Column
by
Archbishop John G. Vlazny
|
Archbishop's
Column by Archbishop John G. Vlazny |
Church is resolute in its determination
to safeguard children
4/26/02
This weekend I shall be gathering with
my Mundelein Seminary classmates to
reminisce about our years in the priesthood
and to celebrate the 40th
anniversary of our ordination. Twenty-six
of us were ordained for service
in the Archdiocese of Chicago 40 years
ago. Seven remain in active
ministry there. The rest of us have died,
resigned from active ministry,
retired or, like myself, transferred our
allegiance elsewhere. God has
been good. But unless we have genes similar
to those of Portland’s fifth
Archbishop, Edward Howard, another 40
years is unlikely!
The spotlight has been on the priesthood
a lot in recent months. As actors
can tell you, it sometimes can become
rather hot under those lights. My
brother priests and I have felt the heat
this winter and spring. Many are
understandably troubled and uneasy. Because
of my concern for all the good
priests and deacons who serve you day
in and day out across western
Oregon, I recently wrote to them with
some personal thoughts about the
humiliating situation in which we find
ourselves.
Anecdotal information from the brothers
clearly suggests that many of you
are troubled as well. One of our pastors
was greeted in front of his
church with disrespectful profanity by
some folks in a passing car.
Another was spit upon in downtown Portland.
A person of some influence on
the local scene wondered if you could
find even five good priests these
days. The worst stories about priestly
behavior are all believable and the
best defense seems to be silence. It’s
a sad situation.
Yet, as I told the priests, I was amazed
how enthusiastically you good
people participated in the celebrations
of Holy Week and Easter this year.
You may be frustrated and angry about
the wrongdoings and mistakes of some
of our brothers in the past, but you are
still quite enthused about your
relationship with the Lord and one another
in the church, particularly in
the celebrations that draw us together
during special days like those of
Holy Week and Easter. Together with my
brother priests and deacons I thank
God for the “wisdom and grace in the pews,”
and I remain quite saddened by
the residue of frustration and anger that
still remains among many of you
and them.
From recent conversations with members
of the Archdiocesan Pastoral
Council and other lay groups in our faith
community, I recognize that you
are particularly concerned about the safety
of our children and the
appearance that the Church is overly protective
of those who have violated
the trust placed in them. The priests
are more than frustrated with the
daily litany of the faults of their brothers
and the inadequacies of the
bishops in dealing with the multiple incidents
of child abuse by church
personnel and the present media blitz.
Every priest wonders what he should
or shouldn’t say. Every one of you is
wondering what your parish priest
really wants to say.
How I wish I had the powers of Merlin the
Magician! If there were only
some simple solution to help us deal with
the past quickly and move on to
the future, more eager and effective in
our work together as disciples in
mission. But long-term problems require
long-term solutions. Conversion
for all people takes time, even though
we all would prefer an instant
about-face. It has been said that in the
Church’s worst days of the past,
God has sent saints to lead the reform.
I am confident he will do the same
now. I pray that we will recognize them
and imitate their commitment to
holiness and truth.
When all is said and done, I told the priests,
the best response we can
offer to our present malaise is to do
well what we do best: preach the
gospel, celebrate the mysteries of the
faith and reach out to those in
need. Your priests, deacons and I will
not be intimidated into
marginalizing our pastoral care of God’s
people. I reminded the priests
that when darkness seems to prevail, we
need to stay close to the Light of
Christ. Long ago St. John of the Cross
advised that in the dark night of
the soul it is never good to stand alone.
It is always good to be close to
others and to the Lord. I encouraged our
deacons and priests to reach out
to one another, to come together, to be
brothers. When I look back upon my
own life and ministry, I see how often
God works best when I seem to be
feeling worst. I am confident that God’s
grace will make even this a truly
evangelizing moment for all of us.
Furthermore, the correspondence I receive
and the conversations in which I
have been engaged make me painfully aware
of the lack of familiarity many
of you still have about this church’s
sincere effort to deal with these
matters in recent years. Not everyone
remembers the letters of apology I
asked pastors to read in all our churches
back in the fall of the year
2000. Many people are still unaware of
the fact that the American bishops
in the early 1990s articulated five principles
that guide all diocesan
policies across this nation concerning
child sexual abuse. Not everyone
will read this column, nor have most Oregonians
seen the one I wrote in
early March about this matter, in which
I tried to explain a side of the
story that has not been shared as widely
as all the bad news of the past.
As a church, you and I are committed to
integrity and honesty in dealing
with all allegations of child sexual abuse.
We shall comply fully with
civil authorities. We shall make every
effort to heal the hurts of the
past in a manner befitting a disciple
of the Lord. We are resolute in our
determination to protect the safety of
our children. We shall be faithful
to our shared mission of building God’s
kingdom on earth, confident that
God will once again renew His people and
bless us in spite of ourselves.