Report praises U.S. bishops’ work to stop child sex abuse
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New allegations of child sexual abuse against U.S. Roman Catholic priests have declined, and children are safer due to measures taken to protect them, a national review board said on Wednesday in a generally positive report to U.S. bishops meeting on a range of divisive issues facing the Church.
Al Notzon III, chairman of a lay review board set up by the bishops to deal with child sexual abuse, praised the progress even as he acknowledged that some dioceses have failed to comply with the church’s new policies on sexual abuse, including regular reviews by external auditors.
He did not spell out any consequences, only that bishops should “continue to take seriously the harm done to the church” of non-compliance.
Victims’ support groups sharply criticized the reports’ findings.
David Clohessy, director of the victims’ support group SNAP, said the bishops’ discussion “was sad, predictable and disappointing.” He pointed to several cases in recent years, and even recent weeks, where church authorities did not discipline or remove priests who have pleaded guilty to sexual abuse or had credible allegations made against them.
“As long as those who conceal child sex crimes get absolutely no punishment, nothing will change,” Clohessy said.
Anne Barrett Doyle, co-director of another victims’ advocacy group, Bishop Accountability, called the report “feckless” and “timorous” for failing to impose tough consequences.
“With their gutless report today, National Review Board members gratified the bishops but failed their fellow Catholics,” said Doyle.
Bishop Daniel Conlon of Joliet, Illinois, said the bishops had no intention of looking back at allegations of abuse years in the past and holding church authorities responsible for ignoring the reports or transferring accused priests to other parishes.
“I’m not sure there’s any effective way… the Conference of Catholic Bishops is going to address that,” Conlon said. [More]
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24 Comments
I can understand your pain. Child abuse is shameful offense. CRY is NGO working for poor children and give them their childhood back
Well I do have a Masters in Theology from a Catholic University in the New York Area. I can’t spell very well and I don’t type well either. I suppose I have liberal leanings after having been brought up in the pre Vatican II Church and living through the immplimentation of Vatican II. I have been hit on by members of the clergy and have friends who have been abused by priests. I have seen the church in its hay day with the likes of Spellman Cushing and Kennedy and I see it failing under some of the current guys. I love the church very much and hate to see how it is being destroyed from within and without.
Well, that certainly explains some of your positions. I never have been violated by clergy. I share your view about lack of leadership, though, at least for some bishops and priests. Too many are not heroic men — they take the path of least resistance, and are afraid to proclaim the truth; e.g., you virtually never hear about Hell or Purgatory from the pulpit, and the impression you get is that everyone is going to Heaven; which disagrees with Matthew 7:13-14.
I am not good at this but I would guess you are middle age with a deep interest in theology with no formal degegree in Theo. You probably took some courses maybe on line from some conservative outlet
Well, I did consider the priesthood briefly, and I was quite devout as a boy — but, for over 20 years, I was away from the Church until God beat me up and brought me back to the fold.
And you are correct, I do not have a degree in theology, although I have taken some theology courses at a college level. I do some spiritual reading, mostly at Adoration — right now I am going through Faustina’s diary word-by-word, page-by-page. I’ll probably finish it in a few years, as I usually read it only at Adoration, and I don’t read much because I want to digest it all. How about yourself?
Jim your steadfast conservativism raises my curiosity about you. For example how old you are and what your academic background is. I. Would be curious as to your theological background. Care to share?
Well, I don’t know how much I’m willing to reveal about myself. Let me ask you: how old do you think I am? What do you think my academic background is? And my thelogic background?
This Catholic Church was a church in which I grew up in and loved. It was a sanctuary. But we were only taught what the church would allow us to know. I was appalled, through my research as an adult to find out all the dirt that had been covered up and swept under the rug — the scandals throughout the church’s history. If any of these scandalous events was ever mentioned to us by the nuns or priests, it was a whitewashed, one-sided version of them. For instance, I don’t recall the nuns or priests ever mentioning anything about the bad popes, or the full two-sided story of the crusades. They also never mentioned anything about the church deliberately murdering a sect of Christians living holy lives in Beziers, Southern France called the Cathars, a sect of lovely people living in a truly Christian way. No, the power in the church called them heretics and brutally slew them all — men, women and children — rather than let anyone dare see and believe a little differently than they! You can read this particular story on the web by googling up Horrible Massacre at Beziers in Christ’s name.” I don’t recall the nuns and priests talking about all the witch burnings or book burnings, either — something the power in the church did because they didn’t understand psychic phenomenom and couldn’t tolerate anybody else having thoughts of their own. Of course, during the last 30 years since the early 1980s, all these horrid sexual abuse scandals have surfaced. I was disgusted by a previously-secret document I found called “Instructions on the Manner of Proceeding in Cases of Solicitation,” which deals with the criminal act of a priest attempting to procure sexual favors from a person who has come to him in confession! It was published by the Prefect of the Holy Office, Cardinal Alfredo Ottavianai with the approval of Pope John XXIII in March 1962. It instructs that offending priests should just be moved around and the secret of what they did covered up so as not to hurt the image of the church. Obviously, then Roger Mahoney and Bernard Law were doing just that, all in accord with their instructions. They cared absolutely nothing about the victim in this document. Although this document was kept secret and only distributed to the higher end of the hierarchy, you can now get a copy online if you google it up. I get angry with what these men in the church who were supposed to be holy and lead the laity actually turned out to be. Yes, they’re human, but the lies, deceit and coverups, and the harm they have allowed to occur, all in the interests of preserving the “image” of the church sickens me. It makes a cradle Catholic feel raped.
Thank you Recovering, I feel your pain as I have lived through similar experiences.
Recovering — well, you don’t trust the nuns version, but you do trust what you read on the internet. You truly are a discimininating, critical person. Also, your version of the Crusades almost certainly in incorrect. Today, in 2012, MSNBC, CNN, ABC, CBS, and ABC distort the truth on a daily basis — so whatever the source of your information aboupt the Crusades is very likely distorted, as there are many people — like you — who are on a witch hunt to get the Church. Remember, this is the Church Jesus started and the surest vehicle to Heaven — Satan knows that, hates the Church, and stirs up persecution of it by, e.g., having a perons write a distorted account of the Crusades. You may remember from your grade school history that the Muslims almost took over the entire continent of Europe at one point. The aggressors had to be stopped, not only in Europe, but the Holy Land, which they took from the Christians, also had to be reclaimed. With regard to John XXIII — since his body is incorrupt, I have to presume he was a very holy man. By contrast, I expect your body will decay normally after you die. I listen to and follow people whose bodies are incorrupt.
I stand with SNAP and others who find fault with the report. As long as one bishop is not in jail for the evil he has done in perpetuating child abuse, no one should rest his case.
Well, Tony, these cases have been and are wending their way through court. So, are you saying the criminal justice system is negligent? If you know of allegations that haven’t been reported, then bring them. In any case, quit your wimpy complaining.
What about priests who are falsely accused of this heinous crime, eh? There are some priests who have to go through a two-year living hell because _they_ have to prove themselves innocent and not that the charges are valid beyond a reasonable doubt. This is the U.S.A. where you are presumed innocent until _proven_ guilty! Yet, priest are place on unpaid leave without faculties over _accusations_!!!
Again, with that said, if a priest is _proven_ that he did do this act, then he should be laicized and prosecuted. There are more victims in all of this besides the direct victim: The victim’s family, the priest’s family, the parishoners, his brother clergy and (in the case of permanent deacons) their families, etc.
Carlos, for the safety of the Children, and untill there is a better solution it is the best we can cone up with.
Please God, we will never see another case of Child abuse by clergy or lay ministers again.
Yes Carlos we must show mercy as jesus would also acording to the gospel we must forgive the whole family all suffer. In regards to the priest yes he needs help prison will not do that goes for any person who suffers from pedaphil. this is a sickness. He if the case is proven the few priests should be removed fast from children. We must pray for the victom the priest all in who are afected. no name calling no bashing the church. LET us REMEMBER JESUS SAYING LET HE WHO HAS NOT SINED CAST THE FIRST STONE. This a powerfull statment carlos keep up the good work stay close to jesus and mary keep your eyes on the cross. god bless you i will pray for your family please pray for me i hope to be a priest the world need people like you. peace robert
Good point, Carlos — Tony is interested only in persecuting the Church — he is not interested in justice for falsely accused priests. That makes me wonder what is up with Tony — he cannot be a happy man.
Not at all interested in persecuting the Church. I am on the side of the poor, the marginalized, the voiceless, I am totally in the Sisters camp, I am for the safety of the children unfortuately sometimes it seems, an innocent priest or two, or deacon or two or layperson or two has to be keept from ministy for the safety of the greater community.
Go go trashing me to others you sick psycho.
Now, Tony, I’ve never called you such a derogatory name. I have pointed out the great flaws in your positions, but, like Polycarp who eventually resorted to name calling, you are now in the mud. Polycarp, BTW, eventually apologized, but I doubt you will — you’re too self-righteous to take an honest look at yourself.
“Sick psycho” — impressive language from a man who fancies himself to be on the side of goodness. “By its fruits you will know it.” “Sick psycho” seems to be pretty bitter fruit — bitter fruit comes from a bitter tree, confirming what I have said elsewhere — your negativity and cynicism shows you for what you are, a very unhappy man.
In your unhappiness, you lash out at people and organizations you blame for your own misery. Why don’t you take responsibility for your own negativity, and quit finding a scapegoat? Be a man, Tony.
What do you think, Tony and Recovering Catholic?