Dioceses in Boston Province transition to nationwide reporting system

WORCESTER –  The Diocese of Worcester is joining with dioceses around the country to promote a nationwide system to report abuse by a bishop. 

The Catholic Bishop Abuse Reporting, or CBAR, is being managed by Convercent Inc., an independent third-party system for reporting ethical abuse in organizations.

In response to the apostolic letter by Pope Francis in May 2019 “Vos extis lux mundi,” (You are the Light of the World”), the bishops of the Boston Province in August 2019 agreed to use a third-party system, EthicsPoint, already established in the Archdiocese of Boston, to report abuse by Catholic bishops. The Boston Province includes the Archdiocese of Boston along with the diocese of Fall River, Springfield and Worcester in Massachusetts and the dioceses of Portland, Maine; Manchester, New Hampshire and Burlington, Vermont. EthicsPoint is an independent and confidential reporting system designed exclusively for the reporting of allegations of sexual misconduct of a cardinal, bishop or auxiliary bishop of the dioceses in the Boston Province. The system is independent from any of the (arch)diocesan websites and intranets and is specific to the conduct of a cardinal or bishop. 

As part of their commitment to carry out the papal directive across the country, the U.S. bishops voted last year to support development of a nationwide reporting system. They chose Convercent, another independent, third-party entity that provides intake services to private institutions for reports of sensitive topics, such as sexual harassment, through a secure, confidential and professional platform. 

Individuals who report an allegation will be provided a case number and password to access the online portal to monitor the progress of their allegation. Individuals making a report will be encouraged to contact local law enforcement if they believe a crime has been committed.

The Convercent reporting service was launched publicly on March 16 at ReportBishopAbuse.org. Reports are also accepted over the phone at 800-276-1562.

Anyone who has already filed a complaint through EthicsPoint can continue to monitor the progress on that platform, which will remain active.

Types of Allegations

It is important to note that Catholic Bishop Abuse Reporting service will accept the following types of allegations against bishops and cardinals: forcing someone to perform or submit to sexual acts through violence, threat, or abuse of authority; performing sexual acts with a minor or vulnerable person; producing, exhibiting, possessing, or distributing child pornography, or recruiting or inducing a minor or a vulnerable person to participate in pornographic exhibitions. Another type of abuse is if a diocesan or eparchial bishop, or a cleric overseeing a diocese/eparchy in the absence of a diocesan or eparchial bishop, intentionally interferes with a civil or church investigation into allegations of sexual abuse committed by another cleric or religious.

When a report is received, it is forwarded to the metropolitan of the Boston Province, currently Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley. If the allegation were to be made against the metropolitan or he is unable to initiate the investigation, it is forwarded to the senior suffragan bishop, who is the bishop who has the longest tenure as an ordinary of his diocese in the province. In either case, they are assisted by a qualified layperson who would also receive a copy of the allegation. The assessment by the metropolitan or suffragan and the layperson’s report will then be sent to the apostolic nuncio in Washington, D.C., who forwards it to the Vatican, which has 30 days to determine if a formal investigation is warranted. Any subsequent investigation must be completed in 90 days and submitted to the Vatican for a final judgment.

 Complaints for other personnel

CBAR does not replace existing reporting systems for complaints against priests, deacons, religious or laity, which fall under the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People and its associated Norms. CBAR was designed to respond only to complaints against bishops for issues related to sexual misconduct.

The reporting of sexual misconduct by anyone in diocesan ministry who is not a bishop, such as priests, deacons, religious brothers and sisters, or lay persons working or volunteering for the Church, should continue to be handled in accordance with the Diocese of Worcester’s child protection policy and with local police or the district attorney. The diocesan child protection policy can be obtained from the diocesan Office for Healing and Prevention. Its webpage is worcesterdiocese.org/healing-prevention-1. Its phone number is 508-929-4363.