They’re Tired of It ALL, Dannie!

$GG’s May 22, 2016 Bishop(?)’s ’Corner was another one of Dannie’s trademark weekly doses of sanctimonious pap n’ crap, coupled with (of course) another one of his favorite themes: playing the beggar.  This time, it was a plea for “plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables” -- ostensibly for Tony.  (Dannie has been using Tony’s recent illness as a sympathy ploy to get more financial aid from the Gerties.)  We say “ostensibly” because, as usual, Dannie has decided to include himself (and the other cult-center “clergy”) in the doling out of the goodies: “Fr. Cekada will be needing plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables in order to regain his health. (I’m sure they wouldn’t hurt the rest of us either!)” [our bold emphasis]

And, as if that wasn’t enough, he actually directed his food donors to “please use the Cucina Clerical website so you can pace our food deliveries.” [our bold emphasis again]  How characteristically presumptuous of you, Dannie, to not only get in line with your hand held out -- automatically assuming that you and those others are entitled to the dole -- but to stipulate that they “pace our food deliveries” to optimize the distributing of your freebies.  But, what the heck!  Why stop there?  Why not direct them to La Petite France’s website, and suggest some of your favorite entrée’s (and wines)?

Then, once you get them to “cough up” for that, how about requesting some “rehab time” for Tony at the Bishop’s Lodge; and, of course (as you did on the “fruits and vegetables”), include yourself in that request, since it was always your favorite “getaway” destination.  (But don’t include Lurch and the others in that getaway; that would stretch your budget too thin.  Besides, Lurch wouldn’t know how to act in a classy place like that!) 

So, go for it, Dannie!  After all, if you can sucker them into donating over and over again for an ever-leaking roof, or get them to pay for your “excessive heating bills” (while you’re “lenting” down in Mexico, pigging out on “copious quantities of beef”) – or buying an unneeded “new” organ for Tony (that breaks down almost immediately after it’s bought), then getting them to spring for this ought to be “a piece of cake”!  You know, Dannie, if you play this thing right, you’ll be able to get all kinds of concessions from your Gerties.  Plus, you’ll also be able to find out just how far you can “push their button” – to see how much they can take before they “snap” – an important defining limit!  

But actually, Dannie, don’t you think that many of your Gerties have already reached that limit?  Don’t you think that they’ve been squeezed enough?  WE DO.  We think that they’re tired of sacrificing and “offering it up,” just so that you can go on your winter “apostolates” to sunny Mexico (especially when you decide “at the last minute” to go).¹  We think, too, that they’re tired of paying for roofs that continue to leak, for AC units that prematurely fail, for unneeded organs (that also break down) – and especially for a “school” that provides a woefully inadequate “education” for a mere handful of students – at a woefully exorbitant premium paid to the “principal” and his family. ²

We think that they’re also tired of your pretentious sanctimony and your double-standard hypocrisy: tired of obeying your puritanical “dress code” rules, while you “look the other way” as the principal’s sons “do porn” (or fornicate) – both with complete impunity; tired of your sanctimonious pap about “the sanctity of human life” while you and Tony pamper your pet cats, yet disinterestedly watch Terri Schiavo being starved and dehydrated to death); tired of you talking about “protecting our innocent children,” while you allow a sadistic school principal to brutalize SGG’s school kids; tired of your selective enforcement of your “rules” (such as, denying a parishioner’s mother the last rites and a Requiem Mass because she was “Novus Ordo,” yet holding SGG’s biggest funeral ever for another parishioner’s “Novus Ordo” wife – the only difference being that the latter parishioner was a big donor at SGG, and the former wasn’t).    In fact, they’re getting tired of it all.

Dannie, we don’t think you’re fooling anybody anymore with your syrupy sanctimony and your pretentious, over-the-top “shows.”  People are starting to see them for what they are: cosmetics -- and that, behind the cosmetics, there’s really nothing there – except a “medicine show” barker in bishop’s garb, selling snake oil.  Dannie, it is also embarrassingly obvious that you are using Tony’s illness as a pretext for shaking down your Gerties even more: you know that there was NO REASON for including yourself and the others in this latest “fruits and vegetables” scam – but you did it anyway.  That’s because you can’t help yourself: you’ve been getting your own way for so long, you expect it as a birthright.  And as long as you can find suckers to fall for your predatory panhandling, you’ll keep on doing it.

But Dannie’s “sucker list” is growing short.  As Pistrina so aptly pointed out (in its article, Enough is Enough), people are starting to find out, for instance, that Dannie’s Mexican “apostolate” is not only bearing no fruit, but is, in fact, a huge FLOP – and that it’s only succeeding in emptying parishioners’ wallets.  (Click here for article).⁴   In fact, the Gerties are finding out that just about everything that Dannie and Tony do is a flop: Tony’s YouTube videos have been cut to pieces, SGG’s “Ordo 2016” has been a total (and embarrassing) failure, and their other abortive attempts at passing themselves off as “Latinists” have made them the laughing stock of Traddieland.  Outside the cult corral, nobody takes these buffoons seriously anymore.

Eventually, everyone – perhaps even the “hard core” -- will catch on to Dannie’s act; and he and Tony (and Donny, for that matter) will have to fold up their tent and move their medicine show elsewhere.  Actually – since their reputation as frauds has spread to the world-at-large -- we think that there really isn’t any place they can go unnoticed.  We think, therefore, that they should do what Big Don once sarcastically suggested, i.e., become WalMart greeters.  (Well, on second thought, only Dannie would be a “fit” for that job. With his mousy grin and his syrupy demeanor, he’d be a “natural.”)  Tony, on the other hand – since he lacks Dannie’s “social skills” (and perceives himself to be a “scholar”) – would do better as WalMart’s “intelligentsia guru,” and open up a line of designer dunce caps.⁵  So again, we say, “Go for it, Dannie!  Go for it, Tony!”

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¹ We did a little checking to find out what a trip to Mexico City (from Cincinnati or Dayton) would really cost, if booked “at the last minute” -- say, two to four days before the flight.  The price for one “coach” ticket is anywhere from $1350 to $2000, depending on whether the flight is non-stop, its takeoff time, etc. – and that doesn’t include baggage fees.  It also doesn’t include any other air or land travel within Mexico, or hotels, meals, taxis, etc. – or how much “entertaining” is done at the other end.  Add all this up, and one of Dannie’s spur-of-the-moment “quick trips” might run DOUBLE the airfare figures given above – or more.

² The “principal” and his family get the lion’s share of the remuneration paid to the school’s “faculty.”  (The other teachers -- if there are any left -- get little to nothing for what they do.)  And what do the Gerties get for their money?  Not much.  Academically speaking, the “school” is a joke.  About the only thing that it has going for it is draconian discipline from a sadistic schoolmaster – fondly reminiscent of the character Mr. Creakle (in Dickens’ David Copperfield) or Wackford Squeers (in Dickens’ Nicholas Nickelby) – both of whom are often held up as arch-typical examples of sadistic schoolmasters).

³ The instances of mistreatment of the school’s students by the principal and his family are many -- and well documented.  (Click here to see a fairly representative sampling.)  They were, In fact, the primary reason why half the congregation exited SGG back in 2009.  But even more despicable than the acts themselves was Dannie’s condoning of them – and how he ignored the pleas of parents who brought their grievances to him.  He disdainfully told them that they could go elsewhere if they didn’t like it.  He even fired one of his teachers who had complained to him when he was physically and verbally threatened by one of the principal’s sons.  (But the boy, of course, received no disciplinary action whatsoever.)  That teacher, by the way, was a foreign national, and was eventually reported to Homeland Security by Anthony Cekada – the very man who was supposed to be taking care of his “immigration” papers.  (Click here for a complete account of what happened.)

Why did Dannie not only allow this to happen, but condone and defend it as well? What sort of “leverage,” we ask, does the principal have on Dannie and Tony that they couldn’t summarily dismiss him for what he did?  Well, all that we can say is that the principal has reportedly boasted on several occasions that “they cannot fire me; I know too much.”  So we the answer, "draw your own conclusions."

⁴ Other than a couple of panhandling padres that Dannie has managed to corral by buying them off with gringo dinero, Dannie is persona non grata in Mexico.  He has had to reach farther south – to Ecuador – to find new “fertile ground” (and we wonder how long it will be before that too runs afoul).  Whatever the case, Ecuador is certainly a more expensive proposition than Mexico.

⁵ Actually, WalMart could open up new product lines in both Dannie’s and Tony’s names.  Taking a cue from Mattel’s Barbie Doll®, they could feature a Dannie Doll® -- a bobble-head version of Wee Dan that hillbillies could hang from the rearview mirrors of their pickup trucks.  And, like Barbie, there could be different versions of Dannie: Doubtful Dan® (complete with a “one-hand” ordination kit), Beggar Dan® (with one hand stretched out in eternal supplication), and Dannie the Martyr® (a talking Dannie that, when its string is pulled, whines about the persecution that SGG is suffering at the hands of the local energy utility’s “high heating bills,” the local governmental authority’s “discriminatory building codes,” or some other “injustice” at the hands of some imagined “oppressor”).

Tony’s product line (the dunce caps) could be expanded, too, to include not just the caps themselves, but dolls (of Tony) wearing them – and perhaps even marketed internationally (as Señor Simplón in Latin countries, as Tony der Trottel in German-speaking countries, etc. etc., etc.).  And, oh yes, one last product idea, reflecting Dannie’s morbid preoccupation with his feral cat, Caravaggio: a Baby Bunny Shredder.®  This would be something on the order of an ordinary paper shredder, except that it would, in this case, shred baby bunnies.  And to play on the “cat” theme, its “infeed” wouldn’t have a set of conventional rollers, but a faithfully executed rendition of Caravaggio’s head, with a macerating mechanical “mouth” to ensnare and dismember the little critters. 

With such a device, other unbalanced individuals could “share” in Dannie’s sociopathic fantasies, and duplicate his singular depravity, without the bother of actually having to buy (and care for) a real live cat.  And perhaps, too, a “Lotarski” version of this contraption might also be offered – one with a built-in camcorder, to catch the action for further viewing (with, of course, forward, reverse, and “slow-mo” features to “maximize” the experience.)  So, at the risk of repeating ourselves, we once again say, "Go for it, Dannie!"

Why Culties Aren’t Catholic

One of the things that is truly amazing is the way Dannie’s culties simply IGNORE all the wrongdoing and harm that he has done, and support him – no matter what.  Nothing seems to faze them.  Dannie can do just about anything, and it rolls off them, like water off a duck’s back.  They’ll put up with anything, as long as they get their “show.”  For instance, the abuses of the school principal and his boys during the 2009 SGG school troubles: the behavior of the Lotarski family was nothing short of APPALLING – but the culties took it all in stride.  When Dannie referred to the Lotarski boys’ watching porn and animal torture videos on the school computer as “boys will be boys,” one would think that this would’ve outraged the parishioners – or at least make them take notice.  And when one of the Lotarski boys impregnated a girl student at SGG’s school, one might think that this would’ve been universally condemned by them – especially when Dannie ignored that too.¹   But it wasn't.  Nary a soul “batted an eye.” 

And as for Dannie, not only did he not publicly (or privately) castigate the boy for his blatantly criminal act of immorality, but he actually feted him on several occasions afterwards.  (Dannie actually featured him in an SGG Newsletter not long after that, commending him for his expertise “on the organ.”  [We wonder to which “organ” he was referring!]  And the girl?  When Dannie did assess any blame, it was to her.  He said NOTHING about the boy.

And did the boy “do right” by the girl?  Did he accept responsibility, and offer to marry her (or even offer to support her or the child in any way)?  NO.  He entirely abrogated his responsibilities, and skipped off, “Scot Free.”  The girl and her child now live with her parents, who support them both.  Not a penny of support came from the Lotarski clan.  Now, one of Dannie’s “apologists” might contend that the child is not the Lotarski boy’s -- but DNA evidence readily confirms otherwise.  (Actually, no DNA evidence is necessary: the child is a spitting image of her father.)

And is the boy or his parents – or Dannie – ashamed of what happened?  Do they have any sense of guilt or remorse?  NO.  On the contrary: they simply pretend that it never happened, and “life at the cult center” goes on, as if nothing had happened.  And what about the parishioners?  Do they condemn this in any way?  NO.  They also pretend.  Why?  Because morality has no place for them: SGG is all about “the show,” not about morality.  That’s all that counts.  As long as they get their “show,” ANYTHING is permissible.

Well, one might counter again, “Perhaps the parishioners were not aware of what was going on.”  To this, we must counter that, for them not to be aware of this, is like the captain of the Titanic not being aware that his ship was sinking.  EVERYBODY at SGG was aware of it (as they were aware of everything else going on at the school).  It was on everybody’s lips – and virtually every parishioner was informed of it in writing by other concerned (and irate) fellow parishioners.  They simply IGNORED it all, because it got in the way of their “show.”  That’s the kind of “morality” that sets the standard at SGG.

Another example of cultie “morality” that bears mentioning involves a couple who, staunch supporters of Dannie, came to him one day to request that he give the wife’s mother the last rites.  Dannie refused, because she was “Novus Ordo” -- and therefore not “Catholic.”    He also refused to give her a Requiem Mass when she died shortly thereafter.  Now what makes his refusal so incredibly hypocritical (as well as monumentally uncharitable) is that, some time prior to that, he DID grant a Requiem Mass for a “Novus Ordo” Catholic: the deceased wife of -- you guessed it -- another SGG parishioner.

The difference was this: the aforementioned couple, being of modest means, had little money to give, while that deceased wife’s well-to-do husband was a big contributor at SGG.  Oddly enough, that deceased wife was not only Novus Ordo, but she detested both Dannie and Tony – usually reason enough for Dannie to deny someone.  But that didn’t matter: it was her husband’s money that mattered.  And her funeral, in fact, was arguably the biggest, splashiest affair ever held at SGG.³   (So, it seems that any “ecclesiastical” or “canonical” reasons Dannie might have had for refusing the one did not apply in the case of the other – more of Dannie’s “double standard” hypocrisy.)

The couple was naturally upset, and left SGG.  They then found a priest who readily granted their request for the last rites (and subsequent Requiem Mass).³ The couple were obviously elated (and grateful) for this priest’s having the Catholic charity to accommodate them; and in gratitude, they decided to attend his Masses rather than go back to the cult center – or so one would think.  But, because his Masses were not the ornate extravaganzas that Dannie put on (they were Low Masses, offered in a private home), the couple – who missed “the show” – eventually quit this priest, and returned to SGG.  That is the kind of “gratitude” they showed for this man who so graciously and unselfishly accommodated them in their hour of need.  This is how they repaid his kindness and charity.

How could they do such a thing?  How could they return to the vipers who refused them, and spurn the priest who accommodated them?  Simple: they got what they wanted, so they didn’t need that priest anymore.  They have come to emulate their cult-masters: to use people to get what they want, and then to discard them.  And, of course, they invent “reasons” to justify their treachery.  For them, Catholic morality doesn’t count.  Pontifical pageantry, polyphonic music, and elaborate spectacle – in the end, that’s what counts.  If the Lotarski boys watch porn or fornicate (or if their father habitually brutalizes students at SGG’s school), or if Phony Tony justifies Terri Schiavo’s being put to death, none of that matters to them.  It’s only “the show” – superficiality, not substance -- that counts.

But that’s what the cult mentality does to people: it turns them into people who would rather have lavishly embellished lip service and lies than unadorned, unvarnished truth.  Ignoring what really counts, they dwell on the superficial (such as, condemning people for violating “dress codes,” even though they themselves don’t observe them – especially the “privileged elite” at SGG and MHT).  And, like that Pharisee who prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people,” they take the moral high ground, look down their noses at the “Samaritans” around them, and find fault with just about everyone.⁴

The culties of Tradistan, whether they choose to admit it or not, are Pharisees.  They are hypocrites.  And they are wrong.  And, down deep, they know it – but they’re too proud to admit it.  They blot out the truth, and settle for the alluring cosmetics of make-believe Catholicism – because that is more palatable for them than facing up to reality.  “Porn?”  “No problem!”  “Animal torture flicks?”  “No problem!”  “Fornication?”  “No problem!”  “Terri being starved and dehydrated to death?”  “No problem – as long as we get our bell-ringing processions and our annual donkey parade!”  What kind of people, one wonders, can reconcile such things in their minds?  

And what will this kind of "pretending" and denial gain them?  In the end, whom will they hurt but themselves, because “the truth always outs.”  Eventually, they will no longer be able to ignore it (or live with it), and they’ll have to face the obvious truth – and face their Creator as well.  When that day of realization (and reckoning) comes, how much damage will have been done – not just suffered by them at the expense of their cult-masters, but done by them to others as well?⁵   How many other souls will they have endangered by their living in denial (and thus “enabling” the cult-masters)?  When they meet their Maker, Who “can neither deceive nor be deceived,” how will they answer for all their deception and denial?   They had better think about that.

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¹ Yes, many did disapprove, and left SGG -- approximately half the congregation) – but many stayed.  They were made aware of the abuses -- both by word of mouth, and in writing – but they chose either not to believe it, or to ignored it.  If it didn’t happen to them personally, it didn’t “register” with them.  (But that’s the way it is for a lot of people: if it doesn’t actually happen to them, it’s not “real” for them.)  But, that being said, there really was more than enough evidence to convince them. SGG’s biggest benefactor, for one, was convinced – and left.  (See A Tale of Two Letters.)  It only goes to prove that, for those who stayed, no amount of evidence will ever convince them.

² Dannie also refused the sacraments on other occasions -- even to his own parishioners, if they violated his “rules.”  (One such parishioner was the brother of Fr. Ahern.  Dannie refused him communion because he had attended an SSPX chapel while on vacation.)

³ This was the celebrated “Triple Play” Requiem Mass that we reported about some time back in an earlier article.  (Click here for article.) It was actually three Masses – said simultaneously by three different priests – something unprecedented in the history of SGG.  It makes Dannie’s refusal of that couple’s mother all the more hypocritical; but it also makes that couple’s returning to SGG all the more hypocritical as well, especially if they were aware of that former “triple play” funeral -- and they probably were.  But whether they were or not, the duplicity of their action alone is enough to indict them.  If they are not thoroughly ashamed of what they have done, they ought to be.

⁴ One of SGG’s prominent parishioners is fond of saying that this person or that “has problems.”  In a discussion one day about well-known entertainment personalities, he ridiculed the late singer Perry Como, saying that he had “problems.”  Amongst other things, he accused Como of often appearing with female performers who were, by cult-master standards, “inappropriately dressed.”  Funny thing, though: this parishioner’s wife often wore dresses that were “tightly wrapped”; but, since he was a prominent parishioner, the double-standard cult-masters said nothing about it.

As it turns out, Perry Como was a devoutly Catholic man who led an exemplary life.  The seventh of thirteen children, he married his childhood sweetheart, whom he remained with for over 65 years (until her death in 1998).  He never remarried.  In an age when scandal was the norm for popular entertainers (and secret “liaisons” could be easily and discreetly arranged, there was never a hint of it in his case.  And, being one of the most popular (and handsome) personalities of his generation, he was undoubtedly a tempting target for worldly, unscrupulous women – and he could have easily succumbed to such temptation.  But he didn’t.  Instead, he insisted on regularly travelling with a Franciscan priest to make sure that nothing of that sort ever happened. 

Also, he was one of the very few pop entertainers who sang religious (and Catholic) hymns on his “Christmas” shows.  (He typically closed his Christmas shows with Schubert’s Ave Maria or with the hymn O Holy Night.)  Personally, professionally – in fact, in every way – he was a shining example of what a true Catholic gentleman should be.  We wonder if, in similar circumstances (i.e., facing the temptations to which a rich and famous personage is exposed), this parishioner would have led as exemplary a life as Mr. Como did.  We think not. 

But, apparently, Mr. Como did not measure up to this parishioner’s “standards,” just as, in our Lord’s parable, that publican didn’t measure up to the Pharisee’s “standards.”  And (besides that), what makes his slanderous remarks about Mr. Como so hypocritical is that, when he made them, he was simultaneously trying to squelch rumors then circulating about Dannie and Tony.  It was okay for him to slander Mr. Como, but not for anyone else to do the same for Dannie and Tony -- another shining example of the double-standard hypocrisy that pervades SGG.  (But that’s to be expected: he was only emulating his cult-masters’ behavior.) 

⁵ And much damage has been done.  Not only have people’s wallets been drained by the cult-masters; but, more importantly, there has been much spiritual harm done – perhaps irreparable harm – especially to the younger generation.  Many of the culties’ children, for instance, being not so gullible as their parents, have seen through the double-standard hypocrisy of the cult-masters; and they have become disillusioned to the point where they have lost their Faith.  And even for those who (as yet) haven’t, their disillusionment will inevitably come – but it will be greater.

Why Lay Boards? Here’s Why

The SGG school scandals of 2009 affected not only SGG itself, but its satellite parishes (especially St. Clare’s in Columbus, Ohio) as well.  Actually, St. Clare’s was being “affected” even prior to that – back as far as the 1990’s, when Fr. Ferrera was its pastor.  Dannie and Tony were dissatisfied with him – perhaps because he was not channeling enough money back to the parent cult center.  But, in any event, they dismissed him.¹  This didn’t go down too well with St. Clare’s parishioners, most of whom liked Fr. Ferrera very much – especially when he was replaced with the Latino lunatic, Fr. Oscar Saavedra, with whom the parishioners were thoroughly disgruntled and bewildered.  (Saavedra was then followed by a series of replacements, the last of whom was Fr. Marcus Ramolla.)

For those who recall the 2009 SGG school scandals, it was Ramolla who was installed by Dannie as the school’s principal.  This was done at the insistence of SGG’s irate parishioners, who wanted Lotarski (the school’s principal) fired, and then replaced by Ramolla.  This “concession” of Dannie’s lasted exactly one week.  As things turned out, Lotarski was NOT fired, but “demoted,” whereupon Ramolla (after that one week) was fired, and Lotarski reinstalled as principal.  (Dannie, of course, trumped up some charges against Ramolla to justify his firing.)

Well, this firing was “the last straw” for St. Clare’s parishioners, most of whom were satisfied with Ramolla – and most of whom then left.  Dannie and Tony countered by selling the church; and, because Dannie and Tony were its legal owners, they pocketed the proceeds from the sale.  What made it even worse was that, in addition to that, they also confiscated St. Clare’s building fund – an additional $120,000 ($123,664, to be exact) – and St. Clare’s parishioners could do NOTHING about it.  Why?  Because everything was signed over to Dannie and Tony, that’s why.  If St. Clare’s had been owned and controlled by a lay board, that would have never happened.  But it did.  These parishioners -- who paid for that church (and put over $120,000 into a building fund for improvements that were never implemented) -- saw their money go up in smoke.  They came away empty-handed.

And that is precisely why every “trad” church or chapel should have a LAY BOARD.  “But,” one may protest, “the Church -- not the laity -- has always owned (and controlled) its churches!”  Yes, that is true.  But Tradistan is NOT the Church.  All traditional churches and chapels are outside the Church.  And, being outside the Church, they cannot claim that same right.  They have absolutely no authority or jurisdiction whatsoever.  And, of course, unlike the institutional Church, there is no hierarchy to whom they are accountable.  In Traddieland, the “clergy” are answerable to NO ONE but themselves.  Therefore, left unchecked, they can do whatever they please, and no one can legally challenge them or stop them.  That, in a nutshell, is the problem: no accountability.  If there is no lay board, the “clergy” have a blank check -- and the laity must pick up the tab.

And that is exactly how things have played out in Traddieland – especially at the SGG and MHT cult centers.  Dannie and Tony, for instance, suckered their parishioners into moving from a perfectly adequate (and paid for) facility in Sharonville, Ohio to a new one (in West Chester, Ohio) that is falling apart around them: leaky roof, raccoon (and rodent) infestations, and an HVAC system that has had to be replaced – all within the span of fifteen years.  Dannie’s new “sermon in stone” turned out to be a “sermon in dilapidation.”  And the new “school” that was so “direly needed”?  That, for the most part, has become a repository for Dannie and Tony’s junk.  (The student enrollment has never been more than a couple dozen kids, which could have been housed in one or two rooms.)  The same is true for the MHT cult center: the school enrollment is just as anemic (as is the “seminary” enrollment), although the physical facilities were built to house many more.  The school, in fact, has almost as many faculty as there are students (who spend half their day at “choir practice” and/or house-cleaning for the “clergy”).

And what do the parishioners get for bankrolling these thieves?  Not much.  Oh yes, they get “the show” (and their kids get a woefully sub-standard education), and that’s about it.  Meanwhile, Dannie and Tony trek the globe on pointless (and fruitless) “apostolates,”² while back home at the cult center, they lay down draconian rules that the parishioners must follow (or be kicked out). ³   The same holds true at MHT, which is even worse.  The kids, for instance, are instructed by the nuns to spy on their parents and to report back any “infractions” (such as having a TV in the home, using the internet without “school” permission, going to movies, or cavorting with “unauthorized” friends (i.e., anybody who is not a member of the cult).  This is the kind of totalitarian crap the parishioners must pay for and put up with – or leave.

At the cult centers, people are routinely denied the sacraments (and sometimes even banned from the property) if they disobey any of the cult-masters’ “rules” (or if they challenge the cult-masters in any way).  It is a common tool that the cult-masters use to keep their culties in line.  (In the institutional Church, such a thing is unthinkable.)⁴  In short, in Trrddieland's “clergy” controlled facilities, the laity has no leverage whatsoever.  One obeys – or one leaves.  And another thing: in the institutional Church, a church facility was NEVER sold out from under the parishioners’ noses, like it was at St. Clare’s – and any proceeds from a sale went into the diocesan treasury, NOT into the pastor’s pocket.

For these and many other reasons, that is why it is so important to have a lay board controlling “the material end of things.”  (It also helps to ensure that the clergy’s minds are on spiritual matters, and not being tempted into becoming too  worldly or materialistic.) But even that alone doesn’t guarantee “safety.”  A board is only as strong as its members.  If they are weak-willed and gullible, they can be talked into changing their bylaws, and turning over their facility to an unscrupulous cult-master.  That is what is going on right now at Our Lady of the Sun Church in Arizona.  Big Don has been pushing for them to turn over control of their church to him, but (as yet) they have resisted.  However, if he can convince the majority of their board members to do so, that is another matter.

The reason, of course, is that the Donster desperately needs money to fund his latest scheme (his new “order”); and OLS is the only thing on his radar screen right now.  (As Pistrina pointed out, the “main families” at MHT won’t fall for it, because – when the Marquis de Selway becomes bishop -- all their monetary support will go to him, not to Big Don, from then on.)  If the OLS board turns over control to the Donster, they can kiss their facility goodbye.  It will become Our Lady of the Dispossessed.  Again, Big Don desperately needs money for his new scheme, and OLS is his only real prospect right now.  Let us hope that the OLS folks (for their own sake) do not fall for his sales pitch.

It is interesting to note that in Europe, the state, not the Church, owns the physical facilities – and not without cause: the corruption in the Church in the later Middle Ages did much to bring this about.  For one thing, the pope had by then become as much a temporal ruler as a religious one; and the Church became materially rich (and corrupted) in many ways.  The Protestant Revolt, in fact, was  in many ways as much an economic revolt as it was a religious one.  If the Church had stuck to a purely spiritual role, Christendom probably wouldn’t be divided as it is today – nor would Traddieland.  

The self-serving cult-masters in Tradistan are simply emulating, on a smaller scale, what the Church did back then – except that they are emulating all of its bad parts, but none of its good: they kept all the tinsel and the lavish life-style, but not Catholic morality.  That’s because they don’t care about morality, but about money – and about themselves.  Their “morality” is simply a perverted Puritanism that condemns women’s hemlines being too short, but condones watching porn and fornication (as long as it’s the principal’s sons doing it), and that condones the starving and dehydrating to death of a Terri Schiavo (or okays the harvesting of someone’s heart for a transplant, as long as the recipient is the child of a rich parishioner).

The cult-masters are, in fact, worse than Bergoglio, because they try to pass themselves off as “the real thing” when they aren’t.  Come the Restoration, when the Church gets back to its real roots, Tradistan will die on the vine, just like other bad seed that was sown along the way.  For now, it is our sincere hope that the folks at OLS will recognize them for what they are – self-seeking parasites – and will not succumb to their siren song, because, if they do, they’ll certainly lose their property to these corporate raiders.  If they will only look around, they’ll find that they have plenty of other choices – viable choices – of good, selfless men of sound moral character, who will provide a healthy, Catholic atmosphere.  Let’s hope that they do.

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¹ Ferrera was well-liked by many of his parishioners, and was probably becoming too popular (and “independent”) for Dannie’s liking.  (For one thing, he probably wasn’t plowing enough money – especially “stipend” money -- back into the parent cult center coffers.)  So, how did Dannie manage to get rid of him?  Well, St. Clare’s altar happened to have statues of two angels – one on either side of it.  And one day, Dannie called Fr. Ferrera, and (inexplicably) ordered him to remove these statues.  Fr. Ferrera (naturally) refused.  For this “disobedience,” Dannie dismissed him.  The statues, by the way, were later re-installed on either side of the altar, which tells us that Dannie, knowing that Ferrera would vehemently oppose their removal, used their removal as a pretext for getting him upset and protesting it – a tactic that worked.  When Ferrera “talked back” to him, Dannie fired him on the spot.

And speaking of religious objects, we’re sure that many at SGG recall the picture of the scourged Christ that Dannie puts on display there quite often (especially during Lent).  That statue actually belongs to the Bruegger family (from Urbana, Ohio), who were major supporters of St. Clare’s.  They lent that statue to Dannie, with the understanding that it was theirs, not his, and that it would be returned one day.  Eventually, after the 2009 SGG school scandals, that family became disenchanted with Dannie, and left.  When they asked Dannie to return their statue, he refused.  He kept it.  Dannie has done that with other “lent” items as well.  Dannie is, in short, a thief.

² Dannie’s latest “apostolate” is – believe it or not -- Quito, Ecuador!  It seems that Dannie has been rejected in Mexico (as he also was in France), and he must look for new “territory” to give his culties the impression that he has a vast “international apostolate.”  Of course, it will be only a matter of time before the Ecuadorians “find him out” as well, leaving him with only that small splinter group in Argentina as his Latin American “turf.”

³ Many who protested about the 2009 SGG school scandals were kicked out by Dannie – not only at SGG, but at St. Clare’s and St. Hugh of Lincoln as well.  (Many were barred, by police order, from the property.)  And others were denied the sacraments for things such as attending an SSPX chapel while on vacation.

⁴ To be denied the sacraments in the institutional Church, one had to have committed something really grave; and to be banned from the property, one had to be guilty of criminal trespassing.  But at the cult centers, having gone to an unauthorized chapel gets you denied the sacraments; and complaining to the pastor about abuses at the school got many of them barred from the property.

Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?

How many times has someone at one of the cult centers said something like this: “Well, we’d like to leave, but there’s nowhere else to go”; or this: “We’d like to leave, but we’re waiting for the right moment.”  So, what is it that what makes them stay?  There are many reasons why; but, in most cases, the common thread that runs through those reasons is fear – and the cult masters play on that fear to keep their flocks in tow.

Perhaps the biggest fear that people have – especially at SGG and MHT – is that  they think the cult is the only means of salvation for them.  Little by little, over time, this has been inculcated in them to the point where they think it is literally true – especially regarding “getting the sacraments.”  And once people like Dannie and Big Don have them believing this, then they can use all manner of guilt-tripping and manipulation (especially using the sacraments as weapons) to deny them that “salvation” if they don’t do their bidding  -- classic cult tactics, right out of the cult text book.  People are actually afraid of what Dannie or Big Don will say or do if they break one of their “rules,” or otherwise “make a false move.”

And once these people are in that mindset of “no salvation outside the cult,” they actually think that there’s nowhere else on earth that they can go “for the sacraments.”  Their cult masters actually have them believing this.  The truth is, there are, in most cases, plenty of places they can go for the sacraments: SSPX, FSSP, SSPV, CMRI, various independents – whatever – ALL of whom are valid. ¹  And as to whether or not these others are “licit,” who are these self-proclaimed “authorities” like Dannie and Donnie – renegades outside the institutional Church, who haven’t any authority or jurisdiction whatsoever -- to say who is or isn’t licit?

They’re also afraid to leave for fear of offending their “friends” (i.e., their fellow parishioners).  “What will they think of us if we leave?”  “What will they say?”  The answer to those two questions is, “Who cares?”  Backbiting “friends,” who micro-examine everything one says and does, aren’t worth having, and are not friends at all.  If they shun you, that’s their loss and your gain.  Pick new friends.  And remember, friends and acquaintances are yours to choose, not the cult-masters’ – and you don’t need the cult-masters’ “permission” to choose them.

Perhaps, however, it is not so much fear of “offending” anyone, but the idea of having “invested” so much time (and money) in the cult centers, and not wanting to “throw it away” and “start all over again” somewhere else – especially with respect to the school.  Perhaps they think that their kids won’t get a “good Catholic education” somewhere else.  Well, they’re not getting one at the cult centers either.  Instead of an education based on sound Catholic moral principles, they’re getting one that dwells on superficialities, where riding roller coasters and wearing “inappropriate” headbands are “mortal sins,” but watching porn apparently isn’t (that is, if it’s the principal’s sons who are watching it).²

Besides getting an education that really isn’t Catholic, they’re also getting one that is woefully sub-standard. Most of their “teachers” are not accredited, and most of their courses are watered down.  (In most cases, good college prep and advanced courses aren’t even available.)  Much of the cult centers’ “class time” is taken up with “choir practice” and attending extra-curricular church services (such as required attendance at parishioners’ funerals); and, often times, “class time” consists of  “house-keeping” chores (such as, cleaning the classrooms and/or the nuns’ quarters, or doing yard work around the school).  The bottom line is that these kids are academically ill prepared to compete in today’s world. ³

Then what about those people who are “waiting for that right moment” – who have not yet “had enough” to make them leave?  Perhaps they think they need some sort of “incident” to get them to leave – something really “blatant” to justify their leaving.  They say to themselves, “The next time Dannie (or Big Don) pulls something like that, I’m bolting.”  But that “next time” comes, and they do nothing, because the deed is not quite blatant enough to “push them over the edge.”  And as things keep getting inevitably worse, they keep tolerating it and making “allowances” for it (and keep on saying  “next time”).  But that “next time” is a tomorrow that never comes.  The truth is, things will never get better, because the cult-masters don’t want them to get better.  As they’ve demonstrated so many times, they’re in it for the money, not for saving souls.  And, consequently, what they offer is not Catholicism but a caricature of it – “the show” – because that’s what brings in the revenue.   

So, the thing to do is to leave – just leave.  Don’t wait for “that right moment.”  After all, when is the “right moment” to rid oneself of a malignant tumor?  The right moment is NOW – and always has been.  By staying, you are risking not just your own souls, but your children's as well.  Eventually, when they come of age, they will see through the hypocrisy and the double standards of the cult center; and it will disillusion them – perhaps to the pinot of losing their Faith.⁴  That, coupled with the cult center’s substandard academics, will ill prepare them for the future, both materially and spiritually.  Are you willing to mortgage their future just for the sake of having your “show”?  Again, just leave.  Leave before it’s too late.

And – guess what -- when you do leave, “the big bad wolf” is not going to “huff and puff, and blow your house down,” as the popular children’s story goes.  Oh yes, humbugs like Big Don will do a lot of “huffing and puffing” (and Dannie will keep on handing out his weekly dose of “guilt-tripping”): but there is little else they can do.  So why prolong your bondage?  Why put up with what you know is wrong?  Do what your conscience has been telling you to do: leave.  Nothing will happen – except that you’ll experience a feeling of relief (and exhilaration) for having rid yourself of these predators.  And, as we’ve said so many times, you, your souls, and your wallets be glad you did. 

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¹ A word of caution about the CMRI: although there may be some worthy priests in its fold, it is obvious from recent reports that its leader, Pivarunas, allied himself with the SGG and MHT cults; and he is acting more and more like Dannie, Tony, and Big Don – especially with respect to living the grand life-style.  (From all reports too, CMRI’s “seminary” is also a joke, about on a par with Sanborn’s Florida flop house.)  If one has other choices available, it is best to choose one of them over a CMRI chapel.

² For all of Dannie’s sanctimonious prattle, real Catholic morality is non-existent at SGG.  What good is his waxing poetic about “our innocent children” when he passes off watching porn (and animal torture videos) on the school computer as “boys will be boys.”  (Kind of explains why Dannie dwells on his cats’ baby bunny carnage all the time, doesn’t it!)  And what kind of pastor would condone the abuses that went on at SGG’s school?  (Click here for a more complete listing of those abuses.)  And what kind of “moral theologian” would justify what happened to Terri Schiavo?  A depraved one, that’s what kind.  But that’s the sort of crap that passes for “morality” at the cult centers.

³ So, what other academic choices do they have?  Many.  First, they can home-school their children -- which is not so hard as some might think.  For instance, there are many courses available on-line, so it’s not like mom has to devote her whole day to “schooling.”  There are, in fact, entire school curricula available on-line, so – other than “checking” on the kids once in a while, mom can leave them to themselves.  (Many moms do this.)  Secondly, several families can band together to form a home-schooling “network,” thus sharing the task, making the load lighter for all.  (There are home-schooling support groups, too, that home-schoolers can avail themselves of – both at the local and national levels.)  Another option, of course, is sending the kids to a “Novus Ordo” school, and just “opting out” of “religion” courses.  (Many do this as well.)  The bottom line is that just about any option is better than sending one’s kids to the cult center’s “school.”

⁴ When the school scandals broke out at SGG in 2009, many of the teenage kids were already aware of what was going on.  When they found out about the principal’s sons watching porn on the school computer -- and especially when they found out about one of those sons impregnating a fellow student -- they saw through all the hypocrisy and the double standards, and, “putting two and two together,” became thoroughly disillusioned with the cult’s brand of “traditional Catholicism.”  Consequently, many of them left – some even abandoning the Faith altogether.