COR, through the Institute for Congregational Leadership, is aware of the deep pain and struggle involved when congregations of all faiths experience crises of many kinds. Typically, we tend to think of "crises" as incidents which occur in secular organizations, such as corporate scandals, or hazardous chemical accidents, or employee embezzlement; the idea of an organizational crisis occurring in our congregation just doesn't seem to fit. This very "ambush" quality is one of the factors that makes congregational crises so anguished for most people, because we unconsciously associate our religious communities with a sense of security.

COR's home base is Spokane, Washington. Coincidentally, Spokane is also the location of one of many Catholic dioceses in this country to have been struck hard by clergy sexual abuse and misconduct cases which have emerged in recent years. The Spokane Catholic Diocese is also one of several that has sought Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as a result of lawsuits brought forward by victims of clergy abuse and misconduct. But the Spokane Diocese is the only one in the country whose emergence from bankruptcy includes contributions to the final settlement from its 81 local parishes, roughly estimated at a year's plate collections from each.

And so, right in our own eastern Washington communities, many Catholic parishes are hurting deeply. Many are facing a financial crisis. Many have, and still are, reeling from crises of betrayal by individual priests, by offending clergy in general, by bishops, and/or by the nature of the response (or lack of response) from the Church. Many have seen ugly conflicts erupt within their parish communities over these issues. In other words, many of the Catholic parishes in our neighborhoods are in crisis.

The Institute for Congregational Leadership (ICL) was founded to make COR's knowledge and skill bases available to congregations of all faiths. We are keenly aware, not only of the crises within Catholic parishes, but that similar issues occur across all religious faiths: clergy misconduct (sexual and otherwise) occurs in all religious traditions; financial burdens (from legal settlements and other causes) place many congregations in grave circumstances; and congregations of all kinds can splinter and explode under the pressure of contentious issues. All of these crises, whatever the faith of the congregation involved, cause incredible individual and congregational pain and suffering. The ICL wants to serve as a resource in such situations.

The ICL's Responses

In mid-November, 2006, COR was asked by leaders in the Spokane Catholic Diocese to outline for them what kinds of processes would be appropriate to provide for parishes who wished to engage in some type of planned healing process. This request resulted in (1) a review of the published research of such processes in congregations, the organizational crisis literature, and media reports regarding attempts at healing in other Catholic dioceses across the country, and (2) a subsequent report, "How, Then, Do We Heal?" was developed, and included the results of our search of "best practices."

In our literature review, we basically found that few models exist which specifically address the dynamics of congregational recovery from long-term crises (such as that impacting Catholic parishes in which clergy abuse of children occurred over many years' duration, followed by many civil suits and a contentious diocesan bankruptcy, followed by the financial obligation to contribute significant parish assets to the eventual settlement). We found liturgies and special masses used in some settings; structural procedures enacted to assure that children are safe and reports of alleged clergy misconduct addressed in a timely manner; and specific healing measures tailored to the needs of primary abuse victims. We did not find, however, (1) resources designed to address the needs of congregational members (those who were not primary victims) who have been significantly impacted by the crises--as individuals, or (2) resources for congregations as intact organizational systems to utilize to guide their healing processes.

By February, 2007, ICL leaders had outlined four types of resources to make available to both individuals and to entire congregations:

1. Educational resources: A series of workshops, organized under the title Coming to the Table, will be available (in May, 2007) to individuals of all faiths, and will address issues involved in various aspects of congregational crises and healing.
    

2. Narrative research project: Because so little information is available regarding the experiences of congregational members in crisis situations, the ICL has initiated a narrative research project (also beginning in May, 2007) to contribute to the knowledge base and to guide those who wish to assist both individuals and congregations in crisis recovery.
    

3. Community awareness: The ICL will coordinate interfaith dialogue in eastern Washington communities regarding the wider impact of clergy sexual abuse of children (and other forms of professional misconduct) upon congregations of all kinds and the region as a whole. These efforts will involve meetings with judicatory leaders, area ministerial associations, and other related civic, educational, and social service institutions.
   

   The goal of the Compassion Over the Fence project is to educate our communities that the crises precipitated by the Spokane Catholic crisis does not only involve Catholics, Catholic clergy, Catholic leadership, and Catholic children, but is in fact a more widespread and common problem. This goal of awareness and action “over the fences” of traditional religious boundaries can be a powerful step in educating members of our communities about the protection of children, the power ofcommunal action in naming concerns before they escalate out of control, and in coming together for healing entire communities.
    

4. Tailored services for specific congregational needs: The ICL can provide intact workshops to congregations and can also support them in designing specific "healing plans" which translate generic principles into specific faith traditions, as well as meeting the needs of a range of crisis situations.