U.S. Bishops Will Gather for a Mass of Prayer and Penance for Healing of Survivors of Clergy Sex Abuse; Mass Will Mark Opening of June Plenary Assembly

WASHINGTON—Asthey begin the Spring General Assembly, Bishops from across the U.S. will gatherat Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis for a Mass of Prayer andPenance for survivors of sexual abuse within the Church. The Mass is being held in response to a callfrom Pope Francis for all episcopal conferences across the world to have a Dayof Prayer and Penance for victims of sexual abuse within the Church and will beheld June 14, 2017 at 5:00 pm at Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis.

Thebishops will gather together in solidarity to pray for victims and toacknowledge the pain caused by the failures of the Church in the past.  The Mass will mark the opening for the JunePlenary Assembly of bishops taking place June 14-15 in Indianapolis. Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo ofGalveston-Houston and President of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops willbe the principal celebrant. Archbishop Wilton D.  Gregory, of Atlanta, and former President ofthe USCCB, will be the homilist.

Inan act of penance and humility, the bishops will also kneel and recite a commemorativeprayer that has been written for survivors of abuse in their healing. Intercessory Prayers of the Faithful willalso be offered for those who have suffered due to clergy sex abuse. All dioceses and eparchies have been providedthe suggested intercessory Prayers of the Faithful for use at any time of theirchoosing after June 14. 

Inaddition to this specific Day of Prayer and Penance, many dioceses andeparchies will also schedule their own Masses or other events to promotehealing within their diocese/eparchy throughout the year.

TheMass is scheduled to be livestreamed. The livestream link will be available on the USCCB website.  

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Keywords:U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, USCCB, National Day of Prayer and Penance,Pope Francis, Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo, Archbishop Wilton Gregory, JunePlenary Assembly, Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral, Indianapolis, clergy sex abuse,Mass, episcopal conferences, diocese/eparchies, prayers of the faithful.