Vatican's sex abuse prosecutor says church must amputate to heal

I couldn't agree more. Rather than these "bad priests" being removed and given the mental health care they needed, THE BISHOPS ignored the problem, covered it up and passed them on from location to location to cause even more horrors. WHEN DO WE HEAR ABOUT WHAT SHOULD BE DONE WITH ALL THE BAD BISHOPS. WHAT ABOUT BERNARD LAW WHO RECEIVED A PROMOTION FOR HIS COVER UPS AND NOW CONTINUES TO BE A MAJOR FORCE IN THE SELECTION OF NEW BISHOPS AROUND THE WORLD. WHAT ABOUT ALL THE BAD BISHOPS??? OR COULD THAT POSSIBLY HIT TOO CLOSE TO HOME???

I'm with you, but I believe we are miles away from their meaning what they say. When I see Cardinal Law hung out to dry I'll have SOME hope.

i agree that closer scrutiny of the bishops, and especially their motives, is needed in the u.s. the john jay study shows us that in 50 years less than 4% of clergy committed these terrible crimes. yet because of the mishandling of victims and offenders, it seems that all the clergy are to blame. the cancer of child abuse, ALL abuse, must be cut out to begin the healing of the whole

... and bad cardinals?

Haven't you heard that bishops are priests?

Given the number of bishops and Cardinals that have been forced out, or have retired, or died since the scandal broke I assume you know of others that are still in power who are perpetuating those crimes.

Since you seem to know that they exist why are you hiding them? If you know they are out there aren't you culpable for not exposing them? Who are they? Where are they?

Surely you wouldn't cast aspersions on innocent Bishops would you?

Why don't we just stick to weeding out sin - that's the real enemy that's undermining the lot of us.

How about bad popes, of which John Paul II is an outstanding example!

So!! ..... Now what???

I agree with the comment above. I'll believe the Churches willingness to change, take responsibility, atone, when the entire Episcopate is put on suspension and elected back into office by the parishes they serve. Rome needs to get their hands off the wheel and let the Spouse of Christ drive. Its time we brought her out of the back seat.

I could not agree more -- that BISHOPS in the United States who facilitated the access of many abusive priests to children HAVE NOT PUBLICLY TAKEN RESPONSIBILITY -- and are a true scandal to all of us. Please RESIGN and let the healing begin.

This is just more of the sanctimonous talk that the Church has done every time it confronted the crisis. The abuse was sytemic, not isolated, therefore the solution needs to be systemic as well. The Church needs to look at its structure, in particular its " management" structure that really failed these children. The Church is an organization just like many others. The higher management of this organization has failed pitifully. What are the changes we can expect to see and when? They just don't seem to get it...

Amen. It is past time for the hierarchy whom enabled and, in some instances, participated in this abuse to be rfemoved from the Chiurch. many are wnmnd will leace the Catholic Church because of the abuse and the arrogance of the hierarchy. AMEN!

I agree. Why is it that there appears to be no move on the part of the Vatican to take serious action against the bishops who moved around the priests, who hid them, who stonewalled prosecutors' ability to get at the pedophile priests?

The bishops didn't try to do something bad - incompetence is not sinful.

While I am glad to hear the words spoken and agree with putting children first and immediately weeding out those offending priest, the Church must do more to show true commitment. The bishops who were complicit in sheilding and retaining abusive priests and/or transferring them to other parishes mush also be weeded out. As a first step, Cardinal Law must step down and give up all those special priveleges he has living off of the laity in Rome!behalf of

Absolutely! I heartily agree.” How many sins in the church have happened because of arrogance, insatiable ambition, abuse of power and injustices committed by those who abuse their ministry to advance their career?”, Scicluna asked."

Wile sexual abuse is abhorrent and criminal, there are other forms of abuse that is present in the church. Our concern over "clergy abuse" should extend beyond the realm of the sexual. "Abuse" is a problem in the church in many areas and is not limited to one particular sphere. The laity suffer at the hands of power, manipulation, interclerical jealousies, poor ministerial preparation at the liturgy, inadequate pastoral care and a general anesthesia to issues of social concern. These forms of clerical abuse also demand attention and are in need of radical healing. I pray for forgiveness for the times I did not stand up for those being abused by these clerical princes and pastors. I try to forgive those zealous parishioners who were blinded and backed their abusive pastors no matter what had taken place.

I think all priests, bishops cardinals and anyone else that abused or transferred or covered up this horrific crime against children should be removed. Bishop Gumbleton in last week's homily said the same. Time for a clean up of the church.

...and diseased grand inquisitors?

Clericalism. Clericalism. That is what needs to be rooted out and one way to do that is to reinstate the Married Priesthood as it was in the beginning when Christ called the apostles and remained that way until the Church wrongly changed a wholesome Tradition. The Church did not have a right to change that Tradition instituted by Christ himself. If you leave clericalism in place with its abusive power and authority, this lurid history will continually repeat itself. Mandated celibacy has proved far more expensive than a married clergy ever would. (Married Priests USA) http://www.orgsites.com/ny/married-priests-now/

Yes, I agree very much with 'anonymous'. The purple wall of silence of the bishops must be breached before any of this Vatican breast-beating can be taken seriously. As priests are called out publicly so must bishops be called out.
And to start the bishop who fled Boston ahead of the authorities must be brought back.

In my humble opinion, and humble, indeed, it is, the pope and the curia are mired in guilt with regard to the culpability of bishops. Pope Benedict XVI and all current bishops served loyally in the reign of John Paul II, who reportedly directed Cardinal Castrillon Hoyes of South America, and certainly all members of the hierarchy to support and defend pedophile clergy, and to go to any length to conceal true facts about the reality of the situation from lay Catholics and the public domain. Having operated for so long under said system of deceit the hierarchy is loath to confront the pedophiles in their midst, because pedophiles are exceedingly selfish, narcissistic persons, who, no doubt, have among their members those who are consumed with excess and arrogance, and who will retaliate strongly when their power is taken from them. Hardcore pedophile bishops and priests have no regard for themselves or the church; their reaction to disclosure and powerlessness will be visceral. It is the certain domino effect the hierarchy fears most. When pedophile bishops, urgently grasping for power as they hear truth after horrible truth coming out, and knowing they have participated and wish to continue to participate in the same evil, are called to resign, the hardcore of their ranks will lash back with ugly truths about those who came before them and those who remain. It will be like opening a raw sewer. A rotten stench will be everywhere, and the entire institutional church will need a deep cleansing. I believe that this is what the pope meant when he recently stated that the scope of the sexual abuse crisis in the Catholic church terrifies him. We have only seen the tip of the iceberg, my friend.

The tenacity of the inability or unwillingness of many people to see that this scandal is twofold, the gross sexual misconduct by ministers of the Church and the ensuing cover-up by bishops, is astonishing!

Bishops ARE priests. What holds for the priests hold for bishops as well, and in a more grave way. Lord help us to do what is right according to your will!

I am inclined to agreee, but Bishops and cardinals will not discpline their peers. The only one on Earth who can take these clowns out are the Pope and secular authorities. I think Benedict XVI gets it, better than JP II. Frankly, secular authorities are two scared of the political ramifications to do much.

Anonymous, yes Bishops are part of the problem as are Cardinals and Popes. This sex abuse and cover-up are symptoms of a very serious disease. The church is infected with the very serious disease of clericalism. This is the cancer that is killing the church of Jesus. These continuous symptoms, present throughout the centuries in the Catholic Church, are the tumors, the metastases of the cancer. As any oncologist knows, it is not enough to just remove a tumor here and there: there must be radical treatment. Clericalism needs to be removed, and especially so since Jesus had absolutely only repugnance for it. Let us reform this church to the all-equal, all-inclusive, family of sisters and brothers that Jesus talked about.

"Monsignor Charles J. Scicluna indirectly critiqued the clerical culture in which abuser priests were routinely given second chances."

I don't know how that sentence can be read any way other than in reference to bishops who failed to deal appropriately with abusers.

I'd say your wish is being addressed, at least by this guy.

Here is the problem. You are asking men, who think they are the direct spiritual decendents of the apostles, to take blame. Do you really believe this will happen?

Quite right with that one, but not far enough; weed the bishops from that garden of depravity first, but unfortunately, unless there is change in policy, direction, authority, arrogance and so forth it will be in vain. The rigidity of the Church must be altered by removal of many hierarchals and then revisit women's ordination, celibacy, birth control and perhaps an heart replacement ennabling the Church to open its arms to the disenfranchised e.g. the divorced, homosexuals, sisters of the Church...and then maybe a loving Church.

Weeding out by itself is not the solution needed. This sickness that the Catholic Church is now suffering is structural in nature. If the people of a diocese participated in the choosing of their bishops and the people of a parish participated in the choosing of their priests, then the ordained servants of the Church would realize that they are no less accountable to the people they are called to serve than those fellow clerics to whom they are now alone formally answerable to.

Let Rome have its say about who the bishop of a diocese is, but let us return to the earlier practice of the Church whereby no person could be consecrated the bishop of a diocese without the "dignus est" of the people. And let parish councils have real and not just advisory authority in the financial and pastoral life of their communities.

I understand the sentiment of Anonymous above. What the Irish church is doing is a template for that the Church in the US should do: start with the bishops and work your way down, not the other way by default.

Like all bureaucrats, the purple clad paper pushers always seem to look for someone else to blame for what ills their diocese. Excellency, try reporting these criminous clerics to the DA's office sometime, or to the police. What part of "obey the law", do you not understand? Geeeez, do we have to do ALL the thinking for the bishop?

Far more than simply celebrating benedicton of the blessed sacrament in St. Peter's is going to be needed to deal with this the greatest crisis since the Reformation.

I agree. All along I have thought: "5% of the priests." And thought, "a general atmosphere among the bishops and archbishops of protection."

Most priests: OK. The bishop world: one of good ole boys.

Bishops are priests, didn't you know?

Yes, until every bishop, still serving, that has presided over a case of child abuse and refused to defrock the offending priest is himself defrocked, there will be no peace in Dodge. We need a thorough-going purge with the purpose of leaving the clergy pristine at all levels. Anything short of that and the Church has failed, period.

You are so right; it is the Bishops who indeed should shoulder a large percentage of the blame. And that therein lays the crux of the problem. The Bishops are too full of pride and arrogance to admit they are at fault.

The bigger sin is PRIDE, and until that is addressed the corruption will go on.

The pope should certainly start by banishing Cardinals Law and Soldano to a monastery for a life of repentance!

Exactly my thought. This little 'homily' sounds like Benedict's attempt to divert the focus on hierarchical culpability back to the predator priests. Instead, he should be 'amputating' the power lusting bishops right along with the pedophiles.

Dear Anonymous, I heartily second your comment and its vehemence.

One other thought as well: I'm glad Mr. Allen said this was a kind of spiritual meditation because it sure wasn't a policy type thing (about those surgical amputations, we're not holding our breaths). For instance when the dear cleric said something to the effect that the Church has always had care for children foremost in concerns, I almost choked. If that were the case then bishops would and should have done their duties as "surgeons" a long time before they were forced. They would not have engaged in their decades and decades of cover up. Cardinal Law would simply be a resigned Cardinal Bishop and not a Vatican "dignitary" with a hand in selecting new bishops worldwide.... and so on and so on.

I guess that this person doesn't realize that the overwhelming majority of bishops who were responsible for the "cover up" are either dead or long retired. Of course we also know that any bishops who were found credibly accused of sexual misconduct with minors have also been removed.

If by the term "bad bishops" the writer means those bishops who espouse unorthodox teachings like their Excellencies Gumbleton, Hubbard, W. Sullivan and the like, than I am all for their removal. Unfortunately, however, I don't think that is what the author of the above comment had in mind.

Yes, you said it well! A true amputation requires the complete removal of the most infected part and, at times, some of the surrounding area which was in indirect contact with the infection. While the crimes were comitted by priests, the Bishops indirectly continued to spread the abuse through their silence. I can only hope that Cardinal Law (and others) will be asked to live quietly in some far away monestary or retreat center.