This past Friday my Dad called me. We talked about something in the “Town Talk” section of the Post. Someone was asking the survivors, David and (as an after thought) the priest to “go under the microscope”, to have “a good thorough investigation.” I was aggravated to say the least. Then, Dad said, “I got a letter from the Archdiocese today and they asked me if I needed help with my spiritual life or getting back to the “Church”(;-) Dad was never Catholic) that “it was understandable that you might be reluctant to deal with the Church or the Archdiocese given it was a representative of the Church who had harmed your son.” He asked me “Did you get a letter? That didn’t sound like the Archdiocese had a problem believing us.”
“No. I didn’t get that. You got this today?” I asked.
“Yes. I just pulled it out of the mail box this morning. You didn’t get one?”
“No?”
“Do you want it?” He asked me.
“Sure, if you don’t.”
“This means more to you than to me Bud.”
I asked him if we could have breakfast Sunday before church and he could give it to me then. He said that would be fine with him. Sunday came and he gave me the letter. As I read, it sounded very good! It put a little spark in my heart. I had not told them they had to do this, like I had with my apology. They did this on their own?
3.20.2006
Today when I got home I saw, setting on the table, a letter from the Archdiocese addressed to me. I sat down and started opening it. Wow! It, it, it was the same letter my Dad had got Friday, with just a few words changed to fit me, the victim. Mom called while I was reading my letter: “Honey I got a letter from the Archdiocese today.” She started to read it to me, it is word for word the letter Dad received on Friday just addressed to her. A FORM LETTER, a well written, but none the less, form letter. So much for a sincere reaching out to the family. I didn’t even ask for this one, so why put on such a sham? You can view all three letters in the Photo section of the website if you would like.
