Overview

Comments by Thomas P. Doyle, J.C.D., C.A.D.C. The scourge of sexual violation of anyone but especially children, by Catholic clergy has been and continues to be the Catholic Church's worst nightmare inflicted on itself. It has plagued the People of God since the first century and it continues to inflict countless men and women with unspeakable pain and spiritual despondency. It is practically impossible to wrap one's mind around the dichotomy between the world's oldest and largest Christian denomination, a Church that claims to bring the authentic message of the unbounded love of Jesus for all, and a Church that has and continue to enable one of the most despicable human crimes. What the institutional leadership has condemned by its never-ending stream of apologies, promises, programs and policies, it has encouraged and approved by its hypocritical actions, or lack thereof. The Sacrifice of the Masses is an eloquent proclamation of horror and hope. It is not simply one of the many books written about this toxic phenomenon. It stands alone among the many books written about this plague because it was written by a man, the man, who has not only experienced every dimension and depth of this horror but has dedicated his life, his being, to attacking it head on. The story Bob tells is not only his own remarkable, decades-long march. It is also one of the clearest, most honest, and terrifying expositions of the complex and bizarre nature of sexual and spiritual abuse by the clergy and hierarchy of the Church. The author describes the ""what,"" ""why,"" and ""how"" of this toxic reality from the most accurate perspective, that of his own life of survival, of standing up to the massive ecclesiastical monarchy but most important, of doing what the ecclesiastical establishment could not and would not do: bring the compassion and healing of Jesus Christ to its victims. One cannot count the number of people who had lost hope and were sinking deeper into despair and anger until they met Bob Hoatson. There are scores of men and women, clergy, lay people, and religious order members who continue to confront this evil by the unselfishness and dedication of their lives. Bob Hoatson had the fearlessness to confront the monster and has inspired and continues to inspire us with his unequaled wisdom, endless energy, fearless proclamation of the truth but mostly his life of love for those who thought God had forgotten them. Bob Hoatson's book is a horror story of the reality he has seen and lived, and it is a story of hope because of who he is and what he has done. Tom Doyle March 26, 2024 Vienna, Virginia

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9781955794138

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Reviews

""Reader BEWARE! This is a very vivid and detailed book for which you will want to be prepared. It is an honest, painful, extremely descriptive, and yet very necessary account of the current and past sexual abuse atrocities in the Roman Catholic Church. As a fellow survivor, it captured so well all that we manage every day and all that we have experienced. This is a painful and very important reading for all of us today."" Gerard J. McGlone, SJ, PhD Senior Research Fellow Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs Georgetown University Washington, D.C. 20007 The Sacrifice of the Masses promises to be a blockbuster when it is released on the U.S. publishing scene in 2025 and for good reasons. The 'Sacrifice of the Masses' is the novelised autobiography of (Dr) Robert Hoatson, a towering figure on the U.S. East Coast as a supremely gifted educator in his younger maturity and, over the last twenty years, one of the pioneer supporters of those men and women abused sexually by priests or Brothers in the Catholic Church. In 1994, Robert left the Irish Christian Brothers to pursue ordination to the Roman Catholic priesthood. He was ordained a priest in 1997 and served at parishes throughout northern New Jersey and was also Principal of Holy Trinity School in Hackensack and Director of Schools at Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish in Newark. However, Fr. Robert was already involved in assisting victims of abuse in the Church and this is THE major focus of The Sacrifice of the Masses. Brother/Dr. Barry M Coldrey Edmund Rice Christian Brothers Victoria, AUSTRALIA ""Bob Hoatson tells a heroic story. Here is a man who has dedicated his life to helping other survivors of sexual abuse and to calling out institutional evil despite the personal cost. Painful, riveting, and essential reading for anyone who cares about justice and truth."" Carole Garibaldi Rogers Author and Director, Voice of the Faithful, New Jersey For centuries, the Catholic Church has been considered the strongest moral voice on the international scene. In a scathing personal analysis of the Church's institutional abuse of power, Dr. Robert Hoatson recounts stories that are colloquial, painful to hear, and confessional in The Sacrifice of the Masses, as he reveals the dark side of this religious institution, capturing in disturbing detail not only his own journey and the journeys of many other survivors of sexual abuse, but also the road to healing and recovery. With sharp words of reproach, he criticizes this religious institution to which he had dedicated four decades of his life, as a religious brother and then priest, for allowing the clergy abuse, especially of children and teenagers, to spread like a cancer throughout society. He views this as a lethal cancer that has destroyed thousands of lives physically and emotionally over the decades, labeling this sickness as ""soul murder,"" equivalent to a genocide. Throughout the tragic narratives of survivors he has met over many years, all of whom abused by clergy, Robert Hoatson laments this ""soul murder"" and calls on the Church to accept accountability and commit to reform, while addressing a most profound, still unanswered question: Is it still possible for this institution to redeem itself? Susan A. Michalczyk, Ph.D. John J. Michalczyk, Ph.D. Documentary Co-Producers: Who Takes Away the Sins: Witnesses to Clergy Abuse A Matter of Conscience: Confronting Clergy Abuse

Author Information

Dr. Robert Hoatson, a native of West Orange, New Jersey, is the Co-founder and President of Road to Recovery, Inc., a non-profit charity that assists victims of sexual abuse and their families. He is a graduate of Essex Catholic High School in Newark, New Jersey (1970) and was the recipient of the school's highest honor; namely, the ""Most Outstanding Essex Man."" He spent 23 years as an Irish Christian Brothers and taught in a number of schools in New York and Boston. He holds a Bachelors Degree in English from Iona College, a Masters Degree in English from Manhattan College, and a Ph.D. from Fordham University. He was named Educator of the Year by the Association of Teacher of New York City in 1991 while he was Principal and Director of Total Parish Education at Sacred Heart Parish in Yonkers, New York. In 1994, Bob left the Irish Christian Brothers and became a priest of the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey, where he ran into trouble with the Archbishop because of his care for victims of clergy sexual abuse and whistleblowing crimes against children. As a victim/survivor of clergy sexual abuse himself, Bob felt a call to continue the work of Road to Recovery, and was punished for such, leading to his dispensation from the priesthood in 2011. His first and latest book is ""The Sacrifice of the Masses,"" a memoire of his time as a religious brother and priest, and an expose of the Catholic Church's corruption.

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