BishopAccountability.org

Grand jury report will not be easy to digest

By Father Frank Almade
New Castle News
August 7, 2018

http://www.ncnewsonline.com/news/local_news/almade-grand-jury-report-will-not-be-easy-to-digest/article_afa9f112-8fae-5e3c-b605-865cc1ed3149.html

Father Frank D. Almade

Father Frank D. Almade is pastor of the four parishes in New Castle (Mary Mother of Hope, St. Joseph the Worker, St. Vincent de Paul, St. Vitus).

Sometime in the next two weeks Pennsylvania attorney general Josh Shapiro will release a version of the grand jury report investigating clergy child sexual abuse in six Roman Catholic dioceses.

The grand jury was convened in April 2016 to review the incidents of clergy abuse in the dioceses of Allentown, Erie, Greensburg, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh and Scranton since 1948. Shapiro wanted to release the results in June, but was blocked by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court as it heard objections from some priests and others who claim their constitutional rights to a good reputation and the due process of law are being violated. On July 26, the Supreme Court ordered a “redacted” version of the report to be issued sometime between today and Aug. 14, with the names of those challenging the report deleted.

Any public relations consultant will tell organizations to keep their message short and simple. The response of the Catholic Church to this report is and must be complex. Let me offer three brief points of response to this report.

THE HISTORY

It is a beyond-unfortunate fact that some Roman Catholic priests harmed children and young people, in Pennsylvania churches and beyond. The cliché that even one incident of abuse is too many is true because it is so heartbreaking. A few priests (and bishops), approximately 4 percent of the total number of active clergy, took advantage of their position ministering to children and young people to sexually abuse them. In years past, bishops moved priests to other assignments, instead of removing them from ministry. The church cannot escape acknowledging the facts contained in the grand jury report.

Every bishop and every current leader in any Catholic parish, diocese or organization has apologized for these horrible acts. Every diocese has offered free counseling to survivors, and some have made cash payments in compensation for their pain and suffering. The church has suffered many losses because of these sinful acts, including declining membership and public confidence. We are paying for our sins, and will for decades to come.

THE CURRENT SITUATION

What the grand jury report will not tell the public is how the church has changed in response to this scandal. Beginning in the early 1990s, dioceses established tighter and more transparent codes of conduct for its priests, deacons and ecclesial ministers. Instead of investigating allegations of abuse in-house, now church leaders immediately turn over these allegations to law enforcement for adjudication. In 2002, the U.S. conference of Catholic bishops set a “one-strike-and-you’re-out” policy for all clergy. One accusation of sexual abuse, whether verified in a court of law or judged credible by a diocesan review board composed of lay people, would constitute grounds for a bishop to remove a cleric from ministry permanently. There is no priest or deacon in the U.S. in active ministry who has a credible accusation of child abuse.

Safe environment policies were mandated in all 19,000 parishes in the U.S. Since then, over two million church volunteers, employees and clergy have undergone training in how to protect children, young people and vulnerable adults. In the Diocese of Pittsburgh more than 30,000 individuals have gone through the “Protecting God’s Children” program, with review of background checks, evaluations and training every five years.

I was happy to see the story in the July 30 edition of the New Castle News that the Children’s Advocacy Center of Lawrence County is ramping up its efforts to increase awareness of child sexual abuse and educate adults to recognize the signs of predators’s actions. Over 700 of my parishioners, in the four parishes in the city of New Castle and in St. Vitus Catholic School, have already undergone such education and training.

These programs are meant to keep every leader, volunteer and member in the church vigilant to prevent abuse. At the same time outreach to victims continues, through counseling, support groups and compensation. Our hearts and our prayers go out to those who have been harmed.

THE WIDER CONTEXT

The attorney general’s stated intention to convene the grand jury was to protect victims. However, it was focused on only one group of citizens, Catholic clergy. Other groups — family members such as parents, stepparents, grandparents, relatives and neighbors — and other organizations, including scout leaders, teachers, child care workers, athletic coaches, doctors, clergy from other Christian denominations, clergy and leaders from other religions, were never investigated.

The sad reality is that child abuse is a human problem, not only just a Catholic clergy problem. Not a week goes by without a story in the media about children being victimized, whether in Pennsylvania, other states or other countries. This in no way excuses the terrible acts of victimization by certain Catholic priests in decades past. It does make the point that all of us, all members of society, have the responsibility of protecting children from abuse today and every day.

I have been told that the grand jury report is not fun reading. Adjectives like “terrible, disgusting, horrific” have been used to describe what it details. Catholics may rightfully feel shame or revulsion at this review. A few may even use it as an excuse to leave the church. Harder still is to stay in the church and ensure that such a scandal never happens again.

As we the church, and we the citizens of Pennsylvania, look backward at the sins of those in leadership positions, let us use this information to redouble our efforts to prevent adults from abusing children and young people.




.


Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.