Archbishop Nelson Perez took a break from a typical day which could include presiding at a funeral for a predator priest who sexually violated the bodies of little girls. Or continuing to ignore a deceased clergy abuse victim’s family. And of course laughing at a mocking impersonation of an Archdiocese victims assistance coordinator. Instead, yesterday Archbishop Perez shared some good news. Mass attendance in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia has increased 7.5% for the 2025 year.
Smoking cigarettes, crocheting, and Catholicism are all making a comeback with the youth in the U.S. The diocese of Lansing posted a 6% rise in 2025 mass attendance. Somehow accomplishing this without the billion dollar price tag that will come with the Catholic Church of Philadelphia’s Trust and Hope efforts. The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) has stated that in-person Mass attendance has returned to pre-pandemic levels as of early 2025.
One of the ways that the Catholic Church of Philadelphia will reach young people is through social media. A Philly clergy abuse victim reached out this week with the contact info for three new employees of the Trust and Hope team. The survivor was aware that we had previously contacted the Trust and Hope team over the past year letting them know of the many child and laity protection issues. I reached out to Morgan Hurlock and John Cardone who are Strategic Digital Missionaries on the Trust and Hope Team. Also included was Emma Gaughan who is the Donor Relations Coordinator. I emailed all a sample of C4C blog posts.
The survivor also let me know that the Catholic Church of Philadelphia created a Tik Tok page recently. I left two relevant comments on the new Tik Tok site. The comments appear to have been either hidden or deleted. I emailed Digital Missionary, Morgan Hurlock, who seems to have created the Tik Tok page letting her know that we are often speaking for survivors in our public comments. The following day it seems that I was blocked from the Tik Tok Page. This is the first time in 15 years that the Catholics4Change community of laity, survivors, and parents have been blocked from an Archdiocese site.
The comment that seems to maybe have had us blocked was on a post introducing Deacon Jim O’Neill as the Director of Strategic Operations for the Trust and Hope team. Deacon Jim has been included in our emails to the team since January 2025 and has never replied. The comment I posted was “Deacon Jim O’Neill has never responded to a child or laity protection email.” It’s the truth, he hasn’t.
What are the ethics involved when an organization is in the process of launching a capital campaign, with a billion dollar price tag, to recruit youth to a place that is still not safe for them? If this was any other organization with a decades long history of child rape and was the subject of two Grand Jury report investigations, wouldn’t a Trust and Hope team want to be in constant communication with their customer base on the problems that continue, rather than just checking in that all is now fine with the organization that caused the problems?
The good old days of emailing with Archbishop Chaput (he always replied) or contacting Ken Gavin the Archdiocese spokesperson and having him spin like a top in his replies, are long over. The new regime under Archbishop Perez is one of shut down and shut out. Is he telling the new young employees to block Catholic moms? Catholic moms are that threatening to a billion dollar effort? Or is it the truth that is the threat?
I have to think the shut down began when the Catholic Church of Philadelphia knew that we have the documents that allegedly show that Archbishop Perez installed a priest as pastor of a parish when the priest was under the investigation for sexual abuse of an adult (over the age of 18) and who was found to have credibly violated the Standards of Ministerial Behavior Boundaries. If I were Dan Cellucci and Brian McCarthy and my name was attached to an effort recruiting youth to a place that continues to endanger children and laity, I would want to know every detail of this case. They have never replied.
Catholics4Change has welcomed the Trust and Hope Team to follow us on Facebook and to comment on the blogs. An opportunity to interact with laity and survivors . We also invited them to the play Unreconciled by a Philly clergy abuse survivor which details his abuse and treatment by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia IRRP program. They never replied. Deacon Jim O’Neill also was included on the invitation.
They are invited to explore the truth. We won’t block them. The truth does not require it.
Catholics4Change 
The catholic church avoids Justice because it is expensive!
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