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Head of Bishops' Sexual Abuse Review Panel Resigns

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Head of Bishops' Sexual Abuse Review Panel Resigns Inside Archbishop Buechlein . 5 Editorial . 4 Question Corner . 15 Sunday and Daily Readings . 15 The Family Health Supplement . 9 Serving the CChurchCriterion in Centralr andi Southert n Indianae Since 1960rion www.archindy.org June 20, 2003 Vol. XXXXII, No. 36 75¢ Head of bishops’ sexual abuse review panel resigns WASHINGTON (CNS)—Former in hiding and suppressing information bishops will at least be free to participate Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating resigned as about clergy sexual abuse of minors. in the study without violating the law.” chairman of the U.S. bishops’ National Keating accused some bishops, includ- In a follow-up interview with the Review Board on June 16. ing Los Angeles Cardinal Roger M. Times, the cardinal said Keating’s compar- CNS photo by Bob Roller In a letter accepting his resignation, Mahony, of fighting full disclosure to the ison of some bishops with La Cosa Nostra Bishop Wilton D. Gregory of Belleville, board of the abuse data in their dioceses. was “off the wall.” He said he planned to Ill., president of the U.S. Conference of In a statement June 12, Cardinal raise questions about Keating’s job perfor- Catholic Bishops, praised Keating’s “enor- Mahony called Keating’s remarks “irre- mance at the bishops’ June meeting. mous contribution” to moving the sponsible and uninformed.” Bishop Gregory appointed Keating to Church’s response to the clergy sexual “Just yesterday, the John Jay group chair the review board last June in Dallas abuse crisis ahead “in an intense environ- [John Jay College researchers contracted immediately after the bishops approved ment” and under close media scrutiny. to gather data on the extent of clergy sex their “Charter for the Protection of Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating, flanked by The resignation came just four days abuse for the review board] acknowledged Children and Young People,” under which Bishop Wilton D. Gregory and Bishop Joseph A. after a Los Angeles Times report that flaws in their proposed protocols and the board was formed. Galante, addresses the media last June in Dallas quoted Keating saying some unnamed finally agreed to conform with California Keating played an important role in after he was chosen to chair the U.S. bishops’ bishops were acting “like La Cosa and canon law,” Cardinal Mahony said. Bishop Gregory’s selection of the rest of advisory panel for their new National Office for Nostra”—the U.S. branch of the Mafia— “With these amendments, the California See KEATING, page 20 Child and Youth Protection. Ordinand will Church works across Africa to spotlight depend on prayer, conflict, relieve war, hunger devotion to Mary By Brandon A. Evans ROME (CNS)—Far from the media spotlight, the Catholic Church was Ruthanne Robeson still wakes up and working across Africa this spring to marvels that her son is going to be a help draw attention to the continent’s priest. conflicts and bring relief to the victims CNS photo by Declan Walsh She believes God has blessed their of hunger, war and poverty. family and vindicated her deepest feeling The situations ranged from a deadly about the vocation of her second oldest outbreak of civil war in Congo to child. chronic drought in Ethiopia and Eritrea, She also reminds herself, lightheart- and involved Church agencies from the edly, that the mother of a priest has got a Vatican to local charities. one-way ticket to heaven. In Congo, Church leaders expressed Deacon Robert Robeson, a native of cautious optimism over the planned St. Louis, will be ordained to the priest- arrival of 1,400 European peacekeeping hood for the Archdiocese of Indianapolis troops in the eastern part of the country, on June 28 at SS. Peter and Paul where an estimated 1,000 people have Cathedral along with Deacon Jonathan been killed in recent months of vio- Meyer. lence. His first Mass will be at 5:30 p.m. on “It’s a positive thing,” Archbishop June 28 at St. Monica Parish, 6131 N. Faustin Ngabu of Goma, Congo, said Michigan Road, in Indianapolis. of the peacekeepers’ mission, “but we When Robeson was about 12, his cannot forget that the international mother said that he read a book about the community did nothing two months life of St. Francis—a book that shaped his ago when the civilian population was outlook and his future. massacred.” A young soldier with the Union of Congolese Patriots attends a June rally in Bunia, the capital of He wanted to be like the saint—a Belgian Missionary of Africa Father Congo's northeastern Ituri region. Two priests were recent victims of ethnic violence that has marked desire that revealed to his mother that God Joe Deneckere said that during the Congo's civil war. Church leaders expressed cautious optimism over the planned arrival of 1,400 might have something special in mind for vicious battle for Bunia, the capital of peacekeeping troops. the young Robert. Congo’s northeastern Ituri region, the Still, he didn’t go off to the seminary. local Catholic Church was caught up in local Missionaries of Africa, commonly out urban centers, and there was grow- After completing a master’s degree in the tide of killing. known as the White Fathers. Of the ing concern for the fate of more than education at the University of South Two local priests were murdered by 14 missionaries working in Ituri two 300,000 displaced people taking shelter Carolina in Columbia, S.C., he became an Lendu militiamen along with 20 other months ago, just five remain. in the area. He said that on June 8 assistant dean at Lehigh University in people in a mass killing near the parish Meanwhile, in the Congolese Diocese Pentecost Sunday services in his diocese Pennsylvania. church of Nyakasanza. Now their bod- of Butembo-Beni, Bishop Melchisedec were “either disturbed or canceled He realized that if we wanted to ies are buried in freshly turned graves Sikuli Paluka urgently appealed for assis- because of attacks” by rebels. See ORDINATION, page 7 in front of the church, near a mass tance in the face of a “deadly and destabi- According to estimates, up to 4 grave for 11 other victims. lizing advance” of rebel forces. million people have died as a result of The strain has taken its toll on the He said panic was spreading through- See AFRICA, page 2 The permanent deacon formation program Editor’s note: For the past year, an arch- The Archdiocese of Indianapolis plans voice for the needs of the poor and mar- diocesan committee has been studying to work in cooperation with Saint Meinrad ginalized. how to implement the permanent dia- School of Theology to develop its perma- The spiritual dimension will help the conate here. This series looks at the his- nent deacon formation program. It is participant cultivate his commitment to tory of the permanent diaconate and the expected that the first class will enter the God’s Word and the Church, deepen his role that deacons fulfill in the Church. program in September 2004. prayer life and acquaint him with the The program will address four dimen- Catholic Church’s spiritual tradition. By John F. Fink sions, or areas, of formation—human, The intellectual dimension will address Last of a five-part series spiritual, intellectual and pastoral. the academic program of study that pro- The human dimension will include the vides the theological foundation needed to The deacon must have special qualities development and support of those per- fulfill the diaconal ministry effectively. if he is to fulfill his threefold areas of ser- sonal and interpersonal qualities that This component will be Saint Meinrad’s vice—the ministry of the Word, the min- allow the participant to maintain healthy primary responsibility. istry of the liturgy, and the ministry of relationships with family and colleagues. The pastoral dimension will strengthen charity and justice. Therefore, he requires These will foster a sense of collaboration and develop the professional and ministerial special training. and help the candidate become a prophetic See DIACONATE, page 19 Page 2 The Criterion Friday, June 20, 2003 the Church offered “the last remaining AFRICA structures capable of providing essential continued from page 1 social services, particularly health and education, in the absence of a viable CNS photo from Reuters the Congolese war; many died from state.” malnutrition or disease. In Ituri, at least After serving as a Vatican ambassador 50,000 people have died and at least in the Horn of Africa for seven years, 500,000 have been displaced from their U.S. Archbishop Silvano Tomasi was homes. named in June to represent the Holy See Across the border in the northern to U.N. agencies in Geneva. The 62 region of Uganda, rebels were consolidat- year-old Scalabrini priest said he would ing their control of rural areas and laying try to bring his firsthand knowledge of siege to towns and cities. African problems to organizations that “The situation is desperate,” Italian deal with migration, human rights and Father Giulio Albanese, director of the economics. Rome-based MISNA missionary news Archbishop Tomasi said he was service, told Vatican Radio from a approaching his new assignment with the Catholic mission in Kitgum, Uganda. He conviction that Africa is generally ignored said about 10,000 civilians were home- except in times of disaster. That means less and people were “literally dying of short-term crises often generate a gener- hunger.” ous response, but long-term solutions Rebels recently began attacking draw less attention, he said. Catholic churches and missions, “commit- “If you look at the last meeting of the ting true acts of sacrilege,” he said.
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