A Tale of Two Letters

In seeking some material for one of our articles, we ran across a couple of letters having to do with the SGG “school scandal” of 2009 – a scandal which resulted in half the parish leaving in protest.  Included in that half was a man who was SGG’s main benefactor at the time: Bernie Brueggemann.  (It was Bernie who single-handedly bankrolled SGG’s West Chester facility, from its inception to its ongoing operation.)  Sometime shortly after Bernie left, he received a letter from Donald Sanborn (click here to see letter); and subsequent to that, Bernie replied (click here for reply).  We ask the reader to take the time to read both, for they are what this article is all about.  We also ask you to take note of the “tone” of each letter, for it says volumes about each writer’s character.

The letter from Sanborn to Mr. Brueggemann was typical “Big Don”: bombastic, intimidating, and reeking with “emotional blackmail.”  In his letter, Donny accused Mr. Brueggemann of everything from aiding the destruction of “sedevacantism” to causing the demise of SGG itself.  As he put it, “I perceive the reaction to whatever problems may exist or are perceived to exist in the school [i.e., the abuses at the school] to be a war upon St. Gertrude the Great Church, and upon the persons of Bishop Dolan and Father Cekada.”  Big Don was surely aware that there were abuses, but was perhaps unaware that many of the kids there were blood relatives of Bernie, and were not only eye witnesses to that abuse but were also (in several cases) its recipients (and could therefore give him first-hand evidence of same).  Also, the fact that Donny mentioned the abuses in his letter is proof that he was aware of them -- and therefore had a moral obligation to investigate to check their veracity – but he didn’t.  His “agenda” was not to seek the truth but to suppress it.

In his reply to Sanborn, Bernie was – as he always was – gracious and polite: a model of respect and decorum; and he refuted every one of Sanborn’s accusations in an honest, straightforward, and non-confrontational manner – in stark contrast to Big Don’s vituperative diatribe.  Bernie was even so kind as to give Sanborn “the benefit of the doubt” and to suggest that Big Don’s accusations stemmed from being unaware of the pertinent facts (and therefore of being blameless in his accusations).  But Big Don DID have the facts.  He knew FULL WELL what was going on, but chose to ignore it, and instead chose to try to shame Mr. Brueggemann with every “guilt-trip” tactic he could possibly think of.

Of course, Bernie never got a follow-up response from Bombastic Don – further proof of the latter’s malignant ill will and insincerity.  Big Don tried his best to play the bully – and it didn’t work.  But this is vintage Sanborn: try to take the moral high ground (even though he’s actually standing on quicksand), and intimidate and shout down his opposition; and then, if that doesn’t work, quit the field (but don’t apologize).  Of course, Big Don could not use his full-blown “hell-fire and brimstone” approach on Bernie (as he does on just about everyone else), because he knew he could not get away with it.  But he did his best, under the circumstances, to shame Mr. Brueggemann; and when that didn’t work, he just went away.

It is interesting to note again that, although Sanborn tried his accusatory best to make Bernie feel blameworthy, the latter did not reciprocate by blaming him.  Instead, Bernie put the blame on the SGG scum who perpetrated the scandal, and, again, gave Donny “the benefit of the doubt” – which that reptile certainly did not deserve.  And, to repeat, the fact that the Donster never acknowledged Mr. Brueggemann’s response, but continued to support his fellow scum at SGG, is damning evidence not just of his guilt, but also of his insincere intentions from the very the onset of his exchange with Mr. Brueggemann.

But the damning evidence also points to those SGG parishioners who, although they knew Mr. Brueggemann was right and the cult-masters were wrong, chose to support the latter -- either because they were too lazy to look up (and face) the facts, and/or because they didn’t want to give up their “pontifical pageantry.”  We, then, look at them accusingly too, and find them just as blameworthy as the cult-masters themselves.  They had a choice; but they chose to compromise their principles in exchange for that “pageantry” (aka, “the show”): (pontifical High Masses with wall-to-wall polyphonic music, the annual Palm Sunday donkey procession, their candle-light rosary processions, etc. etc., etc.).  And by doing so, they enabled these sleaze-bags to continue their mischief.  These people too are culpable.  They are cowards.

Big Don, being a bully, is – as all bullies are – also a coward.  And his attack on Mr. Brueggemann is cowardly.  If one reads those two letters, he will clearly see the starkly contrasting characters of their respective authors: the condescending, intimidating arrogance of a fire-breathing bully, and the Christ-like forbearance and decorum of the layman who put him to shame.  It should be noted that Big Don has long since found out that his accusations against Mr. Brueggemann were false [actually, he surely knew that at the very start], and thus has had ample time to reconsider and to retract what he said, but hasn’t -- nor will he ever.  Unfortunately, the SGG/Brooksville cabal will, as they always do, stubbornly cling to perpetual denial of the facts.

And, unfortunately, many Gerties (and their MHT counterparts) will live in perpetual denial of those facts too.  They too actually try to take the moral high ground as well, and defend these lepers as “living saints.”  However, things are starting to change: people are finally coming to the realization that a Roman collar does not give one a license to intimidate and manipulate his parishioners.  The SGG crowd has for some time been wearying of Danny and Tony’s manipulation and money grubbing, and of the latter’s squandering their hard-earned dollars.  And even the timorous souls down in Florida are starting to come out of their shells too, and to see Bombastic Don for the puffed-up purveyor of horse-dung that he really is.   

Those who knew Bernie Brueggemann personally (which is most of SGG’s parishioners) know that he was a man of his word – and that he would never make a claim that he wasn’t sure of.  If they read those two letters, it should become apparent to them that what Bernie wrote was true, and that what happened was real.  Those who deny his words (and the overwhelming evidence which supports them) are living a lie.  They must stop living that lie.  They must realize that they’re not standing on “the moral high ground” (and are insulting everyone’s intelligence -- and their own -- by pretending that they are).  In short, they need to join the ranks of those who have already faced that obvious and inevitable truth – and then reject the cult-masters.  And the easiest and best way they can do that is simple: to stop giving these vermin their hard-earned money – and to leave.