POPE FRANCIS TO THE WORLD'S BISHOPS
"Expose Evil, Denounce Abuse, No More Coverups"
By John R. Connolly
October 18, 2024
October 18, 2024
At a Mass in Brussels on September 29, 2024, Pope Francis called upon the world’s bishops to condemn sexual abuse and guarantee transparency in the church. Using strong words, the pope stated that there is no room for sexual abuse and no room for coverups in the Catholic Church. “Evil must be uncovered.” “May abusers be judged.” He urged those who have been abused to “make us ashamed, call us to conversion” adding that the voices of the victims are “prophetic” and must not be silenced. The seriousness of the bishops’ failure to live up to their Christian responsibility to protect the innocent victims of sexual abuse is profoundly made clear in the Gospel for the mass of the day, “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. (Mk 9,42).
These words also demonstrate how urgent it is that the Catholic bishops throughout the world openly acknowledge the institutional causes of the sexual abuse crisis and begin to work to reform the church’s own structures so that they more fully foster Jesus’ gospel of love, mercy, and justice.
ARCHBISHOP GOMEZ ANNOUNCES SEXUAL ABUSE CLAIMS SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT
By John R. Connolly
October 18, 2024
October 18, 2024
On October 16, 2024, Archbishop Jose H. Gomez announced that the Archdiocese of Los Angeles has reached an agreement worth $880 million to compensate more than a thousand (1,353) decades-old claims of childhood sexual abuse. The claims are based on allegations against priests, other clergy, women religious and lay people from the archdiocese, along with religious order priests and clergy from other dioceses who were serving in the archdiocese. With the $740 million that the archdiocese has paid in the past to settle sexual abuse claims, this brings the total to $1.5 billion.
As shocking as this announcement is to Catholics, the Archbishop did not fully address the consequences that this event has for the credibility of the church and the ramifications it has for the future viability and credibility of the Catholic Church in Los Angeles. In an effort to moderate the severity of this event, Archbishop Gomez pointed out that all of these cases of sexual abuse took place in the past. He stated that no one serving in the ministry in the archdiocese today has been found to have harmed a minor, stressing that new cases of sexual misconduct by priests and clergy are rare in the archdiocese. Yet, he failed to mention any of the horrific incidents of sexual abuse inflicted on their victims by the priests (Father Michael Baker and Father Neville Rucker) involved in the cases being settled. Nor did he discuss any of the tactics employed by Cardinal Roger Mahony or Msgr. Thomas Curry in their efforts to cover up the crimes of the priests involved in this settlement. They chose to protect the institutional church from scandal and ignored their ministry to serve the victims. For verification of the facts in these cases, see “Record Payout In Clergy Abuse Cases,” Los Angeles Times, Thursday, October 17, 2024.
In offering his apology to victims, Archbishop Gomez made the following statement, “I am sorry for every one of these incidents, from the bottom of my heart. My hope is that this settlement will provide some measure of healing for what these men and women have suffered.” There was no condemnation of the dehumanizing actions of the priests involved in the cases. There was no admission that those involved in the coverup had egregiously failed to live up to their ministry as leaders and servants of the People of God. There was no admission that the church had done anything wrong, nor any acceptance of responsibility on the part of the church for any of the actions of the abusers and those involved in the coverup. There was no admission that the structures of the institutional church had failed to protect the victims and that its leaders had put the survival of the institution first. Instead of condemning scandal, they kept it secret. There doesn’t seem to be any acknowledgement of the fact that in the sexual abuse scandal and its coverup the institutional church failed to live up to its ministry to preach the authentic Gospel of Jesus, of love, mercy, truth, and justice.
Finally, in his comments Archbishop Gomez tried to assure the Catholic faithful in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles that this settlement would not place any increased financial burden upon them by stating that the settlement would be funded by archdiocese investments, accumulated reserves, bank financing, and other assets. He added that no funds would be used from parishes or school donations or archdiocesan collections and campaigns like Together in Mission and Called to Renewal. It might be more reassuring if he had explained how the archdiocese has two separate sources of income. His final comment on the financial implications of the settlement also raises some concerns. He states that “in the months ahead there will be a great deal of uncertainty and hard decisions will be required.” One can only hope that in a synodal church the people will be involved in these decisions.
As shocking as this announcement is to Catholics, the Archbishop did not fully address the consequences that this event has for the credibility of the church and the ramifications it has for the future viability and credibility of the Catholic Church in Los Angeles. In an effort to moderate the severity of this event, Archbishop Gomez pointed out that all of these cases of sexual abuse took place in the past. He stated that no one serving in the ministry in the archdiocese today has been found to have harmed a minor, stressing that new cases of sexual misconduct by priests and clergy are rare in the archdiocese. Yet, he failed to mention any of the horrific incidents of sexual abuse inflicted on their victims by the priests (Father Michael Baker and Father Neville Rucker) involved in the cases being settled. Nor did he discuss any of the tactics employed by Cardinal Roger Mahony or Msgr. Thomas Curry in their efforts to cover up the crimes of the priests involved in this settlement. They chose to protect the institutional church from scandal and ignored their ministry to serve the victims. For verification of the facts in these cases, see “Record Payout In Clergy Abuse Cases,” Los Angeles Times, Thursday, October 17, 2024.
In offering his apology to victims, Archbishop Gomez made the following statement, “I am sorry for every one of these incidents, from the bottom of my heart. My hope is that this settlement will provide some measure of healing for what these men and women have suffered.” There was no condemnation of the dehumanizing actions of the priests involved in the cases. There was no admission that those involved in the coverup had egregiously failed to live up to their ministry as leaders and servants of the People of God. There was no admission that the church had done anything wrong, nor any acceptance of responsibility on the part of the church for any of the actions of the abusers and those involved in the coverup. There was no admission that the structures of the institutional church had failed to protect the victims and that its leaders had put the survival of the institution first. Instead of condemning scandal, they kept it secret. There doesn’t seem to be any acknowledgement of the fact that in the sexual abuse scandal and its coverup the institutional church failed to live up to its ministry to preach the authentic Gospel of Jesus, of love, mercy, truth, and justice.
Finally, in his comments Archbishop Gomez tried to assure the Catholic faithful in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles that this settlement would not place any increased financial burden upon them by stating that the settlement would be funded by archdiocese investments, accumulated reserves, bank financing, and other assets. He added that no funds would be used from parishes or school donations or archdiocesan collections and campaigns like Together in Mission and Called to Renewal. It might be more reassuring if he had explained how the archdiocese has two separate sources of income. His final comment on the financial implications of the settlement also raises some concerns. He states that “in the months ahead there will be a great deal of uncertainty and hard decisions will be required.” One can only hope that in a synodal church the people will be involved in these decisions.