Panel Discussion Sets the Stage for Dallas Meeting

By Linda Busetti
HERALD Staff Writer
(From the issue of 6/6/02)

According to author George Weigel, "Bishops must say, ‘We are responsible,’" at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ general meeting next week in Dallas in order to restore the trust of American Catholics who are angry about the handling of sexual misconduct by priests.

As nearly 300 active Catholic bishops prepare for their general meeting in Dallas, June 13-15, the Washington-based Ethics and Public Policy Center and Faith and Reason Institute jointly presented a seminar, "The U.S. Catholic Bishops’ Annual Meeting and the Sexual Abuse Crisis" last Thursday in Washington.

Several months ago, the USCCB’s administrative committee put the problem of sexual abuse of minors by clergy on the bishops’ meeting agenda. The bishops hope to restore trust in Church leadership, which has been criticized for its handling of, and in some cases covering up, accusations against clergy.

The USCCB Ad Hoc Committee on Sexual Abuse reviewed the issue and will report recommendations on "a comprehensive response on the national level" to safeguard children and help victims and their families heal.

USCCB President Bishop Wilton D. Gregory was quoted as saying he thought the bishops would vote for a "one strike, you’re out" policy in regard to priests who are found guilty of sexual misconduct with minors (Washington Post, May 23). Bishop Gregory said there was some controversy among bishops as to whether such a policy should be retroactive.

The seminar offered three perspectives on the current crisis and what may transpire at the bishops’ meeting: Peter Steinfels of the New York Times presented a history of the American Church’s response to clerical sexual abuse; George Weigel, senior fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Center and biographer of Pope John Paul II, covered the Vatican perspective; and Robert Royal, president of the Faith and Reason Institute, concluded with thoughts on potential reforms.

The sexual abuse scandals are "not really a new story," according to Steinfels, but rather a revival of accusations that first surfaced in the 1980s. He said the issue has taken on such a life now because of "a failure of Church leadership" to deal with the problem; "erosion of trust" among American Catholics; and a "more hostile environment" in which the issue has surfaced. According to Steinfels, during the first three months of this year, "there was a paralysis of leadership" in response to the scandals. There was also a "pre-existing mistrust between laity and Church leadership," Steinfels said. The scandals broke in a "post-Monica" atmosphere in which the media is willing to "graphically detail sexual matters," he noted.

Weigel said he arrived at the Vatican in Rome on April 2 and felt as if he was "in a time warp … People were reeling [about the American scandals] … people were not sure how much of this was real or hype or … how much more was coming." Why did it take until April for the Vatican to become concerned? Weigel cited an "information gap" from the Vatican Embassy in the U.S. back to Rome. He said the European press "paid virtually no attention" to the American scandals. Finally, Weigel explained, "The Vatican is simply not, to this day, a part of the Internet culture. … What we have become used to … namely real-time information … none of this exists over there. I showed senior officials of the Holy See articles from the American press in January in April. They had no idea."

Weigel attributed the Vatican’s "sluggish response" to the problem in part to Canon Law, which he said, "bends over backwards to protect priests from arbitrary and cranky bishops" and "begins with the presumption of innocence."

"The notion of scandal," Weigel added, "is far different in Europe than it is in the United States." What was considered an American crisis was "simply off the screen in Europe."

Weigel expressed concern about how the scandals will affect the Church’s credibility on other issues. "Anyone who thinks the Catholic Church in the U.S. is in as strong a position on May 30, 2002, as it was on December 31, 2001, in the effective debate over cloning is simply on another planet," he said.

"Senior officials of the Catholic Church had a too-positive view of the Church in the United States and were unprepared for the revelations" of sexual misconduct, Weigel said. "This sluggishness came to a halt … when the leadership of the U.S. Bishops’ Conference came to Rome. Bishop Gregory did a very effective job of communicating … that this was a real crisis," Weigel said.

In speaking of the Dallas meeting, Royal said, "One of my fears is that the bishops will forget they are religious leaders." He said there must be a "very high degree of religious language" in their pronouncements. He said it is important for Catholics to participate in scheduled days of prayer that some dioceses, including the Arlington Diocese, have scheduled.

Royal said he didn’t think it would be very hard to come up with protocols for bishops to put into effect to avoid future scandals, but it will take years to heal the effects of the current crisis.

"Bishops need to be seen to be tough on abusers," Royal said. In looking forward, bishops must examine seminaries, priestly formation and psychological development, he said. "There has been a large influx of homosexuals into seminaries," Royal said. "The Church’s view of immorality on homosexuality is not something a bunch of Italians dreamt up."

In conclusion, Weigel said the bishops must "stop leading with their chins" and make clear in Dallas they are taking this issue seriously.

Royal quoted Bridgeport Bishop William E. Lori, who said, "This whole problem is an unholy call to holiness."

According to the E.P.P.C. Web site, "the Ethics and Public Policy Center was established in 1976 to clarify and reinforce the bond between the Judeo-Christian moral tradition and the public debate over domestic and foreign policy issues" (www.eppc.org).

The Faith and Reason Institute addresses "questions of economics, politics, public policy, science, technology, the environment and public culture, from perspective of both faith and reason" (www.frinstitute.org).

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