No more, I have to say this

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Caesar

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Out of respect for various forum members in the Catholic News Forum I have been holding this back for a while, but I cannot continue to sit by and read this day after day after day.

In regards to the issue of the sex abuse scandal, I have seen some disturbing trends taking place.

The first deals with the mass media. We all know that the media is biased on this issue. It is blatant. So, it is not only inexcusable when someone decides to rely solely on the opinions of the “secular” media, it is also ignorant. If we are too lazy to sift through the information and pick out the facts for ourselves, we cannot hope to get the entire picture.

Secondly, the reactions of some Catholics here are imprudent and thoughtless. It has been dealt with over and over again that clergy is not above reproach. In the 2000 year history of the Church there have been many cases of abuse and corruption at the highest levels of the hierarchy, many times worse than what we see now. But every time that happens, we come to our senses, step back from the abyss and renew the Church. It is a constant cycle of failure, devastation, forgiveness, and renewal- just as it was in the Old Testament. God’s love for His Church is undying; God’s forgiveness for His Church is ever-present; to the Church God gives strength, conviction, and endurance to outlast all crises and defend the infallible truths of Christ. We must never forget this.

Finally, it seems to be the opinions of a few that the Church purposefully covered up the abuse. Not just individual Bishops, but the directives of the Holy See. It is our duty as Catholics to give to our imperfect leaders the benefit of the doubt until there is no longer a question of doubt. Some of us have done this backwards. We think the worst of the Pope and the College of Cardinals. To prove these anti-Catholic points, we even take documents out of the context in which they are to be read (time period, Canon Law, ect) and read them in today’s terms. In this we are being biased and ignorant.

We should no longer be faced with a question of how this happened or who is to blame. Let us rather follow the greatest Saints of the Church and help initiate a time of reform and renewal to build the Church of the future.

(This is here as it deals with issues in the Catholic News forum- if any mods feel it is in the wrong place, please move it, but dont delete it)
 
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
I was waiting for someone to say that.
Look, it’s obvious that the media is biased on this issue. Doing a quick google search can bring up hundreds of news articles about Protestant and Orthodox sex abuse; yet the guilt and shame is always laid soely on the shoulders of the Catholic Church. In fact, just two summers ago a Protestant minister in my area was found guilty of luring 12-year-olds girls into sexual situations through the Internet. And if you don’t believe me about any of this, then just do a quick google search. This is not just a Catholic problem. And its not just a religious problem either. Just look at the statistics about sex abuse in public schools. Its a universal problem.
And even if such abuse is more frequent in the Catholic Church, although the jury is still out on that, it doesn’t mean that the Church should just be abandoned. Look, the Church was never meant to be a hotel for saints; instead it was meant to be a hospital for sinners. And this includes clergymen as well. Let’s not forget that St. Peter (who betrayed the Lord three times) and Judas were two of the greatest sinners throughout history. The only difference is that the former was forgiven while the latter gave up. Moreover, let’s not forget that throughout the Gospels Christ constantly reprimands the disciples for getting His teachings wrong; yet this does not undo their status as real disciples.
Instead of abandoning the Church, its our job to stick closer to it and, through the power of the Holy Spirit, strengthen it for the inside out.
May I gain two hundred pounds, loose all of my hair, go bankrupt, and catch herpies before I leave the Church in its time of greatest need!

catholicleague.org/research/abuse_in_social_context.htm
 
Thank you both… I feel the same way and I would like to add that this makes me even more sure that I am at home in the Catholic faith… Jesus Himself said that the gates of Hell won’t prevail, so I am assuming that this is just whats happening… All we can do is pray and fast and offer all that we have to Our Lord for His Church and He will take care of the rest… I feel that that is the best we can do for now, because this is far from over…

God Bless

Kathleen
 
I agree. Maybe it is time to end the discussions in this forum. If it needs to continue maybe it should have its own forum (temporary or perm) so we are not bombarded with it on a daily basis.
 
We have a sad mixture of posters who keep this in front of us.

One claims to be a faithful Catholic but only posts news articles that make the Church look bad. There’s never a question of whether the news articles is accurate or not. I can’t for the life of me figure out why this person does what he does.

A group belongs to a survivors of abuse “support” group. I put support in quotes because it is apparent that it has turned into a hate group with no purpose other than to bash the Church. They never offer anything constructive and never post on any other subject. Their lives seem to be consumed by the ever deepening pit of hatred and self pity in which they wallow. A support group should help its members deal with and overcome the past in order to move on to the future. This group seems content to live in the past and try to tear down rather than build. Anyone who disagrees with them is afraid of the truth. I honestly don’t know how to deal with these people because they’re so close minded that they refuse to be confused by facts. I guess all that’s left is to pray for God to heal their pain and restore the love to their hearts.

Another category would be the disgruntled Catholic who is intent on leaving the faith. Some end up leaving, some don’t. Whether the scandal is the real reason or an excuse is not for me to judge. Again, more prayers.

And, of course, there’s the anti-Catholics who come here and use the scandals as more proof that the Church is the whore of Babylon. Those are easier to deal with because they usually are disrespectful right out of the gate and get kicked off the boards before we’re subjected to too much of their vile. A little patience and a report to the moderators takes care of them is short order.

I, too, get tired of the same old stuff being played over and over, but I guess that’s the price we pay for having a public bulletin board. Just like in the Church, the good here far outweighs the bad.
 
Excellent points Mr. Barnhill.

I admit, the sex abuse issue really saddens me. It is very hard to face, especialy since I want to be a priest. But we cannot forget that this is Christ’s Church, and in the end His Church will always prevail over Hell. We cannot forget who we are and where we come from because some priests chose to commit terrible acts against nature.
 
thankyou, cesar, this is exactly why I almost never visit this forum.
 
Well said, Caesar. I feel the reform and renewal each time I attend Mass. My church is full of young families, students and energetic, excited people of all ages. I wish more focus was given to the joy the Church brings to countless lives.
 
Thank you so much Caesar!!! Prayers are always going up for you in the Vocations thread…🙂
 
I understand and appreciate the theme of this thread. Unfortunately though, the sad fact is that law breaking Catholics continue to loom heavily in our midst. The seed bed of weeds is still alive and well….this will be unchanging till the end of time. The shock and pain of the past recent years is too new to move on in a merry little forgetful way. History repeats itself……we live and learn from history…….Lay Catholics have only just begun exercising the use of their voices. Catholics have learned to speak and be heard. And with that in mind ……I congratulate you Caesar and all others posting on this thread…I hear you.
 
contemplative said:
I understand and appreciate the theme of this thread. Unfortunately though, the sad fact is that law breaking Catholics continue to loom heavily in our midst. The seed bed of weeds is still alive and well….this will be unchanging till the end of time. The shock and pain of the past recent years is too new to move on in a merry little forgetful way. History repeats itself……we live and learn from history…….Lay Catholics have only just begun exercising the use of their voices. Catholics have learned to speak and be heard. And with that in mind ……I congratulate you Caesar and all others posting on this thread…I hear you.
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I’m not saying that whould just forget about the abuse scandal and ignore it. Nothing like that. I am saying that it is not productive sit around and complain all day about the scandal, and place fault in anyone and everyone from the lowliest parish priest to the Holy Father. We must take this scandal and use it as a lesson for the future, and to live what this lesson taught us to renew the Church.
 
You know, there are those who are truly hurt by the scandal. Their faith has been rocked and they are even humiliated. This is true. Then there is this other contingent within the Church which actually rejoices over it. These are the same people one finds huddled in groups with their friends who rejoice when they hear the neighbors are getting a divorce, or someone they dislike got fired, or someone they despise got arrested for something. You know the type I mean. They are the ones most likely to keep any scandal in front of our faces and it wouldn’t matter if they were Catholic or not, they still would hold scandal out for relishment. Sad fact is, we have many people in the Church who are catholic in name only, socially only, who simply are not spiritual people. I think this is why we have Pope Benedict XVI at this time. God wants us to be more spiritual. In my parish alone, most of, most of the people do not even consider offences against the eigth commandment to be sin. They consider it a quaint aspect to life in our town and boast about their calumnies. We have to a certain respect in the Church become slothful and lost our sense of sin. I think the Pope is on the correct road to repair. So hope.
 
Caesar said:
We must take this scandal and use it as a lesson for the future, and to live what this lesson taught us to renew the Church.
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I thank God for your interest in becoming a priest, Caesar. Perhaps I can add to what you had to say.

I think it is incumbent upon the Church to, indeed, use the scandal as a lesson for the future. In order to learn a lesson, one has to know the facts. Part of the “true pederasty” problem was that bishops tended to treat it as a psychological problem instead of a moral problem. The consensus now is that true pederasty cannot be “cured”, but not so long ago that wasn’t the consensus. Bishops cannot be blamed for not knowing then what we know now. But one can question, and should question, the reliance on the secular “soft science” of psychology when moral depravity was staring them in the face.

But true pederasty was a rather small part of the problem. The Case Western Reserve study shows that the vast majority of the “child abuse” cases actually involved post-pubescent young men, and most of the incidents were consensual. The big end of the iceberg was actually homosexuality. I think the Holy Father understands this, but many do not. I believe reforms are ongoing, but they sure could have, and should have, started sooner. There are still those who advocate the acceptance of homosexuality (as distinguished from those otherwise pure persons with homosexual tendencies) within the Church. Again, a case of accepting societal notions in lieu of the teachings of the Church.

If the Church leaders focus on Church teachings as opposed to the psychological or sociological notions of the time, it will not necessarily guarantee a renewal of piety and the charity which flows from it. But it would be a fine start. I hope you continue in your path to the priesthood and, if you do, I think you, as a young man, will likely see a movement toward true renewal; something which I believe has already begun.
 
Caesar said:
We cannot forget who we are and where we come from because some priests chose to commit terrible acts against nature.
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You are so right with that thought. It was some priests…not everyone and it definitely is not acceptable by the church.

I am in your diocese (well I’m near Lon,ON) and when they read out at mass a few weeks ago about what the Bishop had to say I was moved to tears but on the other hand filled with hope.

I pray that the church can get past this, learn from it and benefit from the changes.
 
smellslikeroses said:
You are so right with that thought. It was some priests…not everyone and it definitely is not acceptable by the church.

I am in your diocese (well I’m near Lon,ON) and when they read out at mass a few weeks ago about what the Bishop had to say I was moved to tears but on the other hand filled with hope.

I pray that the church can get past this, learn from it and benefit from the changes.
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Ah, finally, someone else here from the Diocese of Lodon 😃

What parish are you at if I may ask?
 
geezerbob said:
We have a sad mixture of posters who keep this in front of us.

One claims to be a faithful Catholic but only posts news articles that make the Church look bad. There’s never a question of whether the news articles is accurate or not. I can’t for the life of me figure out why this person does what he does.

A group belongs to a survivors of abuse “support” group. I put support in quotes because it is apparent that it has turned into a hate group with no purpose other than to bash the Church. They never offer anything constructive and never post on any other subject. Their lives seem to be consumed by the ever deepening pit of hatred and self pity in which they wallow. A support group should help its members deal with and overcome the past in order to move on to the future. This group seems content to live in the past and try to tear down rather than build. Anyone who disagrees with them is afraid of the truth. I honestly don’t know how to deal with these people because they’re so close minded that they refuse to be confused by facts. I guess all that’s left is to pray for God to heal their pain and restore the love to their hearts.

Another category would be the disgruntled Catholic who is intent on leaving the faith. Some end up leaving, some don’t. Whether the scandal is the real reason or an excuse is not for me to judge. Again, more prayers.

And, of course, there’s the anti-Catholics who come here and use the scandals as more proof that the Church is the whore of Babylon. Those are easier to deal with because they usually are disrespectful right out of the gate and get kicked off the boards before we’re subjected to too much of their vile. A little patience and a report to the moderators takes care of them is short order.

I, too, get tired of the same old stuff being played over and over, but I guess that’s the price we pay for having a public bulletin board. Just like in the Church, the good here far outweighs the bad.
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I haven’t been here long and I can already figure out who is referenced. Their agenda is obvious.

I agee with Ceasar. I also wouldn’t mind the moderators getting more involved with keeping these posts to a minimum or when someone starts a post thats repetitive, they be referred to an existing one running.

Lord I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed.
Amen.
 
Caesar said:
Excellent points Mr. Barnhill.

I admit, the sex abuse issue really saddens me. It is very hard to face, especialy since I want to be a priest. But we cannot forget that this is Christ’s Church, and in the end His Church will always prevail over Hell. We cannot forget who we are and where we come from because some priests chose to commit terrible acts against nature.
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I hope you continue with your journey to the priesthood. By your words I see that you are very passionate. Good luck and God Bless. 👍
 
Caesar,

Thank you for your balanced approach on these topics.

I brought up a question on one of these threads about the possibility of a man with same -sex attraction entering the priesthood with it always one his mind that this career would allow him access to these post-adolescent boys. I would have to think it is the case in at least some, and probably the worst of the child abuse cases.

Likewise, when you speak of imprudent and thoughtless Catholics, you must remember how easy it is to register here and say youy are Catholic for the promotion of anti-Catholic rhetoric. The idea that a “Catholic” spewing propaganda might be more readily received. I believe this is the case in one instance on the News Forum. We must not believe all that people say about themselves blindly.

Thank you for your presence here, but take us all with a grain of salt. Anonymous posting leads to some real potential for misinformation.
 
Caesar said:
I’m not saying that whould just forget about the abuse scandal and ignore it. Nothing like that. I am saying that it is not productive sit around and complain all day about the scandal, and place fault in anyone and everyone from the lowliest parish priest to the Holy Father. We must take this scandal and use it as a lesson for the future, and to live what this lesson taught us to renew the Church.
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You have brought up a very good question. You can reply on this thread.
What did you learn from the sex scandal in the Church?
 
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