Just like many Catholics, Tamilynne Voelzke is concerned about the magnitude of the sexual abuse scandal. However, what she couldn't stand is the exploitation of the scandal by unscrupulous individuals for monetary gain at the expense of the reputation of virtuous priests. The author denounces this practice in her book “Blood Money: Sexual Allegations in the Church, Mirrored by Judas' Betrayal of Jesus” (2019).
Tamilynne, a Byzantine Rite Catholic, defines the concept of blood money in mafia parlance as payment for the atrocious or quick murder of a liability or powerful competitor. She then expands the definition to include any money gained at the expense or suffering of others.
“(Sexual abuse) claims are the most potent way to destroy a Catholic priest,” says New Hampshire priest Father Gordon MacRae who, despite his innocence and the fraud of his accuser, was sentenced to 67 years in prison in 1994. His accuser received a $200,000 settlement from Fr. MacRae's diocese.
Father MacRae isn't the only priest to have suffered such a fate. The culture of blood money (or the exploitation of the sexual abuse scandal for monetary gain) have become prevalent that Tamilynne could no longer keep quiet about it.
“The intended focus of this book is the widespread use of false allegations to take advantage of the true molestations in the current sexual crisis throughout the church,” said Tamilynne in the introduction. “There is a variety of other issues that also encompass the 'blood money' paradigm.
“There are even situations of allegations made falsely against a person (priest or otherwise) who the accuser wants to destroy for the sake of a vendetta.”
Tamilynne knows that the Church is not just an easy target for slurs coming from bigots but is also an easy target for lawyers and false claimants, as well as secular 'hit men' and the media looking to score a windfall. She said: “Victims of priests in the sexual abuse scandal rightfully asked for some financial restitution for the ordeals they suffered. However, as a result of this situation, law firms see the potential of additional exorbitant lawsuits that may be paid in the future on similar cases.
“The new trend is to imitate the high-paying lawsuits of actual molestation cases by creating a false accusation against an innocent priest, in the hope that a diocese will choose to pay the accuser in order to avoid court costs.”
The author laments that many falsely accused priests have been presumed guilty until proven innocent and abandoned by their bishops and fellow clergy. A lot of priests have been dismissed from the priesthood without due process or adequate civil or canonical defense.
The author hopes her book will exhort readers to approach any sexual abuse allegation hurled against any priest or clergyman with an objective frame of mind and guard themselves against individuals, which only agenda is to profit from the scandal.
Tamilynne Voelzke's “Blood Money: Sexual Allegations in the Church, Mirrored by Judas' Betrayal of Jesus” is available on Amazon.
To know more about the author, please visit her website at https://www.tamilynne.com/
“Blood Money” was last displayed by self-publishing and book marketing company ReadersMagnet at their exhibit at the 2022 American Library Association (ALA) Annual Conference & Exhibition.
“Blood Money: Sexual Allegations in the Church, Mirrored by Judas' Betrayal of Jesus”
Author | Tamilynne Voelzke
Published date | 2019
Publisher | Kindle Direct Publishing
Book retail price | $7.99
Author Bio
Raised Protestant, Tamilynne Voelzke became Catholic 29 years ago, which has allowed her to see the crisis faced by virtuous priests. She believes that like David, she must be willing to sling a pebble with accuracy and force to bring down the Goliath who is attacking innocent priests for the evil deed of vile men who gave to the world a tarnished view of the Priesthood.
— WebWireID292479 —
