| June 4, 2007 | Volume 82, Number 16 | |
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Accountability said importantWe are informed in the May 21, 2007 issue of The Catholic Virginian that the Los Angeles archdiocese, having already recently paid out another $60 million of the parishioners’ contributions to settle 46 cases of abuse, is now planning to sell the diocese’s assets, also paid for by parishioners, to meet expected costs of settling more than 500 more cases. In its May 7 ,2007 edition, The Catholic Virginian announced, “‘Today’s decision by Judge Williams marks the end of a tragic chapter in our history,’ Bishop William S. Skylstad of Spokane said…”. However, the Spokane Spokesman Review has reported, and the diocese has admitted, that there are still accused priests serving in the diocese in positions with exposure to children. It will not be over until it is over. We have also had reports of recent malfeasance in our own diocese. Of course, the laity has been handed the bill for all these cases. It has also been the laity that provided the facilities now being sold to provide yet more funds to take care of the ever-increasing bill. And it will be the laity that is expected to provide for the sold facilities’ replacement. Yet we have been repeatedly asked in your editorial pages to “trust” in our clergy. Have you, have we, thought about why we must so frequently be asked to “trust?” It should be abundantly clear by now that greater accountability, not trust, is what is needed. It is time for the laity to admit its culpability, assume responsibility for its church and take action. It can do so in at least three ways: 1) it can establish parish oversight committees to diligently scrutinize its clergy conduct; 2) it can create legal structures, such as qualified trusts administered by lay trustees, to receive contributions and hold parish monies and properties to insure that they are insulated from the wrongdoings of others, that they are spent for proper purposes and are subject to audit; and 3) it can require accountability at the diocese level in exchange for its support. Each of these structures would presumably have been helpful to the parishioners in the Dioceses of Los Angeles and Spokane, and it is clear from recent events in the Diocese of Richmond that they would be helpful here as well. Without accountability, without oversight, nothing will change.
(Editor: Priests as well as laity need to be held accountable for their actions. Procedures are in place in the Diocese of Richmond to provide oversight, but auditors who examine a parish’s finances cannot always discover improper handling of money given to the church if it has not been counted in a regular Sunday collection and entered in the books. The diocese is seeking to eliminate all possibilities of theft. There is still the need, however, to trust in the basic goodness of people.) The article mentioned in this letter did not appear in the web edition of The Catholic Virginian.
Mental health providers need helpAs the wife and mother of mentally ill sufferers, I want to express my appreciation of Mary Hood Hart’s column (‘Let’s tread carefully in Va. Tech tragedy’) in the May 7 issue of The Catholic Virginian. In spite of all the horrible stories we read of killings, etc. which are followed by the explanation that the perpetrator was mentally ill, mental health providers are still kept handcuffed by laws preventing them from being more effective in the care of their patients. When will we address the two important issues mentioned in the column — namely availability of guns and a review of our mental health services and laws? Thank you, Mary, for recognizing these issues.
Catholic schools said a faith issueOne thing missing from the discussion in recent issues on making Catholic schools more affordable is what I believe to be the most pressing concern at the root of all these financial issues, namely the loss of faith and corresponding declining attendance at Mass of so many professed Catholics. While some parishes may appear to be full on most Sundays, the reality in the United States is that weekly Mass attendance averages about 20–25 percent of baptized Catholics. Some dioceses are better, some worse, than the national average, but all have been in decline for over 40 years. Of those who do assist at Mass, many consider the one week of religious education offered by parishes, hopefully supplemented by parents at home, to be sufficient in passing on the Catholic faith to our children. Others are lured away from Catholic schools by the appearance of special programs in both private and public schools. However, unless and until Catholics are brought back to the Church, and see the passing on of the fullness of Catholic Truth to our youth as the most essential role of the Catholic parent, we will never escape this downward spiral of church and school closings and “consolidations” happening all over the country. Instead of wracking our brains on how to pay for the increasing cost of Catholic schools, what efforts are being made to retrieve the millions of lost Catholics? That appears to be the real solution to any parish or school financial concerns.
Renewal of vows photo laudedWhat a beautiful picture on the front of The Catholic Virginian this week. And what a lovely way to celebrate anniversaries and longevity of the Cathedral and the sacrament of marriage. I will share this story and the joyful pictures with my 8th grade students.
Parish profiles appreciatedI read the “Parish Profiles” regularly and find them very interesting. I enjoy learning about other churches and their activities. A suggestion — a small inset with the location of the church on a Va. map would be so helpful. I do not know where some of these places are located.
(Editor’s Note: Thanks for the suggestion. I am sure there are people that are unclear as to the location of some of the towns and cities in which our parishes are located.) read the current Parish Profile »
CV accused of ‘grandstanding’In the May 7 edition of the CV we were not only treated to a celebration of priests joining the military, but we even got to crawl with them in a description of their basic training. Who would have guessed by your grandstanding that this war had been condemned by both pope and bishops? It was pre-emptive (a serious no-no), disproportionate, (over 650,000 civilians killed — don’t dismiss this number until you have examined the methodology), counter productive (Iraq as well as the whole Middle East is far worse off after our invasion than before), financially ruinous to the sick, the poor and those victimized by natural disasters. Let me concede that the war is very profitable to the multinational corporations such as Bechtel, Blackwater, Haliburton, et al and their subsidiaries who received lucrative war contracts without competitive bids. Wounded GIs who would have died in my Korean or Vietnam wars (oops, I mean police actions) now survive in terribly dependant condition and will need medical care for the rest of their troubled lives. My church even prays for our military each Sunday calling them Peace Keepers. I suppose the title gives comfort to some even though they would be hard pressed to find any peace over there to keep. In the book of Romans, St. Paul tells us not to be conformed to this world but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. In the first few centuries of our church no Christian could join the military. St. Francis of Assisi not only forbade his followers to carry weapons, they were forbidden to even touch one. Oh, but what did these fools know? Yes, I realize that there will be rabid shrieks of treason, but I ask: “Please show me in the Gospel teachings of Jesus the justification for Shock and Awe devastation, cluster bomb units, Depleted Uranium ammunition, and torture techniques.” Don’t forget, friendship with this world is enmity against God. Make your choice.
Prison reform needs help of allI would like to offer a few words of rebuttal to Bob Haugh’s response to Chuck Brown’s article regarding rehabilitation and restoration of criminals. Speaking from experience, I am confident in saying that the adversarial system that pervades every area of life in America is incapable of reconciling or restoring anyone. Vengeance, likewise, is easy, cowardly and perpetuates a cycle of violence. In the criminal justice system it also hides behind a mask of anonymity where the state becomes victim and avenger, and both victim and offender become disposable persons who get no real help. Punishment for its own sake, especially when it continues forever, destroys not only the body but also the soul. Incarceration in Virginia’s prisons is a sentence of death by neglect for many. The Church’s ministry in prison brings healing to many. Education is a tool that has proven to help people released from prison to survive and remain on the outside. However, a total paradigm shift is what is needed to effect real justice, healing and restoration. True justice and restoration is dependent on the involvement of the whole community, just as the sacrament of reconciliation requires the involvement of the penitent, God and Holy Mother Church to restore wholeness to individuals and the entire community. Pragmatism is the name of the current system that continues to shatter lives, families and communities and condemns us to more prisons, more police and more criminals. Justice is not an easy thing at all. It demands a lot of hard work by people from every corner of the community to save just one or two lives. Restorative models are working in Europe, South Africa and in Vermont. I intend to spend the rest of my days working toward it.
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