To anyone concerned about the health of the Catholic Church, I highly recommend a post on First Things by Luma Simms, entitled “Fathers, Help Us”. It is a pained and troubling cry from the heart of the laity, and it expresses a view that I share.
“There are many faithful and trustworthy bishops and priests…My last plea is to them: Heed your responsibility before God. Do you not know that you corrupt yourselves by your silence?”
There are some positive signs, such as Bishop Morlino of Madison WI, whose statement here confronts the elephant in every room of the Church. Homosexual clergy and the resulting tolerance of sexual corruption, along with its accompaniment of cover-up, must be identified by name. It appears that few of the worst perpetrators remain among the priests. But the McCarrick scandal has revealed that the corruption in higher levels persists (to say the least).
And the cleansing of the Temple will require the naming of names. Apologies that start “We deeply regret…” are frankly of no use at this point.
Fathers, especially bishops, must shoulder the job of cleansing and rebuilding. They must lead in driving from the Temple those who have profaned it. If the USCCB continues to stonewall, and the pope continues to dance around the issue, the Church may be deservedly wrecked.
O Ben Finiti 