Unforgivable

An Abusive Priest and the Church That Sent Him Abroad

Kevin Lewis O'Neill

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Hardback

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English

University of California Press
06 May 2025

Roman Catholicism, Roman Catholic Church; Sexual abuse & harassment; Social & cultural anthropology

The first book to expose how the Catholic Church systematically covers up scandal by moving abusers across borders.

Clerical sexual abuse is as global as the Roman Catholic Church, with bishops moving credibly accused priests not simply between parishes but also across international borders. Unforgivable follows the movement of one such perpetrator from the Great Plains of central Minnesota to the Indigenous highlands of Guatemala, where this priest had access to children and even raised one as his own.

Although Father David Roney is at the center of this particular story, author Kevin Lewis O'Neill offers ample evidence that offshoring priests is a common practice. These maneuvers and the callous indifference of the Church—even once caught red-handed—reveal the limits of justice. They also lay bare the disturbing fact that the scale of clerical sexual abuse is far bigger than anyone has yet considered. Rigorously researched and viscerally important, this book raises urgent questions about holding the Catholic Church accountable.

By: Kevin Lewis O'Neill
Imprint: University of California Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 229mm, Width: 152mm, Spine: 30mm
Weight: 544g
ISBN: 9780520409118
ISBN 10: 0520409116
Pages: 280
Publication Date: 06 May 2025
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Kevin Lewis O’Neill is Professor in the Department for the Study of Religion as well as in the Centre for Diaspora and Transnational Studies at the University of Toronto. A cultural anthropologist, his work focuses on the moral dimensions of contemporary political practice in Latin America. His previous books include City of God, Secure the Soul, and Hunted.