There are “twin crises” of leadership and sexual abuse, said Kathleen McChesney, a former FBI agent and former head of what is now the Secretariat for the Protection of Child and Youth Protection at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. “Survivors have been telling us for 15 years that there are two crises.” (Catholic News Service in The Pilot)

Permanent solutions to the church’s sexual abuse crisis are going to require a greater level of lay participation and more legal muscle.

“These were conclusions discussed at two events in Washington: a lawyers’ panel at the Catholic Information Center, sponsored by the Thomas More Society Jan. 31, and a media conference Feb. 2 following the Leadership Roundtable’s Catholic Partnership Summit Feb. 1-2.

“The summit, which included three cardinals, university and college presidents and canon lawyers representing 43 dioceses, is expected to issue a document with recommendations in a couple of weeks.

“The key term at both discussions was ’emerging best practices’ for identifying abusers and bringing them to justice.

“Some of the participants in the summit spoke to the press in a teleconference afterward.

“There are ‘twin crises’ of leadership and sexual abuse, said Kathleen McChesney, a former FBI agent and former head of what is now the Secretariat for the Protection of Child and Youth Protection at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. ‘Survivors have been telling us for 15 years that there are two crises.'”

By Catholic News Service in The Pilot — Read more …