Archbishop Sean O’Malley has sent a letter to pastors, principals, and religious education coordinators updating the status of the Talking about Touching child safety program. Basically, he says that the archdiocese is developing a specifically Catholic child safety education program, but meanwhile we’ll continue to use a modified version of Talking about Touching.
He claims that Talking about Touching has undergone a review by a committee of parents, principals, teachers, pastors, a theologian, and religious education leaders headed by Bishop Richard Malone, as well as the Office of Child Advocacy, which was the office that proposed the program in the first place. The archbishop says, “The program as modified is consistent with a Christian view of the dignity of the person and the means to upholding that dignity.” What he doesn’t do is address the problematic aspects of the program, that it was developed by a group founded by a pro-prostitution organization and a “Wiccan, Dianic” sex priestess or somesuch. As the saying goes, You can put a dress and makeup on a pig, and take it out to dinner, but it will still be a pig.”
Archbishop O’Malley also says that they’re establishing yet another committee, this one of pastors and religious education coordinators, to suggest further modification that might be needed.
We must be able to assure our parents that every program we use is developmentally appropriate, that options have been taken to minimize unnecessarily explicit details that might upset children and that the program respects the rights of parents and protects the innocence of children.
How about rather than just “minimizing” the exposure of children to unecessarily explicit details, we eliminate that exposure?
TAT is what happens when the hierarchy gets scared of the publicity around their malfeasance.
Remember how we got this ridiculous program? It was part of an unwritten “consent decree” with the Massachusetts AG’s office. The archdiocese went on damage-control mode: they agreed to suspend due process regarding accused priests; they agreed to a lay-led abuse policy review board; and they agreed to FORCE parishes to teach the TAT program, because this was the way to “protect the children.”
I’ve got news for you: the kids don’t need the Church’s protection from predators in their family, or in society at large. What they need the Church to do is police its own. They don’t need the Church to suspend its mission to educate about the faith and implement IN ITS PLACE an education program to help them spot predators.
Make no mistake: the program that the diocese has implemented, which purports to teach children how to spot predators, is taking time away from the precious few moments that schools and CCD programs have to teach true faith. There is NOT unlimited time in which to accomplish both tasks—CCD kids are there (at most) 1 hour per week, and that includes lateness, snacks, classroom discipline, attendance—you get the picture. When it’s all put together, the teacher gets about 40 minutes/week with the kids—and out of that small amount of time, they want us to take out a HUGE segment TO TEACH SOMETHING THAT IS BETTER TAUGHT AT HOME!!!
In addition to Dom’s legitimate moral objections to teaching this program, there are loads of us—priests and laymen—who recoil at the imposition of another obligation because of the failure of our leaders to simply DO THEIR JOBS!
Amen and Halleluyah Father E! (Great handle, by the way!)
Amen, Father Elijah.
If you want your kids taught right, get a copy of the Baltimore Catechism and do it yourself.