Editorials

[ OUR OPINION ]

Catholic bishop acts
to restore confidence

THE ISSUE A Maui priest has been permanently removed from the public ministry by the Roman Catholic diocese.

BISHOP Francis DiLorenzo acted in the best interests of the Roman Catholic Church's Honolulu diocese in removing a Maui priest accused of sexual misconduct from public ministry. The removal was consistent with a policy adopted two months ago by Catholic bishops in the United States aimed at isolating sexual abusers. The church's religious orders also need to adopt a policy of strong measures.

The Rev. Joseph Bukoski, 49, was placed on administrative leave from his duties at a Lahaina church in May because of accusations of sexual misconduct while he was assigned to a Honolulu church in 1982. While the diocesan Standing Committee on Sexual Misconduct was reviewing the accusations, a second complaint dating to his seminary days 25 years ago was lodged against Bukoski.

Diocesan spokesman Patrick Downes said the second complaint "strengthened the previous recommendation of the standing committee" that Bukoski be permanently removed. The complaint "was corroborated by other credible people, and, because of this accumulation of evidence, the bishop found veracity in the second allegation," Downes added.

American bishops meeting in Dallas in June agreed to bar sexually abusive clergy from any work for the church but did not recommend that the Vatican remove them from the priesthood. About 30,000 priests in the United States function under the direct supervision of diocesan bishops. Priests belonging to religious orders number about 15,000, a third of whom work in parishes while the rest work in specialized areas such teaching, hospital work, foreign missions or caring for the poor.

Leaders of religious orders such as Jesuits, Franciscans, Dominicans and -- most prominent in Hawaii -- the Congregation of Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary meet in Philadelphia this week to consider the policy adopted by the diocesan bishops. The Rev. Canice Connors, president of the religious orders group, called the Conference of Major Superiors of Men, doubts that the policy will be approved.

"We're bound to each other for life, like family members," Connors told the Philadelphia Inquirer last week. "The relationship between a bishop and a diocesan priest is very different."

Asked in May about the accusation against Bukoski, the Rev. Clyde Guerreiro, the Sacred Hearts provincial in Hawaii, said the religious order "will support him as a brother." However, he also said, "The policy of the Sacred Hearts order is to follow the policy of the diocese." Fraternal allegiance should not be used to shield members of religious orders from diocesan sanctions.

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Published by Oahu Publications Inc., a subsidiary of Black Press.

Don Kendall, Publisher

Frank Bridgewater, Editor 529-4791; fbridgewater@starbulletin.com
Michael Rovner, Assistant Editor 529-4768; mrovner@starbulletin.com
Lucy Young-Oda, Assistant Editor 529-4762; lyoungoda@starbulletin.com

Mary Poole, Editorial Page Editor, 529-4790; mpoole@starbulletin.com
John Flanagan, Contributing Editor 294-3533; jflanagan@starbulletin.com

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