Via email, a letter to the clergy of the Diocese of New York:
June 23, 2008
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Some of you may have seen an article in The Daily News of June 15, 2008, entitled “How Crips, Bloods & Latin Kings ‘baptize’ kids Baby gangstas.” The claim of the article is that babies are being blessed into gangs in one of our churches by a priest of this diocese. If the facts are as reported, this is extremely distressing and completely contrary to the longheld stance of this church. I am taking immediate steps to review and address the matter.
I believe deeply in the importance of mission and creative outreach to the community and strongly encourage such initiatives. However, if accurate, the actions as reported in the Daily News are damaging to our common life.
Faithfully,
+Mark
Read the Daily News article here.