News Briefs

Mexican bishops publish ‘plan for building peace’

September 12, 2018 CNA Daily News 0

Mexico City, Mexico, Sep 12, 2018 / 05:52 pm (ACI Prensa).- The Mexican bishops’ conference published Tuesday the “Catholic Church’s Plan for Building Peace,” in an effort to “redouble efforts and united action” against corruption and violence racking the country.

The goal of this plan, the bishops explained Sept. 11, is to “make known and assist in the coordination of all peace building efforts” undertaken by both Catholic and civil society organizations.

The bishops stated that building peace in Mexico will be a “pivotal axis” in their work of pastoral social ministry.

The plan will thus promote continuity in the work of caring for victims, the “workshops for forgiveness and reconciliation” will be reactivated, and strategies will be developed to care for the victims of human trafficking throughout the country.

The plan includes pastoral accompaniment and oversight for the work of the migrant centers and shelters spread throughout Mexico, working with prisoners, the care of orphans, preserving green spaces as common areas, and working with the media to get out messages that foster peace in the country.

The Mexican bishops also emphasized the importance  of “collaboration with the new administration elected in our nation in 2018.”

To that end, the Mexican bishops met Sept. 4 with president-elect Andres Manuel López Obrador and had a “fraternal and proactive” dialogue.

In statement released Sept. 5, the bishops indicated “the main items” covered in their meeting with López.

The first item was the president-elect’s “presentation of the administration’s program” for the country.

The second item discussed at the meeting was “mutual concern for attention to the pressing issues: poverty, migration, violence, corruption, impunity, life and religious liberty for all confessions.”
The possibility of establishing an ongoing open channel for dialogue with the government was also addressed.
Additionally, the apostolic nuncio Archbishop Franco Coppola met with López Sept. 10. Afterwards, foreign minister designate Marcelo Ebrard emphasized that one of the points in common with the incoming administration and the Catholic Church is “the search for peace in Mexico” as well as the effort to reduce inequality in the country.

Ebrard also noted that López “has met or will meet with almost all” the religious communities in Mexico “to invite them to participate in the peace process,” seeking to bring about “a conversation and common reflection on how we can achieve peace in Mexico.”

The next Mexican foreign minister also said regarding the position of the Vatican on the peace forums in Mexico “we are not expecting from the Holy Father more than his message and point of view. The Holy Father gives important messages every day.”

The Mexican bishops’ conference has agreed to participate in these forums intended to lead to a National Reconciliation Pact.

In an Aug. 16 statement, the bishops said proposals coming out of these forums will provide input “to develop public policies that will allow progress in overcoming violence, building peace and national reconciliation.”

The “Catholic Church’s Plan  for Building Peace” comes in the context of the July 1 presidential elections in Mexico. López won with 53 percent of the vote and his National Regeneration Movement party obtained majorities in both the Senate and Chamber of Deputies.

López campaigned against corruption and violence, but he or his party have also expressed support for abortion, gay marriage, and assisted suicide.

[…]

New Catholic group aims to form next generation of women leaders

September 12, 2018 CNA Daily News 0

Washington D.C., Sep 12, 2018 / 03:00 pm (CNA).- The GIVEN Institute hopes to shape a new generation of Catholic leaders through a program of faith formation, mentoring, and leadership for young women.

The institute was launched on Sept. 12, as it announced a program focused on engaging and supporting young women in the work of evangelization, vocational discernment, and professional advancement.

The GIVEN Institute was founded in response to what it says are bleak statistics on female involvement with the Church. According to a 2018 study published by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University, only about 17 percent of young Catholic women attend Mass each week, while only about one-third of those women say they pray every day.

“At a time where millennial women are disaffiliating from the Church in increasing numbers, it would be really important for the Church to turn its attention to shoring up the faithfulness of the women who do want to serve the Church, so that they can carry on the legacy of faithful women who have gone before them,” GIVEN executive director Elise Italiano told CNA.

The first iteration of the GIVEN project was a 2016 conference called the GIVEN Catholic Young Women’s Leadership Forum.

That event was sponsored by the Council of Major Superiors of Women Religions (CMSWR) and gathered together 300 young women from across the United States who met and discussed how best to “receive the gift they are, recognize the gifts they have been given, and respond with the gift that only they can give.”

The new GIVEN Institute aims to continue that mission by confronting what it says are two major challenges facing young Catholic women today: disaffiliation from the faith and Church, and a lack of integration of their gifts in areas of Church ministry.

“GIVEN celebrates the Church’s vision for women’s dignity and flourishing,” Italiano said, stressing that this will form the baseline from which the institute will develop its programming to form young leaders.

“The question that GIVEN wants to tackle is: given that vision–for women’s dignity and call–where can we move forward? Where can we expand on that?” 

The institute’s work will be based around two related programs.

The Catholic Young Women’s Leadership Forum will be GIVEN’s centerpiece event, held every two to three years. There participants will focus on different tracks, including vocational discernment, post-missionary work, and secular professional careers. The forum will feature keynote speakers, spiritual accompaniment, and networking opportunities, in addition to track-specific workshops and speakers.

Additionally, the institute will also launch the “Art of Accompaniment Mentoring Program” for alumnae of the Leadership Forum. This program will begin at the Leadership Forum, where attendees will be paired with a mentor from their specific track.

After the Leadership Forum, GIVEN will release digital webinars to assist with ongoing formation and to “extend the exploration of topics covered at the forum.” The mentoring program aims to build a network of female leaders who will meet with forum attendees on a one-on-one basis and provide them with personalized accompaniment.

“It’s always the right time to help young people pursue a path to holiness,” said Italiano, “but it’s increasingly clear that the Church must better facilitate a more robust presence of skilled, faithful women in its ranks.”

“The Church is always strongest and most effective in its mission when men and women work together.”

The GIVEN Institute’s events program will commence in 2019, with the first Leadership Forum expected to be held in June.

[…]

What do Church abuse policies mean by ‘vulnerable adult’?

September 12, 2018 CNA Daily News 2

Denver, Colo., Sep 12, 2018 / 01:00 pm (CNA).- A Vatican summit on abuse prevention next February will gather the presidents of bishops’ conferences from around the world. While a Sept. 12 statement from the Vatican said the gathering’s theme would be the “protection of minors,” a Vatican spokesperson clarified that the meeting would discuss “prevention of abuse of minors and vulnerable adults.”

Wednesday’s announcement of the meeting has raised questions about who the Church considers to be a “vulnerable adult.”

The USCCB’s “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People,” does not use the term “vulnerable adult.”

Nor do the “Essential Norms for Diocesan/Eparchial Policies Dealing with Allegations of Sexual Abuse of Minors by Priests or Deacons,” which are binding Church policies for addressing sex abuse allegations in the United States.

Several dioceses, do, however, define the term in their own sexual abuse policies.

Policies of the Archdiocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis say that: “‘Vulnerable Adult’ means persons with physical, mental or emotional conditions that render them unable to defend or protect themselves, or get help when at risk of harm.”

In the Archdiocese of Louisville, “an adult 18 years or older is considered vulnerable when, because of impairment of mental or physical functions, that person is unable or unlikely to report abuse or neglect without assistance.”

The Archdiocese of Miami defines a “vulnerable person” as “a minor under 18 years of age or a person whose ability to perform normal activities of daily living is impaired due to a mental, emotional, long-term physical or developmental disability or dysfunction, or brain damage, or the infirmities of aging.”

The Archdiocese of Washington’s policies for child protection say that “a vulnerable individual over the age of seventeen (17) is also covered by this policy…when such a person is unable or unlikely to report abuse without assistance because of impairment of physical or mental function or emotional status.”

Edward Mechmann, director of the Safe Environment Program in the Archdiocese of New York, told CNA that the archdiocese considers a vulnerable person to be “a person of any age who lacks the capacity to give consent due to a mental or developmental condition or disability.”

The Code of Canon Law does not use or define the term “vulnerable adult.” However, the Church’s 2010 “Norms on delicta graviora” say that “a person who habitually lacks the use of reason is to be considered equivalent to a minor” with regard to allegations of clerical sexual abuse.  

The February summit was announced in the wake of clerical sexual misconduct allegations across the Church involving minors, as well as allegations of misconduct that targeted seminarians, priests, and other adults.

On Aug. 14, a Pennsylvania grand jury released a report documenting 70 years of sexual abuse allegations in six dioceses in that state. On Sept. 12, a report from the German bishops’ conference documented allegations of clerical sexual abuse during a similar time period.

On June 20, the Archdiocese of New York announced that it had deemed credible an allegation that Archbishop Theodore McCarrick had serially sexually abused a teenage boy in the 1970s. Subsequent reports, however, allege that McCarrick had serially sexually coerced and assaulted seminarians and young priests during decades of his episcopal ministry in New Jersey and Washington, D.C.

Mechmann told CNA that the term “vulnerable adult” as his archdiocese defines it, “would not include seminarians. It is really aimed at protecting people who have developmental disabilities or cognitive disabilities, for instance someone who is suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.”

“A sound diocesan policy, however, would also encompass any kind of non-consensual sexual conduct, even if it is not strictly covered by the Charter,” Mechmann added.

The Archdiocese of New York’s “Policy on Sexual Misconduct” includes in its definition of sexual misconduct “any sexual act with another person without consent,” as well as “any sexual conduct that is a violation of civil law.”
 
Deacon Bernie Nojadera, executive director of the USCCB’s office for child and youth protection, told CNA that several U.S. dioceses use the definition of “vulnerable adult” provided by civil law.

That definition often refers to a “dependent adult,” he said.

Nojadera noted that “there is nothing in [the Charter] that talks about differential of power. So if you’re looking at differential of power, that’s not addressed in the Charter.”

“That’s where applicability of state law comes in, with regard to the differential of power. A lot of dioceses are looking at their state laws and trying to apply them accordingly,” he said.

With regard to allegations of abuse involving seminarians and other adults, he said he thinks “it would be wise for those types of situations to also be brought forward” at the February meeting of bishops.

“I would hope that there would be a seat at the table for seminarians and for that issue to be addressed,” he told CNA.

In addition to the abuse of minors, vulnerable adults, seminarians, and other adults, Nojadera noted other situations that could, in his view, be addressed, mentioning the difficulties faced by the children of priests, the use of corporal punishment in the Church, and situations involving religious orders.

He also mentioned the importance of consulting with victims of clerical sexual abuse.

“I would hope that survivor victims were invited to this table as well, to be able to address [the meeting],” he said.

Nojadera said that his office often looks for insights from victims of clerical sexual abuse, calling their perspective “invaluable.”

“There’s an awareness that those who have not been abused do not have.”

He also encouraged broader lay involvement in discussions about sexual misconduct in the Church. “The lay faithful have been offering to help and contribute to the solution to this,” he said.

Nojadera said he hopes the February summit will take an expansive view of abuse-related problems in the Church.

“I think we have an opportunity here to just talk about abuse in general. Period.”

“Hopefully,” he said, “they’ll have an opportunity to see the big picture.”

 

[…]

Pittsburgh bishop announces Year of Repentance

September 12, 2018 CNA Daily News 2

Pittsburgh, Pa., Sep 12, 2018 / 11:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- In the wake of recent sex abuse scandals, Bishop David Zubik of Pittsburgh has announced a Year of Repentance in the diocese.

He has asked all the clerics to fast and pray for the purification of the Church, and invited all Catholics to join the initiative.

“Faced with the sinful actions of the members of our own ranks of the clergy, who are called to manifest the example of Christ, we feel both shame and sorrow, and are reminded of our own sinfulness and the need for mercy,” Bishop Zubik wrote in a Sept. 10 letter to the clerics and seminarians of the diocese.

“I invite the faithful to join with the clergy as they desire in our acts of prayer and penance. The year is open to individuals to go beyond what I am requesting as we continue to pray that the Lord come to our aid.”

The Year of Repentance will include the observance of the Ember Days, which were traditionally days of fast and abstinence.

Bishop Zubik has asked that on each of the 12 Ember Days in the coming year, clerics of the Diocese of Pittsburgh fast, abstain from meat, and make a Holy Hour.

Ember Days are tied to the seasons of the year, and are held on the Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday of four weeks: the third week of September, the third week of Advent, the first week of Lent, and the octave of Pentecost.

In the Pittsburgh diocese’s Year of Repentance, the Ember Days fall Sept. 19, 21, and 22, 2018, Dec. 19, 21, 22, 2018, March 13, 15, 16, 2019, and June 12, 14, 15, 2019.

Bishop Zubik will inaugurate the Year of Repentance Sept. 23 with Vespers and a Holy Hour at the cathedral.

The year will close with a Mass for the Assumption Aug. 15, 2019 to serve “as a sign of hope and healing for victims and for renewal in the Church through the intercession of Mary.”

In his letter, Bishop Zubik also encouraged the clerics of Pittsburgh to consider restoring the recitation of the prayer to St. Michael after all Masses.

[…]

Leaked German study documents thousands of sexual abuse cases

September 12, 2018 CNA Daily News 0

Berlin, Germany, Sep 12, 2018 / 08:55 am (CNA).- A study commissioned by the German bishops’ conference reports the sexual abuse of thousands of children in that country over a period of 70 years. The report was scheduled to be released later this month, but was leaked Wednesday to German media.

The report was commissioned by the German bishops’ conference and scheduled to be presented on Sept. 25 at the autumn plenary session of the German bishops, as CNA Deutsch reported.

Its methodology is substantially different from that of the Pennsylvania Grand Jury report.  

The study documents sexual offenses against “3677 predominantly male minors” between 1946 and 2014, Der Spiegel reported  

“1670 clerics are accused of the deeds,” the German magazine reported, saying researchers had “examined and evaluated more than 38,000 personnel and other files from 27 German dioceses.”

Der Spiegel reported that in many cases evidence was found by researchers to have have been “destroyed or manipulated.”

“We are aware of the extent of sexual abuse that is proven by the results of the study. It is oppressive and shameful for us,” Bishop Stephan Ackermann of Trier said in a statement Wednesday. The bishop is Commissioner for Questions of Sexual Abuse in the Church and for Questions of the Protection of Children and Minors of the German bishops’ conference.

“Four years ago we commissioned the study and we bishops in particular are facing up to the results. The first step will be the Assembly in Fulda.”

Ackermann also criticized the leak of  the study documenting the abuse of minors by priests and religious in Germany in the years 1946 to 2014.

In a statement from the German bishops’ conference, Ackermann said: “I regret that the study, which has remained confidential so far, and is the result of four years of research on the subject of ‘Sexual abuse of minors by Catholic priests, deacons and male religious in the area of the German Bishops’ Conference’ was published today.”

“Especially with regard to those affected by sexual abuse, the irresponsible advance publication of the study is a severe blow,” said Ackermann.

“This is all the more exasperating since not even the members of the German Bishops’ Conference so far know the entire study,” he added.

According to the German bishops’ conference, the aim of the study, in which all 27 dioceses of Germany took part, was “to obtain more clarity and transparency about this dark side in our church, not only for the sake of those affected, but also in order to be able to see the misdemeanours for ourselves and do everything possible to ensure that they do not repeat themselves.”

“We are concerned about a responsible and professional approach to the problem. I am convinced that the study is a comprehensive and careful survey that offers figures and analyses from which we will continue to learn. This also applies to the findings that provide a deeper insight into the actions of perpetrators and the behaviour of church leaders over the past decades. Once again, I stress that the study is a measure that we owe not only to the Church, but first and foremost to those affected,” Ackermann said.

 

[…]