Washington Cardinal Wilton Gregory presided at an April 13 Mass for survivors of what he said was the “horrendous crime” of sexual abuse suffered at the hands of Church officials, and he apologized for the pain they and their family members have suffered.
“Let us hold in our hearts the too many people who have been victims of this horrendous crime, and ask the Father to will for them the peace they so richly deserve,” Cardinal Gregory said.
Cardinal Gregory was the main celebrant of the Mass – sponsored by The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington’s Office of Child Protection & Safe Environment – that was offered in the St. Ursula Chapel of the Archdiocesan Pastoral Center in Hyattsville, Maryland.
April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Calling the Mass a time to “reach out in faith and hope and charity” to victims of such abuse, the cardinal acknowledged that “the road to peace for them will not be easy – it will be a long journey.”
“I must express my sorrow. I am truly sorry these events (of abuse) were actualized in the lives of too many people,” Cardinal Gregory said, adding that the Church must accept and acknowledge that “in true sorrow.””
Concelebrants included Msgr. Charles Antonicelli, pastor Our Lady of Mercy Church in Potomac, Maryland and a member of the archdiocesan Child Protection Advisory Board. Serving as lector at the Mass was Michael Nugent, also a member of the board.
Cardinal Gregory also said that work must be done to reach out to abuse survivors and their families and “convince them of the hope and trust the Church would like to restore.”
That sentiment was echoed by Nugent who said the Mass “emphasizes the need of repentance of those (in the Church) who may have hurt our youth.”
Courtney Chase, the executive director of the archdiocesan Office of Child Protection and Safe Environment, also stressed that “Our office, the (Child Protection Advisory) board and Cardinal Gregory always stand with survivors and victims. Always.”
“We stand with and pray for those traumatically affected by this and their families,” she said. “Every member of our Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington deserves – and should be afforded – a safe environment so they can continue to thrive and concentrate on their relationship with each other and with Jesus.”
Chase said her office also wants to stress to victims and survivors of abuse that “as long as one person is suffering it affects all of us. No should carry their cross alone.”
“Although there have been no new allegations, we are still fighting,” she said. “We are not stopping, and we are never going to think that our job is done as long as there are victims of historical abuse.”
Cardinal Gregory has long been a leader in the effort to confront the issue of the abuse of minors and young people. In 2001, then-Bishop Gregory of Belleville, Illinois, was elected as the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. He led the conference in a nationwide effort to address the abuse crisis, as the bishops implemented the “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People” in 2002, which includes a “zero tolerance policy” on priests who abuse children.
Two months after then-Archbishop Gregory was installed as Washington’s archbishop, the archdiocese in July 2019 revised its child protection policy with an expanded scope and a new title, the Child Protection and Safe Environment Policy, to emphasize the importance of ensuring safe environments for people of all ages, protecting children from sexual abuse and adults from sexual harassment or abuses of power.
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington’s Child Protection Policy was instituted in 1986 as one of the first such policies in the nation and has been used as a model for dioceses nationwide. The policy – which covers healing, reporting and prevention of abuse – was updated in 1993, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2013 and 2019 to incorporate enhancements in child protection mandates and oversight.
The archdiocese’s Child Protection and Safe Environment Policy requires mandatory reporting of suspected child abuse and immediate removal of someone credibly accused of abuse, and it emphasizes transparency and pastoral care in abuse cases.
The policy requires that “all clergy, employees and volunteers who will come into contact with children while working or volunteering for any archdiocesan institution and/or program will undergo the relevant state and federal criminal background checks,” and the policy includes an educational component for children and youth, and for adult staff members and volunteers, designed to help prevent abuse from happening.
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington was one of the first in the nation to have a Child Protection Advisory Board, which includes professionals from clinical, law enforcement and pastoral backgrounds, and an abuse survivor.
The revised policy has an expanded scope emphasizing safe environments for adults working or volunteering in church ministries and outreach.
Michael Nugent, a member of the archdiocesan Child Protection Advisory Board, served as lector at the Mass. Here, he prays during the Mass, which he said “emphasizes the need of repentance of those (in the Church) who may have hurt our youth.” Behind him is Courtney Chase, director of The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington’s Office of Child Protection & Safe Environment. (CS Photo by Mihoko Owada)
The Archdiocese of Washington’s Office of Child and Youth Protection and Safe Environment can be reached by calling 301-853-5328, and information and the text of the revised Child Protection and Safe Environment Policy can be found online at https://adw.org/about-us/resources/child-protection/
