Cathedral hosting prayer for mercy and healing for victim/survivors

All Survivors Day, Nov. 3, is an international day to seek healing for victim/survivors of sexual abuse, and for the first time ever, the Archdiocese of Vancouver is taking part.

“When one member suffers, we all suffer,” said Sister Nancy Brown, a sister of Charity-Halifax and a member of the Archdiocese of Vancouver’s Case Review Committee that released an archdiocesan report on clerical sexual abuse last year.

Sister Brown said although not all Catholics had a hand in perpetuating abuse or covering it up, the body of the Church is called to pray, mourn, and seek mercy together.

Victim/survivors, members of the archdiocese’s case review committee, and others have been invited to Holy Rosary Cathedral for a Nov. 3 paraliturgy to pray for the healing of those who have been harmed by clergy abuse and for mercy and forgiveness. It will also be streamed live.

The event, which will be observed annually from now on, is historic for the archdiocese, Archbishop J. Michael Miller told viewers watching the Archbishop’s Dinner Oct. 29.

“It is the first such event that will publicly express the archdiocese’s repentance for the scourge of clerical abuse for which it has been responsible,” said Archbishop Miller. “It will also be a time of prayer for healing the wounds we have inflicted.”

The short liturgy begins at 10 a.m. Attendance is by invitation; all others are invited to watch the livestream on Holy Rosary Cathedral’s livestream channel.

To report abuse by a priest in the Archdiocese of Vancouver, call 604-363-7338, where an independent reporting office will listen to you, explore counselling options with you, help you report your abuse to the appropriate authorities, and ensure you are kept updated.

To report abuse by a lay person, or for information about current policies, visit www.rcav.org/reporting.