Letter from Father Nagel on abuse scandal within the church
Dear St. John Parishioners and Friends,
Peace be with you! Given the recent darkness surrounding the Church of both the failings of former Cardinal McCarrick and the Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report of over 1000 children and adults victimized and abused at the hands of Catholic priests, I wanted to reach out to you personally in these very sad and broken times of the Church. You may be feeling like me… angry, saddened and sick about what has happened over the past years and cannot begin to fathom how deeply the devil has wounded innocent people of the Church. In addition, one of our local Catholic High Schools, Roncalli, has been in the news and there is much confusion about the Churches beautiful teaching on marriage. Even within the Church, people are standing opposed to one another on tough issues of the times.
You may be asking yourself, “Why should I trust the Church or how do we go on given the darkness hovering over the Catholic Church?” I know I asked this question in 2002 when the Boston scandal was revealed. In fact, I was in the process of seminary application and withdrew my app in January of that year. After working through the initial anger, I began to pray and ask God, “Why.” I quickly came to the revelation that God was cleansing His Church and that to run away would only add to the problem and allow satan to win. Thus, after a time of initial healing, I completed the application process and began seminary that fall.
Not unlike then, today we are again facing grave evil working to break down the Church and its people. I pray that you can rise up with me, and fight this good fight! I know it is a lot to ask of you and will not be an easy journey ahead. If there is one thing I have come to know about authentic Catholicism… it is not easy to live. You will be challenged, discredited by the secular world and even persecuted from time to time. This is the way of the Cross of Christ. We can only be closer to heaven and the Eternal Resurrection when we embrace the Cross!
I would also like to address the safety of our own children in the parish. As you may know, we follow the USCCB and Archdiocesan standards given us Called Safe and Sacred. All employees of the Church as well as all volunteers who have any interface with children are required to participate in Safe and Sacred which includes a criminal background check. We place the highest level of protection of the innocent and vulnerable as a pillar of expectation in this parish and in our Church. You can learn more about Safe and Sacred here: http://www.archindyhr.org/safe-sacred/.
Please know that if you need to talk, both Deacon Dave and I are there for you. You can contact either of us via email: fathernagel@gmail.com or david.bartolowits@stjohnsindy.org. You may also call us at 317.635.2021. We are both happy to listen, talk through challenges and support you in any way possible. You may also want to access my homily from this past weekend which addresses the priest abuse in the Church at: https://vimeo.com/285840883. Know of our daily prayers for you in these days and weeks ahead. May God bless you and give you His strength and courage in these times of trial. And, may God bless and heal His Holy Catholic Church.
In Christ’s Love,
Father Rick Nagel
Peace be with you! Given the recent darkness surrounding the Church of both the failings of former Cardinal McCarrick and the Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report of over 1000 children and adults victimized and abused at the hands of Catholic priests, I wanted to reach out to you personally in these very sad and broken times of the Church. You may be feeling like me… angry, saddened and sick about what has happened over the past years and cannot begin to fathom how deeply the devil has wounded innocent people of the Church. In addition, one of our local Catholic High Schools, Roncalli, has been in the news and there is much confusion about the Churches beautiful teaching on marriage. Even within the Church, people are standing opposed to one another on tough issues of the times.
You may be asking yourself, “Why should I trust the Church or how do we go on given the darkness hovering over the Catholic Church?” I know I asked this question in 2002 when the Boston scandal was revealed. In fact, I was in the process of seminary application and withdrew my app in January of that year. After working through the initial anger, I began to pray and ask God, “Why.” I quickly came to the revelation that God was cleansing His Church and that to run away would only add to the problem and allow satan to win. Thus, after a time of initial healing, I completed the application process and began seminary that fall.
Not unlike then, today we are again facing grave evil working to break down the Church and its people. I pray that you can rise up with me, and fight this good fight! I know it is a lot to ask of you and will not be an easy journey ahead. If there is one thing I have come to know about authentic Catholicism… it is not easy to live. You will be challenged, discredited by the secular world and even persecuted from time to time. This is the way of the Cross of Christ. We can only be closer to heaven and the Eternal Resurrection when we embrace the Cross!
I would also like to address the safety of our own children in the parish. As you may know, we follow the USCCB and Archdiocesan standards given us Called Safe and Sacred. All employees of the Church as well as all volunteers who have any interface with children are required to participate in Safe and Sacred which includes a criminal background check. We place the highest level of protection of the innocent and vulnerable as a pillar of expectation in this parish and in our Church. You can learn more about Safe and Sacred here: http://www.archindyhr.org/safe-sacred/.
Please know that if you need to talk, both Deacon Dave and I are there for you. You can contact either of us via email: fathernagel@gmail.com or david.bartolowits@stjohnsindy.org. You may also call us at 317.635.2021. We are both happy to listen, talk through challenges and support you in any way possible. You may also want to access my homily from this past weekend which addresses the priest abuse in the Church at: https://vimeo.com/285840883. Know of our daily prayers for you in these days and weeks ahead. May God bless you and give you His strength and courage in these times of trial. And, may God bless and heal His Holy Catholic Church.
In Christ’s Love,
Father Rick Nagel
Resources to keep Our Children Safe
Archdiocese of Indianapolis | Circle of Grace: http://oce.archindy.org/circle-of-grace.aspx
Archdiocese of Indianapolis | Safe & Sacred: http://www.archindyhr.org/safe-sacred/
Learn more about Religious Education at St. John's: http://www.stjohnsindy.org/religious-ed.html
Archdiocese of Indianapolis | Safe & Sacred: http://www.archindyhr.org/safe-sacred/
Learn more about Religious Education at St. John's: http://www.stjohnsindy.org/religious-ed.html
Homily Response from Father Nagel on Scandal