Updated 4/11/19
Dear Holy Family Parishioners,
November 2018, Holy Family responded to the Sexual Abuse scandal within the Catholic Church by sending out a survey to all parishioners seeking their input. In February 2019, a presentation was held at Holy Family to share the results of the input gathered from the survey. In March, myself and three staff members met with Cardinal Cupich to personally share the survey’s results and to engage in further dialogue with him. At the close of the meeting, Cardinal Cupich offered to answer as many as ten questions that we felt remained unresolved. His response to the submitted questions can be viewed by clicking the link following the questions.
Thank you,
Fr. Terry Keehan, Pastor
Questions submitted reflected issues that our parishioners wanted addressed as well as questions based on the Cardinal’s reflection on the plenary in Rome: The Protection of Minors in the Church:
- When will “rules” be published and implemented? Are they merely guidelines or is there penalty if the rules are not adhered to by the Bishops?
- Who is ultimately responsible for holding the Bishops accountable to following the rulebook?
- What is the selection process for regional representatives on task forces? How will task forces be implemented internationally given cultural differences and nationally in diocese that have limited resources?
- Will Chicago have a task force made up of competent religious experts and lay representatives?
- What will be the responsibility of the task force in their oversight role?
- Are they purely oversight with recommendations for change or do they have the authority to make changes and affect the Bishops actions if the rules are not followed?
- If the Archdiocese of Chicago has followed the law by reporting accusations to the police, how could the Attorney General have found additional names, as recently as March 20.
- What other information is important to share with us?
- Are you aware of a credible study on the causes of pedophilia or other sexually abusive behaviors?
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE RESPONSES TO THESE QUESTIONS