GLASGOW, Scotland — The resignation of Cardinal Keith O’Brien following accusations of sexual misconduct is an opportunity to renew faith in Jesus for the Church in Scotland, says a local archbishop.
“We will draw what conclusions and lessons we can from it, and, if anything, we will learn to trust even more fully in Jesus Christ, who is alone the Lord of the Church,” said Archbishop Philip Tartaglia of Glasgow and apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of St. Andrews and Edinburgh.
In his homily for a March 4 Mass at St. Andrew’s Cathedral in Glasgow, the archbishop, who will manage the Archdiocese of St. Andrews and Edinburgh until a new leader is appointed, noted that the “credibility” and “moral authority” of the Church in Scotland has been marred by Cardinal O’Brien’s behavior.
On Nov. 13, the Holy Father accepted Cardinal O’Brien’s resignation nunc pro tunc (now for then) due to the Cardinal’s upcoming 75th birthday and “indifferent health.”
However, after allegations against the cardinal from three priests and a former clergyman of sexual misconduct surfaced, Benedict XVI accepted his resignation effective Feb. 25.
Cardinal O’Brien apologized to those he offended, as well as the Catholic Church and the people of Scotland, in a March 3 statement, admitting that “there have been times that my sexual conduct has fallen below the standards expected of me as a priest, archbishop and cardinal.”
In his homily, Archbishop Tartaglia said that “many reproaches” have been leveled at the Church as a result of this news, but the “most stinging charge” has been that of “hypocrisy.”
“I think there is little doubt that the credibility and moral authority of the Catholic Church in Scotland has been dealt a serious blow, and we will need to come to terms with that,” he said.
Although this “sad episode” will take “a long time” to recover from, Archbishop Tartaglia encouraged his flock to resist being defeatists and to “endure it with prayer and patience and hope.”
Instead of “throw(ing) in the towel,” he said Scottish Catholics “need, rather, to renew our faithfulness in Jesus Christ and to go about our business humbly.”
Even though this news marks a “sad moment for the Church," Archbishop Tartaglia offered that there will be a “wonderful moment of hope and joy” in the election of a new pope.
Overall, he encouraged Catholics under his care to keep in mind that they “are not alone as a Church.”
“We are in communion with the See of Peter and with the whole Catholic Church,” he said. “We are in communion with the Church throughout history. We are in communion with the saints in heaven. Through that communion, we will draw strength from Jesus Christ in whom we trust.”
Matthew Warner: Ask Fr. Barron: What gives you hope for future of the Church?
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I hope that the cardinal will face criminal charges and be put in jail for a longest time-perhaps the rest of his life.I also hope that when the archbishop told his flock to go about their business humbly;it’s not a way of saying of mind your business we will deal with it our way.That is what has happened in this country, and hopefully the victims will be taken care of (not just financially) in body,soul,and mind.
How was this fallen priest ever made a Cardinal in the first place? Was his priestly life ever *vetted* before the highest office was bestowed upon him? Was this a vendetta against his being outspoken about the evils
of the homomsexual life style, same-sex marriage? Could he not see that
this might become a problem( his earler daliances) down the line for both him and the Church? Was it a show of integrity early on to decline to partake in the Conclave…or could he at long last see he was caught in his own webb? These are not questions from a purient interest, but questions I think those in charge should at least answer for themselves,
if not the thousands of Catholics in the British Isles left with no
Cardinal at the conclave. Sad indeed for the Church and tough times for Catholics given the already unpopular Catholic Church in Britain.
Considering fully five of the ten daily stories on the Register website deal with sexual abuse and scandal, it’s a wonder that there are any Catholic folks left in the world. Maybe we should just trust Jesus and leave the Church out of the equation altogether.
Ann…Where did you get the idea that the Cardinal’s *offenses* were
of a criminal nature? Here in this country, USA, we do not imprison
anyone who adopts a homosexual lifestyle. Quite the opposite as this lifestyle is heralded as normal by the MSM and those who diapprove are villified as being non-compassionate and guilty of hate. As far as has been reported, this Cardinal’s activities were of a homosexual nature and not involving children nor male rape. His offenses are mostly that he lived a double duplicitous life and not becoming a priet of the Catholic Church. Sinful, but not criminal in most places today. They apparently occured many decades ago and are coming out now at a time when the Cardinal has been most outspoken against same sex marriage while Scotland prepares to make it legal. If any *crimes* have occured here I would suspect blackmail to be the one most likely. I am not exonerating the Cardinal, but could it be he has repented the sins of long ago and was trying to repent by making very clear to the world that same sex marriage and activity is sinful activity…a message clearly most of the world does not wish to hear? Are you advocating that all sinners be lined up and sent to prison? I think that to be quite a line with all of us trailing the same path.
Let the truth come out! Jesus was truth! Without it, we cannot resolve these serious issues that have been going on in the Church. Reform won’t happen overnight, but by bringing it out in the open, it gives the Church a new beginning, and will help restore the trust that was lost by the people! Amen!!!!
Shamrock,
I’m kind of unclear what the cardinal’s actual offenses were, but what I’ve heard doesn’t sound criminal.
You make a very good point about his personal errors & what effect they might have on his teaching on the same subject.It would make sense if one turns away from sin & then encourages others to change their lives as well.But, as in Alcoholics Anonymous, they first need to publically acknowlege their failings. That’s where the cardinal really slipped up & missed the opportunity.
Kathleen…All that the Cardinal is required to do is repent, confess his sins and sin no more. In AA this is more or less what is done alho not on a sacramental level. Going public could be both good and bad. Since it was so long ago perhaps he thought it would do more harm than good to bring it up ...but it appears he was being *blackmailed* into this and he chose to open it up ( think of the pain for him at this point) rather than to “tough it out” and bring more notoreity to both the Church and himself. I think we need not so much to wring our hands at discovering sinners in high places, as to bring compassion here where it is called for and to defend the church against those who would use this tragedy to
cause more suffering for the Mystical Body of Christ. Pray for all concerned….not only the Cardinal but to those others involved who may
not be all that innocent themselves.
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