Louisiana church solicits prayers for pastor convicted of sexual assault – but not for his victims

A Louisiana church where a Roman Catholic priest served as pastor before being recently convicted in Texas of criminal clergy sexual assault and sentenced to life in prison has been criticized by his victims and their supporters for soliciting prayers on his behalf in a parochial bulletin published after his guilty verdict – which neglected to mention the survivors. One of the two women whom Anthony Odiong was convicted of assaulting in Waco, Texas – identified in court proceedings as Mary Doe – issued a statement on Tuesday encouraging St Anthony of Padua’s community in the New Orleans suburb of Luling, Louisiana , to pray for his victims, too. The other of those women in Waco, given the pseudonym Jane Doe in court, said in her own statement that her “honest response is sadness, not anger”. Attorney Kristi Schubert, who represents yet another woman who publicly spoke out about Odiong, said she was “profoundly disappointed” the bulletin had not published a corresponding intention “saying something vague like ‘for survivors of clergy abuse’”. Similarly, Letitia Peyton, the executive director of the TentMakers non-profit organization, which supports Catholic clergy sexual abuse survivors, said it was not wrong to offer sincere prayers for repentance. …