MINNESOTA
Star Tribune
By Bernard A. Hebda
June 10, 2016
Thank you for publishing Zach Czaia’s “An open letter to the new archbishop” (May 29). While I haven’t met him, Zach seems representative of a segment of this local Catholic Church that inspires me: people in the pew who care deeply for those who have been harmed. He’s one of many who have continued to stay engaged, who ask how we as a faith community might more faithfully live out the Gospel, and who challenge me to lead our church in an authentic response to our present situation.
I am praying that there are indeed many more like Zach who want “to do more” so that those who have been harmed in the church may experience true healing. The archdiocese has long been funding counseling for those who come forward to report abuse. Like Zach, however, we’re hoping to do even more. Our Plan of Reorganization commits us to creating a $500,000 fund to assist victims desiring counseling. Individuals or parishes who desire to augment that fund are free to do so.
Like Zach, we acknowledge that the pain of our brothers and sisters is real. In filing for bankruptcy, the archdiocese opted to move beyond contentious relationships. Instead of potentially painful and lengthy litigation with individual claimants, the process enables us to rely on the court to determine how our resources should be fairly allocated to compensate all of those with claims against the archdiocese. As a result, we have been able to invest our legal resources into working with our insurers, overseeing the divestiture of our real estate and marshaling our other financial resources, all in order that we might offer “the most for the most.”
Convincing insurance companies of their legal obligation to pay victims has been a challenging task. The reorganization plan confirms, however, that those efforts have borne results. Not only is there $65 million immediately available for the claimants, but also rights to other insurance coverage that could augment that number.
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