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Catholic Diocese Files For Bankruptcy in Iowa

Compounding the problem of already low numbers of those sitting in pews, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Davenport, Iowa has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The filing represents the fourth diocese in the United States to go to bankruptcy court in order to protect its assets from lawsuits, and claims by those who have accused Catholic priests of sexually molesting them.

According to church officials, there have been recent claims by 15 former students who have alleged that a retired bishop, Lawrence Soens, sexually abused them in the 1960s while he was a priest and the principal of their Catholic high school in Iowa City. These claims are the ones which prompted the diocese to decide to file for bankruptcy. Soens denies the allegations.

The Diocese`s bishop, William Franklin, said in a statement that "Because the settlement demands are greater than the available assets of the diocese, we cannot continue on our present path. To do so would mean that victims who have already made claims through their attorney would consume the remaining assets of the diocese, leaving no money for other victims who have not yet made the decision to move forward."