INDIANA
Indianapolis Star
Written by
Dan McFeely
When Bishop Timothy Doherty stood before 300-plus parishioners Sunday morning to defend their pastor from 40-year-old sexual abuse allegations, he was also sending a message that the old ways of covering up such scandals are over.
During an often tense, hour-long meeting at St. Louis de Montfort Catholic Church, the leader of the Lafayette Diocese said this was “an old accusation” against an innocent pastor who is suffering from having to reopen old wounds.
Rather than handling the matter quietly, Doherty applauded the parish for asking him to come to Fishers, saying it is important to treat such allegations with swift action and in a transparent manner, something he admitted did not happen decades ago as the church scandal began to unfold across America.
“The tragedy is in some places it wasn’t taken seriously enough,” Doherty said. “If I didn’t show up today, people would say the bishop is hiding.
“We are doing a lot now (to follow tougher procedures) . . . much more than what we were doing as a church more than 10 years ago.”
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