Sexual abuse is not just the church’s problem

December 7, 2007

My dear friends,

A few weeks ago, the Associated Press published a three-part series revealing the extent of sexual abuse of children in America’s public schools — and how often the abusers are quietly fired and allowed to move to other school districts where they continue to commit the same crimes.

The series apparently did not receive widespread play. Most of our nation’s newspapers did not deem it worthy of the same attention-grabbing headlines that were given to the priestly sexual abuse scandal when it was first reported in the Boston Globe in 2002.

Ever since then, unfortunately, the stereotype persists that sexual abuse is a problem found only in the Catholic Church.

Any professional working in the field knows that stereotype is far from accurate, since most sexual abuse of children is perpetrated by adults who are part of the child’s extended, if not immediate, family. But the public perception persists that the problem is limited to lurking “strangers” and celibate priests — perhaps because abuses committed by nonpriests, such as public school teachers and others, are not widely reported.

Granted, members of the clergy should be held to a higher standard and the Catholic Church has learned its lessons. As bishops, we continue working diligently to do all we can to prevent sexual abuse of children and vulnerable adults.

In the archdiocese, we conduct criminal background checks on every one who serves in the name of the church — clergy, religious, lay employees and volunteers who comes in contact with children in our schools, parishes, ministries or agencies.

All of our clergy, religious, employees and volunteers also must undergo Virtus training on how to prevent sexual abuse and spot abusers. They also sign a code of conduct pledging that their behavior when engaged in ministry will be appropriate and moral. Children in our schools are taught Teaching Touching Safety, an age-appropriate part of their religion curriculum that helps them stay away from situations that could lead to their being abused.

Every priest who wants to minister in the archdiocese — even for a day — also is required to show that he is in good standing and has faculties — permission to function as a priest — from his local bishop or religious superior.

As a body, the U.S. bishops are continuing to study the problem of clergy sexual abuse in the church. We are funding a research project by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice that is focusing on the “causes and context” of clerical sexual abuse.

The study already has determined in which decades most of the reported abuses occurred and which generations of priests were more likely to have committed them. Researchers are now looking into what might have triggered that behavior, focusing on things such as societal changes, changes in the church, and even the way seminaries and dioceses were structured.

According to an update we received at our most recent bishops’ meeting last month, early research suggests that the patterns of sexual abuse within the church are consistent with the experience of society as a whole. That is all the more reason to take seriously the findings of the Associated Press’ series on sexual abuse of children in public schools.

A few years ago, we in the archdiocese shared our experience with clergy of other religious denominations. We offered to help them put in place programs such as Virtus that raise awareness of the warning signs of child abuse. Very few took us up on the offer, but we remain willing to help our counterparts in both the religious and secular worlds. Rather than pointing fingers and burying our heads in the sands of stereotypes and half-truths, all of us should be doing all we can to ensure the safety and well-being of our children.

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My dear friends,

If only we all prepared as best we could for what the signs of the times tell us will occur. What historic event — from the outpouring of Vesuvius onto Pompeii to the carnage of 9/11 — has not, in retrospect, been found to have hinted in large ways and small of its coming? How many times has the alarm failed to sound? How many times have human beings suffered because they have not prepared?

For countless reasons — including those we attribute to socioeconomic conditions, as well as faith-inspired decisions — we fail to prepare for situations that we must ultimately confront. Perhaps we could have made wiser choices. Perhaps there were times when we simply didn’t pay enough attention. In facing the consequences of our actions and choices, we ask only that our humanity be respected and our dignity preserved.

Our religious sisters, brothers, and order priests who have dedicated their lives to ministry put their need before us only with the greatest reluctance. Even now, with the majority of their number past their sixth decade and their projected unfunded retirement in the billions, women and men religious wish to serve others rather than plead for themselves.

Let us speak for them. Please support the annual appeal for the Retirement Fund for Religious that will be conducted in our archdiocese on the weekend of Dec. 8-9.

Sincerely in Christ,

John C. Favalora

Archbishop of Miami