Victims' Assistance

The first obligation of the Church with regard to victims of abuse is for healing and reconciliation. The Diocese of Pittsburgh continues to reach out to every person who has been a victim of child sexual abuse by anyone in church service, whether that abuse is recent or occurred in the past.

Victims of sexual abuse by a bishop, priest, deacon or individual representing the Diocese of Pittsburgh can contact the Victims' Assistance Coordinator for help, healing and response.

If you are a victim of abuse, the diocese wants to help, even if you have drifted away from the Church. We offer assistance with counseling, spiritual direction and referrals to other supportive services.

For information on any of these services, we invite you to contact our Victims' Assistance Coordinator, Rita Flaherty, at (412) 456-3060, or toll free at 1-888-808-1235.

"After years of hurt and anger, I broke my silence and reached out to this Church for help. What I found surprised me: caring Catholics who weren't afraid to hear my story and share my pain. They taught me to trust again, restoring my wounded faith. With their help and God's grace, I experienced the healing I'd longed for. Forgiveness dispelled anger, love washed away pain, and dignity replaced shame. If you or a loved one has been hurt - even if you've left the Church - I pray you will reach out to this Diocese for help. You don't have to carry your burden alone." – Victim of Abuse

Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People

Department for the Protection of Children and Young People

“Come to me all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28)

“The Lord is my refuge; of whom am I afraid?” (Psalms 27: 1)

“Jesus described a people hungry for hope and healing as ‘sheep without a shepherd’ (see Mark 6:34). In the light of the sexual abuse by Catholic clergy, I cannot help but think so many were without true shepherds. These words of Jesus can be a promise for each of us that we will always have at the center of our ministry the heart of the Good Shepherd.” – Father Charles S. Bober, Pastor, Saint Kilian Parish, Mars, PA
“Families are places where love should be nurtured and forgiveness offered. This should also be true of the Church family. Unfortunately, there were priests that misused their position in the Church through the sexual abuse of innocent victims. The Church always needs to step forward to offer the true love, compassion and healing of Christ for those who suffer that they may find restoration of their lives and regain their trust and hope in the Lord.” – Father Robert F. Guay, Pastor, Our Lady of Peace Parish, Conway, PA

“We continue to have a special care for and a commitment to reaching out to the victims of sexual abuse and their families. The damage caused by sexual abuse of minors is devastating and long lasting. We apologize to them for the grave harm that has been inflicted on them, and we offer our help for the future. The loss of trust that is often the consequence of such abuse becomes even more tragic when it leads to a loss of the faith that we have a sacred duty to foster. We make our own the words of His Holiness, Pope John Paul II: that the sexual abuse of young people is ‘by every standard wrong and rightly considered a crime by society; it is also an appalling sin in the eyes of God.'" - Address to the Cardinals of the United States and Conference Officers, April 23, 2002

”Along with the victims and their families, the entire Catholic community in this country has suffered because of this scandal...We feel a particular responsibility for the ‘ministry of reconciliation’ (2 Cor 5:18) which God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, has given us. The love of Christ impels us to ask forgiveness for our own faults but also to appeal to all—to those who have been victimized, to those who have been offended, and to all who have felt the wound of this scandal—to be reconciled to God and one another.” –  Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People (2005) – United States Conference of Catholic Bishops