January 6, 2004
NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For More Information, Contact:
Bud Bunce (503) 233-8373
bbunce@archdpdx.org
Archdiocese of Portland in full compliance with Charter to Protect Children
The Archdiocese of Portland is in full compliance with the Charter for
the
Protection of Children and Young People
and the Essential Norms for
Diocesan/Eparchial Policies Dealing with
Allegations of Sexual Abuse of Minors by
Priests or Deacons according to an audit
by the National Review Board of the United
States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
In September 2003, the Archdiocese of Portland participated in an audit
of its
policies and procedures regarding child
abuse issues. The auditors were independent
of the Archdiocese of Portland, lived
outside the State of Oregon, and were chosen by
and reported to the United States Conference
of Catholic Bishops' National Review
Board. The National Review Board arranged
for voluntary audits in order to help
dioceses evaluate their implementation
of and compliance with the Charter for the
Protection of Children and Young People
and the Essential Norms for
Diocesan/Eparchial Policies Dealing with
Allegations of Sexual Abuse of Minors by
Priests or Deacons.
The Archdiocese received commendation from the audit team for its system
of
tracking background checks completed on
employees and volunteers. The use of
identification cards confirms that the
bearer has successfully completed a background
evaluation and is eligible for volunteer
service in any component of the Archdiocese.
Two recommendations were given to the
Archdiocese in order to be in full compliance:
first, to develop a tracking system for
those employees and volunteers who have
completed safe environment training, similar
to that used for monitoring background
checks; second, to develop and implement
a suitable program for religious education
students regarding safe environment training
similar to the "safe touch" program used in
Catholic elementary schools. Students
in parish religious education programs attend
public schools, and come to the parish
for religious education. Both recommendations
were implemented by the Archdiocese within
the timeframe required by the audit team
in order to be in full compliance with
the Charter.
Archbishop John G. Vlazny stated, "For more than fifteen years the Archdiocese
of Portland has operated with clear policies
for the protection of our children and for
dealing with allegations of child sexual
abuse by pastoral ministers and church
employees. The directives offered by the
Bishops' charter have strengthened our
policies and renewed our commitment to
this important task. There was never a
question about our decision to be in full
compliance with the charter. I am grateful to all
our pastoral ministers and people who
have shared my resolve and taken this matter
seriously."
In June 2002, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops adopted
the
Charter for the Protection of Children
and Young People. The Charter demonstrated
the Bishops' acknowledgement of mistakes
made in the past dealing with child abuse
by priests, and assured everyone that
the Bishops' were taking responsibility for
"dealing with this problem strongly, consistently,
and effectively in the future" (pg. 3).
The Charter seeks:
To Promote – healing and reconciliation
with victims/survivors of sexual abuse of
minors;
To Guarantee – an effective response to allegations of sexual abuse of minors;
To Ensure – the accountability of our procedures;
To Protect – the faithful in the future.
The Bishops of the United States adopted a complementary document to the
Charter, the Essential Norms for Diocesan/Eparchial
Policies Dealing with Allegations of
Sexual Abuse of Minors by Priests or Deacons.
The Essential Norms document was
adopted by the Bishops in November 2002,
and approved by the Vatican's
Congregation for Bishops on December 8,
2002. Essential Norms dealt with specific
policy issues for dioceses in the U.S.,
ensuring that these policies and norms are
consistent with universal Church law.
Under the goal "to promote healing and
reconciliation with the victims/survivors of
sexual abuse of minors" the Archdiocese
of Portland demonstrated its efforts:
* The Ember Days of prayer and fasting
for the healing and reconciliation of those
abused by priests were
an example of the effort to promote healing.
* The Archdiocese of Portland and Providence
Health System sponsored group
therapy sessions for those
sexually abused as minors by a Catholic priest. An
independent and board certified
psychiatrist in private practice conducted the
sessions.
* Archbishop John G. Vlazny offered to
meet with any victim who wished to meet
with him. He also met with numerous
victims at healing services.
* The Archdiocese of Portland has a child
abuse policy that has been widely
disseminated in English and
Spanish.
* Archbishop Vlazny appointed an Assistance
Coordinator, as required by the
Charter and the Essential Norms,
to coordinate assistance and immediate
pastoral are for those who claim
to have been abused by clergy.
* Archbishop Vlazny appointed a Ministry
Review Board to serve as a local
consultative body assisting him
in evaluating Archdiocesan policies and
procedures for working with victims
and their families. The Board also assists
the Archbishop with evaluation
of priests for ministry after an allegation of abuse
has been made.
The Archdiocese of Portland demonstrated
its efforts to meet the goal "to guarantee
an effective response to allegations of
sexual abuse of minors" by:
* Having a clear policy that requires allegations
of sexual abuse of a minor is
reported to public authorities
as required by Oregon law.
* Archdiocesan policy allows an accused
priest or diocesan employee to be
immediately relieved of ministerial
duties pending the outcome of an investigation
of the accusation.
* Archdiocesan policy is consistent with
the Essential Norms and Canon Law of the
Church for dealing with clergy
who have credible accusations of child sexual
abuse.
The Archdiocese of Portland demonstrated
its effort "to ensure the accountability of
our procedures" by:
* Participating in this voluntary audit
of policies and procedures.
* Cooperating fully in the Catholic Bishops'
survey conducted by John Jay College.
Under the heading "to protect the faithful
in the future" the Archdiocese of Portland
noted:
* The Archdiocese has established a "safe
touch" program in all archdiocesan
elementary Catholic schools.
* A "safe environment" program established
in archdiocesan parishes and schools.
* Archbishop Vlazny appointed a "safe
environment" coordinator to assist parishes
with training programs
* Training sessions were held for Catholic
school principals, parish youth ministers
and directors of religious
education to help ensure a safe environment.
* The archdiocese conducts background
checks and screening of all parish and
archdiocesan employees who
come into unsupervised contact with children and
young people.
* Training was provided to clergy and
business managers on the required
background checks.
* The archdiocese has established standards
of conduct for clergy and other
persons in trust through
employee handbooks, the Child Abuse Policy of the
Archdiocese and the Clergy
Statement of Ethical Standards.
* The Archdiocese also noted the extensive
screening and evaluation process for
those wishing to train to
be priests.
The Archdiocese of Portland
is committed to providing a safe environment for all
persons served in ministry. The Archdiocese
is confident that the policies and
procedures in place, with due diligence
on the part of all, will help ensure this safe
environment. The Child Abuse Policy of
the Archdiocese is available on the web site:
www.archdpdx.org/abuse-policy-revised/.
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