel Barica preaches.

No one deserves a pastor like this. No one deserves a church that thinks they do.

Friend of the Knights

10/7/2018 07:58:46 pm

I have seen what happens to people who confront those who are the problem. Just look at what they have taken away. My friends and I always looked forward to the KOfC dinners. They brought our community together. This past year the few dinners there were, were no fun. I know Daniel is the cause.
He has publicly humiliated Knights who gave their all to improve our parsh.
The first time was to a Knight who everyone knew and liked. He along with his wife for years worked side by side at the Fish Fry, the Festival, St. Vincent dePaul food distribution. You name it they helped. He was a Eucharistic Minister and Acolyte. Daniel dismissed him just before mass then told everyone some story.
He did it because he is a bully.
At this man's funeral Daniel said the mass. His wife not being one to complain, told me they wanted Christian and we're never asked if they wanted Daniel. She was told the morning of his funeral. How low is that. A few of us know it's because of how many people were attending.
The next person he treated shamelessly also a Knight did everything for that parish. He was the best lecturer they ever had. He and his wife brought life to the Parish a ray of sunshine those two were. Gone because of Daniel. I personally saw Daniel turn his back on him, while he was talking. Just rude and un Christian.
I also used to buy my Christmas Poinsettia from the Knights every year. Can't do that anymore.
I heard he wouldn't allow a Knight's funeral to honor his military service.
These are or were good men dedicated to help the church and clergy only to be spit on by the very church they support and love.
Just try to do everything without the Knights and their families. The same ones working your festival in all areas this weekend.

Mr. and Mrs. Davis

10/9/2018 09:11:04 am

Hi Friend, we found out about this from people talking at the festival and when we saw what you wrote we felt bad. We know someone else who Father Daniel shuns and turns away from. We saw him do it to her in front of church it was awful! We are glad to see people writing what happened to them so we know we are not the only ones who feel this way. We used to volunteer and donate a lot but not while he is here. Now that we found out he is taking cash, we just watch the collection basket pass by.

He ruined our school

10/7/2018 08:55:51 pm

This Daniel has ruined our school. He hired a bully or actually a puppet who’s trying to act like a bully based on his orders. His puppet this new principal is constantly intimidating our kids. He is a sick sick man. We pray day and night that he leaves our parish for good.

SSJ Staffer

10/7/2018 10:17:59 pm

You want more names so here is the list of people I know that are Fr Daniel enablers. I hope they reach out to the kids who left our school and the families that don’t donate anymore to try to get them back. We cannot endure being down almost a million dollars in revenue for long. Please do something.
Mary Slavik, Chris Dapper, Mary Kay Keegan, Marilyn Anania, Denise McDermott, Jim Beres, Elisa Bagetta, Jim Amati, Joanne Conte, Mike Helo, Davis Chaffe, Donna Arnold, Steve Ochoa, Ceasar VonWeninger, Tom Andrews, Jean Forbath, Linda Wentzel, Maureen Wilson, Katie Sperring, Dave Badgett, Jack Kikorn, Ron Larson, Dale Brown, Sharon Flowers, Jim Aspaas, Mary Martin, Molly McMullen, Diane Youkin, Phil Merkel, Tom Sperl, Rob Pearlman, Doug Kochanowski, Bev Harvey, Peter Fruechti, Linda Sheehy, Tom Kinsey, Maureen Schrock, Phyllis Haraskin, Rosalie Ram, Carl Benninger, Gail Kemper, Doreen Bettencourt, Jeanette Stephen, Gene Huettner, Karen Bravata, Katey Dadakis, George Wilfort, Bob Egan, Lee Tuhy, Scott Cool, Laura DiCrisi, Monica Hayden, Ron Lawhead, Kim Bernard, Lee Graham, Dave Desmond and Francis Marzec.

Fmr Volunteer

10/7/2018 11:20:58 pm

SSJ staffer needs to have their information checked as Three of the individuals named lack the mental capacity to be a part of the problem they are in fact victims of Daniel's petsp retaliation. Many of those mentioned have a disdain for Daniel .
Not toention one of the gentemege mentioned has been in a rehab facility for some time . Also having been taken advantage of by Daniel he would do nothing to help him.

10/7/2018 11:50:45 pm

Rehab or not, having disdain but keeping quiet is an enabler.

10/8/2018 07:36:30 am

The gentleman I am referring to did speak up and file a complaint. What have you done besides falsely accuse people? If you are actually a staff member at SSJ then you are part of the problem. As a staffer you are in a position to help not hurt.

10/8/2018 08:20:09 am

Good morning, I have not falsely accused anyone. All I said is keeping quiet enables him. But if we speak up we will be fired like Russ Smith and others. We can't lose our jobs. Ask your friend to post his complaint here, otherwise the diocese will bury it like they do to all the others. After being on ths job for a just a while I could tell there is no transparency like they promise. Maybe seeing someone else's complaint will give more people the courage to speak up. Please help us.

10/8/2018 09:26:28 am

So as a staff member you should know facts before you call someone out. Three of those you named are medically and legal classified as intellectually disabled. Know your facts before naming names. While I understand needing employment, at what point do you sale your soul ? Just following orders is never an excuse. You are also enabling by not coming forward.
You probably have proof needed to help put an end to Daniel's folly.

Mr. Martinez

10/8/2018 09:15:49 am

“Amazed beyond belief”, you must be one of the enablers named here. Or more likely, Daniel himself. It is easy to tell it’s you because that is how you treat anyone who says anything negative about you. People's feelings are not gossip. Calling us whiney babies to dismiss us and make us feel below Your Honor accomplishes nothing but simply continues the suffering here. We know you are reading this. You are the one who needs to grow up and stop acting like a child bully on the playground. You are a priest! But you should have been defrocked long ago after you harassed parishioners at St Francis in LA and the Mission in Santa Barbara. And fr Dan and fr Rusty should be defrocked for protecting you and not telling us about you. Have you had anger management counseling or psychiatric care? You need intensive therapy right now.

I was a regular at fr Christian’s weekday masses. He trusted me and finally confided in me after mass one day. I took him to breakfast and he told me how upset he was with you. He was another one of your victims that you manipulated and controlled with your vow of obedience. His obedience should not have been to the Almighty Daniel but he didn’t know what to do. I know his spirit is working on getting you out because God does not want false prophets like you. Besides being upset with you, he knew you are a thief. Fr Christian knew you don’t do this job to save souls. You do it for one reason: Money. This parish is very rich so there is plenty to steal off the top. No one will know if you take a few hundred in spare cash from the collection each week before it is counted right? Yes fr Christian told me all about fr Rusty discovering how you steal from us to fund your vacations and lifestyle. How many thousands or hundreds of thousands have you taken over the years so far? Are you using this money on your married girlfriend that everyone hates too? I hope we are getting our money’s worth for the sex you get.

Fr Christian told me about another one of your abuse victims, brother Mario Espipia who lived with you. What did he say? Br Mario was abused by you so he had to keep his door locked at night to keep you out. He finally could not take it anymore and quit being a brother and a Franciscan because of you. With our extreme shortage of clergy this was another terrible thing for you to do. I hope br Mario reports you to the police but we hear about so many abuse victims that are ashamed and afraid that they keep it in for decades. Maybe he will read this and not be afraid anymore.

You are not just an awful priest but an awful human being. You should be incarcerated for the money you steal from us. You also steal something much more valuable, our children’s souls that left the church because of you.

10/9/2018 05:44:02 pm

Yes this man disgusting! Go away so we can take down fence for my kids to play on swing after church.

Another statistic

10/9/2018 10:42:09 pm

I tried to speak to Fr. Daniel about a personal concern and was rudely dismissed. He literally turned his back to me as I was mid word. He decided I wasn't worthy of his attention as I didn't fit his idea of a prominent parishioner. I assumed he was trying to talk to everyone around him. I tried other times to speak with him but he would only speak to me if there weren't" important" people around. I have since stopped dropping money in the collection basket.
I once saw him tell a bus of Catholic tourist to leave. He wouldn't let them attend Mass. I guess if you aren't going to be a regular cash cow then you can't pray there.
Does he charge for absolution.
I'm sure we could raise the money for the debt he created, but we are too afraid he would just spend it on more vacations.

Legal Beagle

10/10/2018 10:06:55 am

I was asked by an associate to look at this blog. From a psychological point yes there are enablers. The proper term for those who know the facts and said or did nothing is accomplice. They were and are complicit in the crimes committed.Theft, emotional distress, adultery, It is highly possible the seal of the confessional has been broken.
My advice is those who know specific incidents need to report it to the DA's office and or the County Sheriff. If your Bishop knows and does nothing go over his head. If you believe there is tax fraud contact the State tax board or the IRS
No one can do this for you.

Daniel the perfectionist

10/10/2018 08:52:34 pm

I’m his last sermon Daniel claimed to be a perfectionist when he’s far from it. He stated that he hates to make mistakes. Then he hired a puppet to run the school and fed her all of his dumb ideas. The puppet followed his orders. Now the school is falling apart and many families are suffering. Thanks to the perfectionist and his trashy friend MM

Mr . T

10/11/2018 05:56:50 am

Perfectionist !!!! Really !!! He made the biggest mistake by firing Crystal and hiring this O’bannion. He should never be able to make any decisions ever again. If he wants to gain our respect back then he needs to fire this O and bring back Crystal. The woman does not belong to our community she should work at one of those women correctional facilities.

SSJ Finance Council

10/10/2018 10:31:52 pm

Thanks Legal Beagle for bringing up the debt because there is zero transparency from Father Barica and Colleen Murray. I objected to how much we were spending on the Parking Lot Project but it kept getting out of control. On July 28 on the Don’t Show Them the Money article, I wrote in more detail about this. We went from a cash surplus of over $1.3 million to owing the diocese $1,796,480 under our fearless (actually, fearful) leader. That is a swing of $3.1 million. What we have to show for it is a parking lot that looks basically the same and a lawn that now is just as bad as before. And what most people don’t know is we had to pay for the sod installation 2X because the fall festival just a few weeks later wiped it out. With the cost of the sod and the heavy equipment needed, much of that festival’s net income of $119,701 was used to redo the field. It was like putting all that cash (and thousands of volunteer hours) on the grass and having a bonfire with it.
John Domenici was very upset with us because he was going to get us a great deal from his company Southland Sod Farms. We turned his offer down. We could have spent a lot less but we did this to many other parishioners who are contractors and suppliers like the guys in the Mens club. They got upset too. I already wrote it is because the bishop requires a 10% kickback on all contracts, but 10% of free equals 0 to the bishop. The more everything costs the more he gets to help pay off the $100 million settlement to the OC abuse victims. On top of that, the bishop makes tens of thousands per year in interest on our debt too. When you add all this up, the Parking Lot Project could end up costing $4-5 million. So much for our money being used for Social Justice like the Franciscans make us think. Think about how your donations are used the next time Father Barica asks for money. He must like all this debt because the more he has to raise the less people will notice how much he takes for himself.

School Mom

10/12/2018 04:16:47 am

What’s going on right now at our school is beyond sad. Nothing is the same anymore. This O is following Daniel’s directions and turning the school into a prison. The new security system is a pain in the rear. We were all happy up till 2011 then all of a sudden Daniel showed up and started his evil plot to ruin the school.

School Teacher

10/12/2018 04:56:06 pm

School mom about your prison reference, here is part of what I wrote to someone else about this subject on a site called “Are Catholic Heirarchs bullies?”:
“The biggest symbol of the prison you talk about is the fence around the playground. It keeps families from playing there after church like they used to, but it can also trap our school children in case of emergency. Before the fence was installed, some of the other teachers would tell me how upset they were when Daniel told families to leave, sometimes they heard him yelling at them. I think this church has also become a mental prison because we are afraid to say anything publicly. I am afraid of retaliation which should not come from a church.”
I speak for the other teachers too when I tell you Pastor is devastating our school. Now he is making two more families leave because of surveys they filled out. I am so distraught. If we don’t get more kids or raise tuition to reduce our million dollar (and rising) deficit, I am afraid the diocese will make us close the school.

Now a former donor

10/12/2018 01:10:33 pm

I would not have continued my donations all these years if I was told some of it pays for the Diocese out of court settlement. I hope it does not have a gag order because if the settlement did not require the priests to be registered as sex offenders, the victims should be able to warn us about those predators. I stopped giving until they are more transparent about all this and how my money is spent.

Be Aware

10/12/2018 02:12:27 pm

Be advised... it has been relayed to me that school surveys are not anonymous nor are they being treated confidentially. Two families have been asked to leave the school over their candid responses.

Revolt

10/12/2018 03:05:10 pm

Revolt if this is true

Mrs. Murphy

10/12/2018 02:50:26 pm

This is awful! We can’t sit back and let this happen! Please tell us who these families are so we can reach out to them and help them. I would like to bring them dinner tonight.

10/12/2018 06:22:22 pm

It is awful and definitely unnecessary. Unfortunately, I can't share their names. I just discovered this blog the other day. I will be passing it along to the families and encourage them to share their stories.
For what it's worth, I'm not encouraging anyone to temper their feedback in the survey because of what I shared. I personally plan on being very candid... constructive, but candid. They can't kick us all out!

10/12/2018 03:12:48 pm

Susan Kadota - is asking families to leave our school for what they wrote in a survey an example of a “very special faith community” you write about in this week’s bulletin? Or is it more an example of what a dictator does? Our school already lost 100 kids because of Fr. Daniel’s rash and disturbing behavior. By writing today’s message and ignoring the obvious, you just became SSJ’s newest abuse enabler. Stop keeping quiet about the elephant we all know is in church with us every mass we attend! And if you are really concerned that 20% of OC families live on less than $30,000, you should be appalled that your donations help pay the Diocese sex abuse settlement like they talk about above. And not accept Fr. Daniel pilfering from the collection for his personal vacations. He should be buying food for those families’ children so they don’t go to bed hungry.

FYI…I will stop writing about people’s messages in the bulletin whenever the first person writes about Fr Daniel’s abusive behavior. Losing any more kids is not ok.

10/12/2018 10:30:50 pm

If it's true, that SSJ school (and church) authorities retaliated against families because of the written answers they provided on a school survey, this could be just cause to demonstrate that certain rights of individuals may have been violated.

I'm no attorney (and bless those who are), but if something like this proves to be the case, it might well be the legal issue that opens a huge Pandora's Box of SSJ wrongdoing.

Closer to the heart, and on a strictly moral and even deeper spiritual ground, every parishioner who strives to live the Gospel should be standing up with those who suffered these retaliatory acts and calling out those responsible for the reckless harm they've caused.

Again: if these allegations are true, I, for one, would be interested in seeing a copy of the SSJ school survey and knowing more about why certain families were singled out and punished.

I think a good civil rights attorney would be, too.

Keep Barica away from children

10/13/2018 09:33:22 am

The attorney needs to look into Barica stealing cash this blog talks about. And his sexual energy comments saying he looks at his naked self in the mirror and uses oil every morning after a shower, giving us an image of what he does with his unit. This was during his sermon in the presence of children and written in the buletin. He must be transferred to a place that has no school. I am certain a teacher doing any of this would be shown the door and prosecuted.

Lillian

10/13/2018 07:35:22 pm

SSJ was once a model for Christian values. Now we are the model for feeding the Golden Calf. There used to be community events every month now there are lectures that the leaders need to attend and actually learn something.
What happened to the Knights of Columbus? For a good year there were exciting dinners with music and speakers. The atmosphere of community was incredible. I asked a Knight we know what happened. He told me Daniel drove out the man responsible and they were left with a Grand Knight who only catered to the parish office and Daniel became the Chaplain. I wonder how much money was taken from them for his vacations.
His actions are shameful. When one of our own became a Bishop, Daniel made a point if mentioning money during mass in a crude way. Then fawned all over Bishop Timothy's mother. Why don't we ask her to speak to her son on our behalf.
Something has to change before there is nothing left. Perhaps we should take a lesson from Martin Luther and nail our complaints to the doors of the church and the diocese offices. A serious Reformation is needed . It will take all of us acting together. I say a massive lawsuit against the Franciscans for sending us their damaged priest knowing what he is. Plus a suit against the diocese for not stepping in. Pain and suffering and make him pay back every penny taken.
Why is the parish allowed to charge so much to receive sacraments?
They take advantage of the bereaved when they are most vulnerable.

Well said Lillian

10/13/2018 08:56:40 pm

I was about to comment on the new disturbing atmosphere that’s going on. Last Friday, the school mass was pretty awkward. They were basically teaching the kids to blindly follow the leaders and their rules. It didn’t feel like a church it felt more like a religious sect. I was there with my 76 year old mom and even she was shocked with what’s going on.

D Hart

10/14/2018 12:47:31 am

Our priest is a psychotic narcissist! In case you did not figure it out yet, he is hated everywhere he has been. I was visiting the Mission Santa Barbara gift shop not long after they announced he was coming to HB. I told the ladies in the gift shop where I was from and you should have seen the look on their faces. They told me they were very happy he was leaving. They told me he is not a friendly person and we are in for it. I found out there were many complaints up there that Father Rusty, Father Michael and Father Dan all knew about. I am more upset with them for not telling the parishioners here the truth. Our priests dumped him on us and left.
Whoever said it is right about Daniel he can’t be around kids. I was at the 8am mass when he talked about being naked and all. It was like he told all those kids there how he plays with himself. A group of us were talking after mass, John Cardullo, Chuck Linnen, Moon Mullins and I, but we did not know what to do about it. I did report this sex speech to Mel Jurisich the Provincial but he did nothing. Daniel hurts way too many people especially the Knights who are pissed like Kerry McGuire, Lee Tuhy, Ken Martinez, Lee Graham, Gene Huettner, Ceasar VonWeninger, Frank Leingang, Rudy Chavez, and Terry Stodolka. We have to stop him!

Principal Hiring Committee?

10/14/2018 08:37:49 am

Principal O'Bannion's PhD dissertation. Did anyone responsible for hiring this principal scratch beneath the surface in their review of whether this individual was qualified for this post and was a good fit for the values and character of the school?
I've read the entire document. Based on this and other posted material of hers on the internet (ranging from book reviews, to public website comments), my opinion is that this is a person enamored by teenage drama... it answers a lot of questions about how she conducts herself as principal. Among other things, I'm also concerned about what she would deem appropriate reading for younger children.
Without additional commentary, here are links to the abstract and the actual paper. I encourage people to share these links and draw their own conclusions.
Abstract:
https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED514611
Full Document:
https://pqdtopen.proquest.com/doc/250878416.html?FMT=AI&pubnum=3398502

Knight's Lady

10/14/2018 09:26:02 am

I have known these men for sometime now. With the exception of Ken Martinez all are good men.
Daniel uses people and when they are no longer useful he sets out to destroy them. What non Knight's don't know is how Daniel ruined what was supposed to be a huge event, because he wouldn't be the beneficiary of the money. Good men left the council due to Daniel's actions and attitude. Thanks to him and his cohort Ken the men turned on each other. Daniel tried to get involved with the council only because he thought he could get his hands on the money. No one is safe from his negativity and hateful attitude. Despite what Daniel has done the good men of the Knights continue to help the church.
I urge Knight in particular to tell his story on this blog. I heard about it through my husband. I also urge the Lady Knight who was also a victim of the parish leaders, to share her story. I also urge the current Grand Knight to not be like the last one Jay Hudson . Don't be fooled by Daniel's false piety. The Knights were created to help the clergy, the widows, the orphans. Stand up for those who can't help themselves. Let's use the full power of the Knights to end this cycle of abuse. I can't say my own name for fear of what could happen to my husband.

Barica Boycott

10/14/2018 10:17:57 am

Thanks Knight's Lady for being brave enough to speak up! I know this is very difficult on the Knights, the Men’s Club and a lot of other groups Daniel controls by abusing his authority. You said despite what Daniel has done the Knights continue to support the church. But don’t you see the problem with that? Supporting the church is the same as supporting Daniel. Lifting a finger or putting a dollar in the donation basket supports Daniel (and his vacations). Having his way with people, including Mary Moore, but still getting support in the school, church and collection makes him look good to his superiors. The only way to get rid of him is what the people in LA and Santa Barbara did – stop enabling him by completely cutting off your donations and effort. No more donut sales, dinners, yard duty, ushering, passing out the eucharist, buying a Christmas tree, helping the school auction, Pastoral Services Appeal, helping with baptisms or funerals, attending or helping the Thanksgiving dinner, being on a school or parish board of any kind - anything that helps him directly or indirectly. Suspend Parish Pay! Do not enable him anymore because that will keep him in power and allow him to destroy more great people here - and more kids will leave. Teachers, I know you need your jobs but call in sick for a few days at a time. We do nothing for at least a month then watch how long he lasts. Don’t let him scare you that the Franciscans will give up SSJ because this church is too rich for them to do that. Ask them to make Fr Ryan our pastor. But for a Barica Boycott to be successful everyone needs to pass the word around about this blog. Tell people about these comments and ask them to speak their feelings about the spiritual and emotional abuse of Daniel. They need to know they are not the only ones who feel this way. They need to know there is an organized effort - donate nothing and do nothing.
I know Mark Purcell has personally talked to a lot of upset people because they know he is a friend of Bishop Vann. Mark will report your complaint to him but keep you confidential. Please talk to Mark after mass as soon as you can.
Lord, please bless and save our church from this man sent by Satan to chase our children away.

10/14/2018 04:59:17 pm

These men are from a different generatio. It may be wrong in light of this situation, but they will help the church come hell or high water. As for talking to Mark Purcell or anyone else in leadership it would be a waste of time. They will all run to Daniel.
I never thought I would say this, but if Sister Maureen were still around none of this would have happened. Maybe we could contact her for guidance. I have heard that Daniel pushed her out and bragged about it. This group needs a leader to take control. I agree don't support the school auction, don't give money. Stage a walkout the next time Daniel says mass. Just walk out to your cars and leave. We would support that action. We can all meet for brunch or mass at another parish.

Anarchist

10/14/2018 07:35:00 pm

I can no longer remain silent. I have seen first hand the damage that Daniel, and his henchmen have caused. The corruption is widespread.
We allowed it to happen by sitting back and watching as our fellow parishioners were being hurt. We silently said to ourselves at least it isn't me.The so called leaders have systemically destroyed our collective spirit. Everyone of us has suffered some type of abuse at Daniel's hands. It may not have been a direct hit but by making SSJ oppressive we have all been damaged.
We are grieving the loss of our parish community. We are slowly going through the stages of grief. Many of us myself included denied what was really going on. We wanted to keep our heads in the sand.
Let others fight our battles. One evening in the parking lot I heard a man let into Daniel with so much anger. I wanted to get out and cheer him on,but I was afraid of the aftermath for myself and my family. I don't know who it was but I am sorry for not having the courage to stand beside you brother. I watched Daniel run away like a scared animal. More people need to stand up and be heard. We once were so open to everyone I know the local Jewish Temple used to hold their services at SSJ not since he arrived has it happened.
My child was part of a confirmation group that went into the church during this time and their Rabbi was explaining things to them and answering questions with Fr. Christian. Fr.Christian told me that he was once at their services and everyone made him feel so welcome and was often invited to attend their temple and that one of the SSJ parishioners was married to a Jewish lady and he co officiated at their interfaith wedding and Deacon Bill and his wife Sylvia participated in it as well. I noticed there are no heartwarming stories about Daniel. At least while Rusty was around we could smile.
The Fish Fry quit being fun. Our kids used to be able to ply outside and we could visit. Nope that has been taken away. then came the signs about not letting our children even go outside. I know the few times he wasn't in town the Fry was fun. I helped out once or twice outside battering and they were having a good time despite Daniel.
I remember him walking past with his fake smile he treated everyone as if we were Lepers. I know Fr Rusty would stop and joke with everyone.
At the Parish BBQ Daniel would make a grand entrance and then leave. I watched him at the festival having parishioners usually women serving him food and drink like he was the king. ANARCHY is the phrase we need to learn to use.
Lets just say no more to him and his group of brown noses.
My kids are not returning to SSJ after Christmas, they will start at a new school where the principal cares more about the kids then
satisfying and feeding the pastors ego.
So until then I will keep sharing this blog and encouraging others to quit feeding the pig.

The evil Barica

10/14/2018 08:38:15 pm

This Barica is pure evil. He hired this unstable O to follow his directions and now they are getting rid of good families and leaving the suck ups. It no longer a loving community as it used to be before. He started getting more involved with the children which freaks me out. Hopefully, my granddaughter will be out of there pretty soon. This Barica is a disaster waiting to happen.

10/15/2018 07:46:19 am

Knight’s Lady, what you are saying is you do not trust Mark Purcell because you are afraid he will rat you out to Daniel. Mark, how does not being trusted in your own church make you feel? This should never happen in a community based on Jesus.

When I was on staff, I saw Mark at events at the friary all the time during Michael’s time as pastor. It is obvious to all of us Mark is protesting Daniel’s reign because he has not been to events in years. I assure you, Mark is safe to speak to. I know he wants people to contact him so he can do his part to remove Daniel. If you and others do not talk to him he won’t be able to tell the bishop your feelings. At least text him what you need to say (714) 335-3243. Keeping it in is a big burden to carry. He will blank out your phone number when he prints what you wrote for the bishop.

Please let the Knights know, by continuing to help the church they are just as responsible for enabling Daniel as Colleen Murray and Fr Dan Lackie. If anyone in the parish is afraid to talk or text, then write your message here anonymously here because they are reading this. The bishop is reading this too.

Per Galatians 2:4 “And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage.” There is no doubt we are in bondage under the control of our false brethren Daniel.

Thanks Anarchist for your commitment to speaking up and also encouraging others too. Without complaints the bishop will take no action and everyone will endure even more suffering and bondage.

Jana

10/15/2018 09:28:05 am

Lillian, your post two days ago said we should ask Bishop Timothy Freyer’s mother to speak on our behalf. Well, her name is Patricia Freyer and she goes to our church. I know her and she is upset about what is happening here. Please as many people as possible, drop by to speak to her. Or send her a letter or an anonymous note to give to her son at the diocese so he does something about Fr Daniel. Her address is public information 9627 Bickley Dr. HB 92646. Thank you!

Jewish Neighbor

10/15/2018 09:50:17 am

I had no idea what was going on at SSJ. My friend who attends there showed this blog to me after the entry from Anarchist. I remember attending services at your church and the young students looking at the Torah alongside Christian. I also remember attending an interfaith breakfast there. Your children's choir sang a few songs. As for the interfaith wedding I was a guest there. The wife belonged to our synagogue. I attended that wedding, along with many people from your church.
I am still in shock at what I read. Yours has always been a welcoming place.
I wish I could offer words of wisdom and comfort to you. I just don't know what to say but how sorry I am.

Sts. Simon and Rude

10/15/2018 09:22:50 pm

Thank you Jewish Neighbor. I was wonderful when Father Michael graciously let you use our church but now with Dick tator Daniel in charge, outsiders are not welcome. Not even a bus load of Catholic tourists (outsiders) who just wanted to go to mass. He turned them down and caused them to sin because they could not fulfill their holy day of obligation. You see, his attitude is no one can use his facilities unless they are regular donors. He does not care if he turns people away from attending mass and sin, he cares about their money. Young couples can’t get married here unless they contribute each month. Old people can’t have their funeral if they stop donating. There is a word for this: Blackmail. It is religion turned into greed.

It hurts me to see Dick tator Daniel undo all the love and hard work of our greatest Franciscan ever Father Christian. His goal was to bring all religions together via the Interfaith Council. He tolerated Father Christian’s accomplishments but terminated all those relationships when he passed. I was in the room during a eucharist meeting when Dick tator Daniel said any other religion is a cult. I guess you are now part of a cult. On behalf of our now twisted, rude and unwelcoming church, I need to tell you how sorry I am back.

Bob E.

10/15/2018 12:25:00 pm

Anarchist, we need more strong parishioners like you! You just gave me the courage to say something. I also wish I knew who that man was that lit up fr Daniel in the parking lot (that we spent over 3 million on). I am sure Colleen, Mark, Maureen O’Day, Chris Sumpter Mike Rangel, Ariel Vapor and all the teachers know who it was. They keep promising transparency so they need to tell us his name, what he was complaining about and details about all the other complaints they have received to date. And how many stopped donating or transferred out of our school and why. And no one ever answered how much entertaining the entire staff at Disneyland cost us. Fr Daniel does not want SSJ to be a marketplace, but he sells his pictures, sells Christmas trees and charges for sacraments. Pay to play can’t be part of a church. Pretty soon he will be charging for hospital visits to the sick of our parish.
We need full disclosure about everything, including his vacations and affair with Mary I read, otherwise a lawsuit should be filed like Lillian said. We will find all this out in a deposition anyway so they might as well tell us now before they have to pay lawyers. With all the priest abuse in the news, our church will become known throughout the world in the most negative way and be an embarrassment to everyone who is tired of defending their Catholic faith. They must be concerned that kids won’t defend their faith, they just leave.
Church leaders, stop ignoring our cries. Give us a statement of what is going on so we have some hope left.

WWJD?

10/16/2018 10:26:01 am

People of God: Appalling behavior does not justify more appalling behavior! Have we forgotten WWJD? The original post had decent spirit and sentiment. The comments following have turned into appalling, disgusting words that we as people of God should not accept. Can we stop?

This thread has lost its purpose, and fills my heart with indignation that we as Catholics have forgotten to turn the other cheek, and turn to God in prayer instead; not to a blog to berate and insult others on a bandwagon of lies. The lies take away from the true issue here, don't you see?

PLEASE let us ALL reflect on what we can do to help this situation, not fuel a terrible fire of a few truths, many lies, and lots of confusion.

If someone is claiming emotional abuse from someone else, is it acceptable to then turn and emotionally abuse another as this thread has done? Taking emotional hostages and berating individuals under the cover of an internet screen name? APALLING! Anonymous bullying? That action is no better than the abusive behavior everyone appears to be condemning. This hostility and offensive moral taste in words is not the faith I know, the religion I claim, or the company I hope and choose to keep.

Our God expects better of us. I expect better of myself. I urge you to do the same.

10/16/2018 12:30:21 pm

WWJD?, you must be Daniel again using christian values to try to get us to shut up! What Jesus would do is condemn you as a false profit and spiritual abuser. We have tried the nice Catholic approach but we never got an answer from any of your supervisors. I wrote last month… ugly words can be what it takes to get the diocese attention. You seek out to destroy anyone who questions you and now over 100 students are gone because of whatever mental problems you have. Our children are far more important to protect than you. We do not respect you, we respect our kids. You are chasing them from our faith. There is nothing more ugly than not being with our kids in heaven.

10/16/2018 07:42:21 pm

Sad Parishioner, I am not trying to get anyone to "shut up" as you say. I say, fight the good fight for what is right. Respectfully. Appropriately. No one should tolerate abuse, and abusers should be stopped. I do not know the solution to this problem, but I'm almost certain demoralizing others in this forum is not going to be answer. That's just wasted energy.

10/17/2018 12:22:15 am

People's feelings are not lies. We are all reading this and thankful people are speaking up for us because we would get fired like Russ. The bullying is done by our own priest so imagine our fear every day showing up for work. Our low enrollment has put our school in dire straits so please say whatever it takes to get him removed like they did in Santa Barbara. We need everyone's help.

10/16/2018 10:49:10 am

Anarchist - your acknowledgement of this issue is appreciated, but so much damage has been done.

These issues have been going on since Daniel first arrived. It was part of his MO - to cause division and discord within our parish family. To turn parishioner against parishioner, neighbor against neighbor. Creating problems so he would be more in control and have more power. Divide and conquer. Sound familiar?

People were sounding alarms from the beginning. Me included - 6 years ago. Some of my best friends. Most of our parish family either did not believe us, or they were afraid to speak out. So, we left. My kids will not set foot in the church. They went to school there! We were very active for over 20 years!

Yes on some level the parish family let it happen. If it didn't involve us, we just sat back and watched. Afraid we would be next in his line of fire, We did not stand up for our neighbors. We did not come together as a community when it started. And now look where we are.

This is OUR community - OUR parish family. And we let this man destroy it. All the love and hard work of those that came before us. All the beautiful community events that he has done away with. All the devoted people who now won't set foot in the church. All the families that have left the school.

On some level I feel validated. It wasn't just me, I wasn't imagining it. I speak to others who were early victims of DB and they say the same thing. But we were all pushed out by those who deferred to him. Do you know that some of us were made to feel unwelcome at funerals, like we were the ones who had done wrong? Where was the Christian love when people in our community were being shunned?

Now you are left with a pastor who takes money from the plate, makes bad deals for the parish, and is openly hostile and rude to our parish family members. And who probably is having an affair with a school mom. Not to mention highly inappropriate at the pulpit.

He is no man of God. But when will those in power hear our cries?

Shame on Maureen O'Day

10/20/2018 09:25:40 am

Thank you OG, you are correct we should have said something right away like you did. I finally did and I got ignored by Maureen O'Day at a funeral. I said hello when she walked past and she looked the other way. This from a Catholic is shameful. Fr Daniel divided us my former friend just like you said. It really hurts but I am afraid to say any more and lose more friends.

Dr B

10/16/2018 02:54:34 pm

The new principal along with Daniel are playing a dirty game. They’re having their enablers post fake positive ratings to trick new families into joining the school. They are also intimidating current parents and trying to get them to turn against each other. This evil man should’ve never been a priest. The school has turned into a war zone. You don’t know who to trust anymore. The sad part is the ones who should’ve been kicked out long time ago are now running the place and playing victims.

Confused

10/16/2018 05:36:32 pm

WWJD, funny you berate people for posting under an assumed name, yet that's what you did. Hypocrisy at it's finest. Did Daniel ask wwjd when he yells at children? Did he ask wwjd when he discussed his sexual energy in front of children? Did he ask when he belittled the feelings of others? Did he ask when he liberated funds from the collection basket?
If God expects better of us then Daniel you need to be the example of good not of sinful behavior

10/16/2018 08:09:36 pm

I'm only asking for us to consider spreading kindness. I apologize that my message was lost.

Also, this audience is to cruel for me to use my real name.

WW-DO-D

10/16/2018 10:06:51 pm

From Dr. O email:

"For the protective fifth graders who buoyed the spirits of their classmates when sharing stories of pain and sorrow, I dream about the way they will stand up against hatred in this world. Their love and light will surely beat down hostility and darkness."

"For the junior high students just starting to engage with social media and figure it all out, I dream that they won't get caught in the nightmare entanglement that it can become. I dream that they will escape those that hide behind the screen to defame and destroy. I dream that they will stand up for their friends if they end up the victims of such a nightmare."

Sounds familiar.

T E

10/17/2018 05:04:29 am

You know what else is cruel, the non stop harrassment that’s going on at school towards parents and students. The threatening and yelling at parents behind closed doors by the big bully O. The unfair treatment our kids are recieving from O and the teachers. The backstabbing of former faculty memebers and claiming that they weren’t doing a good job. The fake show that your O put on in front of the parents so they can feel sorry for her ass. The fake positive ratings that you and your friends are posting on the internet. The targeting of any and everyone who dares to speak up and critit Daniel or O.

10/17/2018 05:35:34 am

Your message was not lost. I'm sure everyone got it. Pretend all is right at SSJ. You state that I audience is too cruel to use yiur own name, yet you complain about others not using their names. We don't use our names because of the cruelty of Daniel, Colleen and O's responses and retaliation.
You mentioned emotional hostages, well look at what the parish leaders have created.
We choose to try keep what's left of our parish.
When those in power start to listen and actually fix the issues we will stop needing this forum

WWJD is a farse

10/16/2018 11:18:40 pm

WWJD is Dr. O’s social media recovery team. Please be reassured this blog is absolutely accurate coming from a very targeted parent and parishioner. The corruption is unnerving more every day. Catholic values have been lost from the Daniel & O duo and teacher following the “TO DO” lists to each teacher from Dr. O to knock out most of our parishioners & students/ families at our sacred Parish community. Please speak up and continue to shed light on the lies.

$$$$

10/16/2018 11:35:16 pm

Please note every change or policy that was removed at the school but added back has a $$ making profit option to take off the top. Monetary is a huge sole driver ... including Ice cream at school going from $1.50 to $5.00 each per student. Please double check the quality of everything coming back or given to kids - I see a 75% downgrade on price & quality or a huge increase in price for same service.

SSJ Mother

10/17/2018 05:09:09 am

I was attending a social event last week with a bunch of SSJ moms. Among them was a mom who works for the parish office. This mom assured us that all of this mess at school is coming from Father Daniel and Colleen Murray. She told us that O keeps going back and forth to the parish office whenever there is an decision to make or an angry parent to deal with. Don’t get mad at O she’s just a puppet focus on the source.

10/17/2018 08:19:23 am

O is not a puppet she is an Enabler. She is a mandatory reporter of abuse but she stays silent. The rest of the employees who stay silent are also Enablers.

Hypocrisy

10/17/2018 09:20:02 am

I agree that WWJD? is most likely Colette herself. At the very least, it's the PR team mobilizing. I thought that anyone that was positively identified on this blog would be expelled from school??? Would that apply to the Principal as well!? If it is the PR team, how sad on multiple levels. The saddest is that the school even needs a PR team. A good school's reputation is all you typically need to keep enrollment up and a healthy wait-list to follow. It should serve as a warning sign to prospective students / parents that the message of the school needs to be so carefully managed.

I know I'm not the first to respond to this, but I am especially offended by WWJD?'s use of the word 'cruel'. What's cruel is being a heavy-handed ego maniac. What's cruel is kicking good families out of school for petty or no reason at all! WWJD? (or Colette, if this is in fact you), did you ever stop for a moment and think about the emotional trauma on the children whose families you've dismissed. It's devastating. That responsibility lies solely with YOU. Shame on you. You wax on in your weekly 'dear diary' newsletters about the smiling children's faces so full of potential, but yet you give no perceived thought or hesitation to completely throwing their lives into chaos because a parent looked at you the wrong way. Where is the 'turn the other cheek' now? Your actions disgust me.

As to Colette simply being a stooge for Father Daniel. I don't buy it. I've had direct interaction with Colette. She is her own person. I'm sure some things are handed down (as in any work place hierarchy), but make no mistake she is not a puppet. She is a card carrying member of the changes and toxic environment now festering at the school.

For those of us who remain, I pray that we find a solution and soon. The concern must be expressed to the Diocese. I encourage everyone to reach out, even if you think they're not listening. If the outreach is overwhelming, they can't ignore us forever. In the meantime, I'm sad to say I'll be voting with my dollars and level of support. Definitely no auction support this year, which really saddens me. The volunteers pour a lot of time and effort into making this a wonderful evening and to them I apologize, but a message must be sent. If they can't sell any tickets, the Diocese will have to start paying attention.

Father Daniel (if you're reading this, which as I understand it both you and Colette are frequent readers), I agree with one sentiment from WWJD?, which is God expects more from us. As the leader of the parish and school isn't it time to address this head on and more openly? Isn't it time to realize that regardless of their reasons a lot of people are upset. Isn't it your job to help them heal, even if that means making a sacrifice yourself?

My soapbox is starting to wobble, so I'll stop and get off of it. I'm just really sad about what's happening to our school.

Anonymous

10/17/2018 01:12:14 pm

Hypocrisy - this is very well said! Could not agree more with this post. WWJD might be the new marketing person hired to try to get kids back in the school (at our expense). What is her salary and what is the impact of it on our tuition? And how about that Disneyland trip? Has Dr. O told us how much that cost? Could be tens of thousands considering the staff time that has to be paid for attending the meeting.

I'm tired of this. Let's bombard the diocese with these complaints. Let's take our church and school back. This is OUR school and OUR church.

We are Catholics, not a Scientologists. We should be permitted to exercise our First Amendment rights without fear of retaliation. This is sickening. Rise up, organize and protest these cancers with the diocese.

Bring Crystal Back

10/17/2018 04:42:57 pm

Last year when Mrs. Crystal Pinkofsky was running the school there was more discipline even though the teachers didn’t have to write the students up. We were all happy, it felt like a real community. Father Daniel if you’re reading this you need to bring back Crystal and send this Dr O back to where she came from. I lost all respect for you already.

10/17/2018 04:42:58 pm

Ron D’s

10/17/2018 04:57:29 pm

It’s because Ms Crystal has class while this O doesn’t.

Friend of Parking Lot Guy

10/17/2018 06:28:51 pm

Reply to Anarchist:

I know the man that you saw angrily dressing down Daniel in the parking lot one evening.

It is known by some of us that Daniel had crossed the line for the final time with this man on the night you came upon him. At one time he was a very active parishioner who had served SSJ as an usher, lector, member of the Knights of Columbus and more. I have known this man and his wife for some time. They are good people and better Christians. I spoke to both of them about your blog comment and the night in question.

He told me that in the parking lot dust-up that you witnessed that Daniel had made clear his displeasure with the SSJ Knights for having scheduled a huge fund raiser to benefit Special Olympics rather than hand over that cash to Daniel instead. That benefit was to be a concert plus auction held at Freed Theater on the Christ Cathedral campus featuring Bishop Vann as a pianist, a very popular Neil Diamond tribute band and a huge A-List celebrity vocalist as a surprise guest who had agreed to donate their performance.

Such a Knights event would seem to make sense. It is my understanding that Special Olympics is a traditional benefactor of Knights' charities nation wide and apparently a favored charity of Bishop Vann who is also a Knights of Columbus member.

But listen to this: While expressing his displeasure that night to this parishioner Daniel also went on to demean and ridicule the Catholic faith and the charitable efforts of both the man you saw and the entire SSJ Knights council. That same man was co-chairing that benefit concert and had been working on it for months. Eventually that event had to be cancelled I was told because Daniel in part undermined it.

But like I said earlier this was the last time for Daniel to cross the line with this parishioner. Daniel had jerked him around a previous time, too. Here it is:

A year or two earlier Daniel had asked this same male parishioner to become the new chairperson of the fish fry. In fact I was told that Daniel asked him TWICE! Daniel had told this man that the two existing long time fish fry co-chairs were retiring from working the fry. It was emphasized by Daniel that he was quite desperate to find a replacement and if one was not found soon he was going to have to shut down the fish fry. Daniel further explained that shutting down the fry meant that our school would not receive any money that would otherwise have been earned by the fry.

In addition this parishioner's wife told me that a couple of weeks earlier Daniel had sought her out by sitting next to her in a pew before an 11:00 am Sunday Mass. Daniel told her that he needed to give her husband an unspecified parish job because of the success her husband demonstrated as chairperson of the SSJ Knight's dinners. Anyway this male parishioner told me he felt obligated to assist Daniel with the fry so the school kids could continue to get their needed money so he took-on the job.

But apparently Daniel had stepped in it. The existing fry co-chairpersons were not retiring, or interested in being shown the door by Daniel, or were not happy about not being able to pick their own successor or some such thing. This parishioner told me he had no idea about any of this behind the scenes politics and got caught in the middle of what became an uncomfortable situation for him as he continued to work the six week fish fry in an effort to learn the system so he could be prepared to chair the following year as agreed upon with Daniel. He told me he volunteered about 20 hours a week over four days each of those six weeks.

Meanwhile this man told me he needed answers about what the heck was going on behind the scenes of the fish fry so he sought out Daniel several times asking for a meeting. No luck. This parishioner told me Daniel blew him off each time.

But wait. There's more!

In that parking lot dust-up you witnessed this man told me he still wanted answers about the fish fry from Daniel that he had never been given. Instead Daniel actually DENIED ever asking him to become chairperson of the fish fry!!! And remember that Daniel had asked him TWICE!!! And Daniel gave his wife a head's up that a job offer was coming from him to her husband!

But wait. There is even more. Of course there is! Daniel tried to wiggle out of his lie by playing the victim card and told this parishioner that the parishioner needed to RECORD Daniel's words better!!! What??? And this is our pastor? Our spiritual leader? The parishioner told me he was stunned by this new low even for Daniel.

So lets get this straight. This parishioner was:
Humiliated and kicked to the curb at the fish fry by the pastor for accepting the pastor's call to duty to the fish fry to help the school kids. And so, too, the pastor could apparently cover his backside with the upset fish fry hierarchy that he was trying to replace.
Disparaged by the pastor for chairing an event to benefit mentally challenged Special Oly

Friend of Parking lot Guy

10/17/2018 06:38:39 pm

Disparaged by the pastor for chairing an event to benefit mentally challenged Special Olympians rather than fill the pastor's poorly managed bank account.
Ridiculed and demeaned by the pastor for living his Catholic faith along with his brother Knights because of the pastor's failed money grab of the Knights bank account.
Told by the pastor to learn how to better record the pastor's every untruthful word of wisdom.

WOW.

Is there any doubt why this parishioner lit up Daniel in the parking lot!? No wonder Daniel ran away from him like a "scared animal" as you, Anarchist, described in your blog comment.

This man and his wife are good people and better Christians, assets to our parish. Now they are rarely seen at our parish. That is just another unacceptable loss for our once loving faith community. A few of us saw them at Father Christian's funeral and asked them to come back to SSJ. Maybe some day they will.

Anarchist, I completely understand why you apologized to this parishioner in your blog comment for, as you stated, not having the courage to stand beside him while he called out Daniel in the parking lot as you watched and listened. You, I and the entire SSJ faith community must recognize that we must stand beside strong parishioners like this man and wrestle back our parish from the destructive tyranny of Daniel and his crew of enablers (including administrator Colleen Murray) so we can properly practice and teach our kids our Catholic faith.

There is no doubt in my mind that we are being tested.

We are not Catholics in name only.

Otherwise, what are we doing?

Disappointed

10/17/2018 08:39:54 pm

Friend,
I remember planning to purchase tickets to that event at Christ Cathedral. No one who I asked knew why it was cancelled. It is appalling that a priest can treat someone so poorly.Who is he to demean someone's faith or good works. I know one of our ushers competes in Special Olympics.
I hope that Parking Lot Guy knows we support him and his wife and know them to be a perfect example of how Christians are to behave.
I wish more people had his courage to stand up to the oppressive regime.When he was the lector you wanted to listen. I know him and his wife made the dinners more enjoyable.

C. Rios

10/18/2018 12:17:46 am

I have been an observer of this site but after reading about this Knight I feel terrible. Being sorry and hoping he comes back is not enough! I wish I knew who he is because I will reach out and comfort him. Just like OG Volunteer from the Glorious Days said, we all just sit back and let a priest destroy our parish family. Think about the irony. We don’t stand up to him. We just step aside so we are not his next victim.

But we are his victims anyway, every one of us. So are the people of the parishes in LA and Santa Barbara I am reading about. Directly or indirectly, everyone in our parish family he been spiritually and emotionally devastated. We are also victims of the huge debt he has caused. We are victims of him exposing us to the disgusting thought of what he does to relieve his sexual energy. This offends me as a woman. We are victims of the power imbalance like in Me Too that allows him to steal from our donations and take advantage of his girlfriend Mary. We will soon be financial victims having to pay for harassment lawsuits that Mary, Mark Purcell, Dr. O’Bannion and the teachers will file if we do not stop him.

We can’t just watch as this great Knight and others get destroyed. We can’t just watch as other devoted people and families leave. If we ask them to come back while he is still here how will that solve anything? They will just sit in the pews humiliated and suffer in silence. This is not a safe environment - for them, for us, and especially for our kids and grandkids.

We must work together to spread the word about this site and ask everyone to post their feelings because his protectors Bishop Vann, Dan Lackie, David Gaa and Colleen Murray are reading this. Someone wrote we can’t donate anymore and that person is right. Fr Daniel will be here for a few more years unless you STOP DONATING AND VOLUNTEERING in any way. We need to move him to a place with no school to keep our kids and grandkids safe from his sex energy, yelling, anger and even physical harm if his mental state does not allow him to control himself.

No Confidence

10/18/2018 07:02:01 am

We must all vote ‘no confidence’ by withholding donations and support. I think C. Rios is correct; lawsuits are most likely coming. It is mid-guided faithfulness to financially support the poor decisions and morally questionable protection of people and policies that are hurting good people.

School mom E.M.

10/18/2018 08:15:27 am

O’Bannion you are not a victim but his Protector. What you wrote in your last newsletter about our students: “I dream that they will escape those that hide behind the screen to defame and destroy. I dream that they will stand up for their friends if they end up the victims of such a nightmare."
You are telling us to keep quiet to protect our nightmare Barica. Then you did what you said we can’t do… you defamed and destroyed school families because of their survey responses. Those families did not hide behind the screen of social media. You humiliated them and kicked them out of school. I can't say my name because you will do the same to us. Catholic Values? Go to confession for not doing unto others!
And why are you promoting Diet Coke? The kids can’t have soda. You even have their logo on your website newsletter. You must be getting paid from them because it looks like an ad. Does this money go to you or Barica for more of his trips?
You have the power to end our suffering. You are not being transparent per your promise. Tell us how much Disneyland cost us. And tell Barica to bring back Santa so our kids can have that joy again.

O the performer

10/18/2018 08:48:53 am

The last Diet Coke was too dramatic. O teared up while putting on a lame show as for us parents we were watching her bad performance and thinking about the real victims who she yelled at and gave warnings and detentions to. Our kids are the victims O not you. You are a sad soul just like your master Daniel. I don’t feel sorry for you. I also don’t feel sorry for the evil Mary who I am hoping will pay for the damage she did to our school.

10/18/2018 09:23:12 am

O'Bannion tearing up shows she is under stress and we will have to pay for a lawsuit against our church. The sooner we stop donating and volunteering, the sooner his harassment and stress he causes us will be gone.

Hagg

10/18/2018 09:58:14 am

It’s an act. This woman has no feelings.

Fry guy

10/18/2018 09:59:28 am

Parking lot Guy,
Thank you for telling Daniel off. Also thank you for everything else you did. I saw you working your behind off every week at the fry while one of the chairs (JP )sat on her behind doing nothing. Then when Daniel was around she would kiss up to him and pretend to work. It is shameful that you event was cancelled. I guess only Daniel is allowed to be the recipient of money. I bet if you would have cut him in he would have jumped on the band wagon.
The Knights have done so much over the years for this parish, but I guess it's not enough for Daniel. You were driven out and another lady from the Knights that always worked the fry is now gone. A few other people from the Knights are also gone. It is so disheartening to see good people torn down. It was asked WWJD?
I think he would be upset and turn over the symbolic tables , then throw out the degenerates using the House of God for money grabbing and other sinful acts.
Take heart brother the day will come.
We get a smile and whenever you and your lovely wife show up and ignore Daniel. Keep a smile on your face brother.

The idiot O

10/18/2018 11:17:07 am

The idiot O first tried canceling everything that Crystal had done in the past and now she’s bringing em all back. Catch them being good will be catch them being kind and study for success is the homework club. The pea head just can’t stop making a fool of herself.

Jasmine

10/18/2018 11:35:02 am

What do you expect ?! They thought they could erase Crystal’s history and have this puppet run the school along with Daniel and Colleen but they realized that they messed up so now they’re bringing everything back and changing the names. What a shame. I feel sorry for them. I bet O is very embarrassed. I will be looking her in the eyes while she’s calling the students names for this catch them kind thing although I am positive she’ll have the students council do the job for her as always.

Ilene

10/18/2018 02:10:11 pm

She is losing it. I don’t know if I should laugh or cry. The Disney Witch can’t think of anything on her own so she’s renaming Mrs Pinkofsky’s programs and awards. What a dummy.

Steve H

10/18/2018 01:04:55 pm

Fry Guy, you in the Men’s Club? I am glad I was told to read this forum. It allows us to communicate because it is hard to bring this up to anyone in person. We don’t know who Daniel’s protectors are and if he finds out what we say he will do to us what he did to your friend. This is a man of God?

I am in St Vincent DePaul Society with George and Bob and we are not happy either. Terry and Susan talked about how upset the Women’s Club is and so did Ann with Amazing Grays. And Don Lewis. Even Phil Chenier who was a PFA President during the good times does not like what has happened to us. What about the choir members like Patrick Bell who quit? And former staff like Chris Sumpter and Vicki Gray? How about past teachers like Nancy Thornhill? Yes she moved but call her she will give you an earful. What about the people in Hospitality, Eucharist Ministry, Bereavement, and even the Quilt Group who are upset?

This is not just about Frank, Terry and the other Knights being upset, it is church wide. And I agree, so far we have all been afraid to say anything. That is how an abuser controls us his victims. Ms. Rios is right we must stop all efforts and money like happened to him at other churches. Yes his day will come but how many months or years do we continue to endure this pain?

Tell your friend Daniel does not care if he ignores him. But I am sure your friend and his wife’s stomach churn every time they see him. This is not spiritually or physically healthy for anyone. What Daniel cares about is who (pretends to) adore him. The sure sign of a narcissist - a diagnosed mental disorder. Do you want his mental disorder to keep losing our grandchildren here?

What if he brings up his sex energy to the kids again? Can we take that chance? Look what hundreds of priests did to children because we all kept quiet. By standing on the sidelines hoping his day will come, this place will be more gutted of young people in church and in our school. Then what? School enrollment is already down over 100. Simple math says that is at least $800k he is costing. Then he kicks more out because of a survey they submit? This is not a church it is hell on earth.

We have to remove him now. We cannot allow the possibility of another sex abuse claim that will embarrass us and cost us millions like the lawsuits about Gus. Do you know the Franciscans paid out over $28 million already? The world is watching us - one of the readers says she lives overseas.

So, wait for his day to come? Or do something about it now like Ms. Rios said. We must stop anything and everything he needs us to do or pay for. The Bishop and the Franciscans will not be able to cover their expenses with no money coming in. So please ask Scott Cool and the guys of the Men’s Club to stop selling trees, being ushers, selling donuts, Thanksgiving dinner, anything that helps in any way. A huge drop off in Time Talent and Treasure. No money and we will give Fr Dan and the bishop no choice but to remove him. Then maybe we can start to heal.

Mrs. Johnson

10/20/2018 08:39:11 am

28 million? I did not hear about them selling any property to pay for this. If it came from my donations I will not be happy. Until they tell us this and what they are going to do about Father I am stopping Parish Pay. He has always creeped me out.

Dr.

10/19/2018 07:43:22 am

Many of you have called Daniel a narcissist, you are partially correct. Having had the opportunity to observe as well as getting to know Daniel, my diagnosis is Narcissistic Personality Disorder as well as Sociopathy. This is a dangerous combination as we have all experienced. Since he ego won't allow him to admit and seek help for his issues. While that makes him a victim of his mental state, it does not absolve him of responsibility. He is fully aware of his actions and will never apologize for them.
Colleen Murray suffers from low self-esteem. She takes pleasure in being in a position of power. My direct contact with her is limited, so my actual diagnosis is there are some sociopathic tendencies.
My suggestion is this:

1. Stop donating
2. Stop all upcoming events.
A. Thanksgiving. I know for many this may be the only get together for the holiday. Consider inviting those you know are alone to join your family dinners. Or if you have the dinner don't do the raffle.
B. Breakfast with Santa if you want to do this you could take a risk and have Santa show up (potential risk of Daniel having a melt down in front of kids) There are advantages to that I will explain to a trusted friend in the men's club.
or host it off site (Edison Park)
As for the principal I can only base an opinion on what I have read. She appears to be exhibiting attention seeking traits. From her Facebook photo she seems to be trying too hard to look young and innocent.
She is in some ways worse then Daniel. She does his bidding,hurts the children then plays victim when confronted. The I was just following orders defense.
My suggestion is to speak with the board governing Catholic schools as well as the State board of education. Get as many parents and students to write letters.
Go to the media
Go to your local political leaders
Don't waste time with CPS they will do nothing until a child is actually being hurt. Now if a parent contacts CPS to complain about a specific incident of Daniel or O's verbal abuse they may start an investigation.
SSJ is a virtual powder keg. You can control the explosion only if you act together and desisively.
It is time for the inmates (parishioners) to take over the the asylum.

End of my rope

10/19/2018 06:42:37 pm

I agree with the Dr. I say bring on Santa. Santa Claus is short for St. Nicholas who's feast day is Dec 6. Since when does one priest decide which saints we honor? We need to be like Parking Lot Guy and speak up.
We are sick and tired and we aren't going to take it anymore.
Thank you parking lot Guy I'm going to take your example and tell him what I think.

10/19/2018 07:30:34 pm

Thank you for your insight Dr.! You must do your diagnosis of people through observation and interaction with them. It makes sense to assess them in their normal surroundings instead of on a couch in your office. Please send father Daniel’s superiors your diagnosis of his mental condition. They will have to remove him because the risk of allowing him to remain in power with mental disorders is too great. They must be aware that if they have prior knowledge of such a condition, it will lead to large punitive damages if he cannot control himself (and I have seen him come close). Guess who will have to pay for that.

Please send your diagnosis to Bishop Vann so he can take immediate action before something else bad happens. His assistant is who we are supposed to communicate with: mbungcag@rcbo.org (714)282-3000
Here is a quote from Vann about priests who abuse their power. He needs to follow his own teachings and not allow what father Daniel does to us.
“Shepherds who sincerely seek the Lord do not abuse the power that Our Lord has entrusted to them. Those who abuse this holy office fail Christ and his Church.”

Ron Lowenberg from our parish is on Vann’s Oversight Review Board that deals with problem priests. Please give Ron a copy of your diagnosis too.

Father Dan is also a superior because he is a Definitor of the Franciscan Order. Please be sure to send him a copy of the diagnosis as well. He is one of 8 priests at Mission Santa Barbara. They have plenty of help so he can send another priest to SSJ or hopefully come back and be our Pastor. Please send you diagnosis to Fr Dan at: dlackie@sbofm.org (805) 682-4151 ext 101.

If father Dan becomes our pastor there is no doubt he will bring everyone who left back, especially all the kids who loved him all the years he was here.

Phil T.

10/19/2018 10:44:46 pm

Doctor, you said Barica’s mental state is a dangerous combination. We can’t have our kids in danger! How long will it be before he can’t suppress his sex energy and acts out on one of our school kids? His power can’t go unchecked.
You said to contact the media and I got a response from Scott Schwebke of the OC Register. He would like more people to tell him your experiences. He will not identify you. The Knights and the entire Men’s Club and school families need to all tell him. Together we will make a big impact. It’s good timing because it is directly related to the bigger story of abuse going on worldwide they are writing about. Abuse does not have to be sexual but any type that is not allowed. Scott’s direct line 714-796-7767. His email sschwebke@scng.com
Send him an email this weekend, as many as possible so he sees the urgency. Then he can talk to us next week.

Shame on Russ Smith

10/20/2018 09:48:58 am

Thanks I will email the reporter.
I say shame on Russ Smith for abandoning us. I know he is upset but the kids miss him. Has anyone seen him lately?

Shame on Richard Ballesteros

10/20/2018 10:45:19 am

Yes good idea, we need to call out people who decide to protect Daniel and their jobs instead of protecting the kids. Our families used to do things together. Ricard told me has has dealt with a lot of upset parents in the confirmation program but he keeps quiet. Losing one kid should be all it took for him to blow the whistle.

Shame on Mrs. P

10/20/2018 01:35:42 pm

Mrs. P. why did you leave the school. My kids were happy when you were their principal now they’re living in fear. The teachers are despicable. They don’t care for our kids. The school is not the same without your leadership.

Shame on Mark Purcell

10/20/2018 02:45:24 pm

Mark you should be ashamed of saying nothing while you watch devout people leave. I read here that you know about financial abuse of our collection basket by this power abuser Daniel. Dont be a complicit accomplice like Legal Beagle said earlier this month. Tell the police what you know before you serve time too. I am sure you know who yelled at Daniel in the parking lot. I will be next. Not reporting all the inside information you know makes you just as responsible for the SSJ mental prison we are in. All our eyes are on you in church every Sunday. I hope that makes you uncomfortable. I saw the look on your face the day he told the kids in the pews how he looks at himself naked in the mirror every morning. I wanted to stand up and stop him I wish I could turn the clock back. I can speak for most of us in the Men's club we do not appreciate you or respect you like we used to. And tell him to let us have Santa back like we had for decades. It does not take a diagnosis to tell he is a sick man.

Detective O

10/20/2018 02:54:25 pm

Just FYI. Be careful everyone O is interrogating parents and trying to get information about the blog and what other parents are saying. It’s ironic how Daniel is hiding behind a bunch of women Colleen, O, Mary and having them do the dirty work for him. Come on Daniel be a man.

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