M
Mustard
Guest
Like many in Ireland, I drifted away from the faith over the years. It tends to happen in secular countries, and Ireland today is the poster child for the culture (such as it is) of secular liberalism. Even away from the Church, the echoing emptyness of secularism was beginning to sicken me as I grew older. I’ve watched silently as the Church came under increasing attack over the child abuse scandal. In truth, there was no way to defend the charges - they were true, after all, and even though I knew that many of those liberals on the anti-Catholic bandwagon didn’t really give a damn about the children they claimed to be outraged over (to them, it was just a stick to beat religion with), still the Church had brought it on itself. If the bishops had come down like a ton of lead on the first child abuser they became aware of, they would have killed this scandal (and the pain of many innocents) dead in its tracks. But they didn’t, instead chosing to cover up and keep silent, disheartening many good Catholics as the story came out in dribs and drabs, and giving the rest an excuse to leave.
Up until now, the secularists (in fairness) have stayed within just boundaries. They haven’t made it an anti-Catholic thing per se, they have confined themselves to representing the interests of the victims and they have adhered to a moral ground (albeit a secular one) which the bishops have abandoned. But now they’ve crossed a line. This is a straight assault on a minority (for committed Catholics today are a minority in Ireland, despite the nominally massive majority). They’ve edged out of the territory of tolerance and have entered the ground of harrassment. After that comes oppression, and finally outright persecution. We are, of course, a very long way from that and it’s not by any means certain the government will continue down this road, but for me it’s a heads-up. I’m returning to my faith, poor as it is, and hope others will do likewise.
The Church in Ireland has fallen a very long way, much of it its own doing, but enough is enough. I hope when this is over, what comes out the other side will be a beacon that will shame every secularist in this country.
Up until now, the secularists (in fairness) have stayed within just boundaries. They haven’t made it an anti-Catholic thing per se, they have confined themselves to representing the interests of the victims and they have adhered to a moral ground (albeit a secular one) which the bishops have abandoned. But now they’ve crossed a line. This is a straight assault on a minority (for committed Catholics today are a minority in Ireland, despite the nominally massive majority). They’ve edged out of the territory of tolerance and have entered the ground of harrassment. After that comes oppression, and finally outright persecution. We are, of course, a very long way from that and it’s not by any means certain the government will continue down this road, but for me it’s a heads-up. I’m returning to my faith, poor as it is, and hope others will do likewise.
The Church in Ireland has fallen a very long way, much of it its own doing, but enough is enough. I hope when this is over, what comes out the other side will be a beacon that will shame every secularist in this country.
It’s not the priests that need to be reported - it’s the abusers. If the Church, at least in countries where the seal of Confession is being attacked, mandated anonymous Confession, virtually no priest would know with certainty who was on the other side of the screen. Even if a voice is familiar, unless the priest hearing the Confession is a voice recognition expert, there would always be some doubt. You can’t be required to report a guess, even if it’s a good one.