UNITED STATES
National Catholic Reporter
Thomas Reese | Apr. 4, 2014 Faith and Justice
The sexual abuse crisis was the worst crisis to have hit the U.S. Catholic church in the 20th century. It destroyed the lives of thousands of children, cost the church billions of dollars, and undermined the authority of bishops in the church. While many would like to move on from the crisis, others fear that if we are not vigilant, more abuse will happen.
One way of knowing the current state of the abuse crisis is through the annual report done for the U.S. bishops’ conference on the implementation of the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, colloquially known as the Dallas charter.
This year’s report, the 11th so far, is divided into two parts: the finding of a three-year audit done by StoneBridge Business Partners and a statistical report on new allegations of abuse in 2013 conducted by CARA, the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate.
The latest audit shows continued improvement but still indicates that some areas need improvement, as explained by Joshua J. McElwee’s excellent article.
One diocese (Lincoln, Neb.) and three eparchies refused to participate. The National Review Board also urged more bishops to allow parish audits and not just on-site audits of dioceses. In 2013, StoneBridge visited 91 parishes and schools in 26 dioceses, a 44 percent increase over the year before.
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