Victims of the Church, by Toni Guinyard, KCET, July 26, 2007

Victims of the Church

By Toni Guinyard
KCET
July 26, 2007

http://www.kcet.org/lifeandtimes/blog/?p=202

Los Angeles (CA) — After the settlement was reached, we were invited to a get-together with members of a victim's support group. I noticed a woman erecting a display of photographs printed on cloth and sewn into quilts.

That woman was Erin Brady. I asked her about quilts because I had seen them in the background at press conferences—but I hadn't heard anyone refer to them.

It turns out, she made them. The photos were of clergy abuse victims.

Erin was one of them. In many ways, the story about the quilts is her story of finding friendship and support among other victims.

Insider Viewpoints

About the Story The L.A. Archdiocese of the Catholic Church has agreed to pay more than $600 million to people who were abused by priests. But money is not enough to heal more than 500 victims. Toni Guinyard looks a their plight and meets one woman in Monrovia who is helping herself and others heal in a unique way. (TRT: 7:52)

While the recent $660 million settlement overseen by Cardinal Roger Mahoney, archbishop of the Los Angeles diocese, to some 500 abuse victims has brought closure to one aspect of the Catholic Church's…child-abuse scandal, it still leaves unanswered…questions about the psychology of the perpetrators and those church leaders who ignored…their…actions…A critical first question is whether the…process of accepting celibacy…at an emotionally immature age level predisposes priests to conflicting notions about human sexuality, whether, according to Gary Willis in his…book Papal Sin, "the celibate discipline for a whole class of men…is a false…ideal…"

As troubling as the…pathologies of some priests may be, just as grave a concern is the not atypical failure on the part of Los Angeles' Cardinal Mahoney and others in the church hierarchy nationwide to protect children by keeping known abusive priests away from…victims…Observers of the…crisis act with horror at the…lack of concern by the church leaders for the…victims here—the abused children—not the…priests who were…shielded by bishops, cardinals and the Pope…

—Excerpt taken from The Conservative Voice's "Financial Settlement for Priest Abuse Victims Still Leaves Some Unanswered Questions" Blog by Richard L. Cravatts

…I again apologize personally and on behalf of those who led the church in past decades, to all those who were abused, regardless of how long ago the abuse took place. As much as we might wish that the past could be reversed and the harm undone, it cannot be.

But we can work to ensure that our parish ministries are as safe as we can humanly make them for all of our parishioners, especially our children and young people. Throughout our Archdiocese, in our parishes and schools, our priests and lay people have worked hard over the past several years to create safe environments for our children.

At this important moment in our local church's history, as we remember our past failings, it is also appropriate to reflect on what has been accomplished so far…Again, I invite you to join me in fervent prayer for the healing of all victims of sexual abuse and for reconciliation across the Archdiocese.

—Excerpt taken from Archdiocese of Los Angeles' "Pastoral Letter to Catholic Faithful in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles" by Cardinal Roger Mahoney