CHICAGO (IL)
Chicago Tribune
Editorial
“The files speak for themselves. What the documents demonstrate to us is that all the cardinals, including George, were complicit.” — Jeffrey Anderson, attorney for victims of clergy sex abuse.
Those harsh words are backed up by the release of 6,000 pages detailing the actions and inactions of leaders in the Archdiocese of Chicago when confronted with allegations of sexual misconduct by priests.
On Tuesday, in accordance with a court settlement, the archdiocese released its case files on 30 of 65 priests with substantiated allegations of sexual misconduct. The accusations against those priests surfaced under the leadership of Cardinals John Cody, Joseph Bernardin and Francis George.
The priests’ names have been public for years. The depravity and scope of the abuse, in Chicago and elsewhere, is no longer in question.
Yet the files are still shocking, individually and in their totality. In black and white — accessible with the click of a computer mouse — they recount tale after tale of faith betrayed, first by a cleric and then by the church.
Catholics who came forward to report unspeakable abuse at the hands of their parish priests were met with disbelief and denial from church leaders. That resistance continued even as allegations mounted.
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