Special
Report Parishioners, priests search for solutions
By CHUCK COLBERT
Cambridge, Mass.
Catholics of all stripes, ordained and nonordained, faithful and
lapsed, recovering and ex, are struggling to make sense and come to
terms with the daily barrage of news coverage about clerical sexual abuse here
in the nations fourth-largest archdiocese.
A number of parishes have tried to help by conducting
open-microphone public forums -- a local Catholic version of the New England
tradition of town meetings.
One diocesan priest who has convened several such listening
sessions is Fr. Jerry Osterman, pastor of Immaculate Conception Parish in
Everett, Mass.
A blue collar, working-class suburb outside Boston, Everett is the
kind of place where the sexual abuse of boys by priests often occurred. The one
exception to this demographic is Weston, Mass. (Bostons western, more
affluent suburb), home to St. Julias parish, where convicted pedophile
and former priest John Geoghan allegedly committed some assaults on
youngsters.
During a wide-ranging interview, Osterman discussed how his
parishioners are coping in the wake of scandal. He also shared his views on
church politics and ministerial and pastoral concerns.
Ive preached on [clerical sex abuse] three
times, he said. People seemed very appreciative of that, he
added. Osterman also held question-and-answer sessions after each Mass.
I think people were also appreciative of the opportunity to
speak about it.
They like the fact that you are willing to hear them
out.
Osterman said he was surprised that support for the cardinal did
not depend on age. I thought that support or lack of it for the cardinal
would go down by age, with seniors being the most supportive. One local
poll, however, showed a 50 percent split in opinion on whether Law should
resign. And the support was spread across all age groups.
Peoples talk of the cardinals resignation
isnt with rancor, said Osterman. Theyre able to see
that hes done a lot of good things. But they dont understand how he
can be part of the solution if he was part of the problem.
The priest, a soft-spoken New England native, meets with a group
that started last summer when three suburban members of the clergy began
meeting to discuss issues such as burnout and loneliness.
We are a group of priests who are concerned about the church
in Boston and ministry in the next five years or so, he said. We
also invite speakers to come and talk to us.
There has been no real forum to think creatively, he
said. We are trying to address the shortages of priests, parishes without
priests -- topics you are not supposed to talk about.
Recently, news of the priests forum grabbed attention in the
local press when the group invited Fr. Richard P. McBrien, a noted Catholic
theologian and professor at the University of Notre Dame, to address the
gathering.
In an interview with a Globe religion reporter McBrien
said, If the priests do not give voice to their concerns, who will?
The priests decided to continue meeting because they were frustrated that they
had no opportunity to discuss with their archbishop problems of mutual
concern.
McBrien said that by the time he arrived on the scene, the
situation in the archdiocese had changed quite drastically, so that they are no
longer seeing themselves as a support group, but as having a responsibility as
a group of pastors to take some leadership, with or without the cardinals
support or involvement, in helping to address the issues that are tearing apart
the church of Boston and leaving laypeople confused and embarrassed.
If the priests hold back or defer to the cardinal, laity are
going to conclude the priests are part of the problem, McBrien said.
Osterman said Law had been informed about the priests
meetings even before the scandal broke. We told him, he said.
Wed like the cardinal or bishops to come. But I suspect its
viewed as a fifth column, so were ignored.
Still, Osterman underscored that there were and are structures in
the church for wider participation, not only by the clergy, but also the laity.
He mentioned, for instance, the presbyterial (priests) council and the
diocesan council for laypeople.
These structures, however, are not used in a creative and
imaginative way, he said. Its a one-way street, with the
agenda decided from above and answers given out to the
questions.
We used to have a priests senate, which was run
democratically insofar as it set its own agenda and brought issues to the
bishops attention. But that forum and the groups newsletter got
dropped. The senate was replaced by the presbyterial council, said
Osterman.
The presbyterial council is a representative group of about 40
priests picked according to year of ordination. The cardinal can add people to
the body, Osterman said.
Wider issues -- the breadth and depth of the local scandal of the
sexual abuse of children by diocesan priests and matters both theological and
ecclesial -- also concern Osterman and other members of the local clergy.
What George [Spagnolia] did needed to be dramatized,
Osterman said, referring to a priest who denies an accusation that he sexually
abused a youth (NCR, March 8). We are almost creating another set
of victims. It is hard to say that because the true victims have been ignored
for so long. But in order to protect the priesthood, another set of victims, it
seems, is created, Osterman said.
Even if one is guilty, theres a difference between
secrecy and confidentiality, he said.
I dont see any of the district attorneys turning over
names to the press. I wonder why we are, he said. That doesnt
mean you dont act on the issue and report it. But I am not sure you have
to go to the press with the names. If its an allegation and its
proven false, your reputation is already ruined. Restoring it is never a Page 1
story.
Another concern among the priests who are meeting, Osterman said,
is the leadership style of the cardinal. Hes doing what a CEO would
do to save his reputation, while claiming hes a shepherd, Osterman
said. That hasnt been missed by the people.
Its hard to be accusatory, he said. It
comes down to theology. If your theology is that Where the bishop is,
theres the church, then you do everything to make the bishop look
right, because its the same as saying, Were trying to repair
the image of the church.
But, said Osterman, Most people operate
with a
broader reality than that.
Osterman also thinks that the local leadership is not
recognizing the signs of the times.
One is that we are dealing with an educated laity, in some
cases highly educated, he said. Even those with only a high school
education have life experience raising families and have street
smarts.
Another sign, he said, is deeply embedded in the American
experience. We live and breathe democracy and democratic ways of doing
things.
Its too glib to say that the church is not a
democracy. That may well be true, but democracy flows in peoples
veins, he said. Part of dealing with the times is recognizing that
the flow of information is not one way. That doesnt mean that ultimately
they dont have the final say or authority. But people in our culture earn
authority. This hypersensitivity to authority, its the hierarchys
problem, not anybody elses.
Finally, Osterman said, Not recognizing the signs of the
times includes not realizing that the victims are our primary concern.
Thats a given, taken for granted by people.
The scandal is sweeping the problem under the rug.
People have dealt with pedophilia in their families for
generations, for example, the crazy uncle you are told to stay away
from, he said.
If anything positive comes from the press coverage, he
said, its how all-pervasive pedophilia is. Priests are just the tip
of the iceberg. The advantage is that we are such a control group, so we can be
studied.
People are able to deal with clerical pedophilia. They say,
This priest is sick. But many people just dont understand why
church authorities couldnt recognize that, he said.
Nonetheless, Osterman sees hopeful signs from the cardinal
himself. The assumption should be that he is our bishop and how can we
work with him? Hes listening and hearing. That is a positive sign,
he said. I am not sure he knows how to respond right now, but then again
Im not sure anyone would at this time.
National Catholic Reporter, March 15,
2002
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