Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
In his First Letter to the Corinthians, Saint Paul reminds us that “Thus should one regard us: as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Now it is of course required of stewards that they be found trustworthy.” (I Corinthians 4:1-2)
Every person given responsibility to oversee our physical and material resources must indeed be a wise steward, a good steward and an honest steward. When there is transparency, shared values and mutual responsibility, we flourish as a Church and as a diocese. This is a self-evident truth that must be respected in every single diocese and in every single parish. We are strong when we do this. We are credible when we do this. If we go down a different path, we are not practicing good stewardship of that which has been entrusted to us.
In the daily work and ministry of our parishes and diocesan offices, we set the highest possible standards for ourselves and we expect everyone to follow these standards, especially in observing our Code of Pastoral Conduct, as well as all of our other policies and procedures.
In serving our people, our goal is very simple: To ensure that The Catholic Church is the safest place in our country for children, youth and vulnerable adults. Our people deserve no less than this. It is a reality that we can document.
The resources available on our diocesan website demonstrate the standards and challenges that we must meet. Parishes are required to have a finance council – as does the diocese. Parishes are required to provide an annual financial report to their parishioners – as does the diocese. These diocesan reports are always available to you on our diocesan website: www.patersondiocese.org. We also have diocesan staff performing internal audits in order to monitor compliance by parishes with our policies and procedures.
A hotline is available on our diocesan website to allow employees, volunteers, vendors, parishioners and other interested parties to report serious concerns that they may have regarding suspected financial or other misconduct. EthicsPoint, an independent third-party company, administers this hotline. It is designed to provide a simple, safe means for reporting concerns about possible financial or other misconduct. Reports may be filed on this hotline via the web using our diocesan website, www.patersondiocese.org, or via phone through one of EthicsPoint’s trained specialists, toll free at 855-247-3140.
Thank you for joining with us in our commitment to the highest possible standards for our diocese and for our parishes. May we continue to work together to be good and faithful stewards.
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Most Rev. Kevin J. Sweeney, D.D.
Bishop of Paterson
OR
Dial toll-free, within the United States, Guam, Puerto Rico and Canada:
855-247-3140
After you complete your report you will be assigned a unique code called a "report key." Write down your report key and password and keep them in a safe place. After 5-6 business days, use your report key and password to check your report for feedback or questions.
EthicsPoint is NOT a 911 or Emergency Service:
Do not use this site to report events presenting an immediate threat to life or property. Reports submitted through this service may not receive an immediate response. If you require emergency assistance, please contact your local authorities.