For much of the morning the website for the Catholic dioceses of Covington has been down. But it’s finally back up and they are issuing a new statement.
Here’s the first part of their statement which addresses the school closings due to threats:
On Monday afternoon the Covington Police alerted us that they had intelligence concerning a planned protest, Jan. 22, at Covington Catholic High School and a vigil at the Diocesan Curia. Due to threats of violence and the possibility of large crowds the Diocese was advised to close Covington Catholic High School, the Diocesan Curia and neighboring Covington Latin School. We thank law enforcement officers for their protection and will reopen when they say it is safe to do so.
So that’s THREE schools that had to be closed because of the hatred and vitriol aimed at this students who did nothing wrong. Pathetic!
They also weighed in on the controversy stemming from the confrontation in DC:
Concerning the incident in Washington, D.C., between Covington Catholic students, Elder Nathan Phillips and Black Hebrew Israelites the independent, third-party investigation is planned to begin this week. This is a very serious matter that has already permanently altered the lives of many people. It is important for us to gather the facts that will allow us to determine what corrective actions, if any, are appropriate.
We pray that we may come to the truth and that this unfortunate situation may be resolved peacefully and amicably and ask others to join us in this prayer.
We will have no further statements until the investigation is complete.
Wow. There’s no apology and no retraction of their original statement, only a call for an independent investigation that will aid them in determining if any corrective actions are appropriate.
And I’m sure you saw the phrase “It is important for us to gather the facts…” I have a feeling that’s not going to sit very well with parents. Clearly it wasn’t important for the diocese to gather all of the facts before a heavy-handed statement was issued against the teens by the diocese. But now, several days later, apparently it’s time for an independent investigation. Does this not seem backwards to you?
I think what bothers me most about this statement is that the original statement still seemingly stands, and the diocese is still apparently contemplating disciplinary action. Everyone knows now that these teens didn’t do anything wrong, that they actually behaved quite well in the face of disgusting and unnecessary provocations.
I can only hope this diocese will do a full retraction and beg for the forgiveness of those in the diocese after their investigation is over.