Archdiocese of Baltimore to expose St. Mark Catholic Church for having 'multiple abusers'

St. Mark Catholic Church in Catonsville is one of the Archdiocese of Baltimore's parishes that had multiple abusers for years. Image: Josh Applegate|Unsplash

Residents of Catonsville and parishioners of St. Mark Catholic Church are aware of the issue that the church will face in the coming days. 

A report disclosed that St. Mark Catholic Church is known for having multiple abusers for four decades. 

Exposing Local Church for Covering, Hiding Abusers

A report detailing sexual abuse of minors by priests and brothers in the Archdiocese of Baltimore extending back 80 years is forthcoming from the Maryland Attorney General's Office. 

According to The Baltimore Sun, the report details the attempts of the archdiocese to shield perpetrators and silence victims, including 158 men who raped and tortured over 600 people between the 1940s and 2002.

The archdiocese revealed that St. Mark Catholic Church has nine such perpetrators. 

A victim advocate and ex-parishioner claims he informed state prosecutors about additional perpetrators at the church during their four-year investigation. 

Frank Dingle, the independent investigator, believes the parish in the summary is St. Mark's and that the attorney general's report count would rise.

Per the report, St. Mark's is not the only institution that has kept serial offenders over the years. The archdiocese estimated that at least five lived in each of a dozen parishes. 

Locations on the list range from urban and suburban churches to high schools and even a seminary. 

Except for one case, all of the abuse documented by the archdiocese took place before 2002, when church officials began removing credibly accused priests from service.

The darkest times at St. Mark's, in the memories of many parishioners, occurred in the 1970s and 1980s, making it a unique parish not just because of the number of predators there. 

The Abusers at Local Church

In addition to Msgr. Frederick Duke, the pastor from 1971 to 1978, the other abusers were reverends David G. Smith, a prominent fundraiser in the 1970s, and Edward Heilman, a priest known for his scholarly manner in the mid-1980s. 

The report revealed that Duke, who passed away in 1992, admitted later in life that he had abused children in the past. Smith admitted in 2002 that he had molested a teen boy in the 1970s. The archdiocese found the allegations against Heilman after his death in 1988 believable.

A former church employee, Joan McMahon, is upset and indignant at learning this information. She said she felt distressed that these men and five other priest offenders resided and worked at St. Mark's at different times between 1970 and 1989. 

About St. Mark Catholic Church

St. Mark Catholic Church in Catonsville, Maryland, has a dedicated staff whose job is to help the congregation's members develop a more profound devotion to God and a more active role in His kingdom. 

The people of St. Mark's Church, strengthened and sustained by the Eucharist, bear witness to the good news of Jesus Christ to the world by studying, practicing, and loving their faith.

Worshiping together as a community is central to the practice of their faith. 

As Christians gather weekly to worship God and receive Him in the Eucharist, they give their time and themselves to the community.

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