By Catholic News Service
WASHINGTON (CNS) – Archbishop Theodore E. McCarrick “will rightly face” a Vatican canonical process regarding sexual abuse allegations against him, but the U.S. Catholic Church must take steps to respond to church leaders’ “moral failures of judgment,” said the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
The accusations against Archbishop McCarrick, a former cardinal and retired archbishop of Washington, “reveal a grievous moral failure within the church,” said Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston.
“They cause bishops anger, sadness, and shame; I know they do in me,” he said in an Aug. 1 statement. “They compel bishops to ask, as I do, what more could have been done to protect the people of God. Both the abuses themselves, and the fact that they have remained undisclosed for decades, have caused great harm to people’s lives and represent grave moral failures of judgment on the part of church leaders.”
To determine a course of action for the USCCB to take, Cardinal DiNardo said he convened the bishops’ Executive Committee.
“This meeting was the first of many among bishops that will extend into our Administrative Committee meeting in September and our general assembly in November,” he explained. “All of these discussions will be oriented toward discerning the right course of action for the USCCB.”
Such work will “take some time,” but he laid out four points to be acted upon immediately:
– He encouraged each bishop in their diocese “to respond with compassion and justice to anyone who has been sexually abused or harassed by anyone in the church. We should do whatever we can to accompany them.”
– He urged anyone who has experienced sexual assault or harassment by anyone in the church to come forward. “Where the incident may rise to the level of a crime, please also contact local law enforcement.”
– The USCCB “will pursue the many questions surrounding Archbishop McCarrick’s conduct to the full extent of its authority; and where that authority finds its limits, the conference will advocate with those who do have the authority. One way or the other, we are determined to find the truth in this matter.”
– “Finally, we bishops recognize that a spiritual conversion is needed as we seek to restore the right relationship among us and with the Lord. Our church is suffering from a crisis of sexual morality. The way forward must involve learning from past sins.”
Cardinal DiNardo said the failures of judgment by church leaders in the case of Archbishop McCarrick “raise serious questions.”
“Why weren’t these allegations of sins against chastity and human dignity disclosed when they were first brought to church officials?” he asked. “Why wasn’t this egregious situation addressed decades sooner and with justice? What must our seminaries do to protect the freedom to discern a priestly vocation without being subject to misuse of power?”
In conclusion, he asked all to “pray for God’s wisdom and strength for renewal as we follow St. Paul’s instruction: ‘Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.'”
On July 28, Pope Francis accepted the resignation from the College of Cardinals of then-Cardinal McCarrick and ordered him to maintain “a life of prayer and penance” until a canonical trial examines accusations that he sexually abused minors.
In late June, the 88-year-old prelate said he would no longer exercise any public ministry “in obedience” to the Vatican after an allegation he abused a teenager 47 years ago in the Archdiocese of New York was found credible. The cardinal has said he is innocent.
In the weeks that followed the announcement, another man came forward claiming he was abused as a child by Archbishop McCarrick, and several former seminarians have spoken out about being sexually harassed by the cardinal at a beach house he had. In other developments, two New Jersey dioceses where he served in the 1980s and 1990s said settlements had been reached some years before in a couple of cases of abuse claims made against him.
He was the founding bishop of the Diocese of Metuchen, New Jersey, in 1981, then headed the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey, before being named to Washington in 2001.

By Mark Pattison
WASHINGTON (CNS) – With retired Archbishop Theodore E. McCarrick’s resignation July 28 from the College of Cardinals, more of his fellow bishops are commenting on the scandal that has enveloped the former archbishop of Washington and its impact on the larger church.
The allegations are “a further painful blow for all of God’s people,” said a July 30 letter by Archbishop Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City to Catholics in his archdiocese. “It is even more egregious when these crimes are perpetrated by members of the clergy and those in positions of trust. Those are among the most bitter fruits of sin.”
Archbishop Coakley asked, “How could these allegations have remained under the radar for so long? It seems that many heard rumors of his alleged criminal and sinful behavior.”
While the “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People,” adopted by the bishops in 2002 when the clergy sex abuse crisis roared into public consciousness, is “a step in the right direction,” Archbishop Coakley said, “part of the problem is a gap in the charter itself.”
He added, “This gap has contributed to the erosion of trust and confidence in episcopal leadership among priests, deacons and the lay faithful. Repairing this gap by creating consistent standards and procedures for all, including bishops, will go a long way toward restoring that trust,” although he acknowledged “they will not be enough,” stressing “humble repentance and continuing conversation for all of us who are in positions of leadership in God’s church.”
The archbishop also said the “scourge” of sexual abuse is one of the “bitter fruits” of the sexual revolution that “continue to wreak havoc on human society, the family and the church.” Blessed Paul VI in “Humanae Vitae” 50 years ago, he noted, warned of a “general lowering of morality in society.”
In an Aug. 1 message on his blog, Archbishop Paul D. Etienne of Anchorage, Alaska, said: “Many people – priests, laity and hierarchy – are wondering how this or any bishop might rise to the rank of the episcopacy let alone to become a cardinal in the church.”
“Most regular, church-attending Catholics still trust their priests, who minister and serve the people of God faithfully,” he added. “The same can no longer be said of bishops. We have lost the trust of many of our priests and people.”
Archbishop Etienne offered a seven-point plan to restore trust, including having an ad hoc committee of the U.S. bishops to write a protocol to have the charter apply to bishops and appointing a separate review board to field abuse accusations against bishops and make recommendations to the Vatican – and with the authority to make its recommendations public if no action has been taken after 60 days
“At its core, we are facing a spiritual crisis, and these times call us to renew our life in and our witness to Jesus Christ,” Archbishop Etienne said.
“We must remember that when it seems like the church has failed us, it is the fallible human beings within the church, and even some leading the church, who have failed; not the church itself,” said an Aug. 1 statement by Bishop Michael F. Burbidge of Arlington, Virginia, which adjoins the Archdiocese of Washington.
“It is the Lord who leads, guides and protects his people and church,” Bishop Burbidge added. “It is only when we lose sight of him that we stumble.”
Bishop Burbidge said, “For 16 years, dioceses around the country have implemented unprecedented protocols to encourage reporting of allegations and suspicions of sexual abuse by priests and deacons, as well as to investigate such accusations thoroughly, independently and transparently. Clearly, these procedures and policies need to be reflected in the conduct of bishops as well and how we relate to one another. We all must be held accountable for our actions – bishops are no exception.”
Archbishop Charles J. Chaput of Philadelphia, in an Aug. 1 posting on his Facebook page, noted how Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, president of the U.S. bishops, had issued a statement that day outlining the steps the bishops would take “in order to address the failures of the church in protecting God’s sons and daughters” from abuse.
“I join Cardinal DiNardo in expressing my deep regret and sorrow for the pain and harm caused by any failures to protect God’s children,” Archbishop Chaput said.
“In light of this national church news, I want to reassure you today, as forcefully as I can, that the Archdiocese of Philadelphia has a zero-tolerance policy for clergy, lay employees, and volunteers who engage in the abuse of children,” he said. “We take immediate action when an allegation is made and we cooperate promptly and fully with law enforcement. Research and experience have shown that sexual abuse plagues every corner of society from sports and public institutions, to the entertainment industry, and the political arena.
“Prevention of abuse comes from training and constant vigilance, and the prevention of abuse – along with support for survivors – is and will remain a constant priority for our church and archdiocese,” Archbishop Chaput said.
(Contributing to this story was Steve Larkin.)