Protection of minors: Card. DiNardo underscores role of lay people

By Robin Gomes

US Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, the Archbishop of Galveston-Houston, Texas, and president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is participating in the February 21-24 meeting in the Vatican on the “Protection of Minors in the Church”.   

On the sidelines of the meeting, he spoke to Seán Patrick Lovett about the role of lay people in helping tackle the clerical sexual abuse of minors in the Church.

Card. DiNardo expressed support for what fellow US Cardinal Blase Cupich said in his presentation on Friday about the role of the laity.   The USCCB president said the role of the laity was “very significant and crucial” in helping eradicate the problem of the abuse of minors as a Church. 

He said it is a “good and normal thing”, and not an exception, to have really well-experienced lay people in helping out on the issue. 

Card. DiNardo noted that he in the US every diocese has review boards, which he said are “incredibly helpful” to bishops to help discern and reach a decision regarding priests who have been accused.

Regarding passing on the US bishops’ expertise to bishops in other parts of the world that are culturally different, the 69-year old cardinal said it could be done in the “light of the cultural experiences that each place has”.