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ROME \u2014 A newly released book is urging the Catholic Church to rethink how it communicates during clergy sexual abuse crises.<\/p>\n
In \u201cTruth Heals: Clergy Sexual Abuse and the Catholic Church\u2019s Response,\u201d author Paulina Guzik argues that communications must be treated as a central part of safeguarding, not an afterthought.<\/p>\n
Drawing on examples of both effective and failed communication from around the world, the book\u2019s author, who is international editor for OSV News and professor of media studies and communications at the Pontifical University of John Paul II in Krak\u00f3w, Poland, said she wanted to fill the gap between existing safeguarding elements and one element that is visibly still pending \u2014 communications.<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\u201cFrom John Paul II to Francis, popes have helped transform \u2014 although slowly and quite often urged by external pressure \u2014 the Church\u2019s law and culture. But clear guidance on what to communicate, how to communicate it and when to do so in cases of sexual abuse was lacking,\u201d Guzik said during the press presentation in Rome Sept. 10.<\/p>\n
Communication, she argues, is not a cosmetic addition to safeguarding. \u201cIt must be part of the Church\u2019s response from the very beginning: part of how leaders listen, make decisions, accept responsibility, restore justice and reform structures.\u201d<\/p>\n
In her book, Guzik provides a practical framework for Church leaders, communicators and journalists working to rebuild trust in the wake of abuse and institutional failure.<\/p>\n
The book proposes 10 principles for crisis communications, including putting victims first, embracing transparency, listening carefully and engaging the media fairly.<\/p>\n
According to Guzik, the principles outlined in the book complement the Church\u2019s progress in developing legal procedures, safeguarding policies and a culture of accountability.<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore apologies, compensation, or legal strategies, there must be listening,\u201d Guzik writes in her book. \u201cThe first duty of a Church that calls itself a mother is to hear those who were harmed, believe the seriousness of their suffering, and respond with compassion, justice, and sustained care.\u201d<\/p>\n
A book for bishops in the hands of the bishop of Rome<\/h3>\n
During the Sept. 9 general audience, Guzik gave a copy of the book to Pope Leo XIV.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a book for decision-makers in the Church. To be able to hand it to the bishop of Rome as a starting point \u2014 that made me tremendously happy,\u201d Guzik told OSV News. \u201cAnd while Pope Leo was listening with a very serious face hearing about \u2018Truth Heals,\u2019 his face lit up with a huge smile when I handed him homemade chocolate chip cookies made by my daughter,\u201d she recalled.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter so many years of dealing with the topic on many different levels in the Church, the new pontificate of Pope Leo XIV is a perfect time to reinforce this branch of crisis management, and a crucial one \u2014 communications,\u201d Guzik emphasized after the audience with Pope Leo.<\/p>\n In her book, Guzik challenges the assumption that public relations, legal approach or institutional silence can protect the Church\u2019s credibility \u2014 something many local churches still think is the case.<\/p>\n \u201cThe way I started this research was really simple \u2014 I saw my own Church, in Poland, struggling with the answer to the abuse crisis \u2014 at the time almost two decades after the iconic 2002 Spotlight investigation in the U.S.,\u201d Guzik told OSV News.<\/p>\n The Spotlight team investigation by The Boston Globe in January 2002 uncovered sexual abuse cases and cover up in the Archdiocese of Boston and was the first major media report on the matter that led to tectonic changes in the Church in the U.S., including issuing the Dallas Charter six months afterwards and followed by first independent John Jay report.<\/p>\n \u201cTo see, in 2020, bishops in my country answer the crisis like children lost in the forest was painful to watch. Best practices were out there, it was enough to reach for them. This book is putting those best practices in crisis management and communications in one volume so no one is able to say anymore, \u2018Oh we did not know this is what should be done\u2019!\u201d Guzik said.<\/p>\n She added a \u201chuge inspiration\u201d was for her a speech by veteran Vatican journalist Valentina Alazraki on Feb. 23, 2019, during the abuse summit organized by Pope Francis.<\/p>\n Alazraki got a standing ovation from her fellow journalists in Sala Stampa, the Vatican press room, after she told the bishops to stop \u201cplaying the ostrich\u201d and transparently communicate the abuse scandal.<\/p>\n Guzik said her book is a practical guide on how to do that.<\/p>\n Alazraki said that \u201chaving sat beside Pope Francis at the February 2019 summit and urged the world\u2019s bishops to embrace transparency in responding to the abuse crisis, I can think of no greater gift to the Church on this vital issue than Paulina Guzik\u2019s \u2018Truth Heals.\u2019 \u2026 It is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand how effective communication must be integrated into the Church\u2019s response.\u201d<\/p>\n Father Jordi Pujol, associate professor of media ethics and media law at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome, added, \u201cThis book arrives after 25 years of painful experience in handling sex abuse cases\u201d and is \u201can excellent handbook for leaders and Church communicators and practitioners.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/a>How the research started<\/h3>\n
A useful and needed resource<\/h3>\n