Three good questions

Saw three good questions in NCR today - at the end of an article by Sr. Maureen Paul Turlish., S.N.D.deN (Church leaders are spinning their wheels (I'd call it Church leaders are still spinning)):

• What are the systemic and endemic flaws in church structure and governance that gave rise to the continuing crisis of sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic church?
• What was it that gave bishops and their subordinates the idea that they had license to act with such utter abandon and disregard for the safety and protection of children; their bodies as well as their souls?
• And is it really necessary for bishops to call down God's wrath on another newspaper when what they should be doing is "besieging" their fellow hierarchs to initiate the reform and renewal that is so necessary?
• Have they learned so little in eight years?

Good questions indeed. Are you reading this oh faithful spinmeister of the Diocese of Toledo?

Catholics want to walk with their leaders

Read a great article from NCR on the abuse scandal. Not big fan of NCR because of it's obvious progressive position (which I read as 'defiantly dissenting').

Here's the link: http://ncronline.org/blogs/examining-crisis/abuse-crisis-actually-hierarchy-crisis

Liked this quote especially:

"Catholics want to walk with their leaders, not beneath them. We want to be deeply invested in the pilgrim’s search, not sent on a forced march. We want to be the people of God, not cowed serfs. We want our pastors back. We’ve had quite enough of princes".

Wanted Suppression got Oppression

Today the Holy See via the Holy Father announced the Legion of Christ founded by the sexual predator, Fr. Marcial, would be run by special delegate from the Vatican.

What a miscarriage of justice.

I was hoping for the suppression of the L.C. What I got was more oppression.

Money, as always, speaks real loud.

ORGAN BLESSING PROTEST

Today, my parish dedicated and had its new organ blessed. Indeed the Mass for this event is being celebrated even as I write this Blog entry.

Usually this would be a "so what" event, but this was given significance by the presence of one of the chief engineers of the sexual abuse cover-up and one of the resisters of the investigation into the murder of Sister Margaret, namely, the Vicar General of the Diocese of Toledo, Fr. Michael Billian. He's the main celebrant.

So, in response I put up a small protest: I took my sign with the pic of Sister Margaret and placed in the front yard next to the always present large sign demanding healing and justice for the abuse victims.

I don't expect much of response from those concerned - though a couple of elderly dressed up ladies did briefly stop to a gawk for a moment.

Fr. Billian really shouldn't be in the office he holds nor does he have the right to call himself the "Very Reverend" either. Given what's he done in the sexual abuse cover-up and the cover-up of Sister's murder (and that's not addressing the number of the women whose heart he's broken by abusing them via an unequal relationship) it would be better if he'd be a real man; publicly own up to all he's done; resign his diocesan office and ask the bishop to assign him to some very impoverished third world religious order where he can work out his penance for the rest of his life by laboring way out in the bush area of some remote region of the world.

But I know that'll only happen in my dreams. So, I protest where I can and when I can.