In making his announcement yesterday on Long Island, Bishop Murphy issued the broadest public statement about the issue of child sexual abuse among the New York area bishops.
B7 Report Criticizes Bishops A report by the Massachusetts attorney general on the sexual abuse of children by priests in the Boston Archdiocese criticized two New York-area bishops, Thomas V. Daily of Brooklyn and William Murphy of Long Island.
Two New York-area bishops, Thomas V. Daily of Brooklyn and William Murphy of Long Island, came in for a strong share of blame in a report issued yesterday by the Massachusetts attorney general on the sexual abuse of children by priests in the Boston Archdiocese.
Educational institutions located in the area include Bishop State Community College, Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, Spring Hill College, the University of Mobile and the University of South Alabama.
I am very happy to report the maternal mortality rate in the catchment area of Bishop Asili has been drastically reduced because of access to this care.
In some areas, the bishop in charge of the diocese told Catholics to stay, but laypeople were more likely to leave or stay depending on the stance of the local priest with whom they had regular contact; in many cases, such as in Hanoi, a majority of priests ignored their bishop and left anyway.
By seeking greater clarity and precision in certain areas, the bishops and the Holy See will be able to move forward to achieve the recognitio necessary to implement the norms fully".
Another area in which Bishop Egan was very successful, and where there is a high interest in seeing a continuation, is in priesthood vocations.
In America's religious marketplace, notes Chris Sugden, of Anglican Mainstream, a pressure-group, people who are dissatisfied with their parishes or bishops simply get up and leave.One hard reality is the emergence of transcontinental alliances of liberals and conservatives, undermining the ancient Christian principle that in each geographical area only one bishop should have authority.
The stepped-up activities among Catholic dioceses in the New York area come as bishops across the country face growing pressure to reassure their parishioners and shed light on their child sexual abuse policies, which vary in content, openness and willingness to turn over information to law enforcement agencies.
