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	Kicanas: Bishops' Guide about Values for Voters By Stephanie Innes Arizona Daily Star November 18, 2007 http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/212233 A voting guide for Catholics approved last week by U.S. bishops is not meant to tell people how to vote, says Tucson Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas. Rather, it is meant to give Catholics "guiding values" on such issues as abortion as they decide for themselves how to vote, he said in an interview after returning from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' meeting in Baltimore. Kicanas raised his public profile at that meeting, when he was elected vice president of the national group. In three years, Kicanas, 66, is expected to become president of the organization, which represents the hierarchy of the 195 Catholic dioceses and archdioceses in the United States - and the 67 million Catholics who live in them. Kicanas, who already has a heavy travel schedule, says he doesn't expect to be out of town any more than usual to fulfill his new duties. The job comes with the perk of going to Rome two or three times a year. He said the conference's priorities for the next three years are emphasizing the value of marriage, which the Church defines as between a man and a woman; encouraging vocations to the priesthood and the religious life; promoting human dignity and life; and passing on the faith and sacramental practice to new generations. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson, which stretches across nine counties, has about 350,000 Catholics. About 27 percent of Tucson's population is Catholic, making it the largest organized faith group here. Kicanas sat down Friday with the Star to answer questions about his new role, the bishops' goals, and ongoing criticisms of the Church's handling of sexual abuse by priests - which victims voiced again after the bishops elected their officers last week. Here are excerpts from the interview: Congratulations on your election. Were you expecting it? "No, it was a surprise. There are 10 bishops nominated to be voted on for president and vice president. There was no doubt that Cardinal Francis George (of the Archdiocese of Chicago) was going to be elected president. I knew the other bishops on the list, and they are bishops I have great respect for and in some ways have been mentors to me. And so it was quite a surprise when the vote ended up selecting me." The bishops approved a voting guide called "Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship." Did you vote for it, and why? "Yes, it was really almost unanimously approved. ¡­ The church is not interested in partisan politics, supporting any particular candidate, supporting any particular political party. ¡­ "Some people say, well, why is the church involved in this? It's because the public arena involves significant moral issues and values. ¡­ So the document talks about intrinsically evil acts, which one must always challenge and raise concerns about. Things like abortion, euthanasia, racism -these are issues that at their core violate the dignity and respect for human life. "The document lists other issues that while not intrinsically evil are of deep concern - the issue of capital punishment because it refers to the sacredness of life; or the issue of immigration. Because a person is a migrant doesn't mean they don't have certain human rights." None of the five Catholic presidential candidates - Joe Biden, Christopher Dodd, Dennis Kucinich, Bill Richardson and Rudy Giuliani - has an anti-abortion voting record. How should Catholics perceive them as candidates, then? "The document says one needs to look, first of all, at the character of the person running. They have to look at their judgments, their personality, their track record. "Let's say a person is pro-life but they are certifiable - there are people who have major personality issues - well, one has to take that into consideration when determining if this person should receive my vote. ¡­ "So I might vote for you, not because you support abortion, but because I believe you are the best candidate among those that I'm faced with. But if I'm voting for you simply because you support a pro-abortion, pro-choice position, that would be problematic." The Chicago Sun Times ran a story this week about the Rev. Daniel McCormack, who is now in prison for molesting five boys. The vicar general of the Archdiocese of Chicago was quoted as saying McCormack should never have been ordained. You were the rector of Mundelein Seminary when McCormack studied and was ordained. There were accusations of sexual improprieties against him while he was a seminarian. Do you regret ordaining him? "What the vicar general said, looking back, I totally agree with. The McCormack situation is a tragedy for the children who were harmed, for this person. One has to say with great regrets that he was ordained. His life has become tragic. I don't know the history of it, I don't know the circumstances of what actually took place, but clearly it was a tragic situation and looking back, clearly he should not have been ordained. ¡­ "It's a terribly difficult decision to make, if in the context of the whole individual, the whole person, he is able to be ordained. I compare it maybe a little bit to Peter and Judas. They both had difficulties. Peter ended up being the rock of the church and Judas became the betrayer. How do you know clearly, as you are looking forward, whether some things that have taken place should prevent a person from being ordained or not?" Speaking of the sexual abuse crisis, the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests (SNAP) is criticizing your election as vice president of the bishops conference. The group says you did not do enough to address the needs of sexual abuse victims, and that you "hid" behind diocese bankruptcy as a way of avoiding potentially embarrassing court trials. "When you hear the suffering and pain the victims have gone through, you want to make sure you do everything you can to make sure this will not happen again. In terms of our diocese, I think we have done the best we can to try and make sure that anyone who has been hurt can come forward and could receive a fair and equitable resolution. ¡­ "When we resolved the Chapter 11 situation here in Tucson and held a joint press conference with the plaintiff lawyers, the victims and the diocese, I think the plaintiff lawyers and the victims said that they entered the Chapter 11 with a great deal of distrust and hesitancy, but that in fact the process did result in fair and equitable compensation of all victims who had been hurt, and in a respectful way. ¡­ "SNAP has asked that dioceses publish the names of those who have been credibly accused and this diocese has done that, only for the purpose of making sure that if anyone else has been harmed that they could come forward and enter a process of healing. So you know, nothing is perfect, but I certainly think the diocese has done as much as possible to try to resolve a very difficult situation." The group has also criticized the bishops' president-elect, Cardinal George, saying he was secretive and ineffective in dealing with sexual abuse by his priests. "Certainly Cardinal George was one of the most outspoken people in Rome to help the Vatican understand the struggles ... He brought that message, perhaps more strongly than any of us, to the Vatican. That helped lead to the establishment of initiatives that have taken place in every diocese to provide safe environments. "The issues of screening, the issues of education of children and parents, educating our own people to their responsibilities in this matter - most of that flowed out of the interactions and discussions that took place between the Conference of Catholic Bishops and Rome. ¡­ "I think that Cardinal George has worked very hard in the archdiocese; they have had some very painful situations. I know that the McCormack situation is something that weighs heavy on him. I think he has said he wished he himself had acted somewhat differently, but then again looking back is so different from looking forward. ¡­ "Again, I don't know that situation, I'm not trying to clarify that situation because I wasn't there, but I think it would be unfair to say Cardinal George hasn't worked hard to provide safe environments in the Archdiocese of Chicago . ¡­ "The media oftentimes quote certain individuals. Let's take Cardinal George. There was one voice that says he should have never been named president. But there are lots of voices who said he should be president and why he should be president. Somehow those voices don't get heard. Similarly, in our diocese I am sure there are some voices that say the diocese should be doing more, but there are a lot of voices that say it's great to see how seriously this issue is being taken." Do you see the U.S. Catholic Church becoming less of a player on the world stage, given the tremendous growth of Catholicism in the Global South - that is, Africa, Latin America and Asia? They are expected to comprise 75 percent of Catholics worldwide by 2010. "I don't think so, in the sense that the U.S. church has so many resources. We'll always have some say. The church for all of its struggles is still very active. ¡­ The church is still vibrant, it still has a great role to play in our society." • Contact reporter Stephanie Innes at 573-4134 or at sinnes@azstarnet.com
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