November 15, 2018

The Shame of the Catholic Church

What should trouble not only Catholics but non-Catholics too is the latest statement from the Vatican regarding the sexual abuse scandal.

One doesn’t have to be Roman Catholic or even Christian to recognize the great good the Catholic Church has done. America would be worse off were it not its pro-life stance and numerous acts of charity.

But good works are sometimes diluted or even overwhelmed by evil works, and it is the evil works of pedophile priests that threaten to sully the good the church has done.

But what should trouble not only Catholics but non-Catholics too is the latest statement from the Vatican regarding the sexual abuse scandal, a scandal that has prompted many Catholics to leave the church and the faith altogether.

In a letter to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops meeting in Baltimore, the Vatican, as reported by U.S. News & World Report, requested that U.S. bishops “wait until after the Vatican-convened global meeting on sex abuse takes place in February” to take action on the sexual abuse issue plaguing the church. “The conference of bishops had expected to focus … on measures to combat abuse, including establishing a new code of conduct.”

Is it just a question of timing, or yet another attempt to avoid dealing with the crisis?

The church has long been reluctant to go to law enforcement about cases of sexual abuse by priests, choosing instead to have its own officials handle the cases themselves, or as was most often the case, suppress them, moving suspected clergy from parish to parish, threatening the safety of children, and thereby continuing a pattern of depravity and neglect.

Anne Barrett Doyle, co-director of BishopAccountability.org, an organization that compiles instances of clergy abuse, is quoted in The Washington Post: “What we see here is the Vatican again trying to suppress even modest progress by the U.S. Bishops. We’re seeing where the problem lies, which is with the Vatican.”

Precisely.

The Post reports the U.S. Bishops “expressed a mixture of disappointment, acceptance and frustration at the news from Rome.” How about outrage, which is what victims groups have rightly expressed?

Law enforcement has a right and an obligation to investigate these cases. Where abuse can be proved, prosecutors have an equal right and obligation to hold the guilty accountable. Abusers break the laws of God, which they promised to obey, and the laws enacted by legislators, to which they should adhere. Breaking God’s laws, if one believes Catholic doctrine, puts you in danger of eternal damnation. Breaking human laws should send lawbreakers to prison. This is not just an internal matter for the Catholic Church, which has failed to deliver on promises to purge the evil in its midst. Frequent excuses that these are old allegations do not ring true and certainly do not excuse either the behavior or the cover-up.

This is not just a U.S. problem, either. Many European countries are dealing with Catholic clergy who have been charged with everything from child abuse to child pornography and rape. While the statute of limitations has protected some, many others have been brought before criminal courts, convicted and imprisoned. It’s the same here in the U.S.

Pope Francis recently said climate change and nuclear war are the greatest threats to the world. The greatest threats to the Catholic Church are the sexual abuse of children and the church’s failure to adequately address that abuse and hold those responsible accountable.

Some of Pope Francis’ critics suggest he resign. Though, according to canon law, no Pope can be forced out, perhaps he can be sufficiently shamed for his unwillingness to cleanse the church of the filth that has stained it.

In a recent comment, the Pope said the attacks on the Catholic Church were the work of the devil, and he called on angels to help. Maybe he needs to go higher? His church, according to Scripture, was created by and belongs to a much Higher Authority. God cannot be pleased with the derision heaped upon it or with those who have mismanaged it.

© 2018 Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Who We Are

The Patriot Post is a highly acclaimed weekday digest of news analysis, policy and opinion written from the heartland — as opposed to the MSM’s ubiquitous Beltway echo chambers — for grassroots leaders nationwide. More

What We Offer

On the Web

We provide solid conservative perspective on the most important issues, including analysis, opinion columns, headline summaries, memes, cartoons and much more.

Via Email

Choose our full-length Digest or our quick-reading Snapshot for a summary of important news. We also offer Cartoons & Memes on Monday and Alexander’s column on Wednesday.

Our Mission

The Patriot Post is steadfast in our mission to extend the endowment of Liberty to the next generation by advocating for individual rights and responsibilities, supporting the restoration of constitutional limits on government and the judiciary, and promoting free enterprise, national defense and traditional American values. We are a rock-solid conservative touchstone for the expanding ranks of grassroots Americans Patriots from all walks of life. Our mission and operation budgets are not financed by any political or special interest groups, and to protect our editorial integrity, we accept no advertising. We are sustained solely by you. Please support The Patriot Fund today!


The Patriot Post and Patriot Foundation Trust, in keeping with our Military Mission of Service to our uniformed service members and veterans, are proud to support and promote the National Medal of Honor Heritage Center, the Congressional Medal of Honor Society, both the Honoring the Sacrifice and Warrior Freedom Service Dogs aiding wounded veterans, the National Veterans Entrepreneurship Program, the Folds of Honor outreach, and Officer Christian Fellowship, the Air University Foundation, and Naval War College Foundation, and the Naval Aviation Museum Foundation. "Greater love has no one than this, to lay down one's life for his friends." (John 15:13)

★ PUBLIUS ★

“Our cause is noble; it is the cause of mankind!” —George Washington

Please join us in prayer for our nation — that righteous leaders would rise and prevail and we would be united as Americans. Pray also for the protection of our Military Patriots, Veterans, First Responders, and their families. Please lift up your Patriot team and our mission to support and defend our Republic's Founding Principle of Liberty, that the fires of freedom would be ignited in the hearts and minds of our countrymen.

The Patriot Post is protected speech, as enumerated in the First Amendment and enforced by the Second Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America, in accordance with the endowed and unalienable Rights of All Mankind.

Copyright © 2024 The Patriot Post. All Rights Reserved.

The Patriot Post does not support Internet Explorer. We recommend installing the latest version of Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox, or Google Chrome.