Thursday, April 08, 2010

The Catholic Church And The Scandal That Won't Go Away

The latest approach from the Vatican? Turn the tables on those who accuse and accuse them in return.

Call on the Pope to resign? Claim that the plodding German engaged in a conspiracy to cover up the sex abuse scandal run rampant? You're the sinner, not His Holiness.

Maybe you're buying into the line that the leftists are out to destroy the Church.

Maybe you need to read about what went on in Ireland for decades, a scandal that broke over the Church and continues to reverberate.

It's almost laughable, to listen to the higher ups try to push the pedophile priest transfer system under the rug. Blame the New York Times for covering the story and tell the few remaining faithful that the reporter has an axe to grind. The Pope didn't know about the abuser at the school for the deaf in the U.S. even if he was in charge of the office that was supposed to investigate and remove offenders. Those leftists, you see, the atheists and the Jews and the Protestants who would tear down the Dome of St. Peter....

How does a man of the cloth admit that his every action was to protect the Catholic Church from bad publicity, rather than protect an innocent child? He accuses his accusers of spreading gossip and misinformation.

Often, the tactic works. When a group of survivors of Ireland's industrial school system staged a protest recently at the Pro-Cathedral in Dublin, they were highly criticized for daring to confront the bishop himself. Adults who bear the scars of abuse were heaped with abuse from the blind and faithful followers, who won't hear a word of criticism directed at those who could have stopped that abuse decades ago.

They're only trying to destroy the Church, those dedicated parishioners will say. They take it on faith, the words of the priest in the pulpit who criticizes the words of the criticizer.

Shoot the messenger if you like, but the message remains. A new message is delivered with every attempt to demonize those who speak up, a message that reiterates the absolute power of those in charge.

Rally round the Papal Flag, boys. Circle the wagons. Support your local cardinal.

A few are listening and heeding the word. Most are laughing it off, even as they go to Mass on a Sunday. Then they laugh when the basket is passed, collecting money for Peter's Pence, for the Holy Father's use, snickering as they pass it on empty. They've got their own message, you see, one that won't be covered in the New York Times.

The cover-up has been done to death, and all to the same effect. The believers aren't so believing any more.

2 comments:

Aeneas said...

Sigh... yes, it does not go away, does it? It won't for a long time. I suppose one could say that over the years the most delicate, explosive and devastating issue this Church would ever face--the abuse of innocent children--has been handled by rather mediocre men; because, let's face it, with the best of the best not joining the church anymore (it's been a long since bright young men could find no other place than the church) the pool from which to pick the leaders of the church has been poor at best. And those who do become priests, often their faith and moral fabric gets eroded as they rise in the hierarchy.

There's no hiding from terrible sin such as this; especially when it is compounded by stupidity.

Subconsciously perhaps, I've reduced my contributions...

O hAnnrachainn said...

I've spoken to priests who practice canon law and they're lawyers, out to protect their clients. That's the problem. The priest have to be priests, the prosecution rather than the defense.

All they need are some equally hard-nosed women in the hierarchy and the place would be cleaned up in no time. Too many men, and half of them gay...