In the summer of 2018 the Catholic Church and, indeed, the country was sent reeling in shock, horror, anger and disgust. A grand jury in Pennsylvania released a document detailing the abuse of minor children by Roman Catholic clergy over several decades, and the subsequent cover-up by Church leaders. Then came the revelation that Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, the former archbishop of Newark and Washington, D.C., was accused of both the abuse of a minor child and of seminarians in his charge.
Many dioceses and parishes throughout the U.S. almost immediately began to seek ways to respond. Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in High Point was one of those parishes. Through the leadership of the parish Liturgical Commission, a plan was devised as a response to the crisis.
A member of this commission called people and dioceses around the country, talking with those who were responding with prayer, education and other efforts. Other commission members gathered material from the religious and secular press. Findings were shared with the entire group.
We began our response in September by incorporating into each Sunday’s General Intercessions a petition related to the crisis. We prayed for victims, perpetrators, families and for the Church as a whole. Later in the fall, we introduced a prayer (written by a member of the commission) that the entire congregation prayed together as the concluding prayer to the General Intercessions.
During the Fourth Week of Lent, we held a “Listening Session” to provide the whole parish a forum in which we could come together to share our feelings about the crisis and explore ways to address it. We enlisted the assistance of a facilitator as well as trained small group leaders who would facilitate the discussions. The emphasis was on listening – listening attentively, prayerfully and charitably to each other’s experiences and feelings. The Listening Session went quite well, with many participants offering positive feedback afterwards. After the Listening Session, the petition during the Intercessions and the concluding prayer were ended.
In May, a Mass of Reparation and Healing was celebrated. Commission members served as lectors and Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, and a parishioner who self-identified during the Listening Session as a victim of clergy abuse also participated. Many who were present commented on how beautiful and moving the liturgy was. It truly was a valuable healing experience.
The commission now has the task of exploring what, if any, responses would be appropriate in the future. One suggestion has been to offer an adult education program focusing on the issue. Another might be future worship opportunities for healing and reparation. In any case, the group felt that we have not necessarily exhausted our response.
I have not read many stories in the Catholic News Herald about what has been done here in the Diocese of Charlotte to respond to this crisis in the Church. Hopefully, the lack of reporting is not an indication of inaction. I would encourage parish lay leadership to explore ways by which you might respond which would be appropriate for your individual parish needs. We here at IHM have learned so much from what others around the country have done. Please feel free to learn from us. And above all, please continue to listen to the voices of the victims and continue to pray for their healing and, indeed, that of the whole Church.
Paul Kiley is a member of Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish’s Liturgical Commission.
Sixteen years ago I lay in a basket on the side of the road in China. Born into a country where abortions were required and forced due to the one child policy. I was born into poverty and my parents were not able to care for me.
But they gave me something far better than any amount of money or comfort. They gave me the gift of life. It is unknown if I had another sibling who came before me or if they were just too poor to take care of me, but either way they could’ve gone the easy way out and just aborted me. Instead, they gave me a chance at life. I remained with them for 10 days until I was put up for adoption, and 10 months later I was adopted by an amazing family.
I am forever grateful for my biological parents for giving me life and a chance. Without their gift of life to me, I wouldn’t have known my amazing family. I would not know my brother, sister, mom and dad. Without their gift of life to me, I would not know all my friends and extended family. I wouldn’t be able to experience all the joys and sorrows of life. Yes, I might have lost my biological parents, but I can never doubt their love for me because they chose to bring me into the world through difficulty and pain.
Life is one of the greatest gifts of love from God and from our parents. I believe that life should not be given up so easily. I believe that we all deserve a chance. I don’t believe in accidents because miracles don’t just happen by chance. I am so grateful that I am alive today. Life is the right of every child – it is not a privilege for the fortunate and planned. Abortion goes far past any government decision or a woman’s right to chose, it goes back to our Creator, God, who gave us His only Son so that we may have eternal life. Yes, bad things happen, but an unborn child should not be the victim.
I stand for life for every single child in foster care, orphanage, child of rape and every unborn child because I believe that what is broken can become beautiful. Choose life!
Kaia Franks lives in Charlotte.