as we forgive those who tresspass against us...

This is footage from St. Patricks Cathedral in Melbourne. The Dean of St. Patrick's, Rev. Geoff Baron was secretly filmed while abusing and taunting a group of skateboarding teenagers (Skateboarding teenagers? I'm on the priest's side already!) who had gathered at the cathedral. It seems that they'd caused a bit of bother previously and he'd tried, unsccessfully, to get them off the property. It's an ugly scene and you sense it's the actions of a man at his wit's end.

It seems the priest has been suspended since the footage showed up on youtube (it happened over a year ago) and his future is uncertain. Strange that whoever had the footage sat on it for a year and put it online rather than, I dunno, reporting him to the authorities. Once again, you have to wonder about how this stuff is filmed. Can't help thinking it's some kind of a set-up. Is it a co-incidence they've got a concealed camera recording for the whole time? Now, it's not like me to start defending priests, but maybe this guy deserves a fair hearing before he's hung out to dry. Although if he turns out to be a complete nutter I'm retracting that.

And on a lighter note, isn't it refreshing to read about an abusive priest but it doesn't turn out to be that kind of abuse?!