Home | Movies By Year | Movies from 2006
Hand of God (film)
Buy Hand of God (film) now from AmazonFirst, read the Wikipedia article. Then, scroll down to see what other TopShelfReviews readers thought about the movie. And once you've experienced the movie, tell everyone what you thought about it.
Wikipedia article
'Hand of God' is a 2006 independent documentary that was acquired for national airing in the United States by 'Frontline'. The film was directed and edited by Joe Cultrera and tells the story of how his brother Paul was molested in the 1960s by their parish priest, Father Joseph Birmingham, who allegedly abused nearly 100 other children. Cultrera tells the story of faith betrayed and how his brother Paul and the rest of the Cultrera family fought back against a scandal that continues to afflict churches across the country.
Background
The Cultrera brothers were raised in an Italian-Catholic family in Salem, Massachusetts, and attended Catholic school from kindergarten through high school. From an early age they were immersed in the beliefs and teachings of the Catholic Church.
At 14, Paul, an altar boy at St. James Parish, came under the guidance of Fr. Birmingham. Birmingham was young and friendly, often taking the boys on trips and inviting them to the rectory for Friday and Saturday night pizza parties. It was during confession that Paul's relationship with Birmingham changed. Confessing to masturbation led to private "counseling" sessions at the rectory, where Paul was sexually abused. Birmingham also abused him during nighttime rides in Birmingham's black Ford Galaxie and on trips out of town.
Paul kept this secret for nearly 30 years, until he decided to finally confront the Church and launch his own investigation into whether the Archdiocese of Boston had covered up allegations against Birmingham, moving him from parish to parish and placing more children in danger.
Paul began to place advertisements in the newspapers of the various towns where Birmingham had been posted, asking the simple question, "Do You Remember Father Birmingham?" The responses he received were an indication that he was certainly not Birmingham's only victim.[https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/handofgod/ Hand of God] PBS | Frontline
See also
* Roman Catholic sex abuse cases
* Roman Catholic priests accused of sex offenses
* Crimen sollicitationis
* Pontifical Secret
* 'Sex Crimes and the Vatican' (Panorama Documentary Episode)
* 'Deliver Us from Evil' (2006 film)
* 'Twist of Faith'
* Barbara Blaine
*Survivors Network for those Abused by Priests
References
Buy Hand of God (film) now from Amazon
<-- Return to movies from 2006