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Contact: Suzanne Morse 617-680-2131, smorse@votf.org
For Immediate Release
Voice of the Faithful Respond to U.S. Bishops’ Announcement
to Fulfill Pledge to Authorize Second Round of Audits
Catholics Express Both Relief and Concern about
Bishops’ Accountability
and their Policies to Protect Children
Statement by Steve Krueger, Executive Director
of Voice of the Faithful
June 16, 2004 – Newton, Mass. – We commend those U.S.
Catholic Bishops who understand the necessity of the audits and
who spoke out in support of honoring the commitments they made
in 2002, prior to the conference in Denver. However, the unnecessary
concern of the past few months regarding the authorization of the
second round of audits has been counterproductive for the Bishops,
who should be doing everything in their power to rebuild the trust
and credibility they have lost. In the past several weeks, Voice
of the Faithful members across the country held forums, talks,
and vigils calling for accountability of Bishops. This public pressure
was essential to remind the Bishops of their promises to protect
children.
We are relieved, for the sake of the safety of children in Catholic
parishes around the country, that a second round of audits will
be undertaken. It is unfortunate that no mention was made of the
52 recommendations that were made by the Office of Child and Youth
Protection last January. Those recommendations are necessary for
these audits to be taken seriously as credible and comprehensive – especially
with regard to reorienting the process so that these audits are
truly independent, and are not merely self-reports on existing
policies. Furthermore, we hope that the Bishops, as part of this
year’s audit, will take seriously their obligation to meet
with members of the survivor community, including the major organizations
that represent thousands of survivors of clergy sexual abuse.
We hope, also, that the Bishops will understand the necessity
to make permanent a program of independent, credible audits and
an independent National Review Board as agents of accountability
and transparency. The Bishops have suggested that this topic will
be revisited in the future – lay Catholics, survivors, and
the clergy should not have to live with this uncertainty for another
year.
In 2002, the Bishops passed the Charter for the Protection of
Children and Young People, in which they pledged their intention
to be accountable for the abuses of five decades. The Bishops must
continue to use their moral voice to address the systemic problems
facing the Catholic Church today. If they backslide on the promises
they made in 2002, they will have no hope of regaining the trust
of the public, lay men and women, or the survivor community.
//end
About Voice of the Faithful: Voice of the Faithful
(VOTF) is a worldwide movement of concerned mainstream Catholics
formed in
response to the clergy sexual abuse crisis. The group's mission
is to provide a prayerful voice, attentive to the Spirit, through
which the Faithful can actively participate in the governance and
guidance of the Catholic Church. Its goals are to support victim/survivors
of abuse, support priests of integrity, and shape structural change
within the Catholic Church in full accordance and harmony with
Church teaching. VOTF’s supporting membership exceeds 30,000
registered persons from 50 U.S. states, 39 countries and 203 Parish
Voice affiliates throughout the world.
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