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  Report: Philadelphia Archdiocese Given Passing Grade by U.s Bishops While Hiding Abusing Priests

By Jeffrey R. Anderson
Jeff Anderson & Associates
April 11, 2011

http://andersonadvocates.com/Posts/Blog/773/Report-Philadelphia-Archdiocese-given-passing-grade-by-US-Bishops-while-hiding-abusing-priests.aspx

In spite of the fact that the Philadelphia Archdiocese secretly continued to allow three dozen credibly abused offenders to remain in the public and the active priesthood, U.S. Bishops admitted today that they were given credit for living up to the group’s self-imposed clergy abuse prevention program since 2003.

In all, U.S. Bishop’s own audit of the “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People” says 55 dioceses are not living up to the clergy abuse prevention provisions they promised to implement and strictly adhere to.

Are we surprised? Of course not.

This latest bombshell is just more evidence that Church officials still cannot be trusted. Indeed, it is a sad and tragic commentary, that after three decades of scandal, there are those in the Church leadership who continue to lack the integrity and resolve to accept responsibility for crimes against their own congregations and live up to promises of reform.

One wonders what the Vatican will have to say about this latest failure of U.S. Bishops. Will any Church officials suffer consequences for letting this happen on their watch?

Don’t hold your breath.

In Philadelphia, where this report admits Church officials were living a lie, it took a courageous grand jury criminal investigation to discover and reveal the deception and fraud perpetrated by these “holy” men.

Ironically, while the Church just wants the clergy abuse to go away, it is their mismanagement of the crisis that continues feed the fire of distrust.

Clearly, the end of this story is a long way off. But when it does end, it won’t be the church’s doing, it will be the brave survivors who stood up and spoke out against an institution that cruelly ignored them—and the Church’s culpability—for too long.

 
 

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