Document Archive

The Catholic Standard and Times
Lou Baldwin, Staff Writer

'Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People' Unveiled to Clergy
5 June 2003

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia officially unveiled the full scope of its implementation of the American bishops’ “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People” to its priests on May 22 through presentations at St. Pius X Church, Broomall.

About 500 priests attended either of the two sessions at which Cardinal Bevilacqua presided. Most were diocesan priests.

Father George A. Majoros, pastor of St. Charles Borromeo Parish, commended Cardinal Bevilacqua for trying to bring clear direction to a very messy situation.

“He has been guiding us and reminding us that our own goodness will help us reclaim the goodness of the name of the clergy and the Church and re-instill (the belief) in the faithful that there are good priests here. (Abusers) are only a very minor percentage, but even one case is bad.”

Father Majoros didn’t think anything new was presented, but the process was clearly delineated. “It left us very clear that, if something were to happen, there is a full procedure to follow to ensure we are in compliance with Church and state laws,” he said.

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops issued the Charter at their June 2002 meeting in Dallas, Texas, in response to the national scandal of sexual abuse of children by clerics.

The first part of the sessions covered a Pastoral Code of Conduct and mandated background checks. The second part dealt with Review Board/Due Process issues and training and education programs to create a safe environment for children.

“The presentations demonstrated that a great deal of work has been going on to create a safe environment for our young people,” said Msgr. Thomas M. Mullin, pastor of St. Elizabeth Parish, Upper Uwchlan Township. “It was comprehensive, it was detailed, it was well thought out. Obviously, there will be the added burden on some parish staff in order to comply with the directives of the Charter, but I think there is an appreciation of the importance of this.”

Msgr. Mullin suggested the distribution of this information will help assure people something is being done. “It’s not just a fancy presentation at the public level, then nothing happening locally,” he said.

The presentation also answered questions by the priests themselves as to exactly what will happen when a complaint is made.

“My impression was the process is very fair to the person who brings the complaint forward, or their parents, and also to the priest or church employee named in the complaint,” he said. “When you don’t know how a process is going to be handled, there is a little more anxiety.”

Father Daniel J. Sullivan, pastor of Holy Innocents, also thought the process, as explained, protects both the accused and the accuser. “I don’t know what else they can do, it’s going above and beyond,” he said. “We live in a world where nothing is certain and we do the best we can,” he said.

While background checks may be a little inconvenient for some, “it’s for their own protection,” Father Sullivan said. “I think it’s a good idea. Having background checks for everybody puts everybody on equal footing.”

Msgr. Joseph T. Marino, pastor of St. Denis, Havertown, thought the meetings were necessary to answer questions many people had.

As for the mandated background checks, he said: “I think that’s the least we can do.” Msgr. Marino said he’d had experience in youth sports before coming to St. Denis and had already instituted background checks as a matter of course in the parish. This is already being done elsewhere.

“Now,” he said, “we are integrating ourselves into the larger social system. We can walk away feeling more clear about what is in place.”

Msgr. Marino hopes measures such as these will help restore people’s confidence.

“Some may say we are not doing enough, but they can’t say we aren’t doing anything, or we aren’t bringing to bear real professional thinking and effort. That’s what I was most touched by. We are putting together the best thinking we can assemble and we are doing it in a professional and reputable way.”