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	Bishop's Abuse Remarks Rile Some By Charles Honey Grand Rapids Press November 17, 2007 http://www.mlive.com/grandrapids/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-0/1195283921263020.xml&coll=6 Remarks by a Chicago bishop to West Michigan Catholic lawyers and judges have stirred a national discussion about the church's legal liability for sexual abuse and other lawsuits, and whether that liability jeopardizes its good works. Some see in Auxiliary Bishop Thomas Paprocki's October 15 homily at St. Andrew's Cathedral a blaming of abuse survivors for the heavy financial hits dioceses have taken. Others say he raises points that ought to be considered in weighing plaintiffs' rights to compensation against the church's ability to feed the hungry, protect children and other charitable work. Based on the intensity of the chatter, one thing is clear: Five years after the abuse scandal broke, many Catholics still don't trust the bishops' methods and motives in responding to this tragedy. That in itself is tragic. The church does untold good through its services, as illustrated by the recently renamed Catholic Charities West Michigan, which provides everything from counseling to foster care. Mistrust only distracts from those efforts. Good overshadowed Such services are jeopardized by mounting legal costs that have bankrupted some dioceses, Paprocki said at the annual Red Mass. He cited the Archdiocese of Chicago having to end its foster-care program because of a $12 million settlement of a suit that alleged negligence by foster parents. Paprocki, who serves under newly elected bishops' President Cardinal Francis George, also noted the millions in legal expenses incurred by dioceses over abuse lawsuits. While calling abuse a sin and a crime, Paprocki said such huge sums "place an excessive burden on the free exercise of religion for Catholics in the United States ... This burden needs to be lifted." Large payouts, he said, penalize parishioners who financially support the church, diverting their contributions to "pay claimants and their lawyers." He suggested reviving some safeguards of charitable immunity, which used to legally protect churches and other nonprofits, by striking a "reasonable balance" between compensating victims and protecting charitable contributions. Paprocki framed all this by asserting the church is under attack and the source of the attack is "none other than the devil." He later said he was not referring to plaintiffs and lawyers, but that "it is in a sense a diabolical consequence when you can no longer provide a charitable service." Mixed reactions His talk drew a sharp rebuke from the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), and mixed reaction from the local lawyers and judges. U.S. Magistrate Judge Joseph Scoville found it "a serious point worth discussing," but added skeptically, "I don't really know how that would be worked out in the law these days." Lawyer Larry Mulligan took a harsher view, saying Paprocki showed the continuing failure of bishops to take responsibility for a problem they created. "He was blaming the victims and victims' lawyers, when he should have been looking in the mirror," said Mulligan, who plans to write Paprocki. Bishop Walter Hurley disagrees, saying Paprocki was not just addressing sexual abuse payments but a wider problem that merits discussion. "The church should not be immune," Hurley said. "But it does appear some of the civil lawsuits (are) in effect hampering the social and charitable work our society needs." There's no doubt the church meets many of those needs. What's in question is the bishops' sincere commitment to meet the needs of those the church has hurt. That's not just a legal matter but a pastoral one. It's going to take more time, transparency and truth-telling by the bishops. The more trust is restored on the abuse issue, the more focus can be placed on the church's valuable efforts to serve society's vulnerable. Send e-mail to the author: choney@grpress.com
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