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American Morning

Interview with Cardinal Adam Joseph Maida

Aired April 23, 2002 - 08:15   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: At the Vatican this morning, 12 U.S. cardinals summoned by the pope. They arrived earlier today for the first part of a two day summit meeting on the church sex abuse crisis. After the first session, two U.S. church leaders said the church already has some guidelines for dealing with sex abuse by priests. But they say the real issue is the church's credibility. But one question that may be dividing the Catholic leaders is whether Boston's Cardinal Law should resign.

Among the American cardinals meeting in the Vatican, Detroit's archbishop, Cardinal Adam Joseph Maida. He joins us now from Rome.

Good morning, Cardinal. Thank you very much for being with us.

CARDINAL ADAM JOSEPH MAIDA, ARCHBISHOP OF DETROIT: Good morning, Paula. It's a real joy to be with you.

ZAHN: Thank you.

So, Cardinal Maida, we have been told by two cardinals that our correspondents spoke with that the issue of Cardinal Law's potential resignation didn't even come up at all in today's meetings with the pope. Do you expect it to be raised tomorrow?

MAIDA: Well, I don't think so. That's not the agenda for the meeting. Our focus is on the scandal, the crisis we have in the United States. I know that he's involved here, but the question of the resignation has not come up and I don't believe it will.

ZAHN: Do you...

MAIDA: I think it's something maybe that belongs, it's a decision that he would make and I don't think it's for us to advise him or to make any recommendations...

ZAHN: After that...

MAIDA: ... except that he stay on and...

ZAHN: Right. Sorry about the delay here.

After that historic meeting this morning, there were two cardinals who took questions from reporters and the question that was posed was is it, is there a belief at the Vatican that this was not a scandal so much involving the priests, but the activities of the bishops above them. How would you answer that?

MAIDA: Well, I, yes, well, I think that the, obviously we had some priests who were involved in behavior which was inappropriate and even criminal. But then the focus is, I think, on the hierarchy, the way we've managed the crisis. But I think there are also explanations for that. But I guess we haven't done our work in explaining why and how this happened.

I think we did our best under the circumstances, with the knowledge that we had, and I know that going forward we'll do much better. And one of the purposes of our meeting here is to focus on what went wrong, what did we do that was not right and how can we improve on our M.O., our method of operation?

ZAHN: And, I know, Cardinal, you say you believe there are explanations for the activities of archbishops, but what would be the explanation for cardinals moving priests from parish to parish who abused hundreds of children? How could that have happened?

MAIDA: I don't think anybody did that intentionally. I think Cardinal Law, in being accused of doing that and having done it, said that he didn't have full knowledge of all the facts in the case. And so he didn't do it intentionally or criminally.

But it is a fact we have to deal with. And I don't think that, you know, what we're talking about is the case in Boston, but I think most of us have, when we have these problems before us have more, have responded according to the procedures that we have in place. And those procedures keep changing and evolving as we get to know more about the individuals and the situations and the problem itself.

And so that many years ago this was just thought to be a sin. I'm talking 30, 40 years ago. Today we view it as a crime. We see a terrible thing done to children, to families, to victims and we're very, very sorry about that and we, it just can't happen again. And we're going to do everything in our power to ensure our people that the children and families are safe and where we have in any way hurt anyone, we tried to correct whatever went wrong.

ZAHN: And Cardinal, I noticed that a number of times this morning you referred to sex abuse by priests of children as a crime. You yourself have weathered a crisis in your own church, charges brought by a former major league baseball player, Tom Paciorek and his three brothers. And they haven't been satisfied by what happened because the priest that was accused of this abuse was removed but never convicted of anything.

Was that a mistake?

MAIDA: Well, it was a mistake insofar as at the time that these happened there was no knowledge of this activity in those days. And that's been part of the problem. The victims often would want to keep this quiet. Sometimes the families, for whatever reason, would come to the bishop or if there's a pastor and make the complaint but they didn't want to be involved, they didn't want to take it any further. And furthermore, in these particular cases, people having suffered over these years are coming out and explaining their suffering. We're trying to react as best that we can.

In the Paciorek case, I was even in school with either Mr. Paciorek or one of his cousins way back there and I know the family. And it's, I'm just, you don't know how sorry I am that this has happened.

And that's the great scandal and the great wrong that's existent here, you know, where people trust you. They bring you into the family. The kids trust you. And to break that trust, for me that's a huge, huge scandal. It's a huge sin and it's a despicable crime.

And so going forward, what we have initiated in Detroit is anybody with an allegation come forward and we're going right to the civil authorities who will process this according to law. That's the way to do it and that's the way to handle it.

ZAHN: Cardinal, my other...

MAIDA: On the other hand, I have to say...

ZAHN: Carry on. Yes, go ahead.

MAIDA: On the other hand, sometimes people won't come and tell you if they know that they've got to go to the police and the civil authorities to make a complaint. And so, and I would prefer that wherever this is done, we come clean, that we try to preserve as much as we can the confidentiality of the victims. But we need to root out the kind of priest or other people who would take advantage of our young people, our young children.

And this goes beyond just priesthood, too, because I think this kind of activity goes on throughout society. It's a human problem and I would hope that one of the fallouts from our experience will be that we can make children safer in whatever environment they live.

ZAHN: Yes, I think we all share that same hope.

Cardinal Maida, thank you very much for your time and good luck with those meetings tomorrow.

MAIDA: Thank you, Paula, and God bless you.

ZAHN: Thank you.

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