What will it take?

Two weeks ago, the bishops of the United States gathered in Baltimore for our semi-annual plenary meeting. Though there were a variety of items on our agenda, one group of items garnered the most attention and energy: those pertaining to the ongoing crisis surrounding sexual abuse within the Church. More specifically, the focus was on the bishops’ own accountability and responsibilities as shepherds of the Church.
 
One year ago, the McCarrick scandals rocked the Church, followed swiftly by the Pennsylvania Grand Jury investigation into the crisis of clergy sexual abuse and the way bishops responded to those crimes and allegations.
 
This recent meeting was a continuation of our previous meeting this past November when the measures intended to address the crisis were not voted upon at Pope Francis’s request. He wanted to hear first from the leaders of the national bishops’ conferences of the whole Catholic world, which he did in a gathering that took place in the Vatican this past February.
 
The fruit of that meeting resulted in new legislation binding on the whole Church that deals specifically with the global abuse crisis. He issued this legislation, by way of a motu proprio, in May. (A motu proprio is a legislative text that adds to the Church’s canon law. It is issued at the pope’s own initiative.)
 
The resulting delay in our actions, originally planned for this past November, allowed time for the response to mature and be undertaken in view of a wider consultation and deeper discernment.
 
The result is another step forward in the Church’s response to the abuse crisis that has had such devastating effects on so many. The pope’s motu proprio and the national directives for its implementation in the United States, which the bishops approved in our June meeting, build upon and expand the 2002 Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People adopted by the USCCB 18 years ago.
 
That landmark commitment and the legal framework that went with it has resulted in a dramatic decrease in the number of abuse cases. It resulted in very practical measures that have become familiar to us: victim assistance coordinators in dioceses, background checks for clergy, lay staff and volunteers, safe environment training, lay review boards and a zero-tolerance policy for those who abuse minors.
 
One of the gaps in the 2002 charter that became painfully apparent during the past year was the lack of clarity about bishops’ own inclusion in the requirements of the charter. Consequently, the measures that we addressed and approved in our June meeting deal specifically with bishops.
 
We reaffirmed our own episcopal commitment to hold ourselves accountable to the same ethical standards and codes of conduct that bind other members of the clergy and to provide support to victims of abuse and their families. We adopted policies that address bishops’ own accountability for sexual abuse of children and vulnerable persons, for sexual misconduct and the intentional mishandling of such cases.
 
We committed to utilizing lay professional experts to investigate abuse and established an independent third-party national hotline for reporting cases of abuse or negligence by bishops. We adopted a protocol for applying sanctions to bishops who have been removed from office for abuse or for negligence in responding to abuse. We committed to a means of investigating allegations of abuse or negligence by bishops that will involve cooperation with the Holy See, the involvement of lay experts and the metropolitan archbishop of the appropriate ecclesiastical province.
 
These are technical terms and measures and may sound like so much jargon. Good policies are important. Protocols are necessary to protect the rights of everyone involved. We are good at putting these together. In fact, we in the United States have become leaders in responding to the global crisis of sexual abuse in the Church. We are putting in place strong policies, protocols and procedures.
 
But, they are not enough? What will it take for us to put this painful and humiliating chapter of Church history behind us? A look back at Church history reminds us that we have been here before. The Catholic Church has endured and survived other crises. The fact that the Catholic Church has survived 2,000 years is certainly not due to merely human efforts and initiative. God is faithful to his promises. And, the Lord has promised that the gates of hell will not prevail.
 
We are dealing with a Church of sinners. We are all sinners. We are called, however, to become saints. We are equipped to become saints through the power of the Holy Spirit and the means that Christ has left to his Church. Throughout history renewal and reform always have come about through prayer, repentance, continuing conversion, adherence to the word of God and the grace that comes to us through the liturgy and the sacraments. As always, these are our way forward at this time.
 
We bishops are called to repentance for our own failings. We are called to recommit ourselves to the promises we made when we were ordained and assumed leadership of Christ’s Church. But, it will take more than that. It will take all of us. We all are called to holiness.
 
Each of us, in our own way and according to our own vocation, shares responsibility for the Church and its evangelizing mission. We all are called to put our gifts at the service of one another for the renewal of the Church. God is with us.


Find more resources at:
archokc.org/safe-environment
preventionusccb.org