Our Church is again profoundly shocked by scandal this week. We first learned of allegations of grave sins involving Archbishop Theodore McCarrick earlier this month. Now, through a Grand Jury Report from six dioceses in the State of Pennsylvania, we learn of further grievous crimes and moral failures dating back some 70 years.
Since 2002, the Church in the United States has undertaken rigorous efforts to address the scandal of sexual abuse, particularly as it relates to minors. Since my consecration as Bishop of Rockford in 2012, I have written and spoken a number of times to detail those efforts. I have also taken the opportunity to apologize to the victims of sexual abuse within the Church.
Click here to read Bishop Malloy's full statement
Declaración del obispo David J. Malloy
Click to read the statement from Cardinal DiNardo, USCCB President
Canon Peter Heidenreich was ordained as a priest of the Institute of Christ the King – Sovereign Priest on Aug. 2 by Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke in St. Louis. He celebrated his first Mass at St. Mary Oratory on Saturday, Aug 4. Canon Heidenreich is a 1998 Boylan Central Catholic High School graduate and a graduate of St. Rita School in Rockford.
Find more in the Aug. 10 issue of The Observer.
Seminarians of the Diocese of Rockford gathered at Bishop Lane Retreat Center at the end of July for a retreat featuring speaker Father Brett Brannen of the Diocese of Savannah who is the author of a book about the priesthood, “To Save a Thousand Souls.” Bishop David Malloy celebrated the retreat’s closing Mass and visited with the seminarians for a few minutes afterwards.
Look for more in a special Vocations section in the Aug. 17 Observer.
Bishop David Malloy joined parishioners and clergy at St. James Parish in Rockford for their 165th anniversary celebration on July 22. The event included Mass, blessing of the new engraved bricks entrance to the parish center, and a picnic with awards and games for children and adults.
More to come in the July 27 issue of The Observer.
Reflexiones del Obispo David Malloy acerca de Humanae Vitae
The St. Therese Vocation Camp was held June 24-27 at Bishop Lane Retreat Center, welcoming close to 60 girls and young women to days packed with fun and prayer. Religious sisters from several communities helped organize and lead the retreat, which included a visit to the Poor Clares monastery in Rockford and Mass with Bishop David Malloy. More in the July 13 issue of The Observer.
The new name of the upcoming new Catholic school in Rockford that will welcome children from four current schools and a total of seven parishes in fall of 2019 was revealed at Sinnissippi Park on June 14. The new name is “All Saints Catholic Academy.”
See more in the June 22 issue of The Observer.
