As much as I wish this would have happened sooner, I’m grateful Bishop Malone ultimately realized that stepping aside was in the best interests of the Diocese of Buffalo.

The Church clearly recognized the issue was becoming intolerable when it brought in Brooklyn Bishop DiMarzio to investigate the crisis. They owed it to the victims who’ve had to relive their pain each time a new story broke about the depths of the mishandling of the crisis in the Diocese.

This is an important moment in the history of the Catholic Church in Buffalo and it’s incumbent on lay Catholic leaders and organizations to work very intentionally with new leadership in the Diocese to heal our wounds.

In the midst of church scandals more than 800 years ago, Saint Francis heard the command of Jesus: “Go repair my house, which, as you can see, is falling completely into ruin.”

The time has come to rebuild our house again, together.

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