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Bishop Edward J. Burns of Dallas joins an immigration march July 20 in El Paso, Texas. (CNS photo/Jorge Salgado)
September 13, 2018
David Sedeno
Catholic News Service
DALLAS – Dallas Bishop Edward J. Burns has asked Pope Francis for an extraordinary synod to address issues in the latest Catholic clergy sex abuse crisis, including “abuse of power, clericalism, accountability and the understanding of transparency in the church.”
The letter, posted to the Diocese of Dallas’ website Aug. 30, was signed by the bishop and priests who serve in leadership roles in various consultative bodies in the diocese. It had been sent earlier in the day to Archbishop Christophe Pierre, the U.S. papal nuncio, so that it could be forwarded to the pope as soon as possible.
“The current crisis of sexual abuse by clergy, the cover-up by leaders in the church and the lack of fidelity of some have caused great harm,” the letter said. It suggests that this synod should include topics such as “the care and the safeguard of children and the vulnerable, outreach to victims, the identity and lifestyle of the clergy, the importance of healthy human formation within the presbyterate/religious community, etc.”
“We are working diligently at the local level to deal with these issues but increasing accountability at all levels of the church is of utmost importance,” Bishop Burns said in a statement. He also noted that the priests who signed the letter “believe a real solution must be found to the heinous issue of clergy abuse of minors.”
In a news conference Aug. 30, Bishop Burns told reporters that he did not know whether the letter would move the pope to call a synod, but he said that numerous priests encouraged him to send it anyway.
The bishop’s call for the special synod follows a similar one from the bishop of Portsmouth, England, on Aug. 22 and comes after weeks of news of clergy abuse, not only across the United States and abroad, but also within the Diocese of Dallas.
“If we are ever going to restore trust or credibility in the church, it’s only going to come after we consistently do what is right,” Bishop Burns said Aug. 26 at St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church in Plano.
“My friends, let me say to you that if this church of ours has to go through a purification, so be it,” he said to applause. “And let us pray for the fire of the Holy Spirit, so as to purify us, in what we need to do, in being the church that we say we are. I’m not going to cover my ears or cover my eyes or cover my mouth and we are going to look at this head-on.”