By Dan Sullivan
Catholic Herald
Program addresses keeping young people safe
SUPERIOR -- Earlier this month, at three sites in the Diocese of Superior, parish leaders and others responsible for training catechists received training on how to create safe and sacred places for children and youth.
The main presenter was Fr. Gerard J. McGlone, S.J., an assistant professor in the department of psychiatry at Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington, D.C.
McGlone has been a staff therapist at the National Institute for the Study, Prevention and Treatment of Sexual Trauma. Since 2002 he has spoken at numerous parishes and schools, and has been a consultant to various dioceses and religious orders.
He is also the lead author on a manual entitled "Creating Safe and Sacred Places." This resource for Catholic schools and parishes is the first of its kind. Each parish in the diocese has received a copy of the book.
The goal of the day was to train trainers. "We had to do this in order to be in compliance with the (U.S. bishops') charter audit, "said Deacon Roger Cadotte, director of the Bishop George A. Hammes Center for Religious Education and Youth Ministry in Haugen. "We have to provide this safe environment training for children and youth and these people will take it back to their parish."
The information, Cadotte said, will also be passed on to provide training to children and youth themselves. "It will help create awareness for children and youth," he said.
McGlone said the idea of creating safe and scared places for children and youth goes back to the original Gospel message. Jesus spoke clearly about the fact that children must have a safe place.
"The inspiration for our book is responding to the Gospel and the crisis in the church," McGlone said. "The goals are simple -- they are about knowledge, being able to identify sexual abuse in the church and in society. The second goal is prevention and the third goal is to heal."
The book is structured to address each of those goals through information, teaching the teachers of children, and teaching the children and their parents.
"Lessons in the book are for each of these audiences," McGlone said. "At the end of the book there is a ritual of healing taken from the Catholic tradition."
The charter calls for parishes and schools to establish policies and procedures for dealing with and responding to sexual abuse. At the training sessions, participants were also reminded of the procedures for reporting possible incidents of sexual abuse. (See box on the left.)
During the sessions, some possible parish guidelines were suggested, including:
* At least two adults be present for events involving children or young adults.
* Children should be released only to parents or guardians.
* A signed parental permission form, including medical treatment information, should be received before taking children or youth off school or church premises.
* Only qualified, licensed and insured drivers may transport children to and from parish or school sponsored events.
* Obtain written parental approval for any young person to participate in athletic events or any other activity that involves potential risk.
"We know in society that sex offenders look for any opportunity to be around children," McGlone said. "The largest group of offenders are opportunistic offenders. Prevention begins with not giving the opportunity to someone you don't know. The second prevention is to know who is with your child."
Prevention, McGlone said, begins with education and knowledge. Parents should be encouraged to ask their children where they are going and to get involved in supervising their activities.
"It's a simple concept of love," McGlone said. "We say in the book, time is vital. That means you need to be with your child, you need know who is in their lives and don't assume anything."
Catholic teaching, McGlone said, tell us that the human body is sacred. "It is a gift from God and should be used wisely," he said
McGlone stressed that it is important to have open and honest discussions with children. "The primary task of parenting is to make sure they are the first to provide healthy conversation about sexuality so that the schools and parishes develop their programs and education out of the family conversation," he said. "A key aspect of our training is that you don't want a child's first conversation about sexuality and their bodies to be about abnormal sexuality."
Parents, educators and parish leaders, McGlone said, need to be proactive and not reactive. "The best way to be proactive is to provide a safe environment for an open conversation about healthy sexuality," he said. "That is the best form of prevention."
Fr. John Anderson, pastor of Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in Ladysmith, said that although he had heard and learned from various diocesan officials who have spoken on the issue presented, he was impressed with McGlone. "He did a exceptional job and it was a new voice," Anderson said.
From McGlone, Anderson said he discovered the Catholic Church is now taking a stand and being a leader in the protection of children. "We are now leading the way," he said. "In a proactive way, we are taking a leadership role and looking at our past and learning from it."
Anderson said following this conference he and his staff began the training process in his parish. "We have our training schedule and it will be expended next year," Anderson said.
Diana Maki, coordinator of religious education at Holy Family Parish in Woodruff, admitted going into the day a bit apprehensive. "At first I thought it was being done as a reactionary move by the diocese in response to the U.S. bishops' charter," Maki said.
"After reading over the materials and listening to the presentations I discovered that it is a proactive stance that the church is taking on a challenge for our entire community as whole. Sexual abuse is not just a Catholic problem," said Maki.
Reporting sexual abuse
If you know of an incident of sexual abuse of a minor by a priest, deacon, parish employee or volunteer, please report it to:
Fr. Philip J. Heslin
Moderator of the Curia
Diocese of Superior
715-392-2937, ext. 106
If you prefer to report an incident to someone other than a priest, please call our diocesan coordinator of assistance:
Barbara Dickenson, MSW
Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker and Diplomate in Clinical Forensic Counseling
715-398-7765
Any current incidents of sexual abuse of a minor by anyone must be reported to the local county social services department, police, or sheriff's office.
© Superior Catholic Herald, 2004