UNITED STATES
Patrick J. Wall
One of the key lessons we were taught as priests is that bishops are the Episkopos, or, the Overseer of their Dioceses. As the Episkopos, a bishop oversees all Roman Catholic Priests to whom he has granted faculties.
A bishop’s ability to oversee or supervise the clergy is reaching a new low. The criminal conduct by priests in 2013 has not abated. Rather, priest arrests are increasing. See the most recent arrests of Fathers Koppala, Guarin-Sosa, Medina-Cruz and Wehmeyer.
Worse yet, even though the Dallas 2002 Charter prohibited Episcokopos from having criminally convicted priests in ministry, Archbishops have chosen to continue placing such priests like Father Michael Fugee in control over children.
Two recent priest suicides are another sign the Bishops are not supervising the Priests. Father David Anderson in Los Angeles and Father Jamie Medina-Cruz chose to end their lives. I do not fault them—we must hear their cries of deep desperation.
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