Confidential Policies: A Blatant Violation of the Stated Goals of Transparency and Accountability

2024-11-22

This is my comment to the blog post, “The Right Response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse“.

As the Franciscan Friars were a sponsor of the Health and Integrity in Church and Ministry Conference, I want to make a comment concerning my experience coming forward to them to make a report of abuse.

I interacted with their Professional Standards and Safeguarding Office (PSSO) from the fall of 2022 through the summer of 2024. Two of the authors on the above post were my contacts in this office: Stephen Crittenden and David Leary. I interacted with them because I was told that they would offer me “pastoral help in the form of counselling” and that there would be an “independent investigation”.

After a very painful period when I realized I had been blatantly lied to, I have repeatedly asked for a copy of their policies. They have refused.

This is inconsistent with the goals stated in the above document which states: “… the creation of healthier institutions lay in adopting governance models that are transparent, accountable, inclusive of all the People of God, and genuinely dialogical, participatory and collaborative…”

I am asking Stephen Crittenden of the Franciscan PSSO to please give me a copy of their policies.

I looked for compassion, but there was none, for comfort, but found none. Instead they gave me poison for my food; and for my thirst they gave me vinegar. ^{Psalm 69}