Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Publishes List of Clergy Accused of Sex Abuse

Cardinal Sean O'Malley, Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Boston

Photo courtesy: news.bostonherald.com

Cardinal Sean O’Malley, the archbishop of the Archdiocese of Boston in the state of Massachusetts, USA, published an online list of priests who have been accused or found guilty of child sex abuse in the last 60 years.

In a letter of August 15, 2011, the archbishop wrote, “The archdiocese is continually evaluating its policies and practices to ensure that our child protection and abuse prevention efforts are further strengthened,” reports the Catholic News Agency (CNA).

The cardinal further said, “Having met with hundreds of survivors, I know firsthand the scars you carry. And I carry with me every day the pain of the Church’s failures.”

“My deepest hope and prayer is that the efforts I am announcing today will provide some additional comfort and healing for those who have suffered from sexual abuse by clergy and will continue to strengthen our efforts to protect God’s children,” he wrote.

It is noteworthy that in the past several decades, the Archdiocese of Boston had been covering up hundreds of priestly sex abuse cases regarding children and, ultimately in the first half of the 2000s, these criminal activities and cover-ups exploded in the news media. The Catholic bishops of the USA then were forced to come up with measures to punish the culprits and take precautions on the prevention of further clergy sex abuse.

For further details, you may read the following:

• Cardinal Sean O'Malley's Letter on Publication of the List of Clergy Accused of Sexual Abuse of a Child
• Categories of Archdiocesan Clergy Accused of Sexual Abuse Of a Child
• A History of [Clergy Sex Abuse] Secrecy, Coverups in Boston Archdiocese
• Charter for Protection of Children and Young People (U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops)
• Archdiocese of Boston (website)
• Cardinal Sean's Blog (Sharing his reflections and experiences)