By: Bishop Michael C. Barber, SJ
Bishop Barber has released the following statement after action by the mediators regarding the diocese’s filing of a voluntary petition for bankruptcy relief under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.
Early today (Nov. 26) the mediators reached out to all the parties in the bankruptcy. The mediators strongly urged all parties to agree to one further two-week extension to try to resolve the case, in light of meaningful progress they were pleased to report. Based on this progress, we have agreed to the mediators’ recommendation.
The Diocese of Oakland remains committed to use our best efforts to reach a settlement that is fair and just to both the survivors as well as the 500,000 faithful Catholics in the diocese. We ask for the continued prayers of everyone in the diocese at this critical time. We would like to thank the mediators for their continued hard work. We wish everyone a happy and blessed Thanksgiving!