From the Archbishop’s blog:
I offer further reflections about the events at the March for Life involving Covington Catholic High School students. Today’s letter sent by Bishops Roger Foys to Covington Catholic High School parents is a good description of what has transpired since the events at the March for Life.
Since I joined with Bishop Foys in condemning the alleged actions by Covington Catholic students, I apologize for what was a premature statement on my part based upon incomplete information. I very much regret the pain and disruption in the lives of the Covington Catholic community and in the broader Church and society.
I support Bishop Foys in his efforts to investigate fully what happened, to learn from mistakes, and to take any action needed to address the harm done to anyone from the events that occurred last Friday at the March for Life.
There is a great deal to be learned about the risk of responding to social media and media reports without additional analysis and especially the need to elevate our discourse and to foster the much-needed skills of listening, dialogue, and mutual understanding.
I credit the fighting spirit of the students, and their parents, who refused to allow themselves to be unjustly maligned. The world always needs Catholics with spines.
Thank God!
Good to see. This is not over, and does not need to be. It should be a wake up call for the bishops.
Polish Sejm member Dominik Tarcynski has invited the Covington Catholic students to come to Poland to speak at the Sejm.
Have I said I’m proud to have Polish ancestry? More than enough?
“I credit the fighting spirit of the students, and their parents, who refused to allow themselves to be unjustly maligned. The world always needs Catholics with spines.” Well said, DMcC!
One of the 2019 wall calendars on sale at the Paschal Lamb in DEC featured 12 paintings of famous battles depicting European Christians saving Western civilization from the invading hordes. Wish I hadn’t hesitated; by JAN the calendars were sold out.
Good point Archbishop Kurtz:
“There is a great deal to be learned about the risk of responding to social media and media reports without additional analysis and especially the need to elevate our discourse and to foster the much-needed skills of listening, dialogue, and mutual understanding.”
It would be nice if he felt the same way about Traditional and Conservative Catholics.
Was it poor judgment or malice that caused Kurtz’ (and the lay bureaucrats’) calumnious missives? Either way, it was no good.
He tipped his hand, but now he wants, “Never mind.”
I hope the diocese is named in the libel suit and pays millions. It seems the only way to make them repent. Too late to say you’re sorry, you child-hating rats.
I’m guessing poor judgement– they “know” that people are like this, and every time it’s been accused before they just assumed guilt, apologized “on behalf” of them and maybe punished the accused, and that was the end of it.
Cameras everywhere means that not just the actively malicious can get video. Same as how body cams (released with only enough editing to not be sued for innocent folks’ faces and bleeped for language) on cops totally destroyed the narrative established by the carefully edited and selected clips from before.
And the world needs Bishops with spines, ones who can empathize and apologize when needed. Wish Kurtz would be assigned to DC
[…] Archbishop Kurtz Apologizes […]
The “Rush to Judgment” of the Covington High School Students was very disappointing. It appears that many have forgotten the lessons we learned in our various classes about protecting children and teens. In our Archdiocese it’s called “Protecting God’s Children” and one of the first things we learn is “LISTEN TO THE CHILD OR TEEN!!!” And yet many Catholics, including some clergy, didn’t listen to the teens, and if they did they assumed they were lying.
Anyone who did this and is around children or young people needs an immediate review of their training.
I have reported several adults for inappropriate behavior with young people. If there’s anything I’ve learned it’s that I am responsible for listening to the children or young people, whether directly or indirectly, and reporting the incident to competent people who can do a thorough investigation. I will never say “That child or teen is lying”.
But that is exactly what many people did.
In our Archdiocese it’s called “Protecting God’s Children” and one of the first things we learn is “LISTEN TO THE CHILD OR TEEN!!!” And yet many Catholics, including some clergy, didn’t listen to the teens, and if they did they assumed they were lying.
*nod* I just had to do my yearly re-up for Virtus; I’d say I can’t imagine why I didn’t think of it, but I know why– the folks pushing these lessons never bother to listen, and haven’t since I was a kid. It’s a pretty good program, both for abuse and (oddly enough) terrorism awareness.
It isn’t what I had hoped for. Neither of these bishops has taken full responsibility for his part in piling the opprobrium on the innocent boys at a time they most needed encouragement and support. KUrtz regrets the “pain and disruption suffered”, not the “pain” he caused. Foys is sorry for those “offended”, not for the offense he caused. Purgatory awaits until complete restitution is made.
The only thing he (and Foys) is sorry about is that he got caught jumping on a “virtue-signalling” bandwagon, and it blew up in his face, and now he is forced to apologize as events have turned out. He has no spine, and I would not want him near my diocese (the bishop we got is weak enough, Kurtz would make it worse).
But read Archbishop Kurtz’s statement. Nowhere does he own his rush to judgment. He is sorry for the pain “in the lives of the Covington” people. Not the pain HE caused them by piling on. He joined Bishop Foys, i.e., Foys did it first. He looks forward to the full investigation (?!?!?) Enough equivocating and couching. Apologize for not shepherding your people, Bishop Kurtz.