1996 President

January 1, 1996

PERSONAL AND CONFIDENTIAL

Most Reverend Anthony M. Pilla, D.D., M.A.

Bishop of Cleveland

1027 Superior Avenue

Cleveland, OH 44114

Dear Bishop Pilla:

I am writing to you as a practicing Catholic and retired federal law enforcement official who has spent much of the past several years exploring the problem of church embezzlement, particularly as it relates to the historically vulnerable Sunday collection. As such, I look upon myself as one of many lay people who have been out of the pews for quite some time. Among those who know me, some might even say my knowledge and insight relating to collection security qualify me for association with what the NCCB recently identified as the wisdom of the laity. A brief resumé of my professional experience is enclosed.

As you must know, Bishop Pilla, the hierarchy has never addressed comprehensively the ongoing issue and incidence of embezzlement from the Sunday collection. The enclosed news summary highlights only a few of those cases reaching media attention over the past several years. In addition, it seems clear that many cases involving morally errant priests involve misuse of church monies, including Sunday collection funds which are typically not protected against internal theft. Examples include the infamous Fr. [name withheld] and Msgr. [name withheld] of San Francisco, and Fr. [name withheld] of Washington, DC. These and other cases you surely know of clearly establish that no one, by virtue of their status or position, is immune to the temptation presented by a vulnerable Sunday collection.

For several years now, I have sought to make that simple point with various NCCB officials. I have been singularly unsuccessful, however, and it strikes me as highly strange (to say the least) that the NCCB can comprehend and divine complex national and international issues over which they have no control – issuing elaborate pronouncements detailing what can and should be done – while at the same time turning a blind eye to a patently economic and moral evil over which it has complete control. I cannot help but equate that disparity with Jesus' query: "Why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but pay no attention to the log in your own eye?" Make no mistake about it, Bishop Pilla, the NCCB's ongoing and apparently deliberate shunning of the collection security issue is a very large log, one which is costing the U. S. Catholic Church tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars annually!

As I advised at least two of your predecessors, Bishop Pilla, I stand ready to assist the NCCB in addressing and resolving this most disgraceful situation. I am well aware of the stumbling blocks, all but one of which begin with the words fear of, and none of which are in any way legitimate. The stumbling block that doesn't begin with those words involves sovereignty, i.e., the autonomy of individual bishops, archbishops and cardinals. In this case, however, such autonomy can only be viewed as an excuse to avoid addressing what any person who takes the time to give it diligent thought knows is and has for many years been a neglected, Church–wide moral and economic imperative.

I can imagine you're wondering what P.S. SERVICES is and where it fits into this matter. The name was coined and registered by me in late 1986 when I began to think about what I would do in my retirement; I had the intention of becoming a freelance Security Consultant. That aspiration was short lived, however, and I soon found myself using the name primarily as a vehicle for making contacts. In all the years since the inception of P.S. SERVICES, I have garnered not one penny of income from or as a result of it.

Finally, Bishop Pilla, I hope you will forgive the bluntness (you might even say, irreverence) of my approach, but I long ago dispensed with the customary protocols, to more effectively advance what I perceive to be the unvarnished truth relating to this issue. The only question that matters is whether the issue I have unearthed is important – I believe it is critically so – and warrants the collective attention of your organization. Again, I stand ready to assist the NCCB in any way it will permit me, in order to ensure that our Church does not enter the 21st Century still clinging to woefully deficient, economically debilitating, sin–proliferating, 19th Century methods and procedures.

Most Sincerely,

[signed] M. W. Ryan

RESPONSE SUMMARY

This letter was answered by Rev. Msgr. Paul D. Theroux, Associate General Secretary, NCCB/USCC. Msgr. Theroux stated that the Accounting Practices Committee of the USCC recognized "the incidence and severity of fraud in the Church over the past few years" and "has recently completed a manual entitled Diocesan Internal Controls, A Framework." He concluded by stating that the author should "be assured that the bishops have recognized and are addressing this problem."