There has been a massive failure to protect the Church from abusive priests, it was already noted, and it’s gone on completely uncorrected for decades– this despite people “coming forward” to the bishops for help. We knew this in 2002 when Cardinal Law was exposed but escaped all punishment for his horrendous mishandling of reports of pedophilia. That was sixteen years ago. A few years later, two dioceses paid off victims of Cardinal McCarrick’s abuse. Bishops have known about his misconduct for ten years and he’s only now beginning to see consequences. And it’s not as though he’s the only one. We’re hearing stories from all quarters of women and men, and even other priests, who reported sexually abusive priests to their superiors and got nowhere. The priests were quietly transferred and the victims ignored or silenced.
For the sake of our safety, for the sake of justice, and indeed for the sake of the office of the priesthood and the Church itself: go to law enforcement. If a priest has abused you or someone you know in a way that is illegal, report them to law enforcement. Don’t try to talk to the bishop first. The bishops have given us no indication that that will be fruitful.
You’re not betraying Christ if you do this. Christ doesn’t commit mortal sins. Christ doesn’t abuse people. The priest who is supposed to represent Christ, betrays Christ if he commits sexual abuse.
You’re not betraying the Church either. The priest who committed this hideous crime betrayed the great trust the Church put in him. You are helping the Church by helping bring him to justice and keeping him from abusing anyone else.
We Catholics must love and honor the Catholic priesthood and the many good and saintly men who are consecrated to serve as priests. We must do this by constant prayer and penance for our priests. We must also do it by supporting and defending them whenever they do good, which is so very often. But we also have to honor the office of the priesthood by having no tolerance for evil, abusive men who desecrate the priesthood by their actions. They have to be exposed and brought to justice, and the way to do this seems not to be to report them to their bishops. That has proven fruitless.
If you have been sexually abused by a priest: I am sorry. I can’t imagine the pain, shame, fear and betrayal you must be suffering right now. I don’t pretend that everything will be all right if you come forward. I don’t think anything can make it all right. But please don’t be frightened into silence by any clericalist errors you might have been taught.
If you have witnessed sexual abuse by a priest: I can’t imagine what a horrible thing that must be to have seen. I know it’s very hard to come forward and talk about such things, but I do ask you to come forward. Don’t try to handle it through the Church right now. Report them to law enforcement. There will likely be a backlash against you from misguided people of faith who think we have to hide priests from the consequences of their actions, but you will be in the right. God will be with you. When we speak up for the victims of abuse, we speak up for Christ who is hidden in them.
We must stop waiting for our bishops to fix this.
Because, at this point in time, we can reasonably expect that they will not.
(image via pixabay)
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