Dolan Outdoes Himself Again ; Part Three

As if Daniel Dolan’s sly little dig at Fr. Bernard Hall in his August 7, 2011  Bishop’s Corner was not enough (see Dolan Outdoes Himself Again: Part Two) he has outdone himself yet again – but this time, not so slyly or subtly.  Hence, we present you with “part three” of this trilogy.  Again, Dauntless Dan had the tactlessness to proudly proclaim, in his Bishop’s Corner column of August 14, that he and Cekada had attended the funeral of Sue Nies (the wife of Tom Nies), who was buried this past week from Immaculate Conception Church in Norwood, Ohio – yes, the same Immaculate Conception Church from which Bernie Brueggemann was buried.

“So what?” you might say.  Well, first, some background: Tom Nies, as many will recall, was one of the original “charter members” of Saint Gertrude the Great (SGG) back when it was located in Sharonville, Ohio.  In fact, he was perhaps the main original benefactor of SGG.  He was the one who purchased the original building in Sharonville, which was then renamed St. Gertrude the Great Church.  Tom then left SGG some years later, for reasons that this writer does not know for sure (but for which he could hazard some pretty close guesses).  Tom ended up at Immaculate Conception Church (whose pastor is Fr. William Jenkins), from which his wife was buried.  After Tom left SGG, Bernie Brueggemann took over as SGG’s biggest benefactor; but, as we all know, Bernie eventually left as well.

Now, herein lies the rub:  when Bernie Brueggemann died, Dolan and Cekada did not attend his funeral Mass.  They didn’t come to his wake (visitation); and they didn’t even come to see him buried at his gravesite.  When Sue died, they not only came to her funeral Mass but also walked in the funeral procession at the cemetery, proudly proclaiming it in the SGG bulletin’s Bishop’s Corner column.  Why the deference to Tom Nies’ wife and not to Bernie Brueggemann? – Bernie, who gave even more to SGG and was arguably its greatest benefactor; Bernie, the man single-handedly responsible for funding the present facility that Dolan and Cekada enjoy, worship, and reside in; Bernie, without whose help they would still be in their crowded Sharonville facility.  Why didn’t they show him the same deference?

Why?  It’s simple: they knew that they had sucked Bernie Brueggemann dry of money; the Brueggemann cash cow was depleted – but NOT the Tom Nies cash cow!  So why bother going to Bernie’s funeral?  There was nothing to be materially gained from doing that; but -- the Nieses?  Chi-ching!  You bet there was!  You see, although Tom Nies left SGG under what we can assume were less than “optimal” terms, Tom’s son Eric still continued to go there for some time (although he too, reportedly, left in time).  But perhaps the cash-strapped clergy of SGG could “win them back” some way, so – voilà! – they showed up at the funeral, oozing their oily charm.  Wow, what a stroke of genius!

Genius?  Stupidity!  To their fawning, hard-core aficionados at SGG, their attendance was perhaps interpreted as a mission of good will; but to anyone smarter or more perceptive than the average amoeba, it was seen for what it was: an embarrassingly naked attempt to get back into the good (financial) graces of the Nies family -- and it deceived NO ONE.  It is just another manifestation of how embarrassingly transparent one can get when his greed and avarice overwhelm his brain.  Daniel, in your greed and avaricious ambition, you threw caution to the wind, and made a blatant play for sympathy, when you figured that the family would be more susceptible to being in a “receptive” frame of mind.  Do you really think they’re that naive?!

While you and Cekada were attending Sue Nies’ funeral Mass, did you forget that you did no such thing for Bernie Brueggemann?  And while you were marching in her funeral procession at the cemetery, did it ever occur to you that Bernie at least deserved the same?  You didn’t even pay your respects to him at his wake – to Bernie, the greatest benefactor that SGG has ever had, both spiritually and materially – yet you go “pay your respects” to someone to whom you haven’t spoken for years, at a church whose clerical group you described as having had a “scandalous inception in 1989” (see link).  Why was it so “scandalous” for you to be at Bernie’s funeral but not at the Nies funeral -- in the exact same church presided over by the exact same priest, in BOTH cases?

Who are you trying to kid, Danny?  Do you really think that this disparity in your behavior is going to go unnoticed by the Nies family – or anyone else, for that matter?  Do you think that they’re really going to swallow your mercenary ploy as some kind of “grand gesture”?  And if you folks at OLS in Arizona are reading this, you’d better pay attention: this is the kind of people you are dealing with; if you shake their hand, be sure to keep your other hand on your pocket-book!

It is ironic that Dolan and Cekada plied their mercenary strategy at the Nies funeral, especially in light of what Cekada recently said about Abbot Giardina in Quidlibet: “Father’s [Abbot Giradina’s] caginess on the pope question and his repeated ‘We-too-spiritual-for-controversies’ protests, though, struck me as nothing more than a two-pronged fund-raising ploy: (1) Say absolutely nothing about the pope, so you can hit up all categories of traditionalists for donations: sedevacantists, SSPX-ers, independents, and Motu types; [and] (2) Play up the ‘I’m-only-a-humble-unworldly-monk’ routine.”  Where is your tact, Anthony?  Where is your brain?  Where is your conscience?

Cekada’s Quidlibet remarks, overlaid on his and Dolan’s behavior at the Nies funeral, add new and lucid meaning to the word hypocrisy.  My advice to this un-dynamic duo is this: quit while you’re behind!  You two have not only lost your credibility, but your self-respect as well.  It’s time to cut your losses and make your exit plans – but not to some hedonism-friendly retreat.  You need instead to exit in poverty and humility – preferably to a monastery – so that your entrance into the next world will be better than the one to which your presently-chosen path is leading you.

Dolan Outdoes Himself Again ; Part Two

Not since the February 27, 2011 edition of the SGG bulletin’s Bishop’s Corner (see rebutting article) has Daniel Dolan uttered anything so cunningly vile as he has in his recent Bishop’s Corner offering of August 7, 2011.  I guess that he just doesn’t want to be outdone by his partner in serpentine subterfuge, Anthony Cekada – each vying for the coveted title of “Archduke of Arch-Hypocrisy.”  For sheer quantity, the prize must go to Cekada.  For his nonsense on Schiavo, to his latest attacks on Bishop Petko and Abbot Giardina -- and for his embarrassing mis-call of Fr. Markus Ramolla’s “deportation,” he has been at his prolific best.

But for sheer underhanded cunning and subtle innuendo, Devious Dan is your man.  In his attempted character assassination of anyone, he always implies things; or, he gets a stooge to do his dirty work for him, while he himself directs operations from afar, safely out of sight. Take the case of Fr. Bernard Hall in Chambéry, for example.  Fr. Hall came to Chambéry, at the invitation of those folks, to fill a void.  Fr. Rogér, one of SGG’s satellite priests, could not be there in Chambéry often enough to fill their needs; and the parishioners requested that Fr. Hall fill that void.

When Dolan got wind that Fr. Hall was not only invited to France but to Ireland as well, he dispatched his lackey-at-large, Thomas Le Gal, to start spreading “dirt” about Fr. Hall.  Dolan also branded Fr. Hall a “destroyer”; and, to make sure that the people of Chambéry “got the message,” they were threatened with SGG “pulling its priests out of there” if they continued to go Masses celebrated by Fr. Hall [see It’s Got to be Ill-Le Gal, Bound with Shame, and Removing All Doubt (Again)].  

But it seems that too many have “flown the coop” at Chambéry, so Devious Dan had to keep hammering away at his prey – a man who came by invitation to bring the sacraments to a people neglected and deprived; a man whose only aim was to heal and soothe; and a man who, rather than make waves, meekly and quietly went away (when Dolan’s threat was delivered to the people of Chambéry) rather than cause any trouble for those folks.  So now, Dolan dispatches lackey No. 2 (McGuire) over to France to bolster up Fr. Rogér (perhaps to free him up to shore things up at Chambéry).  Using lackeys, you see, is a great strategy, for lackeys are expendable – and the one manipulating them can “deny any involvement” should things go awry.  If “Lurch” falls on his face, Dolan can just leave him there, low and wet, in his French foxhole; after all, with finances strained back at headquarters, he can’t afford to rescue pawns in the field.  Besides, he knows anyway that McGuire’s parents will come and bail him out, if need be.

So, in his Bishop’s Corner column, Dan the Dastardly states: “Fr. McGuire is away to France for a few days vacation to visit our brethren there, and some of that blessed land’s many shrines and saints. This kind of travel is good to maintain our Catholic ‘family unity’ of faith and charity. It also serves as an effective way to counter those who wish only to divide and isolate Catholics today [Italics added], even as it cheers and refreshes both those who go and those who stay.”  First off, how does “this kind of travel” maintain “Catholic ‘family unity’ of faith and charity”??  Wow, I didn’t know that “traveling” could do all that!!  All that is flowery phraseology, Dan (which you’re full of); but it doesn’t make much sense.  Then you go on to say: ”It also serves as an effective way to counter those who wish only to divide and isolate Catholics today.”  Gee, “traveling” accomplishes that too?!  I’ll have to book your travel agent!

Who’s doing the “dividing” here, Dan?  You of all people should dare to say that!  You, of course, were insinuating that it was Fr. Hall who was one of “those who wish only to divide and isolate Catholics today.”  Isn’t that a bit like the pot calling the kettle black?  And what did Fr. Hall do to “divide and isolate Catholics”?  He came -- when asked -- to offer Mass for them: that’s what he did!  He did not speak one word against you or anybody else.  How does that constitute “dividing and isolating”?!  It is you, Dolan, who have been “dividing and isolating”:  It is you who vilified this righteous man as a “destroyer.”  It is you who first fired him for trying to stand up to your corruption at SGG; and it is you who then tried to get him deported.  It is you who – when he tried to do God’s work in Chambéry, threatened the people there with sacramental blackmail.  It is you, after he has gone quietly away after being victimized and character-assassinated by you, who must continue to bear false witness against an innocent man of spotless character.  Your twisted mind just doesn’t know when to quit, does it!!

Of course, Dolan and Cekada’s record of duplicity -- of spiritual blackmail and divisive mistreatment -- goes back a long, long way (see …But the Greatest of These is Charity, Divide & Conquer vs. Conquer & Unite, Removing All Doubt (Again), and …Or It Will Deal with Thee – to name just a few).  That has been their modus operandi just about ever since they’ve known each other.  And one other integral part of their modus operandi is that they don’t know when to quit .... lying -- incessantly and insidiously. 

I must say that it was very good of you, Dan, to flatter the people of Chambéry by referring to France as that “blessed land” of “many shrines and saints”:  more flowery Dolanese, but again, more NONSENSE.  Yes, France was such a place; but that was yesteryear.  Now, it is choking on venom – Islamic venom – that threatens to engulf the country.  Chambéry is but a small Catholic oasis in a vast, amoral secular wasteland that is fast succumbing to Moslem infiltration and influence.  It is very flattering of you, Dan, to compliment the people of Chambéry on their country; but it is just another one of those meaningless “sweet nothings” that fills up space in your Bishop’s Corner verbiage.

Instead of waxing poetically and effeminately about the weather, fulsomely humoring people with counterfeit flattery and meaningless platitudes, or uttering any other such honeyed phrases to camouflage your twisted mind, try telling the truth for once.  Stop your game of engaging in parlor-room talk while you ply your parlor-room tricks.  Stop your game of victimization, vilification, and character assassination; it hasn’t worked so far, and it never will.  But you don’t care, do you.  You don’t know any other way; you can’t help yourself – you must do it.  Like your reckless rector down in Florida, you have to keep on the offensive – because you have no defense.  And, like him, you are all about MONEY – that’s why you must frantically try to hold on to the followers you have, and to use threats and blackmail to keep them from defecting.

All of you are desperate for revenue – and that’s why you are casting your hungry, greedy eyes toward the direction of OLS in Arizona.  It’s “last chance gulch” for you – and for Sanborn, for sure.  If I were he, I’d be distancing myself from you and Tony.  He has his own stooge there – Palma – to try to “pave the way” for him and his longed-for “permanent relationship” with them (and Palma is a stooge; he’s listed as third-in-line – behind Sanborn and Selway – on OLS’s roster; and, like Dolan’s lackey McGuire, he’s just another expendable pawn, a means to his boss’s end).  Sanborn’s mouth is watering, his lips are smacking; he can taste the money!

So, if Sanborn can only persuade the folks at OLS that he’s not affiliated with you two toads, he’s “in like Flynn,” as they say.  But that’s where the rub comes in: he’s been too intimate with you two; he’s been your political bedfellow for too long now.  It’s too commonly known, and there are too many examples of not only complicity with you but of his defending your actions “too much too often.”  For him to deny his association with you or to say that he’s not aware of what’s been going on at SGG all along is like Mary Todd Lincoln saying that she’s unaware that her husband’s been shot.

As it turns out, the OLS people are starting to wake up not only in this regard, but also in regard to there being more and more surfacing about the substandard quality of MHT Seminary’s curriculum -- like the following comment from someone who was a former MHT seminarian: “I think I learned more about logic while courting my wife, than I ever did in the seminary” (see other comments as well).  As the OLS folks keep scratching beneath the surface for more information, the more they will learn about both SGG and MHT; and all three of you will be cut out from getting your covetous hands on OLS’s bounteous booty.

The bottom line for Slick ‘n Slimy Dan® and his un-trusty cohort is that they should “get out of Dodge” while they still can, before they deplete what’s left of their dwindling stash.  For sure, they’ll have to fight Sanborn for OLS’s elusive prize; and -- you know what they say: there’s no honor among thieves!  Besides, by the time the OLS lawsuit gets settled (over the sad events going on there), there may not be all that much prize money to be had.  And as for MHT, its undistinguished alumni continue to embarrass it with their less-than-stellar “ecclesiastical performance.”

As an outsider looking in, it seems to me that OLS deserves better than either their former pastor – a troubled alcoholic who has failed several attempts at “rehabilitation” -- or their present curate – an MHT pawn of doubtful capability.  What they really need is a competent priest who is neither a hopeless drunk nor an erstwhile instrument of some covetous fortune seeker.  Perhaps a temporary “sharing” arrangement with another reliable traditional group’s priest(s) can suffice until a really genuine “permanent relationship” can be found with a competent group.

Whatever transpires, one thing is for sure: the trademark duplicity of Dolan and Cekada (and the complicity of MHT) is catching up with them.  Add to that the information that is getting near to surfacing about Dolan and Cekada’s past, and you have the perfect recipe for them (either with or without Sanborn) to make an unceremonious exodus from the scene.  Then we can all wish them good-bye – and good riddance.