Time to set our houses of worship in order

The Roman Catholic Church has taken a beating in recent weeks. It is impossible to stay up on the news and not be astounded at the frequent allegations made against both individual priests and the church hierarchy. The news has been painful to hear.

The charges are, after all, unthinkable. Not only have some priests been involved in unspeakable actions, but others including bishops have helped cover up those sins. Rather than being removed from ministry, priests were passed along to other churches where problems resurfaced.

Everyone in ministry, lay persons as well as ordained, has a sacred trust put in us. We are trusted because we work in the church. When someone breaks that trust through abuse—physical abuse, including sexual abuse, or emotional abuse—all of Christianity suffers.

Scripture teaches us that all of us Christians are the Body of Christ. We are all connected through our faith in the one Lord. The problems experienced by the Roman Catholic Church are not a Roman Catholic problem, they are a universal problem. Before any of us gets set to throw stones at another denomination, we need to remember that none of us is immune from the same problems.

Let’s be honest with one another. Camden County has had more of its share of sexual abuse cases. While none of these cases has been connected to our churches, the potential is there.

Certainly the structure of the Roman Catholic Church contributed to some of their problems. The church hierarchy within the Roman Catholic Church has had to admit great fault in some cases where the institution seems to have hidden abuse.

However, it is not only churches with a large hierarchy who are open to abuse. Churches who hire congregationally must be careful. Even more so non-denominational churches where there is no denominational structure in place to know of problems and make you aware of past abuse on the part of a potential employee. Each way of organizing your church life presents opportunities for abuse if the proper controls are not in place.

Churches are a natural gathering place for families. We want young children to come to church, and there meet Christians who can serve as role models for them. This sets up tremendous potential for abuse.

News reports suggest that the Roman Catholic Church is, belatedly, coming to terms with what this means for their organization. The rest of us should take the time to make sure our own houses are in order.

What controls does your church have in place to prevent abuse? Each of us should ask this question. Churches should be prepared to give an account of how they are ensuring a child’s safety.

How does your church check out potential volunteers working with children? Are police background checks done? Are people given time to become a part of the church, or are they thrust into some ministry with children as soon as they arrive expressing a desire to work with kids?

Are two adults present at all times with your children? I know well how difficult this last suggestion is. However, it is important for the children’s safety and for the protection of workers and volunteers who could be accused of abuse falsely.

Are any church volunteers spending non-church time with kids from the congregation? An adult (staff member or volunteer) spending time with a child away from church activities may be innocent enough. However, it should also send up a flag, as this scenario is where most cases of abuse take place, rather than within the context of organized activities.

Now is the time for each of us to consider how we as individual congregations can safeguard the trust people put in those of us who are ministers, our fellow staff, and volunteers. No honest person will mind if we do everything reasonable to protect the children in our churches.

Even if we put all the proper controls in place, we cannot completely end the potential for abuse. Nonetheless, if we don’t do everything we can do to safeguard the safety of our children we only have ourselves to blame.

(The Rev. Frank Logue is pastor of King of Peace Episcopal Church in Kingsland.)  

previous         Return to Religion Column page         next