Asking pardon worldwide
By NCR STAFF
John Paul IIs March 12 day of pardon, during
which the pope made unprecedented statements of regret for pas wrongs by church
members, has inspired similar apologies from Catholic leaders around the
world.
Cardinal Roger Mahony of Los Angeles apologized March 6 to
minorities, women and homosexuals for failures by the church to be welcoming
and to adequately defend their human and civil rights.
Mahonys apology was seen as especially dramatic because he
directly mentioned the Immaculate Heart Sisters, apologizing to women religious
who may have felt slighted, not fully appreciated or discrminated against
in any way.
In the immediate post-Vatican II period, the dissolution of the
Immaculate Heart community in Los Angeles, in part because of disputes with
then-Cardinal James Francis McIntyre, created one of the bitterest
controversies in the American church.
Mahony also apologized for intemperate remarks orally or in
writing by him that failed to honor the efforts of various people or
groups within the diocese.
In Boston, Cardinal Bernard Law apologized March 11 for 12
sins of the past, including anti-Judaism and racism, divisions
amoung Christians, and the churchs failure to adequately defend women,
immigrants and the physically and psychologically disabled. Law also apologized
for the sexual misconduct of priests and religious.
Not to have included that in any general acknowledgement of
faults would have been such a glaring omission in terms of recent
history, Law said in a news conference. I know that victims of
abuse carry this memory well beyond the incident or incidents in their life,
and their families do as well and the pain is really incaculable.
Detroits Cardinal Adam Maida apologized March 11 for sins
committed by church members agains Jews and other minority groups.
We are aware of intolerance and violence that has been shown
toward many people simply because of the color of their skin, ethnic orgin or
their religious background, Maida said.
Other apologies came from Archbishop Michael Sheehan of Santa Fe,
N.M., Bishop Daniel A. Hart of Norwich, Conn., and Bishop Michael A. Saltarelli
of Wilmington, Del.
In recent months, three other American prelates -- Cardinal John
OConnor of New York and Archbishops Rembert Weakland of Milwaukee and
Charles Chaput of Denver -- have issued apologies to Jews (NCR, Dec. 17,
1999)
In other parts of the world, the Catholic bishops of Australia
apologized March 8 for misguided efforts to help indigenous peoples.
Historically, mixed-race children there were often forcibly separated from
their parents as a matter of state policy and placed with white families or in
church-run institutions, a phenomenon known as the stolen
generation. Catholic and other Christian leaders have in recent years
apologized extensively for their roles in the policy.
The Swiss Catholic bishops asked forgiveness March 9 for the way
the church failed in its obligations toward the Jewish people
during the Nazi era. The bishops also noted that many Christian families and
institutions welcomed and saved Jewish refugees from Germany and Nazi-occupied
countries.
National Catholic Reporter, March 24,
2000
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