Bishops adopt national policy

After three days of meeting in Dallas, June 12-14, the U.S. bishops approved a national “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.” The document, a response to the sexual abuse crisis in the Catholic church, says that no diocesan priest can return to any form of ordained ministry if he has ever sexually abused a minor. Archbishop Harry J. Flynn, of St. Paul-Minneapolis, head of the bishops’ Ad Hoc Committee on Sexual Abuse, said, “In all of this we must not lose sight of our solemn purpose, to protect children.”

 The bishops did not go as far as the original draft which called for the “ forced laicization” of a priest who abused a minor in the past. But the approved document makes no distinction between past and future abuses and it defines sexual abuse of a minor in broad terms.

 The charter requires dioceses to form lay review boards. The bishops will establish a national Office of Child and Youth Protection and a national review board to assist and oversee diocesan implementation.

 The charter calls for strict background reporting rules whenever a diocesan priest moves from one diocese to another and for collaboration between bishops and religious order members. It also calls for major superiors to inform the bishop when they assign a man to a local community who might be a danger to children or young people.

 Whenever a diocese receives an abuse allegation involving someone who is still a minor, the diocese must immediately report the matter to civil authorities.

 A complete text of the approved Charter and Essential Norms may be found on the USCCB website: www.usccb.org. CMSM members will have an opportunity to discuss the Charter at the Assembly in August.

 Schedule changes to accommodate workshop

Preparations for the CMSM 2002 Assembly in Philadelphia are well underway. With the sexual abuse crisis a concern for everyone, some changes have been made to the schedule. On Aug. 7, the Legal Resources for Religious (LRCR) is sponsoring a daylong seminar for CMSM members and their staff, “Balancing the legal, administrative and pastoral obligations of the sexual abuse crisis.”

To accommodate the workshop, the board schedule has been revised so board members may attend the workshop. The new member orientation time has been changed to begin at 5:00 p.m. The opening social will begin at 6:00 on Aug. 7.

The workshop, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. provides practical advice for major superiors for updating sexual abuse policies.

If you are interested in attending the workshop and have not yet registered, please contact Matt Wade at the national office,  301-588-4030 or mwade@cmsm.org.

From the Executive Director

The Justice and Peace Committee and the Mission Committee met for a day on March 15, 2002 with the aim of helping CMSM leaders make some sense of the phenomenon of globalization for the religious life—for its mission and identity, and for the impact that it is having on the structures and operations of religious life. It was quite a day.

Somewhere in the middle of the afternoon the floor metaphorically fell out from under the group as we sped headlong into the problems of post-modernism that dog any sustained conversation about globalization. Cultural relativism, cross-generational shifts in consciousness spawned by the speed of change in popular culture driven by media technology, the loss of the Euro centric paradigm for looking at the world, the impact of inter-religious dialogue, the implosion of hierarchies, the uncentered nature of the contemporary world, all came crashing through the floor with us.

Two efforts to follow up on the topic met with similar results. The Union of Superior Generals in Rome issued a document on the topic after a few years of reflection from a Committee of their theologians that indicated that globalization had already significantly shifted the identity and governance of international institutes and that is was going to have a dramatic impact on the future of religious life as Euro centric assumptions about church and the core elements of religious life begin giving way in the face of massive cultural and inter-religious inter change in coming years.  (Contact USG directly or CMSM if you would like a copy.) 

The Catholic Mission Forum in which CMSM participates has taken up the continuing questions and wonders if the next mission congress in the United States should be focused solely on the topic. Even at that table, it is clear that globalization is an enormous acceleration of processes that had been affecting mission through the whole last half of the Twentieth Century.

I mention it now to surmise whether the current abuse crisis in the church might be an early warning symptom of where globalization may be taking us all. Globalization is often closely associated with the dramatic growth in communication and transportation technologies including media, with the rationalizing processes of democratization and secularization, with the invasion into closed social systems of the institutions of law and investigative journalism leveraged by mass media.

When even our Catholic laity now assume that we should turn over our allegations of abuse to the civil authorities because they can be more trusted to handle them objectively...we can be relatively sure that we have already entered a new era as church and as religious life.

The Soviet Union, the People’s Republic of China, tightly structured Islamic societies, Enron Corporation, the U.S. government and a host of other entities have been torn open by these forces and compelled to answer before the forces of law, public scrutiny, and the processes of modernization and secularization. Closed systems are easy pickings for these forces and no power now available seems to be able to stop them once they start. Max Weber early in the twentieth century predicted these processes for the Euro North Atlantic world but never imagined that they would take on global proportions at breathtaking speeds by the end of the century.

There may have once been privatized spaces in the world for organizations and institutions stringently protected by internal dogmatic assumptions but they are gradually being torn open and forced to face the light of day however that is defined in these times.  Some would call it the antiseptic effect of sunlight.  Others would call it the barbarous intrusion of the garish gaze of secularist and mean-spirited entrepreneurs into sacred spaces. Still others see it as a symptom of an emerging world ethic of human dignity and human rights infiltrating its way into human consciousness everywhere and especially where human dignity is perceived to be the most demeaned. The jury is still out. It may be all of the above.

When even our Catholic laity now assume that we should turn over our allegations of abuse to the civil authorities because they can be more trusted to handle them objectively; when the ethos and civil law of the United States begins to tells us what is and is not acceptable conduct for priests even when it contradicts longstanding internal personnel processes, when the laity demand that we be accountable to them for how we manage the ethics of governance in the church, when secular government agencies even in large Catholic centers of population now look askance at giving church leaders the benefit of the doubt, we can be relatively sure that we have already entered a new era as church and as religious life.

The days of the pass or station house adjustment for Father or Brother by the Irish cop or prosecutor are over. Either we will learn to become more comfortable in the gaze of the rude and scoffing multitude (depending on our attitude) or we will be dragged kicking and screaming into a new future for religion and religious life. There may be lessons for us already in how we face the present crisis. One danger would be to try to use the thinking that got us into the mess to think our way out of the mess. Paradigms shifts punish that rather severely. A great U.S. president said at the height of the massive changes being precipitated by the Civil War:  “Our case is new, so we must think anew and act anew.  And thus we will save ourselves.”

Fraternally,

Ted Keating, SM

Bishops’ committee work started early, continues on

 With more than 800 admendments to consider, the members of the bishops' Ad Hoc Committee on Sexual Abuse worked through the night to refer a draft for discussion by the bishops on June 14. The bishops used their mid year meeting in Dallas from June 12-14 to confront the sexual abuse crisis in the church. After a five-hour open floor debate, the bishops voted to approve the "Charter for Protection of Children and Young People" 239-13.

 As consultants to the U.S. bishops, Canice Connors, OFM Conv, President of CMSM, and Ted Keating, SM, Executive Director of CMSM, worked with the committee throughout the meeting.

 The process started earlier this year in March when CMSM was invited to participate on the committee. CMSM had consultancy status on the prior committee for most of the 1990s but the new committee was just in its re-organizational phase when the new abuse crisis hit.

During a conference call of the Ad Hoc Committee on April 12, 2002, key areas of policy concern were clarified and analyzed for the purpose of providing a working set of propositions for response by the bishops at regional meetings around the country. These propositions became the basis for the CMSM survey of membership sent out the next week (see next story) so that bishops and major superiors could be consulted before the May 22 meeting of the Ad Hoc Committee.

A preliminary draft of material for A Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People was already on the drawing board and these key policy areas would be added to the materials to produce a working draft of the Charter for response and reaction in advance of and at the Bishops June 2002 meeting in Dallas.

At the all day meeting of the Ad Hoc Committee on May 22, the draft of the Charter was completed in the course of an intense and extensive conversation around the key issues of reassignment after an admitted or proven allegation of abuse, the use of forced laicization as a tool for removing priests from the clerical state who have abused minors, the status of priests who have abused minors only once in the past and who are doing well now, the issue of reporting new cases involving current minors to the civil authorities, the role of cooperation with civil authorities in older cases, and an number of other issues. A draft was completed and made public on June 4, 2002, in preparation for the June meeting of the bishops on Dallas.

The Charter requires that CMSM will maintain consultancy on the Ad Hoc Committee as the bishops move toward implementation of their agreements in Dallas and as the questions of coordination with major superiors become more directly relevant in the future.

National Catholic AIDS Network Holds Annual Religious Leaders Meeting

The National Catholic AIDS Network (NCAN) held its annual leadership roundtable in Chicago on June 7, 2002. The meetings, which are private and not open to the public, allow leaders from Catholic organizations and institutes to openly discuss issues about HIV/AIDS within the context of ministry and mission of the church in the United States. 

Jesuit John Fuller, a leading expert in HIV/AIDS treatment and global issues, gave the grim statistics:  40 million people live with AIDS worldwide, and half of them are women – half of these women are between the ages of 15 and 24. In the United States there are an estimated 700,000 – 900,000 cases of HIV/AIDS and probably one-third are unaware they are infected.

A major concern of many working in the field of HIV/AIDS treatment and ministry is the notion that with new medications and the access that people in the United States and other developed countries have to treatments that prolong and increase the quality of life, that AIDS is not as serious a problem as it once was. However, AIDS ranks as the fourth leading cause of death worldwide and the medications and treatments available to people in developed countries are not available to most of the world.

Participants at the roundtable discussed the implications of the information given by John and how all of this impacts the policies of religious communities, dioceses, and church-sponsored work places regarding health care issues, international candidates, and the risks faced by those in international missions where prevention and treatment standards are not the same as those in developed nations. The roundtable is interested in discussing the current policies and procedures that are in place for screening candidates.

Capuchin Friar Gregory Reisert, former Executive Director of CMSM and currently with St. Luke Institute in Silver Spring, facilitated a discussion on sexual development in light of the current situation in the church and the implications that it has for HIV/AIDS. Greg presented several points that could be indicators of lack of sufficient sexual development such as previous history of personal sexual abuse, isolation and disconnected living situations, mid-life crisis or other stressful situations, the division between spirituality and sexuality.

Greg pointed out that healthy dialogue about sexuality during formation and healthy relationships all lead to better integration of sexuality and spirituality. Indicators that point to an unhealthy sexual development or lack of support during certain times in life could lead to acting out in unhealthy ways that may put one at risk for HIV/AIDS.

NCAN will be holding its annual conference, “Come Away and Rest Awhile,” in July. For more information about NCAN and the programs it offers contact Fr. Rodney DiMartini at the National Catholic AIDS Network, P.O. Box 960, Occidental, CA 95465.

Justice and Peace Office Increases Contact with Administration and Congress

 In recent months some issues in Washington have enabled the Conference to meet with Administration officials and staff and several members of Congress to discuss U.S. policy and bring the concerns of CMSM and our partner organizations to their attention.

 On May 1 J/P Director Stan DeBoe, OSST, lead a delegation organized by Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP) that met with John Hannah, advisor on the Middle East to Vice President Cheney. The ecumenical delegation focused on three issues; the need for a more balanced U.S. policy that will hold both Israelis and Palestinians to the same standards in suppressing violence, the need for the United States to be strong in calling for an end to building and increasing of settlements in Palestinian Territories, and the support for the Administration’s call for a Palestinian state. CMEP is also attempting to schedule a meeting of the heads of several Christian denominations in the United States with President Bush. Stan is currently the Chair of CMEP for 2002.

On May 20, Stan and LCWR Associate Director Judy Cannon, RSM, were part of an inter-faith delegation that met with Kerry Klick of the Office for Faith-Based Initiatives at the White House. The delegation was made up of representatives of several organizations concerned about the environment and the impact that some decisions made by the administration about the environment are having on the poor. While this does not relate directly to the mandate of the office, the delegation felt that meeting with the office that will decide on funding for faith-based programs should know that many religious organizations are committed to making environmentally sound programs part of their work in ministering to the marginalized of our society. Follow up meetings will be held with representatives of other departments.

The J/P Office is meeting with more frequency with members of Congress and staff to discuss legislative issues currently pending in the House and Senate. These meetings are are set up by partner organizations and the participation of the Conference depends on the connection of the issue with the mission of CMSM. Meetings with Members of Congress have allowed the Conference to discuss issues including U.S. policy in the Middle East, set up by partner organizations and the participation of the Conference depends on the connection of the issue with the mission of CMSM. Meetings with Members of Congress have allowed the Conference to discuss issues including U.S. policy in the Middle East, concern for the expansion of the “war on terrorism,” changing U.S. policy toward Colombia, welfare reform, immigration reform, and trafficking of women and children.

National Conference Addresses Land-Use and Other Stewardship Topics

 A joint NATRI/LRCR Task Force has been working on a broad, inter-disciplinary approach to property and land-use options and issues for religious communities. The resources being developed incorporate the spiritual, ethical and justice questions that arise in the context of our global ecological crises. The publication, planned for early 2003, will also address the planning, legal and financial issues that must be considered whether one decides to sell, lease or keep land and use it and/or protect it.

 These topics will be developed as part of the 2002 NATRI National Conference to be held in Tampa, Florida from November 20 to 23. A general session on “Choosing a Sustainable Future” will set the context for reflection on our connection with the piece of our planet given over to our stewardship. Participants will have the opportunity to further explore various facets of land use by choosing from a series of workshops that address sustainable land-use law, master planning, alternative energy sources, spiritual and ethical issues, as well as new understandings of the vow of poverty that reflect ecologically-responsible living.

 The broader theme of this conference, “Expanding Horizons,” celebrates the vision of communities of all sizes and types that are taking risks to extend their influence in new ways from a faith-based stance. A wide range of other stewardship topics will be covered to address a diversity of interests. Leaders who would like more information or additional copies of the conference brochure, should contact NATRI at natri@natri.org or call (301) 587-7776.

 Attention new leaders:  Plan to attend and bring your councilors to the CMSM New Leader Workshop in Washington, DC from Dec. 5-8. The workshop is a crash course for beginning leaders and shows how CMSM resources can help. An added benefit is the opportunity to meet other new leaders. A registration flyer will be sent soon.