PORTLAND (OR)
Catholic Sentinel
08/25/2005 Archbishop John Vlazny
This past June at the spring assembly of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, which was promulgated in 2002, was updated based on the experiences of dioceses across the country over the past three years.
Here in the Archdiocese of Portland we have been greatly challenged by the multiple allegations of child sexual abuse by some of our own priests in years past and our ongoing efforts to reach a resolution to these claims, now with the help of the bankruptcy court. These crimes have alienated many people, and true reconciliation will be achieved only with the help of prayer and God’s grace. But we must do our part by compensating victims for their suffering and supporting them by our prayers and care.
The revised Charter also commits us to creating a safe environment within our church for people and young people. This is a responsibility we have taken seriously. Our archdiocese continues to implement the Charter more fully and has been found in full compliance during the previous audits of October 2003 and October 2004. Another on-site audit is scheduled for late October and early November of this year.
Our Ministry Review Board meets regularly and has advised me on a variety of issues related to archdiocesan policies and practices concerning child abuse and the assurance of a safe environment for all in our churches and schools. By way of example, recently we received some warnings about predators in churches from Washington County authorities. In response to a suggestion from the Review Board, we sent notice to every parish to monitor its restrooms and to encourage parents to accompany their children to the restrooms, even if that meant some disturbance to church services.