• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Catholic Review

Catholic Review

Inspiring the Archdiocese of Baltimore

Menu
  • Home
  • News
        • Local News
        • World News
        • Vatican News
        • Obituaries
        • Featured Video
        • En Español
        • Sports News
        • Official Clergy Assignments
        • Schools News
  • Commentary
        • Contributors
          • Question Corner
          • George Weigel
          • Elizabeth Scalia
          • Michael R. Heinlein
          • Effie Caldarola
          • Guest Commentary
        • CR Columnists
          • Archbishop William E. Lori
          • Rita Buettner
          • Christopher Gunty
          • George Matysek Jr.
          • Mark Viviano
          • Father Joseph Breighner
          • Father Collin Poston
          • Robyn Barberry
          • Hanael Bianchi
          • Amen Columns
  • Entertainment
        • Events
        • Movie & Television Reviews
        • Arts & Culture
        • Books
        • Recipes
  • About Us
        • Contact Us
        • Our History
        • Meet Our Staff
        • Photos to own
        • Books/CDs/Prayer Cards
        • CR Media platforms
        • Electronic Edition
  • Advertising
  • Shop
        • Purchase Photos
        • Books/CDs/Prayer Cards
        • Magazine Subscriptions
        • Archdiocesan Directory
  • CR Radio
        • CR Radio
        • Protagonistas de Fe
  • News Tips
  • Subscribe
Bishop James V. Johnston Jr. of Kansas City-St. Joseph, Mo., chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on the Protection of Children and Young People, listens to a question during a Nov. 17, 2021, session of the bishops' fall general assembly in Baltimore. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is the first in-person bishops' meeting since 2019. (CNS photo/Bob Roller)

Bishops agree to begin review of charter earlier than planned

November 17, 2021
By Dennis Sadowski
Catholic News Service
Filed Under: Child & Youth Protection, Feature, News, U.S. Bishops Meeting - Fall 2021, World News

Share
Share on Facebook
Share
Share this
Pin
Pin this
Share
Share on LinkedIn

BALTIMORE (CNS) — An update on the U.S. bishops’ “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People” will take place sooner than originally planned.

On Nov. 17, the second of two days of public sessions during their fall general assembly Nov. 15-18 in Baltimore, the bishops voted to begin the process of updating the charter in 2022 rather than in 2025. The vote was 230 bishops in favor of the plan and five bishops against it.

Bishop James V. Johnston Jr. of Kansas City-St. Joseph, Missouri, chairman of the Committee on the Protection of Children and Young People, told the bishops that events in recent years made it necessary to start the review sooner than expected.

The bishops most recently approved charter revisions in 2018 and set a seven-year period for future reviews. The review that led to these changes began in 2013 and took five years to complete because of various legal questions that arose as the process unfolded.

Among the events Bishop Johnston cited for starting the new review earlier were changes in the Code of Canon Law regarding penal sanctions in the church that take effect in December; Pope Francis’ May 2019 motu proprio, “Vos Estis Lux Mundi,” revising and clarifying norms and procedures for holding bishops and religious superiors accountable for protecting abusers; and the Vatican report on the investigation into allegations of abuse by Theodore McCarrick, former cardinal and archbishop of Washington.

“To wait until 2025 to begin our charter review is simply too long to wait,” Bishop Johnston said.

The review is expected to begin after the bishops’ spring general assembly in June, the bishop said. He did not provide a timeline for completion of the review.

The charter was originally established by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in June 2002. It is a comprehensive set of procedures for addressing allegations of sexual abuse of minors by Catholic clergy.

It includes guidelines for reconciliation, healing, accountability and prevention of future acts. Before the 2018 revisions, the charter had been revised twice before — in 2005 and 2011.

For the new review, input will be sought from several USCCB committees and offices, the leadership of men and women religious organizations, and “other organizations with expertise,” Bishop Johnston added.

Retired Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio of Brooklyn, New York, urged that the review be expanded to include events surrounding priests accused of abuse and the lengthy investigations surrounding such claims. He said that investigation that can take as long as two years is too long for a priest who is innocent of an allegation to be cleared by church officials.

The Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith Sept. 1 determined that allegations of sexual abuse of a minor made against Bishop DiMarzio were found “not to have the semblance of truth.” The allegations surfaced in November 2019 and took 10 months to be resolved.

Auxiliary Bishop Mark W. O’Connell of Boston suggested the review process also explore the possibility that the charter can be expanded to include vulnerable adults.

also see

In sunrise walk, bishops, survivors seek day of prayer to end sex abuse

U.S. bishops approve document on Eucharist and investing guidelines in Baltimore meeting

Bishops affirm dioceses’ sainthood causes for three U.S. laypeople

U.S. bishops approve Communion statement that aims to ‘retrieve and revive’ understanding

Bishops approve new socially responsible investment guidelines

In-person meeting finds bishops more reflective on meaning of Eucharist

Copyright © 2021 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops

Print Print

Share
Share on Facebook
Share
Share this
Pin
Pin this
Share
Share on LinkedIn

Primary Sidebar

Dennis Sadowski

Click here to view all posts from this author

For the latest news delivered twice a week via email or text message, sign up to receive our free enewsletter.

| MOST POPULAR |

  • Religious sisters played role in pope’s formation in grade school, N.J. province discovers

  • With an Augustinian in chair of St. Peter, order sees growing interest in vocations

  • Babe Ruth’s legacy continues to grace Archdiocese of Baltimore

  • Communicate hope with gentleness

  • ‘The Ritual’ seeks to portray exorcism respectfully

| Latest Local News |

Franciscan Sister Francis Anita Rizzo, who served in Baltimore for 18 years, dies at 95

Hundreds gather at Rebuilt Conference 2025 to ‘imagine what’s possible’ in parish ministry

Radio Interview: Dominican sister at Mount de Sales shares faith journey from astrophysics to religious life

Mount de Sales Dominican sister shares journey after pursuing science, finding faith 

Words spell success for archdiocesan students

| Latest World News |

Parishes will pay $80 million in Buffalo Diocese’s $150 million bankruptcy settlement

Papal diplomats must always defend poor, religious freedom, pope says

On a day of ‘national tragedy,’ Austria mourns 9 victims of high school shooting

Fathers of the Church: The Greek (or Eastern) Fathers

In move called a ‘dark day’ for residents, N.Y. Senate passes assisted suicide law

| Catholic Review Radio |

CatholicReview · Catholic Review Radio

Footer

Our Vision

Real Life. Real Faith. 

Catholic Review Media communicates the Gospel and its impact on people’s lives in the Archdiocese of Baltimore and beyond.

Our Mission

Catholic Review Media provides intergenerational communications that inform, teach, inspire and engage Catholics and all of good will in the mission of Christ through diverse forms of media.

Contact

Catholic Review
320 Cathedral Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
443-524-3150
mail@CatholicReview.org

 

Social Media

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent

  • Parishes will pay $80 million in Buffalo Diocese’s $150 million bankruptcy settlement
  • Papal diplomats must always defend poor, religious freedom, pope says
  • Franciscan Sister Francis Anita Rizzo, who served in Baltimore for 18 years, dies at 95
  • ‘No tengan miedo de hacer lo que El Señor quiere para nosotros’
  • On a day of ‘national tragedy,’ Austria mourns 9 victims of high school shooting
  • Hundreds gather at Rebuilt Conference 2025 to ‘imagine what’s possible’ in parish ministry
  • Fathers of the Church: The Greek (or Eastern) Fathers
  • In move called a ‘dark day’ for residents, N.Y. Senate passes assisted suicide law
  • Pope Leo’s core identity is Augustinian, say religious

Search

Membership

Catholic Media Assocation

Maryland-Delaware-DC Press Association

The Associated Church Press

© 2025 CATHOLIC REVIEW MEDIA, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

en Englishes Spanish
en en