We have yet another article criticizing Boston’s Cardinal Sean O’Malley for his 10-day novena to the Holy Spirit in reparation for the Scandal that ended on Pentecost. More victims have been rounded up to say that this just isn’t enough. I’m afraid people don’t get it. In a utilitarian world of effective materialism prayer is a complete waste of time. Falling on one’s face and beseeching God’s forgiveness and grace is a pointless gesture to one who has no faith. And those who accuse O’Malley of using this to avoid taking “real” steps at reform are accusing him of having no faith either. This not an either-or situation: We can do both.
Let me be clear that I sympathize with the lost faith of the abuse victims. A priest who abuses a child doesn’t just damage a body and emotions and mental health, he also murders a faith. Unfortunately, it seems that too many victims “advocates”, who often have their own axes to grind against the Church, do them no favor by keeping them ever more mired in a swamp of despair and lost faith.
And what many of these advocates really want is for the Church to support their pet cause, specifically changes to the law. Some victims, having received huge payments in legal settlements, are finding that the feel no better having won their cases. There must be something else that will make them feel better and so their lawyers and other interested parties tell them they should push for new laws to make even more cases subject to civil penalties, which not coincidentally will further enrich the lawyers.
I wholeheartedly support one of their demands
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Isn’t this the same principle that Ann Coulter talks about in her book? Victims are used by the liberal elites and you cannot argue against them because then you are offending victims who suffered?
Sorry, but people will find that most victims don’t agree with them, these more vocal types being used by the lawyers and the politicians and members of the media are embarassing the true victims.
“There are far more child molestings committed by public school teachers than by priests.” Ann Coulter on the Sean Hannity Radio Program: WABC Radio June 07, 2006
Having been following the activities of VOTF on the national and local level for some time, I can attest in some detail that in the end, this is not about the victims or the harm done to them. Most of the discussions, most of the initiatives, particularly at local levels, have absolutely nothing to do with the stated goals of VOTF. They use the issue in question as a launching point to attack the Church and her teachings in a variety of unrelated issues.
Unrelated save one, that is. Many of them are especially supportive of gay rights and the acceptance of a gay lifestyle. This is puzzling when you consider that many of the acts committed against the young people fit the technical definition of sodomy; that is to say, one male engaging in sexual activity with another male.
The other issues reduce the Church to an endless series of political harangues. There are people who actually work for centers and institutions, who are paid to carry on these ideological battles. Not all are confined to academic institutions. Some of them are in Washington and other major cities, and appear to be well-funded.
People wonder why such individuals don’t leave the Church. It’s hard to figure out, until you realize the prospect of losing one-sixth of the world’s population, and/or just over twenty percent of the USA population, as a potentially captive audience.
That would be very hard to replicate, and so they stay, throwing tantrums in the sanctuary for heaven and earth to see.
What if they were suddenly ignored?
Matt:
They’d be excommunicating much of the labor pool of their infrastructure. (Would you wanna work for them?) Besides, I don’t have much respect for a bishop who has lost his moral credibility, I don’t care how much of a show he puts on.