People use the word shocked for things that are actually not that shocking. This is not one of those instances.
A scandal has been brewing in the Diocese of Richmond over Catholic Charities Richmond assisting an underage woman to procure an abortion going so far as to sign the consent forms for the death. We have held off on calling for the action against the Bishop (naively it turns out) because we did not understand the level of his culpability. While a Bishop certainly sets the tone for the diocese (Can you imagine something like this happening under Bishop Bruskewitz in Nebraska?), we had hoped that this happened because the Bishop is just an extraordinarily bad administrator who had no idea what is going on under his nose. Those hopes have now been dashed. The Bishop knew in advance of the plan, and did NOTHING.
[Washington Times] The Roman Catholic bishop of Richmond was told that a diocesan charity planned to help a teenage foster child get an abortion in January and did not try to prevent the procedure.
Bishop Francis X. DiLorenzo “was told erroneously that everything was in place and there was nothing he could do to stop it,” said Steve Neill, Bishop DiLorenzo’s communications officer. “He is very apologetic about the whole episode.
“It is very awkward, it is very embarrassing. A human life was taken. He certainly has not taken it lightly in any way. He is clearly opposed to abortion.”
…
Bill Etherington, an attorney for the diocese and CCR, said Bishop DiLorenzo was given bad information about whether the abortion could be prevented, but didn’t elaborate as to how.“He was told it could not be stopped,” Mr. Etherington said. “It was erroneous information. He didn’t have to sign off on it. He was not personally involved.”
He added, without elaborating, that the underage abortion did not violate state law.
Embarrassing? Did not violate state law? Erroneous information? Did everything he could do?
This is murder we are talking about! The monstrosity of this scandal is beyond words. The attitude of the Bishop and his lawyers only serve to compound the scandal.
For the good of all the faithful in Richmond and the Church as a whole, Bishop DiLorenzo should resign. Immediately.
June 30, 2008 at 3:55 pm
He most definitely should resign. The Bishop and his enablers are making the weakist of excuses for their disgraceful culpability. Do they really believe that people can’t see through it?
June 30, 2008 at 3:58 pm
It should be made clear in this forum, that Bishop DiLorenzo was grossly misinformed about the chances of preventing the abortion. That he was so misinformed underscored his greatest difficulty in managing his diocese, that of being constantly undermined by his staff.
If he thought he could still run the place after firing the lot of them (and it should be mentioned that some in Catholic Charities have already been given notice), he probably would. That said, the mere fact that the abortion occurred under his auspices, and on his watch, is enough to hold him responsible in principle. And if principle is to reign in this situation at all, he should tender his resignation immediately — not as a matter of culpability, as that is tenuous at best, but as a matter of honor.
June 30, 2008 at 4:27 pm
David,
He may have been grossly misinformed about his legal options, but that is not the only avenue a Bishop has at his disposal. He could have sat down with the people in question and talked to them or even threatened them with excommunication. Perhaps he could have gone public with it to try and prevent it. He could have stood in front of their car, even. Point is, legal options were not his only avenue when trying to prevent a murder.
June 30, 2008 at 4:33 pm
Patrick:
I’m not making a hero out of DiLorenzo, but it has already been reported (as I have previously indicated), that some members of the Catholic Charities staff were fired as a result of their involvement. For all we know, they may have been made fully aware of the canonical penalties for their actions, including excommunication.
June 30, 2008 at 4:53 pm
Patrick:
You’ll also notice that I’ve called for DiLorenzo to resign.
June 30, 2008 at 5:21 pm
David,
Don’t read more into my statement than is really there. I only wanted to point out that If the Bishop knew in advance that this would happen, he had more than legal options at his disposal.
No doubt we all share the horror of this incident, I just wanted to make a distinction that relates to his culpability.
June 30, 2008 at 5:41 pm
Isn’t that just what we need? A Bishop insisting, “I didn’t break any laws.”
Don’t we want a little more than that?
June 30, 2008 at 5:51 pm
It saddens me to read this regarding Bishop Di Lorenzo. When he was the Bishop of the Honolulu Diocese, was a strong defender for life. He attended every March for Life rally and was most often than not, the keynote speaker. We cannot judge his actions as we aren’t privy to everything surrounding this tragic incident.
June 30, 2008 at 6:00 pm
Esther,
While we certainly cannot judge his soul or his ultimate culpability in this terrible event, we certainly can judge his actions or inaction in this case. His actions and/or inaction were part of the events to the death of an innocent life. No argument about that.
Don’t confuse judging actions with judging a soul. While the latter is the exclusive province of the Lord, the former is perfectly licit for the faithful.
June 30, 2008 at 6:33 pm
I’m really torn on this one. On the one hand, I agree with David that Bishop DiLorenzo should probably resign as a matter of honor. On the other hand, his resignation would hand the Sullivanistas (the holdovers from Bishop Sullivan’s 30-year tenure) who have undermined him in this and other instances exactly what they want.
June 30, 2008 at 6:47 pm
“On the other hand, his resignation would hand the Sullivanistas… exactly what they want.”
That would depend on what happens next. If they got one of the new breed of “young turks” in there instead of these “players,” they might wish Mister D to the L was back. (I just made that one up. I’m in a cocky mood today.) By the way, the bishop did issue a profuse apology in his diocesan paper. I’m not saying that’s enough, but it’s not as if he’s letting himself off completely.
I still believe resigning is the honorable thing to do.
June 30, 2008 at 7:15 pm
Yes, I certainly agree that bloggers on the internet who can only agree on the ifs of what happened should be the ones to demand the resignation of a Catholic bishop. I’m willing to bet that no one on this blog who has demanded the bishop’s resignation is intimately informed on exactly what happened.
Bob Hunt
June 30, 2008 at 7:19 pm
Bob:
Good one. However, one does not require all the intimate details to be scandalized by what is already known.
June 30, 2008 at 7:32 pm
Bob,
With all due respect, upon careful reading you will not that I did not say any of the following:
I know all the facts (intimately)
The Bishop is evil!
The Bishop is Guilty!
The Bishop is solely responsible!
Advocate for the jailing or excommunication of the Bishop.
No, what I said is that this is a horrible scandal and that for the good of the faithful and the Church he should resign.
Far from appointing myself judge, jury, and executioner, I am merely calling on the Bishop to do the right thing for the Church. Having a Bishop embroiled in such a scandal is harmful to the Church.
June 30, 2008 at 10:05 pm
Patrick,
Okay, that was a bit of a bizarre response, since no where did I accuse you of saying any of those things about the bishop.
However, you did call for the resignation of a Catholic bishop based on the details provided by a story in a secular newspaper (at least that was the only source you cited.) Well, one knows they’re always reliable in getting the details right when it comes to reporting on the Church.
Was “intimately informed” too high a standard? For Pete’s sake, you’re demanding that a bishop resign! Sorry, no, I don’t think so. Rather, I would think that to demand the resignation of a bishop would require moral certainty regarding his culpability. The Washington Times is hardly in a position to provide that.
David,
My point was precisely that we don’t know enough of the details, not to be scandalized and certainly not to go about demanding that the bishop resign. What is needed is a thorough, objective investigation. Who is going to provide that? The Washington Times? Pardon me while I recover from my apoplexy.
Perhaps you guys have more confidence in the secular press than I do. Perhaps your experience recommends that high level of confidence. Mine doesn’t. Perhaps the bishop should resign. I don’t know that yet. Frankly, neither do you.
Bob Hunt
June 30, 2008 at 10:43 pm
Bob:
The situation in Richmond has been reported in great detail, not only in the secular press, but in the Catholic press, particularly in The Wanderer. The bishop has admitted to the scandal personally, in his own diocesan paper. Do you suppose an investigation will show that the abortion was NOT procured by Catholic Charities? Can you explain then why people from there had to be fired? Will this show that it did NOT happen on the bishop’s watch, that he is NOT responsible for what happens on behalf of his diocese? That his apology was completely made up?
What little is already known is sufficient to warrant grave scandal among the faithful. For that reason alone, I am calling for the bishop to do the honorable thing and resign.
Again, for that reason alone!
June 30, 2008 at 10:50 pm
Bob et al:
Perhaps I should be more precise. What I am calling for, is for the Bishop of Richmond to TENDER his resignation. Whether or not it should be accepted, is another matter entirely. It is here that an investigation by a representative of the Holy See is appropriate. Whatever the outcome, I call upon him to submit it, not because he is a bad man for this happening, but precisely because he is a GOOD man. His own sense of outrage would have to be so great, that nothing could speak more to the gravity of the offense, than that he lay the authority of his office before the Holy Father himself.
There is honor in being responsible, even when things go wrong. Even when things go very, VERY wrong. We may never know everything that went on. But by the bishop’s own admission, we know enough.
June 30, 2008 at 10:52 pm
Exactly! Exactly! Ditto David!
June 30, 2008 at 10:56 pm
Although I find it hard to believe that the Bishop could have done absolutely nothing when he found out about the abortion the day before it was about to happen, I can give him the benefit of the doubt.
That conceded, I can’t fathom why he didn’t make this public and discipline all involved the day after it happened. It’s my understanding that people weren’t fired and the other bishops notified until after the government told him they were investigating (more than 3 months after the abortion). And his letter to the bishops wasn’t telling them that they need to let the faithful know about this and use it to teach them – it was to let them know that the media was going public with the story so get your defenses ready.
And Catholic Charities of Richmond installed a contraceptive device on the girl two months before the abortion. Where was he for that? How many other girls has Catholic Charities of Richmond abused in this way? Why isn’t the Bishop protecting his flock from these wolves?
June 30, 2008 at 11:47 pm
I feel a vacuum coming on. You know, the one in which this conversation is taking place. Hey, I’ve got an idea, let’s show the Bishop’s letter on the issue. I’m not saying he’s off the hook. I’m not saying it doesn’t beg more questions than it answers. I AM saying we need to know what we’re talking about. We can start with what HE’S talking about. And so, I’m printing it here…
+ + +
My dear friends in Christ,
As your Bishop, I want to express some of my personal thoughts and feelings on the monumental tragedy that we have experienced here in the Diocese. I join my sadness to yours at the loss of the life of an unborn child whose teenage mother was in the foster care of Commonwealth Catholic Charities. Because of the issues of privacy of those involved, and the ongoing legal investigations, there was, and is a need to be prudent in making any public statement.
There are many questions people have — why did it happen? Were there no checks and controls concerning hiring practices? Was there no on-going education and formation in Catholic Christian morality concerning pro-life issues and social justice questions? There are also questions about why this situation was not revealed sooner. These are some of the questions which need to be answered by the board, the administration and the staff of Commonwealth Catholic Charities.
Obviously, respect for the life of the unborn is a basic tenet of our Catholic faith and morality. I would ask all of you to pray that we correct what needs correcting and strengthen areas that need strengthening so that Catholic Charities might continue their mission of service to those in need.
The guilt and depression that many of us experience as a result of the behavior of a few is something that we will bear for a long time to come. Finally, I express my profound apology for the loss of the life of one of the most vulnerable among us, and I apologize for the profound embarrassment this has caused the Catholic Diocese of Richmond, and Catholics throughout the United States.
I remain,
Sincerely yours in Our Lord,
Most Rev. Francis X. DiLorenzo
Bishop of Richmond
June 25, 2008