I don’t write much about the Church, but I have nothing but the most searing contempt for those priests who preyed on the innocent and double that for those bishops and others in the Church you covered up for them for so many years. I took no comfort in the false notion that it was a strictly American problem, I have no joy that it is equally widespread across Europe. It is time for the Church to undergo a second Reformation, to confront the abuses it has condoned and seek forgiveness for its sins. And just as in Confession, it must subject itself to civil authority and accept that punishment as well.
I’ll be honest, I’m not sure if ending mandatory celibacy is part of the answer or not. The Apostles were not celibate, some had wives and families. Celibacy has more of a political rationale (from when the Church was synonymous with the ruling class) than a religious one. It should be optional, as it in the Eastern rite. No matter what, if it helps attract the well-adjusted, caring, and committed to the priesthood, it’s not something that should be avoided anymore. I think the same for women in the priesthood, though I believe celibacy will be ended before that happens, regardless of how much sense it makes.
The Church needs to be conservative, but it must not be out of touch with its members and itself. What made sense in the Middle Ages doesn’t make sense in the 21st century. And abuse and coverups are wrong, and always have been.
You know what you must do.
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