Contact: Randy Engel, 724-327-7379

PITTSBURGH, Mar. 20 /Christian Newswire/ -- The recent filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy by Bishop Robert H. Brom of the Diocese of San Diego is an excellent example of how homosexual prelates in the Catholic hierarchy place their dioceses at extra risk for clerical sexual abuse lawsuits, abuse cover-ups and potential bankruptcy, says Randy Engel, an expert on pederasty and clerical sex abuse and author of the controversial new book The Rite of Sodomy – Homosexuality and the Roman Catholic Church.

Engel, a pro-life activist and investigative reporter for over 30 years, noted that the Catholic laity of the San Diego Diocese, who will ultimately foot the bill for the bankruptcy filing of February 27, 2007 and subsequent settlements for victims of clerical sexual abuse in the diocese, have been forced to face some painful truths about their wayward shepherd. The first is that private vice has public consequences. The second is that cover-ups connected with the crime of clerical pederasty are closely connected to the rise of the Homosexual Collective both within and without the Church.

Bishop Brom is one of more than 25 Catholic bishops and cardinals whose homosexual history is documented in The Rite of Sodomy, released in July 2006.

The greatest tragedy about the Brom debacle, said Engel, is that the Holy See was aware of Bishop Brom's predatory homosexual record while he was Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Duluth, Minn. Nevertheless, Pope John Paul II appointed Bishop Brom Coadjutor Bishop of San Diego with the right of succession in May 1989, said Engel.

In his court deposition of November 30, 2006, taken under oath, three months ago prior to declaring bankruptcy, Engel said, attorneys representing alleged sex abuse victims of diocesan clergy questioned Brom about his own sexual misconduct. Brom admitted that he had been investigated for allegations that he 'took part in a specific orgy at the seminary that was connected with the cardinal,' Engel noted. The Rite of Sodomy documents who the 'cardinal' in question was and the seminary where the 'specific orgy' took place, Engel added.

Pope Benedict XVI needs to correct his predecessor's mistake in the appointment of Bishop Brom to the Diocese of San Diego, and replace him with a shepherd that does not fleece his flock and seduce his spiritual sons, concluded Engel.