Scandals and The Catholic Church

 Last week, June 29th, was the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul and in the sermon for last Sunday we were reminded about the nature of the Church. Jesus Christ founded His Church to be the guide for us, but more importantly to be the dispenser of grace from Him. That is the nature of the Church! We need to not be so focused on the scandals which the secular media keep bringing up, as well as those who are haters of the Church - including Satan. Satan rejoices when he can draw our attention away from Jesus Christ, His Church and the Sacraments. The more we sow discord, the more we are doing the work of Satan. Our focus needs to be on what nourishes our souls and that which builds up His Church, not rips it apart.

Now, does that mean we just turn a blind eye to those who have been criminal in the Church? By no means, but those who have done wrong need to be turned over to the civil authorities and let the chips fall where they may. Do your duty and move on, it is not our duty to be inquisitors and go out looking for trouble. It is also not our duty to stand on the street corners and hold up signs. Sure, it lets everyone know you care - but it is also rekindling the flames of discord that many non-Catholics love to stir up - and again - Satan loves to see disharmony among God's people. Ask yourself, "Whom do I serve?"

Bring your focus back to the Eucharist, the Mystery of Faith, the Mass, Confession, and all the Sacraments. Look to Christ for His Grace and BE the example of Christ to others.

 

Rembrandt's painting of Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee

 Such a learning tool! Note that those in the front of the boat are focused on the storm and worried for the boat to come apart - but those in the back of the boat are focused on Christ. They are still worried, but their trust is in the Lord to get them through this - and He does. The lighting of this painting is interesting too, those being more illuminated, even attention brought to them, are not those focused on Christ. The back side of the boat is in darkness, but Jesus is the Light, and His face is the Light in that darkness. When Jesus awakes, He scolds the Apostles - "Oh ye of little faith!"

When our ship is rocked by the storm of scandals - remember Who is in control - and do not lose faith.

Bp Barron on Hell

OK, I threw my hat into the ring on this discussion recently on Twitter, actually, the first time I did so was here on this blog back in January of 2014. Some have been very aggressively attacking Bp. Barron's statement of "hope" that hell could be empty - and back in 2014, I was among them.  Scripture even tells us that God desires all men to be saved (1 Tim. 3:3-4) and that all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).

What did Bp. (then Fr.) Barron say which is so controversial now? From the Word On Fire website:

Bishop Barron is convinced we have a “reasonable hope” that all will be saved. But the first step in assessing and critiquing a view is to understand the terms of the view as its proponent is using them. It’s important to note how Bishop Barron is using those two words in this context (“reasonable” and “hope”).
First, he means reasonable in the sense that we have good reasons to ground our hope—namely, the cross and Resurrection of Jesus and his divine mercy. He isn’t making any sort of probabilistic judgment, as if to say reasonable means “very likely” or “quite probable.”
Second, we should recognize hope to mean a deep desire and longing, tied to love, for the salvation of all people, but without knowing all will be saved, thinking all will be saved, or even expecting all will be saved.
Bishop Barron does not hold any of these alternative views. He does not know all will be saved, he does not think all will be saved, and he does not expect all to be saved   (emphasis added).
https://www.wordonfire.org/hope/

That last line summarizes Bp. Barron's position. 

I would posit to Bp. Barron a question: "Is it scandalous to express hope and even encourage a position which has undertones of apocatastics?" Bp. Barron's position is evoking scandalous attacks upon him from Catholics who are defending the Catholic faith. Therein lie the sadness and irony.

Before (or if ever) one goes public in criticizing a bishop, by name, they should attempt to have other bishops consult the allegedly errant bishop in private - or even write to the successor of St. Peter and ask him to intervene. The problem with publicly criticizing a bishop is that it can be scandalous in not respecting the office. I'm sure those criticizing are arguing that it is more important to expose error than it is to respect the office. To that, I would disagree. Two wrongs do not make a right. If we wish to attack that which we perceive to be error - then we should do our best to charitably explain why we believe such a statement is in error - without naming names. All the while, even though confronting a perceived erroneous statement or position - we must respect the office of a bishop and to not do so brings scandal upon ourselves and any such scandal may do more harm to the Church as a whole than whatever good may come from exposing error. Expose the error but let the man (or woman) face God and his/her confessor.

Pope Francis McCarrick and the Latest Sex Scandal

2015 Pope Francis embracing Cardinal McCarrick

Some of you may have been wondering, "Why is this Catholic apologetics site so silent on defending the Church in this latest sex scandal?" Well, to be blunt - this is NOT a matter of the Faith for a Catholic apologist to defend! There is no Catholic teaching here to be brought up in question and/or needing a defense. If anyone reading this has such a teaching in mind - bring it up - otherwise stop trying to attack the Catholic Church for the alleged deeds of some men IN the Catholic Church.

Secondly, there's nothing "new" in these allegations - and some are more than 30 years old! Does that make the allegations less concerning? No, but to represent this as new news is not quite honest.

As for Pope Francis covering this up, he wasn't even pope at the time of the alleged events took place, in fact, Pope John Paul II was in charge.

Back to the heart of this discussion - if Card. McCarrick is guilty of these allegations, then it is a despicable and indefensible situation - AND he would be in VIOLATION of Church AND scriptural teaching on this subject. So, what would a Catholic apologist, one who defends the Faith, have to defend here?  The answer is NOTHING.

Pope Francis on Better to be an Atheist

Recently it has been widely reported that Pope Francis said, "it is better to be an atheist than a hypocritical Catholic." The actual quote, while similar, is not that - AND - he's actually stating that OTHER PEOPLE say that when confronted with hypocritical or fake Catholics!  Here's the actual quote, in context:

"But what is scandal? Scandal is saying one thing and doing another; it is a double life, a double life. A totally double life: "I am very Catholic, I always go to Mass, I belong to this association and that one; but my life is not Christian, I don't pay my workers a just wage, I exploit people, I am dirty in my business, I launder money...' A double life. And so many Christians are like this, and these people scandalize others.

"How many times have we heard - all of us, around the neighborhood and elsewhere - 'but to be a Catholic like that, it's better to be an atheist.' It is that, scandal. You destroy. You beat down. And this happens every day, it's enough to see the news on TV, or to read the papers. In the papers there are so many scandals, and there is also the great publicity of the scandals. And with the scandals, there is destruction." (Vatican Radio, qtd on churchpop.com)

So, while he does not disagree with the sentiment, he didn't say those words as from himself - but that is what others think and/or say when they see hypocritical / fake Catholics. He is also saying that those hypocritical Catholics are causing scandal. So while not saying those words himself - he is highly critical of those who profess the Catholic Faith but don't LIVE the Catholic Faith.

2 Peter 2:21 says: For it would be better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn away from the holy commandment handed on to them.

Jesus also said, in Matthew 7:21 - "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter."

Note, just SAYING you're a Catholic is not enough!  You must DO the will of the Father to enter into Heaven.


Source:
churchpop.com, retrieved 2/28/2016 from: https://churchpop.com/2017/02/23/no-pope-francis-did-not-say-its-better-to-be-an-atheist-than-a-bad-catholic/

Questions for Catholics - Part 6 - Doctrine of Demons?

Let me begin by saying that this subject is not really a matter of Catholic apologetics.  It is NOT Catholic teaching to be part of and/or endorse the sex crimes which SOME priests were involved in.  There is no excuse for the behavior of the priests and even some of the bishops and hierarchy involved in this - so I will not defend them.  I will entertain Prasch's questions so that I am not accused of avoiding this topic - but the reality remains, those men were wrong and they violated Catholic teaching in what they did, for some what they failed to do.  Ultimately those involved violated the trust of the faithful while providing fodder for the ignorant to use this in apologetics and/or as an excuse in opposing Catholicism when Catholics oppose their actions (or lack thereof) as well.  

Now again, I’m only stating a fact. Why is there so much of this in the Roman church and so less in other churches? Why is there so much of it in the Latin rite but so little in your Eastern rite? I'm reading from the epistle of St. Paul to Timothy. In 1 Timothy 4:1…

But the Spirit…

…that is, the Holy Ghost…

But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons…

…doctrines of devils.

by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, men who forbid marriage…

Why? In the New Testament, why if St. Paul, specifically instructed by the Holy Spirit, say requiring celibacy is a doctrine of devils, does your church practice it? When you outlaw what is natural, people will do things which are unnatural. When God created sex He said it was good in the book of Genesis. That is why even in your own church you find it only in the Latin rite, not in the Greek. That is why you don't find it among rabbis or Protestant ministers in anything like the same proportion. It’s a doctrine of devils.

Actually, the numbers are just as high, if not higher, in non-Catholic religions.  You just hear about such scandals more in the Catholic Church (see links) because the Catholic Church is held up to be the standard bearer, the moral leader, etc. and when she fails, her enemies are ready to pounce.  The fact of the matter is the Catholic Church has made great strides toward curtailing such abuses under Pope Benedict XVI - and that goes mostly unheralded.

The point Prasch is really getting to is the discipline of priestly celibacy in the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church.

St. Peter was married, his wife’s name was Deborah. Most of the apostles were married. To forbid it would be a doctrine of devils. 

That which Scripture condemns is forcing celibacy on all people, which some cults did and perhaps still do.  They don't last very long though because a cult which requires celibacy literally dies out after a generation!  St. Paul recommends celibacy (verse) and while recommending it for all who can endure it - for those who cannot, he says it is better to marry than to burn.  No one is forced to become a Catholic priest, so no one has to be celibate.  If one is called to the priesthood of the Latin Rite, then they know - right up front - that one of the expectations in answering that calling is a celibate lifestyle.

What can be more demonic, more Satanic, more evil, than having sex with little children and doing so in the name of Jesus Christ? How can something be so Satanic? Because it comes from a doctrine of demons. How can you as a Roman Catholic believe in a religion that practices what is plainly and clearly called a doctrine of devils, and you see the fruit of it in the newspapers every single day of the year? How can you defend it? How can you defend a doctrine of devils and the devastation it causes to little children?

Again, there is no defending the evils SOME men in the Church committed against children - and I won't defend them.  Those who are still alive should be turned over to the secular authorities and let justice take its course - and that is precisely what has been happening in recent years.  Unfortunately, it did go on for many years in the past without the legal ramifications - but again, THAT is changing for the better.  

The above being said, it is absolutely ridiculous to believe and assert that it is a "doctrine" of the Catholic Church for any adult, priest or otherwise, to molest children.  Come now, Mr. Prasch, you really don't believe that nonsense and/or propaganda, do you?  If you insist upon keeping this up on your website, then I must demand of you to present the official Catholic teaching which endorses what you allege.  In light of the fact that there is no such teaching, you should remove these false allegations from your website.

Jesus said, “Suffer the children unto Me for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”. (Mt. 19:14; Mk. 10:14) He said it would be better if a millstone were tied around your neck and cast into the sea than hurt one of these little ones. (Mt. 18:6; Mk. 9:42; Lk. 17:2) He didn’t say rape them as your clergy does. Not all of your clergy, no, but your hierarchy protects and covers up for it, and other clergy have admitted on the witness stand they knew what was going on for years and kept their mouth shut to protect their colleagues who did it, instead of the children who suffered it, It is a doctrine of devils.

Again, there is no such "doctrine" of the Catholic Church which endorses the actions of these (relatively few in number) men who committed such atrocities.  Not all priests did this, in fact relatively few did.  Not all in the hierarchy protected the offenders - though it is admitted again that some did.  As has already been stated too, the Catholic Church has made great strides in ridding the Church from such criminal behavior, in fact over 400 priests have been defrocked for sexual misconduct and handed over to secular authorities. 

Why do you believe in something so wicked, something so antagonistic to the nostrils of Christ, something that’s unthinkable in the dimension of evil and occupies? Why do you believe in a church that teaches a doctrine of devils? That's my question: Do you really believe such people are the guardians of your soul?

We don't have these beliefs.  No Catholic in their right mind believes what you allege is one of our "doctrines."   Are you really so ignorant to believe that we actually have such "doctrines?"  

The sex scandal is largely over.  Have we caught ALL the guilty parties?  I'd say not likely, but we've caught most of them and we're still working on "cleaning house" over this one.  There are now many safeguards in place and through education more and more priests and laity are being made aware of how to detect such abuses and report them to the proper authorities.  It was a terrible chapter in the history of the Church, but again - it was never a "doctrine" or anything close to be officially endorsed by the Catholic Church.  As such it really isn't something which should be part of Catholic apologetics, but so many (ignorant) anti-Catholic apologists keep bringing up the topic that we, Catholic apologists, cannot just ignore them.  

Questions for Catholics Index

Part 5 - Eucharist and John 6

Pope Misquoted?

In a recent MSN article it is reported that two percent of Catholic priests "are" pedophiles.  

But the Vatican issued a statement saying some parts of a long article in the left-leaning La Repubblica were not accurate, including one that quoted the pope as saying that there were cardinals among the abusers.
The article was a reconstruction of an hour-long conversation between the pope and the newspaper's founder, Eugenio Scalfari, an atheist who has written about several past encounters with the pope.

It would appear the allegation is actually "in the Catholic Church" and is not a statistic restricted to Catholic priests.  Also in the article it says:

The pope was quoted as saying that, while most paedophilia took place in family situations, "even we have this leprosy in our house".

Note, "most paedophilia took place in family situations" - this would not be related to priests.  So the number of two percent relates to ALL cases, most of which are "family situations" so the number of priests involved would be much smaller - AND - the Vatican also has a zero tolerance for this. Also in the MSN article the Pope is reported as saying:

He vowed zero tolerance for abusers and said bishops would be held accountable if they covered up crimes by priests in their diocese.

So, if there is "zero tolerance" there would not be any known and "active" priests involved.

We need to be careful about what we read and especially about what we might repeat.

Evangelicals Even Worse In Sexual Abuse Scandal

It's something many Catholic apologists have said for years, it is refreshing to hear it coming from the "Evangelical" side now as well.  A grandson of the Rev. Billy Graham has come forward...

While comparing evangelicals to Catholics on abuse response, ”I think we are worse,” he said at the Religion Newswriters Association conference, saying too many evangelicals had “sacrificed the souls” of young victims.

He doesn't cite statistics here - and I'm sure many "Evangelicals" would like to see his statistics too, but he's not just someone out in left-field in expressing his opinion.  Boz Tchividjian, a Liberty University law professor, is also the executive director of Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment (GRACE), which has investigated child sex abuse allegations.  It's not only refreshing to see an "Evangelical" admitting to this - but also working to do something about it.

Full article here:
http://www.religionnews.com/2013/09/26/billy-grahams-grandson-evangelicals-worse-catholic-church-sex-abuse/

Remember the "share" buttons!  Pass it on!

Be Proud You Are A Catholic!

Sam Miller - a non-Catholic of Jewish descent spoke out about the way Catholics have been treated in the scandals of a few years ago (some still lingering).  I found it a bit interesting and then also found someone attempting (unsuccessfully) to debunk what Miller said...  Here's an article posted by "ConnieTalk" in 2008 presenting the positive side of Miller's speech:

Cleveland Man Incensed over Catholicism Targeted in the Media
ConnieTalkMay 2, 2008
http://www.connietalk.com/catholicism_in_media_050208.html
Sam Miller, prominent Cleveland businessman - Jewish, not Catholic - is fighting mad about the seemingly concentrated effort by the media to disparage the Catholic Church in the United States. The following are excerpts of a speech by well-known Cleveland businessman Mr. Miller at the City Club of Cleveland, given on Thursday, March 6. Even though of the Jewish faith, Miller has been a staunch supporter of the Cleveland Diocese and Bishop Anthony Pilla. It was published in the May-June issue of the Buckeye Bulletin.

"Why would newspapers carry on a vendetta on one of the most important institutions that we have today in the United States, namely the Catholic Church?  Do you know - the Catholic Church educates 2.6 million students everyday at the cost to your Church of 10 billion dollars, and a savings on the other hand to the American taxpayer of 18 billion dollars. Your graduates go on to graduate studies at the rate of 92%, all at a cost to you. To the rest of the Americans it's free.
The Church has 230 colleges and universities in the U.S. with an enrollment of 700,000 students. The Catholic Church has a non-profit hospital system of 637 hospitals, which account for hospital treatment of 1 out of every 5 people - not just Catholics - in the United States today.
But the press is vindictive and trying to totally denigrate in every way the Catholic Church in this country. They have blamed the disease of pedophilia on the Catholic Church, which is as irresponsible as blaming adultery on the institution of marriage. Let me give you some figures that you as Catholics should know and remember. For example, 12% of the 300 Protestant clergy surveyed admitted to sexual intercourse with a parishioner; 38% acknowledged other inappropriate sexual contact in a study by the United Methodist Church, 41.8 % of clergywomen reported unwanted sexual behavior; 17% of laywomen have been sexually harassed. Meanwhile, 1.7% of the Catholic clergy has been found guilty of pedophilia. 10% of the Protestant ministers have been found guilty of pedophilia. This is not a Catholic Problem.
A study of American priests showed that most are happy in the priesthood and find it even better than they had expected, and that most, if given the choice, would choose to be priests again in face of all this obnoxious PR the church has been receiving.
The Catholic Church is bleeding from self-inflicted wounds. The agony that Catholics have felt and suffered is not necessarily the fault of the Church. You have been hurt by a small number of wayward priests that have probably been totally weeded out by now.
Walk with your shoulders high and you head higher. Be a proud member of the most important non-governmental agency in the United States. Then remember what Jeremiah said: "Stand by the roads, and look and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is and walk in it, and find rest for your souls". Be proud to speak up for your faith with pride and reverence and learn what your Church does for all other religions. Be proud that you're a Catholic."
Thanks, Pete!
http://www.bishop-accountability.org/news2008/05_06/2008_05_02_ConnieTalk_ClevelandMan.htm

I then found THIS article, allegedly debunking the claims of "Sam Miller:"

"Jewish" Sam Miller lie exposed

 by Paul King Monday, Apr. 18, 2011 at 12:45 AM 

The "Jewish" Sam Miller who Catholics love to spam (defending the Catholic Church) is a liar and joke.  Sam Miller made up totally false figures in his speech (and admitted it later): -
The lies in question: -

Now let me give you some figures that you as Catholics should know and remember. For example, research by Richard Blackman at Fuller Theological Seminary shows that 12% of the 300 Protestant clergy surveyed admitted to sexual intercourse with a parishioner; 38% acknowledged other inappropriate sexual contact. In a 1990 study by the United Methodist Church, 41.8% of clergywomen reported unwanted sexual behavior by a colleague; 17% of laywomen said that their own pastors had sexually harassed them. Phillip Jenkins concludes in his book "Pedophiles and Priests" that while 1.7% of the Catholic clergy has been found guilty of pedophilia, 10% of Protestant ministers have been found guilty of pedophilia."

The REAL figures are 5.4% (http://www.bishop-accountability.org) of Catholic Priests and a fraction of one per cent of Methodists have been accused.
He later apologized when questioned.
It also turns out that Sam Miller is Jewish by blood but is a Christian who has donated to a number of Christian Causes including the Salvation Army. Not one penny has he given to any non Jewish charity or cause.

He is a publicity hound who made up all the facts and figures in his speech.
None are factual.
Typical of Catholic Smoke and Mirror con tricks.
NOTES
The U.S. bishops have reported receiving allegations of abuse by 5,948 priests in 1950-2010, or 5.4% of the 109,694 U.S. priests active since 1950.
Other percentages
After the March 2009 release of audit documents by the NH AG, the names of 74 accused Manchester priests are known, or over 8.9% of the 831 diocesan priests, which extrapolates to 9,768 nationally.  Covington diocese states that 9.6% of its priests have been accused, which extrapolates to 10,531 nationally. Over 10% of Providence RI priests have been accused, which extrapolates to over 10,969 nationally Richard Sipe estimates that 9% of U.S. priests have offended, which extrapolates to 9,872 priests nationally
www.bishop-accountability.org

 Almost every Catholic publication, blog and comment board has carried a story about a "Jewish" businessman defending the Catholic Church. The whole story is based on total lies and deceptions but still is circulated by the faithful.

It must be noted that the very site which is cited by Paul King is one of THE sites initially carrying Sam Miller's comments!  We must also note that Mr. King does not "document" his claims.  He merely cites the "Bishop Accountability" website, which, while it is notorious for publishing articles against the Catholic Church as well as King's "response" - it also published the initial article from Mr. Miller!  

King states, regarding the facts, "None are accurate," but he doesn't cite Miller's source(s) nor does he present any valid documentation of his own facts!  Simply citing the Bishop Accountability website is NOT documentation!  He would like us to believe him at his word that "the whole story is based on total lies and deceptions," but King only presents unsupported figures based upon individual diocesan statistics - which, even there, if we could believe his numbers the method he projects them onto a national level is a complete non sequitur.    He claims Miller "made up the facts and figures in his speech," but Miller cites his sources!  One of the sources of Miller's facts can be seen in an article entitled: "Sexual Harrassment in the United Methodist Church 2005" (click for link).  So much for King's (false) allegation that Miller made up all his facts!  I'm sure I can dig up more substance to back up Miller's facts, but even this ONE proves King's statement to be a lie!

Now, I realize there were indeed SOME priests and bishops involved in the scandal and cover-up, but as Miller stated - the number is VERY small and those offenders have been and are still being rounded up and turned over to proper authorities.  Some individuals were indeed harmed by these criminals, and that is indeed what they are - criminals, but overwhelmingly most Catholic priests and bishops are good, well-meaning individuals.  It's not fair to paint with a broad brush here - even in the face of those directly affected by the crimes of those few individuals.  Is it fair to punish ALL Catholics for the sins of a few?  THAT is ONE of Miller's points, which King seems to miss and/or refuses to admit to.  Another is all the GOOD Catholics do for society, which King completely ignores.

In JMJ,
Scott<<<

The Black Sheep Dog

After just about exactly 20 years as a well respected Catholic priest and frequent speaker/host on Catholic radio and TV, Fr. Corapi is withdrawing from the public ministry as a priest.  He said he will continue as a "Black Sheep Dog" - but not as a priest.  He claims the allegations against him are false andalso claims the system of clearing one's name is nearly insurmountable.  According to NCR (see link below) the allegations were made by a former employee of Santa Cruz Media - as she left she signed a contract not to speak of anything which happened at Santa Cruz Media and it is alleged Fr. Corapi paid her, he is now suing her for breach of contract - and this suit has complicated the investigation.

There's more here:

http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/fr.-corapi-announces-hes-leaving-the-priesthood/

http://www.ncregister.com/father-corapis-bombshell.html 

In my humble opinion...  something just doesn't sound right here.  I am one who will take a "wait and see" attitude.  I would have hoped though, if Fr. Corapi is innocent of these charges, that he would do whatever it takes, persevere through whatever trials face him - and clear his name.  To just leave casts some doubt, in my mind at least - but I know not the details and I am not his judge.

In JMJ,
Scott<<<

Fr. Corapi's Own Words: