The Catholic Church should not be shocked by the McCarrick case—it

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I don’t think it is an ‘orchestrated’ conspiracy; it doesn’t rise to that level, just another day in the office, business as usual. 😉 The rules are known but never spoken. Wink nod.
 
For those who blame these kinds of incidents on the Lavender Mafia and climates unfavorable to conservative orthodox types I would like to present exhibit A:

Marcial Maciel

I think mandatory celibacy for every priest has run it’s course and until it’s re-thought, will continue to have the iatrogenic effect of making the church a refuge for some who haven’t or won’t grapple with their own harmful sexual urges. I don’t see it changing for a few hundred years though.
 
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Joe_5859 said:
In a case like this, I’m not sure it was so much a “cover up” as it was that those who were told simply did not believe the accusations.
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I respect your opinion a lot, Joe, but to me, this doesn’t pass the smell test. There is something known as “due diligence”. If multiple people are telling you that person S is a sexual harasser AND that everyone around him knows that S is a sexual harasser, maybe you ought to ask a few people personally and anonymously. If the hierarchy wasn’t doing that, it strikes me as culpable. I don’t know if I would call it a cover up, but it is a case of intentionally not finding out details that would give you a duty to warn the public.
 
Joe_5859 said:
In a case like this, I’m not sure it was so much a “cover up” as it was that those who were told simply did not believe the accusations. I can imagine how another bishop would be hesitant to take the word of two former priests (one of which was accused of sexual misconduct himself) and use that as the basis of a starting a public investigation. All the other information seemed to be second-hand.
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The Church shouldn’t be determining the veracity of abuse allegations, that’s the job of the authorities. That’s the problem with the Church’s role im all of these cases of abuse.
 
this whole thing about cardinal mccarick is VERY disturbing to me

although i don’t live there now; i grew up in mccarrick’s diocese

some members of my family & friends still live there

this is shocking, powerful & very upsetting
 
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there is a lot that can be said in response to your post

a sexual predator reached the rank of cardinal; essentially from my hometown

i’'ll’ve needed to pray about this…
 
I remember a case a few years ago of a public school teacher who was accused very creditable by a student.

The community turned on the student as the teacher was very popular.

Another aspect of the dynamic…
 
Celibacy doesn’t cause the abuse but it contributes to the coverup of abuse. Many priests won’t do the right thing and report those accused of abuse when they themselves aren’t celibate because they’re afraid it will come back on them.
 
It’s very tragic, but it shouldn’t be shocking in the least. Self-hating homosexuals do exist. It’s perfectly logical for a man who is homosexual, but hates that in himself, to become even more rigidly conservative in order fight the thing he hates. This is why I think that with the rise in Traditionalist seminarians the problem may not cease but grow worse, as young men seek to “pray away the gay”, or to atone for their homosexuality.
 
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It doesn’t cause it but it does make the priesthood less attractive to sexually mature, heterosexual men.
 
In my opinion celibacy does not make the priesthood less attractive but more attractive because celibacy is heroic. Men have a desire to make sacrifices for the ones they love, and to give your body up for basically the world… that’s awesome. Respect! 😎
 
Prodigal_Son said:
I respect your opinion a lot, Joe, but to me, this doesn’t pass the smell test. There is something known as “due diligence”. If multiple people are telling you that person S is a sexual harasser AND that everyone around him knows that S is a sexual harasser, maybe you ought to ask a few people personally and anonymously. If the hierarchy wasn’t doing that, it strikes me as culpable. I don’t know if I would call it a cover up, but it is a case of intentionally not finding out details that would give you a duty to warn the public.
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That makes sense and is certainly a fair point. It is disconcerting that the accusations were “out there” enough to warrant a couple of settlements. Perhaps no one knew who ultimately had the authority to investigate. I am hoping that November’s USCCB meeting lays out a clear system of what someone can do in such case so that people aren’t unsure of what to do with the information when it is reported to them.
John24 said:
The Church shouldn’t be determining the veracity of abuse allegations, that’s the job of the authorities. That’s the problem with the Church’s role im all of these cases of abuse.
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Also a fair point. Though, in this case, the statute of limitations had run out with regards to criminal charges. When that is the case, would the authorities even bother investigating?
 
I’m sure some do. But it’s been well-proven that the priesthood contains a larger number of homosexuals than in the general population. This is not a problem unless the homosexual also has severe mental problems. But since the world has become more accepting of homosexuals and homosexual marriage, there is a greater danger that homosexual men who, for some reason, can’t emotionally cope with the outside world will try to find escape or atonement in the service of the Church.
 
That’s extremely commendable of you but unfortunately not too many men agree with you.
 
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