Denver Catholic

2 SEPTEMBER 8-21, 2018 | DENVER CATHOLIC Archbishop's Page Archbishop's Column Most Rev. Samuel J. Aquila Published by the Archdiocese of Denver, 1300 S. Steele St., Denver, CO 80210 Denver Catholic (USPS 557-020) is published bi-weekly, except monthly in January. Denver Catholic is printed by Prairie Mountain Publishing, LLC in Boulder. Periodical postage paid in Denver, CO. SUBSCRIPTIONS: $50 a year in Colorado; $57 per year out of state. Foreign countries: $57 surface, all countries, 6-8 weeks for delivery; $135 air, all other countries (average). Mexico, $63 air; Canada, $70 air. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: Denver Catholic, Circulation Dept., 1300 S. Steele St., Denver, CO 80210 or email circulation@archden.org. CIRCULATION: denvercatholic.org/circulation Editor AARON LAMBERT Business Manager MICHAEL O'NEILL The Church needs the Spirit of Truth D uring these tumultuous days for the Church, I have been praying that the Spirit of Truth descends upon every disciple in the Church, including the pope, cardinals, bishops, priests, deacons, those in con- secrated life and the laity. I have said to the Lord, "I don't care how messy it gets, as long as the truth prevails. Purify the heart and con- science, O Lord, of every disciple with your Spirit of Truth, so they will seek to follow only your will, Father. That every disciple may come to know you, love you and serve you alone!" The revelations about Archbishop McCarrick's sexual sins and infi delity, and those who enabled him, have been extremely disheartening. The Church must not give in to the temptation of hiding, which was the reaction Adam and Eve had when they sinned. Only when one brings one's sin into the light, does one experience the uncon- ditional mercy and love of Jesus. Hiding communicates to God, 'I really do not trust your love and mercy for me, you cannot heal me, or set me free from the slavery of my sin,' or, 'I do not want to let go of my sin.' Jesus teaches us, "If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disci- ples, you will know the truth and the truth will set you free" (Jn. 8:31-32). He teaches us that we can know the truth, and in knowing the truth we will be set free from everything that is not of him. In our encounter with Jesus, we come to know his love, mercy and truth, for he himself is the "way, the truth and the life" (Jn. 14:6). For the sake of the truth being known, I recently joined Cardinal DiNardo and the Executive Commit- tee of the U.S. Bishops' Conference in calling for the Holy See to conduct a thorough investigation into the Archbishop McCarrick situation, including the involvement of a lay committee with the authority from Rome to carry out an independent investigation. These horrible actions should never have happened, whether we are talking about the unthinkable crime of abusing minors, or the abuse of power by cardinals, bishops or priests over a long period of time. When it comes to protecting chil- dren, I want to assure the people of northern Colorado that the arch- diocese has been and continues to be rigorous in its eœ orts to protect minors and help those who have been harmed in the past. In 1991, more than 10 years before the USCCB adopted the Dallas Char- ter for the Protection of Children and Young People to respond to the clergy sexual abuse crisis within the Church, Archbishop Staœ ord instituted a mandatory reporting policy. He met with law enforcement and pledged his cooperation in any instance where there is a crime in the Church. As a result, for the last 27 years the archdi- ocese has had a positive relationship with law enforcement and social ser- vices and has consistently reported allegations of childhood sexual abuse it receives to the proper authorities. Archbishop Staœ ord also created a conduct response team, which was years ahead of when the practice became standard after the Charter. This conduct response team has always been comprised of dedicated professionals (including lay mem- bers) who advise me and are available for victims to meet, get them the support they need, and help with the healing process. Beyond these fundamental steps — which are still in place today — the archdiocese has also focused on how to help victims heal as its primary mission in addressing this issue. For example, beginning in 2005, a number of victims came for- ward publicly alleging abuse in the 1950s-early 1980s by fi ve priests, all of whom are deceased. The archdi- ocese announced a groundbreaking and unique program — an indepen- dent outreach panel comprised of professionals, including a judge, a rehabilitation specialist and a police lieutenant. This panel provided those with legitimate claims of childhood sexual abuse the fi nancial means to seek healing. Archbishop Chaput urged all victims of abuse by anyone a¦ liated with the archdiocese to come forward and meet with the independent panel. He made clear that attorneys for the archdiocese would not be present and that this was not part of litigation but instead was intended to be a ministry of the Church, in recognition of the wrongs done to these victims. The archbishop also oœ ered to meet with victims personally. More than 50 victims received compensation after this pro- gram was announced and this work was concluded by 2010. The work of Cardinal Staœ ord, Archbishop Chaput and myself, now that I am the steward of this archdio- cese, is focused on protecting children. Above all, the archdiocese has for decades maintained a zero-tolerance policy towards credible accusations of sexual abuse by priests and laity who are a¦ liated with the archdiocese. While incidents of sexual abuse will always exist in society, the archdiocese remains active in enforcing its poli- cies and longstanding zero-tolerance approach. Besides working to prevent abuse, the archdiocese is committed to praying for the victims who have suœ ered from the sins of cardinals, bishops, priests or any other Church employee. For this reason, I invite anyone who would like to pray for the healing of these wounds to join me at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immac- ulate Conception for Masses of repa- ration on Sept. 9, Oct. 7 at 10:30 a.m., and on Nov. 7 and Dec. 7 at 5:30 p.m. I have also asked every priest in the archdiocese to publicize and oœ er a monthly Mass for the healing of vic- tims of abuse by clergy members and any others in society. When one sees that in the general population one in fi ve girls and one in 20 boys is a victim of sexual abuse, it is clear there is much to pray for! May our Blessed Mother intercede for all those who have suœ ered abuse at the hands of clergy members and guide our Holy Father, Pope Francis, and the Church in these trying times. May the Spirit of Truth fi ll every disci- ple of Jesus and lead us to the truth of his love and mercy, setting us free of all deceit and lies, so that our wills may be conformed to the will of the Father! Pray, my dearest brothers and sis- ters, for the Spirit of Truth to descend upon every member of the Church, for your prayer is powerful when it is grounded in trust and confi dence in the promises of Jesus and the love of the Father! For more in-depth information on abuse prevention measures in the Archdiocese of Denver, see page 10 or visit: archden.org/promise. i PHOTO OF THE WEEK Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila concelebrated a special Mass at Our Lady of the Valley Parish in Windsor Aug. 26 blessing new additions to their parish facilities. For the full story, see page 12. PHOTO BY JASON WEINRICH

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