Is Pope Benedict giving the best possible protection to children, in the care of Catholic clergy?
A SIN AND A CRIME
Pope Benedict XVI has pronounced the sternest judgement on the abuse of children by priests and religious, as shown in the opening of his pastoral letter to Irish Catholics.
“Dear Brothers and Sisters of the Church in Ireland, it is with great concern that I write to you as Pastor of the universal Church. Like yourselves, I have been deeply disturbed by the information which has come to light regarding the abuse of children and vulnerable young people by members of the Church in Ireland, particularly by priests and religious. I can only share in the dismay and the sense of betrayal that so many of you have experienced on learning of these sinful and criminal acts and the way Church authorities in Ireland dealt with them.”
The Holy Father definitely has something to be dismayed about in Ireland, as investigations point to tens of thousands of Irish youngsters having been subjected to Guantanamo Bay type treatment, in joint government and Catholic run institutions, including 60 years worth of rampant sexual abuse of both boys and girls, at the hand of their caregivers: Nuns, Priests and others. The shame of it is that these were supposedly safe havens for the vulnerable, the destitute, kids who had nowhere else left to go.
Source
Benedict calls the abuse of children a “sin” and “crime”. The crime part can be taken to mean that offending priests will no longer be protected by the cloth, but must face earthly justice for earthly crimes. In addition the church itself will prosecute any abuse not/no longer covered by secular law, using its own tribunals. “Sin” sounds crystal clear, yet it isn’t. Defining and discouraging sin, and managing its Forgiveness is a vital monopoly and franchise for all those holding the Keys to Heaven, the mystical power held by all popes since Apostle Peter, devolving finally to priests, ministering directly to their flocks. Regrettably, it is the Catholic Church’s ill-conceived notion that they could ‘forgive’ child abusers, who expressed remorse, and were reformed/healed through Christian counseling, what got us in this mess to begin with!
So, can sexual child abuse be forgiven? (I’m crazy disagreeing with a Pope now…!) For the most part, hell no. This terrible, soul-destroying sin, can only be forgivable in the narrowest sense like any wrong, if committed once, followed by the truest heart wrenching remorse, the abuser making a 180 degree turn, never inflicting such harm on a child again. Apart from that (here comes the disagreement), it is an unforgivable sin. I ought to explain now: clergy (or anyone) who molest a kid, and then DO IT AGAIN, must have had time to think about it, before committing a second (third, fourth etc.) harmful act. Obviously they decided to persist in harming others. Remembering the wise lessons of my old theology professor: deliberately persisting in sin is the opposite of being sorry/repenting/sincerely asking: “…Please, forgive me LORD…”. In this sense serial molesters are unforgivable (they’ll put one over on you, convincing everybody they’re cured, and go on to some more damage).
An even more fundamental reason why invoking Sin is inappropriate for abuse, is that this behavior is powered by a perverse sexual orientation. This moves it some way out of Christian ideas about doing right versus wrong: it is natural (not ‘good’! but heritable, brain based and triggered into existence by hormones, like other forms of sexuality), robust (life-long) behavior, locked permanently in an individual’s genes. Could Benedict be thinking that by calling Paedophilia a sin, the church will succeed to keep the door open to call Homosexuality (=alternative sexual orientation) sinful, and not gradually get forced out of human sexuality altogether? If abandoning Pederasts to secular society (facing severe penalties), gays could be next (who will be deemed ‘normal’, legal and equal), and perchance all of sexuality will then escape from Catholic moral guidance.
Benedict has a deeply empathic message for the victims of the Irish abuse:
“You have suffered grievously and I am truly sorry. I know that nothing can undo the wrong you have endured. Your trust has been betrayed and your dignity has been violated. Many of you found that, when you were courageous enough to speak of what happened to you, no one would listen.”
Also, here are Holy Father’s words to the abusers:
“You betrayed the trust that was placed in you by innocent young people and their parents, and you must answer for it before Almighty God and before properly constituted tribunals.”
And:
“Openly acknowledge your guilt, submit yourselves to the demands of justice, but do not despair of God’s mercy.”
So I suspect Pope Benedict of theological contortionism. By calling child abusing priests/religious ‘sinners’, encouraging them “not to despair of God’s mercy” presumably even if they molested and psychologically traumatized hundreds of children, he niftily retains the Universal Church’s awesome power to forgive sins, even heinous ones. Imo it is also a tactic to continue asserting its authority over all matters of human sexuality, including the rejection of homosexuality. Great job, protecting the church and Conservative Catholicism, fersure.
Benedict to Irish priests and religious:
“I know that many of you are disappointed, bewildered and angered by the way these matters have been handled by some of your superiors. Yet, it is essential that you cooperate closely with those in authority and help to ensure that the measures adopted to respond to the crisis will be truly evangelical, just and effective.”
“…there was a well-intentioned but misguided tendency to avoid penal approaches to canonically irregular situations.”
“…a misplaced concern for the reputation of the Church and the avoidance of scandal, resulting in failure to apply existing canonical penalties and to safeguard the dignity of every person.”
BLESS THE CHILD
Continue on forgiving serial child rapists, and you risk becoming a facilitator/accomplice to shepherds who destroy and scatter, the False Shepherds.
Jeremiah 23:1 NASB
"Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of My pasture!" declares the LORD.
Read the context in the New American Standard Bible
But is this pope giving the best possible protection to children, in the care of Catholic clergy? For starters, these youngsters were put in harm’s way by putting paedophile priests in charge of them. Also remember, the enormity of the damage was caused by allowing abusing priests continued access to kids, often after (discrete) repentence, forgiveness and therapy. Beyond the pope’s dismay, heartfelt comfort and prayer, he must change the criteria for ordained child workers, so that the initial abuse doesn’t occur. Like creating a new class of married (!!) priests/nuns, with years of parenting experience. Go ordain some moms into the priesthood, whadayasay… As to abusing clergy continuing their harm for decades, I think the Catholic Church should stop fooling around with ‘forgiveness’. Keep forgiving serial child rapists, and you risk becoming a facilitator/accomplice to shepherds who destroy and scatter, the False Shepherds.
Here’s the thing. If Benedict is really serious about blessing and saving children, he must radically change the selection process for priests charged with the care of young ones. (All them Vows, Prayers and Evangelicalism didn’t work so well, hah...) To be just and effective towards kids and their safety, I furthermore believe repeat child abusers should be swiftly abandoned to the Law of the Land, and utterly banished from the Universal Church. Send a message like…you are NOT AT ALL welcome here.
purr
I propose Benedict creates a new class of married (!!) priests/nuns, with years of parenting experience, especially for child work.
SOURCES:
PASTORAL LETTER OF THE HOLY FATHER POPE BENEDICT XVI TO THE CATHOLICS OF IRELAND
Topic first posted at ufocasebook.com
