Judging from many of the press reports we’ve seen since March, the Holy Father was negligent when it came to the handling of the sexual abuse crisis in the Church. However, the public record shows something completely different. In fact, as Cardinal and prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, he did more than anyone previously to prevent the problem.
Matthew Bunson, editor of The Catholic Answer magazine, has recently co-authored the Our Sunday Visitor book “Pope Benedict XVI and the Sexual Abuse Crisis: Working for Reform and Renewal.” He argues that Pope Benedict’s real record is quite different from what the average Catholic in the pews is hearing from most of the news coverage.
“The average Catholic in the pews is confused,” said Bunson. “They’re hearing these accusations, suggestions and implications about the Holy Father – that he was somehow negligent as Archbishop in Munich, that he failed in his duties as head of the CDF, and that as Pope he has done very little to help bring an end to this problem in the Church – and they’re not sure if those accusations are true.”
“It’s become abundantly obvious to anyone who does extensive research, that for a very long time, the Church leadership in the U.S. and elsewhere was not aware of the scale and depth of the problem,” added Bunson. “Very few cases found their way to the CDF. They were handled by different departments, depending upon their nature. The Congregation for the Clergy handled a lot of them; the Rota – one of the courts of the Church – handled some of them. The Apostolic Signatura, which is the Supreme Court of the Church handled others.”
“As the situation grew more significant and the cases increased in number, Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, as prefect for the CDF, became aware of the problem facing the Church around the world,” said Bunson. “Cardinal Ratzinger became convinced of the need for a centralization in the Vatican’s handling of these cases. The decree, issued in 2001, effectively moved all of the cases to the authority under the jurisdiction of the CDF.”
“From that point on, we can see that Cardinal Ratzinger became one of the world’s leading experts, if not the one person in the Church, who understood more profoundly what was going on,” continued Bunson. “He used to hold a Friday summary meeting where these cases were discussed. He came to refer to them as his ‘Friday penance.’”
“How aware he was, and committed he was, in dealing with the problem was revealed by his use of the term ‘filth’ when referring to abusive priests in his now famous 2005 Stations of the Cross, when he substituted for the ailing Pope John Paul II,” said Bunson. “We can see this process of understanding deepen and deepen in Cardinal Ratzinger, so that by the time he was elected, he became one of the great champions for reform in the Church, tying it to his wider program of spiritual renewal for the Church and the whole of western civilization. This is a very important matter to him and has been for a very long time.”
“The Good Friday meditations was the first real occasion he had to speak about this in a prayerful way,” said Bunson. “It set the pattern for how he has approached discussing this in public ever since his election, some weeks later. He has not handled this as a public relations problem, but sees that any meaningful substantive reform of the Church must be tied with a genuine, authentic spiritual renewal. We can have all kinds of laws in place, but this crisis is not going to be dealt with effectively and permanently unless we have all of us Catholics working together to make the Church as strong as she can be.”
“It’s safe to say that the Catholic Church is, today, the safest environment for children than any other institution in the U.S.,” said Bunson. “So much so, that the Catholic Church is a role model for other institutions dealing with the same exact problem.”
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I do not think that Pope Benedict XVI dropped the ball; I do not believe that he ever caught it. He spent too much time and energy playing “hot potato, hot potato” and let others drop the ball and defend his inability to catch it.
Comprehension failure does not completely answer the above post since reading the article itself should have informed the writer well enough to at least be able to do his own research. Many people are perfectly happy to be misinformed.
When Pope John Paul II died, my boys were in tears, and frightened by the future. They wept tears of joy and relief when Cardinal Ratzinger was elected Supreme Pontiff. We all did.
I find it interesting that just a few years ago, this journal was defending the hierarchy from people like me who insisted that the Church was not handling the sexual abuse crisis adequately. They insisted that the crisis was ‘overblown’ and just media hype. Now that more information has been released and the facts are irrefutable, you now insist that the Benedict has been out in front of the crisis - but what crisis? Just four years ago, I was castigated for even syaing there was a crisis.
Just keep in mind, the facts are still coming in. We haven’t seen them all yet.
The single greatest error I can see in the extended abuse scandal is the lack of response to the second crime—the crime of cover up. If the criminal priests were never moved and hidden and their crimes (and sins) punished then there would be no crisis. All woould say the church policed herself for the good of the children. Some bishops must be replaced and punished! I trust the pope to to be good for our church but Cardinal Law is a lightening rod; he knew the sins and crimes (child rape) and protected the guilty. I trust the pope will clear the sinners from positions of authority. Please start with Cardinal and continue until all the sin is removed from within as our pope so clearly stated.
The hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church has knew it had serious problems in the area of sexual abuse for centuries not just for decades. This article is a whitewash.
Because of his background the present pope has been the most informed but other than words what has he really done? He has not addressed the underlying problem of Clericalism or the rampant cover up and faciltation of the rape and sodomy of children all over the world and no bishops have been removed from office because of their failures to protect children or their covering up for sexual predators.
Read the article, McCrystal’s Example in America Magazine:
http://www.americamagazine.org/blog/entry.cfm?blog_id=2&entry_id=3142
The point is not whether or not or how safe the Catholic Church is today.
The point is that hierarchy has never been held accountable for their mortal sins and crimes. They don’t think they are responsible!
Pope Benedict has done nothing more tangible that talk the good talk. He has taken little action. He has failed.
Dear Tim,
Pull your head out of the sand and do lots more reading.
Your pope hasn’t done much
Excuse me, when were the first accusations against Maciel made to the Vatican? How long ago were those claims made and dismissed and made again and dismissed again over and over? Yes, the current Pope finally removed Maciel’s faculties but not til many years later and not until it became known that Maciel committed the graver crimes of having sex and procreating with women. Nice try.
How many inquiries, reports, studies will it take to remove your “blind faith”? I don’t know why you continue to be a member of an organization that has admittedly allowed the rape of children by covering up the crimes. You should push your church to release all documents and files they have on these crimes to police. And stop spouting this “I love my pope” garbage - it makes me want to puke.
How do you sleep at night?
I am friends with people who so far have not been helped, What has the pope done for the women who were used as slaves, Nothing, What has he done for those people who were sold as children to rich catholics round the world nothing, Whats he done for those who has children were placed in adult mental hospitals even though they had NO MENTAL ILLNESS , Nothing, Read the Ryan report from Ireland and tell what hes done there
Holy Smoke. Decent folks all over the earth know to protect children from child rapists. The only folks who had to “study” it were the ordained men of the roman catholic church. When priests, bishops, and cardinals, raped or enabled the rapes of children they introduced evil into the Sacred. The religious rituals they perform are infused with this evil.
It is absurd to attempt praise for this pope in this regard. He may not be the worst of the roman catholic hierarchy, but he is accountable for his academic priorities(silencing theologians he disagrees with) while the children were being raped by his colleagues. To defend his pathetic record does no service to the church, none at all.
MG
It doesn’t really matter what Benedict did or didn’t do in the past. Yes, he did good, and yes, he allowed some things to get by. The only real important deeds are those done now. And right now he is doing nothing except passing a new provision that changes very little. He is still not demanding that sexually offending priests be handed over to the authorities, that they be made to register as sex offenders, that bishops and cardinals who cover up for them immediately be fired (and NOT given charge of the biggest basilicas in Rome) and suffer the consequences of their deeds. So, there is no need to defend his actions or inaction in the past, all we have to go on to say that he is remiss is the present.
First, I am not confused, second I consider you an ‘OBSEQUIOUS INSTRUMENT OF CONVENIENCE’ for the ‘pope’ , who should be arrested along with his co-conspiritors who hid and enabled the abuse of INNOCENT CHILDREN’ and put on trial. Common sense would dictate that if you see a crime you call the police ! Then let the Judge decide if a “PSYCH” evaluation is needed. If your house was on fire would you call the Fire Department, grab your rosary beads or a priest ? All you do in your attempt to defend the pope is create more backlash, hopefully we are in a new period of ‘ENLIGHTMENT’.
Tim, you need to source your claims when you are writing articles like this. Jimmy Akin and Mark Shea do it regularly when they are writing their own articles, and I often find their claims to be well researched, persuasive and honest. You may need to borrow a page from their book if you wish to address the church scandals in future!
You try the same claim that other defenders of Benedict offer, that “he did more than anyone previously.” That’s like being the fastest runner in the Seniors Over-70 Marathon. Consider to whom he would be compared - Law, Sodano, John Paul II, Castrillon Hoyos, to name just a few of the now-notorious ones. Being better than the others we know about is hardly grounds for praise. Your quote from Bunson suggesting that ignorance was the problem in fact demonstrates the opposite - the problem was known for years in a number of Vatican departments, none of which apparently took significant action to reduce it.
It’s useful to ask about who dropped the ball and then to answer the question with some honesty and accuracy.
Pope Benedict is one of the best that we could have as Pope at this time in our history.
The sifting of through records, striving to be accurate, and Bishops being in charge of their own Diocese (called their own Church in the Catechism) has been a huge problem.
The new NORMS that both abusing Priests and Bishops who hide the truth will be removed from their Church positions is indeed refreshing.
This quote from your article is accurate: - It’s safe to say that the Catholic Church is, today, the safest environment for children than any other institution in the U.S.,” said Bunson. “So much so, that the Catholic Church is a role model for other institutions dealing with the same exact problem.”
The Catholic Church has been asked to help other non-Catholic Churches and organizations with abuse problems.
Those who say the Pope has not done much needs to check out any Diocese web site in the US for the procedures on how this issue is being handled over the last few years.
The author of this post writes, “In fact, as Cardinal and prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, he [Benedict]did more than anyone previously to prevent the problem.” Not true! The two documents he wrote in that role have confused the situation and arguably have led to the laxity in dealing with specific cases of homosexuality. These documents, the first written in 1985 and the second, a botched attempt to clarify the original, in 1992. These are still in force in the Church, make it a matter of sin against charity to discriminate against homosexuals in most social areas. Only in four situations is any form of discrimination against homosexuals called just: in adoption, in teaching and coaching, and in the military. Catholics are mandated, upon pain of sin, to initiate civil legislation in their respective countries to protect the ‘rights’ of homosexuals in matters of housing and work. It is given, in these documents, that homosexuality is genetically determined, and only the sex act itself is called sinful. Thus any form of acting out is protected behavior, according to these writings. It is typical Vatican II accomodationism and double-speak, and has contributed greatly to the situation we have today, in the Church and in society at large. Please go read these documents for yourself and you will see that they are practically a blue print for the entire subsequent gay agenda of the ‘80’s and 90’s. The Holy Father, alas, is holding the smoking gun. It is he who wrote the game plan. The 1985 document:http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19861001_homosexual-persons_en.html
and the 1992 document: http://www.ewtn.com/library/curia/cdfhomol.htm
One has to wonder if after the beating the Church has taken for not dealing with homosexuality in the ranks thirty years ago, Josef Cardinal Ratzinger Benedict XVI is not wishing now he’s simply said what most are saying now: homosexuality has no ‘rights’. We are in such a dangerous situation now, having championed them ourselves until they are finally big enough to bring us down.
I, like all of you, am terribly appaled by such horrible crimes against children. Just horrible! Nonetheless, it is clear to me that Pope Benedict did very well to put an end to these horrors. I see it this way because of the evidence and because my good will inclines me to look for the good that has been done. (Distrust has never led anywhere. On the contrary, benevolence - not naivete - is worth more than gold and is indispensable).
Unfortunately, many people focus on what still needs to be done, instead of rejoicing at what has been done. We also need to be *realistic* in our expectations : everything in life takes *time*. I don’t think we can expect things to be solved over a 2- or 3-week period.
In fact, when Pope Benedict issued the first measures, he promised there would be more to come, and, sure enough, new mesures were effectively announced on July 15 (including a wider cooperation with secular justice; the extension from 10 to 20 years, after the age of majority, of the time to make known the criminal actions; the asimilation of people with deficiencies to children; the widening of the scope of the law from the direct abuse of children to the acquisition of pedopornographic material using whatever technology). Father Lombardi, spokeperson for the Vatican Press Office, again affirmed there would be more to come.
Lastly, we should keep in mind that what we see in the news is only the tip of the iceberg; people work day in and day out before some mesures can be announced at a press conference. Secular news outlet report stuff about the economy, politics and sports and only a small fraction of what is happening at the Vatican or anywhere else in the Church reaches our TV screens. Many times, it is the controversial stuff that makes it to the TV monitor. Some people unfortunately let the boiling indignation take over the peaceful search for truth. The serious, long-term and off-camera day-to-day work very seldomly gets to your ears. To verify this, one only needs to read CNS or Zenit or some similar media, and compare with the popular 30-minute news report. And then we wonder why people are so unjustly mad at Church people. We can bet they are still working on the case these days and that we will hear from them in a few weeks. Of course, I would also like this to be done in a couple of days, but that is just not realistic.
Parallel to this, a deep purification has to take place in the heart of everyone (inside and outside the Church).
There were a lot of bishops and senior members of dioceses who didn’t want to admit that they had let a lot of pedophiles infiltrate the ranks of the priesthood. When infection sets in, the only option is to cut it out.
I believe that the Holy Father had no idea of the epidemic sweeping the church. Now that it’s finally out and cannot be swept under a rug, it’s time to mercilessly cut out the rot.
The Dominicans were once truly the Domini canis, the Hounds of the Lord. They were trained to root out heresy and restore the integrity of the faith. Perhaps it’s time to unleash the hounds once again. If the Dominicans aren’t up to the challenge, let us pray the Pope will found an order that will take up this burden.
This author and the whole vatican gang still believe we catholics are morons. This pope is brining the church down. Who can believe anything he says when he cannot admit his wrongs concerning the abuse scandals and always protects the bishops who allowed the crimes to continue. They all should resign and spend the rest of lives consoling the families and individuals who THEY harmed.
well the pope hasent really been doing any thing about this arrangment so Ithink he’s just gona end up fadeing into the back ground and slowly this whole things just gona die out.
any one now really how this stuff ended up
Sexual Abuse:407
United States Catholic Catechism for Adults
GENESIS 3:1-24
The New American bible
Devils:509
See also Demons
United States Catholic Catechism for Adults
Abortion:391-92
United States Catholic Catechism for Adults
Lawsuits before unbelievers
1 CORINTHIANS 6:1-11
The New American Bible
Clairvoyance:344
United States Catholic Catechism for Adults
Cain and Abel
GENESIS 4:1-16
The New American Bible
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