Column
by
Archbishop John G. Vlazny
|
Archbishop's
Column by Archbishop John G. Vlazny |
Your prayers are needed for U.S. bishops
and local church
11/8/02
When the Vatican issued its response last
month to the American bishops’
request for the approval of the norms
established last June to protect
children and young people, reactions were
varied indeed. Before receiving
word about this matter from our U.S. bishops’
conference, I learned about
the response in the media, as you did.
Supposedly, according to the
reports, the Vatican had rejected the
bishops’ proposal. It would seem we
would have to return to square one and
start all over again. “Sex abuse
policy draws Vatican veto,” or so we were
told.
Then I received the letter from Bishop
Wilton Gregory, president of the
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. His
report was much more upbeat. The
Vatican had no intention of “rubber-stamping,”
our document, but the pope
and his colleagues were in basic agreement
with what we had proposed. They
were calling for the establishment of
a mixed commission that would engage
in further reflection on and revision
of our proposed norms. They were in
complete solidarity with the American
bishops in condemning the sexual
abuse of children by clergy. They were
grateful for the efforts we made to
work toward protecting minors and avoiding
future occurrences of such
abuse. But they felt there were a few
areas that were in need of further
discussion and greater precision, so that
our plan would be in accordance
with the universal law of the Church.
That did not sound like a “veto” to me.
It was a respectful, intelligent
and welcome response, one that I certainly
expected and accepted as we
attempt to do all we can to respect the
rights of all persons and the
integrity of both civil and Church law.
Three particular areas were of concern
to the Holy See, all of which had
already been raised here in the United
States by church lawyers, major
religious superiors, groups of priests
and the people in the pews. It was
almost as if the Vatican had been reading
the same journals and newspapers
I had been reading ever since the bishops’
June meeting in Dallas.
First of all, there was concern about the
proper role of the review board
that would be established in the dioceses
across this country. Their
authority would have to be reconciled
with the law of the Church and the
responsibilities of the individual bishops.
Secondly, some of the language
was imprecise, particularly the understanding
of the term “sexual abuse.”
How widely was that to be interpreted?
Finally, the procedures for dealing
with a priest who was known to have abused
a minor need to be clarified so
that due process is observed, and every
case is decided individually. In
the civil area, every citizen deserves
his day in court. Things should be
no different in the church.
People wondered about this “mixed commission”
that the Holy See would
establish for further reflection on and
revision of the norms submitted by
the American bishops. Bishop Gregory explained
that the commission would
be made up of four bishops representing
our U.S. Conference of Catholic
Bishops and four representatives from
the Holy See representing the
Congregations for the Doctrine of the
Faith, Bishops and Clergy as well as
the Pontifical Council for Legislative
Texts. Two weeks ago Bishop Gregory
appointed the four American bishops. Two
of them are my predecessors here
in Portland, Archbishop William Levada
of San Francisco and Francis
Cardinal George of Chicago, both articulate,
competent and highly
respected by their peers and the Holy
See. The task, we have been told,
was to exercise “deep communion” in order
to achieve “common agreement.”
This work, now completed, will ultimately
have to be approved by the body
of bishops and the Holy Father.
When the American bishops met in Dallas
last June, we were intent upon
communicating as clearly as was humanly
possible that our primary goal was
to protect children so that similar instances
of abuse would not recur
and, God forbid, if they did, they would
be handled quickly, fairly and
openly. That is still our intention.
Many have suggested that the actions of
the bishops in Dallas were
defensive and self-serving, reckless with
regard to the rights of the
accused, too hastily conceived and approved.
The Vatican was aware of
those critiques, and the mixed commission,
together with the subsequent
review by our bishops’ conference and
the Holy Father, give us an
opportunity to deal with whatever measure
of truth can be found in those
judgments. Certainly the pain and anguish
we have all experienced over the
past several months must subside. Bishop
Gregory is hopeful that at our
meeting next week we can approve the recommendations
from the mixed
commission. But if that is not possible,
I shall be content to wait until
the June assembly so that we can do it
right, once and for all.
In many ways, I am anxious about the meeting
in Washington next week. Last
June our Charter and Norms to Protect
Children and Prevent Sexual Abuse on
the part of the clergy were the only items
up for discussion. This time
the agenda is weighty and the pressure
will be intense. I ask for the
support of your prayers, not only for
the Washington assembly, but also
for our local church here in western Oregon.
We have excellent policies in
place and a sincere resolve to be reconciled
with all victims. But the
allegations raised in this calendar year
against living and deceased
priests of this archdiocese have reached
nearly 100.
Whatever the American bishops and the Vatican
ultimately determine
vis-à-vis policy, it should be
of great assistance to us now and in the
future. But with regard to the sins of
the past, allegations of abuse from
20 to 60 years ago, we are presently caught
in the tempest of uncharted
waters. I ask that you pray for the protection
of this archdiocesan church
and its fidelity to our God-given mission
of building a kingdom of justice
and peace for everyone. God bless us all.