BRIDGEPORT -- Bishop William E. Lori mailed the following letter to every Catholic household in the Diocese of Bridgeport, which covers all of Fairfield County.

June 19, 2002

Dear sisters and brothers in Christ,

In these days following the bishops' meeting in Dallas, I want to offer you a brief report concerning the response of the Church in the United States to the sexual abuse of minors. Please allow me to summarize the decisions that were reached and how they are being implemented in the Diocese of Bridgeport.

Before doing so, however, I first want to thank all of you for your prayers. Throughout the intense days of that meeting, I knew I was accompanied and supported by the prayers and good wishes of so many of you. In a special way, I want to thank my brother priests for their support and understanding during days that are so stressful for them. It cannot be said too often: the vast, vast majority of priests serve the Lord and the Church with great fidelity, generosity, and love. Dear friends, our priests need and deserve the support encouragement of us all.

As you may have read, the bishops, at their recent meeting, considered and approved two documents: first, a Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People; second, "essential norms" which will make what is in the Charter a part of church law for the United States. Both documents can be found, in their entirety, on the websites of the Diocese of Bridgeport (www.bridgeportdiocese.com) and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (www.usccb.org), and in the forthcoming edition of Fairfield County Catholic. I invite you to read and study personally these brief but very important documents.

Here are some of the main features of the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People:

• The Charter is a comprehensive framework for addressing sexual abuse. It seeks to protect minors, to reach out to victims, to ensure that those who serve you in the Church are trustworthy, and that bishops are accountable for responding properly to all allegations of sexual abuse. The document pertains to all Church personnel - priests, deacons, employees, and volunteers. Passed by an overwhelming majority, we bishops have bound and committed ourselves to implementing it promptly.
  
  
• The document opens with an apology from the bishops to the victims of the sexual abuse of minors, and to the priests and people we serve, for mishandling allegations and cases of abuse. We take responsibility for this crisis and pledge to work with you, the laity, and with priests, deacons, and religious in addressing this crisis with candor and vigor. I make this pledge my own as I seek to reach out to victims and to seek your advice, your help, and support in addressing this crisis as it affects us here in the Diocese of Bridgeport.
  
  
• The Charter calls for each diocese to establish a review board principally made up of lay persons who are not employed by the Church. The function of this board is to assess diocesan policies on the sexual abuse of minors, to examine how each allegation of abuse is handled, and to advise the bishop on the proper response to specific allegations of abuse. A highly qualified review board has functioned in the Diocese of Bridgeport since March of this year. I am very grateful for their counsel. In the coming days, I shall ask them to study the Charter and the Norms to see what further steps the Diocese of Bridgeport needs to take to implement them fully.
  
  
• Each diocese is to report allegations of sexual abuse to civil authorities when the victim is still a minor. In cases where the victim has reached adulthood, each diocese is also to cooperate in reporting allegations to the civil authorities. In all cases, the dioceses are to cooperate with victims in making sure that civil authorities are aware of such allegations. The Diocese of Bridgeport promptly reports all allegations of sexual abuse to the State of Connecticut's Department of Children and Families (DCF) and has pledged to work cooperatively with the State's Attorney.
  
  
• According to the Charter, when a priest or deacon has admitted to the sexual abuse of a minor or when an allegation has been established as true, that priest or deacon will be permanently removed from ministry. This includes even one act of such abuse - past, present, or future. The bishop is to observe the procedures in church law for doing this and is to consider the various ways that church law provides for dealing with such cases, including loss of the clerical state without the consent of the priest or deacon (involuntary laicization). Even when a priest is not laicized (for example, in cases of infirmity or advanced age), an offending priest is not to say Mass before a congregation, wear clerical garb, or present himself as a priest in good standing. Care must be taken, however, to ensure that the good names of innocent priests are not ruined by false allegations.
  
  
• In early January, I asked that personnel files of all clergy in the Diocese of Bridgeport be reviewed. The results of that review were shared with my review board and subsequently I announced the removal of a number of priests. I have pledged to deal with all allegations of sexual abuse swiftly, decisively, fairly, and openly. I renew that pledge to you here and now.
  
  
• In addition, the Charter calls upon each diocese to take education and prevention measures so as to create "safe environments" for children and young people. Currently, I am exploring better ways to do this in the Diocese of Bridgeport.
  
  
• The Charter also directs that the Bishops' Conference will establish and staff a national office and a national lay review board. The chair of this board is Governor Frank Keating of Oklahoma and it will include many other qualified individuals. With input from this board, the national office will publish an annual report, citing dioceses not in compliance with the Charter.

As mentioned previously, the Norms, approved by the bishops, summarize the essential provisions of the Charter and will make them particular law for the Church in the United States. Already the bishops have bound themselves to the Charter. The Norms will require recognitio (approval) by the Holy See and will be reviewed after two years.

Dear friends, these steps, crucial though they be, constitute only a beginning. We can and will emerge from this crisis stronger than we are now only if each one of us, myself included, lives our vocation more prayerfully and virtuously. Each of us is called to holiness. Each of us is called to embrace, internalize, and to live what Christ teaches us through the Church. And how important it is that we prayerfully support one another in the vocation God has given us. The laity do not grow stronger when the clergy are weakened. Nor do the clergy benefit from a weakened laity. On the contrary, the Church is a communion of life and love. Our various vocations to marriage and family, to consecrated life, to the single life in the world, to priesthood, and to the diaconate - all these ways of discipleship work together so that the Church may bear convincing witness to Jesus Christ and His saving love.

Let me conclude this brief report by seeking your prayers for the priests who serve you. From September 22-25, I will gather with my diocesan priests for a time of prayer and reflection on our life and ministry. Known as the Convocation, this gathering will be, through God's grace, a time of genuine spiritual and apostolic renewal for us who serve you. All of us seek your prayers.

At the suggestion of the priests who are organizing this gathering, I respectfully ask for a special 40-day period of prayer, beginning with the Feast of the Assumption (August 15th) and extending through the end of the Convocation (September 25th). Each of us would be most heartened to be the subject of your daily prayers. Each of us would find encouragement and strength as we join with you in some form of daily sacrifice or some special way of serving those in need. In this way, we can grow together in holiness, unity, and joy.

With all my heart, I thank all of you for your deep faith, your patience, your counsel, and your love. May the Lord bless you and your families and keep you always in His love.

Faithfully in Christ,

Most Reverend William E. Lori
Bishop of Bridgeport

To read the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People
that was passed by a vote of 239-13 on June 14, click here.

To read the Essential Norms for Diocesan/Eparchial Policies Dealing with
Allegations of Sexual Abuseof Minors by
Priests, Deacons, or Other Church Personnel
that was passed at the Bishops' Meeting, click here.