BishopAccountability.org
	The Men Who Put the Loop in Loophole By Kristine Ward National Survivor Advocates Coaliton June 15, 2011 http://nationalsurvivoradvocatescoalition.wordpress.com/editorials/ The Bishops of the United States open a three day meeting today in Bellevue, WA, with revisions, actually slight edits, to the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People on the table for a vote. A "revision" the bishops are sure to tout to news media is a section in what is called a "Statement of Episcopal Commitment" that accompanies the Charter revisions that states: "We will apply the requirements of the Charter also to ourselves." The statement goes on to say, "Therefore if a bishop is accused of the sexual abuse of a minor the accused bishop is obliged to inform the Apostolic Nuncio. If another bishop becomes aware of the sexual abuse of a minor by another bishop or an allegation of the sexual abuse of a minor by a bishop he too is obliged to inform the Apostolic Nuncio." The apostolic nuncio is the papal ambassador to the United States. He has no obligation nor is he given any in the document to inform anyone in the United States law enforcement offices. In fact, his office is swaddled in diplomatic immunity. The "Statement of Episcopal Commitment" is in fact devoid of any real commitment and nothing in it puts any bishop in danger of being within a million miles of a courtroom let alone a prison for committing, being complicit with, or covering up criminal behavior which is what the rape and sodomy of children is. The bishops know, as do their consultants and their staff, that the only portion of the Charter and its attendant documents that when the chips are down needs to adhere to are the Essential Norms approved to the Vatican. Drum roll for the loophole. The Norms make no reference of reporting anything to the Apostolic Nuncio. In fact, the Norms state "Ultimately it is the responsibility of the diocesan bishop/eparch, with the advice of a qualified review board, to determine the gravity of the alleged act." No judgment by the bishop of the gravity of the act, — his own or his brother bishop's — no need to bother the Nuncio. The lofty language of the Preamble of the Charter is a galaxy away from the reality of this year's widely reported events in Philadelphia and Kansas City. In Philadelphia a grand jury found 37 priests accused of sexual abuse who had been allowed by the Cardinals of Philadelphia to remain in ministry. Cardinal Rigali in the white heat of media exposure removed 24 of them. Don't expect to see any bishop on the floor of this conference meeting walk over to Cardinal Rigali with the Apostolic Nuncio in tow for an "informing" chat. Nor should anyone anticipate seeing a stop at the seat occupied by Bishop Finn of Kansas City for an informed conversation on Finn's foot-dragging on the removal of a priest charged with pornographic possession. Also not to be expected: head swivels towards Finn's seat when the section of the Norms comes up that will put into the Norms the Vatican language of describing as a grave delict against morals "the acquisition, possession, or distribution by a cleric of pornographic images of a minor under age of 14″ being reserved to the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith." The "revisions" to the Charter amount to a pushing around of a few words, a note entered to conform Norm language with Vatican language, a few date changed to record the length of years of this current incarnation of the scandal, and a section's paragraphs reordered, — all of which took, we are sure, a mountain of emails, lights burning into the night, and gobs of paper print outs. The essence of the "revised" Charter loops back to what it was at its inception: words disguised as action made all the worse by using language which should be reserved for the holy to prop up the profane. It was St. Paul who wrote, "If I speak with the tongues of men, and of angels, and have not love, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal." (1 Corinthians 13:1) And the band played on.
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