By Bishop Paul S. Loverde
Special to the Herald
(From the issue of 8/12/04)

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

In the two years following the tragic revelations of the summer of 2002, the Church in the United States has undergone a profound and painful self-examination of our failure in so many ways to protect children and young people. This open examination has been difficult and emotional and has damaged the very credibility of the Church’s ministry and mission. Trust is a delicate thing and, once lost, cannot be restored by sorrow no matter how sincere. Restoring trust requires conversion which is a step beyond sorrow and a commitment to right action in the future. While sorrow is a necessary step in bringing healing to the failures of the past, conversion deals with our commitment to the future.

The Church of Arlington continues to express its sorrow for the suffering of those members of the faithful who have been victims of sexual abuse. This sorrow is expressed through our outreach to survivors, in prayers and Masses of healing and by providing spiritual and counseling support and assistance.

These events call us also to the hope of conversion and to a commitment to take every reasonable action to provide a safe and nurturing environment for children and young people in our care. During the last two years I have ordered an extensive review and study of the methods used to protect children in the diocese. In consultation with my brother bishops, law enforcement officials, the Diocesan Advisory Board on the Protection of Children/Young People and experts in the field of child sexual abuse, I am committed to establishing a program to provide a safe environment for children. This program already has in place a pastoral Code of Conduct and ongoing training regarding the issue of sexual misconduct through the "Protecting God’s Children" program.

As a further sign of the diocese’s commitment to providing a safe environment, I am requiring that, effective August 12, 2004, all seminarians, deacons, priests, diocesan employees and volunteers with substantial contact with children complete criminal background checks to ensure their suitability to work with children and young people. Moreover, effective August 12, 2004, any person applying for employment or volunteering for service involving substantial contact with children must complete a criminal history background check upon application. These background checks include fingerprinting and will be conducted using law enforcement records and records of Child Protective Services.

It might seem to some that conducting extensive criminal history background checks on employees and volunteers is excessive. While this level of vigilance may be outside our immediate experience, it has sadly become more the norm in our society rather than the exception. Large volunteer organizations that work with youth have been conducting these checks for a number of years; the Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and Little League are some examples. The Church of Arlington recognizes the need to carefully check each and every person who has contact with children. We owe it to those who depend upon us the most to take every effort in providing a safe and secure environment.

Our criminal history background checks represent a baseline of protection for the children placed by their parents in the care of the Church. They are measures in keeping with directives of the bishops of the United States, who in their Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, pledged to evaluate the background of all Church personnel who have responsibility for the care and supervision of children and young people.

Every journey consists of a number of steps. It is my hope that the implementation of criminal history background checks will be a major step in our journey to protect the innocence of our children and to restore trust and integrity to our mission of proclaiming the Good News of salvation.

Faithfully in Christ,

Most Reverend Paul S. Loverde

Bishop of Arlington