A new book by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Michael D’Antonio provides a compelling, if stomach-turning account of the Roman Catholic Church’s long history of covering up reports of sexual abuse. Book reviewers are calling Mortal Sins: Sex, Crime, and the Era of Catholic Scandal the most comprehensive account of the church’s sexual abuse scandal to date. D’Antonio, a reporter for NewsDay, uses scores of legal documents, personal interviews and secondary sources to examine a culture of secrecy and conspiracy of silence so great that it has forever marred the reputation of the Catholic Church.
While D’Antonio excoriates church leaders for their failure to address sexual abuse as a crime rather than a sin, he extolls those individuals who worked tirelessly to expose the conspiracy of silence. Attorney Jeff Anderson is one of three Americans D’Antonio credits with kicking off an international movement to hold the Church and its offenders accountable for their actions. Anderson first took on the church in 1984, when the family of abuse victim Greg Lyman retained him to sue their local diocese.
Read reviews of the book:
Beyond Good and Evil (Wall Street Journal)
‘Mortal Sins’ an unflinching look at priest sex abuse scandal (The Buffalo News)