The following open letter is to Dan Cellucci of the Catholic Leadership Institute, and Brian McCarthy the Chief Strategy Officer of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Catholic Philly identifies the Catholic Leadership Institute (CLI) as a key partner to the Strategic Planning Office which will be overseeing Archbishop Perez’s Trust and Hope Campaign The effort focuses on bringing the 83% of non attending registered Philly Catholics back to the Church. Dan and Brian are also both fathers of young children.
Dear Dan and Brian,
The Archdiocese of Philadelphia continues to endanger children and laity.
Would you want a porn addict priest on the altar at the Cathedral for your child’s high school baccalaureate mass? A priest who was caught two different times with thousands of porn images downloaded, with some of possible minors. Who law enforcement advised Archbishop Chaput not be placed back in ministry but the Review Board of the Archdiocese unanimously voted for his return. Not only returning him to ministry but placing him at the Cathedral. Is that who you want in the background of your child’s photos? The lurking porn priest? It’s exactly what happened to Bishop McDevitt High School.
Would you want your teen son or daughter to receive one- on- one spiritual counseling by a priest who was under secret investigation for child sex abuse? That’s what happened at John W Hallahan Catholic Girls’ High School 2018-2019
Would you want to drop your child off at a Kairos Retreat for a weekend at Malvern Retreat House where the chaplain was under secret investigations for child sex abuse? Would you want your child to line up at the Malvern Family Weekend and go to confession to the sexual predator priest? This all happened to numerous students/families in 2018.
Would you want your child to go off to a Catholic college and end up in the company of a school chaplain who was sent there with Archbishop Chaput knowing of his problems and simply let him at the assignment. Would you want to attend a Catholic family fun concert where this priest who was under investigation for sexually assaulting a college student was performing? This all happened in 2017-2019. Also the Archdiocese never released any information that the priest was under investigation or that it was found that he credibly violated the Standards of Ministerial Behavior and Boundaries. It was only revealed because a Catholic news outlet did an in depth article on the case. That is how the laity in Philadelphia found out.
Would you want your child to attend a youth group event where a very deeply troubled priest who has been removed from ministry several times and served probation for several alcohol related crimes is present? This priest now removed again for unknown reasons. This happened and his presence at the youth group was actually highlighted as a good thing in Catholic Philly ,September 2025.
Would you want to know if your child had been part of a youth group and the chaplain to the group was reported for sexting with someone over the age of 18? Would you expect that the Archdiocese would let you know rather than the priest just disappearing? Delaware County youth group involving students from a few parishes.
Would you want your child to be chaperoned on a trip out of the country by a priest who just weeks prior was found to have violated the Standards of Ministerial Behavior and Boundaries ?Also would you expect that if your child was the victim of the violation Standards that as a parent you would have been notified? No Notification. Bishop Shanahan students 2017.
If you dropped your child off to volunteer with the elderly IHM Sisters at Camilla Hall would you expect that the chaplain was under secret investigation for child sex abuse AND also had a previous credible violation of the Standards of Ministerial Behavior and Boundaries on his record? 2019-2020
Would you want your child to be told by school staff to pray for a Philly priest who arrested for the sexual assault of a teen parishioner? Reported directly to us by an IHM parent
If Archbishop Perez installed a new pastor at your parish would you expect that the priest was allegedly under investigation for the sexual abuse of an adult and was found to have credibly violated the Standards of Ministerial Behavior and Boundaries? I have offered to personally meet with both of you and share documentation in this case.
It never ends. These are just a few examples. This is tip of the iceberg of the years of information that we receive. The only reason that Catholics4Change exists 15 years later is because the people in the pews reach out for assistance. They recognize that the Archdiocese of Philadelphia continues to endanger children and laity.
They tell us exact situations when priests under secret investigation for sex abuse had access to children. They tell us that the staff who work directly with the children were not ever told of any restrictions on the priest or of the sex abuse investigation. They feel complicit while they are not at fault. They report clergy who act odd or strange. They contact us when the Archdiocese distributes incorrect info such as reporting abuse protocol.
They contact us when a priest has been found credibly accused and tell us of instances/ situations that would have been valuable to the investigation had they known that the priest was being investigated. As I have explained repeatedly, the secret investigations into sex abuse allegations is unique to the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. In other dioceses the priest is placed on administrative leave for the protection of children and the investigation is announced in a diocesan statement. All are encouraged to come forward with relevant information to the case. Did you ever wonder why the stats of unfounded allegations are so high in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia? Do you even know the stats? Maybe it’s because investigations are conducted in secret. No diocesan wide statement released asking anyone with relevant information to come forward. We have received information of situations that happened 10, 20, to 30 years prior that would have proved invaluable in an investigation.
Survivors of clergy sex abuse provide us with exact details that the Archdiocese leaves out of their very brief, and often technically incorrect press releases of a priest being found credibly accused of sexual abuse. We have timelines that the Archdiocese would never release because it would show how long the priest remained in ministry while under secret investigation. I have offered to meet with both of you and picked three cases that easily show the story that the Archdiocese tells, compared to the actual facts. We have the documentation. I have never heard back from either of you about taking me up on that offer.
Why do survivors contact us and share information that provides a correct timeline of the case? Because they also realize that the Archdiocese of Philadelphia continues to endanger children and laity.
In 2016, Archbishop Chaput actually changed the Charter for the Protection of Children to eliminate the Review Board from deciding interim safety measures of priests under investigation for sexual abuse. The Standards of Ministerial Behavior and Boundaries have not been updated since 2003. A tech addendum was added in 2011. Adult sexual abuse (victim over the age of 18) lacks any real policy given that since 2018 most dioceses now have sections devoted to the abuse of adults. None of it matters though because our Standards begin with a legal preamble that absolves the Archdiocese of responsibility. It’s all a game to them.
The Oversight Committee that Archbishop Chaput established in 2018 to evaluate the child protection policies was chaired by a man who was in 2019 was publicly linked to the Epstein files. ( Can’t make this stuff up if you tried) The report issued by the committee was a joke, but none of this is funny . Why didn’t the Archdiocese of Philadelphia release the review of Victims Assistance/OCYP? Where is Lynn’s Shiner’s report? Were her recommendations implemented? Lynn Shiner at least put effort into her report.
As leaders in the Trust and Hope campaign have you told the founding donor families of the very important child and laity protection issues that I have exhaustively brought to your attention over the past year? You no longer respond to emails about the child/laity protection issues. I have informed you of the risks of your youth centric plan. I have informed you that the 250 missionary disciples who will be mostly young adults are at risk in the Archdiocese. As are the children of families that you are recruiting to return Most importantly, so are your children.
Catholic Leadership Institute blocked Catholics4Change on Facebook when we tagged them in posts with important information. You blocked a group that consists of the 17% of Church attendees, the 83% you are trying to bring back, survivors of clergy sex abuse, and parents trying to keep their kids safe.
The powers that be at the Archdiocese of Philadelphia will shake your hand, take your money, and endanger your children. When I met with John Delaney from the Office of Investigations of the Archdiocese and told him of a 15 year old girl at Hallahan being subjected to a KNOWN possible child predator priest in one -on- one counseling, Delaney simply shrugged his shoulders and asked if anything happened to her . Your kids are a shoulder shrug to them.
In December 2025, Leslie Davila, Director of Office of Child and Youth Protection informed Philly clergy that she would be leaving her position ( I guess some prayers do get answered, Bye Bye Leslie) Has the position been filled?
The house needs to be cleaned top to bottom.
You both have an enormous responsibility moving forwards. What you can’t claim is ignorance to the issues.
Simply search our site of over 800 blog posts. It’s all there. Spelled out as plain as day.
The Archdiocese of Philadelphia continues to endanger children and laity.
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Catholics4Change 