As Scandal Keeps Growing, Church and Its Faithful Reel

NY Times | 3/16/02 | LAURIE GOODSTEIN and ALESSANDRA STANLEY

[pt17]

Many church leaders admit they are stunned at the ferocity of this scandal because they thought it was a problem they had already laid to rest

I don't understand this. Did they think that covering up was laying a problem to rest? What am I missing here?

[The Cuban]

While this scandal has its basis in thr truth of the matter it asserts, it is nonetheless turning into a classic sex tinged American witch hunt. This is the same type of nonsense as the rash of child molestation in day care cases of the late 1980's which were later determined to be rubbish. What is going on with this story is nothing more than a conflagration of mass hysteria. There is no fact finding, or weighing of evidence. All one person needs to do to get the ball rolling in any disocese is to claim that 40 years ago a priest touched their leg. Though most likely there would be absolutelyt no evidence of this, rest assured that that priest will be fired and have his reputation destroyed. One must remember that though some allegations are true, many will not be and shit for brains that read this story are going to start concocting their own recollections about events that in actuality never happened. There is a reason why the Salem Witch trials are still taught today. They are not just a quaint tidbit of colonial Americana but a reminder of a dark streak in the American psyche that has resurfaced today under the guise of sacerdotal scandal.

[anniegetyourgun]

I wish I understood it, pt. I cannot explain it without using the word: sin. In this whole situation it appears to be both sins of commission and sins of ommission.

[anniegetyourgun]

Denial is one option, I suppose.

[The Cuban]

No the answer is not denial it is healthy skepticism.

[sinkspur]

What is going on with this story is nothing more than a conflagration of mass hysteria. There is no fact finding, or weighing of evidence.

There is some danger of false accusations, Cuban, but, man, let's face it.

Only one priest, who later admitted to having two adult homosexual affairs, has protested that he's been wronged.

Unfortunately, this isn't a witch hunt.

It's a disaster for the Catholic Church.

BTW, I'm a Catholic, a former deacon, and I don't have "shit for brains."

[sinkspur]

No the answer is not denial it is healthy skepticism.

Skepticism?

EIGHTY PRIESTS in the archdiocese of Boston molested boys over the last thirty years.

You're in denial if you think this is an aberration.

[dansangel]

"Others argue that the abuse was made possible by a church that had become too lax. "These cases are the detritus of the sexual revolution," said Mary Ann Glendon, a Harvard law professor who serves on two Vatican commissions. She said that 1960's culture pressured priests to explore their sexuality. "We need a reaffirmation of clerical self-discipline," she said."

I have to agree. Vatican II was the beginning of the end for the Catholic Church. With its lax, touchy-feely dogma, it lost many followers, such as myself.

For the past three years I have been trying to come back into the fold. The only Churches I will attend are those that are conservative....those that have the crucifix prominently displayed, the Tabernacle on the altar where it belongs (not hidden in some back room) and priests who are not afraid to tell the parishioners that coming in late to mass and leaving early is like not attending at all.

One priest admonished the dress code of some of the parishioners, stating flatly that "going to Church should be like going on a date with Jesus."

Lack of respect at Mass has led to many of the evils that are plaguing the Church today.

I pray for more priests who urge their parishioners to adhere strictly to the rules of the Catholic Church rather than those who are afraid of scaring people away and so allow them to do whatever they please.

[sinkspur]

Thanks for posting this, annie.

This scandal will, I predict, cause Catholics to rethink their donations, if they see massive sums going to victims.

THAT will get the Vatican's attention.

I may get flamed for this, but this calamity will not be significantly addressed by John Paul II. He simply doesn't want to deal with it. It will be left to the next Pope to find a solution.

[SMEDLEYBUTLER]

"Even if it was triple hearsay, let me decide," said Stephanie Anderson, the district attorney of Cumberland County, who said she would follow their transfers from parish to parish in search of victims new and old. She wants to track the history of every priest accused of sexual misconduct.

"It is my belief that if these people victimize once, they generally do not stop," Ms. Anderson said.

I'm sure Stephanie's failure to mention that she would be as diligent in her investigation of all Protestant denominations as well, was an honest omission. Of course, if she uncovers any unfounded allegations, she will be first in line to apologize and will then exercise all her prosecutorial power to punish those making said accusations.< /sarcasm>

[sinkspur]

I pray for more priests who urge their parishioners to adhere strictly to the rules of the Catholic Church rather than those who are afraid of scaring people away and so allow them to do whatever they please.

Treating Catholics like children is not the answer to priests abusing young boys.

The clothing Catholics wear to Mass is far down the list of major issues facing the Church.

[Mr. Peabody]

I can't find one mention of the word "homosexual" anywhere in this article. How strange.

[sobieski]

This is a problem of the "lavender mafia" taking over the seminaries. In other words one of the "fruits of Vatican II" or "multicultirism", take your choice

[dansangel]

It's the tip of the iceberg...all of the symptoms add up to the greater disease.

[sinkspur]

This is a problem of the "lavender mafia" taking over the seminaries.

I'd really like to see the statistics of how many of these priests were ordained since 1965.

Geoghan of Boston, Porter of Boston, the bishop O'Connell, were all ordained before Vatican II.

Optional celibacy would, at the very least, rid the priesthood of a reputation as a "gay profession."

[HENRYADAMS]

I have noticed the same thing. This church attempted to temporize with homosexuality and it is turning and rending them.

So far the homosexuals and their supporters in the media are successful in labeling the whole problem as "pedophilia" as if this is some sort of disorder separate and apart grom the underlying disorder. Homosexuality is a form of decadence which requires ever increasing stimulation to achieve the same state of satisfaction.

[SMEDLEYBUTLER]

Some argue that sexual abuse in the church grows out of fundamental flaws in Catholicism. "The division of body and soul is a mistaken model," said Eugene Kennedy, a psychologist and former priest, who wrote, "The Unhealed Wound: The Church and Human Sexuality."

Mr. Kennedy added: "The Church uses sexuality to control people in a punitive atmosphere. If flesh is evil, you cannot teach celibacy in a healthy way."

Sorry Mr. Kennedy, but I'll defer to people like Father Groeschel. There are plenty of priests, nuns and laity who are living contradictions to his opinion. Sounds like Eugene has some personal issues.

[PGalt]

Good post, comments.

[rose]

I agree. I am a converted catholic, since 1986, have spent years studying Catholicism, the more I learn, the more I realize how much has been lost since Vatican II. I am sooo disgusted with our Bishops who promote modernism, etc. I have read the mass and prayers before Vatican II, and after, and it is amazing what has been changed and left out. I go to mass and come out worse than when I went in. It is soo hard to keep focused as to the true meaning of mass. We are reaping what has been sowed. I do not go to mass anymore as much as I should. Pope John Paul II loves Vatican II, the equality of Bishops with the Pope, he will never stand up to what needs to be done.