Bishop vows to clear his name

Editor's note: On Monday, Feb. 9, Bishop Howard J. Hubbard gave his first in-depth interview following allegations of sexual misconduct that were levelled against him last week and the press conference at which he denied all of the claims. The interview, which was conducted by James Breig, editor of The Evangelist, covers his reaction to the allegations and press conference, and his plans for the future.

Q. Where were you on Feb. 4, when you got word of the first allegation against you?

Bishop Hubbard: I was in Florida on vacation. I had been down by the beach, reading, and came back to my hotel room about four o'clock. I received a phone call from the Chancery that a man had brought charges against me. I told them immediately that there was no substance to the charges and asked them to make arrangements for me to get home as soon as possible to defend myself. They said there was a flight at 6:15, but I was 90 miles from the airport. I threw a pair of pants over my bathing suit, grabbed my shaving kit and left for the airport. I made the plane.

It was only when I got home that I learned the full nature of the allegations. I thought they were making an allegation of child sexual abuse. I found out it was allegedly a relationship with an adult. In any case, I never had any sexual relationship with any child or adult, so I knew categorically that whatever was being said was false.

Q. What was it like to stand up in front of strangers, in front of the news media and, through them, in front of tens of thousands of people and talk about your sex life?

Bishop Hubbard: It was very embarrassing and very humiliating, quite frankly. But I was at peace because I know that I am not guilty of these charges -- or of any charges of sexual abuse of any child or any adult.

Q. You held your press conference on Thursday, Feb. 5. When did you learn about the second allegation?

Bishop Hubbard: I officiated at a funeral on Friday, Feb. 6, and flew back to Florida. When the plane stopped in Charlotte, I called the Chancery and was told there were press inquiries about someone who claimed I solicited sex in Washington Park. By that time, it was eight o'clock at night, so I went on to Florida. That night, I packed up, and I came back to Albany on Saturday.

Q. So within about 72 hours, your life --

Bishop Hubbard: -- my life was turned upside down, and I found myself in the most surreal situation imaginable. If I were a fiction writer, I couldn't dream up a plot more nefarious than this one. The problem I face is that there's no lawsuit or opportunity for me to have the evidence reviewed by a court or a jury. So the only court available to me right now is the court of public opinion. I am determined to leave no stone unturned to refute these charges and to restore my reputation.

If I were guilty of these allegations, I would acknowledge my guilt and resign as bishop. If there were one scintilla of truth to these charges, I wouldn't put the people of the Diocese, my brother priests or my family through the pain and anguish this situation has created.

Q. You said you couldn't imagine a plot in a fictional sense. Do you think it is a plot in the conspiratorial sense?

Bishop Hubbard: I'm not going to judge people's motivations. I have no idea why people are making these allegations. I assume they have been hurt in their lives and have experienced deep pain; but I am not the one who inflicted that pain.

Q. You said you are before the court of public opinion. What has been the reaction of the public?

Bishop Hubbard: Overwhelmingly supportive: phone calls, emails, letters, flowers. People I meet on the street, even airport personnel, stop me and say, "Hang in there. We're with you. We don't believe these charges" and so forth.

I have been a priest for 40 years and a bishop for 27. My life has been a very public life. The Church has been my whole life. I have had the opportunity of interacting with many people over the course of those years. I hope that I have come across as a person of integrity and decency. It's my hope that based on that experience, people have placed their trust in me. And unless there is substantial evidence that that trust has been violated, they are willing to stand with me.

I've lived in a fishbowl, certainly for the last 27 years; and even before that, my ministry in the South End of Albany -- because of its unusual nature -- attracted more attention than most priests' ministries did. If I had been engaged in this type of behavior over the years, someone at some point in time would have come forward and made these allegations.

Q. If someone said to me, "27 years ago, you did X," how would I prove I didn't?

Bishop Hubbard: It's very difficult. In these allegations, there are unspecified time frames. They talk about "sometime in the late '70s." If they were to say that "on April 15...or June 4...or Dec. 3, this happened," I could go back to my appointment book and say, "I was in town that day," or "I was not in town that day," or "Here's what I was doing that day." But I don't even have the opportunity to rely on that type of evidence.

Q. A man, even an innocent man, can die the death of a thousand cuts. If the focus is on you and diocesan business is not getting done, does there come a point when you would say, "I am resigning" or "I am stepping down for six months"?

Bishop Hubbard: We're not at that point right now. I will be in communication with [the diocesan priests' council and lay council] and my brother bishops. If it is their advice that, for the good of the Diocese, I need to either resign or step aside until I am exonerated, I will do that. That is not the input I am receiving at the present time.

Q. Raymond Donovan, a Cabinet official in President Reagan's Administration, famously asked, after being found not guilty of charges, something like "Where do I go" --

Bishop Hubbard: -- "to get my good name back." He was exonerated after many charges had been made against him. I was watching a talk show over the weekend, and a commentator said, "Once your reputation has been stained in public" -- as mine has -- "there will always be a taint that will remain in the mind of some people, even if there is exoneration." I understand that these charges will always be associated with me and my ministry. Even with Cardinal Joseph Bernardin of Chicago, people know that his accuser recanted, but everybody also remembers that the charge was made.

Q. So where do you go to get your good name back?

Bishop Hubbard: I don't know.

Q. Can you understand the people who say they are not sure about you?

Bishop Hubbard: Yes. In dealing with allegations of sexual misconduct in the past, I have not always handled these matters with the transparency and accountability which are now expected. I have acknowledged that; I have apologized for that. But that creates an environment where people would say, "Well, if he was guilty of not handling things well, maybe he's guilty of personal misconduct." I also understand that there have been many bona fide cases of priests who abused their sacred trust. People have been rightly scandalized by that, and that has created an environment wherein there is skepticism, disappointment and disillusionment about the Church and its leaders. In such an environment, when an accusation is made against a leader like myself, I can understand why people say, "Maybe there is something to it."

That's why I will leave no stone unturned to prove my innocence because I think it's important for the sake of the Church. At the same time, I recognize that a small percent of the clergy have engaged in sexual misconduct, and I am committed to do all in my power to bring healing to the victims and to their family members. That will remain a priority for me, no matter what.

(2/12/04) [[In-content Ad]]