Charter for the Protection of the Sacred Liturgy

By Diogenes

Jan. 01 (CWR) - (The document that follows has not been approved (or even discussed) by the US Conference of Catholic Bishops. But it might profitably be compared with their Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, adopted at the US bishops' meeting in Dallas last year.)

PREAMBLE

The Church in the United States is experiencing a crisis without precedent in our times. The abuse of the Sacred Liturgy by some priests and bishops, and the ways in which we bishops addressed these crimes and sins, have caused enormous pain, anger, and confusion. Innocent victims and their families have suffered terribly. In the past, secrecy has created an atmosphere that has inhibited the healing process and, in some cases, enabled liturgically abusive behavior to be repeated. As bishops, we acknowledge our mistakes and our role in that suffering, and we apologize and take responsibility for too often failing victims and our people in the past. We also take responsibility for dealing with this problem strongly, consistently, and effectively in the future. From the depths of our hearts, we bishops express great sorrow and profound regret for what the Catholic people are enduring.

We, who have been given the responsibility of shepherding God's people, will, with God's help and in full collaboration with our people, continue to work to restore the bonds of trust that unite us. Words alone cannot accomplish this goal. It will begin with the actions we take here in our General Assembly and at home in our dioceses/eparchies.

The damage caused by the abuse of the Mass is devastating and long-lasting. We reach out to those who suffer, but especially to the victims of liturgical abuse and their families. We apologize to them for the grave harm that has been inflicted upon them, and we offer them our help for the future. In the light of so much suffering, healing and reconciliation are beyond human capacity alone. Only God's grace, mercy, and forgiveness can lead us forward, trusting Christ's promise: "For God all things are possible." (Mt 19:26) Let there now be no doubt or confusion on anyone's part: For us, your bishops, our obligation to protect the Sacred Liturgy and to prevent liturgical abuse flows from the mission and example given to us by Jesus Christ himself, in whose name we serve.

POLICY NORMS

1. Dioceses/eparchies will reach out to victims/survivors and their families and demonstrate a sincere commitment to their spiritual and emotional well-being.

2. Dioceses/eparchies will have mechanisms in place to respond promptly to any allegation where there is reason to believe that liturgical abuse has occurred.

3. When liturgical abuse by a priest or a deacon is admitted or is established after an appropriate process in accord with canon law, the offending priest or deacon will be permanently removed from ministry, not excluding dismissal from the clerical state, if the case so warrants.

4. While the priestly commitment to the Liturgy is well known, there will be clear and well-publicized diocesan/eparchial standards of ministerial behavior and appropriate boundaries for clergy and for any other church personnel.

5. Dioceses/eparchies will evaluate the background of all diocesan/eparchial and parish personnel who have regular contact with the Sacred Liturgy.

CONCLUSION

In the midst of this terrible crisis of liturgical abuse by priests and bishops and how it has been dealt with by bishops, many other issues have been raised. In this Charter we focus specifically on the painful issue at hand. However, in this matter, we do wish to affirm our concern, especially with regard to issues related to effective consultation of the laity and the participation of God's people in decision-making that affects their well-being.

We must increase our vigilance to prevent those few who might exploit the priesthood for their own immoral and criminal purposes from doing so. At the same time, we know that the liturgical abuse is not a problem inherent in the priesthood, nor are priests the only ones guilty of it.

An essential means of dealing with the crisis is prayer for healing and reconciliation, and acts of reparation for the grave offense to God and the deep wound inflicted upon his holy people. Closely connected to prayer and acts of reparation is the call to holiness of life and the care of the diocesan/eparchial bishop to ensure that he and his priests avail themselves of the proven ways of avoiding sin and growing in holiness of life.

This charter is published for the dioceses/eparchies of the United States, and we bishops commit ourselves to its immediate implementation.
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I don't know how I missed this. Will this be next on the USCCB agenda?