Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
Earlier this week, I retrieved the morning paper from the driveway of the bishop’s residence and was greeted with the front-page headline, “Diocese stymies clergy abuse investigation,” accompanied by a photo of the “Diocese of Camden” sign that sits in front of our Chancery building on Market Street. I was deeply saddened by this. My sadness turned to perplexity, however, when I read, “Camden Bishop Joseph Andrew Williams declined to comment.” I was completely unaware of any invitation on behalf of the Philadelphia Inquirer to speak about the case currently being presented to the New Jersey Supreme Court, and I thought the journalists had made a mistake. They had not. The mistake was on our end, as I never received the respectful invitation of Chris Palmer to explain our legal position prior to the completion of their reporting. While it is understandable that difficulties with synchronization can happen during an episcopal transition, I regret that this oversight occurred – especially related to such a sensitive media inquiry. I have always had a deep respect for the vocation of journalists and would have been eager to sit down with him to discuss this important matter. I have since reached out to Mr. Palmer and his colleague Aliya Schneider to apologize for this miscommunication and to offer to meet with them in person at their earliest convenience.
As dismayed as I was by what I read in the paper that morning, I can only imagine how much more dismaying it was for a survivor of clergy sexual abuse to read such a headline. It must be demoralizing to hear the Church preach transparency and then, apparently, to fight against the very transparency it preaches. I know this firsthand because I was contacted by a survivor regarding this very case when a similar article was published about it in an online news outlet in February. This person, who is a man of deep faith, wrote me a four-page letter outlining his “great alarm” at the Diocese of Camden’s “legal maneuvering” to keep a grand jury from investigating clerical sexual abuse and its institutional coverup in New Jersey. He challenged me to have the courage to respond to his letter, and I accepted his challenge. In fact, I did better. I offered to drive to northwestern New Jersey the following week to meet him in person and to hear his story and listen to his point of view. The dialogue that followed was outstanding. In fact, it was so fruitful that we decided to continue the conversation in a virtual format, with action steps after each meeting. I have been greatly edified by our exchange and can say that it has helped me to be a better bishop and to work toward a healthier, more transparent Church.
I am new to being a diocesan bishop and new to the complex legal arguments and proceedings involved in the case currently before the New Jersey Supreme Court, but please be assured that I am diligently studying our current legal position and am consulting survivors, fellow bishops, legal experts and diocesan officers – as well as my own conscience – so that I will do the right thing by the survivors, the Church and State of New Jersey. I ask your prayers for all involved.
Sincerely in Christ,
Bishop Joseph A. Williams
Diocese of Camden
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