Bishop: Progress made against abuse

Bishop Howard J. Hubbard said a report last week by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) shows that the Church has made substantial progress in addressing problems related to clergy sexual abuse.

But, he added, the work must continue. To that end, he announced that the Albany Diocese will ask for a third full, on-site audit at the end of 2005.

He could have opted for self-reporting this year, an option permitted by the USCCB to dioceses that have fully implemented "The Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People," which was adopted by the bishops in 2002. The Albany Diocese has met that requirement two years in a row.

However, any diocese is free to request a third independent audit in 2005, and the Bishop, who serves as a member of the bishops' ad hoc committee on sexual abuse, chose to do so.

"I believe that the full, on-site audits have been an important tool in ensuring full compliance with the Charter by dioceses across the United States," Bishop Hubbard asserted. "The national report on the audits also provides reassurance to the public that the bishops are continuing to meet our solemn commitment to prevent abuse of children. For that reason, the Albany Diocese will voluntarily request a full, on-site audit in 2005. We are committed to remaining in compliance going forward."

Findings

Last week, the USCCB released the findings of the independent auditors, who noted that 96 percent of the 195 dioceses in the U.S. are implementing every applicable article of the bishops' policies to prevent clergy sex abuse of minors. The Albany Diocese is among the 96 percent.

In November, two independent auditors spent three days examining the Diocese. Similar studies, involving every diocese in the country, were used to develop the national report.

The auditors found the Albany Diocese to be in full compliance with the Charter. A report on the 2004 audit appeared in the Dec. 2 issue of The Evangelist. The Albany Diocese also was found in full compliance in 2003, the first year of the auditing program.

'Solemn commitment'

"The bishops of the United States are meeting our solemn commitment to atone for the offenses of the past," Bishop Hubbard said. "The Albany Diocese and most other dioceses have now established victims' assistance programs, review boards to investigate allegations, strict policies to remove clergy who abuse children, transparent public communications policies, and education programs to prevent sexual abuse."

Bishop Hubbard said that "as we look forward to a day of healing for all who have been harmed by the tragedy of clergy sexual abuse, leaders of the Church -- along with all Catholics and other members of the public, advocacy organizations and the news media -- will remain focused on the need to provide a comprehensive and compassionate response to individuals who were abused. This is being done in Albany and in many other dioceses around the country."

He added that "the challenge facing many bishops is to ensure that there continues to be appropriate financial support both for programs addressing the needs of victims and for the Church's other ministries, including pastoral and spiritual works, education, health care, and outreach to the poor, aged, infirm and marginalized."

Report's findings

The 50-page national report said that, in 2004, there were 1,092 new allegations of child sex abuse made against 756 priests and deacons, with most of the alleged abuse having taken place in 1965-'74. Nearly three-fourths of the accused clergy had already been removed from ministry, are dead or are missing.

During 2004, dioceses spent $158 million for abuse-related activities, with more than $106 million paid in settlements to victims, the report said. The U.S. Church has now spent about $1 billion in abuse-related costs since the beginning of 1950. On average, that represents an annual spending by each diocese of about $93,000.

Positive moves

So far, to combat clergy abuse, the Albany Diocese has taken these steps:

* establishing an independent program to address the needs of individuals who as minors were sexually abused by clergy; the Independent Mediation Assistance Program (IMAP) is under the direction of retired State Court of Appeals Judge Howard A. Levine;

* training of more than 13,000 employees and volunteers through the Virtus program to protect children and to recognize early warning signs of possible abuse;

* implementing in all Catholic schools a program called "Child Lures," a nationally recognized abuse prevention curriculum;

* developing a sexual abuse awareness training program for 40,000 children in religious education classes;

* performing background checks on more than 13,000 diocesan employees and volunteers, including priests, deacons, schoolteachers, catechists and others who interact with children.

(Search for more information about these programs and the 2004 audit of the Diocese at www.evangelist.org. Some material for this article is taken from Catholic News Service.)

(2/24/05)