By The Beacon Editorial Board
Once again, the Roman Catholic Church finds itself entangled in global sexual abuse scandals.
This time, though, one of the most recent incidents entangles Pope Benedict XVI. When Benedict was Archbishop of Munich, he transferred a known pedophilic priest to another district instead of bringing him to justice. At this new district, the priest committed sexual abuse again and was then sent to prison. After his release, rather than remove him entirely, the diocese of Munich permitted him to work with children.
Although the words "Catholic Church" and "sexual abuse" are by no means unfamiliar in news headlines, the recent flare-up of scandals once again highlights the Church's refusal to have a forthright public discussion and investigation on the sexual scandals that are plaguing the papacy and hijacking religious discourse.
To "come clean" about the full extent of known sexual predators in their ranks is by no means a simple request of the Church, but Pope Benedict's silence on the matter is leading many to suspect - or simply conclude - that the Church is prone to protecting known pedophiles.
This is not a time to circle the wagons. By stonewalling, they are only increasing mistrust. With the pope now implicated, it doesn't help the matter. Denial, not newspapers, is the real threat right now.
Unfortunately, these are not the sentiments shared by the Vatican.
The Vatican accused the media of a "clear and ignoble intent of trying to strike Benedict and his closest collaborators," While Benedict himself even went so far as to dismiss the discussion of sexual abuse allegations as "petty gossip."
Apparently for the Vatican, these scandals aren't about the thousands of abused children, but rather a test of the strength and resolve of the Church to remain unintimidated by such "petty gossip."
The issue here is that all this talk of intimidation and strength ignores the fact that the Church's pattern of blaming the media fails to showcase the real courage needed here to actually face the issues revealed by the media.
But words alone, even in the form of an apology, will likely not make up for the physical and emotional abuse that the victims have gone through. A letter from Benedict to Irish Catholics apologized for abuse by priests in Ireland, but did never specified punishments for those bishops who swept the crimes under the rug.
Seeing as there is already a zero-tolerance policy on pedophilia in the vast majority of world, it's perplexing why the Church takes any steps - either direct or indirect - to defend pedophile priests. The fact that one knowingly engaged in sexual activities with minors is unacceptable, and priests that engage in such activities should be removed from the priesthood, not merely shuffled around.
Admittedly, seeing as how Catholicism is about love and forgiveness, such a stance may appear overly harsh. However, protecting the children should be the higher priority in the mind of the Church.
In a religion that practices confessions, closing yourself off from discussion and reconciliation goes against the fabric of Catholicism.
In one regard, the Church has it spot on. On March 27, the Vatican stated that the church's response to the scandal would be "crucial for its moral credibility."
We couldn't agree more.
