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Bad News From Rome
CRISIS Magazine—e-Letter
June 4, 2002
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Dear Reader,
I have some bad news for you. I know, you’ve gotten all you can take for a while. But still, this is important, and you won’t be hearing it anywhere else.
I just got back from a visit to Rome and the Vatican. On the bright side, the weather was great and the city is as beautiful as ever.
Unfortunately, that’s where the good news ends.
My reason for the trip was to talk to Vatican officials about the sexual abuse scandal in the United States. Just like you, I’ve been wondering why Rome doesn’t seem to be doing anything about it.
Well, I found out. And the report isn’t so good. Here’s what I learned…
Most of the high-level Curia officials think there really IS no scandal. They told me it’s just another case of media bias against the Church… that secular news reporters are just blowing things out of proportion. They say, rightly enough, that the Church doesn’t have any more pedophiles than any other institution. In fact, one official commented that there have always been sexual scandals in the Church, and the Church is always going to be subject to sin, so why are we so concerned?
Why are we so concerned?! Let me see… It might have something to do with the Church authorities’ denial of the real problem — namely, predatory homosexuals in the priesthood. Or we might be concerned because no one in the Church seems to be steppingg up to the plate to lead us out of this mess. Or maybe we’re a little upset by the cover-up culture that’s been growing in the chancery offices.
And when you throw in the fact that the Curia doesn’t think there’s a scandal to begin with… well… I’d say we have a pretty good reason to be concerned.
But it gets worse.
Apparently, the scandal in the U.S. didn’t even register with Vatican leadership until an Italian newspaper happened to mention it in May. May! That’s almost 6 months after the crisis erupted on the front page of the Boston Globe (and became the lead story on all the major news programs).
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I asked if the Curia ever followed the news in the U.S. and was told about the Vatican’s “peninsula thinking.” That means that if an issue doesn’t affect Italy, it doesn’t affect them.
I tried to explain things from the American Catholic perspective, but they tried to shush me by repeating again that the Catholic Church has no more pedophiles in the priesthood than any other group of males.
“Fine,” I said. “But the problem ISN’T pedophilia… The real problem is active homosexuals preying on post pubescent children and bishops covering it up.”
No response.
Needless to say, I came away from Rome with little hope for the upcoming Dallas meeting of the bishops. The April 24th Vatican communiqué, following the Pope’s meeting with the American cardinals, put the ball squarely in the U.S. bishops’ court.
Of course, there has been no real leadership here, either.
“The bishops are divided on these issues,” I was told by a high-level official, who wanted to remain anonymous. “Their divisions are going to become even more apparent at that meeting.”
Another member of the Curia predicted that “unless some bishop or group of bishops takes firm leadership at that meeting, the results will be very disappointing.”
After my meeting with the Curia, I’m not holding my breath.
Best,
Deal