Winter into Spring, a Little News, and an Easter Uprising
. . . I've always thought TV Newscasts had it backwards. It’s a New England tradition that polite conversations begin with the weather, then gradually descend into the gritty news at hand. But TV news does just the opposite, at least in New England. Folks up here are so interested in the weather that the newscasters hold it until last to keep viewers' attention on the news. I'll follow the more polite social tradition, however, and begin with the weather, then sneak in – here and there – the things I really want to convey. . . .
Separation of Church and Penn State: A Media Double Standard
. . . Ted made the very same point that I made above about the news media letting pass an opportunity to truly expose and effect sexual abuse: "I hope the pendulum swings back to some degree. I never agreed with zero tolerance. There has to be some respect for priests as basic citizens presumed to be innocent . . . The lack of balance in regards to the Globe and NY Times coverage indicates that they have clearly missed a chance to address societal child abuse. This belies a more sinister agenda by people who want to destroy the Church. Since the level of sexual sin in our society is so great, it makes people somehow feel good to persecute the Catholic Church for its abuse problem as a way to feel absolved of their own sin in some way." . . .
A Book Every Priest Needs to Read: Catholic Priests Falsely Accused
. . . My call to action is as simple as that. Help us spread news of this book. Consider giving it to the priests you know. Consider reading it yourself. Above all, encourage the priests you know and make them a part of your daily prayer. And there is another way you can help, especially now as we prepare to revisit my own case for a possible new appeal in the new year. If you like this post - or any other - you can help by tweeting it, pinging it, sending a link to your e-mail contacts, Facebook pages, and posting the link in comments on other blogs and Catholic websites. There is a viral effect among faithful Catholics, and its power should not be overlooked. . . .
"SNAP's Last Gasp!" The Pope's "Crimes Against Humanity"
. . . The speech was delivered in Berlin on May 28, 1937. Here's an all-too-familiar excerpt: "There are cases of sexual abuse that come to light every day against a large number of the Catholic clergy. Unfortunately, it's not a matter of individual cases, but a collective moral crisis that perhaps the cultural history of humanity has never before known with such a frightening and disconcerting dimension. Numerous priests and religious have confessed. There's no doubt that the thousands of cases which have come to the attention of the justice system represent only a small fraction of the true total, given that many molesters have been covered and hidden by the hierarchy." The speech was quite effective in its original German, its orator bedecked in the uniform and insignia of the Third Reich, an immense swastika waving in the wind behind him as he fired up the mob. In the moral panic to follow, 325 Catholic priests from every diocese in Germany were arrested and sent to prison on trumped-up sex abuse charges. . . .
SNAP Judgements Part I: Catholic Priests Among the Public Ruins
. . . It’s also time to cease giving any credence whatsoever to groups using "victimhood" to mask a devious agenda. In just about every news account of Catholic scandal since 2002, the news media gives the last and loudest word to representatives of SNAP - the Survivors’ Network of those Abused by Priests - whose spokespersons stand ever ready to condemn the Catholic Church, the priesthood, the bishops, the Pope, and even Catholics in the pews for still being Catholics in the pews. SNAP has become an inexhaustible source of the story the news media wants - and the media has discovered that SNAP will never tire of condemning the Catholic Church for still standing even in the face of SNAP's self-serving rhetoric. It's a marriage made in . . . well, certainly not Heaven. SNAP is now a part of the problem and should be treated as such. Its sole goal is to denigrate me, you, and our shared faith, and it plans to do so until the entire Church is bankrupt. It's time to stop listening to SNAP. This group surrendered its moral credibility when it confused justice with vengeance by promoting only the latter, it advocates for a never-ending state of victimhood for its adherents. That is not true advocacy. . . .
"Holy Hostility, Batman!" When the Gloves Come Off on Catholic Blogs
. . . I thought of Batman recently when I received a snail mail letter from TSW reader Dorothy Stein after her on-line exchange described above. I was struck by her message and I think you will be, too. I asked her permission to use it, so hear it is: "From watching some of the debate on Catholic blogs, I have come to the conclusion that there are factions in your Church whose prevailing agendas are to destroy the Church. Knowing that any sane person would realize as I have that there exists no evidence for your supposed guilt, I can only conclude that attacks on you are not motivated by that at all, but by your witness, your fidelity, your support of the priesthood, your asking your readers to remain faithful to their Church. If you were willing to abandon all that, as some others have done, it seems things would go so much easier for you. But don't do it, Father. Take the Bangs and the Bonks! It's for a good cause. Just learn when to duck!" . . .
The Whoopi Cushion
. . . Whoopi Goldberg now ridicules the case against Roman Polanski, inferring that it is unjust to impose a penalty in a case from so long go. Moreover, and most shockingly, she minimized the child’s victimization with the astonishing statement, “It wasn’t really rape, rape!” The inference here is that the victim “consented,” despite being drugged, and despite being thirteen years old. If Roman Polanski was a Catholic priest, Whoopi Goldberg would want his head presented to Herod on a platter. . . . As the national priesthood scandal unfolded seven years ago – at which point I had already been wrongly imprisoned for eight years – my bishop wrote the following to a Vatican official: “Whatever the truth is about [Father MacRae’s] guilt or innocence, the Diocese of Manchester was in a difficult situation during his public trial. I do not feel that the Diocese can publicly advocate on his behalf without risking grave public misunderstanding.” . . .