BishopAccountability.org
	Church Has Moral Obligation to Reveal Truth in Sex Abuse Scandal By James Connell Milwaukee Journal Sentinel January 6, 2011 http://www.jsonline.com/news/opinion/113040799.html Every act of sexual abuse of a minor by a priest is a crime, both in civil law and in Catholic Church law. Indeed, from teenage years onward, people know that sexual activity between an adult and a minor is both legally and morally wrong. So, in discussing sexual abuse of minors by priests, we are not talking about the actions of a schoolyard bully. We are talking about the actions of a criminal. Certainly, the church is well-positioned nowadays to respond to allegations of sexual abuse by priests as a crime and has been so for many years. Yet the issue at hand is not about current protocols. It's about the response of the church in the early years of the priests' sexual abuse crisis and how the response in those years continues to impact life today for some victims/survivors, as well as for the entire church community and for civil society. What was the mind-set of church leaders in those early years? The answer is not clear. But some people hold that from the beginning the church accented: 1) the preservation of the church's image; 2) the protection of the reputation of persons; and 3) the security of assets. Of course, without having access to the records and files, who can say for sure? This apparent lack of dealing with allegations as crimes in the early years has caused people to ask whether subsequent cases of priest sexual abuse of a minor could have been prevented. In other words, did overlooking the reality of the crime actually contribute to further, yet avoidable, acts of sexual abuse by priests? The speculation is that a failure to treat each allegation as a reported crime, rather than simply a matter of a priest needing treatment, made it easier to shift known abuser priests to assignments where there was access to children. I am the pastor of two Catholic parishes in Sheboygan. Both parishes have been served by priests whose names are on the Archdiocesan list of diocesan priests restricted due to substantiated reports of sexual abuse of a minor. Hence, some of my parishioners are familiar in matters of sexual abuse by priests. One of my parishioners recently said to me, within the context of a lid being on the availability of information and people not knowing why: Father Jim, how much worse can the actual truth be, compared to what our imaginations have already led us to think? For years, litigation has been the vehicle to help get information, albeit a piecemeal approach. But now, as the legal proceedings move into bankruptcy court, the hope for civil legal processes to furnish desired information possibly evaporates. However, the moral responsibility for the Catholic Church to provide information does not go away. Indeed, included in the responsibility to do justice is the responsibility to provide the means for healing. To help understand my point, think about this. If sexual abuse by a priest is not part of your personal experience, imagine for a moment that it actually is a tragic part of your history and that you continue to seek healing and peace. Then, here is the question: To further the cause of that healing and peace, would you want to know the entire truth about what happened? Or would you be content with the fruits of your speculation and imagination, along with whatever piecemeal information becomes available? The Catholic Church, it seems to me, has the moral responsibility to facilitate healing and that includes revealing the truth. It's a matter of justice and, thus, is a moral obligation.
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