Pope describes sex abuse scandal as a "terrifying crisis'

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I’m sure you have been told over and over that no one here is trying to ‘trivialize’ the crisis or ‘blame it all on the media’. . .

We are simply trying to speak the TRUTH and to insist that the truth be spoken by others–especially the media – as well.

When the media speak of the fact that abuse has occurred, they are correct.
When in speaking of the abuse they state, imply, aver, speculate etc. that the abuse only occurs among Catholic priests. . .

or that it occurs with greater frequency than it truly did. . .

or among more people than it truly did. . .

or that people in response reacted in ways which they did not. . .

or that the only POSSIBLE way to interpret actions is a narrow and negative one and that if you don’t accept it you are ‘trivializing and blaming’. . .

then they are wrong and the error must be pointed out.

Again, nobody claims that abuse did not happen. Nobody is trying to ‘trivialize it’. Nobody is trying to weasel out, or blame ‘others’.

**But if you are any kind of intelligent, rational and above all ETHICAL person, you would not under any circumstances accept falsehood being presented as truth, when you know it is false. . .but sadly, others will accept it as ‘truth’ because it comes from the media, or because it feeds their own personal agenda, or simply because it is ‘easier’ not to ‘question’ what one is told. **
 
I respectfully disagree with you Tantum ergo. Too often people DO try and trivalize it and downplay it, or blame it on the “media” or something.

The pope is right, and I’m very proud of him.
 
Rascalking said:
I respectfully disagree with you Tantum ergo. Too often people DO try and trivalize it and downplay it, or blame it on the “media” or something.

The pope is right, and I’m very proud of him.
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the statement from the Pope is correct
"“This, too, we have always known, but today we see it in a really terrifying way, that the biggest persecution of the church doesn’t come from the enemies outside but is born from sin inside the church,” he said.

the statement from Rascalking is correct
 
RedBert said:
the statement from the Pope is correct
"“This, too, we have always known, but today we see it in a really terrifying way, that the biggest persecution of the church doesn’t come from the enemies outside but is born from sin inside the church,” he said.

the statement from Rascalking is correct
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Gentleman, you aren’t disagreeing with me and I am not disagreeing with you.

I have said -repeatedly! that this abuse is a terrible thing.

I think you must misunderstand me. I am not attempting to trivialize the abuse and I do not think that the majority of posters do either.

Some do, of course. Just as some are out there making this look like a bigger ‘crisis’ than the Reformation or the Bubonic Plague, some are out there attempting to say that it is no big deal.

I am not one of those people.

I’m the one agreeing with the Pope completely–in what HE says. . .

I’m not trivializing, I’m not trying to ‘cover’. . .but I am saying we must deal with the TRUTH of the abuse and not with falsehoods.
 
I have said in several of my posts that the enemy of the church is within. So many like to point to the media, to Protestants, ‘heretics’, cafeteria Catholics, unbelievers, the secular world, etc. etc. as enemies of the church --which some may be–but the true enemy is— within. The scandal has done the church incomparable damage, for more than any Protestant ‘debate’, the atheists Dawkins and Hitchens–yawn–or anyone else.

Or, in the common parlance, with friends like these, who needs enemies?
 
anode said:
I have said in several of my posts that the enemy of the church is within. So many like to point to the media, to Protestants, ‘heretics’, cafeteria Catholics, unbelievers, the secular world, etc. etc. as enemies of the church --which some may be–but the true enemy is— within. The scandal has done the church incomparable damage, for more than any Protestant ‘debate’, the atheists Dawkins and Hitchens–yawn–or anyone else.

Or, in the common parlance, with friends like these, who needs enemies?
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It’s true the abuse was done by priests. . .

but let’s not let ‘everybody else’ off the hook if they are complicit.

If the media is reporting accurately, kudos to them, even if the facts are painful and hurtful.

**but **if the media is mixing lies and truth, then the media (and anybody else who goes along and swallows the lies and disseminates them, even if ‘along with’ the truth) is not guilty of the original abuse but it would certainly be guilty of lying, or of ‘inflaming’ or of attempting to ‘use’ the original abuse ‘over and beyond’ what it was.

Suppose I’m a Catholic priest and I abuse a child. That is wrong, horrendous, a scandal and it needs punishment and justice.

But suppose I’m a reporter for the Daily Yell and I decide that because I personally think celibacy is the real problem, that I’m going to report that priest’s crime. . AND I am going to continue on with a falsehood, a claim that the crime came about because of the Church’s ‘insistence’ on celibacy.

Now HERE is where, while it was bad enough that the priest sinned, the ‘falsehood’ of the reporter in taking something totally **false (**the claim that celibacy was the 'cause of the sin) and using it to ‘mix’ with the truth that the priest abused is making a hybrid position that is going to be (sadly) accepted AS truth.

ANd people trying to argue that no, celibacy did not cause the abuse, are going to be accused of trying to ‘ignore’ the abuse. WHen ALL they are trying to do is make sure that only the TRUE crimes are addressed. . .not false ones.
 
anode said:
I have said in several of my posts that the enemy of the church is within. So many like to point to the media, to Protestants, ‘heretics’, cafeteria Catholics, unbelievers, the secular world, etc. etc. as enemies of the church --which some may be–but the true enemy is— within. The scandal has done the church incomparable damage, for more than any Protestant ‘debate’, the atheists Dawkins and Hitchens–yawn–or anyone else.

Or, in the common parlance, with friends like these, who needs enemies?
Click to expand...
Your opinion is reductive to be suitable with your own subjective view of the situation. The entire situation is far larger in scope and exponentially more complex and nuanced than any singular, de facto exclaimation that, “at last, my view is the true view, all others are flawed and skewed.” There are far too many levels to this crisis to choose but one and designate it as being…ultimate truth. I, respectfully, beg to differ.

I disagree with your take on things, and find that they are an attempt to validate a certain perspective and deem it to be superior. It is almost like encapsulating the entirety of WWII by attributing it entirely to the sins of Adolph Hitler. Sure, there is truth in that statement, but, it has taken, and continues to take, tome after tome of scholarly and historical probings to unearth the true depths of that event. I think the same will be true of the clerical sex abuse scandals which have spawned this particular crisis. It will take years until an encompassing and objective assessment can be completely formed and promulgated.

In my view, trivializing the activity and strength of the Church’s foes is the real danger here.
 
I think the way the media, especially the NY Times, has covered this story has been extremely biased and unfair to the Church and the Pope.

Even today the Times ran this statement by the Pope as a front page story as if to say they were right, that there was no media bias in the coverage, when he was saying nothing of the sort.
 
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