Summary from Msgr. Joseph Hendricks regarding Bishop Barron’s Letter to a Suffering Church: A Bishop Speaks on the Sexual Abuse Crisis

We are grateful as a parish to have had the opportunity to read together Bishop Robert Barron’s Letter to a Suffering Church: A Bishop Speaks on the Sexual Abuse Crisis. I hope that you have found it informative and helpful, not only the history of the sexual abuse crisis in the Roman Catholic Church, but the long history of how the Church has dealt with this issue over the centuries.

With transparency and creditability, the Church today in the United States tries to deal in the most compassionate way, with victims and those who have also suffered having a loved one or a friend having undergone sexual abuse by a clergy person.

In addition to the compassion and healing the Church offers those who have suffered from the crime of sexual abuse, the Church also has strengthened her internal controls about how we become more knowledgeable and put safeguards in place for children and vulnerable individuals.

I hope that the “Letter” is a firm declaration of the Church’s ability to continue to be vigilant with regard to sexual misconduct by clergy persons.

My own reflection having read the “Letter” is one of gratitude for Bishop Barron’s clear and informative exposition of the crisis of sexual misconduct in the United States as well as a sign of hope for the future of the Church in the United States.

With every best wish, I am, 

Sincerely in Christ,

Rev. Msgr. Joseph M. Hendricks

Pastor