Putting priests on a pedestal (Main Forum)

by judith, Walloon Australia, Sunday, May 13, 2012, 15:32 (373 days ago) @ Dolores

I am in the same situation as you, Dolores, regarding hearing about the abuse and covering up. Until I accessed Catholica I had no idea of the extent of the abuse, and no idea at all of the covering up. This has been shattering for me, to hear of the pain of our brothers and sisters so foully hurt. Soul murder is the only fitting description. But just as bad is the sin of covering up.

In my childhood (1940s and 50s) we were taught that you must never criticize or speak ill of a priest as they were God's anointed. No wonder the culture of secrecy lasted so long. Many of us still cannot get our heads fully round the fact that those who had risen to places of authority in the Church were the very ones to put the "good name of the Church" before the pain of the children. No wonder there is not much good name left, and most of what there is, is due to the work of the Sisters and others in the background.

The clip at the head of today's posts, about what kind of psychology is demonstrated, is truly frightening, as there are so many who believe that we must just put these horrors behind us and get back to adoration and Latin and all will be well, as Father will tell us what to do. The most disgusting thing about this kind of "religion" is that the Temple Police element will run to Rome AND GET A HEARING while the Sisters who are striving to deal with the wrecked lives of those who are the poorest are investigated because they fail to speak out more in accordance with the "company policy" than about the suffering they encounter daily. So many of these suffer because of focus on matters of sex, not of charity in the leadership and their devoted followers.

Do we really want a continuation of the Church as we knew it, with the pain caused; the money diverted secretly as "hush money": the screaming about sins of sex and ignoring sins of power and greed; the manipulation of people's minds through fear of being excommunicated; and the oppression of those in gold and lace over those in rags?

Where is Jesus today?

J A Holznagel