Can the Catholic Church Survive?

What did the Pope know and when did he know it? (NPR)

I hate that it is a Jewish Attorney General that has exposed this. That will surely bring the antisemites out of the woodwork. But what is happening in the Catholic Church is not Josh Shapiro’s fault. He is just the messenger who after due diligence has exposed massive sex abuse among the priesthood of the Catholic Church – as well as cover-ups going all the way up to the Pope. For this Shapiro should be thanked by all people of good will.

As noted in an earlier discussion of this issue, I believe that the Church’s celibacy requirement of priests is a major contributor to this sad and unacceptable phenomenon.  There is little doubt in my mind that the sex drive cannot be denied. It will somehow find expression clandestinely if not overtly. But it’s even more than that.

If I understand correctly - because of its requirement of celibacy - the priesthood attracts homosexual men to serve as priests. They join with the best of intentions. Intentions that have a dual purpose. One of which is to serve their laity’s spiritual and sometimes physical needs. They refer to it as a ‘calling’. I believe that most people that want to become priests probably do join the priesthood for that altruistic reason. But joining the priesthood serves a second purpose for homosexual aspirants. They know that based on the Church’s teachings homosexual sex is forbidden. As good Catholics they believe that joining the priesthood where celibacy is mandated would be a good ‘solution’ to their forbidden desires.

They are obviously very wrong about that. Instead of protecting themselves from acting on their lust many of them find they can’t resist it and become predators. 

I used to think that such priests were rare. It appears that  they are not all that rare. In some instances there are actually predator priest sex rings. I’m not even sure what that entails. Perhaps it is only to share experiences. Or worse – conspiring to find more victims. Or both!

In his initial press conference Shapiro announced that in Pennsylvania alone there were at a minimum 301 priests that have abused over 1000 young parishioners over the last 7 decades. Most of them young boys. He urged that others that were abused by priests or clergy to call a hot-line set up for that purpose. Since then over 400 additional reports of sex abuse have been called in!

And it isn't only Pennsylvania. Just today, the Chicago Tribune reported the following:

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Gary has published a list of 10 former priests who it says have been found guilty of “credible actions of sexual molestation of minors.” 

10 priests! Gary, Indiana is a pretty small town.

I am still shocked by all of this – despite all of my ‘explanations’... how can a forbidden desire that one wishes to control while serving their flock in the most altruistic of ways end up in predatory behavior? One is the antithesis of the other! And yet, that seems to be the case.

Another shocking revelation is the apparent complicity of Pope Francis in covering up the abuse of at least one  predatory priest. From the Wall Street Journal: 

A former papal ambassador to the U.S. has claimed that Pope Francis knew as early as 2013 about charges that the former archbishop of Washington, ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, had been sexually active with seminarians and priests and that Pope Benedict XVI had privately disciplined him over the charges.

In a letter published by two conservative Catholic outlets, LifeSiteNews and the National Catholic Register, Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò wrote that Pope Francis had ignored then-Cardinal McCarrick’s record and rehabilitated him as a kingmaker in the U.S. episcopate. 

While the Pope’s accuser is a somewhat controversial figure in the Church, no one has accused him of lying. And there has been no denial by the Vatican.

The magnitude of this revelation, should it prove to be true, is enormous considering how warmly Pope Francis has been received by virtually the entire world – including non Catholics. And for good reason. He was until now revered as a near icon of virtue and self sacrifice. 

A man that put people first and himself last. A man whose character was to be emulated by all. A role model for clerical leadership. A man who dedicated his life to helping the poor.  A man that eschewed all the perks of the Vatican that popes are entitled to - such as the luxurious living quarters – preferring a simpler setting for himself. A man of great compassion, humility, and self sacrifice. A man whose relationship with the Jewish people has been warmer than any of his predecessors (with the possible exception of Pope John).

A man that was a determined voice on behalf of survivors of abuse. A man that apologized profusely for the decades of sex abuse by priests. And calling on the Church to do whatever it takes to eradicate it all from their midst. He has been relentless in that call. 

Here is a man that surely entered the priesthood for all the right reasons. But now some Church officials are calling for an investigation into the Vatican to see who knew what - and when.  And why they did nothing when they did know, allowing the sex abuse to continue. And yet, it might very well be that Pope Francis might be part of the problem! Some are even calling for him to step down! 

My how the mighty have fallen. How can the Catholic Church survive all of this?

One might ask, how does any of this apply to us, as Jews?  Perhaps the best lesson for us is that no matter how holy a rabbinic leader might be; no matter how sincere and dedicated he might be; no matter how much he has personally sacrificed for his (our) people… it is very possible that he may unwittingly participate in a cover up under the mistaken impression about the accused. Allowing the predator to continue his predation. 

Good people with the best of intentions can make errors based on the fact that they are only human and subject to their own prejudices. Prejudices about people based on years of dedicated service to the community at the highest levels. Prejudice that will prevent justice for survivors and instead will assure injustice. A rabbinic leader might have the same kind of pristine credentials as Pope Francis. But just as the Pope decided to overlook Theodore McCarrick, a predator priest (a  Cardinal no less!) so too can a rabbinic leader do the same – all in their sincere belief that he is doing the right thing by protecting a falsely accused man with a lifetime of dedication to his (our) people.

The jury is still out about the current pope. But I’m not so sure he will come out unscathed by this. Nor am I that sure about the fate ultimate fate of the Church.

Sex abuse among our own clergy is nowhere near what it is in the Catholic Church. They are light years apart. They are two different scenarios with major distinctions in why we would find predators more in one than in the other. But as we know all too well, it exists.  And to the Jewish victims the damage is no less severe.

It is time that all segments of Orthodoxy come together on this one issue and eliminate the middle man. Any credible suspicions of sex abuse should be reported to the police immediately.  The rare circumstances where there are false accusations are exponentially outweighed by the number of times those accusations prove to be true. If there is any one thing we can learn from what is going on in the Church, this is it.