It is really disheartening that in all the process and reflections about sexual abuse aired in the Nov. 25 B.C. Catholic, there is not one word about the real cause of sex abuse, namely the lack of proclaiming and living faith and morals as taught by our Lord, Jesus Christ.
Jesus is God! He will come again to judge the living and the dead! There will be a separation of the sheep and the goats; the one will go into eternal bliss, the other into eternal torment. When did we last hear this proclaimed in a homily? Since my conversion 45 years ago into the Catholic Church I have never heard it.
Common sense tells us sex abuse is a severe transgression against love, and this is the scandal, but we are told by the Case Review Committee that what “calls into question the integrity of the institution of the Catholic Church” is, foremost, clericalism, hierarchicalism, and the exclusion of women in Church leadership (Page S-3).
It is a shame that the sex abuse crisis is being used to attack the Christ-instituted male, clerical, and hierarchical constitution of his Church.
Gerlinde Elsbett
Powell River
The Archdiocese of Vancouver has published a list of credibly accused priests. This is a start.
But most sexual abuse allegations never get to court. To be victim sensitive, the report should have mentioned the allegations numerically or by category. Here is why:
• Not acknowledging all is demeaning to the survivors. It’s like their complaint isn’t there.
• A survivor sees a number and has hope that his allegation is within the total. Survivors need to feel they are not alone.
• Survivors’ trust in the faith community has been shattered. Numbers and categories might prove a catalyst for bringing survivors together within our faith community.
• Survivors whose souls have been crushed are not being acknowledged in a way that will help them develop a personal relationship with God now. Vindication may be down the road, but healing should be now.
This Case Review Committee was driven by lawyers and not the survivors on it.
Randy Castellarin
Vancouver
I am responding to the Nov. 25 B.C. Catholic coverage of the sexual abuse report.
In elementary school I was sexually abused by a Christian brother, which had a horrible impact on my entire life. My family knows about this. I have no more hate in my soul; I just feel sorry for the pedophiles. I blame the Church, which because of pressure is finally addressing this issue.
My question is: when a priest confesses sexual abuse, his sins are forgiven, but he could abuse again. The buck should not stop there. The confessor should report this to the authorities. What is Pope Francis going to change in that regard?
May God bless the Church.
Jack Hille
Surrey
(Church law prevents a priest under the gravest obligation from revealing the contents of a confession, and priests and bishops say they will face jail rather than comply with civil law forcing them to violate the seal of confession. Some priests say they would urge anyone who confessed to abuse to report themselves to the police. Despite all the investigations into clerical sexual abuse worldwide, there is no data suggesting sacramental confession is being used to facilitate or perpetuate sexual abuse of minors – Editor)
