Catholics, No Communal Guilt Trip is Needed

by Letters Editor · June 30, 2017

In the light of the recent announcement that charges have been laid against Cardinal Pell for sexual abuse, we revisit the wise words of the late Fr Bonaventure Hinwood.

From Bonaventure Hinwood OFM, Pretoria – There is an urgent need for the child sexual abuse issue to be brought into perspective.

What we are dealing with is a small percentage of clergy and religious guilty of abuse, normally given as 1,5% compared with the usual figure of 10% for the general population. There is small percentage of bishops and Vatican officials involved in cover-ups. I have seen no statistics, but I doubt if it is as much as 3%.

This does not excuse or minimise the hurt and damage caused to individual victims. But we are dealing with a small fraction of the Catholic clergy. The Church does not tolerate, let alone encourage, child abuse.

Even though some news reports have tried to create this impression, it does not seem to me to justify opinions like people having left the Church because the dimension of the scandal was too much of a betrayal for them (your editorial Why remain a Catholic? of April 28).

Bishops, and even the pope, apologising in the name of the Catholic Church have fuelled such misconceptions.

In a family of four adult children, if one of them commits adultery, no one expects the father to apologise on behalf of the family, or the whole family to wear purple ribbons. Nor is the family written off as immoral.

It is the priests and religious who have misbehaved who need to apologise. It is the bishops and superiors who have covered up who must express their regret and make amends.

The rest of the Church needs to show compassion to the victims and help them in every way possible, but not to take on the blame.

The Catholic Church is not guilty, nor are the pope and the rest of the bishops, clergy and religious. They have no reason to hang their heads in shame or to apologise. There is no need for Catholics to go on a communal guilt trip. Updated from 2010