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American Morning

In Boston, Archbishop May be Close to Reaching a Settlement

Aired September 04, 2002 - 08:16   ET

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

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: From Boston this morning now, word that the archdiocese may be close to reaching a settlement with the victims of defrocked priest John Geoghan. According to the "Boston Globe," more than 80 plaintiffs would share about $10 million, about half the amount of an earlier deal the church backed out of. The sex abuse scandals certainly have created a huge problem in getting new priests and nuns, but in Milwaukee, the new archbishop now is on the offensive.
A day after Timothy Dolan took the reigns, the archdiocese started advertising on radio, trying to gain new recruits. Listen here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TIMOTHY DOLAN, ARCHBISHOP OF MILWAUKEE: I'm Archbishop Timothy Dolan, your new archbishop in Milwaukee. These days, I'm thanking god for the opportunity he's given me to serve you. But I also encourage you to consider if Jesus himself might be asking you to serve him and his church in an even more generous and wholehearted way. Yes, by taking your call as a committed, baptized Christian more seriously. Yes, by intensifying your love and service to your husband, wife, children, family, friends, classmates, community, parish.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: That is part of the advertisement.

And from Milwaukee today, the new archbishop, head of his own new god squad, Timothy Dolan, is our guest this morning.

Good to see you, Archbishop.

DOLAN: Good morning from Milwaukee, Bill.

HEMMER: This is something that is absolutely unique. Why did you pick this strategy?

DOLAN: I wish I could take credit for it, but it was actually the result of a lot of energy and creativity from Father Bob Stieffather (ph) and my own excellent vocations teams here in my new archdiocese in Milwaukee, and other dioceses throughout the country and religious orders have tried it, as well, Bill.

It is somewhat new, I think, in this time, because in this time a lot of Catholics, unfortunately, are thinking in terms of retreat and being quiet and kind of embarrassed. And here I think we just thought no, this is the time to speak out. This is the time to from challenge. This is the time to invite people to be part of the solution rather than the problem. So...

HEMMER: Listen, I know it's...

DOLAN: ... I think the time's right.

HEMMER: I know it's early. You say the time is right. What's the impact? Can you gauge it yet?

DOLAN: The only thing I could say, Bill, right now since my installation as the new archbishop of Milwaukee last Wednesday, I've been on the road and I've been meeting literally thousands of people. And one of the things that I'm so moved by is the number of young men and young women who come up to me and say, you know, we are thinking seriously that the lord might be inviting us to serve him and his church forever as a priest, as a sister or a brother.

Now I know that's just anecdotal. I know that's hardly a scientific statistic. But I'm very hopeful. I'm very optimistic that the time is right for a real springtime of vocations in the Catholic Church in the United States.

HEMMER: Listen to a small sample of some people who have heard these advertisements. We'll come back and talk about it.

Listen here.

DOLAN: OK.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a great approach, yes. You know, the priesthood is kind of declining today in terms of young people, so I think it's a good thing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If I was hearing an archbishop on the radio, I wouldn't certainly be like pleased with it. I would rather think of him as a higher level kind of person.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: Now, listen, archbishop, those guys are from Marquette University.

DOLAN: Ah, good.

HEMMER: Pretty much the target audience. Respond to that and also tell me why your bigger goal in this is really not young men and women but actually parents.

DOLAN: Yes, see parents are very important, Bill. One of the more chilling statistics in the past is that parents were beginning to waiver in encouraging their sons and daughters to consider religious vocation. I thank god that I think that trend, that tide has turned and that parents are back on the bandwagon. I think any priest, myself included, would say that one of the major ways through which the call of god comes in a vocation is through the encouragement of parents and family.

What we've got to do, though, is show the world and show the church that we priests, religious women, religious men, are happy and are fulfilled and are challenged in their way of life. That way we become the major ambassadors in calling others to consider this great vocation.

HEMMER: Take on this question, then archbishop. It is a huge challenge right now given the sex allegations that have been running rampant throughout the church for the last six months and more.

DOLAN: Yes.

HEMMER: In fact, your own archdiocese right now, you've replaced a man who is accused, alleged of abusing a man several years ago, a man, not a young man, but a grown adult. In addition to that, you have this report out of Austin that says the church may settle up with the John Geoghan alleged victims, as well.

Take all that into consideration right now. How does that impact your struggle right now to get more recruits into your calling?

DOLAN: A struggle it is, Bill. But I'd answer that question from two points of view. First of all, from the natural point of view, that whenever there's a time of struggle or challenge, that's when we take a deep breath and dig in and speak about what's right and noble and decent in the church, and that's what we're trying to do now in inviting people back.

Secondly, and more importantly for us, from a supernatural point of view, from the eyes of faith and hope, whenever there's a time of crisis, whenever there's a time of dying in the church, that's always followed by a resurrection. We have Jesus as our model in that.

There is, there's been an awful lot of dying and there's been an awful lot of pain over recent months in the Catholic Church of the United States, as you just articulated. We believe with the eyes of faith now that a time of renewal, a springtime, a season of hope will come in. And I think an increase in vocations to the priesthood and religious life is going to be a good consequence of that springtime.

HEMMER: It is unique.

Thanks for sharing.

Archbishop Dolan of Milwaukee.

DOLAN: Thank you, Bill. Thanks for your interest.

HEMMER: You've got it. We'll see you down the road.

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