The abscess had to burst for Church to heal

By Bishop Edward Adams

The Church is theandric (that is, divine and human) and from time to time the “andric” part needs purification. Through the ages we have seen how God purified the Church — the People of God — through his prophets.

We have clearly seen in recent times how God is purifying the human side of the Church. It started with Pope John XXIII calling for an ecumenical council in order to “update” the Church. We know of the seismic shocks this event caused in the Church.

Pope John’s successor, Paul VI, said that the role of the Church is to evangelise: “The Church exists to evangelise.” After Paul VI, Pope John Paul II emphasised the holiness of the Church by canonising hundreds of saints of all walks of life, men and women.

Pope Benedict tells us that if the Church is to grow in love, then faith and reason must be finely balanced.

A salient sign of the times is the purification of the priests and religious, because priests play such a pivotal role in the sanctification of the other members.

The recent exposure of sexual abuse of children and others by priests is seen as a big scandal, and rightly so. It is, however, a sign of God’s purification of his Church.

We have seen in the public media what happened in the United States where, because of priests abusing children sexually over a period of time, dioceses were sued into bankruptcy. In Ireland, the government instigated an inquiry into sexual abuse of children by priests and religious in their institutes over the past 30 years and the findings were shocking and sad.

This purification is like a burst abscess on the way to healing. An abscess can be very painful, but, once the pus is released, the healing process begins. Therefore it was no coincidence but inspiration that Pope Benedict declared June 2009 to June 2010 the Year of the Priest. It is God’s way of renewing his Church.

To take the analogy of the abscess again, one abscess can cause the body so much pain, in the same way a few unfaithful priests have caused the priesthood so much damage. The Year of the Priest gives us all an opportunity to reflect more deeply on the pivotal role the priest plays in the daily life of the Church. He acts in the Person of Christ.

The Church is divine and human, it is the divine part of the Church that will always see us through. Jesus said: “I will be with you always until the end of time” (Mt 28:20).

This should be our consolation, do not look too much at the human side of the priest but look at the divine side he represents. To priests I say: “Let us remember each other at his altar.” To others I say: “Pray for your priests.”

Bishop Adams heads the diocese of Oudtshoorn.