A Reconciliation and Healing Service between the victims of clergy abuse and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland March 25, 2000

PART I

God can bring some good even out of evil, a reality seen in the heroic witness of abuse survivors, the truth that they have spoken to the Church forcing us to deal with this very painful issue. But there is no question that persons who have been sexually abused by priests, men or women religious or other Church personnel have had a grave evil inflicted upon them. This is true whether they were children or adults at the time of the sexual violation(s).

The failure of many of the leaders of the Catholic Church to confront this abuse head-on, to inform themselves of the deeper issues involved in sexual abuse, to remove priest abusers and other employees from active ministry, or to take the side of the victims, has been one of the more distressing aspects of the Church’s recent history.

Many times the victims of sexual abuse are treated with additional abuse or indifference by society and by the Church, as if they had caused the abuse or should have been silent about it rather than "creating a scandal". Often survivors’ stories are not received or believed. Some bishops and other diocesan officials have protected abusive clergy and shunned their accusers. Many of the Dioceses of the United States took no decisive action, but rather counseled priests and placed them in new assignments elsewhere in the diocese or religious community, where acting-out may have continued unabated. In times past, the ignorance about the subject of sexual abuse - an ignorance that was culpable on the part of many people living in denial – was almost total in society as a whole, even among healing professionals. Unfortunately the Church was part of that ignorance. These evils may continue in some places in the Church today. In sum, the Church did not respond to victims of sexual abuse appropriately.

As the Diocese of Oakland, our conscious awareness of all this was greatly facilitated by the survivors of clergy sexual abuse themselves. At considerable risk, they were willing to share with us their painful stories.

The Jubilee call of the Holy Father encourages us to be reconciled with all whom Church people may have harmed or sinned against. The Diocese of Oakland, in solidarity with the

Universal Church, expresses our remorse for past behavior toward the abused, acknowledges the Church’s wrongdoing and seeks the forgiveness of those who have been sexually abused by the Church’s clerical leaders and of those who have not found a compassionate and pastoral response to such abuse whenever it occurred.

We also apologize to the Catholic community whose members have been scandalized and hurt by the evil deeds of its clergy and lay leaders.

For our lack of facing the truth regarding abuse by clergy and others, for our tendency to retreat into denial and self-protection in the face of such abuse, for our response of fear and avoidance rather than of care for the survivors of clergy sexual abuse, we ask pardon and forgiveness.

PART II

For the past 12 years the Diocese of Oakland has had policies in place to deal with these painful and tragic situations. We have been resolved for some time not to repeat the evils of the past. We will never again treat those who report abuse negatively. We will not take refuge in denial. We will take all accusations seriously, put in preeminent place the good of the person abused, and deal promptly and appropriately with those who are the abusers. We pledge ourselves to follow those processes and policies that are in place in order that the shameful treatment which victims of clergy abuse have received in the past may never be repeated. Further, we pledge ourselves to educate our clergy and ministers and others in the employ of the Church so that the cycle of abuse may be broken and removed from our Church and our society.

We live as part of a broader society where the presence of evil is often experienced as powerful and pervasive. As far as humanly possible, we will work against sexual abuse in all its forms not only in the Church but in the general society as well.